8 Weeks to go!
27 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Walking
Hard to believe that by the time this post is published, there will be only 8 weeks before the 3 Day will be here!!
Monday: Kids and I walked up to the grocery store again. I guess yesterday’s brisk walk with the hills and all took their toll on my shins. I haven’t had shin splints since the early days of my training, but today, I can feel them in both legs – even on our .9 mile walk.
Tonight, I took the dog for a walk. By surprise, the kids actually wanted to come with. It was close to bedtime, so I cut my walk shorter than I would have. We walked 1 mile. Total for the day: 1.9 miles.
Tuesday: We traveled to WI today to visit old friends. We also went to my Mom’s where we met her cute new puppy, and pulled weeds in all our flower beds. I’m a little afraid they are not even going to be close to ready in 3 1/2 weeks when we need the flowers bloomed, but there won’t be just dirt there either. The greenery will still look nice. Didn’t get any walking in, but we did drive a few routes to plan out an official training walk that I scheduled for Sunday. I have a feeling it will be too short notice to expect anyone to come, but it’s posted anyway…
Wednesday: [The rest of this post is actually being written Monday, the 27th.] I honestly couldn’t tell you what I did, since I didn’t keep up on blogging/logging my progress this week. I think I walked some, but I’m not sure…
Thursday: The kids and I walked up to the DMV so I could get my MN driver’s license. I found out I had to take a written test, so walked back home still as a WI driver. The total walk was 1.3 miles. Afterwards, I went to my new job to fill out paper work. After that, I was setting up for a garage sale at Jason’s aunts house.
Friday: I went and took my written driver’s test today. I am now officially a MN licensed driver again! Anyway, I did walk about 1/2 mile total today with the sale, walking halfway home (to get Jason’s middle son who wanted to join us), then back again…
Saturday: This week’s whole post feels like I’m blubbering. Sorry about that…. That’s what happens when I don’t enter at least a little bit every day, and then try to put it all in while tired!
Saturday morning, I walked the long way to the garage sale. Walking at 6:45 in the morning is kind of nice! The temps are cool, there aren’t a bunch of people, dogs, or traffic out… It was very enjoyable! I planned on walking back the same route to head home after the sale, but Jason’s mom had the items that didn’t sell that I wanted to reclaim in her vehicle. It was also raining some, so I just rode back with her. I didn’t think it was fair to have her bring it back to my house, and me not be there to help unload.
Saturday evening, we walked to the local carnival about 3/4 mile away. We walked there, walked around, came home, then walked back for fireworks. Total mileage for the day: 3.62
Sunday: Sunday was my scheduled training walk. This was my 2nd walk as a Training Leader. It was me, my Mom, and one other woman who will be walking in her 4th 3-Day Walk in August. WOW! She had some great info for us! My planning on this one did not quite pay off… our route followed a busy road for 2 miles. It was busier than I expected. Then, we walked through an “educational forest” near my Mom’s house. Being that there was a trail marked on the signs, I thought it would have at least been a cared-for path. NO!!! Half the trail was muck/mud/water… Thank goodness it was only .6 miles. Our shoes were full of mud when we got out of the woods, (and I later found out, I was covered in woodticks). I felt really bad. Next time, any part of our path that goes off-road, I will walk first!! We could have skipped that trail, and still gotten 8 miles in, or completely changed the route to not be on the highway at all. Oh well. It was an adventure. At least we got to see some HUGE deer tracks, and speculate about how big the buck must have been that created them. At the 5.6 mile mark, we stopped at my mom’s house for lunch (and bathroom breaks). We then walked 3 miles back to our vehicles. Along the road, we came upon a skunk. It was a young skunk, and absolutely adorable! It was checking us out from across the street. We (obviously) kept our distance, but watched it too. As we kept walking, it started walking along the road behind us (still across the street). It was so cute, with its little tail sticking straight up, and its body waddling along in the tall grass! I had never seen a live skunk before, and certainly didn’t expect to see one at 2:00 in the afternoon! Our total mileage was 8.6 miles. It felt good! My Mom was breaking in some new orthotics in her shoes, and dealt with some foot pain, but she still made it. My hips were ok; a bit sore towards the end, but nothing like the last long walk! By the end, we were tired, and our feet were throbbing, but it felt good to have another long walk under our belts!
