#AtoZChallenge - Dance-Momming

Hi, Welcome to my little corner of the Interwebz! I'm doing a pretty random theme this year - things that make me happy / are guilty pleasures / whatever makes me... ME!

There was no waffling when it came to my D post.  Dance.  Or more specifically - Dance Momming.

I was the loud & obnoxious one in the audience with my cowbell & was always available to help any kid (except my own - because that's how things work best backstage) with hair, eyelashes or makeup.  I also spent many hours with my steamer, getting wrinkles out of any and all costumes.  

I personally have only danced for fun - many many moons ago, I went to my first country bar with some friends and I learned do some country dances and it was a lot of fun!

Then along came the Spawn and my bar dancing days pretty much ended.

But in 2002, my mom enrolled my niece in a dance program thru the city.  So I decided to enroll Spawn, too.

I created a monster. 

2002 & 2003

She was 5 at her first recital.

Disclaimer - this post would be enormous if I included all of her photos, it'll just be her first and most recent ones and some highlights. 

We found her second home, aka Dancers Only Studio, in 2007 and technically - she's still part of the family there.  She took tons of classes - she topped out at 10 in her senior year!  Which probably contributed to it being the year of many injuries (including a partially dislocated hip during the first of 3 back-to-back routines in a competition that I didn't know about until afterward!!!) 

Let's see - she had one year of cheer in junior high and one of  JV dance team in high school.  But she preferred her studio team. 

2015 (the senior year) They had a new teacher who also had his own dance team and recruited several of the girls from DOS.  Spawn's first competition on his team was Nationals - they took lyrical, pom and an extraordinarily BAD hiphop routine (sorry - not sorry!  DOS does awesome hiphop and this was just awful choreography & costumes) 

Lyrical - 2015 JamFest National Champs!

2018, she was on the inaugural "Dance Crew" at the local USPBL baseball park. 

2018 was her last year on the DOS competition team.  2017 technically should have been, since she was 19 and at the top end of the "senior" age category.  But the owner of the studio asked Spawn if she was going to dance for her for another year.  At first she wasn't sure but then when she heard there was a trip to Nationals in Orlando involved - she jumped on it! 

The problem was - her being an "adult" changed the average age groups that her routines were in.  Some of the other parents weren't happy about that, but they got over it. 

Every other year during official studio photos in the spring, I had photos taken of her in every costume.  In 2018 she was busy between work & baseball games & dance classes, so we didn't get her individual pics taken.  I thought about calling the photographer who took her senior pictures, but then just decided to take them on my own, at cool local places.  In my humble opinion, they came out pretty freakin' awesome.  There are some multiple shots in the same costumes, because I couldn't choose a favorite!

btw - if you want to watch some of her dances - check out my YouTube link over on the right.

 "Girl Power" - hiphop line (all ages from like 6 years old up to Spawn at 20)

M-60 tank courtesy of VFW Old Settlers Post 4659. 

They did a version of this dance in 2017 - they decided to revisit & tweak it a bit for 2018.   Good call!

 

 Ballet.  She didn't actually do pointe this year, but she wanted this costume en pointe.  

The dance was to the Star Wars theme and they were storm troopers & danced with light sabers and one of the girls was Darth Vader. 

 

 

 "Control" - senior small group jazz

a creepy old cemetery seemed to be the perfect location for these pics

 

"Oceans" - small group lyrical

 

 "Hand Clap" - recreation jazz

 "Joy" - adult solo

 

 

 "We Help the People" - large group contemporary 

Truck courtesy of the company I work for!

 

 "We Found Love" - senior small group tap

...and in case you were wondering how did they do at Nationals?  

Not a bad way for her to end her competition dance life!

Now?  She talked me into taking adult recreation classes with her at DOS.

So we have hiphop, where were learn a different combination each week - it's more for exercise.  But our tap class is going to be in the recital in June and it's going to be *hilarious*!  I will be posting videos when that rolls around!