Ballerina, not Supergirl

Maya is trading in her superhero cape for ballet shoes when she grows up. During a conversation with Guillermo and Maya, I learned she no longer wants to be Super Girl when she is older. We were sitting at the kitchen table, talking about Maya's then-upcoming ballet lessons.

"Boys don't take ballet," Maya told Guillermo.

"Boys can and do take ballet, Maya," I interjected.

"Football players have to take ballet, right mommy?" Guillermo said.

"Why do you think football players have to take ballet?" I asked, trying to remember what book in which we may have read that.

"They have to take ballet to learn balance," he said.

"Oh, do you want to be a football player?" I asked.

"No, I want to be a ninja."

"Oh, I want to be a ballerina," Maya said dreamily.

"So, you finally realized that superheros are pretend," Guillermo asked her.

"Yes," Maya answered.

"Did you learn that when you turned 4?" he asked.

"No, I learned it before that," she answered matter-of-factly.

And then they moved on to something else.