Currently, I am 20-something weeks along and still dancing up a storm.  Well, I’m dancing up as big a storm as my dance partners will allow.  As my belly has gotten bigger, my ballroom dance connection improved for awhile.  The curve of my belly fit the curve of my husband’s belly nicely.  But now, the belly is starting to make Tango a little more interesting.   Luckily, I am a swing dancer and the versatility (and distance) of open dance position keeps me smiling and in my favorite dance shoes rather than on the sidelines of the dance floor.

I have been told that “Baby Barnes” is going to come out spoiled.  Baby Barnes will have spent 9 months in the womb being rocked for hours by all the East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing and Hustle dancing I do.  After being born, the baby will still want to be rocked (or Swing) for hours on end.

I have noticed that the baby tends to wiggle and kick when I am still.  Right now, I’m getting kicked because I’m sitting very still while writing this blog.  But get me to the ballroom or dance studio and the kicking stops soon after my first dance.  The swing dance steps and the movement of my body rocks the baby to sleep while I am working up a sweat to some very loud music.

This got me thinking about dancing with babies.  I found this article and thought I would share it with you.  Susan Peach has over 20 years experience as a Latin dance and fitness instructor. She is also the creator of Mambo Moms, a fun and gentle Latin dance based fitness program that helps new moms get back in shape while spending quality play time with their babies.  http://www.mambomoms.com

Shared Dancing has Benefits for Babies and New Moms Alike

by PregnancyAdmin on May 5, 2009

“Shared Dancing has Benefits for Babies and New Moms Alike

Every parent knows the calming effects on their baby of rocking and gentle motion. After all, who among us has not paced the floor at 2 am trying to entice a little one back to sleep by rocking, bouncing or swaying?

Amy and Jason Barnes cutting a rug

Home from a long weekend of swing dancing at “Worlds”.

 I was camped out at the Opryland Hotel from Thursday through Sunday.  I danced and danced and danced… and then danced some more.  Jason danced so much, his big toe became incredibly sore.  It was official, my swing was all swung out.  I left it all out there on the dance floor.

On Saturday night, I was getting lined-up with the rest of the competitors for the West Coast Swing Jack and Jill’s.  I was shocked at what I saw.  There was a complete lack of men a.k.a. LEADERS.

Where the ladies are…

So here I am in the line-up, 8 followers and 2 leaders.  I go into a group class, and I see 4 extra followers.  I know women who have learned to lead just because they are tired of sitting.  Men, if you can’t seem to find women at you local watering hole, try a local ballroom or swing dance.  You will meet all kinds of women!!!

One small dance step for man… one giant leap for mankind.

The first time trying something new is sometimes difficult.  The hardest part is getting started.  For would be dancers, it’s taking the first lesson.  My favorite dance students are beginners.  I love them and their energy.  But I am baffled by the amount of time that has passed between them wanting to learn to dance and making it to the first lesson.  It’s years!!!  It is not uncommon for someone to tell me they have wanted to learn to dance for 5, 10, or 15 years (or their wife or girlfriend has been talking about it for that long), but they never called a dance teacher or walked into a dance studio until just a few days ago. The first few steps just inside the dance hall’s door can be the hardest.  I understand, especially for men, just getting in the door is a giant leap.

What if you could walk into a ballroom or swing dance with a little more confidence in your step?

Sometimes, we fear only what we don’t know.  As a first time dancer, you may feel a little nervous because you think everyone at the dance knows more than you.  I get that, nobody like to be the low man on the totem poll.  So what if you could pick up a few moves before walking through the door?  What if you could dance your first dance in your kitchen or living room, rather than a dance studio.  What if you could learn enough East Coast Swing to dance all night long, without looking silly or unskilled to your partner? 

Check out how easy it can be to learn to learn how to East Coast Swing Dance!

Visit the ZeDiamond Dance Method website to see just how easy it can be.  There you can watch a video and check out how it works.  ZeDiamond Dance Method in a new way to learn to dance.  You will also find easy to follow instructional DVD’s for learning how to East Coast Swing Dance.  Give them a try.  You will be up and dancing and feeling more comfortable moving with the music by the end of this 2 DVD set.

Dancing with men.

I love dancing with men.  Skill level is not so important.  I love dancing with young men, old men, men in street shoes, men in jeans… I even once danced in a swing competition with a man who danced in black socks – NO SHOES!  Men, I know I’m not the only women who feels this way.  We need you men… at every dance, at every group dance class, at every swing dance party.  My tired, worn-out, danced himself into a limp, husband needs you too.  Please come take some of the followers off his hands so he can sit down once in awhile. Followers all over the world need you.  So please, take the first dance steps and learn how to dance with us.

Amy Barnes

ZeDiamond Dance Method 

Meet Amy

Amy Barnes works on marketing projects for ZeDiamond Dance Method.  She is responsible for the website, facebook group, and twitter feeds for ZeDiamond Dance Method.  Though you do not see her on the Learn the East Coast Swing DVD, Amy has spent many hours creating the support needed to bring such a DVD to the market place and into people’s homes.

From Line Dancing to Ballroom Dancing

Amy, like many people in the 90’s, befell the free line dance lesson at a local country bar and never looked back.  She spent the rest of the summer racing to the Neon Cactus to take the free dance lessons.  Cary Pettit and Scott Blevins were dance instructors at the Neon Cactus.  They both attracted lots of dancers to their lessons.  Luckily for Amy, they attracted college age ballroom dancers.  They were members of the Purdue Latin & Ballroom Team.  Soon after meeting them, Amy was a member of the team as well.  By the time Amy graduated from Purdue, she had learned hundreds of line dances, plus East Coast Swing, West Coast Swing, Country Two-Step, Night Club Two-Step, Foxtrot, Tango, Rumba, Cha Cha and Waltz.  Purdue gave Amy a B.S. degree and a background in American Style Ballroom dancing at the Bronze and Silver levels. 

