Families Who Dance Together Stay Together
It’s a Family Affair
Here at the Dance Loft we believe that family’s who dance together stay together:)
Ok, you’ve practiced, rehearsed and performed the most memorable dance of your lives, now what? Bring in the entire family to keep the party going with our newest dance package, “It’s a Family Affair.”
Why be the only one’s at your wedding who can dance when you can get your whole family involved? This package has been specifically designed to teach not only the renown Father / Daughter & Mother / Son Dances, but also incorporates teaching other members of your immediate family how to get their groove on when it matters most!
We know that the day of your wedding will fly by like a blur, so why not take some extra time before your big day to connect with those closest to you in a uniquely fun and relaxing way.
It’s a "Family Affair" is a package for up to 8 people which is catered specifically to take care of the whole family’s wedding dancing needs
Includes :
- Private family group lessons enjoying
- Beginner lesson for bride and groom
- Beginner lesson for family members
- Beginner lesson for father & daughter, mother & son dance
$250 for 1.5 hour private lesson
What kind of love keeps two souls connected throughout an entire lifetime?
What is True Love? Not brotherly love, not the love you feel for your children or your parents, but true love? The kind of love that keeps two souls connected until the end of their lives? As I sit here looking back on my life, I’ve noticed my definition of love has changed. In some ways, it has changed slightly. In others, drastically. I won’t begin to assume I have the perfect answer. I have no psychology degrees that qualify me to define true love for you. What I have is a lifetime of both happiness and pain that have defined for me, today, what true love is.
True Love Is Magical, Not Magic
Sure, true love comes with moments you feel you can defy gravity. You and that special person can simply be near each other and everything is perfect. Holding hands in a storm. Smiling each time they cross your mind. Looking forward to the next time you are in each other’s arms. True love is magical, but it’s not magic. Life continually moves on. Just as bad times guarantee good will follow, good times can also be followed by bad. True love does not keep this from happening. It’s not a magic spell that ensures happiness ever after. If held on to though, it will weather all storms with you. When bad times come, true love hasn’t let you down or lost it’s magic. It’s still there, riding the rollercoaster with you.
True Love Is Faith
To be open to true love is to truly be vulnerable. It is allowing yourself that quiet ease that comes with knowing your partner honors and cares for you. It is realizing everything you do has someone’s heart attached. We can worry about the next person that comes along. We can be on guard looking for the one that comes to steal that person away. For men, this is almost ingrained into our psyche. We must defend our love and always be on guard. For those who have been hurt, it comes even harder. Step back and see this; you never lost someone because you weren’t running off everyone else, although you could definitely lose someone by refusing to have faith in them. To grow from love to true love, let go and know that if it is true love, every day they choose you.
True Love Is Reciprocal
True love comes in pairs. The same love and affection shown to you should be what you give back. It is definitely possible to love someone more than they love you. Undoubtedly, someone has loved you more than you love them. True love is both given and received. It is a mutual admiration and bind that both of you have agreed to let flourish. It may not happen overnight. It may not develop in both parties at the same time, but when true love is present, it is gloriously mutual.
True Love Is Accepting
True love accepts flaws and weaknesses. You know everything about that person and welcome it all. They have seen all your pieces and want to be a part of your life. Friends, family, those that mean the most to each of you are all welcome in this equation. Everyone they hold close has been a part of making them the person you adore. Sure you can love someone without loving those important to them, but true love accepts. True love welcomes any healthy relationship that has made you who you are today. Your children could just as well be theirs. Their friends matter just as much as yours.
True Love Is A Choice
Love and passion. Both can come out of nowhere. You can find yourself wrapped up in someone that seems like they were made specifically for you. What comes next, is a choice. Both people choose to devote themselves to the other. Both people choose to be there through good and bad. The fact is, there are many people you could fall in love with. The plain truth is, people can choose to go their separate ways and still lead a fulfilling and happy life. True love is not being incapable of going on without someone, it’s choosing to go on with them, regardless. We go through lives living, experiencing and building. True love is looking back, holding your lover's hand and appreciating you chose to do all that together. I’m no seer, no enlightened soul. All I know is that, to me, these things define true love. Here’s to hoping we all allow ourselves the chance to experience it.~
Val Cunningham Receives 2014 San Francisco Award
San Francisco Award Program Honors the Achievement
SAN FRANCISCO April 23, 2014 -- Val Cunningham has been selected for the 2014 San Francisco Award in the Dance Schools category by the San Francisco Award Program.
