What to do with a 10 year old who wants to quit?

[tomASS]

I'm not above giving those "righties" a little chin music.

You pickin' up what I'm layin' down?!

I crowd the plate (mostly the dinner) .....go for it!
I have Tony Olivia disease - trouble hanging on to the bat when I swing- always goes in the direction of the pitcher

[Lily Braden]

This is sort of off topic, but I think it has to do with burn-out...how many of your kids do other things DURING hockey season?

Mine plays an instrument and now that he's in middle school, he's talking about all sort of other clubs and things he wants to join as well.
He's not burned out at all in hockey (in fact, played spring, summer and quit football so he could play more hockey in the fall), but he wants to do other stuff, too...like robotics and computers. He already plays lacrosse and golf. Plus, money doesn't grow on trees.

I told him I didn't think there was time for something else...since school comes first. Without pushing him, I'm hoping he keeps up with the instrument. We live in a big hockey town and the chances that he'll make the high school team are probably slim and none. And I noticed that in high school, the band and orchestra take trips overseas. So even if he doesn't end up on the high school team come true, if he sticks with an instrument, he could end up going to Greece or Hawaii for 10 days. Which wouldn't suck.

Do any of your kids do anything other than sports...is it possible to juggle something other than hockey during the season, along with school, as they get older? I worry that when/if burn-out or getting cut from the team finally happens, he won't have anything else to fall back on.

Parents with older kids...what do you think?

[tomASS]

(read the politcal thread in the The Cafe... the guys in there will tell you
I did nothing but scream, and yell, and cry

This I believe !

hey look at me I could be part of the mainstream "sport" reporters standing on the left hand side of the printing press the way I reported your quote.

[tomASS]

This is sort of off topic, but I think it has to do with burn-out...how many of your kids do other things DURING hockey season?

Mine plays an instrument and now that he's in middle school, he's talking about all sort of other clubs and things he wants to join as well.
He's not burned out at all in hockey (in fact, played spring, summer and quit football so he could play more hockey in the fall), but he wants to do other stuff, too...like robotics and computers. He already plays lacrosse and golf. Plus, money doesn't grow on trees.

I told him I didn't think there was time for something else...since school comes first. Without pushing him, I'm hoping he keeps up with the instrument. We live in a big hockey town and the chances that he'll make the high school team are probably slim and none. And I noticed that in high school, the band and orchestra take trips overseas. So even if he doesn't end up on the high school team come true, if he sticks with an instrument, he could end up going to Greece or Hawaii for 10 days. Which wouldn't suck.

Do any of your kids do anything other than sports...is it possible to juggle something other than hockey during the season, along with school, as they get older? I worry that when/if burn-out or getting cut from the team finally happens, he won't have anything else to fall back on.

Parents with older kids...what do you think?

mine has trouble juggling homework

[mnhcp]

Govs, big difference between quitting in-season and dropping the sport entirely. Sure sounds like you chose to play. Just not that day. I think your dad did the right thing, especially considering your reaction was emotional.

His kid has been going through the motions for a year and admitted he continues to play because he knows his father wants him to.

I would say that it sounds like the kid is going through the motions because other kids are improving their Wii skills and he's not keeping up. As parent, you know what's wrong and right, and I have no reason to believe that Looper is any different. The fact that he's even asking for some validation tells me that he does.

He doesn't want his son turning into a couch potato, despite the fact that he'd let himself if given the choice. Have you seen the graphics on Wii? what kid wouldn't let himself turn into a couch potato?!

Dmom is probably on the right track... maybe you back off him a little bit. Don't send him to camps, cut back to a lower level so that he stays in and during the summer, introduce him to golf, or baseball, or have him take a video game design class at the Science Museum... Just cut back the hockey workload.

About 4 times today I composed an email then deleting it as I didn't want to be offensive. I know this is serious and I fear it too in my household.

However, each email was more along Gov's line.

What's he going to do with his time?

I'd offer some options like: FT Mathnasium, Piano Lessons, Basketball and many others. He must promise to offset his non hockey time with something else positive! ( a little sarcasm as some of you just dont' get that stuff)

Get rid of the Wii, cable and computer. Not as punishment, tell him times are tough and they broke.

