There’s no question, our girls love to dance. You can find them shaking their booty to their favorite Katie Perry or Michael Jackson song – Bailey’s almost got the Thriller dance down. Yesterday Bailey hit the big stage for her dance recital that she has been practicing so hard for and it didn’t go quite as expected.
Before we get started I want to thank all of the wonderful teachers, dancers and parents at Perception Dance. Your hard work and dedication to these girls is beyond measure and we are so blessed to be in such a wonderful dance family. To Miss McKenna, thank you for all of your hard work and care with our girls. They love you! And Miss Holly, words can not express how thankful we are to have you in our lives. From the moment Bailey met you almost two years ago, you have made her laugh and smile, treated her with so much kindness and care and have taught her so much. You will always be her Miss Holly, and we thank you!
Let’s take a look to where it all began…
Getting Started – Wiggles and Giggles
We first met Miss Holly when she was Bailey’s Wiggles & Giggles class at the Olathe Community Center when she was only 15 months old. Unlike swimming lessons, Bailey had to do most of the activities on her own and learn to listen and follow directions from an instructor. We were both a little nervous at first but Miss Holly was so inclusive and patient with all the little kids in the class. She walked out of our first class with a big smile on her face and an extra little wiggle in her booty. Run, Baby, Run and Open Shut were sung so often at home they are etched in our brains forever.
Miss Holly taught us to tumble, to balance on a mountain, that suckers are the coolest thing ever, to hula hoop and have fun in a class among her peers. Bailey absolutely loved “her Missy Holly” and when she outgrew Wiggles and Giggles we were really sad until Miss Holly said that her dance studio was going to have a 2.5 – 5 year in the fall.
When we signed up for Perception Dance, we didn’t really know what to expect. Bailey had tons of tutus, so we knew that wasn’t a problem, but she had to get some new dance shoes because tennis shoes weren’t going to cut it anymore. We walked in to the studio, Bailey immediately saw Miss Holly and she ran into her arms like she knew she was home.
Miss Holly gathered the rest of the girls and started down the hall. She turned to the parents and told us that we could wait in the lobby and she would get us when they were done. I wasn’t prepared for that and when Bailey put her hand in Miss Holly’s and waved bye, I admit I teared up a bit. My baby was growing up. I waited in the lobby and walked back by the door a few times as the newbie dance mom I was, waiting to hear wailing or craziness but all I heard was giggles and squeals of delight. I sat back down and after the hour was up, Bailey ran out, sucker in hand with a big smile on her face and I knew that Perception was the place for us!
Week after week these little girls practiced and played, growing up before our eyes. There may have been a few hiccups along the way, but overall the girls loved every moment and when we got to come back and watch them for the first time practice their recital dance, I don’t know who was more proud – us Moms or the girls. Miss McKenna joined Miss Holly and became another favorite role model in our house. On the drive home it was always, Miss McKenna this or Miss Holly that. The hours they put in and the love and patience they showed our girls means more than they will ever know.
We learned to sassy walk, the shuffle-step, how to point our toes, follow directions and put more than one dance move together at a time. The confidence Bailey has gained makes me smile everyday and she never shies away from showing anyone and everyone her new dance moves or sassy walk.
The Recital
The week before the recital couldn’t have been busier. We had lots of meetings, hosted a garage sale, had family in town, had our first soccer practice of the new season and most importantly we had our dance dress rehearsal and recital. Bailey’s been talking about her recital for the last several weeks and has been waiting (quite impatiently) to wear her recital costume. She also overheard that she got to wear Mom’s makeup for both the rehearsal and recital so she was super pumped. We made it through most of our soccer practice before packing it in and heading to the dress rehearsal – I am making it sound easier than it was considering we forgot the diaper bag (whoops), picture order form and the rehearsal packet with all of the information we needed (of course) so we had to run back to the house. Oh and did I mention we had a crazy storm blow through in the wee hours of the morning and we lost power for 10 hours? Just pile it on.
We made it with enough time to throw on her costume, slap on a little makeup and try to get her unruly hair in a left-side-part-low-bun while explaining to her that even though pigtails would look better when she was dancing and shaking her hair out like her song implies, I was just following directions and everyone would have the same hairstyle. We ran inside just in time for them to start their rehearsals but was able to get a few shots before she got started.
They hit the stage and we got to film while they practiced their number. It was so cute and they were so happy dancing up their even though the stage was a little overwhelming at first.
