Sunday afternoon was Bennett's spring dance recital. Since September, she has been going to weekly dance classes in preparation for the big "finale!" There are so many children that the Children's Dance Foundation service, they broke the recital into three groups: 1pm, 3pm and 5pm. Unfortunately, we were scheduled for the 3pm slot (right in the middle of nap time). It was an easy choice to leave Preston at home with a babysitter, but I hated to see Bennett not get a nap before her big performance. 
We were worried that she would stand on stage dumbfounded with a finger in her mouth. I kept telling her who was going to be there watching her, and how important it was for her to perform. In fact, I let her select her own flowers (she chose pink roses), and her own treat (she chose a donut) which she would receive IF she danced (nothing wrong with a little bribery, right?).
Thankfully, she did NOT disappoint us. The recital was broken into 13 short performances (one by each class), and then the finale at the end where all of the little girls come out on stage and do one more song. She was a little mesmerized with everyone on the stage at the end, and was turned around backwards for a little while at the beginning checking everyone out, but she finally turned around and sung for the last one song.
We were asked to drop them off 30 minutes beforehand. Then they sat backstage with CDF staff for the whole performance. Occasionally I would see her peak around the curtains on stage (I even saw her yawn...see below), but she hung in there. When I went to get her afterward, I congratulated her, and the first thing out of her mouth was "I want my donut." We made her smile for a couple photos, but then she chowed down. She almost fell asleep during the 5 minute drive home, but we kept our tiny little dancer awake until bedtime. Now dance is over until the Fall.
