Kindergym

Ella and I have been going to Kindergym class every Wednesday night for the past three weeks now. Due to the fact that Ella's only interaction with other children is when she sees Ava on Wednesdays and Thursdays, I felt it was time to get social (not that she has any trouble being social!!). Plus, I think it's very important for her to start on some structured type of play and have to follow directions! I know she's only 2, but preschool/kindergarten will be here before we know it!

As a child, I was always very into dance, gymnastics, and cheerleading! In fact, they have always been a passion of mine and I loved the idea of being able to share this with a daugther some day. While I know Ella may not choose this as her "thing", I figured it wouldn't hurt to give it a try! So, I looked for something inexpensive to do a "test" run with and found out that the Pavilion offers a 2 and 3 year old Mommy and Me Kindergym class for dirt cheap!

Our first Wednesday was quite amusing! Ella immediately loved her classroom and started exploring before anyone else had entered. She's definitely not shy in that sense! During the class, Ella participated fairly well but had her occassional moments when she would excuse herself from the lesson to do something she thought would be more interesting (like walking on the balance beam or crawling through the tunnel). She did her best to keep up, but became frustrated a few times saying "I can't do it!" Some of the things they did the first class were throwing bean bags, popping bubbles, front rolls, walking forward and sideways on the balance beam, rolling down an inclined wedge, straddle position, "stretch, tuck, and roll", walking on their hands, and various fun dances! Ella didn't really get into talking to the other girls in the class, but I found it refreshing that a friend from highschool was there with her little girl! When we left, Ella practiced the whole next week. She was very proud of her newly learned moves!

I was honestly very nervous about going back the second time! I don't expect her to be completely attentive, but chasing after her in the middle of class (6 months pregnant) didn't seem too exciting! On the other hand, as soon as we got there Lerin's little girl started up a conversation with Ella and I was excited to see how the rest of the class went. Thankfully, this time they had the tunnel collapsed so that Ella wouldn't get distracted as easily! To my surprise she did not run off one time, listened to every word her teachers said, tried every move, and even got to be an example a few times! I was a very proud mommy! She was able to show off her mastered front roll, straddle position and tick tocks! During this class they learned how to do a back roll, bridge, and angel touch. When it came time to leave Ella cried and did not want to go!

Tonight's class was just as successful as the time before. She was super excited to go and show her teacher how much she had been practicing! They actually started cartwheels and the crab walk tonight which were easier than I thought they would be! She loves all of the singing and dancing and has decided that the Hokie Pokie is her new favorite song! Some of the girls went out a bought cute little tutu's for class tonight so we may have to find a new outfit for the next few weeks! :)