We Have An Audition!

Today we had a case of "careful what you wish for."

Over the holidays we were discussing household things, what we'll keep up with (dance, maybe try skating more this winter, and other free community things), and what we might not.  Sadly Emma's Mode Elle stuff is (or was) teetering on the edge.  The idea there was "if we don't get her actually doing anything with it we won't pay the $$$ to keep her registered there."

Well today I received an email from Charline at Mode Elle.  Emma has an audition on Friday!  Of course it's in Toronto, and at 6:45pm it means we have to take her out of school early.  Not really a big deal, and at least it's Friday so not much worry about her staying up too late!

Patrick is taking the afternoon off to whisk her away to this "talent" audition.  I'm a little sad about that, only because it means I won't have the first hand experience to then blog about later.  I am very glad I don't have to navigate my way into downtown Toronto for 6pm on a Friday.

I don't know if this audition would then include shooting the spot as well, or returning at a later date to actually "do" the work.  It would be amazing if it was all done in one go.  We're not lucky enough for that to be the case, though!

I will try to post a follow-up after they've been through the process.  I'm dying of curiosity myself about what goes on.  I know "Dad" won't get to see her audition but at least he can get her impressions right away.  I'll likely have to wait til the next morning, as I might be in bed by the time they get home!

I really hope Emma enjoys this opportunity.  Whether she "lands the role" or not, quite frankly, is irrelevant.  She has increased her confidence like crazy since taking the course at Mode Elle.  She has also expressed a growing interest in theatre which is great since we have a great theatre community here.  Being at the Tett Centre every week (usually twice a week) has allowed us so expand our knowledge of community theatre groups and other artistic things that go on around town.  I want very much for Emma to expand her horizons, and explore things that are interesting to her.

So stay tuned - I will follow up in some fashion with another post.  Until then, wish us luck - not only with the audition, but the travel time too!

Soon-to-be Adventures in Modelling

Emma July 2015

We are still anxiously waiting for Emma's head shots.  Her Mode Elle classes are winding down (I think there are 2 more, one of which is a showcase).  Next week we're at the cottage, so Patrick is going to bring Emma back from Sharbot Lake just for her hour session.  It's a good excuse/opportunity to visit the grocery store again, and pick up anything we forgot at the house.

There is a mall fashion show coming up in September.  The audition is at the end of Aug, but the show itself is the 19th.  That's the day we were going to plan Emma's birthday party, as we're at a wedding the weekend before (which is her actual birthday).  I'm sure we can plan it for the Sunday, but I made the mistake of mentioning this conflict to Emma so she immediately decided she did not want to do the fashion show.  I'm trying to explain it to her - that we can pick a different day for the party - but sometimes she just shuts down and won't absorb what you're telling her.

I think it will be good for her to do her first audition at the Mode Elle location where she's been learning all this stuff.  She really has no idea (I don't think) what an audition even is.  I would like her to go through the process before we sign her all up for things that will be happening elsewhere (like Toronto...)  I know she will need practice to figure out how to audition for things.  Heck, even I don't know what goes on at these auditions!

Any of you readers have some advice, or been to an audition in the fashion show world?  Please share your experiences and tips in the comments!

Summer Is Here - Let The Relaxing Begin!

Okay so I really don't think relaxing is any more or less likely to happen in the summer.  I am just eternally happy that the intensive dance rehearsal/recital schedule is done.  And school is almost done.  I may even be able to re-set my alarm to give me 10 more precious minutes of sleep in the mornings...but Rose will still be up nice and early.

Our weekend went very smoothly.  Dance was watched, food was eaten, kids had fun - success all around.  Our next big job is replacing a section of our fence - although we're turning that into a backyard party as well (hopefully!)  We already have the fence all down, and the post people are coming next week to do the posts.  Canada Day is our fence party day - family is rallying around (and maybe a neighbour or two) and we'll have lot of eats to keep everyone fuelled.

