Extravaganza practice

The morning of the extravaganza, the dads showed up to practice their part of the show. It promises to be just as fun as last year. This dance is a sure-fire crowd pleaser and it helps that the dads don't put on a polished performance!

Decorating for Extravaganza

Friday, January 30, 2009, the night was spend decorating for the extravaganza.
Everyone shared their talents and transformed the Armstrong gym into "Country Boys and Girls Gettin' Down on the Farm".
Great barn and silo...

Fun t-shirts

Everyone was excited about them!

More dance pictures from 1-29-09

Dynamic Dancers

The little girls from coach's dance studio performed before the dance team on Thursday, January 29, 2009. They are always a crowd pleaser and are so much fun to watch! They have so much energy and are so excited to dance in the big gymn!

Macy and Mom
The stage at the high school gymnasium has a great red curtain that we used for a backdrop for taking nice pictures of the girls. Throughout the season, we take pictures in the hallway which has white tile with blue paint above it. The blue doesn't match their uniforms and the white tile leaves bright spots in the pictures from the flash. It's nice to be able to change the background at least once a season! This is Rachel, one of the co-captains.

Paige

Sam

Brittany

January 29, 2009 Dance

I apologize for not getting more blogging done. I'll try to finish up danceline and put something different on for a change! Here are pictures from their last dance before the extravaganza. By this point in the season, everyone is exhausted and at the end of their patience. With a bigger team, comes an even bigger variety of personalities. Also by the end of the season, they feel and get along a lot like a family does. While the frustration and exhaustion seems to overwhelm them at times, they always cry after the last performance. They are sad when it comes to an end and in a way it's nice to see the tears. You know they will miss this year's team and that they have connected through the hard work of early morning and after school practices. This Thursday evening performance is a crowd favorite and the girls love getting dressed up in their high-kick uniforms. These uniforms are unbelievably heavy. I don't know how Macy can dance and jump around in hers. It makes my arms hurt just carrying it!
Emily, Macy and Megan and their poms

Hannah and Kat

Kat, Brittany and Hannah

Sonja and Anna

Wrestling Exhibition

Thursday, January 29th, Daniel wrestled in an exhibition between the Junior Varsity and Varsity meets. He wrestled another boy from practices and he did well, although he got pinned. Of course at the end, they were both declared winners! I like little boy wrestling better than team wrestling. I think they should all be declared winners at the end of the time periods!

Science Museum Sleeping Arrangements

involved sleeping bags and a lot of floor space! Not very comfortable for someone my age but Daniel didn't seem to mind. He and three friends found a little cubby space to sleep in and I slept close by. Someone asked me if I woke up stiff and sore and my reply was "waking up stiff and sore would imply that I fell asleep". I'm pretty sure that didn't happen. I remember a lot of the night so I don't think I slept. I sure was tired the next day! I would definitely go back next year - it was that much fun - but would look for a quiet, dark corner to sleep in next time. Not as close to the bathrooms as we were this year. The door was opened and closed constantly and a little boy ran for the bathroom as he was throwing up. One positive thing about getting ready for bed... the women's bathroom wasn't busy at all. The boy's bathroom on the other hand was always full. I guess that's a perk from traveling with a Cub Scout troup!
Daniel gets help rolling up his sleeping bag from an adult leader. He doesn't look too chipper, does he?!

Reptile guy, part 2

Another lucky friend that got to stay in the box because it was so poisonous. If I remember right, this one had a rattler on the end of it's tail!!
This was one we got to touch. They feel kind of like silk. They are really smooth feeling.

He loves his friends!

The colors were in the right order on this snake so we knew he wasn't poisonous. He has a look-a-like that is poisonous though. His colors are the same but in a different order.

The most amazing reptile man in the world

I think his real name is Jim but the blog entry title also fits. Our group was so lucky to get into the reptile workshop and we loved every minute of it! This guy had amazing reptiles. He talked about being in New Mexico hunting and capturing these guys. He's been doing this stuff for about 30 years and there were a couple of reptiles that remained in their locked boxes because they were poisonous.
This little guy has a fat tail that easily comes off if caught by a predator. No worries though, he'll just grow a new one!

This is a very poisonous heala monster. Not sure if I spelled it right but he didn't come out to meet us. He had to stay in his box. Jim said he rotates his reptiles when he tours with them so they don't get distressed and die. I was glad to hear that his friends don't spend a lot of time in cramped quarters. Not a pleasant way to live. He also said his wife really likes the reptiles. I picture his home looking a bit like reptile heaven. Whatever that would look like.

Jim claims his wife wanted him to find her a black snack. Maybe it was a Valentine's gift?? ha ha

Cryogenics fun

I hope I spelled that right. We were treated to a really fun demonstration with liquid nitrogen and freezing weird objects like a balloon and rubber ball. The balloon shrunk, then re-inflated itself. The rubber ball shattered when she tried to bounce it.
And the smoke was a great visual. But lighting and my poor camera abilities made for some blurry pictures. But cool smoke.

More Science Museum pictures

There is an exercise bike at the museum that is hooked up to lights an a radio. The faster you pedal, the more electricity you produce. It's harder than you think to get all the lights lit up and the bell to ring. The boys tried again and again to ring the bell but couldn't. Jeff got more lights to light up than Daniel did.

Jeff checking out Daniel's eye.

Watching balls roll around in a well was a favorite activity for all the boys that were there. You could hear them rolling around constantly throughout the evening. I have to admit, it was mesmerizing even for me. Or maybe I was just really tired!!