dance day and cat fights

dance day

Not for me, but p'tit minou deux. Today is the start of his twice-yearly Weekend of Dance. His ballet studio puts on a great production each holiday season. It is amazing to watch it come together, like kneading raggedy scraps of bread dough into the smooth, shiny, finished product and watching it rise and bake.

He will be at rehearsal a solid 8-9 hours today, then has two shows in the next two days. Whew.

Other than dance rehearsal, or maybe because of it, it's a quiet day around the Maison des Minous. Friends will be coming over later to help with the attic windows, and play a game. We had a great meal yesterday. I made my most successful apple pie ever, and I know why. I gave up on trying to make a "healthy" pie crust with olive oil and whole wheat flour. If that doesn't sound very good, you're right--it isn't. Yesterday's used white flour and butter, and it was delicious...

P'tit minou deux, who I believe may be starting a growth spurt (or is just starving because of all the dancing he's doing) ate a quarter of the pie for breakfast this morning. Along with milk and a pear, don't worry.

cat fights

A big black cat that I've never seen before just stealth-attacked Mowsie, who was sleeping on the patio porch just two feet from me. We have been having a lot of trouble with fighting cats lately. Our cats have lived here so long that they mistakenly believe the whole area around us belongs to them (some of the other homes weren't built yet when we originally moved in next door). Newcomers feel the need to challenge this, and I think our cats sometimes go out of their way to seek those challenges.

Our biggest, lovey-est cat James has been the worst offender when it comes to fighting. He has had several terrible wounds. After the first, we dutifully took him to the vet's, had his injury cleaned and stitched (he had to be put under), and got him antibiotics. The bill was shocking, and I warned him that if he continued to fight, he was taking his own chances. He didn't listen. He amazingly recovered from another deep wound all on his own (I did soak and clean it, but no vet involvement). Now he has a third. What to do?

Dance Day

Last Sunday G2 had his end of year dance performance. His ballet school is fantastic. I can't say enough good things about it. It's run by a husband and wife team, has a very supportive, friendly, family atmosphere, and nurtures some of their many talented kids to the pre-professional level. They also have a large boys' program, run by the artistic director, offering free classes through a grant for boys aged 9-21. The older boys are great with the younger ones, and they have a blast.

The end of the year show was amazing. Having classes from the tiniest tots to older teens, it's a diverse experience, and they embrace that by alternating between performances of the upper and lower level classes. The little ones are so cute it makes your teeth ache, wandering across the stage and gamely jumping up and down in their tutus and tights, usually following a slightly older leader (Minou can't watch because there are always a few who forget what they are doing and sit down--he hates that). The older dancers in the upper classes are absolutely spectacular. This year they incorporated some ballroom and salsa dancing as well.

Minou's artistic pre-show photography

G2 was in two dances. One was a classical ballet piece with only three male dancers, so they were showcased. They are starting to lift the girls (and are supposed to do lots of push-ups at home!). He was so poised and elegant. The second piece was my favorite. It had all the boys in the boys' class, a wide range of ages and abilities, and had to accomodate all those dancers. It was a humorous, athletic, jazzy piece set to "Don't worry, be happy." The kids did breakdancing, made human pyramids, and swooped around the stage on skateboards, scooters, and unicycles as part of the choreography. G2 is a ham, so he was great in that performance. I wish I could post them both here.

I'm so proud of him, and happy that he loves to dance.