The Week of Nervous Anticipation

I got this quick photo before the door was closed for her exam.

Anne spent the week in more than 12 hours of rehearsals for the big show this weekend. She started out being an understudy for two dances but now is performing both of those dances one night and one of the dances the second night. She has worked hard and is holding her own with much more experienced adult dancers. She is the youngest apprentice the adult dance company has ever had. I look forward to seeing her dance in the performances this weekend. Dancing brings my girl so much joy. All of those rehearsals were the easy part of her week. She also had her Cecchetti ballet (Italian form of ballet) exam this week. She was very nervous going into the exam. It is rare for her to be so nervous about anything dance related. She came out with a smile and felt like she had done well. What a relief we both felt after it was over. A year's worth of work comes down to just 45 minutes of testing. An examiner flies into the region and Cecchetti dance hopefuls come from many states to be tested. We drove in from a neighboring state, leaving at 10 pm after show rehearsals one evening. Talk about real life lessons! Now we wait for the results which could take a few weeks.

The Birds of War dance. Anne is a human in this dance.

I tell you, the stress was real this week. Everything just aligned to be extra complicated. She had dress rehearsal the night before her exam, which was held in another state. Then the rain we have needed so badly was scheduled to hit our area in the same 24 hours of our out-of-state traveling (on very dark, deserted mountain roads). On top of that, my husband was taking our oldest son to a concert, so he couldn't help us with the late night travel. Then there were a host of issues during the dress rehearsal, so she was released an hour late. We finally arrived at the hotel just past midnight and fell into bed for seven hours of sleep. I am so glad that the driving part went well and our return trip was pretty easy with just gentle rain.

Once or twice a year, I give Dean a special week with unlimited media. While Anne was running around like a crazy person this week, Dean had his unlimited media week. I usually try to make sure one of the weeks is at the beginning of the summer. I find that giving him unlimited media time for a week helps him work on self-regulating skills that are very challenging for people like him born with FASD. It also allows me to get lots done, since being a "cruise director" of my son's life is an all-encompassing experience year round. (It has improved since his junior high years but still is a main focus of my days.) However, outside of media it is still very hard for my son to think up on his own what to do with himself and then execute the activity independently. He spent the first two days on the computer from sunrise to late into the night. By day three he was showing interest in what the family was doing in the evening and playing outside a bit. Now it is day six, and he is showing real boredom and needs some non-media activities. I am happy to accommodate.

21 years of marriage and still going strong!

David and I managed to squeeze in an anniversary date between all the crazy. We went to a foot sanctuary to have our feet soaked. It was so much fun. We were led into this darkened room with soft music playing. We sat in comfy chairs and were given warm blankets, heated neck wraps and our feet were placed in a lovely concoction of foaming minerals and flowers of our choice. The water was marvelously warm, and they refreshed it often with more warm water. They were so attentive to our comfort and even came running with ear plugs when a car alarm went off outside (that I hadn't even noticed). It was a very relaxing 45 minutes. I am not used to sitting and doing solely restful stuff for myself for that long. It was good practice in self care. 

Personal Goals ~ Besides all of the above, I got lots done this week.

• Cleared six large trash bags of weeds (just a 100 or so to go...)
• Cut all of the dead stems off my Iris plants
• Organized and got rid of old paint cans
• Washed the inside of the fridge
• Took three boxes of stuff to Goodwill
• Cleaned out the master bedroom closet
• Helped everyone get their new chore zone concrete in their minds to develop new skills
• Organized and planned out all of the books we will be using next year for school...just need to order Latin
• Fixed everything in the mending basket (some items waiting from a year ago)

Dean starts working at camp next week and my stepmother arrives. Here comes another busy week. This coming one should be more exciting than nerve racking, though.

Blessings, Dawn