The Feis in the Desert January 15th, 2012 Chandler AZ

I am always torn about this feis.  I use to dance with the Bracken school, the host school and even though it is local (20min away) I always have that thought in my mind that Emma will be penalized because of the major conflicts I have with Thomas Bracken.  The results this time around should quiet all my fears.  Emma totally rocked it.  Maybe it was because she moved up an age group, to U7 or finally things are “clicking” for her, after 3 years.

U7 Novice Reel 1^st out of 4

U9 PW Light jig 6^th out of 10

U7 Beg 2 Slip Jig 1^st out of 6 (moved up to Novice, finally!)

U9 PW Single Jig 5^th out of 7

U7 Novice Treble Jig 2^nd out of 3

U7 Beg 2 Hornpipe 2^nd out of 5 (moved up to Novice)

U7 Beg 2 St. Pats 1^st out of 4 (moved up to Novice as we enacted the MP math)

U7 Beg1/2 Slip Jig special 1^st out of 5  She got a sash and was almost in tears, she was so excited!!

Comerford Feile na Nallaig Feis, Indian Wells, CA

Comerford Feile na Nallaig Feis, Indian Wells, CA

This was our first California feis and it came highly recommended as a “fun” feis.  It was a four hour and a true test of my Mom’s ability to handle long journeys.  When I was competitive I use to attend one California feis a year, to get my butt kicked and make me realize that I might be tops in Arizona but near the bottom in Cali.

Results wise Emma did not do very well, except for the reel special.  She was dancing against some of the girls that placed in the top 20 at the Oireachtas in U8s. 

U7 Novice Reel  5th out of 8

U7 PW light Jig  4^th out of 7

U7 Beg 2 Slip Jig 6^th out of 18

U7 PW Single Jig 3^rd out of 5

U7 Novice Treble Jig 6^th out of 9

U7 Beg 2 Hornpipe 3^rd out of 8

U7 Beg 2 St. Pat’s 6^th out of 6

U7 Nov/PW Reel special 6^th out of 12  The award was a glass diamond!

We had a great time at this feis and were sad to hear that it was the last one, as the Commerford school is pulling of Southern California.  At this feis Tony Commerford will call the kids over, in-between dances for a sing-song and the distribution of toys and candy.  The 1^st time it happened was right before the hornpipe and Emma didn’t get anything and was MAD!!!  She danced her HP with a pissed off look on her face but managed to dance well :-/ 

The Phoenix Halloween Feis October 2011

This feis was my very 1^st competition back in 1994.  It has always been a community feis, no school affiliation & volunteers came from not only all the local dance schools but also from the Irish community.  In recent years it has been run by the Celtic Dance Acadamy, now part of the Maguire Academy.  Tempe is a great location & the feis is held at the Tempe Palms Hotel, next to Rula Bula Irish Pub & Mill Ave.  This year was the 1^st time that the feis was a “Halloween” feis.  The medals & trophies were cool & costumed volunteers (some innappropriate for a family event) were handing out candy.

Here is how Emma did:

U7 Novice           Reel         3^rd out of 8

U9 PrizeWinner  Light Jig                 4^th out of 12

U7 Beg 2              SlipJig      4^th out of 11

U9 Novice           SingleJig  2^nd out of 18 (moved up to Prizewinner)

U7 Beg 2              TrebleJig  2^nd out of 6 (moved up to Novice)

U7 Beg 2              Hornpipe  7^th out of 8

U7 Beg 2              St. Pats      3^rd out of 8

U9 Beg 1/2          SJ Spcl       5^th out of 16

My biggest issue was that the Older dancers running the stage had a hard time counting the girls off in the Slip Jig.  It got to the point where the judge had to ring her bell to get the TCRG who was running the rooms attention.  It threw the poor U7s off!

Emma had a great time and enjoyed the time she could spend with her friend Garnet, from Albaquerque.