Texas December vs. Siberian December

This world is amazing! Texas and Siberia are located in the same hemisphere, yet here we are outside, in T-shirts, 75 F in December ...

....while in Siberia it is -22 F! My Aunt sent us some pictures of my birthplace, Krasnoyarsk. This is what you wear to stay warm. Check it out, there is even a stroller behind that Mom in a blue suit! Here in Texas we wouldn't even think about going outside in that sort of temperature, forget about taking your child outside! A normal winter Siberian day, people enjoying wondrous ice sculptures!

This is on a "warm" Siberian day, as my aunt put it. "It was just 5 F!" Perfect weather for some cross-country skiing.

I think I have been way too Texanized. I wear a sweater when it's below 65 F and turn on the heater at home and in the car. I can't think how people live in -22 F or -40 F weather. My Mom always tells me stories how when I was a little girl, growing up in Siberia, I did not want to walk in the snow, so hat, thick coat, snowboots and my Mom had to carry me.

We were all super excited to see Ophelia at her first ever performance this month! She goes to a little singing/dancing group called The Singers Company and enjoys it a lot. Ms Janell, their teacher, is super sweet to all of the girls, and Ophelia just can't wait to talk to her each week we go to their practice. This December they first performed at a retirement facility, then at a Christmas celebration downtown Round Rock, and, finally, at an elementary school. Ophelia is the smallest one in class. She goes out there and just has fun. No shyness, but if the music is too loud, she makes sure to let Ms. Janell know, even if they are in the middle of a song.

At the Round Rock concert, she kept coming off stage, mainly because she had to pee. But PJ was able to get a good recording.

We made sure to take her to FroYoz after her performance, because despite all, she did a great job!

Things I learned from a performing 3-year old:

1. Make sure they go potty before the performance.
2. Instruct them beforehand, that it's probably not a good idea to raise your dress on stage.
3. If the music loudness is not tested prior to the performance and it ends up too loud, you will probably hear about it during the performance.
4. Tape a BIG cross on the floor where the child is supposed to stand, otherwise it is way too hard to keep both feet together on a small piece of tape and it is easy to fall off of that spot or even lose it altogether!
5. Have them blow their nose and clean their nostrils before going on stage...