Miles this week: 15.92 (YAY – finally back in double digits! Now to get it up into the 20′s)!
Total miles to date: 146.11
Fundraising progress: $1435/$2300 (making progress – only $865 to go)
Related link: My fundraising page
Get Hawt: Jen’s been enjoying a couple of weeks in AK, so the Get Hawt blog challenge sort of took a break. Since I actually made progress this week, I am going to link it back to her anyway… What I have found the last couple weeks, is that I am looking for reasons to walk (or at least to get my kids to walk with me). When we have to get just a couple things at the grocery store, we walk; when we had to go to the DMV, we walked; when we have to go to the post office, we walk. I guess that’s one upside to where we currently live – most places we’d want to go, are a mile or less away! It’s feeling good to walk so much. I feel like every step is getting my body ready for the long walk ahead. I need to be better about my water intake (when I’m not walking), and trim the pop back again, but I’m getting there again. Slowly, but surely!
Masquerade Dance Competition
21 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
The 3rd and final competition that our awesome girls from Eau Claire School of Dance (ECSOD) competed in was Masquerade. This was probably my favorite of all of them. The girls from all the studios had so much energy!! Everyone was cheering for each other, it was awesome!
We got to see Grace’s 2nd (or 3rd) cousin dance. That was fun, since I’ve watched her growing up and dancing progress via facebook for years, but had never gotten to see her dance in person.
Another thing I liked, was that the first day they danced, they didn’t have to be there until 9 something. That meant we could stay at my fiance’s house and get ready there. 
The second day they danced, they were in a group tap dance with ALL the ECSOD dancers. They had to be there super early, so Grace and I got a hotel room nearby.
The Venue
Masquerade was held at the Burnsville Performing Arts Center. It was gorgeous. There were amazing dressing room areas. The girls really felt like it was a big deal to be backstage with the lights, etc. 
The auditorium was huge, which made it Grace’s favorite place to dance. The inside and outside of this location was beautiful with plenty of space for people to hang out, groups to practice their dances, etc. It was also close to many hotels, food, etc. There was a parking ramp, but parking was free. All in all, just a great venue!
The event
Masquerade did an amazing job of keeping on track with the schedule. For the most part, they followed along in the order it was printed. IF they had to skip a number for costume changes, they announced it, and got them back on as quickly as possible.
There was a small store with some neat shirts, sweats, and dance gear, as well as a bunch of masquerade masks, which of course, EVERY girl wanted!! Their prices were very reasonable. The second day of the competition, they had t-shirts with the names of ALL the dancers sorted by school. I really wanted to get one for Grace, but she didn’t want one. Too bad, they were pretty cool!
The Competition
Again, there was some amazing competition!! It blew me away to see girls Grace’s age who had been dancing together for so long, and had such amazing chemistry. Several placement awards were given to Lake Area Dance, Energy Dance Center, and Spotlight Productions Dance Studio to name a few. After talking to one of the moms from Lake Area, I think we are going to see about having Grace go there next year (and hope she is able to compete with them).
The Judging
The judges were tough. The girls placed gold with both their ballet and jazz dances, high silver for their group tap. Many groups were scored lower than I thought they should have, but I think they were docking points for every little misstep, difference in costume, shoes, etc, in addition to docking for parents taking pictures. It was announced more than once that various groups faced disqualification due to parents taking pictures. There was a guy (we called him the “Picture Nazi”), who was walking the aisles watching very closely to make sure people weren’t taking pictures or video, even with their cell phones. There were some extra awards given out, but our girls didn’t receive any of those this time.
Other Notes
They had action photos taken at this competition too, but only two computers to view them on. I have been unsuccessful in finding the pictures on their website, where they said they’d later be available.
In summary, Masquerade was my favorite of the three competitions our girls danced in. The venue was great, the atmosphere was fun, and the competition was tough.
