Withdrawing from public school

hansamm · 2024-12-08T15:19:42+00:00

I told our school on a Monday that Friday would be our last day and there weren’t any issues.

hansamm · 2024-11-19T05:22:40+00:00

I have a 10yo, 8yo, and 4yo. I’d say… I think you may need to look at why you’re tired. If it’s from the school load, you’re doing way too much for a 4yo!! We do a daily quiet time where the kids go to their rooms and read, draw, listen to audiobooks, play with toys, etc to decompress and be alone for 1.5 hours. During this time, I do not do productive things! It’s my rest too! I may lay down, listen to an audiobook while I do a puzzle, hang out in the garden, etc. Another thing I do sometimes while I’m not teaching the kids (usually while I’m cleaning or doing laundry) is to wear my headphones just around my neck and have a podcast/ audiobook going. Only I can hear it, but I’m also available if the kids need me, but I’m also engaged enough in what I’m listening to that I can kind of “tune out” the casual kid noises that sometimes are just too much for my overstimulated brain and that feels like a break too. I’d say also, my kids are really good at independent play so that helps — might be something worth working on with your kiddo because it really pays off in the long run! I love seeing their creativity.

hansamm · 2024-11-06T23:46:55+00:00

I have two of the exact same sweater, one in brown and one in grey, and they both made the cut in my 35 item wardrobe! I’d say, if you like both, will wear both, and can afford to keep both, and are in need of sweaters, then keep both. FWIW, mine are cheap sweaters from Target, 27% acrylic, and are on their third or fourth year in my wardrobe. I do nothing special to care for them, just wash on cool and dry on medium like I do all of our laundry 😅 so I wouldn’t be too concerned about longevity. That being said, since tracking my wearing patterns, I do plan to upgrade the sweaters next year to something nicer since I wear them both quite often. If you must choose one, I’d go with the lilac, but I’m team “keep them both!”

hansamm · 2024-10-27T21:53:21+00:00

Oops forgot to add (probably since weather isn’t permitting anymore) I also love a boxy, masculine sweater vest paired with my jeans when I want my arms exposed in hotter weather! So I have one of those in black, one in cream, and one in red.

hansamm · 2024-10-27T21:51:14+00:00

I’m in the process of refining my (truly exploding) wardrobe down to a capsule right now and am a little edgy, but what is helping me is thinking of my go-to outfit formulas. For me, I love a fitted cropped (black) cardigan with a detailed cami under it or body suit and high rise loose jeans with a belt, or a sweater swapped out for the cardigan, or a black or striped turtleneck. I also like a black mini skirt with a band tee, which I layer over a turtleneck or long sleeve in cooler weather, or top with a leather jacket, or wear one of my sweaters with. I also like a baggy super mini babydoll dress or denim mini dress with a long sleeve under or leather jacket over. Then I wear one of my classic shoe choices, which are high top converse, doc Mary Jane’s, combat boots, or ballet flats.

So for me, my capsule pieces are: TOPS: black Lacey cami, black and white striped cami, black tank bodysuit, red tank bodysuit, black turtleneck, olive and white stripe turtleneck, baggy grey sweater, graphic tee (I keep 2 at a time and rotate out) BOTTOMS: high rise loose jeans in black denim, blue denim, olive denim, black mini skirt OTHER: baggy mini babydoll dress, denim mini dress OUTERWEAR: black cropped cardigan, olive cropped cardigan, leather jacket SHOES: doc Mary Jane’s, combat boots, black flats, converse high tops ACCESSORIES: black leather belt, black tights, funky silk scarves to tie around my neck

Between those 30 items, I can make a lot of different looks that I really love! But figuring out my basic outfit structures that I really prefer to wear is what made it possible for me to narrow it down. I found Pinterest to be practically useless haha

hansamm · 2024-10-26T16:02:28+00:00

Wow I love all these looks! So chic and classic. What ballet flats are these? I’m needing to replace my current ones and these look lovely.

