Sunday Salon... on a Tuesday

So, yeah, I am a little late to the Sunday Salon game this week. Somehow it is already Tuesday.

My life in books: 

I am currently reading The Fall of Five by Pittacus Lore, part of the I am Number Four series. It really isn't my kind of book because it is all about aliens, but I am enjoying the series. Here's what I've read recently, both of which were good. Next on my list is Tamar by Mal Peet.

 

What's going on in my life:

We were in Las Vegas in mid-November for the PULSE dance convention. Even though we aren't Vegas people, we really love going to the PULSE in Vegas; it feels like our home convention. We drove with another mom and her dancer-daughter, which was really fun! The one thing I can't stand about a weekend in Vegas is the smoke. When we get home all our clothes, belongings and hair stink!

The next week my daughter had a photo shoot with an LA photographer and I really like the way the photos turned out. He did a mixture of model-like, dance, and fun. We brought a whole bunch of clothes, hats, and scarves...

Thanksgiving was a busy holiday for us this year. We had work and school on Monday and Tuesday, but as soon as school was out on Tuesday we headed down to Santa Clarita (home of Magic Mountain), which is a little more than an hour southeast of us. My daughter attended a sleepover birthday party and I got a night BY MYSELF in a hotel. I don't even know the last time I was alone for an entire evening, night and morning! Bliss :-)

Thursday we drove up to San Francisco with my parents. Since we drove, we didn't get a turkey dinner and it didn't feel very Thanksgiving-y, but we made it there in a record 5 hours so that's something. We stayed at the Westin St. Francis, which is right on Union Square, which was beautifully decorated for the holiday season. We did do some Black Friday shopping for ourselves and others and even though there were crazy crowded moments, it was really fun to be in the hustle and bustle of a big city. We had dinner at our favorite diners (Lori's and Mel's), wandered the streets, and dodged the homeless... We love San Francisco!

 

Saturday and Sunday my daughter participated in the Tremaine Dance Convention with competing her solo Saturday evening. She did well, earning a third place and after the auditions (ballet and jazz) on Sunday morning, she earned a scholarship to take classes at a great studio in Los Angeles. So all in all, a busy Thanksgiving holiday, but it was fun to be in San Francisco, with family and friends.