The Party Just Keeps Going and Going . . .

The party here hasn't stopped. That's not a complaint, it's just a fact. It makes me happy, yet makes me weary too. I will get back into my routines soon (blogging every day, for one, and keeping up with my friends' blogs as well). For now it's party time.

Friday I went shopping with my mother in law. I got a gift card to the Polo store, so I just HAD to go use it. I got lots of new sweaters and some cargo pants. They were practically giving the stuff away. When I returned home Kurt and Denise were back. We had a great family dinner (take out from a seafood restaurant), and Zachary ate about a pound of grouper. Usually we have to lie to him and tell him any fish is Amberjack. He likes to say "Amberjack" therefore he likes to eat it, but now he's decided he likes "gwooper." I love how he says things, my favorite Zachary-ism is when he eats "badana" while playing the "p-dano."

Today I'm working on choreography for the local theatre's production of "Cabaret." I didn't realize at the time, but Cabaret is a crappy musical. Sure, the title song is good, but the subject matter is a bit harsh, and the emcee/drag queen dude is a bit creepy. I don't have a problem with open homosexuality, I love the musical "Rent" (haven't seen the movie yet). There's just a certain look that some men in drag have that I find creepy - like the guy in Rocky Horror Picture Show. He is creepy. Anyway, I'm working on "Money" today and I'm a bit uninspired. I haven't met the cast yet, that comes Wednesday night when I set "Money" on the emcee and the 4 Kit Kat girls. Talk about flying blind! I'll get it done, and it'll be fine.

On another dance related note - I taught Zachary a dance step today! He learned echappe - a step where one jumps and lands with one's feet apart, then jumps again and lands with the feet back together. In ballet it's done from 5th to 2nd positions, or from 1st to 2nd positions. With Zachary I didn't even mention foot positions, just the "apart" and "together" since he's too young to control external rotation of the legs. It was a happy moment for mama, and a proud moment for Z. He's such a great kid.

Tonight we are celebrating New Year's with a trip to Dee's restaurant, where he promises to treat me like a queen (not a drag queen, just a regular one) and prepare a special meal. It will be the four of us: Ryan, me, Kurt, and Denise. Zachary will ring in the New Year from his crib while (hopefully) sleeping. I'm not terribly sure the adults will make it all the way to midnight either, but we'll at least share a glass of champagne and celebrate our good fortune. Tomorrow Kurt and Denise fly home and Ryan will drive to Birmingham, and the party will definitely end.

The Best Christmas Ever!

Ok, in response to Michele's comment, I will start back blogging. I apologize to both my readers.

The last of my houseguests left today. Irina, my wonderful Russian cleaning lady, was here today and the house is spotless. Today promised a return to normalcy. Ah, but I'm starting at the end, I must recap the wonderful adventures of Christmas.

First, there was pre-Christmas with Grandpa. Here he is opening his lincoln logs from Grandpa.

He loved playing with them.

Here he is opening a gift with Aunt Denise and me.

Family photo with Ryan, Zachary, me, Grandpa and Grandma Carolyn.

Christmas Eve, and I'm ready for Santa, Mommy!

Christmas morning Zachary discovered his Thomas the Train table.

Next he opened the much sought after TMX Elmo, a gift from Gran.

The talking photo frame from Uncle Kurt and Aunt Denise was a hit.

Zachary got so many great presents. Some highlights, besides the table and the TMX Elmo, were his Thomas toy box, a Thomas pillow, both from his other Grandpa and Nana Karen, and a Percy & Emily engines from Grandmommy (my mother).

I, on the other hand, won the Christmas jackpot. I got loads of belly dance stuff. It's all so cool and unique, I'm really excited about all my costuming possibilities. My group has a performance January 20 and I have so many choices for my solo costume. Ryan got me a beautiful pair of earrings that match a necklace he gave me last year. I also got several books that I wanted.

On Christmas Eve we went to a party at a neighbor's house. They had arranged for Santa and Mrs. Claus to arrive after the guests and children, and Santa had a present for each child. It was sweet. Zachary wasn't sure about Santa, but he had a great time at the party.

Christmas morning was such fun. Zachary really enjoyed his stocking and playing with the train table. At one point all the presents overwhelmed him and he got a little weepy. It was sweet. His little lip pouted out, then quivered, then he buried his head on my shoulder and started crying a little. Poor little guy. I let him watch a video while we opened the rest of our presents, he just needed a little alone time. Now I can hardly tear him away from his trains. Sometimes he goes to sleep with one or more trains with him. I cannot believe how much he loves them.

