Beyond the Stars, Day 1

Today Ava had her first day of competition. From the moment she woke up, she kept saying, "I don't care at all about the trophies. I just want to do my best and have fun!" And she did indeed have fun. The routines were cute and well done. It was her small group's first competition, and the girls all seemed to have a fun and positive experience.

Ava's ballet costume

Ballet routine: March of the Toys

Tap time - Ease on Down the Road

last minute pep talk from Mr. Chris

hammin' it up before their jazz routine "Hot & Cold"

showing off her stretchy self

group shot after awards

What I was most proud of today was Ava's first Awesome Dancer button experience. Our dance studio began the Awesome Dancer buttons a few years back as a way of showing support and good sportsmanship for other studios. Our dancers look for someone they think performed really well or tried really hard or was kind... any reason they feel that person is an "awesome dancer." Each of our dancers gets a button attached to a paper explaining the program, and they give this button to the dancer they feel deserves it. (I hope my explanation makes sense.) I told Ava about it and said I would keep her button in my purse for when she decided who she wanted to give it to. Dance after dance I would see people who I personally would have given buttons to - girls who expressed emotion so beautifully or danced so gracefully. But I held my tongue and waited for Ava to make her own decision. Finally, in some large group number, she leans over to me and says, "Mom, you see that girls two in from the left? She looks like she loves doing this dance. I want to give her my button." I'll be perfectly honest: I wasn't overly impressed with this particular dancer. She was okay, but not the best or a star by any stretch. But again, this wasn't my thing, and so once the number was over I walked Ava backstage to the dressing to find her Awesome Dancer. We found her and Ava gave her the button. The girl looked a little confused, and of course Ava decides at that moment to be shy, so I explained a little to the girl what we were giving her. She smiled very sweetly and thanked us. Maybe I'm just projecting, but I got the impression this isn't a girl who is the center of attention much, and it really seemed to mean a lot to her to get this button. I think Ava made the perfect choice, and hope that her Awesome Dancer carries this good memory with her for a long time.