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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Wee ones bust moves

Baby Dance Party a chance to frolic, meet new pals

By: Bill Redekop

Posted: 01/29/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Two-year-old cousins Dahlia Bockstael (left) and Edith Beaudry on the dance floor Saturday.

DAHLIA Bockstael asked her mom if Santa Claus was going to be at Baby Dance Party.

Uh, no. Maybe Dancer, or fellow reindeer, Prancer. But Santa's already busy getting ready for next Christmas.

Baby Dance Party, also called Baby Loves Disco, is the brainchild of partners Claudine Parrott and Steve Kirk, who have three children together. The idea is kids of any age -- but the majority are about four years of age and younger -- gather for a dance in a large Exchange District warehouse. A DJ played songs like Do You Want to Dance and The Twist.

Except the kids don't so much dance as race around a 5,000-square-foot main floor and meet other kids.

"Once you get these kids into a big, open room, they just want to run," said Parrott. "Especially for kids growing up in the city, they just want a space where they can run."

The dance was at 318 Ross Ave. from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday. There were no props, toys, or inflatable bouncers. There's just the big room, music and some healthy snacks. The music's volume is set low and the venue has been baby-proofed.

There's even a crawling area where children can do the Crawl, of course.

Mom Erika Bockstael said dance is right in 2 1/2-year-old daughter, Dahlia's, wheelhouse. "She calls herself a 'balleriner.' "

Trevor Kirczenow was attending his second Baby Dance Party with nine-month-old son, Matthew. "He loves getting out and seeing other kids," said the dad.

Parrott said she was thinking about starting a dance for young kids when she ran across Baby Loves Disco in Philadelphia (babylovesdisco.com). That organization rents nightclub facilities during hours when the clubs are closed.

"We tried to find a nightclub but the only time they weren't open (to regular patrons) was during nap time, and we didn't want to mess with that," Parrott said. So she has hunted other venues.

This is the second baby dance thrown by Parrott and Kirk, and the couple plan to hold another, they're just not certain when. "I'm just gauging the interest," said Parrott. People can show their interest by contacting Parrott at "fam foo grou," which stand for Family Food Group, on Facebook. Proceeds go to a West End parent group.

bill.redekop@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 29, 2012 A6

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