Audrey's First Day of Gymnastics

After taking dance lessons for two years Steven and I thought it might be time for her to move on to something else.  For a short period of time we thought she was going to be a good little dancer, then somewhere along the line she lost interest.  More often than not it was painful watching her at dance class because she was rarely doing what she was supposed to.  And she hated the tights.  So often she would work herself into a tizzy before dance class because her tights were "itchy" or "they didn't feel good" and by the time we arrived she was in a dreadful mood.  However, every once in awhile, her dance teacher would bring out the mat, the glorious mat, at the end of class so the girls could do a somersault.  That was Audrey's favorite part!  This was clue # 1.

I actually wanted to put her in gymnastics from the beginning, but my fear of her getting hurt won over and we didn't.  However, over the years I watched her somersault around the house and do handstands,

and swing from the bars at the play ground like a monkey.

Witnessing all of the above over and over again weighed heavily on my heart because I knew I had kept her from doing something she would be good at because of my own fear.  So, we finally bit the bullet and let her give a gymnastics class a try. 

Oh my gosh . . . I could barely contain my excitement.  I kept tapping Steven on the shoulder and saying "did you see that"?!  She was awesome!!  She  did everything that was asked of her with no fear.  Even at the risk of sounding biased, she was a natural!  It was so gratifying to watch my once 2 lb baby get on a balance beam and swing from a high bar with no fear. She displayed the same determination she did when she was born prematurely over 5 years ago and it was amazing to witness.  I was busting at the seams!!

One of the reasons I love this picture is for the blurs of gymnasts around her.  They were incredible to watch and to think that could be Audrey some day!

Another reason why I think gymnastics is such a good fit for Audrey is because she did not have to stand in the same spot for long (and she doesn't have to wear tights).  For the whole hour she was going from station to station, keeping her interest piqued.  Here she is jumping on a trampoline.

In this picture she is doing the high bar with help.  We were sitting fairly far away making it hard to take a picture.  These pictures aren't the best, but they get the idea across.

Floor Time.

In this picture her teacher is showing her how to do a bridge.

At the end of class she got a stamp on her foot that says it all:

I am so proud of her and can't wait to watch her grow as a gymnast week after week.  It feels good to know we may have found her niche.