Grade One Ballet Exam

In January, I moved Holly to a new ballet school. The main reason was that her last school was in an area than meant navigating peak hour traffic to get there, and we'd had too many days of being late getting there, and one too many days being late in picking up afterwards, that we looked around for a school closer to us.

It turned out to be the best move we could have made, her new teacher is brilliant and the difference was remarkable in Holly's dancing. They had their exam scheduled for this past Thursday, and have been having extra lessons for the past half-term. It was quite an exciting day - after it started snowing on Tuesday, we had an extra 10 cm during the night on Wednesday, and were very worried that the exam would be called off. But, luckily the examiner could get through from London, our roads were clear enough and we all made it to the exam venue with plenty of time.

Holly and her friend arriving at the hall.

Her ballet teacher doing her hair in a very pretty, very neat style!

The last of their group having her hair done.

They thought it was hilarious standing this close for a picture, lol!

Can you see the nervous excitement in their faces?




Here they are just about to go in, making last minute adjustments.


A quick smile, and they were in.

Everyone was very impressed when I brought out my thermos of hot chocolate when the girls came out, complete with a tub of mini marshmallows! I think they deserved the treat, having worked so long and so hard towards doing their exam.

And what better way to unwind than tobogganing down the hill when we got home?


We ended the day by decorating our tree, and I couldn't resist taking a picture of Holly as she hung the decorations. Something about her stance, the way she's dressed, with her hair still done in the neat bun, reminds me of Julia Stiles in Save the last Dance. I love that she enjoys ballet so much. Having done ballet myself until the end of high school, I always wanted her to do ballet. It's a lovely activity for young girls, and I hope she enjoys it as much as I did.