Shew's Life Adventures

Let's hit on a topic that drives me nuts, costumes. I totally understand that groups costumes need to be chosen by the teacher or choreographer to hit their vision but solo costume should be up to the dancer. If the dancer doesn't feel good in the costume it will show through their dance. This is their time to be themselves in a dance and that includes the costume choice. Dancers should get to voice their opinions in the decision of the costume. A great teacher will be open to the discussion. A teacher on a power trip will shut you down and try to control everything. I was fortunate to never have the power trip teachers or maybe they just knew it wouldn't work with my daughter and I, but anyways we always had a say. Not even a say but we just made the decision and the teachers supported it.  Does it really matter? Yes and No Yes, when you have a great costume it does send a message to the judges that you mean business and are there to compete. Even though costum

I spent 13 years in the competitive dance world. Man I have got a lot to say after 13 years. I watched so many things evolve, change, become better, and always become worse. I will break this into several small sessions to hit many topics without writing a book each blog. So session 1? What else besides the dance, duh. When we started dance 13 years ago, my daughter was 4 years old.  She is now 19 years old and a student at AMDA college in Los Angels getting a Dance Theater Bachelor of Arts Degree. I remember running to my computer at home and watching numerous YouTube videos for the next amazing dance move, costume idea, or song choice.  Back then it was like a guarded secret which YouTube channels had the good stuff.  You see the really competitive parents back then in dance didn't like to share information. Fast forward to today and the information is at everyone's finger tips and easily accessible. It has been quite amazing to watch the world change before my ey

Gatlinburg, TN  Gatlinburg is in the Smokey Mountains National Park, it is a two for one. You get the great town of Gatlinburg and a national park to visit in one trip. The town of Gatlinburg is fun and quant with an old western and bluegrass feel. The main stripe in town is lined with endless shops to spend your time and money. Rafting, horse back riding, hiking to Clingman's Dome, ski lift, and the sky bridge are just a few of the popular activities most visitors enjoy. The scenery of the Smokies Mountains is breathe taking.  This is a place I have visited twice. To be honest, I would revisit tomorrow if I was able to. When others say they want to take a vacation and not sure where to go, I always suggest Gatlinburg. Add in the bonus of it's neighbor Pigeon Forge and a visitor has everything they could ever want. Pigeon Forge reminds me of a bigger and better Branson, MO. Go-carts, fun houses, Dolly Parton Stampede, restaurants you name it, Pigeon Forge has it all

So here we are almost a year later, how is the CBD treatments going? I updated a previous blog with updated information.  After a year most thoughts I had a year ago are still the same.  Remember these feelings I posted months back? Labs are prone to bad hips and lose some of their mobility as they age. I watched the loss with a previous lab we owned and eventually he had to be put down. He was 16 years old but his mind was still viable. Putting a dog down who stills understands what you are saying but lacks the ability to even stand anymore is one of the most heartbreaking things I have ever done. Experience is key in life! After we went through it, we made a decision to do the things needed to reduce some of that pain and suffering for our next dog. No matter the cost! I remind myself, I went and chose Josie, she didn't come pick me out. I owe her the best life I am able to emotionally,  physically, and financially give her.  Yes still strongly feel the same way. We h

Living in the Midwest, you grow up hearing about how great the Dells are for a vacation. I had this vision in my head of a beautiful area full of lakes and boating activities. I had heard the area was the indoor waterpark king of the world. I had heard so many things..... We visited the Wisconsin Dells, often referred to as the Dells in the summer of 2017. We had to spend a week in the town for my daughter's dance competition. If you really want to get a true feeling for any city, I suggest spending a week. By week's end you will know if you would like or never wish to return.  So did I love it? Lodging is very expensive in this town. Most people come to visit the waterpark resorts, so it helps swallow the price a bit. We choose not to stay at one of the resorts, as we were there to compete and wouldn't be using the waterpark facilities. We did check into a resort for a few nights at week's end when our daughter was done competing. Finding other lodging that

I bought one of the Tic Tok couches for my family room a few months ago. This couch replaced a much larger pleather sectional that had begun peeling. We placed our order through Nebraska Furniture Mart over the phone and had the couch delivered a few weeks later. To be completely honest my husband got the measurements wrong in his head and thought this couch was the same dimensions as the couch it was going to replace. Not quite! Upon delivery, we realized this new couch was much smaller in size and the chaise was on the wrong side. Thinking we made a mistake we called Nebraska Furniture Mart to see why the wrong side was sent and was told it was their error. The couch was advertised as being a left chaise but is only manufactured as a right. The company did refund one hundred dollars for their false advertisement. After debating whether to keep the couch or return, we decided to keep and rearrange the family room to make this new couch fit against the wall.  Pros: Smaller