What a Weekend

This weekend was a wonderful blur! 

Friday night, Brad and I actually went out to dinner for date night. Usually by Friday we just kind of collapse, but we went up to Nomad. We don't go often, but every time we do we feel like we should go more often. They had a wide-ranging menu with a lot of great options for Brad. And they made a killer Old Fashioned.

Saturday, the boys had Winterquest and Issa had her Studio Share! The boys opted to stay virtual again this year and ninja from the garage. Issa and I headed to Mebane where her team took the stage for the first time:

I simply could not be more proud of this girl:

Before the show, she spent all of her time with her littles, making sure they were ready and confident:

And this woman--I am so grateful for all that she pours into Issa and the way she builds her up as a dancer and a human:

Issa's first dance was her solo, and there was an issue with her music. The entire base line was missing, which meant the first six counts of her music simply didn't exist; her choreography starts on count two. After the second restart of the music I went sprinting backstage, sure I would find a nervous mess. I did not. She was calm and poised. The third time she just started mid-choreo and danced the whole thing to the wrong music. And she danced beautifully! A year ago, she wouldn't have been able to stay that composed or make the choreo adjustments so that the dance made sense to this new music. She felt great, and danced the next two pieces the best I've ever seen her dance--even the jumps since she was cleared Thursday. 

I love the whole day. It was just a relaxed celebration of dance, and the girls and moms fully supported each other. Even with the stress of a messed up stereo that we eventually got going (after Issa's solo), people were calm and happy. It's blissful.

We rushed home for me to change so Brad, Mom, and I could go see Hadestown at DPAC:

It might be the best show I've ever seen. I know every lyric, but seeing it on stage was a whole different vision. 

Saturday, the boys headed out to garage, Issa headed to the studio to dance with the two other studios from the studio share, and I went to the pottery studio. I didn't manage to actually create anything, but I did bring home this beauty:

It's the largest piece I've ever done, and I kind of love it. It was designed as a berry bowl, so there are holes for air to pass to keep the berries fresher longer. 

We also started cleaning out and reorganizing the music room/office yesterday. We are adding a second desk for family use and just straightening up. 

I am exhausted, but it was a good weekend. I wouldn't change a thing.

 

Happy Tails

Spring has sprung in the Bower household, and it is good for my soul. I was ready for bright colors, and while I will spare you pictures of everything, this is brining me particular delight:

 The little happy tails among my air plants just make me giddy. Evan is most pleased that it was his idea, and Brad is counting down the days until the bunnies go away and our house returns to normal.

What 30 minutes can do...

 This week, I've been setting my alarm 30 minutes earlier. It's amazing what just that tiny extra bit of time can do. I've been fully ready before the kids get up, and that means I can be more present for the whole breakfast getting out the door zoo. It also means I have dinner prepped, house tidied, and laundry going before I leave for work. 

It just feels so much better to come home to less of that. I'm less stressed, less tired, and more energized at night. (I think the extra daylight is helping, too!) That let me actually pack up all the snowmen last night! And tonight I have big plans to haul out the shamrocks and bunnies.

Spring is dangerously close, and I'm loving this new rhythm. 

Happy Tutu Day on 2/22/22

It has been a good work week. Yesterday, I actually managed to cross everything off my daily to do this and took this picture to commemorate the moment:

And today, the department is celebrating playing with word on numbers on Tutu Day for 2/22/22. Our leadership team:

And the crew that celebrated:

I truly do have the best team!
 

A Lot of Work with a Fun End

We did a ton of work this weekend! Issa had dance on Friday night, and then we all crashed early. It had been a week, and I think we all just needed a reboot.

Saturday, We spent a lot of the day in the backyard. We pruned any remaining branches above our fence, and Brad took out a huge stump. We did all the spring pruning, and we pulled two more bags of ivy. Our new fence is being installed in two weeks, and we are now officially ready! We still have a lot we need to clear out so we can begin building our new space, but we made serious progress! It was a ton of work, and we were all pretty sore after!

Sunday, the boys headed to the dojo while Issa and I started packing up snowmen. We didn't quite get finished, but that is my goal for tomorrow night!

Yesterday afternoon, though, we girls headed to the ballet:

We saw Romeo and Juliet, and it was even better than last time. The choreography had been updated, and this cast really told the story. It was a beautiful afternoon. We came home just in time for Brad's carbonara  and tiramisu. It was absolutely delicious and a great end to the weekend!
 

The Season Officially Begins

Sunday, we had our first Monarch Dress Rehearsal:

I have no learned how to dutch braid, and Issa is officially doing all of her own make-up this year.

We started with her contemporary team dance, Sky Full of Song:

Then musical theatre, Sing, Sing, Sing:

And ended with her solo, Saints Out of Sailors:

I love watching this girl do her thing:

And it was her first attempt at dancing without tape since the injury:

We are back in tape, but she did it, and she was happy! She performs on stage in two weeks, and we were trying to decide what to do about her solo. It has a lot of jumps, which are still off the table. After a long conversation with Steph about maybe just pulling it, Issa decided to dance it once without jumps. Steph and I were prepared for a lot not a lot, but she made really smart dance moves. If you didn't know the original choreo, you wouldn't know it was changed. So...we are back on! 

