7/15/16: Dance Ovations Nationals in Cape Cod

Lauren has been on the competition dance team at Ellens School of Dance for two years and this year the team went to Dance Ovations Nationals in Hyannis, MA.  This year she competed in a Junior Jazz and Tap routine and a Mini Jazz routine.  Her Mini Jazz took first place overall and is now Dance Ovations Nationals Champions!  Here is last year's blog post on when we competed in Dance Ovations Regionals.

We started out the week at Nationals with Space Invasion competing.  This is her Junior Jazz team.  This is a cool routine and I love their makeup.  They wear silver lipstick and eye shadow.

All of the girls are aliens in this routine and the one boy in the routine is an astronaut.

They did an awesome job receiving a High Gold adjudication in addition to a Judge's Choice "Perfectly Packaged" Award.

Here is her team being given their Judge's Choice Award.

Here is some video of that routine from one of the other competitions.

Next up was Radio Remix.  This is their Mini Jazz routine.  This routine is adorable and they do an awesome job with it!

Lauren was excited to dance in this one.

Not only did they do a fabulous job but they got an "Absolute" adjudication which is the highest! 

 Plus they won first overall making them Nationals Champions!

Here is video of that routine.

Last but not least was Jukebox Rock.  This is her Junior Tap routine.  She is getting so big now and mature.  She does her own makeup.

This is an adorable routine and they did an excellent job.

They got a High Gold adjudication which was great.

What a super cute team.

Here is video of Jukebox Rock.

Here are a lot of the girls after awards.

The nice thing is that the girls had some down time to enjoy the pool and Cape Cod.  Here they are during the team pool party.

Lauren with some of her friends from her team.

A dance friend warming her up.  All of the older girls are so sweet and so nice to the younger ones.  Lauren really look up to them.

There was even a pizza party for everyone competing in Nationals.  Here is our team ready to go to it.

The first two nights the kids all went to master classes.  They got to learn jazz, hip hop, Broadway, and lyrical and had a blast.

Dance Ovations is all about making "Forever Friends".  Lauren was called up along with another girl and got to make a forever friend and receive a t-shirt.  What a great competition!  So much fun for the whole team!

4/27/16: Baton Twirler Turned Twirler Mom 10 Highlights of Baton Twirling

I honestly would have never thought back when I was twirling that some day I would be the Mom watching my daughter twirl in competitions, parades and shows.  But guess what?  I totally am!  I watch her practice, I teach her tricks and now I go to competitions and get the same butterflies I had and stress when she goes out on the floor.  Plus she wears the same costume I wore back in the day.

She also wears the same dress for modeling.  As part of baton competitions you model in a dress if you are in Advanced and in a costume for best appearing.

At all of her competitions she is always cool as a cucumber and I am the one that is a basket case.  I do have those moments though when I just settle down and enjoy her performing and those are the best moments.  It is like a sisterhood of baton twirling.  We all know the fear of dropping, forgetting a routine, or rocking it with a no drop!

For me these are the 10 highlights of baton twirling that I hope she experiences:

1.  Having fun with your baton twirling friends who are like sisters to you and there for you through thick and thin.

2.  Enjoying the wins but also not being too hard on yourself with the losses.

I have had tears well up in my eyes when she wins and also when she has a good routine and feels good about it.

3.  Practicing something you love and being challenged along the way.

4.  The rush of catching a trick you have been practicing forever and just couldn't get.

5.  Enjoying twirling with your team and having fun practicing with them and marching in parades with them.

6.  Sharing your achievements with the world!

The Suburban-ettes Twirl Team won the 2016 Major Margie Gilbert Award for Dedication to Twirling and they also won the 2016 Linda Lanni Memorial Award for Outstanding Team Sportsmanship!

Lauren also won her Beginner Pageant at Miss Majorette of MA.

6.  Enjoying staying at hotels with your team before competitions and having fun together.

7.  Getting dressed up in beautiful costumes and dresses and having gorgeous curls in your hair.

8.  Learning good posture and composure.

9.  Having your friends be amazed when you twirl or toss your baton and turn and catch it.

10.  Being a Baton Twirler is JUST AWESOME!  Plus no matter what people say it is a sport!  A very difficult sport.