Last Post For 2010!

HELLO!

Okay ...... Yes, I have been practicing hard for the splits every day for the last 8 days. (I haven't practiced today yet, but right after this I have set some time to.)
I am SO close to doing the splits, it's unbelievable.
I mean, only 8 days ago I decided that I wanted to do the splits, and started practicing.

The other day I went on the internet and looked up "stretches to help you do the splits." I found a website that said "the splits in 6 weeks." I looked harder, six weeks? That's forever. I could do the splits in 1/3 of that time.

So admittedly I can't actually do them, but I wouldn't be surprised if I can do them by tomorrow or the next day! I would be the best Christmas present to myself ever.

I have decided to do "more than the splits."
If you know what I mean.
You don't - do you ..... well, that's understandable, because I am not being very clear. What I am trying to say is, you know how you can look at pictures of people doing the splits, and think to yourself, "Wow, that must hurt," then you look at another picture of somebody else doing the splits and you think, "Wow, that looks so easy."

What makes you think that?

Well, I know!!!!!
If you think "Wow, that must hurt," it is probably because the person in the picture is pushing them self to their very limit to do the splits. So yes, it is hurting them.

If you look at a picture of somebody else doing the splits and think, "Wow, that looks easy, just hang on, I should be able to do them, let me try," it is probably because it is really easy for them to be able to do the splits.

So, how do you make people think, "Wow, that looks so easy," when they look at your picture? Well, you obviously need to not be hurting when you do the splits, and look relaxed and calm, as if nothing is hurting.

"Um, how do you do that?" you may ask. Good question. You have to be able to do more than the splits. That means, perhaps putting a step under one foot, whilst you are doing the splits, to make you stretch even further. Yup, it will hurt, heaps. (Well, I imagine so, I have obviously never done it before.)

Sorry, I am getting really confusing now. Anyway, it basically means that if you want to look good in a picture of you doing the splits, you need to not be straining and looking like you are hurting heaps. So if you can do, "more than the splits," that means when you sit in the splits, it should be really easy and 'hurt free.' If you know what I mean.

If you do not get what I am saying, it is not you, it's me. I'm on holiday at the moment, so my writing skills and decreasing dramatically. Sorry.

Now, what I really need to tell you is that I am not going to be able to update my cute little blog until the very end of January. I know, it's SO sad, but it's SO true.

So, sweet blog, I haven't abandoned you, it's just that I am going to be unable to update you, okay! Poor thing, don't worry, I promise that I will come back.

Okay, I really need to go now, everybody. Thanks so much for all your support this year since I started my blog. I mean, a blog wouldn't be a blog without followers, would it?

I hope everybody has a very

MERRY

CHRISTMAS

AND

A

HAPPY

NEW

YEAR!

I will be back again at the end of January! Thanks again, everybody, and Merry Christmas!

Knowing When To "STOP" Moving Forward

As we all know, Julia Gillard is trying to get everybody to "Move Forward." As a proud Australian, I want to do what our Prime Minister says. Unfortunately, that can't always be the case.

For example, with the splits. So you see, the other day, I decided that I wanted to be able to do the splits by next week. I practiced, practiced and practiced.
Not just doing the splits, but doing many other exercises that will help be get there faster. In the last 4 days I have practiced for at least one hour per day - Just exercises to do the splits.

Last night, I noticed that my legs were starting to hurt - just a tiny bit, hardly noticeable at all. Before I went to bed, I rubbed Voltare all over my legs and lower back.
I decided that a good night's sleep and Voltare rubbed all over my self would do the trick.

This morning when I got up, I noticed that the slight bit of pain had completely disappeared. ha ha - Well I though it had.

Anyway, we went out to watch my bro play cricket this morning, so I spent about 3 hours just sitting. This was GREAT - it gave my muscles a chance to relax even more.

However, when we got home, I though it a good idea to go and practice, after all - the pain was all gone, wasn't it? I practiced for about 15 minutes, then went and had lunch. After lunch, I came back and practiced, practiced, practiced.

By the end of it, my legs were actually very sore. I went and had a break, then came back and did more, more, more! Yes ..... you guessed it, I came out with my legs shaking, and feeling like all the muscles in them had been ripped to pieces.

So, what I am trying to say is, whatever you are doing, whether it is practicing for the splits, or anything else, we all need to know when to "STOP." You see, I could decided to go and do another two hours practice, and by the end of it, I probably would be VERY near to my goal.

However, in the process, I could end up really injuring my self.

So my advice to anybody who had got a goal is ..... Yes, practice, practice, practice, but you must remember that there is a time when we all have to stop moving forward (not for long, just until our bodies have rested), rub some voltaren on yourself and have a good rest.

Thanks for reading/commenting guys!

It's All Over For The Year!!!

The concert was awesome!

It went for 45 minutes - which was actually quite long! Last years concert (I think it was the first concert the ballet school had ever had, it's still really new) only went for about 20 minutes.
This years concert was much grander!

