First Dance Recital

         Saturday was Evangeline's first dance recital.  I'm not gonna lie, I had been looking forward to this for months.  Years, really.  I took dance for 15 years from Mary Alpha and loved every minute of it.  I knew before I ever had a girl that dance was something that I wanted my daughters to have an opportunity to participate in.
          Evangeline has been taking all year from Ms. Amy.  I really wasn't sure what she was going to do because I never could get much out of her at home except for a few "p.a.'s"  I asked her one time if she played with her friends at dance and she said, "Ms. Amy says NO PLAYING," so I knew that they didn't "play."
           We geared up for the day by watching an old home video of me at my first dance recital.  I have to be honest, I was better in my first recital than she (but I was also an entire year older and only had to learn one dance, whereas she had two).
            I remember from my dancing days that there always seemed to be a kid on the end of the row who really didn't seem to know what they were doing.  That was kinda Evangeline.  But, she was the youngest in her class by far!  Most kids were four, and some were even five already.  She left the stage in not one-but BOTH- numbers!  The first time she exited my mom and I were both in the audience softly repeating, "get back on stage, Evangeline, get back on stage!"  The entire theater filled with 1,000 people got a good laugh out of her at least.  And, when the little girl next to her lost a shoe, what did Evangeline do?  She ran to go tell the teacher.  In the middle of the dance.  And everyone laughed, again.
           I got glimpses of my little girl's personality that I really liked during the whole recital experience.  She is not shy at all when it comes to talking to adults or even children her age.  She was BFFs with all the little girls in her class.  If they're all sitting together, Evangeline just crowds her way up in the middle of the group, something I would have never done as a child.
           She's also stubborn.  One little friend Evangeline talked about all year was "Remily."  Come to find out Remily's name is actually "Rivaly."  Rivaly's mom told me she overheard a conversation between the two of them that went something like this, Ev, "Your name is Remily."  Rivaly, "No, it's Riv-VA-ly, silly."  Ev, "NO, it's Remily!" Riv, "Rivaly," Ev, "REMILY."  You get the picture.  Evangeline did finally accept the fact that her name was in fact Rivaly, but interestingly never corrected Rivaly for calling her "Evangeleen."
             She loves her brother.  Right before she was to go on stage, she turned to me with a serious look and said, "Is Trey here?"  She wanted him to watch her dance!  He's the only person she specifically asked about.  Also, when she got a present, she wanted to know why Trey didn't have one.
             She's loving and generous.  She got her first ever medal and the moment she ran off stage she said, "Look, Mommy!  I got this for YOU!"  Melted my heart that she'd want me to have her special medal.
             All things considered, I was so proud of my special little dancer on Saturday.  She really was the cutest one on the whole stage, even if she didn't have the best moves!