An after school activity a day will drive Mummy into debt!

Something that I do everyday is to get my news from the BBC Website and it was there that I cam across this article - BBC NEWS Education Join a new club: 'Am I bovvered?' - about why Teenagers are no longer attending clubs and groups as was the norm in the past and how they can now separate children into different categories according to if they go to out of school groups.

No kidding Sherlock? You mean shy children don't like to socialise with others? Jeeps, next you'll tell me that kids with a passion for a specific interest join clubs/groups to do with that area of interest... oh wait you do about half way down the article.

Couple this with a Tweet from Laura (Who I know from her lovely and funny and informative website http://www.arewenearlythereyetmummy.com) and who is also on Twitter (I follow her you know, I like to hang out with the cool kids, hoping it might rub off some day) about the Rainbows uniform being rather erm expensive and you have me sitting on the sofa all night wondering about Top Ender and Baby Boy and if they do enough social activities so that they will turn out to be balanced, well rounded, individuals who will contribute to this world in the future.

In the past Top Ender has wanted to join Ballet lessons, (which we couldn't afford so we brought her a DVD), Horse riding lessons (she was too young and we couldn't afford it anyway), Cheer leading (we couldn't afford it), and join a theatre group too (yup you guessed it we could afford it either).

Every week however she does go swimming with Daddy and attends the Library with me and Baby Boy and we try to do at least one fun family activity together at the weekend. Of course there are other activities at home such as painting, drawing, singing, dancing, gardening, walking, reading, jumping and a lot of other things that ends with an "ing" and are normally exhausting for me, but not her.

In July Top Ender wanted to join Rainbows (a feeder group to Brownies as I understand it) as a girl in her class had come to show and tell with the Ready for Rainbows book. I looked at the budget that Daddy and I had drawn up and knew there was some manoeuvrability and we could afford it (at long last!) and so made the needed calls. It was almost the end of term and so the group leader and I felt it would be better if she started in September, which she will.

It was also at this time that I signed her up for some Swimming Lessons at the local pool. Top Ender can swim, it is just she doesn't have the confidence in herself, or rather in the water, and the "slowly-deflating-the-arm-bands" method wasn't working. Also I could afford this as the lovely Government scheme offering free swimming to children meant that the part of the budget assigned to weekly swim sessions with Daddy was going spare!

But what about Baby Boy? I should take him to a Mother and Toddler group yeah? Well the last Mummy that I made friends with became a bit odd and overly competitive (see my post here Baby Versus Baby) and this has put me off a bit, plus I'm actually really shy, but I bet you wouldn't realise it as fake it 'til you make it is my motto, (although I've been faking for about twenty years now and still not made it!) and I smile a lot.

I am going to be signing up for Mummy and Me swim lessons for him and I in September and maybe there we will meet a Mummy and Toddler who can be our friends (or maybe not!) so for now I have to be content with my children growing up being able to swim and just hope for the other areas to round off nicely.

So let me ask you what do you do? More importantly what do you think I should do!