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Whew, what a year! It has been a blast planning and putting on this year's events. Sadly, This is the last year for the Fall Dance being held at the Huntsville Botanical Gardens. The Pavilion was to be used only as a temporary spot for fall dance due to covid 19. Although the pavilion was a great place to host this party, we miss that authentic glow feeling of what the T.H.E. glow party is supposed to be. We miss the black and glow lights! Also, it's only a matter of time before the weather has to shut us down. We are so blessed to have had this option during covid to give our kids a sense of normalcy during such strange and trying times. We first struggled with the change because we wanted the Fall Dance at the Roundhouse. We had it planned out, from decor to food. Well, what do you know, they were booked up! Panic set in because I didn't want to be outside anymore because this year, we came so close to getting rained out. I reached out to Lowe Mill, and they were so understanding, welcoming, and kind. They are allowing us to have the event at lowe mill, and they even got the local pizza restaurant Happy Tummy to stay open late so the kids can order pizza while they dance the night away. Fall Dance will be on Oct 7th this year at Lowe Mill. Tickets will go on sale on August 1st. We cannot wait! Let's GLOW!
A Walkthrough Wonderland Prom took us about a year and a half to plan out. We started planning it during the Soirées à Paris. Seeing a prom come together after planning it for so long is fantastic. To have what's in your head come to life right before you. From the moment the first ticket sells for us, it's time to perform! Those tickets selling is a form of trust to us. The kids trust that they will get what they paid for and that we can’t and won't let them down! It's a high-stress time, but it's also gratifying and fun. The anxiety, the stress, and, yes, sometimes, tears lol are all worth it when the kids, volunteers, and parents see the outcome and love it, and we are not stopping anytime soon (as long as we have the volunteers, LOL).
The Middle School Luau Party was on the rocks a few weeks ago. We were closing it out; this was to be our last middle school party. After all, it's just Jaime and me who plan these events, and it's very overwhelming to plan a prom and a luau party! Prom one week and the middle school party the next. We figured one of these events would suffer soon rather than later because it is tough to plan, let alone throw two huge back-to-back events. We could not allow that to happen. So we decided to let go of the middle school luau party for now. The decision was not easy ticket sales were fast, but getting volunteers for the middle school party stopped! We understand this is due to middle school kids wanting a little independence and not wanting mom and dad at the party with them. Being a homeschool mom myself, I completely understand this. Finally, we started getting more volunteers and selling more tickets! We completed our goal and surpassed the numbers from last year! Unbelievable! This got us excited and lit a fire under us. We've got to pull this together for these kids, tired or not. They are also counting on us. The party night, May 6, 2023, was almost magical. The parent volunteers took charge just like homeschool parents do! They let me rest my tired feet as they swooped in and set everything up. I looked around, and the volunteers had done everything. Then the kids showed up. Nowadays, we don't see many kids having fun outside electronics, but these kids played! They ran and played ball in the grass. They played tag. Some got plates full of sweets. They overindulged in snow cones and played basketball, Jenga, and Legos. The DJ called the kids in from the field as the sun went down. They immediately ran to the dance floor and danced away for the rest of the night. The middle school kids are full of joy, and they brought joy to my heart. Just seeing kids being kids and playing was so nostalgic for me. It was good for my soul. The next day, Jaime and I decided we would rather be tired and sore than take this away from them. We plan to grab a good team of committee members to help us with this party, and we plan for it to be around until the kids decide they don't want it anymore or as long as we have volunteers.
And lastly, to our volunteers, we couldn't do this for these kids without you. You amaze me with how you make things happen for the homeschool community. Your children are blessed to have you, and so are we. Thank you for another fantastic Events Season, and we hope to see you in August. We are looking for Parent Volunteer Committee members and Parent Chaperones for the next event season, where we will add two new high school events! Please consider joining us.