Father’s Day – revisited
19 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
Last year, I wrote the following post on my other blog … being that it’s Father’s Day, I thought I would update it a bit, and re-post it here.
Next month, I am getting married, and my children will be blessed enough to have a “Step Dad”. They won’t call him Dad, just “Jason”. He’s not taking their Dad’s place, he’s going to be another important male in their life. Their father is still very much a part of their lives. They spend every other weekend with him. He and Grace text each other quite a bit during the week. Michael probably talks to him on the phone about once every couple weeks…
In honor of fathers everywhere, and today’s special day, here’s my post from last year (with a few edits):
“I am learning that different people have different opinions on Father’s Day…
To some, it is a day to let Dad relax. Some people use Father’s Day as another excuse to get family together for a BBQ. Some people use today as a way to celebrate a man in their life who has made a difference. There are other people who see it as another day to give Mom a break by “making” Dad spend time with his kids. That it’s not really a dad to give dad a break, like Mother’s Day is for moms. I don’t think all the facebook statuses picking on “Dead Beat Dads” helps this line of thinking much…
I have always thought of it as a day to appreciate important men in your life – the men that shape the lives of children in a positive way. A day to say, “Thank you”
I decided to do a little research on Father’s Day, and found the following site that talks about the origin of Father’s Day… I guess Nixon did something right: http://www.ideafinder.com/guest/calendar/fathersday.htm
And, here’s what Wikipedia has to say about it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Father’s_Day
The Father Figures in my life:
I grew up in a family with a “Dead Beat Dad”, and an abusive Step-father. Later in life, my Mom met an incredible man that was more of a Dad than any other man in the life of my brother and I… Here was a man who never had children of his own. He grew to love my brother and I as if we were his own. We were already teenagers, with problems and attitudes. He stuck through so much with our family! As we became adults and had our own children, he treated our kids as if they were his own flesh and blood! He IS their Papa – there is no doubt in my mind or theirs! Blood bonds don’t always matter! 
Because of my lack of a real bond with a Father-figure, I found my own male role models. There was the Choir Director at my church who was also my 1st grade teacher; my 5th grade (or so.. when did we have Mr. G??) math teacher who always picked on me (in a fun way), but was also encouraging; my Youth Director at church; Mr. C – a science teacher who I looked up to in every way. These men were all very important to me. They took the time to talk to me, get to know me, and encourage me. Pastor Steve and Mr. C went through more than their fair share of tears with me. Just to be clear – it was me crying, not them!! If it weren’t for both of these men, in particular, I may have made some very poor choices in my life!
I don’t remember ever celebrating Father’s Day when I was growing up.
As an adult, I married a man whose parents were still married after 30 years of marriage. One of our first dates was to his grandparents’ 50 year wedding anniversary party. Jason’s dad was his Best Man (yes, my first husband’s name was also Jason, so is my brother’s). They had a very strong bond. This appealed to me in a way I can’t even explain! His Dad welcomed me into the family with open arms, and treated me like I was his daughter early on in our relationship.
Father’s Day in that family was always a big deal. It meant we would all spend the day with his dad. His dad loved to grill out, and so we let him work his magic! Sometimes, Jason would do the cooking, or they would work together… The men would do their thing, and the women would sit around chit-chatting. As the kids came, we let the dads cook, hang out, do whatever they wanted, as we Moms chased the kids around. Father’s Day was a day for the dads to just relax and do what they enjoyed.
Now that I am divorced, Father’s Day is kind of weird. I have the kids go with their dad for some time together. The kids still pick out/make a card for their Dad. I sit here… Last year, while the kids were with their dad, I took a nap. Then I did some laundry, and I met them out at Irvine Park. Then, I brought the kids home. He got his special time with the kids, I had some alone time… Not a conventional day, but that is one reality of a divorced family.
