LMP

Yesterday we went to Belgium!! Well... I am getting ahead of myself. After breakfast we went to the French equivalent of Wal-Mart, called Auchant to help Francois, the dad, pick out some new glasses. We went shopping there too and I bought some purple pants that were 70% off. Then we had duck and ratatouille for lunch then Francois asked Ruby to say one long sentence in French. Ruby doesn't know any French so he helped her. I learned to say I am/am not happy to go to Belgium. Je ne sais pas content d`aller en Belgique. :) Belgium was more beautiful than I even expected. It was amazing. It was a fifty minute drive and I feel asleep in the car:) We walked around looking at the shops and the things for sale on the streets. There were clothes, shoes, scarves, food, antiques, jewelry, and more. The streets are kind of like in Paris. Narrow and noisy with cobblestone and elegant houses. There were a lot of chocolate shops but I didn't buy any:(   Next time we go to a chocolate stor...

Yesterday we went to a museum that used to be a pool. It was very pretty and had stuff from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. We also made crepes for dinner that were delish. They almost didn't work though but in the end a lot of whisking and tons of Nutella saved them:) We also tried to help Olympe babysit but since we don't speak French we couldn't help that much. We also watched Titanic:)

Today we woke up a lot earlier! We had chocolate breakfast cereal.

My birthday was the 23rd and I blogged about it earlier but here are a few more pictures, from NYC!! :)

Today we slept in accidentally until 12:00!! I've never done that in my life! I think with the time change and the jet lag we were just so tired! We usually wake up at eight or nine so that's what we told them. The dad laughed at us when he came home from work for lunch. They understood and we very nice but tomorrow we will not do that again! The French have fancy meals at about eight, noon and about eight or nine at night. They have a snack at about three I think. Today we had chicken curry and bread and yogurt and rice and green beans. It seems like wine, bread and yogurt are always served at lunch and dinner.  (But don't worry we won't try wine!) Today the dad said that the we have the saying "this is the last straw" and he thought it meant the last beans because they say in French "the end of the beans" or something like that. We told him it was like hay that horses eat not beans. Haha:) Olympe also asked yesterday if we would like to hit somethi...

We are in France! Catharine and her daughter Olympe picked us up right as we exited the airport. We didn't even have one second to worry they weren't coming:) The flight was good but long. Ruby and I had an extra seat in the row of three on the way to Paris which was so nice. Iceland was beautiful from what we saw but the airport was pretty vacant and small but cute too. There were no food places open either so we were glad that we brought some granola bars and fruit leathers just in case. We went straight to Olympe's beautiful house which was about two hours away. They have a fantastic garden and a gorgeous cottage ish house and two dogs. They are super nice and Olympe speaks great French. We have taken a nap, watched a movie, walked her dogs, listened to Olympe play the piano, had homemade ice cream and toast with Nutella, been on her trampoline and had a yummy lunch of potatoes and raw salmon with bread and cantaloupe. (It really was good!) I'm so excited to learn so...

Thank you for this experience. This European adventure is only possible with you and friendships you made even before I was born. I learned about how kind and observant and willing and fun dad is all over again. I learned how much I miss you! I learned that being sixteen is fun and exciting:) I love you, from New York.

Today we went shopping at Uniqlo. We were very successful! I have gotten six shirts and three skirts there:) Next we went to the Lindt store ...again. But this time we got one hundred! We had lunch at a cute health cafe. I got spinach salad with cranberries, mushrooms, green peppers, and honey mustard sauce, and tofu. It was a refreshing change! Next we went to the Brooklyn Bridge and it. Was. Dang. Hot. !!! We were sweating buckets! Dad did his traditional crawl across the bridge:) (inside joke) weren't in the mood to ride the Subway again so we took a ferry. It was so beautiful and another magical moment:) the sights are so beautiful! We got gelato again after regrouping at our place. We headed out to do a pizza crawl next. We tried a white sauce slice with caramelized onions and a hint of lemon and ricotta on a sesame seed crust, then a slice of tomato and basil and mozzarella and lastly a striped square slice of super fresh tomato sauce and lots a cheese. Dad and I voted the se...

Today was my sixteenth birthday!! We went to church then the Met. I could spend days or even weeks in there! We saw everything we wanted to see though. We saw Egyptian stuff, a Stradivarius, Greek sculptures, modern art of course, Degas, African art, impressionist, a special exhibit called Chaos to Couture that was basically punk rock outfits on mannequins and some neat armor. After that we found a sophisticated Thai restaurant. We thought my drink might be alcoholic but we got a new one and the waiter assured us it wasn't, I was so scared! Haha. The food was so good and Ruby, despite spilling her fresh ginger ale all over, liked it too:) then we went to the High Line. It was one of my favorite parts so far. It is so pretty and neat! We walked down it and back up as the sun started to set. It was magic! Then we came back to our room in Brooklyn and tested for about ten minutes. Next thing: a French creepier within walking distance of our place. I got a banana umbrella crepe with fr...