Now Monday nights have no required pick ups.  I just get to go home after work - I'm not sure how I feel about that!  I was enjoying the no-rush, get-there-by-7 feeling of my Mondays.  Sometimes I took a walk, sometimes I read a book, and every time I didn't have to put Rose to bed.  It was Rosie-Daddy night.  Not sure what she's going to think about that either!

The only weekly thing we have on now is the Tuesday night Mode Elle business.  Emma's photos are this Saturday so I have to go through her clothes and pick out something cute (because not everything she owns is cute...) for mix and match with whatever stylist is there to make the final choices.  I may even have to get out my ironing board.  Yikes!

I feel like Emma's already super excited for her Dance Camp - she gets one full week off from school then she's there for a week (which required some work schedule tweaking for pick ups and drop offs) learning yet more dance and having a mini recital at the end.  I can't get over how much she loves it there!  It's a good thing, I know.

Anyway, gotta get ready for work - somehow that doesn't change much during the summer!  Leave me a comment about your summer schedules, or what you're looking forward to doing with the kids and family.

Toodles!

Rose "Graduates" From Imagine Dance

This weekend we had the pleasure of attending Rose's ballet class recital.  The 3 year old class is called Imagine Dance.  She even got a diploma for "graduating" from the class.  The sea of little pink ballerinas (with 2 small boy dancers, not so pink) is so cute!

Imagine Dance Recital

We brought all the grandparents, as well as our daycare lady and her daughter (who's our babysitter - an arrangement that works fabulously for us!)

After the recital we invited everyone back to the house for a luncheon.  I really like using the word luncheon.  It makes me feel fancy.  Anyway, it was a nice day, hot in the backyard, and we had sandwiches, cheese and crackers, veggies and dip and fruit and cake.

Rose With Her Rose and Diploma

Everyone in the family is greatly looking forward to next weekend when Kingston School of Dance is having their end of year performance at the Grand Theatre.  We have 10 tickets (in 2 groups of 5) so everyone we know can come watch Emma dance in 2 numbers this year.  And it's funny, we actually know a bunch of people who have kids dancing at this school this year.  I'm really looking forward to the event next Saturday.  We are having a to-do after that recital as well.  BBQ with people bringing things.  Should be a great time as well!

The Studio Has Beautiful Exposed Walls

The pictures I am posting here (on Blogger generally) are unedited, not usually cropped photos of what we took wherever we were.  In case anyone is wondering.

Toodles!

Power Outage Causes Bedtime Struggles, But All Is Resolved

Tonight Emma had her Mode Elle modelling/talent class.  Took Rose to a few stores, and changed her into jammies (in case she fell asleep in the car on the way home - she woke up at 5am today) while we waited big sis to finish.  I got a message from my neighbour asking if my power was out while we were "shopping."  Of course I wasn't home so, no idea!  Then hubby calls 10 minutes later to tell me he stopped at home between his day job and evening work and guess what! - The power's out.  Guess neighbour was right.

Kids were kind of intrigued by the idea of no power, until I explained to them what that meant.  No tv or movies when we get home (we wouldn't have done that anyway, as it's Rose's bedtime by the time we get home); no nightlights (catastrophe!); and - horror of horrors - no toasted english muffins or anything else that requires cooking.

The power was not on when we got home - nor was hubby still home to assist the power-less bedtimes.  The battery backups in the basement were beeping like crazy, and Emma wondered why the dryer was buzzing so often and, wait a minute, it doesn't take batteries, does it?  Sometimes the way her mind works astonishes me still.

Anyway, Rose got to bed okay - it was dark, she was worried about it, so we had to find flashlights because the light from the hallway was just not good enough tonight.  I actually managed to find a few, some with rechargable batteries - and luckily there were a few with enough charge to last a few minutes at least.  Once she accepted the scenario she was asleep quickly.

