Big

After a month away from gymnastics classes, the girls returned to class this week.

Alyssa's class is on Monday evenings and Olivia's is on Thursdays.

One these nights, I race to my mom's, get the girls and then race back to town to get them to class on time.

Monday evening, I could tell Alyssa was a little nervous about returning to class. Would the friends she'd made way back in August through November still be there? Would the coach be the same? Would she remember how to stand on her hands?

It was fine. She rallied and got through it and was grinning and red-faced when the hour was over.

Olivia? Well, she didn't do quite as well last night.

We switched her class from a mommy and me class at the last minute back in November, so she'd had one class with new kids before our break. And even though there were no other mommies out there, I was right beside her, helping her throuhg the stations.

Last night, she bravely put her hand in Miss Maggie's and went into the gym without me. I waited with Alyssa on the other side of the window, watching O run along side her teacher, watching her pretend to stretch. Sitting next to Alyssa, I was amazing as how BIG she seemed. Eight doesn't seem old to me. She's not gronw up yet, not at all. But sitting in that waiting room, I put my arm around the child who made me a mom and was stunned at this tall, slim, beautiful girl is MY CHILD. I could suddenly see the beautiful young woman she'll be someday. Alas, my reflections on the stunning beauty of my first born were interrupted by the stubborness of her little sister.

When the warm-up was over, Miss Maggie reachd her hand out to Olivia to help her stand up. O looked up at her and just sat there. Maggie picked Olivia up and tried to her put her on her feet. O let her knees crumple and wouldn't support herself. Maggie let her sit there and started to corrale the other little girls into a group where she'd explain what they were going to work on that day.

I gave Alyssa an apologetic squeeze around the shoulders, took off my coat and boots and joined the class.

Olivia wrapped her entire body around me when I picked her up. She was like a baby octopus. Each time I attempted to put her down as we listened to the instructions for each station, her arms tightened on my neck and her legs gripped my waist like iron shackles. I wasn't getting out of that gym again.

And it was fine.

She really did need more help than any of the other kids with the exercises and I hate to take Miss Maggie or her helper away from the other kids so they can give my child constant one-on-one attention. So we'll turn Kindergym into Mommy and Olivia class. Thankfully, Miss Maggie is okay with this.

But Alyssa? Poor sweet, tall Alyssa had to sit in that waiting room with all the other moms, sort of by herself.

As we were leaving the gym, I promised Alyssa that she could either stay at my mom's in the coming weeks during Olivia's class or, if Tom is at home, she can stay with him. This pleased her very much and Olivia and I were both quite forgiven once I'd bought them both a happy meal from McDs.

It's amazing how many wrongs French fries can right.