My guess whether you see it or not, how's his schooling doing?

Does his mom complain all the time in front of him about "all this hockey" in a negative tone?

Buy some Wild season tickets, get tickets to the Wrigley outdoor hockey game this winter, watch Rudy and Miracle. Take every opportunity to teach him the joy of competition. Balance this of course with other opportunities just in case the plan doesn't work.

I know your a good father. I'll be crushed if (and possibly when) my kid does this. Let's be honest, it'll happen to most of our kids at some time or another. With your family it's just happening alot sooner.

I'm really curious on the wife question though?

So I go back to the serious stuff, make sure there's something productive in place of hockey vs blindly agreeing to his wish.

Maybe he'll be a great golfer, a 4.0 student, a great guitar player or something else wonderful. It's not hockey and it's not Wii, help him find his greatness!

[mnhcp]

This is sort of off topic, but I think it has to do with burn-out...how many of your kids do other things DURING hockey season?

Mine plays an instrument and now that he's in middle school, he's talking about all sort of other clubs and things he wants to join as well.
He's not burned out at all in hockey (in fact, played spring, summer and quit football so he could play more hockey in the fall), but he wants to do other stuff, too...like robotics and computers. He already plays lacrosse and golf. Plus, money doesn't grow on trees.

I told him I didn't think there was time for something else...since school comes first. Without pushing him, I'm hoping he keeps up with the instrument. We live in a big hockey town and the chances that he'll make the high school team are probably slim and none. And I noticed that in high school, the band and orchestra take trips overseas. So even if he doesn't end up on the high school team come true, if he sticks with an instrument, he could end up going to Greece or Hawaii for 10 days. Which wouldn't suck.

Do any of your kids do anything other than sports...is it possible to juggle something other than hockey during the season, along with school, as they get older? I worry that when/if burn-out or getting cut from the team finally happens, he won't have anything else to fall back on.

Parents with older kids...what do you think?

Honestly a very beautiful post! I wonder if our schools band goes anywhere cool? I'll have to ck into that.

[coach95]

I think you already know the answer to the question. Listen to your kid and teach him about other things in life.

[O-townClown]

There is a generational divide showing. Adults, more than one, have remarked that they should "get rid of the Wii" or that dropping hockey needs to be offset by some other time-consuming, structured activity.

We disagree.

I'm 40. The real avid players from the video game generation are in the workforce and they are in their 20s. Guess what? They are excellent problem-solvers and don't need to be told exactly what to do. Buy your kid a new game for their Wii, PS3, 360, PSP, Game Boy and watch what they do. They put it in and they play. And they figure it out. This is a good thing.

The best place in my community for kids is the skateboard park. There are no coaches, no parents, and no rules on how to do things. Kids help each other out and they get to have fun on THEIR terms. This is a good thing.

People can do what they want, but I find some of the responses shallow-minded. I'm the same age as Tony Hawk. What's that they say? Find something you like, something you're good at, and it will never feel like work.

At my sister's wedding my mom said, "these are all the kids that never went outside to play," because she married a software engineer. The guest list was everyone he knew. They are having the last laugh, professionally.

The only thing for certain is that things change and most things in moderation won't kill you. I hope I never forget that. People were concerned about my generation when we were kids and I've heard the same from people that grew up in the 60s and 70s. Today's kids are a whole lot brighter than many people give them credit for.

This is a hockey board. Play hockey because you like it. If you don't go do something else.

[DMom]

I kind of like that a burnout thread sort of inevitably turned to what to do to fill the time void that comes when not playing hockey. I read a book, and unfortunately I don't remember the title ( it was actually written to a high school level audience). I picked it up at the library from the new fiction section. It was about a high school player who had gotten his final concussion. He was done playing and probably should have been with the previous concussion. He was lost, his whole identity was wrapped up in being a hockey player. He had memory issues and so was struggling and falling further and further behind his class. He was only a junior and he (fictionally) contemplated suicide. That, on top of the Bloomington Jefferson book, scared me and I started to make it my job to make sure my kids are as well rounded as possible.

