DANCE CAMP

We signed Cora up for Dance Camp back in the spring when completing early registration for fall classes led to a $50 credit. At just 1.5 hours per day, the camp is not convenient for working parents, but we are very lucky to work in a flexible environment (and were thus able to just go in early/stay late to cover the time spent driving Cora from our offices to dance to Daycamp). Cora LOVED dance all last year - there wasn't a single day (even when she was getting sick and feverish) that she complained about going to class - and spent much of her time outside of class dancing and practicing her moves. There were so many instances of "Mama, watch this!" that I could never count them, but we happily watched her practice her ballet or show off her tap technique every single time. She's only 6, so there's still plenty of time for her preferences to change, but we're starting to think that dance could be her sport of choice in the long term. She's honestly pretty dang good at it, and her teacher thinks she has a lot of potential. And she wants to dance like the big girls and be on stage "for all of the show!" during recitals... She's not ready to give up soccer though (not that we want her too - we all enjoy soccer season!), so while we were happy to make dance camp work with our schedules and we plan to enroll her in an additional class this fall (Acro now, instead of the tap/contemporary Sample Class she originally wanted to do, since she was able to try acrobatics this week and went wild over it) on top of the required 6-year-old ballet/jazz combo class, we're thankful she chose not to join RiverPointe's company quite yet. For now, we want Cora to stay involved in sports and activities that make her happy, but not commit to so much that she gets overwhelmed or overly tired - she needs time to just be a kid too! (Even though she seems to be growing up awfully quick lately...)

 Day 1: Footless tights, her favorite leotard under her new RiverPointe shirt, a real dance bag (with lots of pockets for the various accessories and shoes), and an excited grin to start the day!

 Day 2: Mama arrived at pick-up early enough to catch the girls learning some acro techniques. Ms. Bridgett was very impressed with Cora's cartwheels. There was also tumbling. And I'm sure Cora snuck at least one headstand in there...

Day 3: Mama got to spy about 30 seconds of rehearsal before class ended

 

Day 4: Showing off the little ballerina craft she made today

 Day 5: Hair tucked into a bun and a little bit of makeup because today is Show Day!

Parents (and grandparents and siblings) were invited into the last 15 minutes of camp today to watch the girls perform a Bible verse (they recited it along with dance moves), a ballet (Here Comes the Sun), and a showcase of some of the contemporary dance moves and theatrical techniques they learned (Don't Worry, Be Happy). These little girls (this particular camp was for girls aged 4-6) reminded me that their innocence, smiles, enthusiasm, pride and confidence, and joy in being together can shine brighter than any negativity that might be going on around us. They were completely adorable and I loved it! I'm so thankful we were able to give Cora this opportunity!

 Here Comes the Sun:

Don't Worry, Be Happy:

FANCY HAIR DUO

Cora got a sparkly bun this morning, so James decided it was another perfect day for Party Hair (despite the fact that daddy took him for the long overdue haircut yesterday AND he conditioned his hair last night, so it actually looked smooth this morning).

DADDY, ALL DOLLED UP

Upon trying unsuccessfully to get James out of the kitchen and back to bed, I hunted down Jay for his assistance and discovered he and Cora playing Princess / Calico Critters in the closet. Points to Jay (because he has more patience and imagination than I do!)

STAINED GLASS CRAFT

The kids were feeling crafty this weekend, so as we waited for the Perler Beads to cool (and as we Skyped with Grambot and PawPaw - ever patient observers from the other side of the screen!), we designed our little stained glass window ornaments. They were neat, but if we do them again we'll have to figure out some way to keep the lead frame glued in place because it was far too easy to bump it and send all your tiny beads flying...

UNDIVIDED ATTENTION

I attended a baby shower for our friends Lauchlin and Olivia this afternoon, and much to her dismay, Cora was not invited. To ease her broken heart, I promised her a girls night out as soon as I returned from the party. She even dressed up for me, accessories and all (bracelet, purse, and a brooch she inherited from Aunt Cheryl). My Baby Doll just needed my undivided attention tonight, and so I catered to her every whim. We visited kittens at the pet store, bought art supplies and fake blooms for her bedroom, ate ice cream before dinner (from her favorite, "the BR place"), and dined alfresco (in the heat) afterwards. I always say that we need more one-on-one time with the kids, and this is why - they thrive on it (and it's good for mama's soul too!)

