Maggie's Ballet Recital

We had Maggie's much anticipated Ballet Recital this weekend.  Anticipation...maybe that was Maggie's problem.  Something certainly was.

But, let's rewind.  You may recall back at her Spring Sing when Maggie declared she wasn't going to sing and then followed it with, and I quote, "but I'm going to dance at my ballet recital".  Somewhere between then and now, Maggie must have recanted on her promise.

So here it is...the before, the ugly, and the after.

The morning of the recital, my Maggie declared she didn't want her hair in a bun, she wanted it "just like this" as she stroked her beautiful blonde bob.  So I agreed and let the ballet teacher know that we wouldn't be pushing any of Maggie's buttons before show time.  Not to mention, how was I going to get that do up in a bun?

I dressed her all up in her beloved ballerina tutu, tights, and shoes.  And even doused on a little make up, much to her dismay.  She looked stunning.

She smiled for pictures in the front yard.  Twirled her sweet little ballerina self and hopped in the car for call time.  Trust me, I was praying the entire way there {in between giving her loving words of encouragement}.

When I dropped her off in the waiting room, I could sense her anxiety.  But she walked in and took her place.  The family and I grabbed a seat in the audience and hoped for the best.  Clay said it best with, "our odds are 50/50". 

Apparently, we got the bum half of those odds, because this is basically what our little ballerina did the entire dance.

I would be lying if I didn't say I was disappointed.  Oh, how I wanted to see that sweet girl twirl and spin just like she had been practicing for.  Practicing for months I tell you!  And she even performed flawlessly at her dress rehearsal.

But, we took the hand that was dealt to us.  Inhaled a deep breathe and gave her a loving hug and kiss when show time was over {sans any compliments}.

It took her no time at all to recover when she was back in my arms.  Maggie was flooded with bouquets of flowers and ate up every minute of it.  You would have thought she just had the performance of a lifetime.

After the recital, Maggie graciously took her place on stage and posed for picture after picture.  She was loving every minute of the after show glory.

We took our beautiful ballerina outside to gather around her for some family love and more pictures.  She was over the moon with the pink flowers her big brother picked out just especially for her.  So much so that she only wanted to hold those for the pictures.

Somehow and in some way, she felt like a ballerina super star.  Dancing or no dancing we sure do love our Magpie.

However, I vow to sneak into dress rehearsal next year and actually see her dance.  And yes, it looks like there will be a next year.  Because, even after all that, our sweet Mags, said, "I think my Ballerina costume will be pink next year!".

It was as if nothing ever even happened. {sigh}