How many clubs is too many? (Lighthearted)

[dontcomeatme]

Inspired by nearly every thread I read. How many days a week is your DC in a club of some sort? My friend, for example, has 3 kids and they each do something nearly every night and they're all in different locations. So even though both parents drive, they need a grandparent and/or an aunt to help with clubs. Is this not excessive? 😬 Shouldn't kids learn to be bored or how to entertain themselves at home? I remember growing up we only attended a dance club on a Saturday morning, and my brother did football twice a week. However, we all had to get the bus to our clubs independently. The rest of the time we played outside, eating berries and playing stupid games. My oldest is only 2.5yo but I'm dreading the club phase if this is the expectation? What's it like in your household? Something every day or once a week? Also, how is everyone affording all the clubs 😭 my 2yo does swimming on a Saturday, none negotiable for the forseeable, but that's £40 a month already. We are on the wait list for Tumble Tots and that's another £40 pcm. We put their CB into their own accounts and that pays for their clubs. But we wouldn't be able to go over this amount!
YABU - Kids should go to clubs every day possible
YANBU - Once/twice a week is fine and doing one nearly every day is excessive and stressful for parents.
I would be worried multiple clubs like this sets an expectation on the child to think they need constant entertainment 😬 ain't nobody got time for that!

Ps. This post is not about wraparound care or after shool clubs for childcare purposes. My friends DC for example go to ballet, drama, gymnastics, brownies, rainbows, swimming, football, karate, and now violin lessons 🥴

Now I want a purple club 😭 forgot about these!

Really depends on the child, I think. Mine is one who needs to be busy and active at all times, is very sociable, and never gets tired, so she does clubs because a) she loves them and b) for our sanity. Our next door neighbour's daughter is an introvert and very happy entertaining herself so doesn't do much. Very different children. As others have said, if they get into something the clubs ramp up quite quickly. Mine is 10 now and does:

Monday - swimming (club -drive to this)
Tuesday - piano lesson (at school), tutoring (temporary for 11+, drive to this)
Wednesday - nothing
Thursday - choir (at school), ballet, tap and street dance (at school), guides (very close to home, 2 min walk)
Friday - swimming (club - drive to this)
Saturday - musical theatre (very close to home, 5 min walk)

There are also swimming galas and musical theatre shows, dance exams, guide camps etc, so it does take up a fair amount of time and money. Luckily we only have one child as it wouldn't be manageable with another one doing the same. Luckily most are either at school directly before or after school, or a short walk from home.

She is leaning very much towards the performing arts so I can see her dropping swimming and piano by the time she starts secondary and concentrating on the singing/ dancing/ drama stuff.

We wanted to let her try out lots of things so she has done other clubs in the past (not all at the same time!) Swimming lessons were non-negotiable but now she swims for a club which takes up more time.

Depends on the child. Mine does the same hobby 6 days a week. He begs me to go on the 7th (when it isn't running). Some kids would be exhausted by this. Totally relative.

Honestly? The number of clubs is up to you. The only thing is that if you are reliant on someone else being able to help out then it might bite you. I remember a thread where someone’s SIL had signed her children up to the same club on the expectation that the poster would take that child with her own … and the poster was cross about it.

What is awkward is when you have decided that, if anything, your child should drop an activity and a friend whose children do even more clubs tries to convince you to sign him / her up for an extra one (within earshot of your child). It’s a delicate business, making it clear that you really can’t fit ice climbing and llama racing in as well without conveying that you think her children are absurdly overscheduled.

Yeah that's where my friend struggles, it's totally doable with 1 child, but 2, 3 and 4 kids just seem unmanageable in this instance x

We have nobody near to help, refuse to do activities on a weekend so we can protect family time and I work until at least 5.30 so logistics are not easy but one of my kids does 9 different activities after school and music lessons in school 😂 it’s a bit much so we are dropping 2 in September and another 1 after Christmas. Another of my kids does only 2 ‘fun’ activities and after school club twice a week. Which is probably not enough so we’re looking at another club for them.

My DDs used to be at clubs or activities four nights a week… it was exhausting! Music, art, swimming, trampolining and on and on … and then one day I just said enough and didn’t renew all the subscriptions. And we lived happily every after 😂

You are my new inspiration 🤣🤣

Aged 5 and 6 mine did 14 activities plus both learned the piano and oldest was learning the cornet.
Thankfully we moved and I didn’t allow it to get so high again.

I thought you meant Jacobs orange club biscuits. I was going to say one is no good because you just want more, two is great, three is perfect and four is too much.

Mumsnet take a hint, we need the laugh reaction back 😅