I don't know what I am creating with my children, but this is what I tell them. I have never worked as hard to have fun as they do at hockey. Because of this, as long as they are straight A students (no pressure here ) and display some social skills, they can do ANYTHING they want with their free time. If they want to spend ten hours on a rainy Saturday afternoon playing video games, I don't care, especially if they got up at 6am to go to hockey. If they are done for the day they are free. Now, on a sunny day I will encourage them really strongly to get their butts out the door, but I agree, video games are not a horrible thing.

My oldest gave up the trombone because it was impossible to do the homework, hockey practice and the trombone. They also gave up cub scouts, all at about 4th grade. ski club is popular in jr. high in our town. It's every Friday night, hopefully he won't have too many Friday night hockey practices.

As far as kids catching up hockey skill wise, our kids have all been fairly horrible mites. They seem to think it's pointless to chase the puck all over the ice, if they just stay still it will come back to them We've always told them would you rather hit your peak at ten or at fifteen? Would you rather be popular in elementary school or at your law firm when you're thirty ? I think seeing some brightness to the future can get them through some rough times.

You had a bad day on the mound, some day you'll get to bean that little pinhead TA that's been giving you a hard time

[DMom]

That's my way of saying: O'town I agree about video games. Lily I really hope he sticks with the instrument, mine didn't. And TA, your day will come

[Can't Never Tried]

This is sort of off topic, but I think it has to do with burn-out...how many of your kids do other things DURING hockey season?

Mine plays an instrument and now that he's in middle school, he's talking about all sort of other clubs and things he wants to join as well.
He's not burned out at all in hockey (in fact, played spring, summer and quit football so he could play more hockey in the fall), but he wants to do other stuff, too...like robotics and computers. He already plays lacrosse and golf. Plus, money doesn't grow on trees.

I told him I didn't think there was time for something else...since school comes first. Without pushing him, I'm hoping he keeps up with the instrument. We live in a big hockey town and the chances that he'll make the high school team are probably slim and none. And I noticed that in high school, the band and orchestra take trips overseas. So even if he doesn't end up on the high school team come true, if he sticks with an instrument, he could end up going to Greece or Hawaii for 10 days. Which wouldn't suck.

Do any of your kids do anything other than sports...is it possible to juggle something other than hockey during the season, along with school, as they get older? I worry that when/if burn-out or getting cut from the team finally happens, he won't have anything else to fall back on.

Parents with older kids...what do you think?

Lily,
If he ever comes home from his girls friends house when I'm still up I'll ask him what else he does

[mnhcp]

deleted

[mnhcp]

There is a generational divide showing. Adults, more than one, have remarked that they should "get rid of the Wii" or that dropping hockey needs to be offset by some other time-consuming, structured activity.

We disagree.

I'm 40. The real avid players from the video game generation are in the workforce and they are in their 20s. Guess what? They are excellent problem-solvers and don't need to be told exactly what to do. Buy your kid a new game for their Wii, PS3, 360, PSP, Game Boy and watch what they do. They put it in and they play. And they figure it out. This is a good thing.

The best place in my community for kids is the skateboard park. There are no coaches, no parents, and no rules on how to do things. Kids help each other out and they get to have fun on THEIR terms. This is a good thing.

People can do what they want, but I find some of the responses shallow-minded. I'm the same age as Tony Hawk. What's that they say? Find something you like, something you're good at, and it will never feel like work.

At my sister's wedding my mom said, "these are all the kids that never went outside to play," because she married a software engineer. The guest list was everyone he knew. They are having the last laugh, professionally.

The only thing for certain is that things change and most things in moderation won't kill you. I hope I never forget that. People were concerned about my generation when we were kids and I've heard the same from people that grew up in the 60s and 70s. Today's kids are a whole lot brighter than many people give them credit for.

This is a hockey board. Play hockey because you like it. If you don't go do something else.

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

My wife the other day said, we need to buy XXX a skateboard. I said, do you really want to encourage that. Have you seen the kids? Let's steer xxx in another direction which just happened to be band, piano, ski club, soccer, hockey, fitness, biking, golf and homework.

