Best or Worst?

This post will show that I am either one of the best moms around or one of the worst. It could really go either way depending on who you are, what you think and what the future holds.

As you all know, the girls are quite physical. Always have been. From turning over at 8 weeks to holding their heads up super early to jumping on two legs before their peers and climbing out of their cribs at 17 months to pumping on swings and riding bikes, they have always been a bit ahead of the curve in this department.

You may also know that Elizabeth has never really had a passion for anything like her siblings. Parker's is obvious although it does change slightly; it is always number or engineering related. Miranda loves animals and small figurines. She just HAS TO HAVE THEM and spends huge quantities of time playing in her room with her little people and baby animals. Elizabeth is always hard to shop for. As I have blogged before, she usually only likes what her sister or brother have rather than something she likes on her own.

But today, I think we found her passion. I had been thinking for a while that I needed to get the girls in a real gymnastics class. And when they started preschool and every single parent and teacher gasped when they saw what Elizabeth could do on the bars, I figured it was time. I called around and found a place in Emeryville. I asked if their 4 year old classes were just songs and tumbling explaining about my girls and their skills and they said no and suggested we have them evaluated to see what class would be best for them.

We went in today and the gym was as I remember from watching Amy at her practices. It was a huge place with equipment everywhere. The girls happily walked away with the director and did what she asked of them. It appeared as though she was checking their flexibility, strength and knowledge of basic terms like cartwheel and handstand. There was no shyness, no pouting, no problems. Just two girls showing this stranger what they could do. At one point, she had them climb this wall ladder, turn facing out and then raise their legs up to their nose. They were 10 feet off the ground and Elizabeth was in a perfect pike. Elizabeth was beaming. It was crazy.

Even from where I was sitting without hearing what they were saying, I knew the results immediately. When she walked back up to me, she said, "I see what you are saying now," and went on to confirm Elizabeth was ready for the competitive track and Miranda was close, but not there. She said Elizabeth was weak in basics (since she had not been taught them yet) but so strong in every other area, she was in. So I signed them up for a class starting this week that would prep Elizabeth for what she doesn't know and allow Miranda to do it too. Then, in a month, Elizabeth would move to the competitive track and Miranda would move to a ballet/gymnastic combo class (which is what she had been wanting to take for a long time now.) Both classes were at the same time so it all worked out great.

I let them all (Parker came home from school early today as he fell over a bench on recess and was a little shaken from it) play at the open gym. They went in foam pits, jumped on giant trampolines, swung on high rings and generally had the time of their life.

Elizabeth was in heaven. She ran from piece of equipment to piece of equipment smiling the entire time. She kept exclaiming how much fun she was having and how she loved this place. The others were happy, but not like her. She started jumping on the trampolines and even the guys there practicing their twists and layouts and flips were asking me, "How old is she? We never see them jump THAT high." She would stare at these guys and then try to imitate their movements to some degree. She didn't want to leave and even when she got tired, she would just take a break and then start up again. When we did leave, she asked when we could go back. Thursday, I said. Thursday.

So as I said, I'm either the best mom ever for finally helping Elizabeth find the thing she loves or the worst ever for pushing a 4 year old unnecessarily and for potentially making her twin feel less than equal.

Time (and blog readers) will tell.