...And Somehow It's 2015 All of a Sudden.

How have five weeks passed by since I last blogged? I was really doing well posting regularly there for a while. Clearly blogging didn't make the New Years Resolution cut, but I digress. I'm here now, though, and with five weeks of updates!

First things first, Ava is FIVE now! Holy smokes! How'd that happen? Didn't I just find out I was "unexpectedly expecting" the other day?! More on her party soon, but let's just say it was the best yet. Five's been treating her decently so far, too, from getting her ears pierced to starting karate to fulfilling a goal she's had for quite a while: moving up to the big girl gymnastics class! 

Ava's been taking classes at The Little Gym for quite some time, and while she's loved every second of it, she's been anxiously awaiting the time when she could move up to the grade-school level classes. She made that move last month, and today marked her third class as a "good friend". Her class is a combo class, with age groups spanning 5-12, which is absolutely perfect for her, since she's got quite a bit of natural talent when it comes to gymnastics. She's coordinated, ridiculously fit, focused - all things she didn't inherit from me ;) Anyhow, combining her natural propensity towards gymnastics with her love for girls older than her and challenging herself, and this class has been an absolute perfect fit. Even better, we love Ms. Kathryn, her instructor, and she's made a wonderful new friend in the class that's her same age and started the same day she did - they've become great friends, and her mom and I have too. The relationships we've made with the owners, instructors and classmates at The Little Gym is one of the many, many things I love about it there!

Jack has also started a new class this semester, having graduated from the "Bugs" class to the "Birds" class now that he's a bit older. His current age grouping is 10-19 months, which is wonderful, since he's smack dab in the middle, and able to learn from the older kids and be an example to some of the younger kids! We have one of our fellow bugs in our new class, too, so seeing a familiar face and knowing that our two little ones have a long-standing friendship already is wonderful! Jack LOVES his time on the big red mat!

He likes to take his skills home with him to practice between classes ;)

Ava has also started Tae Kwon Do, thanks in part to a seriously awesome Groupon at a local studio. She's really enjoying it so far, and loves how goal-oriented it is. She's already earned her headband from learning and reciting the oath:

My grandma (aka Nana to the kids) came to visit for a week, which was really wonderful. She was such a huge part of my childhood, and I absolutely love that my children are getting to know her and making memories with her as well! I feel so fortunate that they've got such wonderful family in their lives that want to be a part of it <3 p="">

We also had our sweet kitten Jasper pass away after just five weeks, falling victim to a terrible virus (FIP), and have since adopted a sweet little calico kitten named Charlotte. She turned four months old the other day, and she is AMAZING. Sweetest, most curious, Ava-loving kitten of all time:

Happy, happy new year! I hope that all of you are having a wonderful start to your new year as well!

The Little Gym of Round Rock: Jack is a Bug!

As you already know, Ava has long been taking classes at The Little Gym of Round Rock, and absolutely loves it. The teachers, the gym, the curriculum - it's been such a great fit for our family. So when Jack went mobile recently, I figured it was high time for Jack's own introduction to the gym!

The youngest class they offer is the Bugs class, starting around four months of age. We just started a couple of weeks ago while Jack was seven months old, so he'll only stay in the Bugs class for the summer (until he's ten months, when they graduate to the next level), but he's really loved it so far! 

The first week I wasn't sure of what to expect, and it could've gone better. Jack was in what might be rare form for less intense babies, but what was kind of par for the course for him, and we ended up going to sit in the multipurpose room mid-class so I could calm him down. Thankfully the instructor is used to babies and surely had seen it all, so no one even batted an eyelash.

Aside from the mid-class fit-throwing, our first class went great! It started out with us introducing ourselves and our babies, and then leading them through a series of stretches and warm-up exercises. After that, we do an activity incorporating a new motor or cognitive skill; in the case of our first class, we made music and tapped two rods together in different ways. Or, in Jack's case, he chewed on the sticks and then screamed when I took them away. Same difference.

We've also spent time exploring the gym on our own, doing front rolls over rolling gym equipment with our instructor, grabbing the rings and hanging out on the air track. So many wonderful sensory experiences! Each class ends with bubbles, easily one of Jack's favorite parts. He crawls all over the floor trying to pop (or really smash!) them. He also loves the bouncy balls that we practice rolling and playing with, except I think it's because the big white button where they get inflated has led him to believe that they are giant boobies and he attacks them as such.

One of the benefits of the class, aside from the obvious stimulation and development for Jack, is that it is a great opportunity to meet other moms with babies who are similarly-aged and who are in a similar place in their life. It can be really isolating having a young baby, and having support and knowing others are going through the same thing can really help to get you through what can be a lonely time!

We can't wait for our next class!

Ava's End of Year Show at The Little Gym.

Summer is now upon us, as the 98 degree temperature reminds me almost daily, and as such, another school-year season of gymnastics at The Little Gym of Round Rock has come to a close! A couple weeks back - in fact, the same weekend as my birthday, Ava's ballet recital, and her grandparents visiting for the weekend - Ava capped off another great year of gymnastics. Show week gives children the opportunity to invite parents, friends, grandparents, and other special people in their lives  into the gym for an exhibition of the skills they've been working so hard on all year.

Her class split into three groups, each with a different instructor leading the way and assisting where needed, with some on the beam, some on the floor, and some on the bars. They then took turns demonstrating their skills for the audience, not only showing off all they've been learning and practicing, but allowing each child to take the stage and build their self-confidence.

