I’m talking about gearing up to watch the Summer Olympics, of course, not about traveling to China with your children. My advice for far-away travel with children can best be summed up via two-pronged approach: 1) Just don’t do it, or 2) Benadryl. So, yeah, if you’re actually going to Beijing for the Olympics, have a wonderful time, but I have no suggestions on how to make that a smoother trip. Good luck!
But, if you—like most of us—are getting ready to spend some quality time with your kids and your television, starting tomorrow, that I can probably help you with. See, most children will react to the idea of watching sporting events on TV rather than cartoons or kids’ bands with a mixture of horror and confusion. Why would you want to do that, they would ask, if only they could articulate the question through their displeasure. But after years of experience, I’ve learned how to convince my children that watching the Olympics is just about the coolest. thing. ever.
My secret? I go for the sports that are just plain cool to watch, regardless of your age or favorites. When trying to cajole your kids into watching with you, ask yourself which events are most likely to pique their interest. Check out the complete list and you’ll find it’s pretty easy to decide. Swimming, for example, is something the kids do, but isn’t all that much fun to watch. Diving, on the other hand, is always fascinating, plus it has the advantage of having some very young contenders (which is always a draw for kids).
Need some more ways to get the kids psyched for the Olympic games? Here’s some online resources for kid-friendly fun:
- eHow has links to plenty of Olympic-themed printables.
- Surfing the Net With Kids has picked some kid-friendly Olympics sites.
- Reading is Fundamental suggests books and crafts to go with your Olympic fever.
If only there was some way to have the great kids’ shows you already love somehow spawn other great shows your kids would love, and then you’d be able to flip on the television and reason, “Well, we already enjoy X, certainly we’ll like Y, as well!”
Every now and then I come across another blog where I feel like I’ve met some kindred spirits. Usually it’s a place where someone confesses to letting their kids eat food they’ve dropped on the floor or something like that. (Uhhhh… not that I’ve ever done such a thing. Gross! But it makes me feel better about my own less-than-stellar parenting moments.)
I’ll tell you right up front, here, that neither of my children are teens. Nor will they ever be. I mean, I assume they will eventually become teens whether I agree with it or not, but as soon as my oldest hits the teenage years I fully intend to enter the Witness Protection Program, thereby missing most of whatever it is that teens do to their parents. (This is not a frivolous plan. It isn’t. Hey, who asked you, anyway?)
Do you know what you’re doing this Sunday?