The end of week 17 of the pregnancy and Sarah’s belly is swelling nicely.
It’s also the end of the school holiday and the whole family have been enjoying a lazy week of not having to get up early or go anywhere. It really has been nice. No school, no gym, no guitar lesson, no swimming lesson, no choir, etc. Sarah’s two main friends are out of the country, too, so the telephone has been blissfully quiet.
Well, I say no gym, but Eloïse took part in a couple of gym try-outs this week for an advanced gymnastics class. The level is very high and the class contains children who compete at the national level, so I wasn’t sure about exposing Eloïse to something that is as serious as it is recreational. Her Little Gym class, by contrast, is more about having fun. You enrol your child and then they run around, learn basic gymnastics, gain self-confidence and socialise. That’s been a great aid to Eloïse, who is, by nature, unsure of herself and others in new situations. She has gained a huge amount of self-confidence from attending The Little Gym. I was somewhat reluctant to risk undoing a lot of that by exposing her to a potentially harsh, competitive environment.
Having attended her two trials, I’m pleased to say that she coped very well. Whilst she did need some coaxing at first, which involved shedding a few tears, she ultimately thoroughly enjoyed herself and impressed the teacher. She has been invited back on a permanent basis, so that’s another activity we have to add to our already busy roster. These are three hour lessons, too. As I said, they take the sport seriously at this place. They’re not just blowing off steam while the parents escape for a quick cuppa around the corner.
Speaking of The Little Gym, Lucas recently graduated to the child-only classes. Papa now has to stand outside and watch through the glass.
When Eloïse reached the same age, she wasn’t ready to go in on her own. I spent a whole semester inside the class, sitting with my back against the wall, encouraging her to participate. She just couldn’t cope without me by her side, however, and got nothing out to the class for the whole semester. The only reason we kept going back, week after week, was because she insisted. In the end, we had to throw in the towel. It would be another two years before she was ready to go in without Papa. Since that day, not even a year ago, she had graduated to their advanced class, a class she’ll continue to attend, even though she’ll now be pursuing gymnastics more seriously in a different class.
Anyway, back to Lukie. Whereas Eloïse wasn’t ready at age three to go in on her own, Lucas teases me that Papa has to stand outside while only the children can go in. I won’t be allowed in again until I’m a kid, he tells me. I wish.
He’s a superstar in that place. The teachers often comment on his ability, especially his upper body strength. I don’t know where he gets it. I wasn’t much cop at sports at that stage of life — or at any other, for that matter — and Sarah’s told me nothing to lead me to believe she was, either. He’s amazing.
Unfortunately, they don’t have an advanced class for his age. If they did, I’m sure he’d be in it.
Tomorrow, it’s back to the old regime of alarm clocks and cold, wet mornings.