Bucket List

Do you have a bucket list? Well I do! Earlier this summer my friend and I were at The Muny Opera in St. Louis enjoying a beautiful production of Irving Berlin's "Holiday Inn." If you are ever in St. Louis during the summer months and you like theater then a trip to The Muny is an absolute must! It's America's oldest and largest outdoor musical theater. This year was its 97th season and plans are already underway for a fabulous celebration of The Muny's 100th anniversary! The sloping amphitheater contains 10,800 stadium style seats. Anyone and everyone can enjoy the musical productions of The Muny because unique to this theater is a section of free seating comprising the last nine rows or about 1,500 seats of the venue. As a young girl, my mom, siblings and myself would enjoy The Muny shows from the free seats which then fostered the beginning of my long time appreciation for the arts.

St. Louis Municipal Opera
Photo courtesy of explorestlouis.com

Still to this day I especially love the shows with lots of dancing, specifically tap style! When I was younger I did take ballet and tap dance lessons, but only for a short while. The dance class times were in conflict with my basketball schedule, and being in a family with older athletic brothers it meant I would be playing basketball rather than dancing. And I truthfully admit, I loved playing basketball more than I ever loved dancing.  However, as the years passed I always wished I had learned to tap dance. So this desire was eventually placed on my "bucket list" of things to accomplish during my lifetime. Interestingly, while enjoying "Holiday Inn" my friend mentioned learning to tap dance was on her "bucket list" of things to do! So at that moment we decided we would find a tap class for adult beginners.  The next day we searched the internet and most of the local dance studios only had tap classes for children and youth dancers. A few studios offered adult tap lessons but the cost per class was outrageous. Then the Continuing Education catalog from St. Louis Community College arrived in the mailbox! And there it was... an adult beginners tap dance class, 8 week session, nearby, reasonably priced! We applied the very first day of open registration! Good news, we're in!

Now I need to find tap shoes, and the hunt is on. I've located several online shops that sell adult size tap shoes, but unlike buying personalized shirts from Zoey's Attic, I really need to try on the shoes before I purchase them. At my age my feet hurt and comfort is top priority. I know one thing for sure, I won't be getting the tap style with a heel like the dancers at The Muny wear for the dance numbers. Instead, they will be either flat T-strap Mary Jane shoes or the black patent leather style with a ribbon tie bow. I can't wait to find them and get to our first lesson!

So here are a few of the other items I've also had on my bucket list:

- See the Eiffel Tower: Done! Magnificent!

- Become a certified scuba diver: Done! Don't like it and will never scuba dive again. Although "under the sea" is an incredibly gorgeous sight, I really don't want to know in advance if "Jaws" or any other creature is lurking nearby. I'd rather it just happen without any prior knowledge of the impending attack!

- Overcome my fear of snakes: Never, ever will this happen!

So what is on your bucket list?

Where Did the Summer Go?

August is proving to be a very busy month! When I was younger August was just a lazy end of summer month spent swimming and relaxing before the start of school. This year August has been filled with shopping trips to get the kiddos ready for the big day! New school clothing, new school shoes, the perfect backpack, and school supplies have all been crossed off the list. Grocery shopping for nutritious yet yummy items for a brown bag lunch has definitely been challenging. What I like to eat isn't necessarily what the kiddos like! The much anticipated and somewhat dreaded first day of school went well. The kids have adjusted quite easily to the new schedule and I actually think they like the daily routine of the school year. Now the evenings and weekends are filled with meetings, practice dates, and game times that are all a part of being a team member in the many extracurricular activities offered to the children. Dance school is also about to begin. Most of the dance academies in our area run concurrently with the school year. So sometime at the end of May or beginning of June the year culminates with the annual dance recital. After a break of a few summer months classes start again and it coincides with the beginning of the new school year. When I was a young girl I really only liked dance school because I loved the costumes we got to wear for the recitals! I loved my ballet and tap shoes, the leotards and tutus! But... I really didn't like dancing!  I never had any rhythm and always felt awkward! But every Saturday morning for years I packed my pink vinyl shoe bag with my tap and ballet shoes and headed off to class. Now days the girls carry their dance apparel and dancing shoes in adorable personalized canvas tote bags. So if you're looking for a special gift for your little ballerina, Zoey's Attic has such sweet dance bags and they even have tops to match! Your styling little dancer will be the envy of the dance school!

Dance Bags and Dance Shirts From Zoey's Attic