Go see Nancy Drew

What a great weekend! Friday night, I went to the Abbey ballroom for their 7-8 pm lesson. (I went to work right afterward--15 min. away) Chris was supposed to go with me, but didn't end up able to. So he encouraged me to go by myself. That was a little scary, but I did. It was pretty exciting. It was a foxtrot lesson. The ballroom is actually in an old church with stained glass windows. It was a packed house with mostly young couples wanting to learn how to dance. The women did outnumber the men. When I didn't have a partner, I just held up my arms like there was one and did the moves. This was more challenging than the introductory course at Arthur Murray, because it was a large group, and the instructor had us going in a counterclockwise circle all together. No one stepped on me, but I probably stepped on other peoples' heels 5 times. I am not kidding. It's harder than it looks to stay in a circle and not mow people down or end up in the center. Hopefully Chris will make it this next Friday--that's the plan, and it'll be tango!!

Last night, we did something really different and really fun! We took our whole family and 4 EXTRA KIDS to the drive in theater about 40 minutes away in Auburn. I made a junk food and drink run to Safeway, and Evan Almighty started about 9:30. After that was Nancy Drew. We brought Chris's truck and the explorer. We got chilly, but had blankets and all crowded together in the backs of both vehicles. Everybody was SO EXCITED!! Evan Almighty was really a cute movie. Funny and reverent enough, in my opinion. Nancy Drew I didn't expect to get into at all, but I fell in love with Nancy herself. I felt a real kinship/kindred spirit thing with her. She is this classy teenager, very wholesome, dressed in 60's garb, in a modern day setting. She even goes to a modern crazy high school, where she is a brainy, non-conforming, non-fitting in anomaly. She never gets a modern makeover. A couple of very fashion conscious teen classmates attempt to take her shopping and get a "decent outfit." But when they take her to this boutique, and she arrives in this classy timeless dress and some conservative shoes, the shop woman gushes about her look, asks her where she got the dress. She replies that she MADE IT FROM HER MOTHER'S PATTERN!!! The shop girl takes her pic and it gets published in something or other with an article! So she doesn't change or dumb down. It was one of the most darndest refreshing and affirming-to-wholesome-girlhood movies I have seen in a long time. Like a tall drink of cold water in this desert of a culture. Two thumbs up, way up!!!!