Last year, the hall was pretty small, there was no special sound system, and no curtains. But this year ..... the hall was all renovated and new (bigger, too) the stage was bigger (I think .... - still good enough, though), there was a huge sound system, electric curtains and ..... it was just awesome!

There were also loads more students this year than last year. I am not exactly sure how many are in the school, but I would say about 40. Last year there wouldn't have been nearly as many.

Anyway, let me not tell you about the actually concert. Well, all the students were asked to arrive 1 hour before the concert was supposed to start. They were also all asked to come with their hair and make up done.
So, all my teacher and I had to do (and other helpers, too) was get the costumes for everyone, and fix up a bun or two.

I ran over a dance with one of my groups, then ...... it was time to go on stage. They were cute, what with all their hair and make up on, and their amazing costumes.
Of course, up there on stage in front of 80 - 90 people, they were very nervous, but they still did well.

Unfortunately two of the groups went onto the stage way too late in the final. But it didn't really matter, they were only about 4 - 6 years old.

Finally, after what felt like forever, it was time for the older students to go onstage. I think that I was okay.
My pointe work was good - I thought, but that was just me thinking that, so who knows what it looked like from an audiences pointe of view. I have really noticed that, since doing all the work for my concert, my pointe work has improved dramatically.

The other older students were great, too.
Apparently one little boy (I know him) said to him Mom, "Mommy, what's the wolf going to do?" His Mom just said to him, "Don't worry, he's just pretending to be a wolf." Then the little boy turned to his Mom and said, "Mommy, what is Izi pretending to be, then." Him Mom explained to him that I was Peta, and that the wold wasn't going to eat anybody, it was just acting.
ha ha - so cute!!!

Anyway, after the concert by teacher brought me and another girl out onto the front of the stage, and told the audience how we had done exams this year, and said that we had done "very well," ha ha - thankfully she didn't tell them about my marks.

Then, one of the Mom's of the girls who I help out with stood up and thanked both my teacher and I (and another lady who had been helping with the concert in the last few weeks,) and gave us all flowers.

(At the moment, I have the flowers in my bedroom. They smell sooo strong and I just love the smell.)

Once everyone was aloud to get up and go outside for afternoon tea, my Mom and Dad and Grandparents, (who had come down to watch the concert) all started taking pictures of me and my flowers and my teacher.

ha ha - I felt famous.

So ..... ballet is finished for the year, and we now have 7 whole weeks of holiday. Although I am going to keep practicing my pointe and other work through the holidays.
I want to keep my pointe up, I really feel like I am improving at the moment, and I also want to be able to do the splits by the time I go back to ballet next year.

So, if you are following my blog, stick around, I will be updating every week.

Thanks so much to everyone for reading/following/commenting on my blog over the last few months - I really appreciate everybody who does.

Thanks again

Izi x

P.S: Sorry, I don't have time to read through my work before I post it on the internet today. ha ha - there were probably be heaps of mistakes. Anyway, hope you still enjoyed.

Pics!

Images are: 1) Blisters on my toes, 2) My pointe shoes, 3) the skirt that goes with my costume, 4) My costume

100 mph!

Well ...... it has been busy lately, so that's the reason I haven't been able to update my blog for quite a while.
Let me think .... when was the last time I updated. I think it was the, hang on, perhaps the the Wednesday after last. Well, heaps has happened since then.

I had a one hour class with the grade 3's last Monday, then my own one hour class.

On Tuesday I we had extra lessons, so I was helping teaching for 40 Mins (20- Mins primary and 20 Mins grade 2), and then I had a lesson with the grade 3's again for 20 minutes.

Wednesday was normal classes. Did I mention that since Monday last week we have been at the venue for the concert? We have been able to practice on stage heaps. Even though it isn't a massive stage, it is still a good enough to fit everyone on comfortably enough.

I had to miss Friday's ballet class, but I was back Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Right now I am supposed to be in the middle of a class, but, due to a sore throat and headaches, I decided to miss it.

My Mom said that it would be better to rest than go to ballet, because I don't want to be sick on the day of the concert. I mean .... Wow - would just suck!!!

Anyway, because of all this dancing I have been doing (a lot of it on pointe), my feet are pretty sore and blistered. I guess that's just what happens when you stand on your toes for hours on end. Ooh well ......

The good thing is, though. Because I have been doing all this pointe work for the concert, I have noticed that my pointe in just usual classes has really improved.
Practicing more really does work.

One thing my Mom told me to put on my blisters was ...... Vitamin E oil. It is really thick and smells disgusting, but it works! Just apply it twice a day and your blisters will disappear.
I had one blister that just would not go away.
When I started using Vitamin E oil, it almost disappeared immediately. Try it ..... if you have blisters.

Okay, I think that I had better go and cut my toe nails. They are really long and need snipping off before the concert. Only 3 Days and 22 hours away! YAY

Thanks for reading/commenting

P.S: My teacher gave me my costume to take home the other day. Sorry, I have been really slack and haven't taken a picture yet. I will ..... I promise, and put it onto my blog.

This Week, Pointe Shoes, And Books!

Hi everyone!

