Happy (belated) Diwali!

I finally got around to taking shots of the other pumpkins L carved--a bat and a cat.

L's first big Bharatanatyam performance is tomorrow! That's kept me busy and stressed this week! I am extremely nervous about this--not L's dancing--but about getting her dressed and made up correctly. I barely slept last night, with worrying about her veshti (similar to a sari) coming unwrapped while she's dancing, or her many elaborate pieces of temple jewelry falling out of her hair.

As part of our parental volunteer duties, I will also be taking photographs of the girls and the performance. I tried to get M to usher, which would have covered our contribution, but he flatly refused. In retrospect, I should have been more firm about him doing it, because he's Mr. Skippy Stress-free over this whole event, while I'm freaking!

The next activity L decides to get involved in really needs to be something that requires M to be very involved in. It's his turn for a little bit of this work and stress that always seems to fall on 'mom'. We need a good labor-intensive dad-managed activity!

I have to get her up in the morning and get her all dressed, and I'm not feeling very confident in getting her pleats and wrapping right. Also have to do the dreaded side-bun-with-center-part hairstyle that pushed my poor crippled hands' limits last time I did it. Then we have to do the elaborate makeup and jewelry, get her bags all packed up, and leave before 11 to pick up a friend from her class. The girls have to be there at noon, though the performance doesn't start until 2:00. I'm curious to see how Meena will be able to keep all of those girls from getting messy before the performance. Nothing about the clothing and jewelry is comfortable. Those girls have to stay in their costumes until after 4, when the show is finished.

Between the stress of trying to figure out what I'm doing with the clothes & jewelry, the intense daily practices, and the many trips back and forth for practices, this has completely monopolized my life and thoughts for the past two weeks. It will be such a relief when it's over tomorrow! All of the girls were looking good at last night's stage rehearsal, so it should be a beautiful show!

Wednesday night was my birthday and was very much like any other Wednesday. I came home from work, made dinner, cleaned up and did chores, and then my mom came over to help my find ways to keep L's heavy sun & moon medallions in her slippery hair. We all watched the previous Thursday's episode of Outsourced online, once we got the hair jewelry solution we needed.

We all enjoy watching Outsourced (NBC)! It is a very funny family show. M & I don't often like the network sitcom type humor, and most of the shows we find funny aren't age appropriate for L, so we watch after she goes to bed. This is one that we all agree is funny, and it's kind of nice to be able to share it.