How Did We Get to the End of June!

Didn't June just begin? It certainly seemed that way to me! And now there are only a scant few days remaining. That is so depressing!

We are now finished with Summer Intensive. The final performance was last night and it was really great. The girls did a fabulous job. I never get tired of watching them dance. I think their skills really improved over the three weeks. Can't wait to see how they dance come fall. The after party at Ruby Tuesdays was a hoot. Sitting back and listening to the girls was a delight. I'm so glad that Bailee has such good friends. Love the girls and their families! That may be one of the real perks of dance - the people you share the experience with. Saturday was such a delight; one of those moments you treasure. Life is good.

June Freeze

Bailee and her dance buddy, Aleks

Our temperatures dipped below freezing on Thursday night/Friday morning - resulting in an all time record low and frozen zucchini. The tomatoes look sick, but so far are hanging on to life. This has been such a frustrating growing season! Only the weeds and quack grass seem to thrive. Isn't that always the way? Temperatures this week are promised to be more seasonal, and the weather folk are tentatively offering assurances that they will remain so. Only time will tell. There's wind predicted for tomorrow, but the temps are supposed to crack the 70s. The Ballet Intensive Crew wants to go swimming after class sometime this week at the Ross Park Pool in Pocatello. They have a water slide, lazy river, and water park area that is far superior to offerings in Idaho Falls. The girls have been keeping and eye on the weather and making plans. That should be an experience!

We now have three foals at the farm near our house. A brown Appaloosa join the two bay foals that were born earlier this spring. It's SO tiny! Bailee is, of course, in love. We have to make sure that all our comings and goings pass by so she can check out the little ones.

We went to see The Karate Kid yesterday. It received the Bailee Seal of Approval. Now she wants to take Kung Fu lessons. I have to say that I preferred it to the original. Jaden Smith did an excellent job.

Idaho Falls is in a furor over when to celebrate Independence Day. The festivities were scheduled for Saturday, July 3rd, which has many folks absolutely furious. This scandal happens every time the 4th falls on Sunday. It always seems to illicit tons of letters to the editor, but this year it has gone viral on Facebook. My personal take is - save the money on the parade, fireworks, and festival in the park and donate it to charities that help our servicemen and their families. With the economy the way it is, the squabble seems ridiculous. Haven't we anything more important to worry about?

Here Comes the Rain Again, Again!

I've done this post title before ... but Idaho can't seem to get the moisture out of its system! Today was chilly, rainy, and windy. Typical weather for us anymore. The day didn't start out too badly, but the drive home from Ballet Intensive was pretty tense. Mist, fog, and pouring rain reduced the visibility rather drastically. I'm hoping that tomorrow will show some improvement.

Chef Bailee and Chef Paige are baking tonight. They're making Lemon Danish. Bailee saw the recipe on The Barefoot Contessa on the Food Network. She HAD to try it out. I have the feeling that our lives are going to get more interesting all the time. Diana said she had a dream that Bailee had her own show on the Food Network called The Dancing Chef. She'd do ballet, then say, "All that dancing made me hungry! Let's cook!" For some reason, that sounds exactly like our girl! I wouldn't be at all surprised if it came true.

Our garden consists of some tomatoes and some zucchini. My tender herbs and our potatoes remain in the garage. My seeds remain unplanted. My hopes for a harvest are fading with the weather. Next week is SUPPOSED to be drier. Can we get that forecast notarized or something? Our hopes have been dashed SO many times.

Caribou, our formerly white American Eskimo, is now our muddy American Eskimo with black legs and belly. He has been banished to his doggy pen until he dries out. Right now he is crying pathetically. Life is so hard when you like to play in the dirt and the dirt has turned into mud. It's a rough life.

After the Recital

A lousy photo from my equally lousy camera. This is the beginning of Bailee's solo.

Ballerina Bailee backstage. This was the first time Bailee did her own

makeup AND handled all her costume and hair changes without me. It

was different being out in front as part of the audience instead of backstage.

Warmups before the performance being led by Dantzel Cherry (one of Studio One's teachers).

The Studio One Spring performance was last night. Sure wish that all of you could have attended, as it was AWESOME! Bailee was in nine different dances, including a duet and solo. She did a fantastic job. Her dancing ability always takes me by surprise. She is quite the girl. This is the first time she has really pursued jazz and modern dance as well as ballet. It was exciting to see her spreading her wings like this.

My laptop and desktop computer are all feeling "elderly" and have been giving me no end of trouble. Today I had ENOUGH and purchased a Dell laptop from QVC. Between school, writing, church, the studio website and such ... I am VERY dependent on my computers! Sad, but true. I guess that is all part and parcel of the digital age.

Tomorrow it's back to the daily commute to Pocatello for Dance Intensive. Sure hope the weather cooperates so I can work on the garden when I get home! Enough with the rain, wind, and cold already!

Just a Quickee

Just a quickee, time is short, and there is little time for much of anything. Breathing maybe. Maybe. This week I am driving six students from Studio One down to Pocatello for Summer Dance Intensive at the Brindusa-Moore Ballet Academy. We leave at 8:45 and return at 4:00. This will be our schedule for three weeks - five days a week. Whee!

This is also the final week before the Studio's spring recital, so I drop the kids off at our studio when we get into town and then they dance till 9 or 10 p.m. Exhausted? They certainly are! Crazy? They must be, because they are all loving it. They're tired, but everyone wants to go to practice each night.

I'm desperately trying to get the garden planted between cold weather and rainstorms (and lots of wind), whip the yard into shape, and clean house. Frankly, I'm not real successful at any of those tasks (yet), but I'm getting the kids down and back from Pocatello safely each day - so I am okay with my other shortcomings. After Saturday's performance, life will be easier. Hopefully warmer too. Has anyone told Idaho that this is June?