Everything was so wonderful and fun. I smartly delegated a lot of the cooking for Christmas dinner, so the entire day was truly blissful. Kurt grilled elk steaks for us (from an elk he killed himself with a bow and arrow), I tossed a few sweet potatoes in the oven, Joanne brought her famous green bean casserole, Denise made a tossed salad, and Ryan made garlic bread. We had a wonderful meal.

Today I taught my bellydance classes and on the way home discovered that Kurt and Denise are coming back tomorrow. The Denver airport is closed due to another blizzard and they cannot get home. I'll be glad to see them, but I'll have to dig deep for the discipline to get some work done while they're here. I agreed to be the choreographer for the local theatre's production of Cabaret, and it's time to get to work! I have put off many tasks because it's simply more fun to hang out with family. Ok, I think that's all the important stuff. Now I'm tired and going to go take a nice bubble bath.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Ok, the festivities are so festive. We're having such fun. Even my friend Leslie's husband is starting to recover. He may be getting off the ventilator soon. Life is really good. Oh, yeah, and I got a new tribal belt from E-bay today. Life is WAY good. Santa will be here in three days. Life is fabulous!

Not much interesting to report other than my child is the most beautiful, sweet, and wonderful gift I've ever received. He periodically will come hug me or lay his head on my shoulder. He said "I love you" the other day. There is nothing better in the entire world than hearing your child say he loves you.

I will not have time to post anymore until after Christmas, I believe. So I will tell you all Merry Christmas.

Festivities & Fatigue

The festivities are non stop. The fatigue is setting in. However, the festivities are so much fun that I've just accepted the fatigue as simply part of the festivities.

Today Denise and I went to Rotary with my mother in law, Joanne. We had a nice luncheon and then went to a Christmas party. Oh, I almost forgot the side trip to my favorite boutique for a little retail therapy. Nothing like a new red dress to make you forget your exhaustion! This afternoon Joanne had to come over and make MORE cookies! Geez, they are disappearing like crazy. So is my svelte figure. Better get back to the belly rolls.

I still have a couple more Christmas cards to mail, those late additions where I had to search for the address. One is Sandra, in Canada, so Sandra you may not get yours until after Christmas! Another is Leslie, who's husband is fighting for his life in the ICU. I doubt she'll care if her Christmas card is late. Please everyone keep praying for Macario! He's showing very slight improvements, but the road to recovery is still long and he's still on a ventilator.

Zachary continues to be the most charming child in the world. I know he loves the hustle and bustle of all the activity around him, but like me he likes to retreat to his own little world occasionally. He and Daddy went on an outing this morning while Denise and I were at Rotary and the party. This afternoon when we woke up from his nap Gran was here making cookies. At one point I took him upstairs to change his diaper, and when we were done he wanted to stay in his room and play with his mega blocks alone. He stayed up there for almost an hour while we were in other parts of the house. I used to do that when I was a child. At dinner he was back to charming everyone, including our impromptu dinner guest, Chuck. I love watching Zachary really starting to interact with everyone. We have more people around and he's figuring out how to communicate with them all. It's so fun to watch.

Tomorrow I'm taking him to the jumpy house place. I'm hoping Kurt and Denise will come with us. Ryan's playing golf at 11:00 so he cannot make it. Thursday I'll teach my final class before Christmas, and Thursday night I'm having a small dinner party. Friday more relatives arrive, then Santa comes Sunday night! Must go to sleep now . . . .

O' Christmas Cards, O' Christmas Cards

Oh why oh why oh, must I always do things the hard way-oh. (Has anyone seen "Wonderful Town" the musical? This was an obscure Broadway reference) OK! Here it is a week before Christmas and I'm still working on Christmas cards. I wanted unique cards - something different that was fun and festive. I found the perfect ones, and I've been busy glueing the picture to each one. That's the fun part (not!). Ah, but the end is in sight. Tomorrow I'll mail most of them, save the few addresses I'm still looking for (Sandra? Are you there?).

Last night we went to a most festive Christmas party. It was hosted by some of Ryan's friends that he's known since Kindergarten. Kurt & Denise went with us, since Kurt's just a year older and was going to know everyone there anyway. We had a blast.

In order we are Kurt, Denise, Me, & Ryan. I know Kurt and Ryan look so much alike, they are brothers, but Denise and I look so much alike people think we're sisters. It's fun. My dress is pink and green (Lilly Pulitzer) with a silver thread running through it. I was virtually the only woman at the party not in black - I love that. I had on this awesome green eye shadow from my adventures at the M.A.C. counter at Sax in Birmingham. The dress was so great, but it was built for someone who is a DD, I had to pull out my old pageant bra and "stuffing" just so I could hold the darn thing up.