I was starting to get worried - Emma was wearing the battery down on my phone playing games and I was not really looking forward to straining to read by candle or flashlight as the sun went down.  My big plans for the night were blogging and having a Palm Bay while watching tv - with a chaser of going to bed by 9:30.  I know, exciting night, right?

Well, wonder of wonders, the power came back on about 15 minutes before Emma's bedtime.  So she finished wearing down my phone and then she went to bed - not much fuss, just a story and then some reading-on-her-own time.  So now I am living the dream, drinking my Palm Bay and watching some tv while blogging.  Life is good.  And it's not even 9pm!

Toodles!

Tomorrow We're Going Shopping!

Somehow my weekends are rapidly filling up this month.  With the end of our extra-curriculars and the end of school, time is counting down like crazy.  I just realized that this is the last free weekend I have to take Emma for a new outfit and new shoes before her talent headshot photoshoot at the end of the month.  So while Patrick takes Rose to ballet, Emma and I will troupe around town trying on all manor of clothes and accessories.

I don't think Emma has clued in to the idea that she won't be doing her free art at the Tett this week.  I hope she doesn't catch on, I really don't want to spend then entire day out and about.  I like the girls having their weekend afternoons at home, outside, with their friends.

Emma thinks we're just going to go to the mall - I don't think that's the best place for her to find shoes.  We already tried WalMart but she's between sizes there.  I guess actual shoe stores (I miss Kiddie Kobbler) will be on the agenda tomorrow.  I just know that narrowing down choices will be quite a chore.  And truthfully I don't even know what we need for this photo session.  Because she's a child we have to take all clothes, shoes and accessories, but there will be a stylist there to help her put together outfits etc.

I'm looking forward to this excursion as an opportunity to actually talk to Emma about the endgame of this modelling and talent course.  She says she wants to act more than model (so far).  I'm unsure if she even knows what acting actually is.  Today she had to stand up in front of her whole school - she raised the most money for her Jump Rope for Heart - and she seemed to think it was a little terrifying.  I will say that I think she is less self-conscious and shy than she was, but whether that's just growing up, or this course has something to do with it I have no idea.

Anyway, if anything exciting happens on our adventures tomorrow I will be sure to share them, but until then...

Toodles!

Dance is Eating Up My Life! (not really...)

The girl's dance studio has an end-of-year performance which is actually put on as a ballet at the theatre in town.  It has 2 acts, one is ballet exclusively (I think) and the other is all the other dance styles (tap, contemporary, swing, etc.).  Of course Emma would be in both acts as she does ballet and contemporary - that means she has rehearsals every day on the week leading up to the performance.  This will not be easy for us. Patrick is out of town Wed to Fri that week and most of the rehearsals end at 8 or 8:30.  Rose needs to be in bed before that or I will have to carry her sleeping self in and out of the car every night to pick Emma up.  Also one night he is away I have to work until 6 so getting Emma there for 5 may prove challenging.  And then there's the night she has her modelling/talent class - she's just going to miss that rehearsal.  I remember this inconvenience from last year, but then she was in only one class, and only the first act and so there were half as many rehearsals.

Rose, on the other hand, has an in-studio "recital" that we will all get to see without spending $20 a ticket and all our free time taking her to rehearsals.  This is because she is in the 3 year old dance class.  And thank god, as there's no way she would be able to stay up for a 7pm performance, and we get snacks after this in-studio show.  The kids have so much fun performing and I can't wait to see both the shows, but I'm a bit anxious about all the work we have to put in it first.

And if I'm anxious about all this, I can only imagine what will happen if any "talent" people like Emma's headshots at the modelling agency we're using.  Driving to Toronto is not my favourite thing to do on a good day, but if she wants to do this, and enjoys it, then I will totally be the chauffeur mom that I need to be.  We're starting this stuff the weekend after the dance performance, as the photoshoot is at the agency's offices in Belleville.  And I have already scheduled her a manicure for that morning but she'll be disappointed that she can't have colour.  There are a lot of rules in this modelling world.

Toodles!