Lily and Daisy:)

As of yesterday, we have two new guinea pigs. Lilly is the lighter one and is very shy. Daisy is the darker one and is more friendly and outgoing. Their bigger cage- which was really a large parrot cage, and not a proper cage for guinea pigs, would not fit in my little car. So, all we have is their little travelling cage- which is way to small for two pigs. We went to Petco and got a temporary outdoor cage so they could be outside when it is cooler in the mornings. Have to order a larger indoor cage online. We got home at midnight last night from the recital, and Jasmine got up at 5am to play with the pigs!! She said she couldn't concentrate at the recital because she was too excited about the new guinea pigs. Jasmine with Daisy. 5AM this morning, in pajamas with the pigs outside in our little make- do cage system on the back porch:)

Mesa Arts Center....

Long, long, long four hour recital. Jasmine was only on stage twice for one minute each time:). They were the moths...uh..er..butterflies in the Alice in Wonderland Production. No one seems to know why their costumes were ugly grey and maroon. The rest of the night was just one big party for them backstage while the show was going on- until the finale. Then there was a slide show with photos of everyone. No one was allowed to take photos or videos during the show- which is actually a good thing. There is nothing more aggravating than going to a show or concert and everyone has their cell phone or video camera held above their head so you can't see anything! Before the show - at the entrance to backstage at Mesa Arts Center. After the show with Katie.

Dress Rehearsal...

Classic Image Dance dress rehearsal at Mesa Arts Center. Tonight is the big show. Long, long, long. Three acts. Act One is Alice in Wonderland put on by the ballet troupe- which is what Jasmine and Katie are in. They are supposed to be butterflies, but we call them "the moths". Act Two and Three are the jazz, tap and hip-hoppers. We have to stay for the whole thing to be in the finale. Got home very late last night. Photos didn't turn out very well either:(

Desert Breeze Competition Chandler, AZ

Ho-hum..another skating competition:) Today we went to the Desert Breeze Ice Skating Competition at our own rink in Chandler. Yeah, didn't have to drive so far this time. It was only a one day competition since it was just for "low level" or "low-medium level" skaters. Jasmine must be getting used to this because she didn't complain about being nervous- just goes out there and does her thing. She won 1st again for her "Boots" Artistic program, and she was the only person in her level for Dramatic with the Annie program. We need to change the Boots program again to make it more difficult so she can move up a notch again. Jazzy and Theresa.

Jazzy and AnnaLi who did her Pocohontas program:)

After the Boots program with Amanda Secord- one of Jazzy's skating instructors. She just graduated from high school and is starting at Mesa Community College.

Making goofy eyes at the camera:)

Funniest thing...:)

Jasmine has an account with a website called "Always Ice Cream" for girls. It's an educational/game based site with categories for math, English, other languages, typing, music, anatomy, science, dog breeds, and many others. They have to answer questions, accumulate points or coins, then they can use those coins to purchase items like a house, a business, etc. She also has a virtual rabbit named Belle, a Polar Bear named Judy, and a dog whose name I cannot remember. She has to feed the correct food to each animal or it will wilt and eventually die. If it's not the correct food for that particular animal, it will spit it out:) So, among many other things, she purchased a "toy store" business. Little people come in to buy the toys, and she earns even more coins. Last night, she was starting to purchase the toys for her toy store. She looked at some of them, studied them, and said very seriously, "That is overpriced"!! in the exact same tone of voice in which I have said it quite a few times when we were shopping and couldn't get something we wanted. I never ever ever say "We cannot afford it". I always say, "That is overpriced and we will not buy it right now"- leaving the door open to get it possibly at a later date, and kind of making it sound like it is just our choice not to get it, even though we really couldn't "afford it". When she said that exactly like I said it, I couldn't stop laughing for the longest time. It doesn't sound funny writing it out here, but it was the most hilarious thing I've heard her say in a long time.

Big Surf Waterpark!!

Finally, it opened up!! It really wasn't all that crowded until around 1pm...then masses of people arrived! We stayed around four hours, which was all I could take in the 107 degree temp. The pool(s) are massive with "rides" of all sizes and shapes. One "extreme" slide seems almost vertical to me! Hope and Jazzy had alot of fun going down the slides on rafts and inner tubes. Then... we ran into Matthew from Imagine Tempe first grade. Swam in all of the parts of the pool, went down every slide their size and weight would allow- many times. Stopped for ice cream and a questionable "BBQ"! They were swimming the entire day and didn't want to leave, but I was just getting way to overheated. Just arrived. Going down the slides over and over. I couldn't seem to catch the exact moment when they would come out of the end of the slide. It was so long! Eating ice cream and "barbeque"!.... in that order. Ran into Matthew. Not very happy to be going home:)

Sleepover continued:)

Up promptly at 5AM. Immediately wanted to go outside and ride bikes. That would be fine, but not with our grumpy-a** old neighbors on a Sunday morning. Had them wait until 7AM. We made a fruit salad for breakfast, and they ate around 2 bites then off to the next thing. It was supposed to look like this one in "Highlights Magazine":))) Putting on a play in my office. I still am not sure what it was about!! Literally every minute or so, "when does the waterpark open, when does the waterpark open, when does the waterpark open"! I thought it opened at 10AM, but no... not until 11AM!! By that time, it will already be well over 100 degrees!