Ellis has been taking cello lessons since he was four, and somewhere along the line became an actual cello player. All credit is due to Helen, who persevered with him through years of juvenile resistance. He now loves the cello and plays happily, even though many times I threatened to break the cello in half during painfully difficult practice sessions. It didn't seem like much fun at the time, but both he and Helen never wanted to give up.
Now we have started Anson on violin and are going through the same process again, five years later. He is quite proud of himself, but Helen has to both cajole and threaten him in order to get him to practice. Both boys love screen time (i.e. DVDs, computer games), so Helen usually holds it out as a powerful incentive.