Nutcracker 2012

The last couple of weeks have been extremely busy in the McIntire household.  Cortlynn has been practicing for the Nutcracker production for months and the last two weeks she has had practices 6 days a week.  I don't know how she does it; I'm exhausted and I only drive a few nights since I carpool with another mom.  Her first performance was last Friday night.  She than had a matinee performance on Saturday with another evening performance that night.  On Monday she performed for all the 5th graders in the district.  This Saturday will be the final 2 performances and than we will have a break for about 2 weeks.

 

She is such a performer and I am so proud of her.  I can't believe just a short 6 years ago she was the baby mouse, now she is in pointe shoes.  Cortlynn is obsessed with the Nutcracker and will watch all the different version they have on TV during the holidays.  The other night we watched one of the Russian versions and a lot of the choreography was familiar.  She was shocked that they were doing the same dances that our studio does.  I explained to her that they are doing a lot of the same movements but they are adults in a professional company---you guys are school age kids.  The production they put on here in Pocatello is absolutely beautiful!  There is a cannon that shoots, "magic", it snows, and the talent amazes me and brings me to tears almost every time I see it. 

 

This year I volunteered to help in the dressing rooms: Friday night I helped with the little 5 and 6 year olds.  WOW----I often sit there and wonder why did I volunteer???  They are crazy little kids.  On Saturday I helped with Cortlynn's age group.  They aren't as crazy but it was still a lot of work.  Since they are an older group-their dressing room is under the stage area and I could go backstage and watch some of the performances.  That sure opened my eyes to the fact backstage is no bigger than a sardine can.  Several times throughout the performance, dancers dance off one side of the stage and come in on the other side:  No big deal, right??!  Wrong---they have to either run down a set of narrow stairs-across the dressing rooms in the basement, and back up another set of narrow stairs-or they have to go out a door, run thru the lobby, and enter the other door on the other side.  Those poor dancers are sweating and breathless from just running back and forth let alone dancing. 

 

I also witnessed how tough dancers are.  They aren't little petite girls in tights and a tutu---Nope-they are tough women who deal with a ton of pain with a smile.  One of the girls a year older than Cortlynn ripped her toe nail off last week and can barely walk--but she wraps it with a ton of tape and padding and dances on her toes.  Another girl on Saturday began dancing her solo as the Sugar Plum Fairy and she tripped on a piece of tape.  She actually tore a ligament in her foot/ankle.  She continued to dance thru the pain until her number was done.  She than went off stage-still smiling and had to be packed to the car and taken to the hospital.  Devin was shocked that she was able to continue dancing with that type of injury.  She was so good that no one had a clue: she actually  took off her costume gave it to another girl, and that girl finished the performance---no one figured out it was someone different.



Cortlynn as a party girl

She is also a Gingersnap in the Land of Sweets

She HATES this photo, so I just have to post it on the blog.  Teeheehee

 These photos I tried to take during her dress rehearsal.

 

Beth and Sergiu:  The Artistic Directors of the studio: they are extremely talented

 Cortlynn also had a Christmas choir concert at school and had a duet with one of her friends.  She looked so nervous but did a really nice job.

 

 

 I'm sure you have heard of the Elf on the Shelf--well, we don't do that; we have a reindeer named Tinsel come to our house.  He hides every night, keeps an eye on the kids, leaves little gifts, and than goes back to the North Pole with Santa on Christmas Eve.  Tristan LOVES Tinsel.

The second 6 weeks attendance has been completed so I had to update the bulletin board.  This is what it looks like.  Yes---those are all hand made (by me) snowflakes.

 

A little piece of mind....a little comfort.

Where do I start? I debated on whether or not to write about what happened last week but where I use this blog as a sort of journal and actually try to print it off in book form each year--I decided I needed to write.  Not to tell people how they should feel or what they should believe, but for me to have an outlet and in a way "piece of mind".

When I heard about the shooting in Connecticut that took the lives of 20 little, innocent, and sweet 6 and 7 year olds and 6 adults that sacrificed their lives to protect those children-my heart broke.  I mean, I sat at my table in complete disbelief and shock.  Yes I'm pregnant and very emotional-but this took it to a whole other level.  When the names and birthdates were released, again I lost it.  One of the special little boys had the same birthday and was the exact same age as Tristan.  I can't even fathom what those parents are going thru and I pray I will NEVER have to know that kind of pain and heart ache.  I drop Cortlynn and Tristan off at school every day and make an effort to tell them I love them and I think it is SO important to say those 3 small words whenever you can---you just never know. 

I will not say the name of the man who was so evil to do this to those 26 individuals because he shouldn't be the one that is remembered.  He will have his judgement and dealt with accordingly by God.  I don't think we need to "memorialize" his name---We need to remember the victims, the heroes, and the first responders--NOT the monster responsible. 

I also want to take a moment and vent.  I want to say how upset I am about the way some individuals are using this tragedy for their own personal "cause".  In the last few days I've blocked several people on facebook due to the comments that they made were just unbelieveable. 

I've read comments from people stating that the shooter must be a democrat because only democrats shoot people and cause harm.   How DARE you!  It is not a democrat or republican thing.

Some say that the children and faculty were shot and killed becuase God wasn't in the school--the government won't allow religion in the school.  How DARE you!  God has his loving arms around each and everyone of his children, especially innocent babies!  Tragic things happen and I know he was there with tears in his eyes welcoming them home.

Some have actually said that it is a government coverup----the same people responsible for 9/11 is responsible for this shooting.  The "shooter" was a scapegoat and didn't do the shooting--it was other individuals.  How DARE you! 

Some say that the President's speaches disgust them and that he is completely faking the tears; and that he's also behind the tragedy.  How DARE you!  Can you even imagine what the president goes thru when he hears this kind of news? I don't care if it is Obama or another person in office.  It is a horrible, nasty thing--and all eyes are on them and what actions they will take.  He has a heart, he has two children, he is (I know it's shocking) HUMAN! 

Of course the  Gun Control debate will be in high force.  I'm not saying I think all guns should be illegal; but something needs to be done.  Changes need to be made.  Stricter background checks? Perhaps.  Tighter laws? Maybe.  I don't have the answers-all I know is that what our country has now isn't working.

My final thought on this tragedy is this:  so many loved ones and good people have passed away these last few months.  I've attended more funerals this year than I've attended in all my other 37 years.  I believe these individuals (my grandparents included) are needed in Heaven to help with all the children that have been taken too soon--especially by all the violence in the world.  I know these 20 children are in heaven listening to great stories, songs, and getting great big hugs from our loved ones that have passed.  When nothing else has made a lot of sense in the last 3 days---knowing that my grandparents are hugging those children as their own grandchildren-brings me a little comfort.