The Final Tears

This weekend was the final ballet recital for Drama Girl.  After nine years of study,  it was time to say farewell to her beloved ballet school.

As in previous years, she was asked to use her storytelling skills to keep the excited younger dancers calm backstage.  I got a picture of this during dress rehearsal.

You could have heard a pin drop, they were so attentive.  I didn't hear the whole story, but it was a fairy tale that she made up.

She has worked as a student teacher for each of the classes of younger girls over the years.  She knows every single one of them.  So I was not surprised when the head of the ballet school made Drama Girl the star of the show.  She was the "birthday girl" and each class performed a dance as part of the party scene.

When she came out in her party dress, she was so lovely and happy. She combined her love of acting and dance and just glowed onstage. 

The final dance was the tribute to all of the graduating seniors.  It was beautiful and touching and at their last bow the five girls each got a big bouquet of flowers.  Several were fighting back tears, including Drama Girl.  Many of us in the audience were dabbing our eyes.

This dance school has been a huge part of her life.  She's taking her ballet shoes to college and hopes to make room in her schedule for classes.  As for me, I will be forever grateful for the chance to watch her experience all of this.

Makes My Monday: Ballet Recital

Another June, another ballet recital.  Drama Girl and Jungle Boy were fabulous.  After the show, I went to the lobby to take pictures like all the other families.  There was Drama Girl, footsore from two hours in pointe shoes. She slipped on the shoes she found more comfortable - her combat boots.  So much for the illusion of grace and delicacy.  Jungle Boy had already changed out of his costume completely. 

Drama Girl will be a senior next year.  At the end of the show the seniors always get a special dance.  It gets a bit emotional as the girls realize this is their last performance with this dance school.  This year some of them were in tears as the dance began.  The audience choked up with them.  All I could think was about how this will play out next year.  I will be a wreck watching her up there.  I have a year to prepare myself I guess.

Now that this performance is over, I feel like summer can finally get started.  Hooray!  No more driving kids all over the place for a few weeks.  Time to sew.

Coming Home!

I'm so excited today.  My kids are finally all going to come home.  Drama Girl has been here, although she's been at ballet camp every day.

We're going to go hear Wasabi Girl perform with her jazz combo tonight to mark the end of her week of jazz camp.

And right now, on the other side of the country, Jungle Boy is performing with other students at American Ballet Theatre's summer intensive program.  Tomorrow he gets on a plane for the long journey home.  We'll be monitoring the flights and texting him to be sure he makes his connecting flight.

I've missed Jungle Boy so much.  A month away is a really long time!

So right now I'm planning a coming home party and a big brunch for Sunday morning when we're all together.

I still haven't planned what I'm going to make - do you have any favorite brunch recipes?  Thanks in advance.

Sorting Day

Today is Sorting Day for Jungle Boy.  Well, they don't really call it that - it's really something like "Placement Day."

He is off in North Carolina for a month to study with American Ballet Theatre during their Summer Intensive.  Four weeks of all-day dance classes with some of the best teachers in the world.

He flew on his own this time, with a single suitcase and his dance bag as a carry on.  I have spent weeks worrying about packing everything he needs to stay in the dorm - bedding, clothing, a ton of dance gear.  There wasn't room for any extras so his room will be pretty bare.

My husband and I sent him off on a red-eye flight so he could get there to check in on Sunday morning.  When you're 14 a red-eye is probably more fun then when you're older.  Then we watched our computer screens to see if he would make his connection.  This is the hard part about sending kid off on their own - worrying about whether they can negotiate a strange airport.  It didn't help that his flight out ended up landing 25 minutes late.  We both started texting him.  His dad told him which gate to get to, and told him to hurry.  I waited until he texted that he had made it to his next plane, then I told him I was praying to the luggage-transfer gods.

We got a call from the service that was picking him up - someone else in the program flew out on the same flight but missed the connection.  They wanted to know if he made it.  I was so proud to say that he did.

Hours later, we got the texts that he and his luggage had arrived just fine.  I am so relieved!  Now I'll try not to worry about him.  He has enough changes of clothes and dance clothes to last him if he does laundry every week.  They'll feed him all he can eat at the cafeteria.  He got a haircut the day before he left so he wont look too shaggy in four weeks.

And today when he takes his classes to get sorted into a group, I'm pretty sure they'll see a whole lot of awesome.  I did my job, now he can show off all of his hard work and training.  Good luck Jungle Boy!  Have Fun!

Crossing Fingers and Toes

This weekend Jungle Boy starts his series of auditions for ballet company summer intensive programs.  Joffrey Ballet today, American Ballet Theatre tomorrow.

Last year he claimed he wasn't nervous, and I got nervous.  This year, now that he knows better what the stakes are, he's really nervous.  I'm just trying to keep breathing.  It's amazing how we can take on our kids' fears.

Resume is done, head shots are done.  Ballet shot is done.  In the ballet world, audition hopefuls have to submit a first position arabesque pose in addition to a headshot.  Here's his for this year. 