In the last 3 days, I have picked up 2 NEW FOLLOWERS! I am SO excited, now I have 7 followers - I feel so popular. ha ha. I know it's not a lot compared to most blogs, but it's still really exciting each time I get a new follower.

I just got home from two hours of ballet. First up I was teaching half of the primary class their "pig," dance.
Although they can be really disruptive and naughty at times, they are also really cute and fun to hang out with.
My teacher has split the primary class up into two groups, so I am taking one.

My teacher also split the grade 2 class up into two groups. I am taking the "cats." They are also really good fun to hang out with, despite their occasionally misbehaviour.
I really enjoy hanging out with all of the students.

My dance as "Peter," is going okay. I am SO thankful for the new pointes. I would NEVER have been able to do the kind of stuff I am doing at the moment if I didn't have them.

The pointes that I had before (the bad ones) were the "BLOCH," brand name. As much as I love BLOCH, I wouldn't suggest their pointe shoes.

However, my new pointes (the amazing ones) are the "European Balance," ones. I highly recommend them if you are going to get a new set of pointes. They are so comfortable and easy to pointe and balance in - just AMAZING!

Anyway, at ballet today I really felt like I was improving.
I haven't felt like that in the last few months, but finally I felt like I was actually keeping my balance, pointing my toes hard, and getting right off the ground in the Allegro.
Perhaps all the practice has started to catch up ......... ?

Guess what ...... because it was my birthday on Monday (finally I turned 14), my teacher gave me the book "Mao's last dancer." It was really nice of her to give me a present for my birthday.
"Mao's last dancer," is a great book! I had talked to my teacher about it in class one day, she said she had read it and really enjoyed it.

I started the book last night and was hooked from the first page. I can't wait until tonight, when I can read, read, read, read read!

Okay, I think I need to go and get out of my leotard and give it a wash. I haven't washed it for about two week, and with all the sweating I do ..... it's starting to stink!

Have a great week!

Google Buzz

Hi Everyone!

I just set up a "Google Buzz" thing on my blog. I have NO IDEA on earth how to use it. Absuloutly non in the worls.

I do't even know if I set it up correctly or now!

Does anyone have any idea? If you do PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE leave a comment and tell me! I will literally thank you for the rest of my life!!!!!!!

From the very confused ballerina,

Izi xoxoxo

27 Days To Go!

Hi again everyone! It is only 27 days until the concert! YAY!

I am so proud that I have been so efficient at updating my blog recently. I think that I was just getting so bored of the old background to my blog, that I couldn't stand looking at it.
But, now with it's new background, I love blogging!

Anyway, as I sit here at the computer, eating my 99% fruit raspberry and watermelon icy pole, and listening to the rain trickling down the gutters, I will tell you all about last week at ballet.

Well, on Monday we worked on "Peter and the Wolf." My dance is very fast, but I think that I am kind of starting to get the hang of it.
Then we worked on our normal syllabus. I sucked at pirouettes.

With the primary and grade 2 classes on Monday, my Teacher and I split the students up into two groups. I took one group and my teacher took the other. About 95% of the kids were as crazy as ever.
In my class, I did a small pirouette on pointe. I was SO happy!

Friday was a good workout. My pirouettes were fairly good, I even managed to do an almost perfect double one. I was pretty proud of myself.

In pointe, I didn't realise until I took my pointe shoes off, but the blister on the side of my toe had started bleeding again. Sigh! I wish it would just disappear.
I don't mind the other ones, but this one is just so visible and uncomfortable. Ooh well, that's ballerina's feet, I guess!

On Saturday, we had a High Tea to raise funds for the kids clubs for the slum kids in India. My ballet teacher came to that.
At the end of it, she gave me a beautiful black long sleeved leotard to try on. She was going through some of her stuff and found it. It didn't fit her anymore, so she wondered if I would like it.

That night when I tried it on, I was really disappointed because it was too smalle for me. Just a little bit, but still too small. Sigh

Anyway, I will return it to her today. Perhaps some other lucky student will be able to wear it!

New Barr ..... Outside

So it has been six days since I last updated my cute little blog.

On the weekend, we had a big fundraising lunch for all the slum kids in India. (I know, it's not really related to ballet, but you will see why I mentioned it, right now.)

Well, you see, we had a huge table and bench on our front veranda, that took up most of the space.
On the day of the fundraiser, Mom and Dad decided to move the table and bench out onto the front lawn, so the kids could sit and eat their lunch there.

The veranda looks HUGE without the table there and so I though I might just tell all my blog followers, seeing as I thought they would be really interested in that kind of stuff.


JUST KIDDING!


Turns out that the railing on the veranda is just the right height for a barr for me. (I only discovered that today. Shows how amazingly observant I am, doesn't it - since we have lived in this house for 9 years. ha ha )

Anyway, I got really excited and started practicing right there and then.
I asked my Mom about whether to wear ballet shoes on the veranda or not.
Since it is not actually concrete, but tiles instead, Mom said that it should be okay, as long as I wore thick socks over my ballet shoes.

