tiny dancer

This is me circa 1978.



I am 3 years old wearing my first tutu pretending to walk a tight rope. My parents had put me in a after school dance program which included ballet, jazz and tap. I continued dance lessons until high school when I discovered dance team and cheer leading. I served as captain for both programs through high school. Then college came around. The university I attended did not have a good cheer leading program so I took a 3 year hiatus from dancing. During my senior year in college I fulfill my open credits with ballroom dancing and jazz classes.

I may not have pursue a formal dance education or professional dance career, but as you know from reading this blog my love for dancing has never faded. So, you can imagine how my heart skipped a beat with excitement when Little 'Ny said she wanted to take a dance class with the little girl she takes swim lessons with. One of her favorite Playhouse Disney characters is June who loves to dance. From watching June Little 'Ny has learned how to do an arabesque and pas de bourrée.

The dance studio offers a free trial class to see if the child would really like it. So, on Friday evening I took Little 'Ny. As we waiting outside for the studio to open she kept asking when the class was going to start. She got even more excited once the teacher and her little swim class friend got there. We sat on the floor of the waiting room digging through a basket of loaner ballet and tap shoes trying to find her size. I hadn't purchased her a leotard so she just wore the clothes she wore to school. When the class started she stood in line with the other girls like she had been in the class for months (she is on the far right).



She couldn't get enough. When class was over she came running to me asking "Mommy, why is dance class over? When I wake up from my nap I want to go to dance class." The teacher told me that for her first class Little 'Ny was a very good listener and seems to be a natural dancer! With that I signed her up for a one day a week class for the next 3 months. Since Friday she has asked me every day if she has dance lessons that day.



As you can imagine both sets of grandparents are thrilled to hear Little 'Ny is in dance class. They can't wait to see her in a tutu or for the recitals. Then there is her sports-loving daddy ... he wants to put her in hockey lessons. When I showed him her new leotard he asked where the safety pads were. Well, Hubs, didn't you know that even ballet is a contact sport:



Yeah, she cried, but when the dance teacher asked her if she wanted to keep dancing the tears turned off and she joined the other girls for a little jazz routine! As Hubs would say "she shook it off." That's our tiny dancer!