While we were at the party having fun, my sitter was home with Zachary and she let him open her present to him. It's an electric keyboard! What kind of fabulous sitter do I have? Well, it's Ms. Karen, and she is wonderful. Zachary has loved playing the pee-dano, as he calls it, all day. Over Thanksgiving he was mesmerized watching my Mom play her piano. He loves music so much. I'll take a picture of him playing it so I can post it here.

Today we were supposed to all sail to Crooked Island on our sailboat. Let me clarify, Ryan, Z, and I were going to take Kurt and Denise to Crooked Island. We were going to go for a quick overnight and return tomorrow afternoon. In a moment of brilliance or stupidity (I cannot decide which) I decided this morning that I would remain behind, with Zachary of course, and finish up my Christmas cards, et. al. It's nice for things to be quiet around here, for both me and Zachary, but Crooked Island is one of the most beautiful places on earth, and it's in the upper 70's today!

Here we are Memorial Day 2004 at Crooked. I was so fat and pregnant I was about to pop. It was Zachary's last trip in utero.

So now I'm glad I'm getting all my Christmas cards done (the aforementioned moment of brilliance) but I'm bummed that Zachary and I will not be walking the beach this afternoon hunting sea shells. Do you all remember my sea shell tree? It's decorated with shells collected at Crooked. I hope everyone else is having fun *sniff sniff*. Hopefully the weather will continue to be nice and we can make our annual New Year's Eve trek over there. We've been there the last 5 New Year's.

Once again I must give pause to think about my friend Leslie's husband Macario. He's still fighting for his life in the ICU, but there has been a very slight improvement in his condition. Please please everyone keep him in your prayers. We're sending him lots of prayers and healing energy from sunny Florida.

Traditions, Old & New

I wanted to title a post "Fun with the Jumpy House" and put this picture of Zachary and Uncle Kurt right under it:

Uncle Kurt & Aunt Denise got in the jumpy house and had a blast with Zachary. He has laughed so much the last 2 days. It's so great when family arrives and they show so much love for your child. Perhaps the jumpy house could be a new tradition with them!

My party went so well yesterday. Here's a picture of me with the ladies.

They were all such good sports, I think everyone enjoyed learning to belly dance!

This afternoon Gran (Ryan & Kurt's mother) came over and we made Christmas cookies! Hooray for old traditions! We all helped, and even Zachary enjoyed a cookie or two. First, Kurt mixed the dough (yes, Michele that's food dye!!)

Next Joanne (my mother in law, Zachary's Gran) pressed the cookies . . .

Then we all got to decorate the cookies, then we ate most of them. Joanne makes these cookies for us every year, and we devour them! It really feels like Christmas now!

Tonight was such a happy night, and it is so nice to have family close by. However, there are sad things on my mind. My dear friend Leslie, who often posts here, has a wonderful husband who is very ill and in the hospital. We are all very worried for him. Please pray for him! His name is Macario. They have a delightful little girl who will be 3 years old in March. They are very good people, and I am sad because they should be making cookies and playing in jumpy houses, enjoying the holiday season. It makes me really appreciate all that I have when someone I care about is suffering so much.

Big Day

Today is a big day. I have been SO busy prepping for all things Christmas. Today I have a "Learn to Belly Dance Party" - my first solo booking! I'm psyched for it! Today Kurt and Denise (Ryan's brother and his wife) arrive. The four (now five) of us are very close, and they relish their roles as aunt and uncle to Zachary.

Here's the picture I put on my handouts for the ladies today. Yes, it's my derierre, and from the flying coins and hair you can see I am really shaking it. It's the best action shot I have, that doesn't look too canned. Plus I love the henna work on my back, it went all around to my belly. A funny side note, the weekend after this performance we were at Crooked Island with our friends Ace and Suzy. We met some of their friends there and Ace kept telling everyone my "rash" would clear up real soon. The purple hair you see in the picture are my purple and blue dreadlocks. I love my life - one day I wear pearls, pumps, and a sweet Audrey Hepburn little black dress; the next day I may wear a beaded bra and dreadlocks. Today I'm wearing a gold bedlah (beaded bra & belt - very traditional bellydance) with red/gold harem pants and some wonderful red eyeshadow from M.A.C. (Leslie, are you cringing at the thought of red eyeshadow?)

I still have to print pictures (not telling which one I chose), address cards, mail them, mail some packages, and wrap more presents. Thank goodness most of Kurt & Denise's presents have arrived so they are already wrapped. Kurt and Ryan are the world's worst at shaking presents and guessing their contents, so I must get creative to keep the suspense until Christmas. It's quite fun.