So that's the shoe thing fixed, but what about the music - there is no power plug outside. I immediately though of my ipod. Just recently I got itunes, but unfortunately I,

1) don't have and itunes card.

2) Don't know how to use it, anyway.

I decided to ask nah-nah (she's a friend of ours) if she could help with it. she said yup, and that she would come over and help me soon.

I am soooo excited that I now have a barr that is the right size for me - and that I will soon have the intermediate ballet music syllabus on my ipod.

Thanks for reading/commenting

P.S: I have STILL got a really snotty nose, irrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Thankfully My Snotty Nose Is Starting To Dry Up!

It has been four days since I last updated my blog - I feel quite proud for updating it so regualy. ha ha.

Last time I updated, I was blowing my nose constantly, had a sore throat, and just wanted to die! However, since then I have been on the road to recovery!
I have only blown my nose about ten times today (I know it sounds like a lot, but actually it isn't!), and my throat is feeling much better.
Infact, I'm not even on any paracetamol!

I did end up going to ballet on Monday, and guess what ........ I didn't have to blow my nose AT ALL in class. Unfortunatly when classes were over and I got into the car to come home, the snot just started pooring out of me. ha ha ha - You probably don't want to hear too much about my snot situation.

Now, I would just like to thank everyone for voting on the poll "How many hours a week should Izi practice by her self at home."

The results were:

14% 1 hour

42% 2 hours

28% 3 hours

14% 4 hours

Our obvious winner was "2 hours," with 42% of the votes. To be honest, I kind of hoped it would win. So, two hours it is then. Although, I guess I will probably end up practicing more sometimes.

In just an hours time I have to get ready for ballet. 2 hours - I hope I cope. ha ha - I am pretty sure I will be okay.

Anyhow, wish me luck. Hope you all have a great rest of your week, everyone!

New Look!

As you have probably noticed, my blog has taken on an all new look!
I have changed the background, using the website "the cutest blog on the block."
If any of you have a blog, and have never visited "the cutest blog on the block" website - I highly recomend it. There are millions of backgrounds, absolutely free!

What's also good about it is that they give you easy to follow instructions.
Unfortunately, they did miss out one of the steps - so that stuffed me up for a couple of hours, but I eventually worked it out.
If you are thinking of changing your blog's background and have never used "the cutest blog on the block" site before, just tell me and I will give you the step they have left out.

Anyway, if you are a follower of my blog, you probably are here to talk about ballet, not about how to change the background on your blog.

You see, the last time I updated my blog was once ballet classes had finished up for the week. I haven't done any practicing since then, because I have come down with a rotten cold.

It's not influenza, because when I have that I can't even walk from the living room to my bedroom without feeling like I'm going to die!

I think I have just got a bad cold, because I can walk around (I even went for a 250 metre walk the other day), but I am blowing my nose constantly and have to keep taking paracetamol to stop the headaches.

However, having this cold has been good. Since I haven't really been able to do anything but sit in front of the TV or Internet, I was able to spent hours giving my blog a makeover!

(So, you see, little blog, if I hadn't got this cold I wouldn't have been able to give you such a beautiful makeover.)

Hopefully by tomorrow afternoon I will be feeling good enough for an hour and a half of ballet.
Even if I don't feel better, I think that I will just have to go.
After all, it's only a few weeks until "Peta and the Wolf!"

P.S: I did practice grands ronds de jambe en l'air yesterday.

Cute Costumes

At Ballet classes this week we have actually hardly done any practice for the concert.

My teacher asked me to come half and hour earlier to ballet this Monday, so I could practice my dancing with the grade 3's.

I (obviously) did. We practiced the dances for the concert then, but haven't done anymore work for it so far.

However, my teacher gave me a photocopy of the steps for the dance, so I can practice at home by myself.

I did that today, but got confused with one bit. In the end I worked it out - I think.

Yesterday, whilst helping my teacher out with the grade 2's, I took the two boys and got started on their dance with them. (They are lions)

That gave my teacher some time to go over some dancers with the girls.

I also got my first sight of the "bee" and "pig" consumes yesterday. We have divided the primary girls up into two groups (in fact, we have also divided the grade two girls up into two groups as well), one group being bees and the other pigs.

The costumes are SO cute. I almost wish I could fit into them.

Although, I guess, my costume (well, the part that we have of it - we've only got the skirt. ha ha) is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!

I can't wait for the rehearsals to start so I can wear it! I will have to take a picture of it an "blog it" so everyone can see!

"Peta And The Wolf"

Gidday All!

I think that I must just accept the fact that I am really slow at updating my blog.
It's not that I don't absolutely love my blog spot - to be honest, I check it every day for comments and pole updates, it's just that, whenever I DO look at it, there usually isn't time to actually update it. For example, in a school break.

I have spent the last ..... ages trying to change the caption on the header of my blog.
At the moment it says "the lead up to my first pointe exam." Well, we all know that's all over with, so I am trying to write another caption instead. Problem is, I don't know how. Sigh. But ..... If anyone does know, please, don't hesitate to tell me!

