Misc.

 

Band Concert!

Paige had her first band concert this week! They only played three songs so it was very short but I thought they did a great job! Afterwards, we went and got ice cream at Culver's.

Ready to play!

Paige and Miley

Ice cream! (not pictured, I guess they had finished their ice cream by the time I took this picture)

 

Birthday!

Owen is 15!! I had a tough time picking a theme for him this year but we went with a show he finished recently and really liked -Ted Lasso. Owen requested a nacho table for his dinner and we had it the day before because we thought Paige would be at dance.  It turned out though that the day of his birthday was so snowy that the schools released the high school kids early and then Paige's dance got cancelled so we had a lot more time to celebrate than we thought! On his actual birthday we ended up having a bbq dinner of cornbread, pulled pork sandwiches, veggie mac and cheese, coleslaw, and corn. The bbq sauce was shown in Ted Lasso and it might be the best bbq sauce I've ever had. Pat was not a big fan of it though, and the mac and cheese and cornbread were terrible! We had birthday donuts for dessert with a fun candle that spun around and played happy birthday and then Owen opened presents!

Sprinkle pancakes before school!

Nacho table! 

With toppings

BBQ dinner

Birthday balloons!

Birthday hug!

Birthday donuts!

Birthday presents!

 

15!!

Happy birthday Owen!!

Adventures with Owen

Owen and I went on a snowy walk the other day that ended with Owen almost completely soaked and freezing! It started with him testing the integrity of the ice with some snowballs and then he decided it must be thick enough to walk on...it wasn't. I got a picture right before he fell through the ice! It was a very scary situation for a moment but the water went up to about chest level so he was able to get out fairly quickly. It's funny now but so glad the situation wasn't worse! I felt bad about the freezing walk home for him!

Owen finally got to redeem his Christmas present of Cavs tickets with Pat! They got really good seats and it looks like the game wasn't too crowded either. And the Cavs won!! 

 

Snow!

I can't remember the last time the kids played in the snow! We didn't get much last year so I was very excited to see the kids enjoy it so much this year! They actually already had the day off for MLK day and Paige was supposed to have extra dance practices but they got canceled because most people couldn't get out of their driveways. Owen got invited to go sledding and Paige had a friend over to play. Pat did a ton of work with the snowblower and then went out later that night to finish up. I shoveled so much that my back aches but I'm so glad we were able to get out of the driveway! 

So much snow!

Quick picture break before resuming shoveling

Paige and Maeve

Griffin got out 3-4 times. I didn't think he would want to be in the snow but apparently he does not care

Owen and friends about to go down a hill

 

Title

Paige competed in her very first Title competition over the weekend! It's something we've heard about for years but you have to have a solo to compete so it was never a consideration for her until last year. It's a three part competition where the kids participate in an interview, scholarship classes and then perform their solos. It's stressful, tough and also fun! Paige started the weekend with interview first thing in the morning and she was #4 so she didn't have to wait a long time for her turn. The judges spend 3-5 minutes with each kid asking them random questions about dance or things that might be on their fact sheets. After interview the kids had a few hours and then started their scholarship classes where they competed in ballet, tap, jazz and acro. They had more free time that night and then the next afternoon they all performed their solos for the judges. I was blown away by Paige's poise and courage all weekend. Not only did she dance beautifully but she took on new challenges she had never faced before. She was disappointed not to place but I couldn't be more proud of her with how she handled herself. 

Sidenote-the hotel we stayed in was very short staffed (we felt bad for the workers who were trying so hard but definitely needed help!!) and had wonky elevators that some people had to wait 30-45 minutes for on check out day!

Ready for interview

Paige's former teammate was the reigning title holder and greeted everyone after their interviews

Each candidate had to submit a headshot 

Ready for classes

Getting makeup on for solo

Paige and her friends ready to perform

All of the junior contestants from Paiges studio

Exhausted and waiting for dinner

Our hotel had a rooftop restaurant with great views!