Gotta go start on that red eyeshadow . . . today is a big day!

Opinions needed please!

Ok, I thought I would solicit opinions on this photo thing. One must be chosen and I've got to move on with enjoyment and merriment.

Here are the choices:

Beach photo A:

Then there's beach photo B:

Next we have staged photo C:

And lastly photo D at the zoo:

I want a photo that shows my cute kid looking happy and natural, so maybe D is the choice. What does everyone else think?

Zachary and I are going to Birmingham in the morning. It's freezing tonight here, and it'll be freezing in Birmingham. Literally! The low tonight is supposed to be 31! Tomorrow night is a hard freeze (which I guess means it's really freezing, as opposed to just sort of freezing). I had to set the pool pump to keep running and I have to turn off the sprinkler system, the control box is buried behind stacked empty boxes of Christmas decorations in the garage. I HATE cold weather - it's why I live in Florida for goodness sake. Perhaps I should relocate further south, like Belize or Costa Rica. Okay, back on topic. We don't have internet access at the condo in Birmingham, so no blogging for me for the weekend. Ryan's office Christmas party is Saturday night, and so is our 11th anniversary. It should be a fun weekend, if we don't freeze our asses off.

The Quest . . .

I'm on a quest . . . . for the perfect Christmas card picture. I don't want to hire a professional photographer at this late date, mainly because I spent too much money on the cards and I just want to print the photos myself and be done with it. So that narrows the subject down to just Zachary. It seems simple enough, right? Not so! All the adorable photos I have of him, but none seem quite right for the card. I hate to just "settle" for a photo, but then again I don't want to make the stupid picture the focus of Christmas. Somewhere in the middle . . . is the photo that will do.

I took Zachary to the zoo this morning, hoping to snap just such a photo. He was dressed in a cute green turtleneck and tan cords, and it was warm enough for just a light jacket. They even had "reindeer" at the zoo - I had such high hopes for a photo. It's hard to get a 2 year old to look at the camera AND smile AND stand in front of said reindeer. I might have one that will work, but the background is decidedly nondescript. And the reindeer were less cooperative than Zachary. I also have some beach shots I could choose from, but that was before he got his haircut.

I have officially declared my house to be Christmas Central. I love all the decorations, and the gazillion trees. Everywhere you turn there is something Christmas, it's like magic. Next week Kurt and Denise will be here, and then the festivities can truly begin. I cannot wait for all the things I've ordered to get here so I can either wrap them or get them in the mail. I only have a couple of more presents to buy, and then I can relax and completely enjoy the holiday season. I like to be done early so the music, the lights, the reverie, and spirit of goodwill can be enjoyable instead of annoying. I don't manage stress very well so I like to attempt to stay organized.

My Mom gave Zachary the book "Twas the Night Before Christmas" when we were home at Thanksgiving. We read it at least six times now every day. Zachary laughs at the pictures of Santa. I think he's starting to understand the concept of Santa, at least enough that maybe we can go "visit" him one day. I'm also proud to say all the trees are still intact, even the tree in Zachary's room. Of course, I know we still have lots of time for them to be destroyed!

Ok, I'm off to wrap presents. The fun part!

Out & About

Today Zachary and I were out & about all morning. Ryan left for Birmingham at the crack of dawn, so I had to get out of the house to avoid the sadness that happens the first day he leaves. Yesterday we barely left the house because it was so cold. Today wasn't much warmer, but I had my energy back so it was all good.

First stop - a haircut! Zachary was WAY overdue. Here's the before . . .

And the after . . . we went to the Junior Museum . . .

And then he told me where all the planets were . . . . here's Jupiter.

He learned all his planets from a Baby Einstein video. All those hours at sea watching "kangaroo" weren't so bad after all, I guess.

Next he played with the bones puzzle - Zachary can find the femur bone. Genius, I tell ya.

After the museum we went to lunch, per our usual, at "Unka Dees" restaurant. As we walked in Dee was sitting there and Zachary smiled so big and exclaimed "Unka Deeeee!" It was so cute. It's so fun to go there, the food is good and we get treated well. They let Zachary pick our seat.

Last night one of my students had a "a-ha" moment (clarity where there was confusion) while we were working on Snake arms. I was explaining the step using kinesiologic terms, and I think that helped her. So this morning in the shower I was thinking about how art and science are the perfect alchemy in the human body. There are so many examples - watching a dancer execute a difficult step with amazing artistry; the fluid moves of Roger Federer as he once again devours an opponent in a major championship; even the first wobbly steps of a toddler are a wonder to behold. I so love that I get to teach dance (no matter what genre, it's still art) and use my Master's Degree in exercise science. I'm not getting rich or changing the world, but hopefully I can pass along my passion for dance and while preventing injury and enriching lives in a small way. Or maybe I'm just an over educated dance instructor, who knows.

