Chapter 22: Kids, Tweens, and Teens: Fun Activities for the Whole Family 345
When you go to the mall, do you and your kids spend more time in the
food court than you do strolling around? If so, consider eating before
heading out the door and/or walking two laps around the entire mall
before heading into any stores. Or reward yourselves for getting through
your holiday shopping by stopping at the Y for a swim or a game of pick-
up basketball.
Is the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day a routine of too
many cookies and candies, rich holiday meals, and inactivity? What hap-
pens if you just don’t buy or make any holiday treats, focusing instead
on stocking up on holiday fruits, such as sweet, delicious Clementine
tangerines or Pink Lady apples? And how about if you spend holiday
mornings taking a brisk walk (with snowshoes, in certain climates) or
going sledding? Can you invite your teen’s friends over for a basketball
or Ping-Pong tournament on Thanksgiving afternoon?“Tradition” doesn’t have to be synonymous with “unhealthy habits.” Instead,
talk to your teen about how, together, you can change your routine in fun,
creative ways. Although you may not be able to pull your family away from
the traditional Thanksgiving football game, you may be able to get your kids
to toss a football around with you during halftime.Letting your teen find his groove
If your teen is active in school sports, you’re facing one of parenting’s tough-
est tests. You have to fully support your child by purchasing equipment and
paying for camps and other sports fees, attending as many events as possible,
giving rides to and from practices, and so on. But after that, you have to back
off. No matter how badly you want your child to be the next city swim champ
or earn a sports scholarship to college, no amount of cajoling, pressuring, or
forcing your teen through extra workouts will make that happen.Few kids will grow up to be the next Mia Hamm or Tiger Woods. If your teen
wants to devote herself to one sport and pursue it passionately, support that
without reservation — you’ll spend countless dollars and hours supporting
your child in that endeavor. But if she loses interest or decides to try a vari-
ety of sports, allow her to enjoy that process, because along the way, she’ll
develop lifelong friendships and internalize valuable lessons about teamwork
and etiquette. Very few kids who are forced into one particular sport stick
with it very long.If your child opts out of school sports completely, you have a rare opportu-
nity on your hands to work out together, if she agrees. Choose any activity
that appeals to both of you (from yoga to in-line skating and everything in
between), make sure you both have the best equipment you can afford, and
focus on having fun together — not so much on heart rate, workout intensity,
and calories burned.