Doting...

This girl right here makes us very proud!

Since she was the wee age of 3, she's been my little performer.  I put her in ballet hoping that it would help her come out of her shell and not be the shy and timid girl I was am.  Well, it worked!  Over 8 years in dance not once has she gotten nervous about performing.  Every June she performs in front of hundreds of people at the Pantages Theatre and when she was a competitive dancer it was even more frequently.  I soak up every minute of it and couldn't be more proud.

Last year we moved to Tacoma and I did all of the research on what school we wanted her to go to.  I knew I wanted a school that scored high in WASL testing.  I also had to find a place that had YMCA Care tied to it since that was currently what childcare provider we had.  There were a few options but when I found out that there was a PUBLIC art school, I was all over it!  I was worried about the transition because my parents made a point for my sister and I to have the stability of growing up and living in the same area our whole life.  Being able to make those friendships and keep them was great as a child.  Although I had worries for Amiya she totally took to this school and it turned out to be the greatest opportunity. 

Not only is her school an expressive arts school but her teachers and the parents are awesome!  I know that this school is sought out by parents who want their children to be exposed to this type of teaching.  They incorporate art into everything.  They have art classes, dance groups and they have enrichment classes.  The teachers are so dedicated that they spend their time in the morning, during recesses and after school to hold these classes on their own time.  Amiya has taken tap, origami, she was a troubadour, played the violin and a dance class where she learned all about and danced a tribute to Michael Jackson.  And the list goes on.  

When Amiya went to school in Puyallup I ran into issues with clicks and groups of kids that were forming at such a young age.  Amiya didn't fit in some groups if she didn't wear Uggs or North Face jackets.  Or she didn't fit in cause she didn't have the right tone of skin.  I was completely in awe of what an impact these children had had from their parents who made the impression on their children that THAT was what was important in life.  Anyway, I can't gush enough about how wonderful her new school is.  The kids DEFINATLEY have their own style and are very free spirited, which I totally love.  They are so artsy and I’m pretty sure I still haven’t seen a pair of Uggs or a North Face jacket.  Their names are even extremely different.  In Puyallup there were the very popular names.  Anthony and I see new names all the time that we smirk about.  Old school names, like really old school names.  And it’s just so cool to me.  Not that I have anything against Uggs OR North Face and popular names.  I just wanted Amiya to be comfortable in her own skin and not feel the pressure of clicks and groups just because of how she dresses or more importantly…what she looks like on the outside.  Lord knows as a single mom I could not afford clothing like that but still now, even with another income, I just can’t bring myself to purchasing something that pricey for my child that will be thrown on the ground, lost and grown out of within a matter of two months.  Plus, mama hasn’t even gotten her first North Face jacket or Uggs yet.  We'll re-visit this once she is old enough to purchase her own clothes.

Back to my point, Miss Amiya will be performing in her first play this weekend.  She has been so dedicated and has practiced multiple times a week for months to prepare for her debut.  She did not land a star role in the play but due to her dedication and hard work, the director has given her additional roles over the months.  She hasn’t even given us a glimpse of what her roles are.  She wants it to be a complete surprise.  She performs 3 times today and 2 times tomorrow. We are not allowed to come to any of her performances until tomorrow night when both my parents and Anthony’s parents come to see it.  She has made it very clear that we all need to be surprised at the same time. 

We can’t wait to see her perform tomorrow!  It’s called Through the Looking Glass at the Tacoma Little Theatre.

Slices of Life, Vol. 2

I know my last 3 Slices of Life of Amiya were when she was much younger but she still says some seriously funny stuff at the age of 10.

This Wednesday we were playing around in the house.  Her and Anthony have so much fun together.  She had her tights on from play practice and he commented on her booty.  Let me tell you…this girl has got a serious booty on her and it’s so stinkin’ cute.  We’ve nicknamed her JB (Juicy Booty) over the past two years.  Anyway…Anthony said "I’m gonna get that cute JB"…in a non-perverted way, of course.  She looks at him and says “don’t, you preverd!”  Yep, a preverd!  Pretty sure I’ll call it that from now on! 

We love you Bug!