After my Grandma died several years back, my family hardly EVER saw each other. Christmas was pretty much the only time we saw each other any more. My Grandpa started having a BBQ at his house on Father’s Day as a way to get everyone together. We all played volleyball, ate, and had a good time! This year was the last year the annual BBQ would be held at my Grandpa’s, since he recently sold the house that he’s lived in since, well before I was born. I didn’t go this year, because my kids were with their dad, and I didn’t know when they would be back.
To different families, Father’s Day means different things. I don’t think any one way of “celebrating” is better than any other. To me, it should simply be a day to say, “Thank you” to the men who’ve made a difference in your life!
What the Bible says about Fathers:
Over and over, the Old Testament tells us that God is our Father. “Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously with one another by profaning the covenant of the fathers?” Malachai 2:10. He created us, he gave us laws to live by (The 10 Commandments), he makes sure we have food and everything we need… In the New Testament, Jesus tells us to pray, “Our Father, who art in Heaven, Hallowed by thy name” Matthew 6:9… God is the Ultimate Father. Today, let us honor God and say Thank you for all he has done for us!!”
Midwest Starz Dance Competition
15 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
The second competition of the season, was Midwest Starz. We had to be there, hair and makeup ready at 6:30 am. That kind of shot down my plans of us staying at my fiance’s house in Minneapolis. With an hour drive, that early in the morning?? No way! I got a hotel for Grace and I nearby. Of course, I was halfway to MN, when I realized I had forgotten my check card, so I had to turn around to go back and get it. We ended up getting to the hotel pretty late, so the whole point in getting it, and getting to bed at a decent time was shot. We made it almost on time in the morning…
The Venue
Midwest Starz was held at Monticello High School, in Monticello, MN. The high school was beautiful, and things were laid out very nicely. There were 2 stages, one for groups, one for solos, duets, etc. There were signs pointing groups to their assigned dressing areas, which was nice. Unfortunately, they were not labeled the same as the actual areas (ours said “fieldhouse” and it actually said “auditorium,” or something like that). Not a big deal, as there were lots of Eau Claire School of Dance (ECSOD) parents around to point us the right way. It was pouring outside when we got there, so open air parking was a bummer, but at least it was free, and there was plenty of it.
The event
This competition did a slightly better job about keeping with the schedule. There was some jumping around a bit, but I think mostly, it was for costume changes. The energy level seemed to be significantly lower at this competition. I’m not sure if it was something about the competition itself, or if it was because we had to be there and ready so early. All the girls were crabby, one of their masks had fallen apart, and Miki (their teacher) was trying to get it fixed before the girls went on stage…
I was able to sneak over to the second stage to watch a couple of the older girls from ECSOD do their tap duet. That was fun to watch. In talking to one of the other moms, she said the roof was leaking and there were water spots on the stage. I couldn’t really see them… I hope no one slipped and/or got hurt!
There was a HUGE store area with shirts, pants, dancewear, etc. Prices seemed a bit high from what I could see. One thing I really thought was cool, was that they had photographers taking action shots during each dance. There was a row of laptops people could view the pictures on. Of course, you could purchase a picture for $5… Grace’s grandma bought her an awesome close up of her with her mask, and a frame to put it in that said “Starz.” That was REALLY cool!!
The Competition
The other dancers did not blow me away at this competition like they did at Hall of Fame. There were some good dances, but very few that left me saying WOW! It was good for our girls to be dancing against other girls (and a few boys) who were at a comparable level.
The Judging 
I was not impressed with the judging for this competition. I thought our girls did an awesome job, and they were scored with Gold in both their dances. Some of the dances that placed in the top 4 or 5, I didn’t think had done as good as our girls. Who knows what the judges saw that I didn’t, or didn’t see that I did… I’d be interested in hearing/reading the judges’ comments. I’m sure they got docked for the mask that fell apart again just as the girls went on stage, but I still thought they should have at least been ranked with High Gold. Oh well. There really weren’t any extra awards at this competition, which was fine, but the awards ceremony was still fun. The girls thought it was cool to get a trophy (for the school), in addition to their pins.
Summary
The day seemed to be a whirlwhind of activity, with not enough caffeine. Like each of the other competitions, there were things I liked, and things I didn’t. As a Dancem0m, it was another competition under our belts!
