Ballet Observances & Parenting Lessons

 

One thing about Kaitlin...she loves to perform.

So when the time came for the parent viewing day at ballet, she was in full effect.

While other little girls nicely followed the teacher's instruction, Kaitlin was put on a show.

 

The girls start with tap....

 

And here's my girl....



So very Kaitlin.

So glad she's mine.

And then they put on their ballet shoes and had some fun free dancing with ribbons...



And then they move into another room to practice ballet.

Kaitlin and Kennedy were paired for a portion of their dancing and I snapped a couple of cute photos of them.  Love this one. Kennedy's expression is just so sweet.



These two girls have strong personalities and a lot of passion between the two of them.  They can butt heads when they want to go in different directions, but you can't beat the joy when they work together.  This is just so cute.



Notice Kitti's tights?  The hole on her shin?  I'm not exactly sure how a ballerina manages it, but we have now gone through three pairs of ballet tights in 3 months!!  Her knees are dirty from crawling around all over the studio....

 


I love this of Kitti and Miss Amanda....

 

The little girls then danced across the floor choosing whatever they would like to do.  They started on one end and danced to the other.  Everyone, except this little one....

 

Getting ready for her show.

 

She made it to the end and instead of stopping she rounded the corner and kept right on going!

 

And going!

I'm not sure how many laps she did before Miss Amanda asked her to wrap it up.

After it was over the little girls all went to their parents who hugged them and said all sorts of sweet things to their kids....

Except me.

I confess, I had what we call in our house, a "Mommy Dearest" moment.

As the other little girls received hugs, I whispered reprimands in Kaitlin's ear.
 
It was fueled by a lot of things that I needn't go into, only partly by Kaitlin's behavior during the session.  I have not had a lot of patience lately.  And I could have handled it better.  I instantly regretted it as Kaitlin dropped her head in shame & sadness.  After I'm sure what she felt like was a beautiful, joyful performance.

And then it was me that felt shame in my heart.

I could see in that moment how in an attempt to teach a child humility or obedience,  you can easily end up crushing their spirit.  It is such a fine line.

And Kaitlin's' confidence and spirit is one of the things I love most about her.

Parenting is so hard.

I learned an important lesson on this day.

I look forward to the next time when I can do better.  When I can receive my proud little dancer with kisses, hugs and loving words affirmation.  Because I really am so proud of her.