OK, as promised:
In my family, we make a HUGE deal out of turning 10 -- It's the one and only time a person "goes into double digits." Then that's it until, if you're lucky, you live to be 100 and go into triple digits!
For each of my kids, when they turned 10, I took them on a surprise adventure, just 10-year-old birthday kid and Mom. My oldest son got a day trip to New York City (complete with a trip to the outside of the observation deck of the Empire State Building in the middle of a snow storm ), and DearSon #2 got to run away with me to a circus training school in Vermont (off season, in deep winter) for a couple of trapeze and tumbling lessons. This past weekend was my youngest child -- and only daughter-- 's turn.
A.'s big love is dancing. She takes ballet (with some jazz and tap tossed in), hip-hop, and also performs with a dance team of other girls her age, going to assisted living facilities, etc. Now, when *I* was 10, my family was in Europe (my dad's a classical musician and the orchestra was on tour), and we spent a few days in Denmark. It was completely magical -- Tivoli Gardens, extremely graphic porn at a 10-year-old's eye level, lots of misty weather at the waterfront... And the Royal Danish Ballet performing "Coppelia." I remember that trip, and especially the ballet performance vividly. (Now, of course, I also think of Dimitri when I think of Denmark...
) Well -- Turns out the New York City Ballet was performing "Coppelia" right around now -- closing night was this past Saturday. And I am an extremely resourceful mama.
So: Pack Miss A. onto a bus and arrive in NYC at midnight Friday. We stay with her "virtual aunts," who are more like fairy godmothers, and have a beautiful and magic-tinged apartment in Manhattan. There are foil covered chocolate hearts on the pillows waiting for us.
The next morning, off we go to the West Side YMCA, where I've signed both of us up for an Afro-Jazz dance class! She loves it, despite being intimidated by being the youngest in the room. I did pretty well, too... At least I didn't fall down.
After the class, we went to the "Youth Fitness Room," where she and I played side-by-side "Dance Dance Revolution" for over an hour. Must say, DDR's pretty fun for an interactive video game!
Then, back to the aunties' for lunch and a shower, dress to teeth and head off to Loeman's for a little shopping (great discounts!), then a light supper/tea at "Alice's Tea Cup," a thoroughly charming restaurant with a super-frilly focus on English tea parties and Alice in Wonderland. Lots of fairy lights decorating the ceiling, bone china cups and saucers and WONDERFUL scones with fresh whipped cream (not clotted cream, ah, well) and jam. Then, off to Lincoln Center, where we saw closing night of "Coppelia." The dancers of the New York City Ballet put Boston's ballerinas to shame. It was a fantastic performance, made even more special because we were making a family tradition of sorts.
After the ballet, we headed down to the front of the stage, and I veered Miss A. off to a side door I'd been told about. I gave an appropriate password, and a woman I'd spoken to on the phone a month or so earlier waved us backstage with a "Happy birthday!" to my daughter. A. got to stretch at one of the ballet barres set up for the dancers in the wings. She rode on one of the set pieces as they were being moved off stage. Examined the scenery and props up close. And she got to peek through the front curtain out onto the Lincoln Center hall. I don't know who was more in heaven, my daughter or me.
Back to the fairy godmothers' apartment, for a late night bubble bath in a tub taller (and deeper!) than she is. To bed and sweet dreams.
Sunday - breakfast and good-byes at the Aunties -- who present A. with an old and beautifully illustrated book that tells the stories of about a dozen of the great ballets, including Coppelia. Hurry! We take our re-packed bags to the YMCA, check them for the day, then... off to see The Gazillion Bubble Show"!!! http://www.gazillionbubbleshow.com/ (Discounted tickets are a beautiful thing, let me tell you). One-and-a-half hours of performance art with bubbles. Tough to describe, but check out the link.
I have made a few more phone calls in advance, and my best friend from high school and his wife and son (more virtual family) are waiting for us outside the bubble extravaganza. We go to lunch at a place called "Jekyl and Hyde's" -- where the food is secondary to the multiple "characters" who wander around the tables, and interact both with the diners and with electronically animated 'monsters' that are scattered throughout the room. Beats the hell out of Chuck E Cheez. Then... back to the Y! Our last event is supposed to be a belly dancing class (I even remembered to pack the hip scarves with coins both dear daughter and I have - hers is pink and mine black
). Unfortunately, she was overwhelmed at this point, and couldn't deal with trying to belly dance with 30 other women ranging in age from 14 to 70. I, however, am now looking for a local belly dancing class for ME because it really looked like fun!
Anyhow, we escaped from the belly dancing, also tried but failed to send her into the pool for awhile, then went back out and walked one block to Central Park. I decided to throw caution (and my wallet) to the winds, and hailed one of the horse-drawn carriages. We got a 20-minute trot through Central Park in a lovely carriage drawn by a white horse with gray speckles across her entire body, just as the sun was setting.
We both slept most of the way home on the bus.
