Riot and Frolic

a mostly ballroom dance, but also a bunch of other stuff, blog

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about

I own and rock people’s faces off teaching ballroom dancing at Dancers Studio in St. Paul, MN. My husband and I compete professionally in American style and wrangle eight children in our spare time. I’ve been teaching and competing in ballroom dancing for over 25 years and have lots of opinions on it. I am an expert by any means, but there are quite a few dancers who are better than me and I have a solid knowledge of basic technique, so suck it.

Category: Domesticality

  • Giving Up

    It's Ash Wednesday and I'm Catholic, so you know I have to say something about Lent… I guess…   Actually, I'm kind of surprised I'm mentioning religion here.   … On with the show! For reference, I have been Catholic for… eight years?  For some reason, I decided I wanted to "get religious" that many years…

  • List of Last Week’s Labors of Love

    – cooked and baked all the things.  Seriously, I've been cooking 2-4 meals a day.  If I'm making a chicken so-and-so, I make the other chicken whatsit I have planned for later that week and throw the 2nd one in the freezer.  I have sooooo much food everywhere.  IT'S FANTASTIC! – said "screw you, healthy…

  • Zen and The Art of Toenail Maintenance

    I started meditating.   It's surprisingly hard. But I'm letting that go. Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. I don't meditate like that, btw.   There's no "ooommm"-ing.   Not that there's anything wrong with that.   I just like the silent kind of meditation.   It's a nice way to start, or end, the day: the silence and the…

  • List of Last Week’s Labors of Love

    – the last jar of tomatoes from my garden.  At the time, it didn't seem like I had canned or frozen that many, but my supply lasted until 2013, so I win.  This year?  I'm canning for a two-year supply.  Oh yeah!   smells like summer, not teen spirit   – picked out a rutabaga,…

  • Ideas I Like

    In the same vein as yesterday's post, here's a less materialistic view: – The G constantly rapping this song around the house…   – sewing.  I love the idea of making this kind of cutiness… Unfortunately, I have no great love for fabric crafts.  I'll throw down a quilt or some fairy costumes once a year,…

  • Things I Like

    In the quest to be more materialistic than ever, I'll tell you about the things I like because I can't think of anything else to write: my pants from Express.  They're the Editor cut and make my butt look like cream cheese, which is apparently a good thing.  Plus, they're super-stretchy and crazy-comfortable.  And black.…

  • List of Last Week’s Labors of Love – Assassins’ Creed

    – killer weather. my Fº app doesn't have a "-" sign – killer date. crayons and chimichangas – killer offspring.  Smart.  Sneaky. yes, it says "unicorn" – killer pancakes. lemon ricotta, like Hell's Kitchen, but MY kitchen – killer friends.  Eating.  Concert. i thought we were fun, but they were Fun. – killer run club.…

  • The Get Smart Book Club – Anna Karenina – Update

    Hey y'all, remember that book club thing? Gah, it's going on 2 months with this epic novel (Anna Karenina) and it is still woefully under-read.   I really enjoy reading it.  (I think I'm still recovering from those terrible Gray books.)  I expected something a bit drier and along the lines of Steinbeck's never-ending, descriptive "storytelling",…

  • Coffee Run Club

    Last Saturday night while sipping Guiness milkshakes, my friend America and I dreamt up LOTS of brilliant schemes, one of which was the Coffee Run Club. Problem:  We both have a slight problem with motivation when it comes to running.  Unless there's a race coming up (and I use the term "race" rather loosely), we…