High Five for Friday (11.18.22)

 

One

Late last week Hallie (and I, as her early ride home so she could make it to ballet and pointe) returned to the Kemah Boardwalk for Kemah Choir Days. This year she actually got to ride a couple of rides, her choir did a lovely job on their three songs, and I had the opportunity to meet and chat with the woman who drove the choirs' bus, who also happens to work at Will's high school, regularly drives Will's high school soccer team, and is a member of our city council and with whom I share a number of opinions about city planning. A great day all around!

Two

On a similar note, Hallie's choir did a wonderful job at their school's Veterans Day assembly. This annual assembly hadn't been held since Will was in seventh grade (his orchestra performed that year) and it was wonderful to see it return and have the opportunity to attend.

I love when the band plays the short songs 

associated with each branch of the military.

I can't imbed the videos of the choir singing (too long), so for those who are interested (my mom), The National Anthem is here and their other piece is here.

Three

Will's high school's football team made the playoffs, and while their first game took place in miserable conditions - misting rain and a "feels like" temperature of THIRTY SEVEN degrees (all the more bizarre given that it had been 75 degrees on my walk that same morning) - Will had fun with friends and Hallie and I enjoyed snuggling together for warmth for the quarter we attended. The boys won this first round game, and play again tonight in their second round game!

Four

We survived 147 hours of Nutcracker run-throughs and an outreach performance this weekend...just one more weekend of regular rehearsals and then tech/performance week will be here!

First photo of the weekend...we look so fresh and optimistic!

Last photo of the weekend...I look exhausted. 😜

Five

The Adventures of Plie and Popeye - Mini Episode

We turned the fireplace on for the first time this week, and while both Plie and Popeye were at first terrified, within a couple of days Plie had decided she was onboard with the fire. Makes us smile, thinking about how she - otherwise SO different from Tux - loves something he loved.

Happy weekend, friends!

California Dreamin'

Like I mentioned in last week's HFFF post, Tom and I - as well as his sister - made a quick trip to California. Tom was judging the ANA Avatar XPRIZE finals (a BIG deal - you can read more here) in Long Beach, and Jenna and I tagged along.

I visited San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles and the surrounding areas pre-kids, and we took the kids to Disneyland back when they were in elementary school, but it had been years since those trips. It was fun to return to the land of palm trees and celebrities and it was (probably) good for me to leave home - even though I didn't really want to - for a few days.

The only photo I could find of Tom and me in
California - at Disneyland with friends - in college. 

I arrived in the afternoon on Wednesday. After journeying from LAX to our hotel in Long Beach courtesy of Jenna's driver, Trevor, I spruced up a bit and then Jenna and I headed downtown for dinner at Tom's Watch Bar, a great sports bar across from the Staples Center/Crypto.com Arena. After dinner we went to the Lakers game, where we enjoyed great seats, spotted multiple celebrities (my favorite of which was Jean Smart from Designing Women), and watched the Lakers take the game to overtime and then win.  

On Thursday I slept in according to CST but got up early according to PST, enjoyed a leisurely cup of coffee in bed, and then headed toward the ocean until I reached the beachside path. I walked two miles in one direction, took off my shoes, dug my feet into the sand, and splashed in the waves for a bit before finding a few seashells for Hallie and heading back to the hotel. The time difference allowed me to attend a PTO meeting in my hotel room before meeting Jenna for lunch on the pier and an afternoon of shopping. For dinner we chose a small, family-owned and -operated Italian restaurant called La Traviata. We met, and got to know surprisingly well, both the owner and his daughter, who was also our server. By the end of the evening, the owner had joined us for a glass of wine and we were friends with our server on Instagram. If you are ever in the Long Beach area, visit Mario and tell him Jenna and Erin sent you - you won't be disappointed in the company, the service, or the food.

On Friday I slept in/got up early again, and then walked two miles in the opposite direction along the coast. There was less beach, but a cute island lighthouse. I attended another meeting - this one for Ballet Brazos (Nutcracker is just a two weeks away!!!) - in my hotel room, and then Jenna and I headed to the XPRIZE finals. We popped in and out throughout the day, watching Tom in his role as Mission Commander and the robots compete and grabbing lunch and dinner at food trucks and another restaurant on the pier. We wrapped up the day with room service desserts.

I hit the road early Saturday morning and made it home in time to pick Hallie up from her last dance rehearsal and Will from his last refereeing gig of the day. 

This trip wasn't exactly on my bucket list, but spending time with family (and feeling the sand and ocean water on my feet) will always be on my list of experiences I want to have as many times as possible.

High Five for Friday (11.11.22)

 

One

Last week Tom traveled to California for work, so my sister-in-law and I joined him for a couple of days. (More on the trip in a coming post!) Preparing to leave, even for just a few days, felt like a herculean feat - and catching up after returning home was no small task either - but we had a good time.

Two

So we could both leave town, Tom's parents came to visit. They did a great job holding down the fort, and we were so grateful for their help! (Thanks also to my friends who covered me for a PTO Board meeting, a Ballet Brazos Board meeting, Nutcracker responsibilities, and Saturday rehearsal shuttling!)

Three

Sweet, sweet Standard Time...oh, how I love you. 

I know Standard Time is on its way out (I'm SO bitter about this, but that's another post for another time), so I'm going to enjoy this last cycle as much as I possibly can. Cheers to sleeping in an extra hour last weekend, and getting up with the sun - instead of in what feels like the dead of night - for the next few months.

Four

We've had so many fun pieces of Nutcracker publicity circulating on social media recently:

Here's "news story" #1...

...and here's "news story" #2. (Don't miss this one, as you might recognize Mandy Marzipan. Also worth noting, almost everyone in these videos is wearing clothing from a Ferris family member's closet. Who knew my very first suit - Banana Republic circa 2002 - would come in so handy! 😂 )

Here are our friends on the news:

Get your tickets now (through the MSC Box Office) - show weekend will be here before we know it!

December 2nd at 7pm and December 3rd at 2pm and 6:30pm

Five

Happiness Highlights

Love this pic of my sis-in-law and her puppy baby, Fabio. 

Swapping out ketchups - to find the fullest one - at
IHOP. Sweet boy knows the way to his mama's heart.

I hate selfies, but wanted to show my new Love Like Morgan
sweatshirt in honor of what would have been her 12th birthday
this past Monday. All of the money raised is going to the
Houston Zoo, her absolute favorite place.

It's possible I've shared this before, but I'm sharing it
again because he is such a buddy. And he has no shame.

Western/Cowboy Day at school. Lucky for these
girls, Tom was willing to share two of his light hats.

Will's school newspaper did an article on students who
coach and/or referee youth sports. They included a photo
of and a few great quotes by him. (They also called him
a "senior", but thank goodness that's not true.)

Kind of silly, but Hallie's Red Ribbon Week coloring
won first prize. I used to be TERRIBLE at coloring
inside and cutting on the lines (my mom has the report
cards to prove it) so it makes me proud that she has
passed my skills in these areas.

Back home in time to watch my boy work!

Popeye LOVED watching cats on television.

A slight resemblance? (Also, this is how he sits
with Hallie every morning while she eats breakfast.)

Happy weekend, friends!