Yesterday, Grace and Charlotte returned to gymnastics. We had the girls take the summer off for obvious reasons.
I was a bit apprehensive about going back to gymnastics. Grace has been out of her casts just shy of four weeks and while she is doing well, gaining strength and not complaining of any discomfort, her gait is still off. The doctors say it will take a couple of months and that we should encourage all 'normal' activities to help strengthen the muscles in her legs. We've repeatedly asked Grace if she was ready to try certain activities and for the first few weeks post cast removal the answer was a definite no. Things started changing. Her strength began returning and so was her confidence. Soon, the answer about going back to gymnastics changed! She was ready!
Charlotte has been ready all summer! Charlotte turns 3 at the end of September and at age 3, kids can participate in gymnastics without a parent assisting. So when I was re-signing the girls up, I fudged a little and told them Charlotte was 3. I was looking forward to an hour of sitting andsewing, catching up on emails, watching my girls participate as opposed to jumping around out on the floor in Mommy & Me kinda fashion.
I am happy to report that all went well yesterday! In fact, it went smashingly! Charlotte rocked her class. No apprehension. No tears. Followed directions well and overall, had LOTS of fun! At the end of class, the teacher gave me a thumbs up and said Charlotte did great!! After class, I told her I was so proud of her!
Grace also had a successful morning! A few of the other girls in class were having a difficult morning. Not following directions. Running all around the gym. A few tantrums. The coach had talks with just about every child - all except Grace. At one point, the entire class went running across the gym - laughing and giggling and carrying on; clearly having a fun time. The look on Grace's face was interesting. I could tell she oh so wanted to be a part of the fun but she stayed in line where the teacher had told her. I know she won't always follow the rules - and not all rules are meant to be followed - but I was proud of her nonetheless. I was even more proud when the teacher told the class that if they could climb the rope to a certain point (about halfway) the girls could ring the bell! Ringing the bell is a big deal because it means you have done something all by yourself. I didn't expect much out of Grace on this activity because I had watched her try climbing that rope before. But a switch was flipped when the teacher through in the bell-ringing curve ball. She walked right up to the rope and climbed the damn thing like she'd been doing it her whole life. Like she'd been born in Tarzan's tree house and started swinging on vines before she could walk! It was unbelievable! I was stunned. So overjoyed for her because she was the only one to ring the bell!
The only bit of trouble we ran into was when Charlotte heard that Grace had climbed the rope and rang the bell! That sent Charlotte spiraling into uncontrollable sobs because she wanted to climb the rope and ring the bell too!! Of course she does!! All in good time Miss Charlotte! All in good time!
I must admit my mommy heart burst with pride yesterday. Both girls growing up and having confidence-building-moments. Teeny tiny moments like this make the millions of frustrating, exhausting, repeat-yourself-300,000 times moments SO worth it!!
I was a bit apprehensive about going back to gymnastics. Grace has been out of her casts just shy of four weeks and while she is doing well, gaining strength and not complaining of any discomfort, her gait is still off. The doctors say it will take a couple of months and that we should encourage all 'normal' activities to help strengthen the muscles in her legs. We've repeatedly asked Grace if she was ready to try certain activities and for the first few weeks post cast removal the answer was a definite no. Things started changing. Her strength began returning and so was her confidence. Soon, the answer about going back to gymnastics changed! She was ready!
Charlotte has been ready all summer! Charlotte turns 3 at the end of September and at age 3, kids can participate in gymnastics without a parent assisting. So when I was re-signing the girls up, I fudged a little and told them Charlotte was 3. I was looking forward to an hour of sitting and
I am happy to report that all went well yesterday! In fact, it went smashingly! Charlotte rocked her class. No apprehension. No tears. Followed directions well and overall, had LOTS of fun! At the end of class, the teacher gave me a thumbs up and said Charlotte did great!! After class, I told her I was so proud of her!
Grace also had a successful morning! A few of the other girls in class were having a difficult morning. Not following directions. Running all around the gym. A few tantrums. The coach had talks with just about every child - all except Grace. At one point, the entire class went running across the gym - laughing and giggling and carrying on; clearly having a fun time. The look on Grace's face was interesting. I could tell she oh so wanted to be a part of the fun but she stayed in line where the teacher had told her. I know she won't always follow the rules - and not all rules are meant to be followed - but I was proud of her nonetheless. I was even more proud when the teacher told the class that if they could climb the rope to a certain point (about halfway) the girls could ring the bell! Ringing the bell is a big deal because it means you have done something all by yourself. I didn't expect much out of Grace on this activity because I had watched her try climbing that rope before. But a switch was flipped when the teacher through in the bell-ringing curve ball. She walked right up to the rope and climbed the damn thing like she'd been doing it her whole life. Like she'd been born in Tarzan's tree house and started swinging on vines before she could walk! It was unbelievable! I was stunned. So overjoyed for her because she was the only one to ring the bell!
The only bit of trouble we ran into was when Charlotte heard that Grace had climbed the rope and rang the bell! That sent Charlotte spiraling into uncontrollable sobs because she wanted to climb the rope and ring the bell too!! Of course she does!! All in good time Miss Charlotte! All in good time!
I must admit my mommy heart burst with pride yesterday. Both girls growing up and having confidence-building-moments. Teeny tiny moments like this make the millions of frustrating, exhausting, repeat-yourself-300,000 times moments SO worth it!!
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