I was going to post his pose from last year but I think I'll spare him.  Trust me, this is an improvement in form.  He even has a sore hamstring right now so he's happy he got a good extension.

Wish him luck!  More auditions coming every weekend in January.  We'll look at all the offers he might get.  We'll know by early February where he'll be spending his summer.  Exciting times!

Billy Elliot!

Last night we went to see Billy Elliot.  It's a musical based on the 2001 movie of the same name.  Billy is a young boy living in a coal-mining town in England during the strikes of 1984-1985.  After wandering into a ballet class he discovers his love of dance and dreams of auditioning for the Royal Ballet School.  Meanwhile his father and brother face the brutality of the massive police forces sent to their town to control the strikers.

The musical has won many awards, including the Tony award for best musical.  The music is by Sir Elton John.  We absolutely loved it.  We thought it would be fitting to bring along Jungle Boy's ballet teacher, since the story centers around a young dancer and his teacher.

When we got to the theater, his teacher and I made him do the "Billy Jump" in front of the marquee.  Forgive the blur of my cheap camera - you can still see he gets some height here.

Poor Jungle Boy.  I'm always making him do stuff like that.

After the show, we waited by the stage door and got to meet some of the actors including the incredibly talented Kylend Hetherington, who played Billy for that performance.  There are five boys who alternate performances in this demanding role.

Here is Jungle Boy with Wasabi Girl and his ballet teacher with Kylend.  I love this picture.  Kylend is such a cutie with those dimples.  He was so sweet to all of his fans.  The perfect end to a memorable evening.

Ballet Brain

While doing some weeding in a forgotten corner of the yard yesterday, Jungle Boy came upon this goose that had been abandoned by the previous owner of this house.  At least I think it's a goose.

He has declared that it's a black swan and has moved it to the center of the garden.  Then he danced some excerpts from Swan Lake to seal the deal.

I still say it's a goose.

Out of Town

The big day has arrived.  Jungle Boy is heading off to spend a month studying at American Ballet Theatre's summer intensive program.

I'm flying out with him, to make sure he makes his connecting flights.  I offered to pack some of his things in my luggage, but he fit it all into this relatively small bag.

And by all I mean

• quilt
• sheets
• pillow
• set of towels
• 5 pairs of ballet shoes, and a pair of jazz shoes
• 6 sets of ballet class gear

along with all of his regular clothes, flip-flops, mp3 speakers, Kindle, toiletries, jacket etc.  If I hadn't supervised the packing myself, I never would have believed it would all fit in there.  When he gets to the dorm, I'm going to head out and buy him some laundry detergent and other sundries. 

And cookies.  Because I can't believe he'll be gone for a whole month.  I'll have to get some last-minute mothering in.

Makes My Monday: He did it

My dearest boy, who loves to dance.

Who fights with his sisters over toys

Always up for adventure

Surprisingly supportive

Ready to fearlessly do battle with whatever the world has in store for him.

He did it.

He not only passed his audition to get into American Ballet Theatre's Summer Program, he got a full scholarship. 

It's your moment to shine young man.  Center stage is yours for the taking.  I am so proud I can hardly contain myself.

Makes My Monday is hosted by Cheryl at Twinfatuation.

The Awesome Never Stops

It's audition season for ballet company summer programs. I received a calendar from Jungle Boy's ballet teacher, with dates for a dozen different auditions. We're lucky to live near San Francisco because all the big companies take their audition tours through here.

Last Saturday was his first, for a major New York company. We navigated through unfamiliar streets, found parking, and found the host ballet school. It was a cool old building with an old style elevator - complete with attendant to close the grill and guide the car to its floor. I haven't seen one of those in years.

There were long crowded hallways full of young women and parents. The girls were all stripping off sweat pants and uggs and stretching in every imaginable form of extension. Wall to wall limber limbs all around. The parents were nervously shifting around on narrow benches trying to get comfortable and focus on reading magazines.

We turned in his application and photos and I sat down to wait. Jungle Boy ignored all the girls, sat off in a corner, and quietly read his Kindle. Meanwhile, all the girls were getting quite noisy with the chatting and more extreme stretching.

When the audition began, all the dancers went into the studio and we parents started chatting among ourselves. Some had horror stories of auditions. Some were new to the process like me. Although we were excluded from the studio, the door was open and once in a while a few parents would try to look in without being seen.

When the hour and a half was nearly over, my curiosity got the best of me and I went to peek in too. The girls had just been dismissed to put on their pointe shoes and the teacher was marking through the men's combination. All the terms are in French, and I know most of them, so my ears pricked up when the teacher asked for a "double tour." A tour is when a dancer jumps straight up, and spins around. Imagine jumping straight up and spinning twice before you land.

Jungle Boy has, at his best, done one and a half tours. I didn't hear him, but he told me later that he asked the teacher if he could do a single.

"No, I want to see you try a double." I think at that point I stopped breathing. I knew what was up. The combination began.

And he nailed it. The double tour. I nearly screamed.