In my family, we make a HUGE deal out of turning 10 -- It's the one and only time a person "goes into double digits." Then that's it until, if you're lucky, you live to be 100 and go into triple digits!
For each of my kids, when they turned 10, I took them on a surprise adventure, just 10-year-old birthday kid and Mom. My oldest son got a day trip to New York City (complete with a trip to the outside of the observation deck of the Empire State Building in the middle of a snow storm ), and DearSon #2 got to run away with me to a circus training school in Vermont (off season, in deep winter) for a couple of trapeze and tumbling lessons. This past weekend was my youngest child -- and only daughter-- 's turn.
A.'s big love is dancing. She takes ballet (with some jazz and tap tossed in), hip-hop, and also performs with a dance team of other girls her age, going to assisted living facilities, etc. Now, when *I* was 10, my family was in Europe (my dad's a classical musician and the orchestra was on tour), and we spent a few days in Denmark. It was completely magical -- Tivoli Gardens, extremely graphic porn at a 10-year-old's eye level, lots of misty weather at the waterfront... And the Royal Danish Ballet performing "Coppelia." I remember that trip, and especially the ballet performance vividly. (Now, of course, I also think of Dimitri when I think of Denmark...
) Well -- Turns out the New York City Ballet was performing "Coppelia" right around now -- closing night was this past Saturday. And I am an extremely resourceful mama.So: Pack Miss A. onto a bus and arrive in NYC at midnight Friday. We stay with her "virtual aunts," who are more like fairy godmothers, and have a beautiful and magic-tinged apartment in Manhattan. There are foil covered chocolate hearts on the pillows waiting for us.
The next morning, off we go to the West Side YMCA, where I've signed both of us up for an Afro-Jazz dance class! She loves it, despite being intimidated by being the youngest in the room. I did pretty well, too... At least I didn't fall down.
After the class, we went to the "Youth Fitness Room," where she and I played side-by-side "Dance Dance Revolution" for over an hour. Must say, DDR's pretty fun for an interactive video game!Then, back to the aunties' for lunch and a shower, dress to teeth and head off to Loeman's for a little shopping (great discounts!), then a light supper/tea at "Alice's Tea Cup," a thoroughly charming restaurant with a super-frilly focus on English tea parties and Alice in Wonderland. Lots of fairy lights decorating the ceiling, bone china cups and saucers and WONDERFUL scones with fresh whipped cream (not clotted cream, ah, well) and jam. Then, off to Lincoln Center, where we saw closing night of "Coppelia." The dancers of the New York City Ballet put Boston's ballerinas to shame. It was a fantastic performance, made even more special because we were making a family tradition of sorts.
After the ballet, we headed down to the front of the stage, and I veered Miss A. off to a side door I'd been told about. I gave an appropriate password, and a woman I'd spoken to on the phone a month or so earlier waved us backstage with a "Happy birthday!" to my daughter. A. got to stretch at one of the ballet barres set up for the dancers in the wings. She rode on one of the set pieces as they were being moved off stage. Examined the scenery and props up close. And she got to peek through the front curtain out onto the Lincoln Center hall. I don't know who was more in heaven, my daughter or me.
Back to the fairy godmothers' apartment, for a late night bubble bath in a tub taller (and deeper!) than she is. To bed and sweet dreams.
Sunday - breakfast and good-byes at the Aunties -- who present A. with an old and beautifully illustrated book that tells the stories of about a dozen of the great ballets, including Coppelia. Hurry! We take our re-packed bags to the YMCA, check them for the day, then... off to see The Gazillion Bubble Show"!!! http://www.gazillionbubbleshow.com/ (Discounted tickets are a beautiful thing, let me tell you). One-and-a-half hours of performance art with bubbles. Tough to describe, but check out the link.
I have made a few more phone calls in advance, and my best friend from high school and his wife and son (more virtual family) are waiting for us outside the bubble extravaganza. We go to lunch at a place called "Jekyl and Hyde's" -- where the food is secondary to the multiple "characters" who wander around the tables, and interact both with the diners and with electronically animated 'monsters' that are scattered throughout the room. Beats the hell out of Chuck E Cheez. Then... back to the Y! Our last event is supposed to be a belly dancing class (I even remembered to pack the hip scarves with coins both dear daughter and I have - hers is pink and mine black
). Unfortunately, she was overwhelmed at this point, and couldn't deal with trying to belly dance with 30 other women ranging in age from 14 to 70. I, however, am now looking for a local belly dancing class for ME because it really looked like fun!Anyhow, we escaped from the belly dancing, also tried but failed to send her into the pool for awhile, then went back out and walked one block to Central Park. I decided to throw caution (and my wallet) to the winds, and hailed one of the horse-drawn carriages. We got a 20-minute trot through Central Park in a lovely carriage drawn by a white horse with gray speckles across her entire body, just as the sun was setting.
We both slept most of the way home on the bus.
