Lemongirl

Thank you all, some really great ideas. I hadn't thought about the foot spa softening the feet, maybe I'll give that a miss. Photo frame with family pics is a lovely idea, now will I be able to organise that with a week to go?? Fluffy throw is a good idea too.

Well, dd is off to Sixth Form boarding after a long hard decision making progress. I'd like some ideas for a present for a 16 year old dancer who is boarding for the first time. I thought maybe one of those foot spa things and a huge cuddly toy for her room. Any ideas please?

Thank you, it looks good. I was sort of hoping it would be a the start of the holidays; I will be taking dd1 to Hertford every day to do 3 Counties Ballet and thought I could kill two birds with one stone!

Thank you, Tring is certainly a possibility. Anna - do you know any more details of the Hertford one please?

Little dd is following in her older sister's footsteps and developing a love of dance. I am looking for a summer dance course for her, can anyone recommend one please? She is 10, Year 5. She does ballet (probably her least favourite though!), tap, modern, jazz and hip-hop. Loves jazz best! She's not a very strong dancer but does enjoy it so I don't want something where it's too professional or she'll be out of her league. She doesn't want to board so has to be within easy reach of London/Herts. Any suggestions please?

Probably too late for this time but Gail's round the corner from the RAD is amazing.

That's very true sarah mnemo - thank you for your post. I have no doubts that the school is supportive especially to those who are new boarders. And even if dd had a few wobbles I think she would really enjoy the boarding aspect. I know it's much shorter term but she has really enjoyed various residentials she has been going on since the age of 10. As far as dd is concerned, as much as she feels AB is right for her, she's worrying about leaving her current school plus her dance schools all of which she really likes.

Thank you for all your wise words. Logically I can't actually think of any downsides at all, other than the risk that she might not like it when she gets there. But you don't know until you try! If she stays at home she will have the pressure of A Levels at school plus running around to 3 different dance schools. At AB everything is on site hence no travelling which frees up a lot of time. We're just waiting to hear about dd's A Level choices at AB; currently two of her subjects are in the same block but I'm hoping they might be able to move things around.

I think it's just my worries meadow. I am a worrier generally and keep thinking of all these 'what if's?' Suppose dd misses her friends? Or finds boarding harder than she expected and gets homesick?

We have a difficult decision to make. We visited Abbots Bromley School this week and dd will be offered a place for Sixth Form. It would be a full boarding place as we are some distance away. We were very impressed with the school, in addition to doing a BTEC in Dance (equivalent to 2 or 3 A Levels), students also study 3 A Levels so they very much keep their options open. Some go on to further dance courses at 18 and others opt for university courses in a variety of different fields. Dd is very keen and loves the idea of boarding. We would have to give a term's notice at her current school by Easter so need to decide fairly quickly!

Thank you so much, really helpful suggestions. Dance Direct have a beautiful pink costume that I think would fit the bill and it's reduced to £22 but dd's not keen on it unfortunately. Will try the other places suggested too. I will PM you pups

Does anyone know where I can buy a ready-made Classical Greek costume for festivals? Dd is doing Aphrodite goddess of love and I thought I would have to get her a costume made. But it's far easier to buy ready-made if possible. Found a few possibilities on Ebay, anywhere else I can look? Thanks.

39, wow that really is small! Do you have any idea why the numbers were so low? Well done to your dd too. What's the ballet in Salisbury? At least there was more room on the stage!

My older dd (and her friend from school who hasn't done EYB before) both got places in the senior group However, we had a bit of drama with little dd. I picked her up from school early and as we came out of school I was holding her pass out form which she wanted to see and took out my hands. This was very close to a small set of steps. Yup, you guessed it, she missed the step and went tumbling She had a slightly grazed knee but the main problem was her ankle which she twisted. We decided to press on to Aylesbury and see how it was. When we got there she said it was a bit better and still wanted to do the audition. I told EYB staff about the injury and they made a note, but from watching her it was clearly bothering her. She didn't get a place and then the poor thing had to sit through the entire senior audition and see her older sister and friend both offered places. I felt so sorry for her. And I'm kicking myself. When she took the piece of paper out my hands I could see she was near the steps and my instincts kicked in to say 'mind the step'. But I thought she'd seen it. I can't remember if I actually said it or not, or said it a second too late. I have emailed EYB to see where she is on the waiting list.

Thank you. Good luck to everyone who is auditioning on Monday. This will be my little dd's first time auditioning, she'll be a junior and my older dd a senior. I haven't quite worked out the logistics of this yet!

Can someone remind me please - you can turn up and register on the day for EYB auditions can't you? I forgot to send the form off and the audition is on Monday.

Thank you all for the helpful advice. I phoned Freed today and they only stock one style. Dancia stock Gaynor Minden and Bloch, I thought they might stock other brands. I'm hoping for not too traipsing round Covent Garden. May be easier to go to Just Ballet in Southend.....

Oh yes of course Bloch warm up booties. Dd says they are so comfy she wears them around the house!

My dd is a bit older but in recent years she has had a flexi stretcher, foot stretcher and turning board. The first two are quite expensive but they are used a lot. She's also liked ballet themed stationery e.g. notebooks etc.

Does anyone know how the sizing comes up on Sansha and So Danca leotards? Dd is 9, quite big for her age so I'm not sure whether to go for age 8-10 or 12-14. It's mail order and I'd like to get the sizing right if possible to save the hassle of returning.

Thanks all, that's really helpful. Dd has narrow feet and likes Bloch for soft shoes. Will try some different brands though if we can. Exam is in March so I assume that's enough time??

Dd is doing her Intermediate exam soon and has been told she will need soft blocks. Can someone explain what they are please? She didn't need them for the IF exam. Do they wear them all the time instead of soft ballet shoes? I have heard that Freed's are the best. Thank you.

We didn't make it to the audition unfortunately. Annoyingly the rehearsal and performance dates were fine but we couldn't make the audition time. Why do they give such short notice??

We have had the email with the final details, dd is in Group A. Unfortunately this doesn't look good for us as her friend is sleeping over the night before which has been arranged for ages and the parents have plans so don't want to mess them around. Does anyone know if LCB would move dd to another group of the same age? I think there are 3 groups for each age group...? So annoying how little notice they give you.

We have a weekly box. It's a bit expensive for what it is but I like it because you can choose the snacks you like and don't like and my 3 dc like picking at it when they're peckish. They all fight over the pretzels with chocolate dip! You can buy graze stuff everywhere now, I sometimes have a few small boxes in my Ocado shop.