[Dazed&Confused]

My wife and I have had numerous conversations in relation to burnout or desire. As mentioned in previous posts we do expect a commitment for the entire season and to apply themselves. But rarley have ay issues. Holding them back or making them take a break is a challenge. My son get depressed if he doesnt get on the ice at least once a week. What drives our children is still a mystery to me.
I believe the drive for sports is often fueled by the parents or parent. I find myself wanting more from a sport than they do. I do step back. In my opinion you should alow children to find there nitch. Hockey is not the end all If we all lived in Texas Football would be the issue.

[O-townClown]

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

There aren't a lot of kid-friendly places in our suburb. I can't drop my little guy off at the golf course and going there with him is anything but recreation "on his terms". When he skates I watch to see how he relates to the other kids. Since he's in a private elementary school I actually like it that he has to integrate with what you may term scary kids.

When he's older I think there could be risks of falling in with the wrong crowd. However, any problems occur AWAY from the city-owned, closely supervised, lighted skateboard park. I don't see any difference with him hanging out there or me at the outdoor rink four doors down from my parents' house. I remember junior high kids my age trying cigarettes down there and another boy who made himself a screwdriver when he got home from school in 8th grade before he went down to the rink. Same kid started chewing in 6th. How is it any different today? Kids can find trouble. Municipalities built all these skateboard parks to keep kids off the street. It works.

Other communities may have other good options. We don't. At least not that I'm aware of.

[mnhcp]

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

There aren't a lot of kid-friendly places in our suburb. I can't drop my little guy off at the golf course and going there with him is anything but recreation "on his terms". When he skates I watch to see how he relates to the other kids. Since he's in a private elementary school I actually like it that he has to integrate with what you may term scary kids.

When he's older I think there could be risks of falling in with the wrong crowd. However, any problems occur AWAY from the city-owned, closely supervised, lighted skateboard park. I don't see any difference with him hanging out there or me at the outdoor rink four doors down from my parents' house. I remember junior high kids my age trying cigarettes down there and another boy who made himself a screwdriver when he got home from school in 8th grade before he went down to the rink. Same kid started chewing in 6th. How is it any different today? Kids can find trouble. Municipalities built all these skateboard parks to keep kids off the street. It works.

Other communities may have other good options. We don't. At least not that I'm aware of.

That's all basic stuff every kids does: tries a smoke, tries a beer and chews. If that's as bad as it gets, then I'm okay. Usually a right of passage at about 8th or 9th grade. I'm talking "issues" and many aren't even kids. So you have good kids hanging out with 21 yr old skate boarders with tats, pierced noses, goth, their slutty looking girl friends with their out of wedlock kids and the others with the look of "I'm going to prison someday". I'm a firm believer that when good kids hang out with bad kids, the good kids become bad. It's unfortuneate. I normally don't see these type of kids at the outdoor ice rinks and most the time there is a pathetic attendant and someones parent close by. At the skateboard parks everyone is on their own and no parents waiting to pick up there kids. Now before everyone starts getting mad because I'm stereotyping or generalizing, I just want to let you know "I am".

[O-townClown]

We do not see anyone like that at Vans (privately owned in a mall), Orlando Skate Park (municipal), Oviedo Skate Park (municipal), or Cocoa Beach Skate Park (municipal). Plus, 21-year-olds aren't usually keen on corrupting grade schoolers, and the little guys don't yet have the Beavis & Butt-Head infatuation/man-crush on Todd.

I'd be worried about Todd too. Don't see his kind, probably because skateboarding involves a little bit of money. ($150 for a decent board and admission of $3-12 per session.) The college age young adults we see actually interact real well with the little kids and are very supportive when they want to learn new tricks.

Our experiences are wildly different.

I don't think the remedy for over-structured, over-scheduled kids is more structure.

[muckandgrind]

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

My wife the other day said, we need to buy XXX a skateboard. I said, do you really want to encourage that. Have you seen the kids? Let's steer xxx in another direction which just happened to be band, piano, ski club, soccer, hockey, fitness, biking, golf and homework.

