Lots and LOTS of driving

We are home from three days of LOTS of driving.  Ashni competed in the National Championship for fencing.  The competition was is Columbus, Ohio on the 4th.  This was a huge competition for her and gave her a good idea as to what to expect at bigger tournaments.  I think the size of the whole thing may have made her a little nervous (although she is not one to admit to being nervous).  She was knocked out in the first elimination bout, but she was still ranked 50 or so in the nation, so that is something to be really proud of.  We are very proud of her.  I told her she has four years to get ready for the Olympics in Brazil (and I need to go to Brazil).

So, we drove to Ohio on the 3rd, fenced on the 4th and had to drive back to Jackson, MS on the 5th so that Jena could make her flight to France this morning.  It was a 12 hour drive, but thanks to some really sweet friends we had a place to crash overnight.  We got Jena on the plane this morning with no trouble.  She should land in Paris in a few hours.  She was SUPER excited and I can only imagine the great time she will have.

The Ballerina

Anyone who knows us (even a little) knows that my girls dance.  They've always danced.  Jena has been dancing since she was two and will be traveling to France this summer to tour and dance with her ballet school.  We are all very excited for her.  Tonight, she had her first solo performance at a local arts showcase.  She has performed in this showcase for the past three years, but this was the first time she's had a solo.  She was the only student given a solo this year, so this is a huge accomplishment.  Forgive the poor video quality, but enjoy all the same...

Update on the Lady Clan

I know, I know.  I shouldn't even consider myself a blog owner these days.  Life has certainly increased its pace here in the last couple of years.  Work takes up time, schooling takes up time, the kids are all in extracurricular activities (which take TONS of time), so there's very little time left for me to do anything except eat and sleep.  And I really don't do either of those very well anymore.  Anywho, life has been good, despite the level of business, so I thought I'd share a little update.

Three of my four girls are performing in the Nutcracker this year.  Jena will be Clara!  The show opened last night and was a success.  The entire weekend is old out.  I've finally gotten comfortable with doing the girls' makeup (thanks to a few years of crazy face painting for Halloween).  I still can't believe how much older they look now.  I mean, Ashni still has that childlike face, but Jena?  When did she start looking like an adult?  Fortunately, she is still a big goofball, so maturity is a long way off I think.

This is my classroom.  Generally it is full of busy little toddlers.  There's nothing in the room that is taller than 15 inches, lol.  Well, maybe a couple of things.

We've become part of a great little homeschool co-op.  Jena finally has girl friends her own age.  Not that she has ever complained about having boy friends, or friends that are younger, but I know that she is enjoying it.  We meet weekly for rotating lessons (nature study, geography, art, science, PE).  We also have field trips and social get togethers.  We went on a trip to a National Park here in Mississippi and hiked.  Zion  is showing off her mopey stance as we finish up the trail.

Ashni is still fencing and we are all very proud of her.  She just returned from Houston, TX competing in a youth circuit.  She won a bronze medal!  So far, she has medaled at every competition she has entered.  She loves it and we love seeing how proud she is of herself.  Her coaches envision great things for her fencing future.

Adn, although it doesn't seem like it, we still manage to get some school work done.  I printed this giant map ages ago (and pieced it together on the wall) for the girls to map the countries that they research for geography.  It is also been helpful with the younger girls learning the continents and oceans.  Bijou is labeling the seven continents while Zion names them.

I've also been painting quite a bit.  I've had some portrait work and currently have a show hanging!  So things are going well.

Dance in France

Anyone who knows us, or reads my blog occasionally knows that my girls LOVE ballet.  They've been dancing since they were two or three years old.  Next summer, Jena and Ashni have the opportunity to go to France with their ballet school to take classes and tour Paris.  This is an amazing opportunity for them.  It is also a very costly opportunity for us.  So we have set up a fundraising website for anyone who would be interested in donating to their trip.  I am also available to sell off some artwork (check out my website www.adriennebrown-david.com or email me).  I take commissions (email me!).  The girls can bake you homemade gingerbread cookies or cross stitch some lovliness for you!  We are keeping our fingers crossed that we can make this happen for them.

 Send Jena and Ashni to Dance in France

Ballet Drawings

So I was asked to do some ballet inspired drawings to have at the girls' ballet performance. Ballet art is not really my thing, so I scoured the internet for some ballet inspiration and did a few drawings. Here they are (I did take them out of the sketchbook to display).

Double Decker

This past weekend was Double Decker weekend here in Oxford. Double Decker is an arts festival held every year in the square. There's local art, music, food, activities for the kids and all of the people watching you could ever want. This year the girls demonstrated some ballet steps with their ballet school. Kids in the audience could participate, so Bijou and Zion joined the party.

Ashni seems to have misplaced her ballet shoes, so she had to go commando.



I'm really proud of the progress the girls have made in ballet this year. They've both been placed in the next level ballet class for next year. The school that they attend typically requires two years of each class level, but each of the girls is being advanced after one year. I am particularly proud of Jena who is the youngest in her Ballet III class this year and had been placed in Ballet IV for next year (I think most of the girls in that class are 12 and Jena is 8!). Good job, ladies. I think I see Alvin Ailey in your future!

New Ventures and Nutcrackers

The last few weeks have been a challenge around here. But they say it's always darkest just before the dawn, right? So we're staying optimistic! The small shop on the square that sells baby accessories and baked goods (mentioned in a previous post) wants to carry my hats and shoes! SO, I've been sewing up a storm this past week. I am still sewing mostly by hand because 2 layers of felted wool and 2 layers of fleece is just too thick for the machine. We are starting out with just a couple of each item to see how well they do, but that's a step in a good direction. Hopefully I will complete everything over the next few days once the madness of the Nutcracker is over!

Today is the final performance of the Nutcracker. Opening night was yesterday and it was a LONG day. I had to get the girls to the theater by 10:15am. From 10:30 until 12:30 they had spacing rehearsal then 30 minutes for lunch. Bijou wants so badly to be in ballet now, but she was forced to hang out back stage and watch.

(But, check out her fabulous use of colors and patterns in yesterday's outfit. I think she was very cute.) From 1 until 4ish there was dress rehearsal. I did come home during that and we all got a nap before the girls' dinner break. We took the girls for pizza before their big debut on the Ford Center stage. By 7pm the theater was a buzz of guests, parents and grandparents with bouquets of roses for little ballerinas.

The girls did beautifully! We are very proud. It was almost 10pm before we made it back home. It's always jarring to see my kids all made up for performances. They on the other hand love it. They will someday rebel and be VERY girly girls, I'm sure.

Despite my ungirliness, there's nothing I love more than freshly washes, oiled and twisted locks. Check out Ashni's freshed up ballet bun. She looks like a whole new person with her hair done.

This morning I made them their favorite breakfast - cinnamon biscuits! We head to theater around 1:30 to get them all made up and dressed for the 3 o'clock performance today. Technically we are not supposed to take photos during the performance and yesterday I followed the rules and only got a few pictures during dress rehearsal, but today I'm feeling rebellious. So there WILL be pictures from today's show!