Crazy dancing Friday

Thank goodness it's Friday, we all need the break. It's been a busy week at work, Hank had a long week at school, and Mike fell this morning on the way down to the shower in the dark and may have broken something. :( He thinks it's only his toe, but his foot is swollen and he's limping badly. We just really need the weekend around here.

Since I mentioned Hank at school, I thought I'd provide an update on that front. For a refresher, Hank is enrolled at our local public elementary school in kindergarten, and although the school has a wonderful reputation, I've been feeling uneasy about it. I'm just not certain if it's the right fit. There's a lot more pressure on kids these days (even in kindergarten!) to be achieving "state standards," and I haven't been certain what to think of his teacher. I was more worried back in September and October. Since November, I will say that Hank has seemed to settle in better. He comes home talking excitedly about some things he's doing at school, and seems to enjoy the schedule of extra activities that they do. For instance, art on Monday, gym on Tuesday, music on Wednesday, that sort of thing. In November, we also have a very nice parent/teacher conference, and I felt better overall.

That's still the case, but underneath it all, I'm still not 100% certain. Every time I get more comfortable there, something small happens that makes me uneasy again. I just don't know. I also don't feel a part of the school at all. There are volunteer opportunities, to be certain, but most are during the day when I work. I'm still very much looking forward to seeing the Catholic schools in January, when I hear there are open houses for Catholic Schools Month. After I finish my current 54 day rosary novena, I'm going to start one for this school issue. Next year, I want to feel 100% certain about where we're sending Hank, whether it be a Catholic school or the public school. I don't like this unease that I continue to experience about the whole situation.

So, that's that. :) Hank seems to be happy and doing fine, so I want to give the public school the full year to get a fair feeling of how things go.

In other news, I'm happy to report that my energy has officially returned. I'm still tired at the end of the day, don't get me wrong, but I don't have that numbing all-encompassing exhaustion tinged with perpetual nausea that I had going on for about 10 full weeks. This is a huge relief, and it's had a swell impact on my dancing, which I've been missing in my nausea-induced stupor. Claire did in fact encourage me to pursue a solo, and instead of doing my old one, I found a perfect piece of music appropriately titled "Very Short Belly Dance Drum Solo" that is 1 minute and 16 seconds long. I choreographed it in 4 days, and I'm thrilled to have a "fresh" number to unveil.

I do my best belly dance choreography in our kitchen, where I'm been shimmying the evenings away every night this week. Mike usually wanders in, with an amused expression, as I whirl about. I'm just glad that I feel better. Plus, at least I know that I'll look ok in my costume. I was worried about that. With only a week to go, my belly won't grow too much in that time. I'm happy to have gotten the hafla in within this non-bump window. After the holidays, I'm sure I'll be pouting about having to pull the maternity clothes out. But I'll get over it; it's only temporary. :)

I've actually seen belly dancers perform at much more advanced stages of pregnancy, and I have to say, they look beautiful. We may have a performance in February. I'll have to see how I feel. :) And if my costume can be finagled to fit...