We'll start hearing audition results in a week or two. Fingers crossed. But even if he doesn't get into any of these programs, he's still my hero. Now I understand why his teacher insisted he do all these auditions. Clearly the experience brings out the best in him.

Way Back When-esday: Ballerina Dreams

Every dancer has to work to earn the true rewards of dancing.  When Drama Girl began, she was a lemon drop at the recital, complete with a wacky giant yellow bow.

Now, a few years later, she has multiple scenes and multiple outfits for the recital, including this beauty, a tutu that barely fits through the door;

And for headgear?  Oh my do I envy her right to wear one of these:

Watching my little dancer grow up is such a thrill.  I'm linking up today to Way Back When-esday at Twinfatuation and Wordful Wednesday at Seven Clown Circus.

The Usual End of School Year Frenzy

The kids were thrilled when I picked them up from school today.  "Mom!  We have to turn in our history textbooks!  Turning in textbooks means the school year is almost over!"  I may have furrowed my brow pondering this one because the last day of school is June 10, which still leaves a lot of days for study.

"How were your other classes?"

"We saw 'Finding Nemo' in French.  Well, English with French subtitles.  But nobody reads the subtitles."

And on it goes.  They've seen "The Music Man" in band and countless movies in other classes.  In some cases there were substitutes (ok, if you don't know how to play an instrument you can't sub very well in band class), but more often than not movies are being shown again this year to waste time since all the standardized testing is done.


Outside of class preparations are underway for the ballet school's big recital.  Costume fittings (remember to hang that tutu upside down so it will fluff!), extra rehearsals, new clean shoes (who decided male ballet dancers should wear white shoes - were they insane?).

Wasabi Girl's gymnastics team is getting ready to march - er backflip I guess - in our local Hometown Days Parade.  Need to get white gloves to protect her hands.

Jazz band concerts (Wasabi Girl again), Boy Scout swimming tests and merit badges, Open House at school - and of course the important milestone of Drama Girl's "graduation" from 8th grade.  (I hate the misuse of that term.  Graduation means completion of study, where a diploma is granted, such as at a University.  Not middle school.)

It's like August all over again.  A frenzy of activity and writing checks.  Pictures to take, supplies to obtain, forms to sign.

I miss January.

An Abundance of Blessings

My kids work hard. Each of them, in their own way, following their own desires and abilities. I'm learning this week just how much that hard work can be rewarded.

Wasabi Girl has been nominated to participate in the People to People Ambassador Program that will travel this summer to England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales for 19 days. It will be the trip of a lifetime. She's assembling letters of recommendation this week and will have an interview on Sunday. We don't know who nominated her for this program, but it could have been any of her teachers, music teacher, gymnastics coach, softball coach, or someone else she has left a positive impression on. She is such a diligent, cheerful, conscientious student that she deserves this kind of reward.

Jungle Boy has now completed two years of ballet training. What began as "why not?" has turned into a passion that he works hard at every single day. Today he participated in a master class/audition for a summer ballet camp in Vermont - and was accepted on the spot. I could burst with pride. He deserves this for all the hard work and dedication he has put into his art.

Now as a family we are looking at the financial challenge these blessings bring. I am determined to make them happen, and the twins know they need to get creative and do a little fundraising themselves. Wish us luck.

Take a Bow!

Of all the proud moments in my life, and my kids have given me many, this is somewhere near the top. Here with a cast of professional ballet dancers, my son is receiving applause for his role as Fritz in The Nutcracker.

Forgive the quality of the photo, I was pretty far back and there was some dust in my eyes, if you know what I mean. *

He did a great job as the obnoxious little brother who breaks his sister's beloved toy. You'd think he'd studied the part carefully or something. Drama Girl was also in the production this year as an extra, so she did not get to take a bow with the principals. She got great laughs as the mouse who gets shot in the butt though. I told her she'll have to put that on her resume.

Seeing my son in the big league makes my Monday. To see more happy visions to start the week, visit Cheryl at Twinfatuation.

* i.e. I had a few tears in my eyes. I'm such a sap.

Boy vs. Stage

Friday evening:

"I'm nervous mom."
"There's no reason to be, honey, you'll be fine."
"But what if I goof up?"
"Don't worry about it! There's no reason to be nervous!"
"Why do you keep saying that?"
"Because this is just a dress rehearsal. Really, there's no reason to be nervous. In fact, if you're going to goof up, this is a good day to do it."
"okay."

Saturday evening:

"You were great honey! Were you nervous?"
"No, not really, but I only did triple pirouettes. I wanted to be sure to land them."
"That's fine dear. If you feel comfortable, you can always go for it at the matinee on Sunday. But it makes no difference whether you do a triple or a quadruple. You're still fabulous up there on stage."
"okay."

Sunday afternoon

He nailed it. An awesome quadruple pirouette. I wanted to jump up and cheer like I used to do at his gymnastics meets. I knew he could do it.

I'm bursting with pride. Sometimes the most challenging obstacle is the one between your ears. I know what it took for him to conquer that.