Schooooool's Out for Sum-mah

Borrowed image

Friday, we said goodbye to second grade and hello to summer.  To start our summer off right, Birdie had a dance recital on Saturday morning.  The best part?  I didn't have get to go.

Why was Mom not there for the big show, you wonder?  When buying tickets to see this dance extravaganza back in May, Hubby didn't know whether or not he would be in town to see the recital.  Seeing that the tickets were $15 apiece, and Birdie's dance was all of two minutes long (and that's being generous), I couldn't bring myself to buy a third ticket, not knowing if we would use it.  So I bought only two-- one for Princess and one for the lucky grown-up that got to accompany her.  By now you've guessed that wasn't me.  The reason Daddy went instead of Mommy was simple:  I had seen the dress rehearsal the weekend before.  It only made sense that Dad should go to the live show and watch his little girl perform.

Boy, did Dad get screwed.

Birdie's "Christmas present" costume

The rehearsal I attended-- including a team photo session and two practice runs through the choreography-- lasted all of about an hour, 75 minutes tops.  I figured Hubby would have to have Birdie at the performance half and hour before her stage time, he would then witness the spectacle, and fifteen minutes later he and the girls would be on their way home.  Weelllll, let me tell you... this chick right here (double thumbs pointing back at me) wasn't even close to right.  I owe Hubby in a huge way.  Five and a half hours after leaving home, Hubby and the girls rolled back into our driveway.

After 65 dance performances, 2 bags of chocolate chip cookies, a bottle of chocolate milk, and three hours of sitting right next to a speaker thats volume rivaled any at a Metallica concert, Princess and Hubby crawled out of the car looking... defeated.

Birdie, on the other hand, was talking a mile a minute and seemed high as a kite, but it wasn't about her dance.  Not once did she mention her dance routine.  Oh no, she was too busy telling me about how she could finally tie her shoes.  Yes, you heard right.  Even when I asked about the dance, the topic was redirected to shoe-tying.  Bizarre.  Nine months of preparing for this recital and the shoestring mastery trumped the big dance number.

I really could not wrap my brain around this disconnect from her performance.  At the very least, I expected her to comment on her relief about it being over and getting to take off the hideous costume, which Birdie insisted made her "look like a Christmas gift."  But nooooo, not a single mention, just incessant chatter about her ability to turn bunny ears into the perfect bow.

Now that I have viewed the video Hubby took during the dance number, I kind of understand her avoidance of the topic of dancing-- maybe.  I think she maybe be in total denial about her performance.  That, or she doesn't realize that she even participated in the recital!  It is up in the air, as far as I can tell.  How 'bout you watch the tragedy performance, and see what you think is going on here.

First of all, did you notice the little pimp-daddy dancer boy that was leading the pack?  And did you hear Princess cheering for her sister at the end?  How adorable was that!

Notice how Birdie is watching the other dancers (mainly little man) for cues?  I think she may have missed a step or two.  *sigh*

And did you see her wave at her daddy and sissy?

Shortly after the wave, I am sure you noticed Birdie bend over and pick something up off the stage floor.  I bet you also noticed that all dancing stopped after that.  No, she did not lose an earring.  She is treasure-hunting.  Yup-- even on the big stage in front of 300+ people, Birdie still can't resist the urge to pick up something shiny.  (In this case, the treasure was a tiny silver bead that flew off the costume of one of the dancers in a previous dance number.)  Unbelievable!  For roughly $700 and weekly trips to the dance studio to practice, Birdie got the ultimate treasure-hunting experience and what amounts to the world's most expensive plastic bead.  Wow-- I never saw that one coming.

On the bright side, we did get this kick-ass video with which to combat future boyfriends.  And the cute Chuck Taylors that Birdie had to wear in the recital did motivate her to finally learn to tie her shoes.

The end of Birdie's dancing career

Thank God there was a bright side.