A Star Is Born

At the end-of-term recital for her stage performance/singing class, Asa performed The Climb by Miley Cyrus. Wow, she knocked our socks off! Lately, she's not only been playing the piano, but has started playing and singing at the same time. I'll have to get it on video sometime as it truly just blows me away. She is a dynamic performer and I have no doubt that if she really does want to follow her dream of being a singer, she totally has it in her - stage presence, voice, musicianship - she's a star! And I'm not just saying that because I'm the mom. :-)

Side By Side

Last week the theatre company that Asa has been acting with had a fundraiser, a Depression-era themed event with an auction, food, and they invited everyone from the theatre to be involved in a talent show. Asa and I did a little song and dance (well, she danced to be exact - some excellent tap footwork!) to a song from 1927 called "Side by Side" I haven't been on a theatre stage in many years, but my little sis and I used to perform this at our grandparents Melodrama theatre when we were kids. So it was fun reminiscing, fun being on stage with my own little theatre hound, and fun having her choreograph our little song-and-dance number herself. I'll have to see if the video turned out and maybe I can post that here as well.

"Oh we ain't got a barrel of money
Maybe we're ragged and funny
But we'll travel along, singing our song
Side by Side"

IDOLizing Our Time Together

One thing I absolutely love, love, LOVE about unschooling is how the kids interests often draw me in to things I wouldn't necessarily seek out on my own. Recently, Asa has gotten very into watching American Idol. Now this isn't a show I would normally turn on. I've come across it a few times in the last years, but always just kept on switching by. Asa is, of course, our resident diva, and it's a rare moment that she's not singing. So American Idol is right up her alley and she's been known to ask more than once how many more years until she can audition (the picture of her below is from her 5th birthday, and now that she's going on 10, she's only got 6.5 years to go)

So this season, I said I'd watch it with her from start to finish. We just got unlimited texting on our family's cell phones this year too, so Mackenzie pointed out that we could even vote this year. So we made popcorn and got comfortable a couple of weeks ago and settled down to watch the auditions together. I don't think Mackenzie would've turned this show on in a million years but he has even gotten to look forward to watching.

One thing that's been very immediately apparent is that there are a lot of people out there without very much self awareness at all. And a good handful more who could use to learn a few things about graciousness and humility. I told Asa that if she ever goes on the show, I hope to heaven that she's one of those people who are not only great singers (of course) but who don't go in with the world's cockiest attitudes like the show owes them something, but with a positive spirit and a graciousness, whether they get picked or not.

I'm looking forward to seeing the people that have been picked and how they work their craft of music, and looking forward to learning more about this profession that my daughter so aspires to. I can't wait to see who moves on and who drops off and the ins and outs and whys of it all. And I wouldn't be so interested if one of my kids wasn't. There have been so many subjects like this - whether its Mallet steam locomotives or Celtic fiddle playing or robotics that my kids have drawn me into. The great thing about being an unschooling parent is that you're learning all the time right alongside your kids.