HANDSTANDS AND HEADSTANDS

Every day for the past two weeks when we've picked Cora up from Daycamp she's been in the gym with "all the girls" practicing handstands (they've been splitting the campers into boy and girl groups a lot this summer due to being overbooked, since the new, third location for Daycamp has yet to be approved and there are thus a LOT of kids at the Purks location). Apparently she graduated to headstands yesterday, and she couldn't wait to show us. From the added jumps and songs and dance moves and talk of "pyramids", my guess is that she's hanging out with a group of older girls who are cheerleaders and/or gymnasts.

SUPERHERO 5K AND THE GRYFFINDOR 21K

I ran 3.1 miles for Christopher this morning (Robyn and Stephen won the biggest group award and largest fundraising effort for their SuperHero 5K, which I would have loved to attend in person if we didn't live 2000 miles away). I needed a long run though, so I tacked on another 10 miles, which gave me a total of 13.1 for The Gryffindor 21k (a virtual race that I signed up for this month, and part of the ‪#‎OneHRC‬ House Marathon, for which registration funds will help Big Cat Rescue in Tampa build a new bobcat rehabilitation facility that minimizes human contact so the cats can return to the wild). I hadn't run that long in many months, and the heat/humidity was a challenge as always, but knowing that my miles (well, my donations - nobody will check my Garmin to ensure I completed my mileage for these virtual events) counted towards something far more important than a simple training run made it a lot easier to push through to the end. The only thing that could have made the run better today would have been a rainbow over the Navy monument... but sunrise was sure pretty!

SHOWERING IN THE SUNSHINE

When it's hot outside (or you're covered in bug spray and sunblock and dirt), nothing feels better than a nice cold shower in the sunshine, am I right? Get in there James!

SO JUICY SWEEEEET!

It's so dang hot. Jay continues to spoil the chickens daily with bundt pan ice treats (filled with fruits and veggies - cherries, tomatoes, corn, oranges, whatever we have on hand) and they like them a lot. It's funny watching Elsa strut around and figure out how to get access to the treat (since she's so much smaller, she has to stand IN the trash can lid/serving dish to reach the ice bundt). Hopefully these happy chickens will start laying some eggs soon and earn their keep!

PARTY HAIR

(He's overdue for a haircut, but in the meantime he's requesting "party hair" for Daycamp. Over-chlorinated hair makes creating "party hair" pretty easy, actually. And that little mischievous grin - I just can't resist him! Neither could the Daycamp counselors... they oohed and ahhed over him when he walked in and he totally ate it up!!)

4TH FUN

Look how big that bow used to be on her...

She was so happy to get to hold baby Rosie!

Snap Pop fun in the driveway before dinner

Lighting a few fireworks before heading out to the big show downtown

I got this one specifically for Jay because he saw it on Facebook and had to have it:

It rained just before and after the show, so the reflection in the parking lot was kinda cool

FROZEN TREAT FOR THE BIRDS TO EAT

WATERMELON CLASSIC, 2016

Jay didn't want to race the Watermelon Classic 5K this year (he hasn't been back to running for very long, and he'd taken a lengthy break over the winter/spring as he adjusted to his new position at work), so I signed up at the last minute. I knew it would be hot. And humid. And I didn't rest or prepare for a short, fast race (I'm running a 50K at the end of the month, so I've been upping my mileage and adding some double days rather than focusing on speedwork, which is kind of a joke in the summer time around here anyway). But it still sucked more than I thought it would (and more than I remembered it sucking back when I ran it 4 years ago). I burned out in the first mile (starting at the front of the pack with Ashley and Eric and Gaurav, because I'm stupid), nearly vomited a few times during the second mile (somehow I had cold chills and felt dehydrated after a mere 8 minutes on the course) and walked while dumping water cups over my head), and just tried to get to the end in under 30 minutes during the last mile. Somehow I still beat my hard-won time from 4 years ago (that I was so proud to get!), but I can't wait to run a WINTER 5K and see if I can get that sub-25:00 that I want so badly... Had I not been so off my game today, I could have placed in my age group. Ashley took 3rd overall female, and both Eric and Gaurav had great races too!

SKATING WITH SABERS

Our little friend Alex turned 10 this weekend and the kids were invited to celebrate with him at the local skating rink (Big Wheelie), where they dimmed the house lights and let the kids go wild with homemade foam pool noodle and glow stick light sabers. Jay and Christina took to the floor in their shoes (Jay is very anti-wheels-on-the-feet) while Al and I chased the kids around in our rollerblades. I was sweating and EXHAUSTED (and my old lady ankles hurt), but it was also so much fun!

Cora wanted makeup and fancy nails (and her pearl necklace) for the party

The birthday boy is in the blue shirt. Hard to believe I've know him since he was two...

I'm not the only one who was exhausted... Learning to skate is hard work!