Yesterday I spent ages in our office practicing standing on one leg on pointe, the other up on the window still.
I took a video of me doing this, and corrected my mistakes. When I eventually took my pointe shoes off, my feet we all numb and really sore.
I had ballet later that day, too. I don't think my pointe work was that good in class. ha ha.

Hay, I haven't told you this, but our end of year concert this year is going to be "Peta and the wold." Yup, Peta, not Peter.
It is still pronounced the same, but Peter is a girl (me, in fact) and so my teacher decided to change the spelling to Peta - which is pretty cool.

The music for "Peta and the wolf" is really beautiful. I will be doing my dancers on pointe which is really good.
In last years end of year concert, I danced on pointe, too. Unfortunately it wasn't very good, but I guess I had only been on pointe nine and a half months, then.

I am REALLY excited for the concert, even though it's about ........ nine weeks away. Maybe ten.
I will have to ask somebody.

My teacher asked me to come half an hour earlier (4:00pm) on Monday so that I could practice my dances with the grade threes before me, which will be pretty fun doing extra ballet, and having other people to do it with.

Just recently, I have started not just walking and riding the exercise bike but ......



JOGGING!



I usually hate jogging, but since our holiday at the beach last week (where I jogged along the beach every day and got my fitness up) I have really started to enjoy it.

Now I must go, my piano teacher has arrived, and, you know what, I think I have said everything I need I wanted to.

Thanks for reading/commenting!

Intermediate Foundation Ballet

Hi again! Sorry I haven't updated for a while.

I have got being upset and angry with myself about my exam marks, but I haven't changed my mind to practice at home.
Unfortunately I have only practiced once in the last week. ha ha - I feel really bad about that.
Straight after this I am going to go and practice.

What I have managed to do it ride 66 km on the exercise bike in three days and walk up and down our drive about a million times (it's quite long, too).

Yesterday I was practicing my arabesque with my leg up on the window-sill and up on demi pointe. I think it set my back off, because now it is really sore and in spasm. Sigh!

It won't stop me practicing right after this, though!

(As I sit here writing this, my brother is watching me - irrrrr. He wants me to write about him. When I asked him what he wanted me to say about him, he just said "Just say that I am a very talented ballet dancer." ha ha)

You know what, I just noticed that since I started intermediate, I haven't really written about it at all.
However, it is going well. The new pointes are AMAZING! I fell like I can do anything on them. I just with that I could have had them before the exam.

Most of the exercises on demi pointe are really hard, but, as I have said before, It is good to be able to do something new!

I'm Really Upset!

Hi :(

At the moment I am really upset and angry at myself. You see - my teacher phoned me today and said, "Something arrived in the post for you today."

It was my results.

As you have probably guessed they weren't very good, at all. Sigh.
My teacher didn't' actually tell me how many points I got, she just said that I have got "Brilliant," marks.
I had got a merit.
I was really hoping for a distinction. I have never not got a distinction before (apart from this time.)

When I got off the phone, I just burst into tears. Mom and Dad both said that it didn't matter, there was always my intermediate exam next year, and after all, it wasn't like I hadn't passed.

Today at ballet, I will find out how many points I actually got. All I know is that they will be below 75.

:( - that's how I feel!

All New - Intermediate

Hello again everyone!

Sorry for not updating for ages, I have been quite busy and forgetful.

Since my exam (which I still have not found out the results) we have been working of intermediate.
Because we had already done a little bit of it, it wasn't toooo hard to to remember. Though it is still new. I think that I have almost mastered all of the barre, but there are still a few things I am not sure about.

There are lots of new terms, which I had never heard of before, so that can be really confusing sometimes. Luckily I am starting to remember some of them.

One thing that I am super hopeless at are the pirouettes. The single ones are not that hard, but the double ones - I HAVE NOT IDEA HOW I WILL EVER BE ABLE TO DO ONE! Sigh

However, it's good to be able to have new music and exercises to do. I was starting to get very bored or intermediate foundation by the end.

Distinction ??? - You Can Now Vote!

Hi Everyone,

I have set up a poll, so that you can vote weather you think I will get a distinction from my ballet exam or not.
(I won't be offended if you think that I will not - and anyway, I won't know who said yes or no.)

It is to the right of the page, just click what you think!

Thanks for voting (!!!)

The Exam!

As always, it wasn't as bad as I though. Though I was still shaking!!!
We stayed at my uncle and aunt's place about half an hour out of Canberra. Even though it is only supposed to take half and hour from their house to Canberra, we left really early (7:30), because we thought that there would be heaps of traffic.
We arrived at 8:15, but only found the building at 8:30. We sat in the car and listened to the Italian news until we saw my teacher.

I said goodbye to my family, then went into the building with my teacher.
There was a lady at the door who we had to give my photo ID and a letter that they sent us to. My teacher handed the lady my photo ID, then I opened my suite case to look for the letter.
I looked and looked and looked, but it wasn't there. My blood literally ran cold!
Thankfully, my teacher had a photo copy of the letter, and the lady said that was good enough.

Then the lady attached a number (8) to the back and front of my leotard. Don't ask me why.....