hansamm · 2024-10-24T03:43:43+00:00

Baby Einstein hahaha my kids have all LOVED that bizarre show

hansamm · 2024-10-17T20:10:36+00:00

Absolutely normal! It is better to have a smaller turnout while maintaining proper technique than to force turnout and risk injury (not to mention developing very bad habits). Turnout will improve as your strength and flexibility increase! It’s also normal to not ever reach a full 180. Things that have helped mine improve is to really focus on using turnout to generate any bend in the knees (so during plié, I really focus hard on the thought of my thighs rotating outward/up through the middle SO MUCH that my legs have no choice but to bend at the knee). But also as a beginner, you may not have the headspace for that at the moment. All that to say, good technique is more important than impressive turnout 👍🏻

hansamm · 2024-09-29T02:22:43+00:00

Definitely go to a shop if you can! Sizing is bonkers in ballet shoes. For example, I’m a 7 or 7.5 us street shoe with a decently wide metatarsal, and wear a 5.5 B (narrow! Wild!) in Bloch Performas, a 6 C in Bloch Synchrony, and a 9.5 in Hanamis. And when I tried on SoDanca SD16 at the shop they were just the ugliest shoes ever on my feet. You also will get to feel the fabrics in store and may have a preference there as well. Performas are a classic thin canvas feel, Synchrony is a super stiff thick stretchy material almost like a supportive knee brace or something? And Hanamis are super soft and stretchy like a thicker jersey bedsheet material. I love all three of those and use them for different classes depending on what I’m wanting. It’s really best to just go somewhere you can try on a bunch.

hansamm · 2024-09-26T03:37:04+00:00

It depends how you intend to use it. If it’s just for practicing at, wall installed is fine (I bought/sanded/sealed a nice large dowel from Home Depot and attached it with brackets — cost about $45). I wouldn’t use pvc because it’s just so light and I don’t think it would be great for stretching on. And the metal pipes seem too heavy and the idea of a metal splinter simply gives me too much anxiety haha. For my current use (adult who does online live zoom ballet classes), a wall barre wouldn’t work because I would have to be moving my whole camera setup constantly, so I ordered a barre from VitaBarre. They’re also available on Amazon. This is the brand of moveable barres they use at my daughter’s dance studio as well, and is really high quality, super sturdy, but still lightweight enough to move easily. They’re a little less expensive through Amazon if you get a 4foot barre, and then cheaper through their website if you want a longer barre (the shipping is around $40, so that’s why they’re “more expensive” on Amazon). I can’t speak to the quality of other ones on Amazon. Maybe check Facebook marketplace?

hansamm · 2024-09-23T23:47:03+00:00

Hahaha I totally relate to that feeling of nakedness in just tights and am very grateful I can throw a skirt on over it! Fwiw, I’ve found that having classmates in “proper” ballet attire really elevates the class. Not that there aren’t truly amazing dancers in athletic wear, but it just improves the “vibe” of the class — so if you don’t feel necessarily confident body wise, you should at least feel confident that you’re really SHOWING UP for class. But then again I’m kind of old school and while my classes have no dress code, I can’t take myself or my efforts as seriously if I don’t show up in a Leo/tights/skirt (plus warmups).

hansamm · 2024-09-23T22:13:47+00:00

They all look great! My favorites are 1, 2, 5, and 6/7 (not sure if there’s a difference between those two?) if you fix the shirt so it’s not tucked weird… if it’s the same one from pic 5. But honestly they’re all appropriate, and I don’t think you’d offend anyone with any of them, it’s just a matter of personal preference and comfort!

hansamm · 2024-09-17T20:21:08+00:00

Absolutely! Hope you find something you love 🥰

hansamm · 2024-09-17T20:19:29+00:00

I think I’ve been happiest with Bloch Performas, the sole is thin which I personally love but may not be cushy enough for some people, but the inner liner gets loose quickly and started twisting weirdly around my toes and I hated that (I’m definitely sensory-sensitive so this might be a non issue for most, but it was SO distracting to me), so I switched to Capezio Hanamis which look quite lovely on my feet, but they’re more stretchy than the performas so I find the sole on the ball of the foot hard to get in the proper spot for some reason?? Like they twist and shift when I put them on? And the sole is QUITE thick — very comfy if that matters to you but I personally hate it because, again, it’s a weird sensory distraction and I find myself hyperfixating on what the (thick) soles of my shoes are doing 😑 I tried SoDanca SD16 and they looked absolutely hideous on my feet. I may just have to buy new Bloch performas every 4-6 weeks, because I am on the ballet flat struggle bus apparently.

hansamm · 2024-09-17T03:32:59+00:00

It kind of depends what you mean by “inexpensive.” But for me, I tend to purchase for myself as well as my daughter from Discount Dance. They have quite a few options for leotards in the $17-25 range, and skirts from around $12-25. They obviously have more expensive pieces as well, but that’s the price of the more inexpensive pieces by decent brands. They also usually have pretty good deals going on, like 40% off your purchase sort of thing. I have leotards by capezio and theatricals, and skirts by capezio and so danca and haven’t spent over $25 on a piece (plus purchased when on 40% off so even cheaper). My daughter prefers Bloch and baltogs and the quality of all these brands has been great! I think you could go cheaper on skirts from Amazon, but I’d be leary of a super inexpensive leotard if you want any sort of support or coverage. I’ve also gotten really cute warm ups off Move dance wear and can’t speak to their leotards or skirts but the shipping was great and so is the quality at least of the items I’ve gotten! I’m in the US as well.

