Where Has Lily Been?

I love blogging for many reasons, one of the most important being the history it creates of my family. I love scrolling back through my posts from a few years back and remembering little moments that would have disappeared from my memory had I not recorded them here--funny things kids say and do, family vacations, mothering successes and failures.

That said, a fine line exists between sharing the antics of the Sanatorium and my kids' privacy to share or not share their own stories. When they're younger, I draw the line more liberally, but as they get older, I try to respect their space, their room to make mistakes or try new things without it being  . . . "on the blog."

Lily has reached that place where her appearances on Denton Sanatorium are less frequent than they used to be.

Wow, I love this girl and the person she is becoming. She weathered the transition to a new high school well and found a great group of friends that she adores. More homework, harder classes--and balancing that against hanging out with friends, football games, and a few precious hours of sleep each night. You remember your sophomore year of high school, right?

She auditioned for "The Secret Garden" at MCC on a last-minute whim. (I snuck this picture of her during her audition.) Her voice has been weird for a few weeks now (I think it's because she's been screaming too much at football games and the like, but what do I know?), and she was nervous. When she stood up to introduce herself, her voice cracked and that shook her confidence a bit. One younger kid sitting behind her quietly said (but loud enough for her to hear), "Now watch. She'll be amazing." After she sang a few lines of "For Good" from Wicked, she turned to sit down and that same kid leaned back over to the same friend and said, "See. Told you." That made her feel better.

Almost as good as she felt when she read the cast list and discovered she will be part of the ensemble.

My Lily Jane.

Love that girl. Love the drama and excitement and joy and sadness and everything she brings to our family.