Next...?

Last week was a solid wall of delight, with all the ballet recitals.  The sheen of magic held until the last night, albeit just barely for Xanthe, who was running on fumes by the end.  Bubbly, crazed fumes.  Before the last performance, I was wielding a can of mousse like a fire extinguisher at her head in the parking lot of the Browning Center, trying to get her day-old bun to hold as she played in the dirt in her costume. As she walked into the building I noticed a ring of chocolate cake crumbs around her mouth.  It was a far cry from the first night, when her hair had been coiffed by no less than three sisters and her sparkly makeup was four layers deep.  But she was as adorable onstage the last night as the first.  Her serious little face wore a look of concern as she skipped through all the steps, pushing the other dancers and staring them down to make sure they were doing the right thing.  It was only after she had positioned herself in the final pose and the music had ended that she smiled brightly at the audience.  Priceless!

Alas, not every week can be Recital Week.  Now that I'm not trying to run my life from inside of a Degas painting, my next order of business is to make our house look like a model home.  In other words, no personal possessions in sight.  I might be going overboard on that ideal, but my favorite room in the house is the one in the basement that is empty.  It's supposed to be a music room, but I don't want to clutter it up with furniture and stuff, so it's completely bare, except for nice, soft carpet.  So I'm getting rid of the stuff in all the other rooms too.  Anyway, I have a very special dollhouse that is driving me nuts, in case anyone is looking for a fixer-upper.  It needs wallpaper, carpet, electrical, wood floors and a fresh coat of paint.  Or just a few crayons, fabric and some imagination!  Let me know if a dollhouse is just the thing that is missing from your summer and it is yours!