Big Changes….

I have been wanting to dust off our blog for a long time and with preschool graduation, Grace's first dance recital and of course the move to Ohio, I figured now would be the perfect time to start blogging again!

On June 7th Grace performed in her very first dance recital. I have never seen her so excited. The entire day she kept saying, "Today's my big day!" And of course the count down…"How much longer until the show???" When it was close to show time we headed over to the theatre. She flew up Main Street rambling on and on about backstage, the dressing room, the others ballerinas, etc. The entire evening was adorable. She was beautiful and glowing from excitement.

Then just about a week later she graduated from Pre-School...

When Grace woke up on her graduation day she said she was sad because she will miss her teachers and her friends from school. I too was emotional that day. She's growing up so quickly and when anyone would ask when we were planning on moving, the answer was always not until Grace graduates from preschool. Her graduating means our time in NY is just about up. So onto the next big change in our lives…the big move!

June 3, 2012

Over 10,000 Miles
USA & CANADA

I'm very excited for our touring journey to come to an end, however, it has been a wonderful ride. We have had a few bumps in the road, but over all it has been an amazing experience. Grace has traveled to so many places and experienced so much, things that we never would have had the chance to do had it not been for Bring It On. She's 2 years old and has been to 27 states and Canada, that's incredible.  

 I look back over the past 7 or so months and recall many fond memories: our trip to Disneyland and Universal Studios, the opening night of Bring It On, Grace's first dance class, our many park, museum, and library trips, beaches, zoos, and even the countless miles in the car.

Grace has become an amazing traveler. I can't believe how many hours she has sat in the car reading or watching a movie with very little melting down. I feel extremely blessed and am very proud to have Gracie as my little girl. She amazes me everyday. She is my best girl!  I highly doubt she will remember much, if any, of our touring life...but at least she'll be able to look back at our blog and see what we did as a family.

 When we started the tour on October 14th, we had high hopes of the show going to Broadway. Thankfully, our prayers have been answered. This will be Dave's first opening of a Broadway show and I couldn't be more excited. He deserves this, he's paid his dues, and it's time. "You're my castle, you're my cabin and my instant pleasure dome. I need you in my house, cuz you're my home..."
 Let's go home!

June 2, 2012

 Good-Bye BIO Tour
Toronto, Canada

We took Gracie to the theatre to say good-bye (for now) to her friends. 

See you in New York!!!

May 28, 2012

A Boat Ride and A Baseball Game

Toronto, Canada

Monday was our last "Monday Family Funday" and we definitely had fun! Possibly, the most fun we have had the entire tour. In the morning we went over to the Toronto Islands, a waterfront picnic park made up of several islands. We chose to head over to the Centre Island, because of the children's activities on the island: splash pads, a children's garden, playgrounds, beaches, and a little farm. 

It was a fabulous morning...we talked a lot about the summer ahead of us and our family goals for the near future and years to come. Grace had a blast on the beach and would have stayed there all day if we would have let her. 

We had planned on a family movie night for the evening, but then we got word that our friend Michael was coming back from his honeymoon that evening and wanted to go see a Blue Jays Baseball game. So, at the last minute we decided that taking Grace to her first professional baseball game would be the perfect way to end our family funday! 

Pregame warm up at our hotel (she even brought the glove to the baseball field).

GO BLUE JAYS!

Michael was away for 4 weeks, so you can imagine how excited she was to see him.

Some of the cast went too...

Her BFF's Courtney and Lauren were there as well. After awhile, Grace barely hung out with us. She came around for a bite of a hot dog and some pretzel.

She was very chatty on the way home and she loves a recap, just like her Mommy and Auntie :)  

"I loved seeing the baseball field SO MUCH! I loved hanging out with all my friends. My favorite was seeing the blue jay (the mascot running around) and eating the pretzel." 

We bought her a baseball hat (pink, of course) that she has fallen in love with and even wore even with her nightgown last night.

Seeing Gracie's face light up hanging out the cast and watching her first baseball game was the perfect end to our touring Mondays. 

May 24, 2012

A Day In The Life 

Toronto, Canada

On Thursday, David was at theatre all day playing piano for the Bring It On commercial shoot. 

So cool, right?

 Grace and I went on a little shopping trip!

Then we stopped over at the theatre to say hi to Dave.

Later on that day, David texted me this picture...

The St. James theatre in NYC...so exciting!

After dinner, Grace ran around pretending she was Rapunzel. She had me tie a scarf on her head and then  she'd ask me to say, "Rapunzel, let down your hair." Then she'd toss her "hair" at me and ask me to climb up. This is her admiring herself in the mirror. 

Shortly after the Rapunzel game ended it was time for jammies, but not without her new hair accessory.

Good night princess Grace!

May 21, 2012

Victoria's Day

Toronto, Canada

Victoria Day (in French: Fête de la Reine) is a federal Canadian public holiday celebrated on the last Monday before May 25, in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday. The date is also, simultaneously, that on which the current reigning Canadian sovereign's official birthday is recognized. It is sometimes informally considered as marking the beginning of the summer season in Canada. (Thank you Wikipedia)

So, the Pepins thought it was time for a picnic in Sunnyside Park. 
The perfect way to kick off summer!

Even though we're in Canada, we still represent the USA with a red, white, and blue popsicle and the great American past time...baseball.