Big news on the belly dance front. I got the green light from my boss to get Rachel Brice here for a seminar. This is big, if you don't know who Rachel Brice check out her website here. This is like shooting hoops with LeBron, playing catch with Peyton Manning, or studying cello with Yo Yo Ma. Way way way cool. We have to iron out dates and small details, but this is very possible.

Tonight after dinner Zachary was walking around in Daddy's shoes, looking so cute. However, his "new" haircut already looks bad - what's up with that? His hair is stick-straight and very fine, and no matter when or how it's cut it looks butchered. I'd love any suggestions on what to do for my poor child!

Ok, bad haircut & all, he's still darn cute. Alright, now it's time to do a little online Christmas shopping. Thanks, Al Gore.

Is it Monday already?

Gosh, what a whirlwind of a weekend. I kept meaning to blog but never got to it.

Saturday morning we took Zachary to the mall. I had him dressed in an adorable Christmas sweater, in hopes that he would sit on Santa's lap. He wasn't interested, and I didn't push it. So we went to the balloons at the arcade. It's a cool "cage" of balloons with lots of fans blowing them all around. For $2 a child can play all day. Literally - I could take him home for his nap and then bring him back again, if I so desired. Z loves to play in the balloons and Ryan and I got in a game or two of skeeball. Afterwards we went to "Unka Deees" restaurant for lunch.

We had plans for Saturday night to go to dinner with some friends, but they had a big Christmas party to go to afterwards. At the mall Saturday morning we ran into another friend also going to that party. Then as we sat down at Dee's he asked us if we were going to that party. Ryan decided that we needed to acquire an invite to this party since everyone we knew was going to be there. After pulling some strings, we got said invite. During Zachary's nap I went shopping to find something to wear (no time to blog that day!).

The party was a blast. It started it out kind of slow, but then the DJ started playing some fun music and my inner dancing queen came out. I barely left the dance floor. I haven't got to go out dancing in forever so I just loved it. Sunday I was thanking all my former ballet teachers, especially Stevan Grebel for the four count releves (releve on 1, hold 2, roll down 3-4). My feet are still so strong that I can shake my booty all over the dance floor in stilletos and not hurt myself! Quite a relief after a glass of wine . . . .

Sunday morning we went to the beach, in an effort to get some cute pictures for the Christmas card. I think we got some that will do, but I didn't quite get "the one." During Zachary's naptime I went Christmas shopping, so another day passed without blogging! Last night we went to see "Wonderful Town," a touring Broadway musical. It was pretty good, and the dancing was fantastic. On the way home I decided maybe I missed my calling, that I should have gone into musical theatre instead of ballet. Perhaps it's not too late, there is always the local theatre group here.

Ah, so it's Monday already. Gosh, I'm tired, but for different reasons now. Today we'll take it a little easy. It's cold outside so Zachary and I have been making things with Play-Doh all morning. He's now watching a Thomas video. He's getting SO into Thomas. Now I must shower and get ready for our day while he's occupied. And I still haven't planned my class for tonight - yikes!

Jumping for Joy

Today I'm still tired. Yesterday I had a massive pre-migraine headache all day. It's the kind when a migraine hits and you think "I should have known this was coming." Last night I went to bed early and took my migraine medicine, just in time because as I was going to sleep the flashing lights started in my head. Today I'm a little groggy and still have that headache, but I'm sure I'll be okay. I'm going to take it easy today and I'll be fine by tomorrow. Michele is usually right, so I'm sure I'm just fighting off something.

This morning we had playgroup at Pump It Up. It's this really great party place full of jumpy houses and inflatable slides. Our playgroup had reserved the place as a private party, and it was a blast.

Here is Zachary jumping and playing basketball with Huck.

Here is Zachary running, with Mia in the foreground and Addison on her tummy. I thought Mia's outfit was just so adorable! Zachary calls Mia his "girl-fweind."

Here's Zachary going down the big slide all by himself! What a big boy!

Mama had a little fun too!

Next we headed through the obstacle course . . .

And up the climbing wall . . . .

Um, I'm having a little trouble here, I wish Unlce Kurt was here to give me some climbing pointers.

Ah, reflections at the summit.

Mama, this was so much fun, can we come back here again?

This place was so cool, and Zachary really enjoyed himself. Hopefully we can take Uncle Kurt and Aunt Denise there when they come for Christmas.