Amy Graduates from Ballroom to Strictly Swing

After graduation, Amy moved to Indianapolis, Indiana and eventually joined the Indy Swing Dance Club.  ISDC is a not-for-profit organization that promotes swing dancing in the Indianapolis area.  Amy worked to organize and promote the Indy Swing Classic (a swing dance competition and workshop weekend) from 2003 until 2006.  She even sat on the board of directors of ISDC as their Activities Director.  After moving to Minneapolis, Minnesota, Amy joined the Twin Cities Rebels, another organization that promoted swing dancing to the local community. 

Life brings her back, full circle – Country, Line, Ballroom and Swing

Amy and her husband, Jason Barnes, moved to Asheville, North Carolina to teach country, swing and ballroom dancing at the Asheville Ballroom and Dance Centre.  It was there that Amy and I met.  When we talked, I learned that she was in a drum line in high school.  Not only did she have a background in dance, Amy understood drumming.  This allowed her to easily understand the ZeDiamond Dance Method.

Amy has been with ZeDiamond Dance Method since May.  I hope you look forward to getting to know her and her take on dancing through these blogs.

 Deborah-Marie Diamond

Some of the best tips to improve your dancing, are not learned on the dance floor.

When I first started dancing, I had the pleasure of attending the Country Dance World Championships.  At my first “Worlds”, I did not know very much.  I could dance East Coast Swing, a little West Coast Swing, Waltz and Two-Step.  But I was very much still learning how to dance. I wanted to be a better dancer, so I took lots of workshops in swing dancing, country dancing and line dancing.  So many workshops in fact that my brain felt like it turned to mush, but I kept on dancing.  But, the lessons that have stayed with me all these years I did not learn out on the dance floor or in a learn how to dance workshop.

 At every dance event, whether it is swing, country, Latin or a ballroom dance event, there is a flyer table.  This table is full of business cards for dance instructors, fliers for upcoming dance events and dance workshops, and other information that promotes dancing to the community.  At this particular Worlds, there was something unusual on the flier table.  There was a small stack of paperback books.  “Paul McClure’s Country Dance Etiquette” was the title of book.  The lessons within this book have served me well over the years.  McClure’s wit is sharp, funny and honest while Craig George’s illustrations accent the points of etiquette perfectly.  Though the book was written with a country dance focus, much of it also is relevant in swing dancing and ballroom dancing and other social dancing venues.

 Over the years, I have changed and adapted these rules of etiquette to fit the dance and life situation I currently find myself in.  I have also taught these rules of etiquette in group lessons and private lessons with my dance students.  And now, lucky reader and ZeDiamond Dance Method dancer, I share them with you.

The Eight Dance Commandments – Originals by Paul McClure with revisions by Amy Barnes

1. Thou shalt dance at they partner’s level of comfort and ability.  Remember, dancing is about teamwork and partnership and nobody likes to be left in the dust or drug through the mud on or off the dance floor.
2. Thou shalt dance as if thou hast no thumbs.  Leaders, your thumbs hurt when they clamp down on the backs of your follower’s hands.  Followers, stop using lobster claws to hold on to your leaders.
3. Thou shalt leave the fast lane when moving slowly down the line of dance.  Slower dancers move to the inside track and let the faster dancers progress past you on the outside track.
4. Thou shalt always remember how it felt to be a beginner.  Remember, we were all beginner dancers at one time.  Always be kind, because we are all still learning and all of us can improve.
5. Thou shalt leave Four-Count Swing to Texas A & M alumni.  There is a time and a place for every dance.  Just because you know a dance, doesn’t mean you are going to dance it tonight.  Don’t get upset if the DJ at an “Any Swing Goes” party, doesn’t play your request for a Polka, stick to East Coast Swing.
6. Thou shalt not West Coast Swing in the midst of line dancers or East Coast Swing in the midst of Quick Step traffic.  If the DJ announces a particular dance at the beginning of a song, that dance has the right of way.  Respect the space and right of way of other dancers.  Every dancer likes a little bubble of space around them to prevent collision with other dancers.  If you are doing a stationary dance, take it to the center of the dance floor so more progressive dancers can go around the room without weaving around you.
7. Thou shalt ask at least one wallflower to dance each night.  Everyone likes to be asked to dance, but some people are uncomfortable asking others to dance.  I remember being a new dancer at a swing dance… dying to dance, praying someone would ask me.  Remember what it was like for you at your first few dances and ask a newbie to dance.
8. Thou shalt ask permission to polish thy partner’s belt buckle.  Face it, the person who is dancing with you, may not want to dance that close to you.  Give your partner the space they desire.  This also applies off the dance floor.

This list of dance commandments has helped me negotiate my way around many a dance floor successfully. 

I have taken them with me to swing dances, country-dances, ballroom dances and into a few bars and night clubs and delighted many a dance partner and onlooker.  Respect is a hard thing to earn back, once lost in the dance community. 

By following these dance commandments, you will be treating others they way they want to be treated and in return, they will treat you to many dances.

 See you out on the dance floor,

 Amy Barnes

ZeDiamond Dance Method