Dance, Track, Saddles Sores, and More…
Kids schedule is often something something that is harder to solve than quantum physics. Planning for this weekend has turned into one such nightmare. My oldest was invited to attend a track meet with her team at Virginia Tech University. She also just happens to have a dance performance scheduled for Friday night…the same night she is supposed to already be in Virginia Tech with the rest of her track crew. Here was my approach to trying to solve this crazy problem:
1. Was there a way to have her do both?
The requirements (from her) was she wanted to ride the bus with the team down to VT and stay in the hotel. I think the added benefit of not going to school on Friday was hidden in there as well. In order for her to ride the bus, she would have to actually be at VT during the day Friday. Which is all good except the fact she needs to get back to DC for her dance performance. This means I would have to pick her up and take her to dance. Wait a minute…I’ll let that soak in for a minute. Yes, drive over 4 hours to pick someone up! We would have to drive down (4 hours), pick her up and bring her back to the DC area (4 hours), then after dance, drive her back to VT (you got it, 4 more hours). That is insane….and not happening!
Ok, for argument’s sake, let’s just say we let that happen. So, she goes to VT with her team on the bus, hangs out for a few hours and then we do the whole long distance pick up thing. She is scheduled to dance at ~9:30pm! Therefore, by the time she gets back to VT, it will be well into early morning hours on Saturday. She can’t creep into the hotel (after curfew) in the wee hours of the night. Beyond that, what really is the point of staying in the hotel now? Everyone is asleep.
So, the hotel is out. She would get the bus ride and I would get saddle sores from driving back and forth across Virginia. Doesn’t make a lot of sense.
2. She has to choose one or the other…both is not feasible
Going this route seems to be the only logical option. So now it’s a matter of her making the decision. She is old enough that she should be able to make these decisions and live with them. But, she needs to understand the ramifications of doing so. What will her two friends she dances with think about it? How will they feel? How would she feel if the same thing happened to her? Now, this dance performance is the first of the season and is just one trio, but they have been working on it for some time. But, they will get to do the dance many times in the upcoming season so there are other opportunities. I told her to text her closest friend of the trio and get her feel for it. How would she feel if she was unable to do it since she was selected for a track meet that wasn’t planned? Of course the texting ensued.
My strategy as a Dad was pretty simple:
- Try to figure out a way to make it happen – is there something that can be done where both events can go off as planned? Of course it needs to be reasonable. Driving 12 hours back and forth across Virginia is NOT reasonable.
- When it just can’t happen, provide your daughter with all the information she needs to make the decision – Life is not always simple. You have to make decisions and you have to sacrifice. She’s been very lucky over the years where balancing all of her passions works out and she’s able to jump between them. This is one of those times where it just doesn’t work out. You need to give them all the data points they need in order to make an informed decision. What are the ramifications of the decision, how will her friends feel, etc.
Welcome to the wonderful life of teen daughters with activities out the wazoo. (I believe that is how you spell wazoo). Employing these basic techniques hopefully provides you with some help in figuring out how to go at a problem that seems insurmountable.
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