We then went into the change rooms and my teacher put the "light pink velvet hair ribbon" (she had picked one up for me) into my hair, then she passed me a package and told me to open it once the exam was over.

The lady came in and told me to "say goodbye to Mom and go into the warm up room." (the lady thought that my teacher was my Mom - ha ha!) My teacher said, "Ooh, I am your Mom, OK," then she told the lady that she was actually my teacher. I said goodbye to her and went into the warm up room.

I put on my flat ballet shoes, then did some stretches.
A little while later, another girl came in. Then another. I found out later that a fourth girl was supposed to come, but she never did.
We practices some exercises, then the lady came it. (I have no idea was the 'lady's' name was).
She showed us how we would enter the exam room, and what the examiner and pianists name was.

Then she left us. We warmed up for a while, then the 'lady' came in. She said it was time to go in for the exam.

We collected our pointe shoes (guess what, we weren't supposed to wear toe protectors - but we all took them in with us), then lined up at the door, ready to go in.

I WAS TERRIFIED!

The bell went and we all ran in. We said good morning to Mrs. Everson and the pianist (I can't remember her name).
Then we put down our pointe shoes and ran to the arr.

The barr seemed to be okay. One exercise the the other girls did a little differently, I just kept doing it the way I was taught.
We actually skipped a lot of the exercises, I guess that there wasn't enough time to do them all.

The center was okay, too. Except for the 'thing' (I just spent ages on the Internet looking up how to spell in, but google had no idea what I was talking about.) aka: jumble of exercises you have to do at the examiners command. I totally stuffed that up, and so did another girl - ooh well!

Again, we skipped a heap of the exercises. We also had lots of breaks, where we could go over to the corner and have a drink. There was a shelf with a water jug, cups a tissue box and a vomit bowl (thankfully none of us had to us the bowl).

The other girls did the dance a little bit differently from me. But again I stuck to what I was taught, and I think that I did it well - possibly..... (!!!)

Pointe wasn't actually that hard. One of the exercises at the barr we didn't do, and we only did half of each exercises in the center.

YAY!

Finally the exam was over. We said goodbye to Mrs. Everson and Mrs. Turner (I think that was her name - maybe no!) then ran out.

"No more exams for another year," I though. I got changed into some other clothes, then said goodbye to my teacher.

We went to BLOCH to get me some new pointe shoes, Demi pointe shoes and a new leotard. I got a fantastic pair of pointe shoes, they are sooo comfortable - well, as comfortable as a pointe shoe can get.
The demi pointes are soooo funny. They look just like a pointe shoe, but have nothing at the end. If you go on pointe on them, you actually wreck them!
I tried on litrally millions of leotards, all different sizes. I will have to take a picture the one I chose, and put it on my blog.

After BLOCH we went to the food court. Then headed home.

I am SO glad that the exam is over, and that I don't have to do another one for one more year!

Last few hours!!!

In 24 hours time I will be 40 minutes into my ballet exam! It makes me feel sick just thinking of it!
We leave for Canberra at about 4:00pm this afternoon. I usually love going away.
But this time it is a different feeling.....a kind of feeling of "Ooh, No!"

Yesterday was the last class before my exam. I had one and a half hours helping with the other classes, and just the day before I had ridden 23km on the exercise bike, so I was pretty tired by the time it was my turn.
I've decided not to do any riding or exercise today, I must keep all that energy for tomorrow!

What does make me feel better is the thought that in 25 hours time, it will all be over. Now more exams for another whole year! YAY!

Another thing that makes me feel better, is if I think, "After this exam, I have only got one more ballet exam before I can do my two teachers exams. Once the teachers exams are over, I can teach."
That would be cool.

I love ballet, but I don't actually want be be a ballerina or ballet teacher when I grow up. I would prefer to be a doctor. But I guess that I could do some ballet teaching when I'm at uni, for some extra money.

Last night my Mom sewed on the ballet ribbons to my flat ballet shoes. She had to unpick the elastics that were already on the shoes, then sew on the ribbons.
Mom was talking to be about what I should pack for the exam, while she was sewing. She got distracted, and started unpicking the ribbon she had already sewn on!
Mom got really angy and told me that it was her worst job in the world!
She said that it takes 20 minutes to sew each ribbon on and that she had four to do Then she told me that next time she had to sew ribbons onto ballet shoes, she was going to teach me to do it. HA HA HA! Should I be excited that I get to sew ribbons onto my ballet shoes, or not???

Anyway, half way through the sewing, my mom pricked her finger. She said that she was bleeding all over the ribbon, and asked me to go and get a plaster. I pretended to me a doctor, and rushed off to get a plaster to put on her finger.

Guess what, Mom pricked the same finger again. So I had to get another plaster for her. I don't think that I am exactly looking forward to sewing my ballet ribbons on next time!!!

Finally, the ribbons were on. Then my mom fixed the ribbon on my pointe shoe. It had come a little bit loose without me realising. Thank goodness mom did!!!