Happily Ever After
14 Jun 2011 2 Comments
in Wedding
OK… so I planned on “live blogging” our wedding plan progress, but time just hasn’t allowed for it. I have been focusing what little writing time I have had on my training progress. I have a lot of people who have donated a lot of money for me to do the 3 Day walk. I am only half-way to my goal, and I feel I owe it to my donors to keep them up-to-date on my progress.
We have been very busy with moving me to MN, buying a house, wrapping up loose ends on the wedding plans, planting and maintaining flowers for the big day… Wow! Wears me out just to type it all! Here’s the nutshell version of our journey to Happily Ever After.
The Rings
Jason and I went shopping together for both sets of rings. First, we went “window shopping” for mine. We ended up spending about 2 hours with our amazing sales person, Anne, at Rogers & Hollands. I didn’t really know what I wanted, I only knew what I didn’t want. I didn’t want a marquise cut (my first wedding ring was, and I got cuts on my finger all the time from the points). I knew I didn’t want yellow gold, or any sharp corners/edges. Working with little kids, I have, many times, accidentally scraped them with my ring. For the same reason, I didn’t want one that stuck out too far. I’m not a real flashy person, so my criteria, was that it couldn’t look over the top with jeans and a t-shirt. Wow, almost sounds like I’m a bit high maintenance when I put all my “nots” down! Anyway, we had it narrowed down to 3 different rings, all of which were beautiful! Much of our time was also spent putting together different bands with the rings we liked… We had fun being creative! I had told Jason I didn’t want to know which ring he was getting me, or when I was getting it…
When it was time to get Jason’s ring, we sort of did the same thing. He also didn’t know what he wanted, per se… we picked out a few for him to try on. We’d compare each one, and eventually narrowed it down. Being that it was Valentine’s Day, they were offering extra discounts. Jason decided to “get lost in the mall for a while” while I purchased his ring.
Choosing a DJ
This was a slightly easier process. We had kicked around the idea of making our own playlist, and just playing it on Jason’s DJ Equipment. We decided we didn’t want to have to worry about technical difficulties during the event, and/or not allowing for requests… We narrowed down to 2 DJ companies – Instant Request and Midwest Sound. Midwest Sound came highly recommended to us, and had a cheaper deposit (as well as their overall fee being cheaper), so our decision was made!
Choosing a Photographer
Choosing a photographer was one of the most stressful parts of the wedding planning! Most of the photographer’s websites were less than helpful. They’d have all these beautiful pictures, but no info on packages, or pricing… or they’d have ala cart style pricing, which made the overall price harder to determine… Finally, we were at Jason’s Holiday party for Digineer. One of his co-workers does photography with his wife (Sajous Photography). We spent a lot of time talking about different aspects of wedding photography, and my frustrations in just trying to find someone good (or even how to tell if someone is good)! I really liked Stan and Lorita. They were easy to talk to, had great ideas… I really liked the idea of having two photographers, to get different angles of the same thing during the ceremony and reception, but also didn’t want to hire anyone who would already be a guest at our wedding… Lucky for us, at the Holiday party every year, a staff picture is taken. After talking to the photographer for a while, I decided to go with him. Dean, with Northern Sky Photography has been great to talk to, bounce ideas off of, etc.
The Catering
This was probably the biggest source of stress in our overall wedding planning process. We knew we wanted a pig roast. We wanted it to feel like a big Backyard BBQ. What we didn’t realize, is how expensive it can be! We had a hard time finding anywhere local to do the pig roast, and anywhere further away, would charge an arm and a leg. My aunt told me a cousin does pig roasts, but again, we didn’t want to hire anyone who would be a guest. Unfortunately, we were unable to find anyone else, so my cousin, Andy, is going to do it for us. As for all the side dishes, we were going to do all the work ourselves, but since life has been so crazy, and we are overwhelmed with everything we have going on, we decided to hire it out. We were going to hire and old high school friend, Brian, with Lettuce Cater, but he had another event that day. He referred us to another friend (who I used to work with at Pizza Hut forever ago), Jeff, with Twin Cities Flavor.
