dance * dance * dance

Hannah has been taking dance lessons from Utah Dance Academy for the past two years.  This year, she decided she wanted to do a dance solo for competition.  She begged me and begged me to do one, and I finally gave in.  So in February, she started working with her dance teacher, Ashley Hess, on her solo to a song Hannah chose, "Do You Believe in Magic".  Ashley worked with Hannah once per week on Saturdays to get the solo learned.  The only problem was that Hannah refused to practice outside of these private lessons!!  I was getting so frustrated - it was expensive and time consuming to get Hannah to do this solo, yet she was not willing to put forth any effort into it.  I was getting really mean about it, telling her that she was going to make a fool out of herself out there, etc.  Nothing sunk in.  I finally decided that this would have to be a lesson to her - Hannah was going to have to learn the hard way about what happens when you don't practice.  Competition came, and I looked at Hannah in the middle of the basketball court at Weber State University.  A little dot in the center of a huge stage.  And I don't know what happened, but that little stinker came out and gave it her BEST!!  She was AWESOME!!  I about died.  She pulled it out of nowhere and turned on her charm.  I was so proud of her!!  There were only two girls in her division - she and another little girl who was in an entire different level of dancing than Hannah.  So that girl took Queen and Hannah took 1st Attendant.  But as far as most improved or most surprising, Hannah should have been Queen!!  She was thrilled with herself and I was so, so proud of her.  At this same competition, I entered Hannah into the "Cover Girl" contest - the winner got to have their picture on the cover of the program for the competition.  She won 1st Attendant for that contest (but in my book, she was the winner for sure!)

Hannah performed her solo in two more competitions - one at Roy High school where she won 1st Attendant, and one at Weber High school where she won 1st attendant.  The poor thing just could not win Queen.  At the competition at Roy High, she competed against the girl who beat her at Weber State, so I knew she would not win that one.  At the competition at Weber High, every single girl in her division (except Dylan, her friend who won Queen) forgot their dance out on stage!  Hannah included.  By the time the competition at Weber High rolled around, Hannah could have done that dance in her sleep.  But she got out on stage and forgot a chunk of it.  That was really hard for her because she really wanted Queen.  But all in all, it was a great learning experience and confidence booster for the Babes.  She is such a darling little dancer, I can't wait to see how she progresses!!