You are probably wondering what I will do with this blog once my exam is over.
Well, I will write about how the exam went, then, because I love being a 'blogger,' I will continue it about "The lead up to my foundation exam!" I think that's a good idea.

I will only find out what the results for my intermediate foundation exam are late next month. Depending on how good they are, I might tell you!

I had better go and pack my bag. Only.....23 hours left!

4 More Sleeps!

The heading probably makes it sound as if I were excited - but I'm not.....I'm extremal nervous!
I have only got 2 more classes before the exam.....saying that makes me even more nervous!

We went to a large town some kilometres from where we live, on Friday. We got new ballet stockings, and ribbons to sew onto my flat ballet shoes.

On Saturday we looked and looked and looked for a "light pink velvet hair ribbon, about 1 cm wide," that I have to wear in my hair. Don't ask me why!
After ages of searching, we eventually found one. It was light pink, but now velvet. We bought it anyway, then kept searching for one that was actually made of velvet. We ended up finding one in the shop next door, though it was not 'light' pink, we bought in.
I have to show them to my teacher today, and she can decided which one is the best.....like the examiner is going to care, anyway!!!

On Thursday, guess how many kilometres I rode on the exercise bike.....15! I know, I was pretty bored by the end of it.
It sounds like a lot of kilometres, but it really isn't that hard, if you can get past the boredom. It's not so bad if I'm watching TV while I am riding, or listening to my Ipod.
Once I went through a stage where I would do something ridiculous like 25 km per day. It took up so much time and I got tooooo seriously bored, that I stopped.

Later on today it is my second to last ballet class before the exam! I think that we are just going to start the music and keep going, not stopping it at all!

10 Days To Go!

Mom ordered my ballet stockings today. I have obviously got some, but they are full of holes and are not nearly fit for an exam.
My teacher said that my leotard is OK, so that's good.
We still have to get ribbons for my flat ballet shoes, hair net, bobby pins and.....yep....., I think that's all!

I have been practicing the splits a lot, but I know that I won't be able to do them by the time the exam comes around. Only ten days time! I am SO nervous.
I keep telling my self that I will be just fine, I know all my exercises and can do them all really well. It doesn't stop me feeling nervous, though!

The foundation ballet class on Friday went well. We had it in a smaller hall, just down the road from the one that I usually do ballet in. I know I have said this before, but.....foundation is REALLY hard, even though is's fun!
After doing intermediate foundation for one and a half years, it is nice to have a change. I am kind of getting a little bored of the exercises!

Yesterday, we had to have ballet at the "Little Hall" (as I like to call it) again. The building attached to the "Big Hall" had gone up (or should I say down) in flames just a couple of nights before.
There was nothing wrong with the "Big Hall" but it had a "Do not cross" sign up, so we obviously couldn't dance there! Poor old hall!

So.....back to stretching, and getting ready for the exam. I think I will go and ride the exercise bike now. 7 kilometres.....maybe 10???

I Know When My Exam Is!

Can anyone guess what date my ballet exam is? I have actually written it on my blog, just in a place you wouldn't really think to look.....It's under "About Izi the Awesome."
My exam is on the 27 Th of August at 10:05 in Canberra. That is.....15 days away. I am really nervous!

I have to bring a photo ID thing to the exam so that the examiner can see that I really am who I say I am, not just someone pretending to be me.
The photo is of me when I was in Northern Ireland last year, outside in the 2 degree weather. The photo had to be four by four centimetres, so most of them were either way too big or way too small.

This week at ballet it has been pretty good. My teacher lent me some thicker toe protectors which REALLY make a difference to the pain when I go on pointe. It is actually quite amazing!

Tomorrow I am going to ballet at 11:00 am. We will be doing the next grade up (foundation), so that my teacher and I can get familiar with the syllabus. Yesterday I found out that there is something like....let me think....12 pointe exercises next year - ouch - But I guess that it will be good to get a head start.

I Did A Double Pirrouette - Yay!

No more coughs, so back at ballet this week!
On Monday, it was absolutely freezing outside. Because the hall that we do ballet in is so big, I thought it would be freezing in there, too. Luckily it wasn't.
The people who work in other parts of the building had turned on the heating, so it was really nice and warm.

Wednesday was another story, though. When I arrived at 3:30, it was so cold. Some of the little girls that are in the classes that I help out with, looked absolutely frozen with just the leotard and stockings on.
Lucky for me, when I help out I wear a t-shirt and pants over my leotard. When it came time for my class (an hour and quarter later) I had completely warmed up, and the heating had had time to worm the place up.

I managed to do a double pirouette from fourth position. Let's not talk about how good it was, though. Thankfully I only have to start doing double pirouettes next year!

Talking about 'next year' I am now going for an extra class on Fridays from 11:00 - 12:-00. We will be doing the grade above (elementary).
Actually, it is not really every Friday, I must just text my teacher and every Friday morning to ask whether it is on or not.

Anyway, I had better go. Got to go and do some Italian art homework.....Big Sigh!

By The End Of The Month, I Will Have Done My Exam!!!

