You guys are both new and may not know the story of my son's journey to the pipes...

Briefly, when he was 5 he saw a pipe band playing in the 4th of July parade and told me "Daddy, I want to play the pipes." I did as you have done..insisted that he learn music with some other instrument first (he chose trombone, since we had one sitting around the house). He took private lessons, then made all-district in Middle School and then as a freshman in high school. All this time he never stopped talking about the pipes. It was obvious that his was a genuine passion, not a passing fancy.
Christmas before last (when he was 15) I ordered him a practice chanter and arranged for lessons. He practiced 2 or 3 times each day. After two months his instructor said that he was progressing faster than anyone she had ever seen and was ready for pipes. The Visa whimpered a bit, but a set of Dunbars arrived one week later. About three months after that he was marching in the Fourth of July parade with the same pipe band that he had seen 10 years earlier. To say that I was one proud poppa would be the understatement of the century.

He is a member here, and I'm sure that he would be happy to correspond with you andor your boys via PM or email. He doesn't post here often, but does check the board nearly daily. His handle is "MadBagpiper".