This past weekend was Ella’s last competition of the season. We were scheduled for one more next week, but (thankfully) it was cancelled because of a scheduling problem. Our other competitions have been mostly local, but we headed south for the beach this time and spent a few days together in the sand.
At the last competition, I forgot to pack Ella’s fishnet tights and caused quite the commotion. We danced in tan tights instead, but I vowed never to forget anything again. I had checked her bags against our check-list twice before we left home, but the first thing I did when we got to the condo was to lay everything out and check it all one more time!
We started our day in swimsuits and crazy hair and spent some time out on our balcony before trekking down to the stage area to set up camp. Ella was able to play in the ocean with a few friends until noon and then we headed back upstairs for a few hours of primping and posing.
Typically, the girls have to be dressed and ready two hours prior to their call time. Because of the high-temps and scorching sun, we convinced our coach to let us wait in the room closest to the stage. The girls were able to stay cool, but could see the stage from the balcony if they wanted to watch. In between numbers, the competition staff was icing the stage and sweeping off sand. It got so hot earlier in the day that one of our senior dancers ended up with a melted jazz shoe and a burn on her foot!
I had no idea what to expect for this competition and learned a lot about what to do next time around! The stage set-up was pretty cool — it was right in the sand between the pool area and the ocean. There were chairs for rent and tents / blankets / towels everywhere to sit and watch!
I was a rebel and managed to sneak a few pictures of our girls on stage.
Along with our massive clogging team, who steal the show every time! Their Go Granny Go routine is set to “Little Old Lady From Pasadena” and “Bringing Sexy Back”. It is hilarious and the girls do such a great job.
Our girls were able to change after their performances and watch some of our older girls compete before the awards show.
We got platinum for both dances, our tap won 1st in category and 2nd overall for girls 12 and under and our jazz won 6th overall for girls 12 and under. We were so proud of how well they did! This was the best tap routine they’ve done all year and the first time their tap scored higher than jazz. They even managed to edge out our own Kids Competition team since we were competing in a bigger age category this time!
We had to be out of our condo by ten o’clock on Sunday morning, but the girls had been looking forward to a little relaxation and couldn’t wait to spend some time in the pool. We laid out in the sun from 8 o’clock that morning until just after lunch. Some of the senior girls who help out with our team joined them to swim, so the mamas even got to relax for a little while. I could do this on a daily basis with exactly zero complaints.
We were so sad to pack it up and make the LONG drive home, but we were so excited to see Tazzie and our Sweet Daddy!