Because I missed ballet on Wednesday, I decided to practice today.
I went into our study, got into pants that I could actually move in (I had jeans on at the time), put my ballet shoes on, and started.
I did all the barr and was really impressed to see that I could do demi grands ronds de jambe without my leg clunking half way through. Once I realised this, I couldn't stop doing it.

One thing I REALLY need to work on is the splits. I can't do them. Once when I was in grade 2 I could almost get down there, but now that I have stopped practicing, I obviously can't do it.
I put on the music to the adage and stretched and stretched and stretched. By the end of it I felt like I had had a very good workout.

Tomorow it is ballet. I have decided that no matter what state I am in, I will go. It is too close to the exam not to.

When I just then wrote "too close to the exam" I just realised that by the end of the month, my exam well be finished.....IT IS AUGUST, I WILL HAVE DONE MY EXAM BY THE END OF THE MONTH!

Cough Cough - No Ballet Today - Cough Cough!

Cough! Cough! Hi, Cough! Cough!

As you have probably noticed, I have got a terrible cough at the moment. I am not going to ballet today because I was awake from 4:00am this morning until about 6:00.
I coughed and coughed and coughed, every time I took a breath, I coughed. Once I coughed so hard that the cough lollie I was sucking at the time came right out of my mouth and into the bed (I haven't found it yet)
The strange thing was that when I sat up, the coughing stopped, the minute I lay down again, it began. Annoying, I know!!!

I had a really bad cough the night before last, too. But the next day I was fine. I thought I would be OK today, but unfortunately I am still coughing (not nearly as bad as last night, though).
I just had a really nice frosty fruits ice block which will hopefully help my throat to feel a little better.

My ballet is supposed to start in 10 minutes. I guess I will just have to spend the rest of the day looking for meatball and seasol ads, (my drama teacher asked me to) reading a book, and coughing!


Cough!

My Dream, I Mean, Nightmare!

When I went to bed last night, I must have been thinking about my ballet exam or something, because I had a dream about it! Actually, it was more like a nightmare.
It went like this:

You know how I will be taking my exam in Canberra, well, In my dream, I kept telling my Mom that we had to leave for Canberra or we would be really late for the exam. She kept saying "Ooh, No, It will be okay, we will leave in an hour and a half".
Anyway, when we finally did get to Canberra and find the place I was to be doing my exam at, we were really late. Infact, we were too late for me to get into by ballet stuff or do my hair.
So, I go into the exam with my jeans, thongs, shirt and sleveless jumper. (I also had gloves on, the tipe of gloves you wear when you collect fire wood- don't ask me why)

I started doing the bar, and it was OK. But when I it was time to go into the centre and do releves dessus and dessous, my feet just didn't want to work properly. Firstly I kept tripping up, then I got the wrong foot, then the wrong arm, then the wrong this and the wrong that and it kept going on and on and on and on and on.....

IT WAS TERRIBLE!

Thankfully, my dream stopped and about that point. But guess what.....I dreamed it all over again (this time without the gloves on).

After dreaming it the second time, I woke up and started coughing (at the moment I have got a really bad cough).

Let's hope that my real ballet exam isn't anything like my dream, I mean, nightmare!

Is One Of My Toes 10 Inches longer Than The Others?

Hello again everybody, sorry about the lack of updates this past week.

My back is still a little sore, but sooo much better than last week. I guess all the pills and spray and hotties helped.

Monday was my first day back at ballet for term 3. I felt really guilty when my teacher asked if I had watched the ballet DVD in the holidays and I said 'No'.
To be honest, I really had forgotten all about it. It was at the back of all my coupboard . Anyway, my teacher asked me to please watch it the next day.
Guess what......I DID!
As I was watching it, I got really worried, because there were all these excerscises that I hadn't learnt.
On Wednesday, I asked my teacher about it. When she told me that I won't have to perform those excerscises in the exam, the relief was huge.

On pointe on Wednesday, nine of my toes hurt at all (which is VERY unusual) But the toe next to my baby one on the left hand foot felt about 10 inches longer.....don't ask me why.
By the end of class, I thought that something might be stuck to the end of my toe, or something like that. But when I took of my shoe, it was just normal.
I am still wondering what it could be. If anyone has an idea, and idea at all, please tell me!!!

This Is Not An Excuse.......

This probably sounds like an excuse for not practicing, but it's not.
Yesterday, while I was playing our piano, my back started to spasm really badly. I managed to get up and go sit on a proper chair, until the spasm had finished.
It went on for a while and then the stopped. However, it left my back REALLY sore.
I made myself a hot water bottle and a glass of fizzy apple juice, then lay down with the hottie on my back and watched 'the gods must be crazy.'

When I went to bed, by back was starting to feel quite good, but when I woke up this morning, it was another story.
It was so stiff I could hardly move. I hobbled to the bathroom and had a very hot shower. Then my mom rubbed voltaren on it and gave me some neurofen. I ate breakfast then lay next to our dog by the fire with a hot water bottle on my back.
I finally managed to get up an come to the computer to explain why I couldn't practice to all of my readers. Hopefully my back will be better by ballet on Monday.