Each year, the San Francisco Award Program identifies companies that we believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and our community. These exceptional companies help make the San Francisco area a great place to live, work and play.
Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2014 San Francisco Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the San Francisco Award Program and data provided by third parties.
Why Dancing is Like Couples Therapy
Learning to dance together teaches communication skills, fosters respect
Most women love to dance. It's kind of a biological imperative. We hear music and we start to move to it. In our dreams, the men in our lives are moving with us. Dinner and dancing is a kind of ultimate fantasy date, but too often we skip the second part.
Things have been looking up for boogie-enthusiasts these past few years thanks to the success of “Dancing With the Stars.” Seeing macho football players like Jason Taylor, Average Joes like Jerry Springer and billionaires like Mark Cuban adeptly moving around the floor can make men feel liberated to give ballroom dancing a try. The end result can be a heightened sense of electricity between couples.
“If women are not happy, this is when we nag,” jokes professional ballroom dance champion Elena Grinenko. “If you make your woman happy then she's relaxed and she's not asking for a lot because she feels very secure.” One way to make a woman happy, she argues, is to get her on the dance floor.
“As far as therapy for couples, it's a great thing to do,” she says. “Dance teaches us a lot about the relationship between the male and the female.” Dancing requires good etiquette and communication, and the body language is unbeatable.
Now in his seventh season on “Dancing With the Stars,” professional dancer Tony Dovolani spends much of his time between seasons presenting seminars and giving private instruction. Wherever he goes, he sees couples reconnecting through ballroom dancing.
“It's almost like you have a newfound love for each other,” Dovolani says. “Discovering new steps together teaches couples to interact with each other. They're looking into each other's eyes, anticipating the next move. It opens up energy channels of feeling and connection. It rejuvenates everything.”
Dovolani says learning to dance teaches communication skills and fosters respect. The physical activity is a great stress reliever and the positive feelings about the shared experience make couples excited to carve out alone time.
Don't let the skimpy costumes on “Dancing” dissuade you. People of all ages, sizes and shapes can take up ballroom dancing, which encompasses everything from cha cha and salsa to waltz and foxtrot. That's why Dovolani so appreciated being paired with actress Marissa Jaret Winokur in season six. A plus-sized woman who is only 4'11", Winokur said she never felt sexier in her life, and she encouraged all women to embrace the activity.
While not all men have Dovolani's moves, it doesn't mean they can't bring out a similar reaction in their own partners. “In dance, if you make your woman comfortable, she will love you forever,” Grinenko says.
So, from the practical angle, where do you start? There are ballroom dance studios in virtually every city. Some are connected with larger organizations, such as Fred Astaire Dance Studios or Arthur Murray, and a Google search produces plentiful listings for independent outfits. You can get private lessons or join a group class. Most studios have regular dance parties, so couples connect with each other and widen their social circle.
Couples who feel intimidated about dancing in front of people or are too busy to schedule lessons can get an at-home instructional DVD and practice at home. Dovolani and Grinenko, who dance together professionally (she has also appeared on “Dancing”), have developed a Web site called BallroomDanceChannel.com. Lessons can be downloaded for dances ranging from swing to samba.
“It teaches you the fundamentals, like the figure, the steps, a little bit of the appearance and what the character of each dance is,” Dovolani explains. “That way, you can start learning in your own living room and really ‘dance as if no one is watching.’ ”
Grinenko says that couples who start in the comfort of their own homes often wind up catching the dancing bug and taking more lessons in the studio. Oh, and if you want to know what gets her heart pumping, “For me, tango is the sexiest dance alive,” she says.