Our Reflection: And 5, 6, 7, 8...

Hello Our Reflection readers! I am so excited to be Laura's featured sponsor this month! Her blog is so fun to read, and she truly goes out of her way to help her fellow bloggers.

I'm Megan, and I blog over at Shaping Up To Be A Mom. You'll find posts on all kind of topics such as:

fashion (especially showcasing the items I sell for Cents of Style)
fitness (trying to lose the baby weight!)
family (lots of pics of my minis, see below!)
musical theatre (I'm a choreographer by trade)
interior decorating (not a professional, but I've painted every square inch of my home and delighted in decorating each room)
my bucket list (currently working on my "30 Before 30")

These are my minis. Carter is soon-to-be four, and Vanessa is 15 months,

and they keep me on my toes! I love being their mom!

I honestly agonized over this guest post. What to write about?! What could I

offer Laura's readers that would be new to them, or useful, or interesting?

Finally it came to me. It might not be very useful, but it will probably be new,

and it will definitely be fun! Today you are getting a tap dancing lesson.

For realz.

Okay, everyone up. Yes, I'm serious. Even you, up!

I'm going to teach you how to do a "paradiddle." This step is also called a "paddle-and-roll," but we are going to use "paradiddle" because it goes to the beat of the step. In other words, as you do the step, you can say "paradiddle, paradiddle, paradiddle..." and it will go to the beat of your feet.

Stand with your feet just slightly apart, in a relaxed stance. Fast footwork comes from loose hips more than from your feet themselves, so get rid of any tension from your hips to your ankles.

Okay, here we go!

Keeping all your weight on your left foot, pick up your right foot and place your heel slightly in front of you, on the floor. That's "par" of "paradiddle.

Yep, my feet.

Next, you are going to pick up your right foot, but as you do that, you are going to "spank" your right toe on the floor, as your foot leaves the ground. That's the second "a" of "para..." I'm showing the movement below in two steps, but it's ONE sound!

That's the first half! Heel, spank. "Para."

Now you have your right foot up, and you are going to put it back down in two parts. First your toe, then your heel. Put your right toe back down where it started, next to your left foot. Then, just drop your right heel so your foot is flat on the ground. Those two sounds make up "diddle."

As you finish the step, transfer your weight to your right foot, and repeat the sequence on your left foot. Then go back and forth and see how fast you can go!

And that's pretty much it! Heel, spank, toe, heel. "Paradiddle." Emphasis is on the first count. ONE-two-three-four, ONE-two-three-four. Here is a short clip of me doing the step, plus a few fancier combinations you can do with it:

Did you do it?! I want to hear all about it!

Well, I think you've earned yourselves a giveaway! Today I'm giving away a sweet set of accessories from Cents of Style. The winner will receive these sunglasses and floral disc earrings: