SoccerTots AND swimsafe already?

My girls are about to be 19 months old and are not easily corralled. But I thought about putting them in SoccerTots (starts at 18 months old) but wasn't really going to do it until I got a flyer last week stating it will now be offered less than a mile from my house! It's once a week for 50 minutes and is not a team, but helps develop activity skills, etc, and the youngest age group 18-24 months, the parents are required to be present and participate. I guess I'm supposed to keep them in line. Wow, well with me being a single mom, I emailed the coordinator back and asked if there needed to be 1 parent or 2 parents present for twins, and he recommended 2. So my mother will go with me and act as the 2nd parent, but I'm wondering if I should just wait maybe a year before putting them into this.

There is one thing that they will definitely be enrolled in this summer and that is baby swim safe. It may be controversial, but it will enable my children to save their own lives if they ever fall or are pushed into water. This is M-F 10 minutes a day per child, for an average of 4-6 weeks. Should I go ahead and start with the soccertots or just wait til they get past the swim safe and are more mature to be able to handle soccer better? What kind of activities do you have planned for your little ones any time soon?

 

i was thinking of braving story time at the library this spring. maybe. :laughing:

i think you can always try it & see how they do. they may love it or they may hate it. no big deal either way. maybe find out from the coordinator if you can get a partial refund if you decide not to complete the soccertots program. i expect they'll let you know if it's too much.

i can't speak to the swim safe as i don't know much about it, but if you feel it's important & worth while than i would say go for it.

 

Soccertots sounds fun, and a good way for them to burn off some energy!! My girls started Dance (Ballet/Tap Combo) at 18 mos. and it was a Mommy and Me Set-up, and they loved it. A lot of times I took them by myself because my DH is a firefighter and he would have to work. It was/is a really good way to get out of the house, let them interact and play with other kids, take instruction from other adults, and build their gross motor skills. Good Luck!!

 

If I had a soccer tots program around me, I would definitely sign my kids up. I think they could learn a lot and enjoy it. I say go for it!
We did swim lessons over the summer and my kids did enjoy them as well. If we had ISR closer, I would sign them up for it.
Good luck with your decision!

 

Sounds like a lot of fun! You'll discover it's just a great way to get them outside with others while playing a game. I wouldn't over think it. Swim class will be great too. My DH wanted them in swim at 6 months but you needed one parent per child (unfair for us moms of twins!) So this summer we are going to join a weekend class. All these activites are fun for the kids...It's only work for us

 

It sounds like a fun program. I know my boys would love it since they already like running around and kicking balls (much to their Daddy's chagrin :laughing: ) and everything else.

Of course, this is coming from the Mom who took her kids to library time when they were 3 or 4 months old. We haven't done many activities over the past year or so since they moved library time to Wednesday and the boys are notorious for running around.

I think it's great for kids, especially kids like mine who are not in day care or don't get much time around other children.

 

We are doing a salsa tots class starting in a couple weeks (we did Salsa Babies prior to this) we are also enrolled in our third swimming lesson starting this Sunday (DH comes with me) and the girls love it! I say go for them both.

When I took my girls to Salsa Babies everyone else there only had a singleton but if I needed an extra hand they were more than willing to help as well as the instructor would dance with one baby if really necessary, they were all so helpful!

 

My first thought is..wow, 50 minutes, that's a long time to keep an attention span. My girls are in ballet for 45 and it's hard for them to keep them focused the whole time and they are 4. If you do it, don't be surprised if they aren't all that in to it for the full time. I know that it isn't a team thing..which is a plus..but if it were me, I would wait. What if your mom can't go to every session, are you prepared to chase two around for 50 minutes (not all parents are willing to help out when they are watching their own)..which is most likely what you will be doing? I don't want to be a Debbie Downer, I just think 50 minutes is a super long time for that age. I've had my daughters and my son enrolled in activities such as this and it's a lot of work for the parent to keep them focused for that amount of time. I guess I'm being a devil's advocate, but if it costs a lot, I'd wait. The swim activity sounds awesome, however.

 

I agree with Rachel. At that age 30 min. was pretty much the max of our attention span for any single thing. Mine did do a music class and Gymboree, but both of those moved quickly from one activity to another to keep their attention. You have plenty of time for them to do soccer. They really aren't going to be any better at soccer if they start at 18 months than if you wait until they are 4 or 5.