MILESTONE!

Just a quick aside before the actual post... I wrote "MILESTONE!" about 36 hours ago but just now realized that it's very likely my last post of 2018. I therefore want to wish everyone a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year, with my thanks for sticking with me & reading my carefully-typed silliness here.  I'm slowly working my way into a regular posting schedule so you should see a lot more silliness (and the occasional bit of serious thought and/or commentary) in the coming year.  Thanks again for your patience & reading... and now on with my post.... :-)

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I'm taking a moment out from my planned posts to talk about a new milestone that we -- well, the Pipsqueak (with all her grownups happy about it) -- passed.

The last of the "baby seats" has been removed from the last of the family vehicles.  😄

Back when AJ researched car seats for "the baby," we had no idea how long she'd need one so my sister did the smart thing and not only purchased a highly-rated car seat, she got a model that could be converted over time into more of a booster and less of a "baby seat" as her as-yet-unmet daughter grew.  Her research paid off; despite the Highlander getting T-boned & flipping over in late 2011, leaving Miri hanging upside-down in the car for several minutes before being cut loose, she barely had a mark on her and was able to cheerfully wave and yell, "Hi, Biyan!" when I walked into the ER that evening.  (You can read the post with photos of the Highlander's remains here, with my commentary about the accident here.)

A second baby seat of the same make & model was purchased 48 hours later, along with another for Mom & Dad's car, and a third for mine.

That was about seven years ago(!), and in the intervening years we gradually readjusted the seats to accomodate an ever-less-pipsqueakish Pipsqueak.  The seat was removed from Mom & Dad's car about a year ago, when Dad began driving a lot less & the car also coincidentally began spending a lot more time in the shop.  AJ went on to pull hers out of the van & put in a standard (much smaller) booster seat, then bought a second booster seat to have as a spare, both for when friends' rug rats rode with her or for fast transfers of Miri to friends' cars.  Meanwhile, the seat in my car was readjusted to accomodate the largest child possible while we kept hoping/thinking Miri would soon reach the combination of size & weight that Maryland deems appropriate for just buckling in without any booster or risers...

...and even as she kept (keeps on!) growing, she remained tantalizingly below the combined minimums according to state law.  Unfortunately that meant that over the past year Miri was more & more squished into the seat any time she rode with me.

UNTIL NOW!

The Pipsqueak still needs a booster, but earlier this week our folks went on safari with our uncle and bought a booster seat for my car -- and the baby/child seat that's been hosting my niece for the past seven and a half years is now rolling around loose in the back of my Rav4.  (I'll eventually remember to put it down in my basement, I promise.)

It's kind of a bittersweet moment; the baby of the family, who has taken to sprouting like a weed, has left behind one of the last accoutrements of littleness and is well on her way to being a "Tween" -- but to tell you the truth, it's all good.

Now if I could just stop feeling so, um... old...   <8-0

Catching Up: The Pipsqueak's SBA Birthday Party (2018_06_23)

Merry Christmas, Happy (belated) Hanukkah, Good Yule, Happy (belated) Solstice, and a happy/merry alltheotherholidays of the next 5-7 days to one and all!

A quick word from yours truly about the downside of the holiday season: there are folks out there who will take advantage of how busy you are to try to sneak in (or out) some things you probably won't appreciate. For example, while at my folks' house earlier today we discovered a PayPal microtransaction on their checking account... the type of microtransaction that PayPal does when someone links their PP account to a checking account. Unfortunately, Mom & Dad do not have a PayPal account. An hour's worth of phone time with the bank later, it's being looked into as an unauthorized transaction and we're going to be checking all the transactions on their bank accounts every day -- and I strongly urge one & all to do the same!

Okay, now back to the usual blog... :-)

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Time flies like an arrow[1] so -- even though we were pushing the Pipsqueak through the tropical heat of midsummer Guangzhou just two or three days ago, this June she turned nine.  (Dude, like... YIKES!)  Aside from leading to an unbroken string of reminders that this is "...my last single digit year!" on a daily (sometimes hourly) basis, the event was marked by birthday parties!  (Yes, plural -- again.  Sometimes good friends just can't get together at the same time.)

One of the more unique birthday celebrations was hosted at SBA -- the Studio of Ballet Arts in Olney, MD.  [Note: If you follow the link and pay close attention, you'll catch a few quick glimpses of the Pipsqueak in the 2018 Production video on the studio's home page!]  It's an important place for Miri; Alison, the lovely lady who runs the studio, is really more a friend of the family than just the manager of Miri's dance school; and since she can host kids' parties during summer downtime, it was a no-brainer to have the "big" birthday party there.

We all got there early to help set up in one of the studios...

...and it wasn't long before the invitees were all in the main studio, leaning a special birthday dance!  (This is my only photo of the rehearsal because it was declared "OFF LIMITS!" to all parents & co. so as to not spoil the surprise.)

Soon it was time for cake and goodies, so all the kids scampered down the hall to the smaller studio. (This after a lot of time spent learning a new dance routine. Meanwhile, the majority of grownups present sorta ambled after them, wishing for at least half their energy... LOL)

When time came for the birthday cake, Alison did the honors...

...and the Pipsqueak posed while the kids prepared to  sing  yell  scream  the "Happy Birthday" song.

I gotta hand it to them... they may be smaller than I am in physical size, but they sure do know how to make a GIGANTIC noise!