The Flowers, Cake, Tuxes, etc.
I was lucky, in that I braved a snowstorm to go to the Menomonie Wedding Fair. It was there that I found a woman, in Spring Valley (very near my Mom’s house where the wedding will be), who does cakes, flowers, and tuxes. Jason and I met with her to get some info, and we booked her on the spot! Three checks from one vendor? Awesome! Another plus? She grew up right next to my Mom’s house, so she knows EXACTLY where it will be!!
After all that… things are coming together. The wedding’s coming up quickly!! Aside from paying for everything, we are set. Wish us luck on that!! 
Only 10 Weeks To Go?!?
14 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Walking
Can it be true that there are only 10 weeks to go until the 3 Day??? Or is it 9??? Either way, it’s sneaking up! I almost feel like I need to start over on my training. The last few weeks have been low mileage on the training front… This week, I was determined to get some good walks in!
Monday: Michael, Dysin, and I went for a walk. We walked up to the post office, over to the licensing bureau (where the wait was about an hour. I decided to take my sheet home to fill out, and try again later), over to Rainbow to get ice cream for root beer floats, then back home. It ended up being a 2.5 mile walk. I’m glad I decided to walk it, and was glad for the company, even if they did get a little rambunctious! The boys were very excited to have “earned” a root beer float!! Sometimes, I have no shame in bribing the kids to come with me, though, they didn’t know until half way through the walk. Anyway, 2.5 miles was nothing for walking, as far as stamina, etc. My back, however, is killing me. I somehow pulled something while hooking up the surround sound to the downstairs xbox. It has been acting up here and there. By the end of the walk, it was definitely hurting!
Tuesday: I needed to run to the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner. It’s about a half mile away, so we walked there. Along the way, my kids were picking up garbage and putting it in the reusable bag we had brought. We threw it away in the garbage can outside the grocery store. My daughter decided she should make a sign for the new house that says “People who litter are losers!” We were also admiring some of the many flowers along the way. Our walk was .9 miles – more than I walked all last week. Because of my walk yesterday, and the fact that I was carrying a bag full of groceries on one arm, and a bottle of dishwasher detergent in the other, my buns were burning a bit on the way back. It’s the good kind of pain… the kind that you notice, but doesn’t REALLY hurt. The kind where your muscles are thanking you for working them.
Wednesday: Was busy putting out wedding fires, and cleaning up water in the basement from the dehumidifier which had leaked all over…
Thursday: The kids, Duke, and I walked to the park and back. There were several hills along the way, which made it a good moderate walk for me. The kids, on the other hand, struggled about halfway back from the park. Today’s mileage: 2.17.
I also mowed the lawn today, with a push mower… I haven’t done that in YEARS (about 6, to be exact)!! I feel completely wiped!
Friday and Saturday: No training.
Sunday: With my kids at their Dad’s for the day, I took advantage of the free time to go on a brisk walk. I can tell it had been a while since I had gone on a multi-mile walk at my pace, and not at a kids’. About half-way through the walk, my side was aching, and my feet were buzzing. I only walked 2.94 miles. Now, I should qualify it a little bit that there were a couple of hills that added a level of intensity, but still… that tells me that as I feared, my lack of training the last couple weeks has put me back. Significantly back. Tonight, I could feel my buns burnin’… after only not even 3 miles?? How sad! Just a few weeks ago, 3 miles was nothing! Well… getting back on track. That’s what counts.
Miles this week: 8.51 Better than the last couple weeks, but still WAY off from where I should be in my training schedule!
Total miles to date: 130.19
Fundraising progress: $1,360.00/$2300 (Making some progress, thanks to a matching gift from Reader’s Digest)
Related links: There are getting to be too many to list them all… here’s the initial post in the series: http://dancem0m.wordpress.com/2011/02/15/walking-for-a-cure/
16 Down….
13 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Walking
Monday: I spent the day trying to wrap up our wedding invitations. It took me longer than I expected. After that, I got to work on completely re-claiming our kitchen. Time slipped away, and I didn’t have time to walk.
