Hot Shots

T's gymnastics school has invitation only classes, for the children who show more aptitude than the average child. T has been invited to participate, and today was her "evaluation"/trial class. They have a Hot Tot's class for 3 and 4 yr olds, and a Hot Shots class for 5 and 6 yr olds. Unfortunately, the hot tot class is offered only on Fridays at 3:30. Um, hello! Some of us actually have to work!

So, if T is to participate, she would have to be in Hot Shots with the 5 and 6 yr olds. Not sure if that will work out.

I've mentioned before how driven T is. As an example, when writing her letters and words, if she isn't happy with how she makes a letter, she gets really really mad, scribbles like crazy over it blotting out the image, throws down her pen, and stomps off in a pout. I've never seen anything like it. She gets so very mad at herself when she can't do something that she wants to do. Instead of quietly working at it, she pulls the histrionics and drama and quits.

Well, as you can imagine, these girls tonight were much more advanced than T, especially since they've been doing the class for a while. The class started off well, with T keeping up with them as they ran around the gym. T can run at the speed of light. However during some of the warm up, she checked out when she couldn't do some of the unfamiliar moves. Then, during the first floor routine she did well and appeared to be having fun despite her lack of skills.

Then came the balance beam.

T got so mad at herself when she was falling off that she checked out, came over to me, and refused to rejoin the class. There was no coaxing her back into the class. I'm very disappointed b/c I feel if she was in the younger class, she'd love it and excel. I think she's probably a little to young for this class. Its also a riot to watch the other girls, then T, who barely comes up to the bottom of their shoulders. She looks half their size.

So, we'll give it one more try next week to see how she likes it, but I suspect that we'll probably wait 6 mo to a year, before she joins this class. That's OK...there are alot of new things and changes looming on the horizon for Taylor in just 5 short months. T will be starting a new school in August, with new teachers and friends and she'll also be enrolled in Chinese school on Saturdays...at a different location, with different students and different teachers. I figure gymnastics can wait a bit until she gets settled into these new environments. T hasn't dealt that well with new classes in the past within her present school, and those were new classes with a few familiar faces of students in them.

I marvel all the time at how grown up T is, and then situations like tonight happen, which make me realize just how young my baby still is. So, we're at home happily watching Max and Ruby and Dora.

All is right, again, with the world.

My baby appears to still be a Hot Tot...and has yet to achieve Hot Shot status...and that's fine with me!