My kids are NOT perfect

I have noticed, through different online communities and some of my kid's classmates, that a lot of parents are striving for their kids to BE perfect. There are some parents that want their kids to be the BRIGHTEST and BEST at everything they ever try their hand at. Some parents are pushing their kids so far that they are losing out on the true magic of childhood. I am here to tell you...I am not one of those parents!


Take Isaac for example: While it's true that he is a math whiz and his reading comprehension skills ROCK the house--the truth of the matter is that he's NOT a pure genius at everything he tries. I know-- shocking right?!?! But it's true. His handwriting is barely legible. His last Social Studies test tells me that that isn't his forte. He couldn't ice skate to save his life!! He doesn't like to admit when he's wrong. He is demanding and a bit hard to please. He's stubborn as all get out!! He's a procrastinator. He is bossy when it comes to his brother and sister-thinking they should do and be and act exactly as he wants them to. He's very good at baseball, it's his passion!! But he isn't the best player on the field and he's certainly not going to grow up to play for the major leagues.  

Maia is AWESOME!! Everyone that meets her says it's true. She's sweet and empathetic and smart as a whip. What does that saying mean anyway, smart as a whip? Are whips smart? I may need to look into that further. But I digress, Maia isn't perfect either!! She is struggling a bit with her multiplication tables. Her teacher thinks she knows them, but I see her counting on her fingers (and sometimes toes) when she thinks no one is looking:) I know exactly what she is doing because...well...I do the same thing! She is also just a smidge impatient. Wanting what she wants RIGHT NOW! She could possibly also get that from me...shhhh, don't tell anyone:) She has ZERO coordination. She can't do a handstand or a cartwheel! She has fun trying though. The girl CAN'T sing. For realz. She can't:) She likes to sing though. She does it and she does it loud. But she'll NEVER get a golden ticket to Hollywood per American Idol.

Asher is a genius!!! Well according to Andy anyways. We haven't actually had him tested or anything important like that! He may actually just be average:) He is doing very well in Kindergarten so far though sooooo you never know!! I tend to side with my husband on all things important, so we're gonna just go with his opinion of genius here:) Asher is also a bit melodramatic. He can turn anything into a very very big deal. He doesn't have a lot of confidence in himself and he worries way way too much about what others think of him (sigh...not unlike someone else that I happen to be very familiar with). The truth is though that Asher is still so young. I have no idea where his talents really lie. I think I have a couple of really good ideas but things can change quickly at this age. I also have no real idea of where he will be not quite so talented. Only time will tell.  

The point is is that I won't push Asher or Maia or Isaac to be anything other than who they are. They won't be great at all things...and I think that's okay!!  Isaac is NEVER going to be a skater. We have friends who are AWESOME skaters but Isaac just isn't.  Maia is never going to have a great singing voice. I'm not going to force her to take voice lessons so she can better herself in that area. I'm never going to make Asher play a sport or instrument if he doesn't want to. I will make him find SOMETHING that interests him but it'll be something that interests him...not something that interests me.

Don't get me wrong. I think extracurriculars are very very important. I think it's a fabulous idea to keep kids busy so that they don't get involved with the wrong crowd. I think it's my job to help my kids develop any natural talent that God has graced them with. I think it's insanely important to be actively involved in my kid's schoolwork. We go over Maia's multiplication tables every. single. night. But I'm not going to punish her for not being a math whiz either. I'm not going to put too much pressure on any of them to be something that they're not. I'm not going to drive them all over town making them take every lesson under the sun until they're so burnt out that they can't just be kids. I know that sounds ridiculous but I have SEEN it.  That is not the life I want for my kids.

I want my kids to come home from school and to play. I want them to set up Army men in the basement and act out battles. I want them to spend hour upon hour building Lego bases so that they can make stop motion shorts. I want Maia to imagine herself in a time period with her American Girl dolls. I want them to run in the sun and to climb trees. I want to hear them giggling as they jump on the trampoline. Of course I want to them to develop their talents. That's why we pay for piano lessons and baseball clinics!! That's why we study and read books with them every night. But I don't want them thinking that they have to PERFECT at everything they ever do. If we were ALL good at everything we EVER did then NO ONE would be UNIQUE. We'd all be like perfect little robots with NOTHING special to add to the World. Nope, I'll take my imperfect kids--because I think their imperfections make them PERFECTLY THEM :) And I love them JUST as they are!!