I just can't believe how much this girl has grown in the past six months, and I can't wait to see her on stage again.

 

Designated Mama

I had the best time on Saturday! Issa's high school is having a semi-formal in a few weeks, and the high school dance team has decided to go together. I am the only mom that enjoys shopping, so I got to take the four girls!

We started with lunch because I have seen this crew hangry and I wasn't here for it. We laughed so hard at California Pizza kitchen, and then we headed to Macy's. No one knew what they had in mind, and only Issa knew her size, so it was quite the hysterical start. We opted to begin by trying on a formal just for fun to break the ice:

We spent the next hour and a half divided between two dressings rooms. I got over 4,000 steps in the semi-formal department at Macy's, which is just not that big. I was running size and dressed in similar colors or with similar styles. These four were so supportive of each other, and we had a blast trying on I don't even know how many dresses. The clerk finally stopped me because she saw me running so many dresses, but once I told her I had four girls back there she just looked overwhelmed and wished me luck. At the end of the day, we ended up with this set:

Issa's is definitely my favorite, but they are all so happy! I think the current plan is they are all getting ready at our house before Brad and I make them a fancy dinner and drop them off. I think Brad is even wearing a suit and playing chauffeur. 

I love being with these girls, and I love that they love each other so well. I'm sure this is one of many, many memories to come.

 

I Feel So Loved

We had a lovely night last night, and my people completely surprised me:

In addition to peanut butter cups and chocolate espresso peanut butter (which is amazing), they gave me this blanket. It has arms, a hood, comes to my feet, is slightly weighted, and it is the softest thing I have ever felt. I felt so very known...and warm. It is absolutely my new favorite thing.
 

A Very Happy Valentine's Day

I love Valentine's Day! I woke up early this morning to decorate the kitchen for the occasion:

From February 1 through today I leave a little treat or note or something our every morning for my people. This morning, they woke up to these phone stands I made at the pottery studio:

Not only will it prop the phone up while you watch something, but it will also amplify the sound.

We are having steaks and tiramisu tonight, and we will spend the evening just being together. It will make me very happy.

I think one of the reasons that I love this holiday so much is that this guy and I had our first date 24 years ago today:

He planned a whole perfect day, and it didn't go totally to plan, but it was still perfect. That could be the mantra of our last 24 years. Not everything has gone exactly as we planned; we've had a lot of surprises--both good and bad--along the way. He will always be my Valentine, and I can't wait to see what the next 24 years hold.
 

A Much Needed Concert

This week has been a blur. Work has been a special kind of insane and a little more stressful than usual. We have the extra running with PT, but Issa is healing so well and we are so pleased with her therapist. I guess the simple explanation is this week was a lot.

Enter last night. Months ago, we bought tickets for the Imagine Dragons concert:

It was our first concert since New Year's 2020, which also happened to be the kids' first. It was a truly incredible concert. Their music is just so positive, and the show was the perfect miss of solid music and spectacle. Issa and I screamed the lyrics. The boys tolerated us and enjoyed the music.

Looking around the arena and seeing phone lights swaying together again. Well. I cried. There is just something about music that brings people together and sooths the soul, which is exactly what I needed this week.

 We laughed the whole way home, and I know this will be one of those nights we all remember. We also let the kids play hooky today since we got home so late, which will help with the memory, too.

 

A Cozy Weekend

We had a blissfully quiet weekend. Friday we had a bit of excitement in form of a new boot for Nana for some tendonitis, but even that was not really a big issue, and it ended with dinner out. 

Saturday and Sunday, the boys went to the dojo and Issa had some dance, but not a lot. Most of the weekend was spent snuggling, and the animals did not mind. Buddy claimed Brad's chair:

And everyone enjoyed some high quality napping:

Just look at that sweet baby:

Bed is just too snuggly:

Which worked out well because we got a surprise snow day today! I had to come into work, but the kids were thrilled to have a day off.
 

This is Where I'll Be

It's that time again:

 I love all Olympics but especially the winter games. I cried yesterday watching highlights from past games. I love the athletes' stories and the comradery of the world. I will spend the next days watching and celebrating and cheering loudly. It really is the best.

Next Level

 Well...Issa finally has a legit dance injury. Last Thursday, she said she felt like her kneecap twisted, and she went down. She's had sprains and strains and dancer's hip, but this felt different. 

Thankfully, we were able to get her into a PT clinic on Monday to be evaluated. As it turns out, her kneecap did slip slightly. It has an official huge long name, but thankfully it's super treatable and we caught it before it was ugly. It's also a super common injury in dancers, and the recovery is relatively short!

She is now going to the clinic twice a week and has exercises to do every day. We have a new, fancy icepack. She can't jump for the next month, which is killing her, but she can still dance, and she should be fully recovered in six weeks!

Right now, we are in the worse before better phase of PT, which is hard to watch. She is doing the work, and she can feel things changing, but it's not pleasant. That is so hard to watch as a mom. Thankfully, her dance teacher texted me updates all night last night. She is encouraging her to sit more than dance, which Issa is both grateful for and hates, but I'm grateful to ease back in rather than push too hard.

I have a feeling this next month isn't going to be easy, but I'm grateful Issa is surrounded by a super-supportive team and teachers and has great PTs working on her. Onward...