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‘All About Dreams’ gymnastics combines education and exercise

By Lisa Scheller - | Nov 28, 2001

A blond-haired boy in blue shorts climbs a soft platform that is about four feet tall. It is at least a head taller than he is. He stands on top, grabs a rope dangling from the ceiling and hangs on as he swings through the air.

“Yee-hah!” he squeals.

He lands on a padded, springboard floor, hops right up and runs back for another try.

Soon, this type of activity will be daily fare at the “All About Dreams” gymnastics, 178th Street and State Avenue. That is where Gail Innis plans to combine her daycare with gymnastics lessons.

Innis, who lives in Wyandotte County, has been watching five children, ages 2 through 5 in her home daycare for about a year. To entertain the children, she began teaching them gymnastics. She had trained in recreational gymnastics as a child.

Now she plans to put even more time teaching gymnastics to children. Her gymnastics studio includes balance beams, high bars, and row upon row of mats. More than half of the building has a floor that is built on springs to make softer landings for gymnasts.

Innis and her husband, John, who is a heavy-equipment operator, have two daughters, Lindsay, 15, and Amanda, 12. Amanda has been involved in recreational gymnastics and now competes in gymnastics.

The family had spent so much time taking Amanda to gymnastics lessons in Johnson County, and, Innis said, there were no studios with high enough ceilings or as much square footage as Amanda needed for her workouts.

So the couple found a gymnastics studio that was going out of business, rented a building and set their plans in motion.

After she receives final approval from the state for her daycare license that will allow her to watch up to 10 children, Innis will relocate her daycare to the facility on State Avenue where she has prepared one room for a daycare.

The gymnastics training is educational, too, Innis said.

“It’s not just gymnastics,” she said. “When you tell them to take five steps, they take five steps.”

The children learn colors, as well as numbers, in their gymnastic training.

It’s important for children to feel they are good at something, Innis said. She followed that philosophy with her own children and now wants to carry it over to other children.

“My husband and I have worked hard to help our kids stay focused and stay busy,” Innis said. “That’s pretty much the only way to keep them busy and keep them focused.”

The gymnastics studio is open now, with hours from 1:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday with an open gym.

In addition, Innis plans to hold a parents’ night out from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Fridays. Various gymnastics and exercise classes are planned for all ages, from toddlers through senior citizens.

For more information about classes or daycare, call Innis at (913) 334-0599 or (913) 634-8178. The All About Dreams Website address is: 222.basehoronline.com/gymnastics.