Guilt...

I'm pretty sure my trusty Parenting Manual (haha!) didn't have a chapter on guilt. It didn't talk about how it creeps up on you and sticks around much longer than it should!

It's funny how guilt works. Feeling guilty for the things I don't do, rather then the things I do do. For example... I don't feel guilty for making the kids eat vegetables, or cleaning up after themselves, or getting them to use their manners when talking to others.

But I do feel guilty for NOT taking them to a park on a nice day, and NOT buying them that toy that they just can't live without, and the lastest is NOT continuing with swimming lessons.

When push came to shove, we just couldn't manage $300 for a term's worth of 30min lessons. The kids grumbled for about 5mins and then got over it. Pity I can't, and guilt wont let me.

What if they go swimming over the Summer and get into trouble. Swimming lessons maybe, possibly, might have helped.

Swimming is such an integral part of the Austrlaian Lifestyle, I don't want them to miss out on their "culture" (or the closest our family has to one).

Swimming is something that I love and the kids do too, so we could do it all together.

Now, nothing is stopping me from taking them to the local pool or the beach and swimming with them myself...

....it's just that GUILT is that little voice in my head telling me I'm such a bad parent for canelling their lessons!