Sweet Sixteen and her bedroom is empty. She's gone to follow her dreams. There was a time I thought she'd stay little. Childhood isn't as long as it seems. Her bed is made neatly, her lights are turned off; The lights that she used every night. The scriptures she studied are all packed away. They're with her, still bringing her light. The desk where she studied is barren and clean. Pencils at rest, lists are done. Once there were stacks of highlighted papers Where there were many are none. The weather is good in the snowglobe collection, Clear-water skies make a silent tableau. Of places she's been and the things she's discovered. Each scene softly waits the next snow. The sheet music closed, the flute put away. The arpeggios, etudes and scales Don't run up and down through the house anymore Telling their beautiful tales. Next to the mirror, a costume bag hangs The tutus inside it are still, That once floated and twirled and lifted and soared. They are not...

This is the last time I will write as my fifteen year old self. I love life, the gospel, my family, gelato, music, orange, travel, High school, lemonade, writing, mint colors, chocolate, emerald anything, and flowers and Broadway!! It is 11:54. I can't believe I'm almost sixteen. I've been thinking about it all my life.I know it will be sweet, just like almost everything has been in my life. I love you fifteen! :) au revoir quize ans! I am fifteen.... (the clock strikes midnight) I am sixteen. :) I'm in Brooklyn, the moon is glowing and I am a decade and six years!!

Today was my last day as a fifteen year old! We walked a lot today on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg. There was a market thing called Smorgasburg that's on every Saturday. My dad got some cool new shades! They are handcrafted wood and are super hip! He splurged and kept justifying his fancy purchase but they were pretty reasonable and look really good! I'm so glad he got them:) He also got me a pretty necklace for my birthday. I can't believe this is my last day being fifteen! After walking around and getting a delicious beet-slider at Smorgasbord, we went to the Museum of Natural History (after getting lost on the Subway a few times). In loved the Museum and knowing a little about the exhibits and such from my AP class:) Finally, we got two Levain cookies to share and then retired for the night. Or so we thought!! Dad and I went out again because it's my last night as a fifteen year old!! We walked around and admired the moon which is the biggest it will be all year! ...

Wicked was amazing! My expectations were really, really high and the show still exceeded them! I love love loved it. We also saw Cinderella which was awesome. The costumes were great and it was so fun to hear the songs since I knew them. I've been watching the movie since I was little and so I was excited to see it on Broadway. It was so cute and funny. Just amazing!! We also went to a store called Uniqlo. It has really cool clothes and killer deals. I got four shirts, two skirts and a dress. We made a stop at the Lindt store as well and got a pound of delicious truffles :) I love New York!!!! I think this was an excellent way to spend the first day of summer and longest day of the year:)

Today we are seeing Wicked and Cinderella!! Sorry, my posts might not make sense or be grammatically correct because I am typing from my Kindle, but it's still pretty darn cool that you can do that! :) Broadway time...

Today was our first day in New York and the start to preposterous plan 2013! We took a nap in Central Park and got tickets to Comedy of Errors while napping/waiting for about three hours. We wandered around, got lunch at Chelsea Market, got yummy pizza and went to the show. It was so good! We also rode around on the Subway a whole lot and found our fav breakfast cafe by our place. So fun!! In NYC... :)

Ballet is hard. Not going to lie. It requires strength, discipline, respect, hard work, time, a good attitude, and listening and open ears and mind. It's not for everyone. You also have to have trust. Trust that the teacher's comments are for your benefit and are to be taken immediately and constantly. Sometimes it's hard to fix a mistake that's become habit or make your body do something it's just not meant to do. My knees have given me trouble because they don't turn out but my hips do. I always thought it was just my inflexible hips but my teacher this year recognized it and has helped me fix it or improve it. Sometimes it's hard to look in the mirror everyday and then look at the girls around you and feel like you're not good enough. But if you take ballet for what it is, what it's supposed to be, it's so worth it!! You gain confidence, friendships,knowledge and appreciation. Nothing else can give you that. You can put yourself into it and m...

           

I don't think there are any rules to smoothies. If fruit tastes good on its own, it's gonna taste good with other yummy fruit, right? So I think blackberries, avocado, kale, strawberries, blueberries, non-fat Greek yogurt, and kiwi with pomegranate juice and/or Coconut soy milk with ice would be yummy.

It's begun! The mousse, the bobbypins, the costumes, the pointe shoes, the rehearsals, the live orchestra, the pictures taken by mom backstage, the trips to Weber, getting food from the vending machine, the dressing rooms, quick changes, makeup! Ahh, it's So. Much. Fun! First performance is tonight! Wish me luck!:)

was yesterday! I had two stagings for dance up at Weber then went kayaking with Ruby and my friend's family. It was so beautiful and fun!