Tidbits

I'm back. My friend's wedding in Colorado was perfect. I cried and cried I was so happy for her ( to those non-criers out there--please note: all strong emotions, even anger, make me cry--it is as annoying as it sounds!). I felt like a proud mama, beaming with pleasure at how she is living her life and excited about the wonderful man she married. I wish I had a picture to share, but I left the camera here, on purpose. Above you see one thing I've been up to. My yard is small, and trees around here are so old, there isn't much sun. Hence, my 4'x25' garden. I use the square foot gardening method which I love. It looks so organized. And even though it doesn't matter, I grew most of the tomato and pepper plants from seeds this year. I love being in control of the entire process so I know the whole history. Maybe I'll start using my own seeds too.

And Tom, when he isn't coaching soccer or teaching, is working on that tree house. Since the last picture I posted, it has gained shingles, a deck, a ladder and a door. All that's left on the outside is the siding. We scored a toddler basket ball hoop from the neighbor's garbage and the girls like to play basketball--from the deck of the treehouse!
The above picture is from the spring program at Kempton. Kassy's preschool class sang cute songs. But in this picture, I mostly admire the lovely jump. See those pointed feet? I guess she learned something in ballet.
Kassy graduated from preschool a week and a half ago. Here she is walking the bridge to Kindergarten. Her teacher put on a fancy show complete with gowns and the cake below. Next to the cake is Kassy's plate of gluten and dairy-free cupcakes. Orange-vanilla flavor. Yum.
Last weekend was Kassy's ballet recital. I still don't approve of all the money parents pour into those things. But Kassy did a great job. She remembered her dance and for once she smiled big on stage instead of looking so somber. And gosh did those girls look adorable.


Ok, here's why I left the camera at home this weekend. Hadley and Tom had a big soccer tournament, see the team above. They had a tough schedule. A game at 8 am, 11am and noon. We knew the noon game could be a tough team; we hadn't anticipated the 11 am being a tough team. I had to leave for the airport after the 11 am game and I knew when I left that our team needed to win the last game of the morning by two to advance to the semifinals. They only won by one, which meant we tied with another team. Because both our team and the other one scored the same number of goals in the morning games, they had to look had how many goals were scored against us. For us, it was zero. Our team advanced to the semifinal. I was on a flight to Denver. We won the semi final round (5pm) and took the final game (7 pm)into double overtime. A goal in the last minute of the second overtime prevented a kick off. And yes, this year, Tom and Hads won. But I think Tom was more excited than Hads. Upon my return, one of the moms told me she didn't know 8-year-old soccer could be so exciting.

Ballet Lessons

Ballet lessons? Or Business lessons? I got spoiled in Bozeman. The little dance studio where H took two years of lessons was a low key business with the slogan "A new approach to dance." I didn't know exactly what the slogan met. I do now and I so desire "A new approach to dance." H has abandoned dance for other pursuits, but K was anxious to start. Not wanting to do soccer and dance (she is only 4), I waited until October to sign her up and then my choices were limited. Most places were full. I found a "studio" less than a mile from my house and the fees seemed reasonable. Accept that she didn't tell me everything.

In Bozeman we paid, $40 a month for lessons and $32 for a recital costume. The recital was low key, free, and we could bring as many people as we wanted. The costumes were cute, but always something that could be worn to class next year. The classes were in a lovely second floor studio with old wood floors, walls of windows and mirrors. I've seen better studios, but this one was nice. The recital was fun with a break after the little kids performed so they could join their families to watch the older girls.

Here we pay $30 a month for the same length of class, $72 for a costume that will have to go in the dress up bin, $11 per ticket for the recital, and we have to hire a babysitter for backstage during the performance because she doesn't get to watch the older girls. I was shocked. Shouldn't all this be part of the up-front information? The owner says, but this isn't a recital is it a show, "The students need to know the performance aspect of dance." Please. K is four. She needs to learn vocabulary, to control her body, to use her body to express emotions, to have fun and to give a little RECITAL at the end of the year to show off what she has learned. Save the SHOW for the older kids who are sold on dance, who do need to learn about performance. And did I mention this studio is a cement floor in a basement with cheap Walmart door mirrors on the floor? There are only four little girls which is nice. I've called around and the expensive costumes, paying for the recital tickets even if you are the parents, seems to be the norm around here. I wish I was a dancer. I would start my own studio. Part of me wants to demand a refund and let K go do gymnastics with her sister. I don't appreciate hidden costs.

Is all this normal?