To Ivy League, or not to Ivy League? That is the question...

We live in kind of a shady neighborhood, (no I'm not referring to lots of trees), my daughter has always attended our struggling public schools.  In spite of these obstacles she has worked very hard, and found opportunities such as the Classic Upward Bound / Trio programs, and managed to excel in every way.  So much so that she has been accepted to an Ivy League College!

She joined the facebook page for this university and is becoming intimidated as she reads about how accomplished many of her prospective future classmates are.  Students who have attended all of the best college prep schools, had advanced classes available in every subject, speak as many as four languages, have had private lessons in music, dance, theater, sports, or anything else that has interested them...it is quite overwhelming for a young midwestern girl.

She is feeling pressure to accept this awesome opportunity because so many of us are so proud of her, and according to one of the rankings this is the seventh best school in the United States.  She and I are planning a trip to the Ivy League campus soon, and signed up for a tour and information session to get a feel for the area before she must make her decision.

Prior to receiving her acceptance notification to this university, she was planning to attend a nearby private college.  This college is on a quite small campus, is very friendly, and she will assuredly be able to continue participating in orchestra, which is doubtful at the Ivy League University as she has only been playing violin for three years.  She has a natural talent and has become quite accomplished in those years, but again it is intimidating to consider students who have had private lessons for most of their lives.

We are waiting to learn about the amount of financial aid that she will receive at the Ivy League school, which has an excellent reputation for making it possible for students to graduate in four years without being buried in debt.  The local small college has been very generous with both academic and music scholarships already, but there is not a "free-ride" on the table at this point.

We continue to play the waiting game, knowing that her decision must be made by May first.  I am and will continue to be incredibly proud of her regardless of which school she chooses.  I am concerned that she may always wonder, and perhaps be regretful should she choose not to accept the Ivy League school, but I feel that she would have much less stress at the local school, less opportunities perhaps as well, but possibly an overall sense of belonging and a more simple happiness?  I don't know, but I pray that she makes the best decision for herself, not to impress anyone else, or to stay close to her perhaps overly-attached mom.

Proud mom...

My daughter is quite an accomplished young lady and I could brag about her continuously for her achievements, but it is her kindness that touches me most.

She is a senior this year and Tuesday evening gave her last orchestra performance on her high school's stage.  As she and the other students made their way through the halls after their performance, she noticed a wide eyed very "star-struck", and obviously mentally disabled young girl with her mother.  Instead of rushing by as most would, she stopped, smiled and asked the young lady if she liked the show, and thanked her for coming to watch.  This little girl was as excited as much as many of us would be if we had just met a rock star.  Her mother smiled and mouthed the words "Thank-you".

My thanks are aimed heavenward, so grateful to have been gifted with such a wonderful young lady for my daughter!

Gettin' out of the ol' "comfort zone"...

My daughter and two of her friends were supposed to go to an orchestra festival at a private college in northeast Iowa, as they've done throughout their high school years.  There was a transportation snafu, so they needed a parent to volunteer to drive.  Both of the other mom's were already scheduled, so GULP, it was on me whether they got to attend this event during their senior year, (as the school system would not allow their teacher/conductor to take them.)

I may have mentioned that I have some issues with anxiety, so this was a challenge for me.  No the drive wasn't very far, maybe 90 miles or so, but I had to take the truck rather than my familiar little comfy car, the roads up there are curvy and hilly, (seriously, Iowa isn't all flat rows of corn), and most challenging for me I was responsible for driving them home in the dark safely.  I HATE night-driving with a passion!

We arrived in good time on Sunday, got the "kids" fed and to registration and tryouts.  So as my anxiety waned theirs kicked in, but all 3 got respectable places in the best of the two orchestras, the chamber orchestra.  They spent Sunday and Monday zipping from practices, to technique instruction courses, to master classes, etc.  We pretty much saw them on occasional breaks, or in between running to different buildings on campus, oh and did I mention these have been two more of the coldest days/nights of an unbelievably frigid season, even for us Iowa weather veterans, brrrr!

I thought that their conductor would have more scheduled events to attend as well, but she only had one official meeting with the other conductors, and would occasionally pop in on the students' lessons.  So we had a lot of time on our hands.  I attempted to nap in a cozy little lounge I had found, but the opera students suddenly materialized and I couldn't handle them for long!

Discovered a lounge in another building with a cozy fireplace, and if the weather had been more inviting there was a lovely, huge deck with adirondack chairs overlooking a tree-covered area of hills and a little valley.

Anyway, we had ourselves a little pizza party after the final practice, and before we knew it their awesome concert was over.  It was time to load up in the ol' truck, as my anxiety began rocketing skyward.  Thank God there was no snow, just bitter cold, a bit of ground fog, (which I certainly didn't expect this time of year), and all of the aforementioned hills and curves.  The kids shared lots of stories and belly laughs, a great hurrah was heard when the conductor received a text that there would be a two hour delay at school Tuesday due to the bitter temperatures!  We eventually arrived safely back at our high school.  It was a stressful, yet fun weekend, and I earned a new moniker, "Mamma D"!  Gotta love these kids.  :)

Learn to love who you are...

I took this "selfie" with my daughter last summer, while I loved it of her, I hated it of myself.  All that I could see were the wrinkles, the lack of make-up, the gray hairs, the crooked teeth...  

Yesterday I watched a snip of an upcoming documentary by the Dove campaign where they took mothers and daughters and took selfies and talked about what they saw, wow what a new perspective!  

My daughter had told me how much she loves this photo, because of the goofy, fun times that we share, but it didn't really "click" in my head until I saw the daughters in the documentary explaining how badly they felt when they heard their own mothers making negative comments about their own appearances.

What a difference a day can make, I too love this photo now.  My wrinkles are visible evidence of years of laughter and many smiles, make-up is overrated, I earned every one of those gray hairs, and the money that I could have spent "fixing" my teeth was instead spent on adventures with people I love.  

I will never be glamorous, and I am just fine with that.  There are many types of beauty in the world and even as I age I am learning to see mine.

Happy New Brrr!

Experiencing a VERY cold, snowy beginning to our winter season here in the midwest!  Queen Cat knows exactly how to spend these frigid days...

Take her advice, find a warm snuggly spot and hanker down until spring!