Tuesday: I planned on walking today, but with temps over 100 degrees, I chose to jet ski instead. Jason, the kids and I had a blast on the lake for about an hour. When the oil light came on in my jet ski, it was time to call it a day. Not bad for the first time out for the year.
Wednesday: Moving boxes, organizing, driving out to WI to water everything… no training, but not lazy…
The rest of the week: Not really worth talking about…
Sunday: Jason (@StrateSQL) and I went to register at Kohl’s. We parked on the opposite side of the parking lot, and walked there. Afterwards, we dropped the Jeep off for an oil change, and walked the .8 miles back home. It’s not much, but more actual walking than the rest of the week.
Get Hawt: I still have some capris I can’t yet get on, but I did manage to squeeze into a pair of shorts I haven’t been able to wear since… I don’t know, maybe 2 years ago? I wasn’t pretty, but I got them on, and wore them all day! One of my favorite summer shirts, a sleeveless button down, had the button popping in the middle. It made me realize where I need to focus some REAL cross-training (not just the “here’s something active I did that I’m calling cross-training” that I have been doing lately). Trying on my wedding dress told me the same thing… I need to work on toning my upper body, and I only have 5 weeks or so to do it! UGH!!!
I’m feeling really bummed out about the progress I haven’t made in the last couple weeks. Pair that with my drinking more pop, and eating too much junk. I’m feeling pretty blah! My focus on everything seems to have disappeared. I need to find it again!
Happy Saturday
11 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
in Love and Life, Uncategorized
It’s been a while since I’ve done a “things that made me smile this week post.” It’s been a busy week, but things are slowing down some. Things really seem to be falling in place for us… It’s been easy to find 10 things that made me smile!
In no particular order, they are:
1. Getting to spend some time with my brother yesterday. He came over to bring over some computers, and watch my kids for a couple hours while I went to my interview. Then he stayed and hung out for a bit with us.
2. Interviewing in the Anoka-Hennepin school district which I used to work in. It was fun to interview with familiar faces!
3. Getting a voicemail (I missed the call) that they’d like to offer me a position! I didn’t expect to hear either way until next week!!
4. Getting to go jet skiing with Jason and my 2 kids on Tuesday. The 100 degree temps made it a great day to be on the lake.
5. Getting to ride in the Jeep with the top off! Next time, we need to remember sun screen – we all got a little burnt.
6. Walking through our new house again. We should have a closing date soon, which made it fun to start thinking about where we want things to go.
7. Going out to my Mom’s house to water all the plants I planted last week. It was great to see new growth. Despite the over 100 degree temps (which may have killed one of our rose bushes), there were lots of seeds starting to sprout!
8. My kids played nicely together for 2 whole days with very little fighting. YAY!
9. Sleeping in until about 8:00 all week!!
10. Being able to wake up next to my fiance every day! It’s great to be living under the same roof, after a year and a half of being 2 hours apart!
Hall of Fame Dance Competition 2011
10 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
This was our first year with Grace in competition dance with Eau Claire School of Dance. I thought that now that the season is over, it might be a good idea to write my thoughts about each of the events they danced at. I summarized in the introductory post what you can expect to find.
The first competition of the dance season was Hall of Fame. Being the first competition for all the girls in Grace’s class, they had a lot of energy. I’m not sure if all that energy was excitement or nerves (or both), but it was awesome! The high energy level definitely showed in their dances!! It was lots of fun!! 
The Venue
Hall of Fame was held in downtown St. Paul, at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium. It was strange to be there again. I had been there for events in the past (dog shows and kung fu tournaments), but not since it became part of the Xcel Energy center. As a venue, it was very nice, but because of the size, it made finding things (especially dressing areas) difficult. It was also very dark once you got to the area that competition was held. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, just unexpected. I didn’t like having to pay for parking, but I parked a couple blocks away, so it was only $5. My Mom ended up having to park at a meter, and kept having to run out to feed the meter. I thought meters were free on weekends – guess not.
