tiny dancer

Nine months of weekly classes and we found ourselves preparing for the big show last week. Grace was to perform on stage at the Lexington Opera House. We had guests coming into town for the show, so I was really trying to talk it up to her. The last few weeks of class had been iffy...she seemed a little over dance. If they had held the final recital a month earlier, I wouldn't have been nervous, but the last four weeks of class, she didn't want much to do with it, so I was a little nervous that she would be that little girl who just stands there! She didn't even seem excited about getting all dressed up for dress rehearsal until I asked her if she wanted to hop on the webcam so Grandma could watch her get her makeup on. That seemed to turn things around. By the time we got into the car to go, she was all smiles:

And once we got there, she was fascinated watching the competitive high school dance teams that would take the stage before her. So, when it was her turn to get on stage, she gave it her all...and I was able to capture a little of it on film (since we weren't allowed to record on show night). You can see her in the middle of the back row:

The night before the show, Grandma Sharon, Papa Mike, Grandma Donna, Aunt Sarah, Caleb and Graham all rolled into town. Saturday was a whirlwind. Before Kris, his parents and his grandma whisked Sam off to his last soccer game, Sam and Daddy presented Grace with some flowers to mark the big occasion:

While Sam earned his season trophy with his crowd looking on across town, I got Grace ready for the show while Sarah and Caleb waited for Graham's sitter. One last pic before leaving the house:

Then, the four of us headed downtown to drop Grace off backstage and meet the rest of the crew.

Thankfully, one of the backstage moms was on the ball and brought the girls crayons and coloring books to keep them busy while they waited to go on stage. The poor little things had to stay backstage the whole time waiting their turn instead of getting to watch the show.

While the little girls colored, we were watching the dance teams and listening to the emcee for the afternoon, which was a very odd scenario. Has anyone watched the show Parks & Recreation of NBC? The emcee that day showed me how very real that tv show is portraying city government! We were totally cracking up...this guy was reading advertisements for all sorts of Lexington Parks & Rec activities that will be going on throughout the summer in between each act. Kris and I were in hysterics! :)

When our little girls finally did take the stage, they did great! Grace did even better than dress rehearsal night; she didn't watch the kid next to her once during the show performance!

After the show, Grace was greeted on the street by her entourage who showered her with flowers. :)

Okay, maybe someone was a little overwhelmed by the end (that's what happens when preschoolers are scheduled to be on stage during the time when they are normally scheduled to be napping!):

It was a fun day, though, with tons of excitement. And, I'm pretty sure Grace and Sam would join me in saying that we all missed dance class a little this past Wednesday. It was a great year...Grace got to dance and make friends, Sam befriended some of the other dancer girl's siblings and I befriended a couple of the other moms. Looking to plan play dates during that time, now, instead, for the summer.

And, since Grace was so enthralled with the older girls participating in the recital, she has decided that she definitely wants to dance again next year...YAY! It totally beats sitting outside watching sports for me. Thank you, God, for giving me a girl who is starting to get in to girly things...I think I see Manhattan in her future. Okay, let's just try another year of Kiddie Kapers first and see how it goes.