Ice Princess, Year Two

Tonight was the dress rehearsal for the annual ice show. This year all the girls in Nutmeg's group

are dressed like little Cinderellas. The powers that be in Oak Park had this crazy hunch that kindergarten girls would like that or something.

Today was also the warmest day of the year so far and our first crocus opened. I said, "Oh, our first iris!" And Nutmeg corrected me. Crocus, Mom. It's a crocus.

Last year, the warmest day of the year so far was also St. Patrick's Day, and was also an ice show rehearsal. Boy, I love being the Stage Mom who drags kids indoors on the first great playground day of the year.

Nutmeg's interest in ice skating had been waning during the second half of this season. She told me she'd be going through with the ice show for two reasons: Wearing makeup and getting flowers.

However, this kid loves being in front of an audience. Once she went through the run-through with the lights and the set up yesterday, she was all guns ablazing for tonight. She blew kisses, she bowed deeper than any other little Cinderella, and she even tried to curtsy on skates. When she came out of the locker room after her section and joined us in the stands to watch the big girls do their jumps and spins, she was obviously no longer planning to drop ice skating from her fall 2010 activity list.

"Ice skating is GREAT," she told me. Then she told me how she'd skated extra fast in order to stay in the spotlight. Literally.

The photos from my seat at the dress rehearsal are not as good, sorry.

Today was a real challenge to my Supermom skills. I had to put the littles in the car and get to Nutmeg's after-school arts program by 4(ish), because they were having and end-of-session reception. Then everyone home so I could put in the casserole I'd thrown together during the littles (sort of) naptime, feed all 3 kids and put the baby to bed. Then costume and makeup for Nutmeg, then Epu (thank you thank you) arrived home early from work to watch over sleeping baby while I took the girls to the ice show, tied up Nutmeg's skates, checked her in, and went to the audience and saved seats for my parents.
It all went smoothly except for the parts where the baby woke up after I left because the combination of daylight savings time and sleeping in this morning led him to believe that he was only taking a nap, not going to bed. And the part where there was a parking ticket on our car when we got out of the show. Apparently the spot where I parked at every ice show performance last year and was planning to use again this year is actually permit only. I'm thinking the sign saying so on the parking meter might be new. Or maybe I'm just not so good at reading.
Oops, baby feeding time. Night night, y'all.