The event
As a parent trying to watch the dancers, it was very frustrating! I can’t imagine it wasn’t frustrating for the judges either – they were going in such a random order. It was not even close to the order printed in the program, or the times they were scheduled. Our girls danced their first dance over a half hour early, and one parent missed it, because she was in line to get donuts and juice for her other children. I heard many parents in the hallways (from other schools as well) arguing over the phone that they were sorry the other person had missed it – they didn’t know they’d be going so early. Luckily, everyone who came to watch Grace (Dad, grandparents, aunt, brother, and cousin) all came super early. Figuring out which dancers were in which division was difficult too, due to the randomness of the order.
Complaining aside, there were some things I really liked about it. There was a great selection of both kids and adult sized shirts, sweatpants, shorts, etc. available for purchase. Their programs were nice too, but felt a bit pointless to spend the money on, since following it was so difficult. Their prices for items were reasonable, and Grace ended up with a WAY cute shirt!
The Competition
Watching all the dancers, all I can say is WOW! There was some GREAT competition!! There were some really good dancers who had obviously been dancing together for quite a while. Some of the studios we saw with several placement awards were Larkin, Lake Area Dance, and Energy Dance Center to name a few. We already knew we’d likely be moving to MN, so we paid close attention to the other studios to see where Grace might want to go next year.
The Judging
The judges seemed to be fair. The girls were so excited to be dancing. They did a great job! There were some mistakes, but it was definitely the best they had danced so far!! In their jazz dance, Grace had a leg lift that she had been working really hard on, but hadn’t quite mastered yet. Her adrenaline kicked in, and she had it!! I was beaming with pride!! Our girls scored Gold for their “Pink Panther” ballet dance, and High Gold for their jazz dance, “Baby, I’m a Star.”
I liked the way the judging was done. Every class was given a ranking based on their overall score. The rankings were: High Silver, Gold, High Gold, or Platinum. Each of the girls was given a pin with their ranking. They also had placement awards (of course). The thing I liked, is that there were other awards given out. Our girls won a costume award for Pink Panther. Grace and another girl, Laura went up to accept the award. They were SO excited (and, I think, a bit surprised). 
Other Notes
I had brought Grace up to the balcony to see her Dad and other relatives that had come to watch her dance. There were signs up there asking not to take pictures, but I did not see them on the main level at all! I took a couple of pictures during their first dance. My Mom and I were sitting up at the front, and I got a dirty look from one of the judges. Oops! Later, they made an announcement asking people not to take pictures. At a later competition, I was talking to some random other dance mom, and she told me that often, judges will dock points for people taking pictures during a performance. I wish I had known that earlier! I hope that my taking a couple pictures didn’t hurt their score!
Speaking of pictures, apparently, there were professional photographers taking pics that you could later purchase from their website. I didn’t have a clue about that, as it was not advertised anywhere that I could see. I discovered them by accident when I was checking out another dance school’s website after the last competition! What a cool feature – it’s fun to go back and look at the action shots from each performance.
To summarize, Hall of Fame had a great energy level, was fun for the girls, and had some fun “extra” judging awards. The girls did great!
Kids’ Expo – Eau Claire
09 Jun 2011 Leave a Comment
The first performance for Eau Claire School of Dance Company Dancers, was the Kids’ Expo in Eau Claire. It was the first time, besides our initial meeting to learn how to do the hair and makeup, that we had to do it. I think that was the most stressful part of the day. It was just a performance, so there was no pressure on the girls, but as parents, we wanted to get it right. We went over to Grace’s friend Taylor’s in order to work together with her parents to make sure we got it the right way. It took about an hour (maybe a bit longer).
The girls had to dance on turf, which made it a bit tricky, but they didn’t do too bad. They did seem a bit unsure at times, but they were having fun, which is what counts.
After that performance, the girls had a stage rehearsal, so they could practice some more. The next weekend was their first competition. Having one performance, and an intense rehearsal before their first competition was good. I think it helped them in the long run. Each performance after that day just got better!
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