Here's my little funny bug:

Happy handstands, friends! We're so excited to start our summer session of gymnastics and continue on this wonderful journey!

WonderKids Club Trial at The Little Gym of Round Rock.

As you know, we are big supporters of The Little Gym of Round Rock and The Little Gym of Austin at Lakeline. Ava started taking gymnastics at one-year-old, but only when we started classes at The Little Gym when she was two-and-a-half did she really start to come into her own and increase her skill levels by leaps and bounds. So when I received an email recently notifying me that they were going to be offering a new class for three- and four-year-olds called WonderKids Club, well, my interest was certainly piqued!

The class was described (per their website) as, "..an enrichment program that extends The Little Gym experience…a three-hour interactive learning experience, structured play session, and exploration of their innate sense of wonder."

After reading that, we knew we wanted to check it out, and so this past Monday, Ava attended the trial class to get a feel for what WonderKids Club is all about. Check out our experience:

During the first hour, the children enjoyed a plethora of hands-on activities, including making musical instruments out of Play-Doh (Can I just say how grateful I am for her to play with Play-Doh somewhere other than my carpet?!), playing those "instruments" and using their imaginations to create music, and spending time at two different Lego creation stations (Again, anything that keeps Legos off my floor - and inevitably from under my feet - is good with me!).

After they'd had some time to work with the different building activities, they then gathered for a circle time, featuring the story, Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Suess, sitting still with the promise of an hour in the gym to follow!

Ava loved her trial class - she's at the perfect age to really enjoy both the structured learning and, of course, active time in the gym. For me, the class was set up perfectly, with an hour of learning activities in the multi-purpose room, followed by an hour in the gym, and another hour of activities, and I know I could certainly use the three hour block of time it provides parents to get their week started off on the right foot! 

WonderKids Club is offered Mondays, from 10:15-1:15, and is specially designed for children ages 3 & 4. You can buy a ten-pack of classes this week for $150, before it returns to the regular price of $200 for a ten-pack. One of the best things about this new class at The Little Gym of Round Rock is that enrollment is flexible, with your ten classes being scheduled at your convenience. Planning to be out of town one week? Have a sick child, or just feel like not having to attempt to get everyone ready and out the door one week? No problem! You can schedule your classes at your convenience, without being locked into a regular weekly schedule! Call (512) 687-4141 today to sign up, and save 25% on enrollment through this Friday, December 20!

Open Gym at The Little Gym of Round Rock!

One of my favorite benefits of being a member of The Little Gym of Round Rock is the times that they hold "open gym" time. Rather than a scheduled class, this is time when the gym is open to certain age groups to come and just practice and play! In case the use of the facility isn't enough, they have instructors on hand to guide them through this practice time, helping them try new moves or work on ones they're particularly interested in. 

For Ava, this was definitely back handsprings:

Ava typically likes to practice a newly learned skill repeatedly, something that isn't always an option at home without TLG's awesome equipment and techniques, so this was a great chance for her to do back handsprings until her little heart was content! And believe me - she did! 

Ava enjoying her free time in the gym:

Another skill Ava wanted to try her hand at while we had time to practice was a front flip on the bars. If you think this sounds too advanced for a three-year-old, you haven't met the amazing "coaches" at The Little Gym. Ava's always believed herself invincible, but they certainly inspire her confidence to try new things in a way that continuously amazes me :)

Aside from free play, they also offer a bit of structure for kids who desire it. For example, during our time at open gym on this particular day, Coach Ashlee brought out some basketballs and a miniature hoop, to provide a bit of structure in the chaos and offer the children a chance to hone their hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills! 

That looks like one satisfied customer, right? If you've yet to check out The Little Gym of Round Rock, you can find them online here, or check out their Facebook page for more information. They also have a Lakeline location for those closer to Cedar Park and Northwest Austin.

Ava Loves Ms. Ashlee!

I know I've said it before, but I'm saying it again: We LOVE The Little Gym of Round Rock! 

Aside from Ava getting to do things like this:

and this:

...she also loves her "coach", Ms. Ashlee, and for good reason. What other program is going to send you things like this in the mail?

In case it wasn't cool enough to get mail as a small child, this really takes the cake. Ava was super excited when this came!!

If you're in the Austin/Round Rock/Cedar Park area or nearby vicinity, seriously consider checking out The Little Gym of Round Rock or The Little Gym of Lakeline for your kids gymnastics, dance and movement needs! We're so happy we did!

The Little Gym of Round Rock: Ava's a Funny Bug!

Now that Ava's celebrated her third birthday, she's graduated from the Super Beasts class at The Little Gym of Round Rock into the Funny Bugs/Giggle Worms combined class for 3-4 & 4-5 year olds.

We went to our first class with our new friends this past weekend, and while there are some kids that are a lot older, it works out great since her ballet class is with the same age group, and she really idolizes older children. If there's ever anything we really want Ava to do, we just have to get one of her older friends to do it, and she'll jump right in!

Anyhow, the new class was great, if a bit larger. Since the course curriculum follows the timeline of a school year, rather than semester, we did happen to start on the mid-session parent watch day, which threw us slightly off our game. We'd been prepping her for the fact that in this new class, we wouldn't be able to go in with her, so imagine her confusion when every parent filed into the classroom to watch. Doh! That's ok, though - it was a great way to ease her into the new class and she'll be ready and see some familiar faces for next Saturday's class.

Here's my "funny bug" doing her thing!

We're really looking forward to this weekend's class!