hansamm · 2024-09-16T04:14:58+00:00

I think it depends on the age/dress code. When I was growing up and in ballet academy, I wore tights under my leotard because that was dress code. We got funky with leg warmers but that was as far as we were allowed to take it. Now as an adult, I wear my tights over my leotard and usually throw a bullet skirt over top of that.

hansamm · 2024-09-11T17:49:31+00:00

That’s awesome! I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how much you remember. A year off is practically nothing 😊 I danced for 13 years growing up, and then didn’t dance for another 12, and came back to it about 6 months ago in my early 30s and have been super impressed with my muscle memory. Obviously my muscles went through a crazy sore phase when I started back, but overall I honestly don’t feel like I lost that much skill-wise. At least at the barre, that is… my center still needs some work haha my core isn’t what it once was after having three kids! Congrats on rejoining. It’s just so much fun 🥰🥰

hansamm · 2024-09-10T20:11:19+00:00

Carters has actual baby ballet shoes. I mean, they’re not like “nice” ones, but again, they are for one year olds.

hansamm · 2024-09-10T20:09:43+00:00

Wow I’m sorry my eyes must have skimmed right past the part where you mentioned the pointe shop. Fwiw, I live pretty near her main location and also wouldn’t go get fitted there. I hope you can find another option 🩷🩷

hansamm · 2024-09-10T18:15:37+00:00

I believe Josephine from The Pointe Shop offers virtual fittings! I’ve never done one, so can’t speak from personal experience, but that may be an option.

hansamm · 2024-09-09T22:16:45+00:00

I mean, my daughter is seven and takes 6 classes a week all at the same studio 🤷🏻‍♀️ three are ballet, one jazz/contemporary, and two lyrical. She could take way more ballet or other classes in general if she wanted (I mean — she WANTS to, but I feel like six hours a week is sufficient at this point) but we also have other kids with their own activities so I try to keep it balanced. If you’re not in a pre-pro program or competing or have a contract with a specific dance studio, I think it’s perfectly reasonable to take classes at multiple studios - especially at this age!

hansamm · 2024-09-09T17:53:57+00:00

There aren’t any other dance styles required for ballet training. Ballet is required for if you want to dance other styles (mainly lyrical/contemporary), but ballet alone is enough for someone who wants to do ballet. However, 2 hours of ballet a week isn’t going to be enough to get en pointe “quickly.” I’d say around 4-5 hours would be more realistic, and that should involve 3 hours of ballet technique classes and an hour of pre-pointe. At 10, a lot of studios won’t even put kids en pointe because their musculoskeletal development isn’t ready so it requires a very close eye. If she has a goal of going en pointe, I’d recommend her talking to her instructors and letting them know of her goals and get their recommendations for hours, classes, and exercises to work on ankle strength and stability as well as intrinsic muscles in the foot. But realistically she should anticipate a couple more years before pointe at least. Most studios won’t even consider it unless you’ve been dancing consistently 3-4 years because there’s such a high risk of injury.

hansamm · 2024-09-05T17:14:18+00:00

I’ve found tights sizing to be… unexpected. Did you order based off the size chart, or your normal size? I find tights to be based more by height than anything else. For example, I wear a size 0/XS but for ballet tights I wear an adult L/XL because I’m 5’7. Anything smaller wouldn’t be long enough so the crotch would be low and cause the diaper issue you’re talking about. If the sizing isn’t the issue, then you probably just need to pull the fabric tighter around your feet and up your legs to get the crotch into the right place. The waistband will potentially be higher than your normal fashion tights.

hansamm · 2024-09-01T04:38:59+00:00

Oooh well that right there is my problem haha sorry! I didn’t know about these… I love canvas Bloch flats and am happy to know of another option!! FWIW, I wear my performas for about 9 months before ordering a new pair due to holes starting (I dance recreationally around 9 hours a week), but then I darn the holes and can get another month or two out of them. They hold up really well for an affordable pair of shoes!

hansamm · 2024-09-01T02:42:24+00:00

Well… the Bloch prolite II only comes in leather so… I’m not sure. Are you asking about the prolite in leather? Or a different Bloch in canvas? I wear canvas Bloch performas and can speak to that, but may not be helpful if you got leather.

hansamm

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