Summer Bucket List Series

Holy smokes, guys...the girls have been back in school for a week already, and I'm realizing that I haven't really blogged ANYTHING from this summer!  We have been so busy checking off things from our Summer Bucket List that I haven't felt like blogging about it at night.  No worries, I've taken plenty of pictures and now that the girls are back in school, I'll have more time to blog about our adventures, right?!  RIGHT?! Yeah, right.

Anyway, here's the bucket list we made for our summer!  We got almost everything checked off before going back to school!

Strike a Pose

Here are the girls formal dance pictures from their Broadway Bound recital this year!  They turned out so cute!!

Dance The Weekend Away

The girls had their recital weekend at the beginning of June!  {Yikes, I'm behind!!}  Recital weekend is a BIG DEAL around here!  It's probably one of my most favorite weekends of the year.  I LOVE seeing my girls dressed up in their costumes, and I get SO excited to see them on stage doing their performances.

This year's recital weekend was a bit on the nuts side...Sydney and Olivia take dance from the same set of teachers, but their recitals were at two different times.  And, so were their rehearsals.  In addition to this little twist, Olivia took a musical theatre class at a separate studio and the rehearsal and recital happened to be the same weekend.  So, we went from rehearsals to recitals and then to more recitals the next day.  It was a TON of work {most especially for my girls}, but it was totally worth it!

The girls both danced to Hard Knock Life in the Broadway Bound recitals {different versions, different dances, and different recital times....and slightly different costumes}.  Olivia ALSO danced to Hard Knock Life last year, so I gathered up the costumes from her friends and they used the pants and bandanas for their costumes this year.  It was cute having their pictures taken together, but I have put in a request for lots of glitz and sparkle in next year's costumes! ;)

On with the pictures!!!

➹ This was me the night before rehearsals...packing outfits, snacks, and quiet activities.  Liv and I were in Scottsdale from 9-4 that day and then headed straight down to her recital.  Sydney was with us for the morning rehearsal, but thankfully my parents picked her up when she was done and gave her some fun time at their house the rest of the day! ➹

➹ In between Sydney's rehearsals and Olivia's rehearsals, we snuck across the park to check out the Civic Center library.  It is such a cool area, but sadly it was HOT!!! ➹

➹ Sydney taking her final bow!

Special thanks to David for getting us amazing seats for both shows!➹

Liv performed three dances at this recital - She was in Opening Night {black leotard}, Hard Knock Life, and Best Summer Ever {hence the beach outfit}.  

All these pictures are totally out of order and I'm ok with it....here are some pictures from her Alice in Wonderland musical theatre performance.  She was the March Hare and Riley was the Dormouse. 

I know I have said this before, but I am always AMAZED at the guts these girls have to get on stage and perform in front of everyone!  I'm so proud of them for their ability to do that and also for how well they performed!  

Can't you see why this is my favorite weekend of the year?!  

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, She'll Be Singing Tomorrow....

At the beginning of February, I signed Olivia up for voice lessons at a school of music near us.  I really just wanted to give her some more experience singing songs the right way since she sings pretty much 24/7.  At the end of May, they held a graduation recital at a performing arts center, and Olivia said she wanted to perform!  She did the entire song of Tomorrow from Annie, and while I know I am biased, I really think she was the best in her age group!  The recital was two hours looonnnnnggggg and most of it was piano.  Thankfully, Olivia was the second person to perform {the first voice} so she didn't have long to get nervous, and I didn't have long to get worked up.  Sydney was able to stick through about 4 songs total before David had to take her home.  I'm sure he was sad about that! :)

I really am so proud of her!  She practiced a lot and really nailed it.  We thought she may need the words and so we had them typed up on a sheet and had black card stock behind it.  She decided she didn't want to hold it, and when it was her turn to sing, Sydney grabbed the sheet and held it up {in the audience} for her to read!!!!!  It was THE cutest thing ever!  I don't know how Olivia didn't get distracted by that, but she just kept on singing.

She got a trophy, and oh man, she was proud of that!  

After the recital, we took her to dinner and she just looked so grown up after her day!

Pool Days!

Even before we hit triple digits out here, we have been enjoying our pool!  We are lucky that we can heat it up and enjoy sitting outside while the girls swim.  We've had lots of friends come over and the girls are loving their new backyard!