High School Musical (In Middle School)

Alpha the Thespian
Alpha playing the part of one of the “thespians” in High School Musical

Shortly before the new year, Alpha surprised us by trying out for a part in drama club – High School Musical.  She made it into the supporting cast.

For months she has stuck to a busy schedule of rehearsals in between school, karate, and regular activities, mostly without complaint. (though not entirely ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )  She tried really hard, though.

Tonight was opening night, and the whole show was fantastic – Alpha was great, but the rest of the show was great too.  No disasters, not even a missed line, and the leads had really strong voices.  It felt more like a high school production than middle school.  Most importantly, the kids really looked like they were having fun (especially the kid who played ‘Ryan’).

Next year the high school is going to see some great singing talent come in.  And Alpha?  She’s talking about trying out for the next show.

Altitude, the Trampoline Park

Beta on the climbing wall
Beta on the Altitude climbing wall. She dropped into the foam pit a moment after this photo was taken.

The morning after a sleepover, I took Beta, Alpha, and Alpha’s sleeping-over friend Rho to Altitude, an indoor trampoline park.  (Fun fact: once upon a time they were called “jumpolines” until your mom got on one.)

They have a field of unadulterated trampolines for jumping, plus dodgeball (on trampolines), basketball layups (on trampolines), long jumps with trampolines (landing in a foam pit), climbing walls (over foam pits), and pugil sticks on a balance beam (again, falling into foam pits).

It’s pricey, as you’re charged by the half-hour and it’s $9 per person per half-hour (discounts apply for longer blocks of time).  You also must bring special Altitude-branded non-skid socks or buy them for $2/pair.

It’s a really good time despite the price.  I recommend not more than an hour at a time – the kids really started to flag after about 45 minutes.  They slept well that night, too.

Alpha Earns Her Gold Belt in Karate

Alpha has officially taken her karate to the logical next step, and put herself on track for a black belt.  This puts her into ‘Doshi Kai’, which basically means she’s not trying karate out anymore – she’s a serious student.

Here’s a segment from the promotion ceremony:

Missing from the video is me giving her the gold belt, and a short kata demonstration.  Her kata are now crisp and confident.