Madelyn's Recital

Madelyn's dance recital was so much fun. Really, truly, one of my favorite things this year. Despite all the complaining I did over the past month or so about the time required, the fact that we had to spend our Saturdays and Sundays rehearsing, getting into full costume, driving her back and forth, etc. -- in the end it was so worth it to see how much fun she had and to see her adorable little personality up there on stage.

I have worried that Maddie wasn't having all that much fun in dance, and that she didn't want to continue; I have told her many times that she doesn't have to take dance, that it should be fun, etc., and offered to take her out -- but every time, she assures me that she does want to do it, that she likes it, etc. But I think I've really seen how similar her personality is to mine through this whole process (and sometimes I wish it wasn't quite so similar, because you never want your child to have some of the same faults or tensions you do!), and how hard she can be on herself. She wants to be really good at something right from the start, and when she has to practice something over and over she can get a bit frustrated that she's not "getting it" as fast as she thinks she should. She has complained a couple of times that she's "not as good as the other kids" - which is to be expected, since the other 4 kids in her class all have taken dance for at least one more year than she has. I've really tried to explain to her that it's for fun, but at the same time I'm also trying to explain to her that sometimes, you have to work hard at things and try, try again; this doesn't mean that you're not "good" at it, it just means you're learning and challenging yourself. We had a good talk last week about the fact that some of the things you work hardest at are the things that make you most proud of yourself...because when you finally do figure it out, you have a great sense of accomplishment and it makes you feel really good about yourself. Again, emphasizing how it makes HER feel, how her efforts pay her off for HERSELF -- vs. making her "as good as" others.

Needless to say, I felt really good when I put her to bed last night and we talked about dance, the recital, etc. We were going through what a busy weekend it had been, and how the recital was so exciting (and tiring!), etc., and how proud I was of her. I asked if she wanted to take dance again (the next session starts in another week), and she gave me a very emphatic "Yes! I love dance! I want to learn a new dance!" Then I asked her what her favorite part of the whole dance recital was, and she responded, "I liked that I did a good job and it made me proud." Sometimes, I think they really do hear what I'm saying. So now I'm not only the proudest mommy around because of her very good performance this weekend, but because I think she did come away from the experience feeling really good about herself. What a great kid!