Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Gi and Noa Take Ballet!

Our schedules changed a couple weeks ago to allow us to introduce something different into the girls' routine and we decided a dance class where the ages allowed meant Gi and Noa could be in the same class would be perfect. So tonight we made it to our first class and I was stunned by what happened.

At first, Noa sat in the circle with the other girls warming up with the teacher but once the teacher started asking her questions, "Where would you like to fly, Noa, on your butterfly wings?" Noa zipped into my lap and said she didn't want to do the exercises. Okay. So I asked her if she wanted to sit just in front of my legs and do them there. She did. Great! I knew it would only be a matter of a few more minutes before she would want to join in again. And, sure enough, in true Noa fashion she began inching herself on her belly, sprawled on the ground, pulling herself toward Gi and the other girls in the middle of the room. When she got there, she sat right up and began to do what the teacher was doing. I was so proud! Then she started doing pull-ups on the bar and shouting to me, "I did it!" and other blow-by-blow accounts of what she was doing. It was magic to my eyes and ears. This child is only 2 years old. The fact that she can take the teacher's directions, translate it into any semblance of balance or coordination and have a huge smile on her face the whole time is so utterly genius. Of course her mother would think so. But, seriously, maybe we should have her tested for mensa or the circus/ballet equivalent some time soon.

And speaking genius, Gi was a-mazing tonight! She jumped right in, (it helped she had a friend there) and didn't look back at me for confirmation even once. When it was her turn to leap over mats in front of us all she did it with zeal and confidence! I continue to be impressed by how much she has changed and grown in strength and self-assurance this year. We're going to be celebrating her 5th birthday in just a couple months and tonight I saw glimpses of the determined and driven young girl she is becoming. She makes me so proud to be her mom! I can tell from what I saw tonight and her days in preschool that she is going to make a sweet teacher's pet when she gets to school. This child has a serious need to excel at whatever she attempts to do. I guess I can breathe a sigh of relief she didn't inherit my slacker genes. When I was in ballet I was too busy mugging for the parents outside the room to hear anything my teacher was saying.

Okay, thanks for tuning in for this rambling bit of parenting gush and brag. Now here's your chance to watch these cuties perform! For reference, Noa is in a black top with blue skirt and Gi is in pink with white skirt.



This video is from the beginning of class just a few minutes after Noa decided to join in:




This video is of the girls practicing their routine for the Christmas show (Yes! They are going to be in their first recital in just two weeks!):













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