Back to school

I picked the photo I loved today over the perhaps more journalistically appropriate one for the day.... So I shoved that in the extras too!

I think Katie was pleased to be back to business today. Term time days we have a pretty decent routine going and it works better for her. She woke up bright and with purpose. She was in the garden at 7, dressed for the morning ballet class after eating fresh pancakes. She did piano and bassoon morning practises before settling down to the morning's work. Academics and an hours ballet class followed. She did a musicianship class with the Benedetti Foundation that was taught by one of her favourite NCO staff, Jo.

I had a couple of virtual meetings (about her!) so she had lunch and a play, some screen time. She reached "this child needs fresh air" point. Her and B talked via the music room window for a bit on our way out.

We had a glorious run and climb and explore, much as we do every single day. We are very (very) grateful that our "backyard" is a huge space of woods, open pastures, more woods, scrambling opportunities, empty golf course and racecourse... Each state-sponsored Boris Walk is different, and wonderful. We generally run a few kilometres too and were doing our final 3km stint, heading for home, when we saw B and hubby. Her and Katie instinctively outstretched their arms to run to each other for a hug, with massive grins. We were far apart and the social distancing training so well ingrained now that they both stopped. But a big hug with B is high on Katie's (literal, she's written it) list of things for when this is over.

We came home and she had an ice lolly before she did bassoon rep. Tonight was her first go at breaking in a new brand of reed. Earlier in the day we'd had to resort to socially distanced reed adjustment - until now,, we have managed to do it with me making adjustments guided by B virtually. The new (vastly superior) reeds required in person fine tuning. However, when she sat down to practise today it was the nicest a new reed has ever played for her and she had a fabulous time. She's got an audition recording later this week so she did some run through work.

Tea was a very rushed affair as Monday is still ballet class with her regular teacher, followed by conditioning class. We sent her lovely blipfriend a birthday video (which involved Hogwarts robes and jumping on the bed.... Hmmm). How are blip babies, who we've known since being babies, now celebrating 11th birthdays....?

Final stop of the day was a bit of clarinet in preparation for her first virtual lesson tomorrow. It's been over a month since her last lesson.... she had a rant about the fact it will be yet more zoom time. I told her it's different software, her first adventure in Microsoft Teams, but apparently that distinction wasn't sufficient. I think being expected to try feel digital versions are decent substitutes for her most important things in life is one of her biggest challenges at the moment. Her honesty that it just isn't is challenging for her teachers (and me). We heard today that NCO are moving to virtual content for the junior orchestras, that Future Talent are going to be rolling out their virtual programme too and that from this week, she'll be moving to a new piano teacher. Only, she'll probably never meet this person in the flesh. It is all, generally, pretty weird.

Two extras today.... The back to school photo and a pretty niche consequence of lockdown... Turns out ballet dancers globally are going through ballet shoes (again, literally) at an impressive rate as they dance in homes, not proper studio floors. Katie's toes joined that particular party....