Little Monkey's dance class ... and why I think it's a great idea.

Girly Monkey in sport class

   Little Monkey had his first dance class today. All the classes for the other Monkeys are in full swing now, and Little monkey was the last one to start his. Last year he took a dance class with the great teacher that we really love, and we wanted to continue with the same kind of class for this year. It was a creative dance class with no particular emphasis on any type of dance style. It was a class designed for 2 to 3 year olds, so it was right up our alley. But this year that class filled up quite quickly and we were not able to get in. I put Little Monkey on waiting list, but we never heard of any openings for that class. So I searched a bit and found another class run by the same, wonderful teacher that has taught all my kids before. The only differences in the classes was that it was a Ballet class for 3 to 5 year olds and it was at a community center situated a bit further from our house. Since there was only one spot left in that class I signed him up right away.
   So today was the first day of his new Ballet class. Last year we had Girly Monkey helping him in class (he was more willing to do things in class if he saw his older sister doing them too), but this year I wanted him to try to do it on his own. Since we already took classes with that teacher, there were a lot of things that were repeater from last year. He knew many routines that she had in this class and he didn't feel lost. Plus, now that he is 3, I expect more things from this Little Monkey.

This is one crazy schedule!

Girly Monkey ready
to dance

   This week marked the beginning of our crazy fall schedule in almost full force. I knew it was coming and I was trying to get ready for it. I already covered my school schedule, and it's very demanding. It's so demanding that if we fall behind we have to catch up on the weekends. But throw into the mix two dance classes for Girly Monkey, three for Funky Monkey, one soccer practice for each and one game each and you have one full schedule, and that doesn't even include a dance class for little Monkey that will start next week.

Funky Monkey helping with
his sister's soccer game

   Every day of the week there is an activity with the exception of Mondays.Tuesday- Girly Monkey has ballet class and Little Monkey has dance class, Wednesday- Funky Monkey has a Ballet class and soccer practice, Thursday- Girly Monkey has soccer practice, Friday- Funky Monkey has Modern dance class. Saturday is the craziest of all, with Funky Monkey having Ballet practice that ends the same time as his soccer game begins and they are about 45 minutes apart from each other. So he has to miss last 10 minutes of his Ballet and have me rush him to his game (since Daddy is the coach he has to be there for the beginning of the game and can't help me) which he misses half of..

First week and Ballet for Boys and Girls.

   The first week of school is over and the excitement of school has wore off a bit. This morning, Monkeys were very excited to have their day off school. The only one complaining about lack of school-work was Little Monkey. I think that this had something to do with him getting a "smelly" sticker once he finished his work, and no school-work means no sticker today. The stickers were a great incentive not only for Little Monkey, but also for the two older Monkeys. I have bought them when I picked up their Math work-books and they are very cute. As an added bonus when you scratch the sticker they smell like fruits. The kids love getting them after they finished their copywork, or math, or Spanish lesson.

Funky Monkey helping Little Monkey

   So what is my review of the first week back?
I think it went smoother than I expected. I am glad that I spent all the hours planning the whole year, because it seem to have saved plenty of time daily.