Even though my kids are just starting to get into sports and activities I am already experiencing the nerves of a parent on the sidelines. Reese had her first dance recital last weekend. She’s only 4 so I prepared for anything.
During an in studio recital practice in April, Reese completely shut down and just stood in her spot the whole time. I was hoping she got that out of her system and would move and dance the whole time on stage. I don’t care how off her steps are I just want her on stage moving.
Reese did not disappoint. She tapped and moved. And about halfway into her dance her shoe fell off as she was kicking. Watching this I cringed and thought oh no please don’t let this mess Reese up. Losing a shoe could be a big distraction.
Instead of being thrown off and panicking as I likely would have done if I was on stage, Reese quickly and calmly put her shoe right back on and kept dancing like nothing happened. I even heard the people behind us say “That was a nice recovery.” I was so proud.
I was always a nervous wreck in sports so to see my daughter calmly handle her shoe coming off was incredible. I couldn’t have been that composed especially at age 4!
It wasn’t just how she handled her shoe that made me proud but two other things stood out to me during Reese’s stage debut.
One was her smile. She started dance last summer and I just love how she lights up anytime we talk about dance or when she’s going to dance or leaving class. I’m so glad she found something she loves to do already.
The second thing that stood out was her determination and focus. Four is not an easy age to stay focused and Reese kept her kicks strong and going the entire routine. (She definitely stayed on the kicking too long throughout the song but that’s ok, at least she was moving!)
Reese also had such strong and complete kicks. My family laughed as we would see her swing her leg all the way up and back. My girl has strong legs already! Even though almost all tone I had is lost in weight gain from the steroids I’m on, my legs might be the only toned part of my body that has remained during this chemo. And look my little girl has strong legs like her mommy already!
While it was her first recital and a short song, I already saw so much to be proud of with Reese and her dancing. Her determination and focus reminded me of my athletic days and she is already strong like her mommy too. She handled a mishap so gracefully and was so composed which was not like me in sports as I often became rattled too easily. I already have so much to be proud of after just one recital. The future is so bright for you Reese. You made this momma so proud!
#proudmomma #tap #tinydancer #stronglegs #dancerecital