(Yes, the Pipsqueak did indeed turn back for one more whiff of the candle smoke -- she loves the smell!)  The cake itself only lasted a few minutes once the candles were extinguished, and everyone agreed it was tasty indeed!

Finally, as several more sets of parents arrived to pick up their offspring, it was time for The Big Performance.  We all headed back to the main studio and were treated to the special birthday dance that the kids had learned in all of about 30 minutes.  (I think they did a great job -- especially when I compare how long it takes for me to memorize just a few definitions in my certification course vs. the timing & complexity of the dance they learned so quickly!)

[Note: The enthusiastic young woman in black & blue is Paige, one of the instructors. Unfortunately I've forgotten the name of the volunteer in green & black, but I believe she's a member of the main competition team.]

Once the dancing was done, it was time for goodie bags and hugs and goodbyes as the invitees all scattered to their respective homes...

...and we all headed to our folks' house (with BFF Sarah & fam in tow) to open the presents and catch our collective breath.[2]

As the unwrapping continued, I noticed an uninvited (but welcome) guest curiously watching us through the window, hopping around on the deck for almost 10 minutes while keeping an eye on what we were doing...

Eventually all the presents were unwrapped & admired and all the cards were opened and read, so of course instead of the planned early dinner it was absotively posilutely imperative that at least one of Miri's new jewelry-making sets be used.  And... since it was already open... and gee, the girls seem to be enjoying it... Ooh, isn't that cute...?  The moms got into it as well. <smile>

Of course we did get to have dinner (did I mention that we were still in China when we learned that my niece gets hangry?) and after a while everyone headed back home with smiles on their faces.  All in all, it was a fun day for everyone involved!

[1]  ...and fruit flies like a banana.  (Thank you, Groucho!)

[2] When I was the Pipsqueak's age, The Opening Of The Presents was a major part of every birthday party I attended... but I've noticed that an increasing number of celebrations leave this to be done in private (or at an after-party).  I'm not sure why, but it does save time when you've reserved a venue for just so long.

Catching Up: The CLAPS End-of-Year Dance Showcase (2018_06_16)

Sorry (again) for the lag time, folks... life has once again been a LOT of what happens while I made other plans.  I figure that at this rate I'll finish catching up on 2018 sometime late in 2023 or thereabouts... So here's an attempt at trying to finish a bit earlier than that...!

As Miri has reminded Mommy from time to time, she goes to school 7 days a week -- with Saturdays being occupied by the CLAPS (Cultural Language Arts Programs and Services) classes from the CCACC.[1]   That program closes down for the summer a little earlier than the public school system, and they mark the end of each term with a (very) large public performance at a local college's performing arts center.  The performance is actually comprised mainly of classes from another unaffiliated Chinese dance & culture school, but the CLAPS performances are often a highlight and we (the "MIT" group) make a point of being there to cheer on our girls in the crowd of families from the other school.

There is no photography or videography allowed during the performances -- they are professionally recorded & DVDs are then made available for purchase -- but there are no restrictions on photography up to the opening curtain or after the last curtain call, so here are some of the less blurred, obscured, or rushed photos I managed to capture. (I say that because the lighting is often a bit wonky, slowing my camera's AI to the point where it won't actually take a photo until after what I'm trying to photograph has come & gone... not to mention the incredible mob scene at the stage door after the show in which it's every man for himself and it's sometimes physically impossible to aim a camera, or even lift it up to take a picture.)

Pre-show... "There are HOW MANY dances before our girls...?!?!" 

Post-show: Our dancing stars finally emerge from backstage!

One of the calmer(!) moments in the lobby as dancers & families reunite...

All our girls got kitten ear headbands -- here's the Pipsqueak rockin' hers...

Just your typical "Uncle Brian and His Camera" pose... :-)

The weather was nice, so as soon as we were sure we'd gathered everyone & everything there was to gather, we stepped outside for a little breathing space and -- of course -- group photos.  After much of the usual cat herding (the girls were all running on high adrenaline at this point) the four sets of parental units were finally able to get them seated on a convenient nearby wall for a nice group photo.

Or so we thought.  (The following text is an approximation of joint utterances by several parental units, not just yours truly.)

"Okay, girls, everyone look at the cameras and smile... C'mon... Um, can you please all look in the same direction...?"

"Okay, let's try that again.  Everyone smile and look here... that's right... No, I meant smile NICELY and look here... argh..."

"Come on, girls... over here, that's right.... One, two... oh, fer cryin' out loud..."

"Can we please get some NORMAL faces, girls?  Girls...? GIRLS....?"

"Okay, everybody calm down... that's better...  Okay, girls, now look over here... One... two... thr- ...Okay, very funny, we get it... <sigh>"

Finally, the girls' dance instructor, Laura, was able to join us for a few minutes and we finally(!) got a presentable group photo to commemorate the event:

Needless to say, Miri & Co. were in high spirits for the rest of the evening, but all that adrenaline took its toll and the Pipsqueak slept for the last 15 minutes of the ride home... a well-deserved rest for the family's terpsichorean star!





[1]  Miri's still involved with the CLAPS dance program, but the time she had been spending in language classes -- with unfortunately diminishing results due to some program & staff changes -- is now spent in rehearsals with the SBA Junior Dance Team.  On the down side, that means my sister is driving all over the map for much of Saturday, every Saturday, but it's something the Pipsqueak really wanted & is working hard for so it's not as much of a bother as it might seem.  We're proud of her taking the risk & working hard to make the team!