We have a skateboard park about 2 blocks from my home and it only attracts the worst sorts of kids. There is quite a bit of trouble there and I see police cars routinely pulling in and out the area....I don't like my kids going up there at all. If they do, I tell them they have an hour and that's it.

[mnhcp]

I don't think the remedy for over-structured, over-scheduled kids is more structure.

I'm doing okay and I put on a pretty good facade in my life but it's a battle. I had NO structure as a kid and how I wish my parents would have fostered that! So much of it goes back to having too much time on my hands and no structure as a kid. A good example of this is right now I'm on this Hockey Board when I should be working.

[Can't Never Tried]

We do not see anyone like that at Vans (privately owned in a mall), Orlando Skate Park (municipal), Oviedo Skate Park (municipal), or Cocoa Beach Skate Park (municipal). Plus, 21-year-olds aren't usually keen on corrupting grade schoolers, and the little guys don't yet have the Beavis & Butt-Head infatuation/man-crush on Todd.

I'd be worried about Todd too. Don't see his kind, probably because skateboarding involves a little bit of money. ($150 for a decent board and admission of $3-12 per session.) The college age young adults we see actually interact real well with the little kids and are very supportive when they want to learn new tricks.

Our experiences are wildly different.

I don't think the remedy for over-structured, over-scheduled kids is more structure.

I'm doing okay and I put on a pretty good facade in my life but it's a battle. I had NO structure as a kid and how I wish my parents would have fostered that! So much of it goes back to having too much time on my hands and no structure as a kid. A good example of this is right now I'm on this Hockey Board when I should be working.

Huh?

[O-townClown]

We have a skateboard park about 2 blocks from my home and it only attracts the worst sorts of kids. There is quite a bit of trouble there and I see police cars routinely pulling in and out the area....I don't like my kids going up there at all. If they do, I tell them they have an hour and that's it.

Sorry to hear that. Am I right that it isn't a municipally-owned park? I know of one privately run indoor park that's pretty bad.

[GR3343]

There is a generational divide showing. Adults, more than one, have remarked that they should "get rid of the Wii" or that dropping hockey needs to be offset by some other time-consuming, structured activity.

We disagree.

I'm 40. The real avid players from the video game generation are in the workforce and they are in their 20s. Guess what? They are excellent problem-solvers and don't need to be told exactly what to do. Buy your kid a new game for their Wii, PS3, 360, PSP, Game Boy and watch what they do. They put it in and they play. And they figure it out. This is a good thing.

The best place in my community for kids is the skateboard park. There are no coaches, no parents, and no rules on how to do things. Kids help each other out and they get to have fun on THEIR terms. This is a good thing.

People can do what they want, but I find some of the responses shallow-minded. I'm the same age as Tony Hawk. What's that they say? Find something you like, something you're good at, and it will never feel like work.

At my sister's wedding my mom said, "these are all the kids that never went outside to play," because she married a software engineer. The guest list was everyone he knew. They are having the last laugh, professionally.

The only thing for certain is that things change and most things in moderation won't kill you. I hope I never forget that. People were concerned about my generation when we were kids and I've heard the same from people that grew up in the 60s and 70s. Today's kids are a whole lot brighter than many people give them credit for.

This is a hockey board. Play hockey because you like it. If you don't go do something else.

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

My wife the other day said, we need to buy XXX a skateboard. I said, do you really want to encourage that. Have you seen the kids? Let's steer xxx in another direction which just happened to be band, piano, ski club, soccer, hockey, fitness, biking, golf and homework.

Q : What's the hardest thing about skateboarding? A : Telling your parents you're gay

[DMom]

There is a generational divide showing. Adults, more than one, have remarked that they should "get rid of the Wii" or that dropping hockey needs to be offset by some other time-consuming, structured activity.

We disagree.

I'm 40. The real avid players from the video game generation are in the workforce and they are in their 20s. Guess what? They are excellent problem-solvers and don't need to be told exactly what to do. Buy your kid a new game for their Wii, PS3, 360, PSP, Game Boy and watch what they do. They put it in and they play. And they figure it out. This is a good thing.

