No Wii? No Cable? Boring life? Oh please!

Yesterday someone asked what did we do for fun since we didn't own the latest in video game consoles or subscribed to cable.
I simply said, "We go outside".

Let me explain.

We are a busy family.
During the day as I send my husband and oldest daughter to work and school I am home with my youngest.  Our school day starts at about 8am until 3ish.  We get ready and head out to our local YMCA where my daughters are taking a variety of dance classes, an art class or an acting class.  We are there for a good 2 hours a day.


My husband picks us up on the way home.  Sometimes we go to the library first and pick up books and videos.  We read A LOT.  You will always find a book in our bags.  Depending on our schedule for the weekend, we go food shopping.
Once we are home, we start our evening routine which consists of dinner, shower, grading, math tutoring and homework.
After all is done, we do watch an hour or two of TV.  It might be in a form of a video from the library (we watched Cars 2 last week) or a show on TV.
Once the weekend comes around we are not home much.
Our Saturdays are filled with the teen interning and the tween going to girl scouts and acting/theatre class.
Sometimes they have a gig which is usually an all day event.  They love their job.  Sundays is our day of rest.  If they don't have a gig you will find us at home watching movies (again the library has tons of free movies.  My husband and I watched In the Land of Blood and Honey last week) and resting.  Sometimes my husband wants a day of fun because of a stressful week and we go to Disneyland.


You see?

Why have the latest in gaming or shell out all that money for cable if we can enjoy what is all around us?  The library lends us so many wonderful books (and if you have an e-reader you can borrow from there) and videos.  Why do I want to shell out hundreds of dollars a year to let it go to waste?  We enjoy doing things as a family.  Yes, Disneyland is starting to get expensive because of ticket prices but where else can a family hang out and go on rides, dance, and just enjoy your surroundings with the added security measures they put into place?
Maybe they idea of sitting around all day long is something I sometimes long for but the truth of the matter is
I LOVE BEING OUT AND ABOUT WITH MY FAMILY!

(I wanted to post more pics but my DSL/WIFI is extremely slow at the moment)

Calendar Overload

This month is the busiest time of the year.
Right now my middle child is already rehearsing for the Laramie Project at her school.  Rehearsals are several times a week and when they get closer to the date, it will be daily.  She is also a leader at the local AWANA club.  Her Saturday acting class is on hold until she finishes her weekly internship at a local parks and rec.
My youngest is learning 3 different choreography for an upcoming show with our local YMCA.  She also has girl scouts and acting classes on Saturday and a couple of projects she will be filming this month.

I think I just tired myself from writing that down.

Some people wonder why I do it.  I certainly didn't grow up with any of these opportunities when I was growing up.
My oldest was interested for less than a month on taekwondo and wasn't interesting in anything else but hanging with his friends and playing video games. So I let him because that is what he wanted to do.

I do this because my kids want to do this.  I have said no (if you can believe it) on other activities.

Most importantly, it is a girl thing.  I have nothing against boys.  I had one and he is and always will be the love of my life.
Girls have been taught, since an early age, that boys are dominant in everything.  Sports, business, and entertainment.
When my daughters decided they wanted to enter the entertainment business as actresses I was a bit hesitant, at first.  Then it became a big deal for me when I started getting breakdowns.  I choose roles they audition for very carefully.  They are just getting there foot in the door but I am still very careful what they do.  I would rather my daughters do small roles instead of big roles that are violent or come across as some hoochie.  Believe me when I tell you that I have across roles when they are looking for hot 8-12 year olds or roles where the 13 and over is in a scene where sex is implied.  Implied or not there minds are too young and can't really understand it.
I want my daughters to be positive role models and play them on film.

I also want them to be the best at what they do now and what they will do later on in their lives.

Let your children follow their dreams.
Even if it will take up your space on your calendar.
You will still have a life.  I promise you.
And if that's not enough, remember, they won't live with you forever.
If you're lucky.

In other related news ...

Kinda fucked up the other day.
We ate out. 
For those not in the know, I challenged my family to eat vegan and not eat out. So, basically, a hybrid of the books The Art of Eating In and 30 Day Vegan Challenge.
The girls were really busy w/an Audition on the westside and rehearsals in Hollywood.
I haven't gone to the grocery store to do my weekly shopping because I was too tired to walk around the store w/the most annoying people who park their carts in the middle of the aisle.
Or waiting in a long line with people who are still writing checks or counting their change.
So I really didn't have anything to throw together in hopes that it wouldn't spoil in the heat.
We hit the Veggie Grill near LAX using my birthday coupon.
BTW, if you have one nearby go try the carne asada w/avocado sandwich and sweet potato fries. And their yummylicious strawberry Lemonade drink.
Today I will be hitting the store and stocking up on bread rolls, tofurkey, Daiya, and sprouts. Then start on the baked beans, by request. I make a mean baked beans in the crock pot.

Winning!

A couple of months ago I entered a contest on Commercial Mommy's, mother of Yara Shahidi and Sayeed Shahidi, website.  All I had to do was read her website (which I did.  Invaluable lessons there) and answer a few questions.  I was praying for a miracle.  Living in a one income family and the one income coming from a teacher is not so easy.  And having children with BIG dreams is very hard.

I am not a photographer.  I try to capture the essence of the subject but with a small samsung camera, and absolutely no idea what I'm doing, you do what you can with what you have.  With the pictures I took at home they girls did book a couple of student films and one feature film. They are gaining hands-on experience, for which, we are grateful for.

But this?

This was the awesomest gift we were able to experience.
Afshin Shahidi has been a photographer for over 20 years.  When you see his amazing photos on his website, take deep breaths.