MOSI, Ramen & Loaded Shakes

Throughout the summer, between camps, Brent and I tried to sprinkle in some PTO to just spend time with the girls and not worry about work. The Museum of Science and Industry had an exhibit on Pompeii I was anxious to see, so we made a day of it! First we enjoyed getting lost in the mirror maze:

I figured the Pompeii exhibit would focus on the famous volcanic eruption that wiped out the city, but there was a lot more to it than that. Something about someone graffitiing a wall with, "first time out of Italy" just made me smile. 

I also didn't expect to be able to touch anything from Pompeii!

So cool!

We've been to the Transportation Gallery many times but I never noticed the live shot of all the flights around the world. I'm grateful to live in a time when we can participate in the miracle of flight!

I was really excited to try a ramen restaurant but the one we picked out told us they were closed and refused to serve us. We ended up going to another one not far away and loving it! Ramen San had the friendliest waiters and just the coolest vibe! The tables had little hooks underneath for bag which is such a classy touch. We had a blast just eating ramen and hanging out.

Ireland was in heaven- she's such a ramen fan!

As we walked over, we passed this place called JoJo's Shake Bar and I asked the girls if they wanted to try it. They were game! There was a walk-up order window with this:

I was Don't Stop Believin and not a bit upset about that at all. This place was phenomenal although we shared shakes since we'd just had all that ramen. The little ones enjoyed their non-chocolate shake topped with cotton candy:

 Ireland and I shared one with chocolate:

It was a sweet ending to a lovely day downtown!

Dance Recital

 We've always been a family with daughters in dance but I really think this recital cemented us as a DANCE FAMILY! The structure of the new studio is the first 2 are full price, the 3rd is 1/2 price and then Sydney's classes are free. Because of that, we were able to add on Lyrical for Brigitta and Sydney. This studio also does combo classes so where we were paying separate for Ballet, Jazz, Tap became 1 class. This meant Gita's Tap class was included but Ireland was going to have to bone up after not being in tap shoes for ages. Then there was the Dad's Dance. Our previous studio had floated the idea but no one really signed up and nothing came of it. At this studio, they have fantastic participation and the girls insisted Brent be a part of it. 

When the recital rolled around, we were swimming in costumes and tights in a much more intense way than we ever have before. It was stressful and fun and a lot of work and so very worth it! This studio has a professional record everything so it was nice to just sit back and enjoy it. Our good Bishop and his wife attended and he took some photos as well. I was blown away when I saw them- they capture so many details about the girls I never would have noticed otherwise! 

Enjoy the video and photo dump!

Lyrical

Hip Hop

Ballet

Jazz

Tap

Dad's Dance

Odd as it was to hear my husband turn me down for a date night because he had dance class, it was really sweet to see how much the girls supported him and cheered him on for his Dad's Dance. Usually he is the one just sitting in the audience paying the bills and I think it was really fun for him to be so involved. The girls were given strict instructions not to reveal anything about this number- Brent wanted it to be a surprise for me, but they all assured me I would love. And I did!

I'm super proud of ALL my dancers!

Again, it was a tough transition from our old studio but we've definitely found a new dance home where everyone is thriving. As a mother, I cannot tell you what a relief that is!