Once they ran through their song a few times it was time for photos. The Moms got kicked out of the room because we were too distracting but I got a couple cute ones before we left and Miss McKenna stayed with them to keep them on track. I did notice my child almost knocked over the expensive light stands so it was almost an extremely expensive day. Luckily, we made it through pictures and we got out of there in one piece.
All the way home we talked about how exciting the recital was going to be and how Bailey couldn’t wait to get back up onstage and dance. We made sure to get lots of good sleep the night before, we had everything prepared and we took it easy in the morning to save our strength. Since we had to be at the high school pretty early, I got to take our tiny dancer and we got to have a little Mommy-Daughter fun singing her recital song in the car and talking about how important it was to listen to her teachers and the nannies while she waited to get onstage.
She was beaming as we walked in and wanted to get in a few pictures of her in her pretty dress before going inside.
When we got inside, there was a little photo stand inside complete with a red carpet so of course we had to stop and snap a photo.
Everything was going smoothly. We were early, Bailey was smiling and really excited and we even stopped and picked out a special tutu cookie for a snack after her performance. I took her back to the room with the nannies where they would wait and she was excited to play with her dancer friends. I gave them my phone number and left her happily coloring in one of the coloring books.
The only thing I was worried about was her being too nervous to tell one of the nannies that she needed to use the potty. She had gone before we left, but I know how I get when I am nervous, so I was just hoping that she could get through her dance without any issues. As I was waiting in the long line to get in, I tried calling Brian to get his ETA when I noticed that I had no cell service. Slightly panicking because I was by myself with no phone, didn’t know when my parents or Brian and his Dad were getting there and I had no way to be reached if there was an incident. It seemed to take forever to get in but luckily my parents got there, had phone service and I got to run back and give the nannies a new number.
We have never had anyone besides family watch the girls, so I didn’t know what to expect. As I opened the door I saw the girls laughing and playing Duck, Duck Goose so my nerves calmed down a lot. Bailey was great, didn’t need to go potty and so I went back to relax and enjoy the show. I could wait to worry until after the third song was over (their number) and check back in with them at intermission.
Brian, his Dad and Sienna got to their seats right as the lights dimmed and the show began. Sienna absolutely loved the opening number. She danced and jumped on Gigi’s lap until she almost knocked her out with an excited head bump. The second song finished and we were all prepared to watch our girls and enjoy the show. When the lights dimmed up front I heard a loud wail and immediately my heart sunk. I looked over at Brian and mouthed “It’s Bailey”…only a mother can pick out their child’s cry from that distance. There was only one other younger dancer so my fingers crossed that I was wrong, but as I saw Miss Holly walk out with Bailey in her arms in full wracking sobs my heart broke again.
The song started and I had hope that the upbeat Trolls song would turn it around but it was a lost cause. She was inconsolable and as I snuck up the side to try to help, I knew there was nothing I could do but wait and watch while the others got through the song. My poor baby, who was so excited and had practiced so hard for so long just stood their in tears until Miss Holly and Miss McKenna got them all off stage. Someone broke the rules and filmed some of the performance, sorry for the poor quality, but let’s just say we won’t be buying the DVD so that’s all we got.
I met her outside the stage doors and she collapsed in my arms in full tears. I rubbed her back to calm her down and she told me that she was scared because it was so dark and couldn’t see me. Then she said it’s my fault, I’m sorry I didn’t dance, Mommy. My heart shattered. I hugged her and told her that it wasn’t her fault and that the dark can be really scary, especially when you don’t know where people are. Daddy came by for more hugs and she looked at both of us and asked if she could dance again next time and nothing could have made me prouder. You can make mistakes and not do your best, but if you’re willing to get back out there and try again, that’s what matters.
Gigi, Pop Pop, Pop Pop Ray Ray and Sienna joined us with flowers and stuffed animals for our little dancer and she perked back up. After all the hugs and explaining why she was scared she wanted to take another picture in front of the photo backdrop.
As we left and I got her in her seat, she asked me Mommy, are you proud of me? My heart smiled as I said that absolutely I was proud of her and I knew she was back to my upbeat sweet little girl. As Princess Poppy says,
If something goes a little wrong, Well you can go ahead and bring it on…’Cause if you knock knock me over, I will get back up again
We love you Bailey and are so proud of you. We can’t wait until dance season starts back up again! Special thanks to Miss Holly, Miss McKenna and everyone at Perception Dance for any amazing season. We are so lucky to have found such a wonderful dance family!