The best place in my community for kids is the skateboard park. There are no coaches, no parents, and no rules on how to do things. Kids help each other out and they get to have fun on THEIR terms. This is a good thing.

People can do what they want, but I find some of the responses shallow-minded. I'm the same age as Tony Hawk. What's that they say? Find something you like, something you're good at, and it will never feel like work.

At my sister's wedding my mom said, "these are all the kids that never went outside to play," because she married a software engineer. The guest list was everyone he knew. They are having the last laugh, professionally.

The only thing for certain is that things change and most things in moderation won't kill you. I hope I never forget that. People were concerned about my generation when we were kids and I've heard the same from people that grew up in the 60s and 70s. Today's kids are a whole lot brighter than many people give them credit for.

This is a hockey board. Play hockey because you like it. If you don't go do something else.

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

My wife the other day said, we need to buy XXX a skateboard. I said, do you really want to encourage that. Have you seen the kids? Let's steer xxx in another direction which just happened to be band, piano, ski club, soccer, hockey, fitness, biking, golf and homework.

Q : What's the hardest thing about skateboarding? A : Telling your parents you're gay

that's good, can I steal it for the cafe?

[goldy313]

There is a generational divide showing. Adults, more than one, have remarked that they should "get rid of the Wii" or that dropping hockey needs to be offset by some other time-consuming, structured activity.

We disagree.

I'm 40. The real avid players from the video game generation are in the workforce and they are in their 20s. Guess what? They are excellent problem-solvers and don't need to be told exactly what to do. Buy your kid a new game for their Wii, PS3, 360, PSP, Game Boy and watch what they do. They put it in and they play. And they figure it out. This is a good thing.

The best place in my community for kids is the skateboard park. There are no coaches, no parents, and no rules on how to do things. Kids help each other out and they get to have fun on THEIR terms. This is a good thing.

People can do what they want, but I find some of the responses shallow-minded. I'm the same age as Tony Hawk. What's that they say? Find something you like, something you're good at, and it will never feel like work.

At my sister's wedding my mom said, "these are all the kids that never went outside to play," because she married a software engineer. The guest list was everyone he knew. They are having the last laugh, professionally.

The only thing for certain is that things change and most things in moderation won't kill you. I hope I never forget that. People were concerned about my generation when we were kids and I've heard the same from people that grew up in the 60s and 70s. Today's kids are a whole lot brighter than many people give them credit for.

This is a hockey board. Play hockey because you like it. If you don't go do something else.

I see your point. Maybe I'm taking your point to literally as I totally disagree that THE BEST PLACE TO BRING YOUR KID IS A SKATEBOARD PARK. Have you seen the scary kids that hang out at these places and I've been to more then one. It's a bunch of unsupervised kids and many of them have issues. Why throw your kid unsupervised into the fire?

My wife the other day said, we need to buy XXX a skateboard. I said, do you really want to encourage that. Have you seen the kids? Let's steer xxx in another direction which just happened to be band, piano, ski club, soccer, hockey, fitness, biking, golf and homework.

Maybe hanging out with spoiled rich hockey kids and their overbearing parents is a bad environment to some. In life you do have to deal people from all walks of life. High school was all about cliques; the jocks, the nerds, the headbangers, etc. Amazingly after high school ends those cliques melt away and I bet every adult work place contains people from each of those cliques, and some of us have (unfortunatley ) the pictures to prove it.

My oldest son probably played HS hockey with more Cokeheads than ever hang out at the skatepark. I hope I gave him enough life lessons and put my beliefs deep enough into him that he never got involved with that stuff. I don't think he did but only he knows the truth, I guess you can only protect your kids so much, you just have to trust that they'll make the smart decisions.

To quote Sonny and Cher; Gypsies, Tramps, and Theives, you can a lot about a person by the company they keep. I think for me that's the easiest way to judge what your kids are up to. Be involved.

[HockeyDad2016]

I took a year off - and had more ice-time than I would have on a team. alot of pond hockey, came back a much happier player and better player. First year Pee-Wee A

So my vote is have your kid take a year off, if its in your blood you can't stay away from the rink.