Bittersweet Tears

Friday I quit my job--I am no longer a ballroom dance instructor. There were many factors involved, but it all boiled down to my relationship with Justin. The schedule, long hours, commitment, and stress were too much for us. He comes first, so I decided to quit. I almost chickened out, and Justin suggested I wait another week, but I immediately felt uncomfortable with that idea. I had a strong feeling from the Spirit that I should do it then. I told my manager, who took it very well (thank you, Heavenly Father!), and then burst into tears.

It all feels like a dream: the dancing, the dressing up, the students, the meetings. It was only a few days ago that I was still a part of that. I will miss some things, most especially learning how to dance, but I can't deny the relief I felt when I said I wasn't going to be able to work anymore. I know it was the right thing to do.

Especially for Arica

Arica, this is in response to your post about round mirrors. I love mirrors! They are simple and elegant, exactly my style. But I think you have to be careful with round ones. I prefer the ones without frames because frames make mirrors appear smaller and more like clocks. Here are some that I found.

I love this one because it reminds me of the midday sun. The line extensions make the mirror appear larger.



This one is beautiful. It reminds me of the galaxy or an atom. Again, all the loops make the mirror seem bigger than it really is.



Although this one has a frame, I love it (and think you will too) because it is made out of recycled magazines! I love the colors and the vertical lines resembling magazines on a shelf.



This last one is beautifully intricate, very princessy. I think it would be better without the decorations on top. They take away from the clean, round look.

So, Arica, what do you think?

Why I Love Justin

Last Saturday we had another dance show, but with all three studios the owner owns. Jorden, my partner (see the post "Swing, Swing, Swing"), got strep throat and told me that morning that he wasn't going to dance. The program was already made, and there weren't as many performances as hoped for. I didn't want to let everyone down, so I asked Justin to dance with me instead. He said yes! So we put a quick routine together about twenty minutes before leaving. It wasn't our best, but everyone loved it. I still get compliments every day at work about how cute it was that we danced together!

Even better, they love the story of how Justin got into dance. I invited him to a social dance party at BYU and I asked another guy to dance cha-cha with me because cha-cha is my favorite and Justin couldn't dance. Justin got extremely jealous, especially since I didn't like the guy I asked, which showed how desperate I was. So he started taking dance classes at UVSC. He ended up enjoying it and being really good at it! And he even got to intermediate level before me! I'm glad he did that for me so we can dance together.

(Sorry it's sideways. Does anyone know how to change that?)

Rawhide

Last Saturday I had off from work, so Justin and I decided to do something fun together. After searching online, we found the perfect thing: Rawhide, an Old West town only 25 minutes away. It didn't open until the evening, so we spent the morning cleaning.

The place was great! There were tons of things to do and see:

• A donkey ride, train ride, and rock climbing for kids
• A stagecoach ride around a mini Old West town
• A jail where you could take pictures in the cell
• Gun fights in the street
• Regular wagons and a prairie wagon
• Bonfires
• A place to get a photo in 19th century clothing
• A real blacksmith who made really neat items, such as personalized horseshoes, candle holders, knick knacks, personalized steak branding irons, and welcome signs
• Two different gun fight shows
• A candy store, general store, cowboy clothing store, shoe store, and toy store
• A mini museum of 19th century artifacts (the scariest was the medicine section!)
• A steakhouse, saloon, and fast food restaurant
• A card/blackjack magician
• A fake mission that could be reserved for weddings and other events

Entrance into Rawhide was free, but all the activities cost $4 per person (except the jail photos and Old West photos, which cost more). We did the stagecoach ride and saw one show, which was not the best I've seen but was still entertaining. We also bought a sarsaparilla--it was really good!

It was a really fun night--and cheap, too! If you ever visit the Phoenix area, I definitely recommend going there for some good, family fun. Below are some of my favorite pictures. The rest can be seen by clicking on the following link: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2237785&id=17814848&l=4dca3c010b

Francesca's Fashions

Finally, photos of my new dresses! The first one is the one I bought at the boutique the day I got my haircut. The others are from shopping at Ross on Valentine's Day. All of these dresses make me feel more womanly and sophisticated. I love dressing up!

This dress is a halter top with ruffles below the bustline and above the knees. It's a bit low cut so I have to wear a camisole underneath. $40 (originally $100)




This next one has thick straps that go over the shoulder and tie in the back. It is very loose. $17




This one reminds me of a 1940s navy dress. It has large white buttons and white seaming around the waistline. $20

This is my sexy business woman outfit. It is very form fitting and restricting. I love the belt because it accentuates the smallest part of my figure. And I like how the blouse and skirt are attached to make a dress--trying this outfit using separates has not worked for me. I admit, at first I wasn't sure about the ruffles in the front, but I got over it. $20

Vote which one is your favorite in the poll at the top of the blog!

Swing, Swing, Swing!

Every few months our studio has a special party called Dancing with Our Stars. The students perform routines with their teacher, and the teachers also perform with each other. I didn't have any students to dance with, but Jorden (another teacher) and I had to dance together. We originally were assigned foxtrot since that is what we performed at the retirement home a couple weeks ago. But we changed it to East Coast/triple swing because it's more fun and energetic and we're better at it than at foxtrot. So, I taught him a bunch of BYU moves. We had so much fun and we didn't look half bad for putting it together that day! We worked so hard all day perfecting the steps and finding the right music. It was quite the workout!