Tuesdays with Ryleigh

Tuesdays after school Ryleigh goes to ballet practice and I pick her up on my way home from work. I usually try to time it so that I leave work and get there just in time for class to be over, but I'm not sure why. On days like this most recent Tuesday when I get there early or class runs late I get to stand in the lobbby and watch as 6 and 7 year old girls plie, saute, and releve which are French terms for running, jumping, skipping and looking cute. Of course in the ballet studio there are mirrors all around so when I arrive and Ryleigh sees me in the mirror her face lights up with a great big smile which immediately adds an extra spring to her step. I don't stop smiling from the moment I arrive until long after she gives me the sticker she just received from her teacher and we recount her day during the car ride home.

Of course I don't have to tell any readers here that she is a beautiful young girl who has a body made for ballet. She is tall and slender, and her long flowing hair is pulled up into a bun for ballet. She looks so grown up especially in these pictures from the Nutcracker. Andrea tells me that Ryleigh took great care in holding the precise pose for these pictures, but see her jump and skip during free time at the end of practice dancing seems to come naturally to her.