lights...camera...put a pull-up on your toddler.

i woke up this morning to marcus hollering 'mom. it's morning time. and i gotta tell you something'. so i reply still half asleep 'okay. okay. come in here and tell me.' time check: it's 6:30. dear god. could we agree on hitting the 7 am mark on weekends? bueler? he comes into my room like a little ball of energy. 'do you 'member my show last night?' me: 'oh man. of course i do. you sang so well.' marcus: 'yep. + i did my breakdancing + i did my singing'. did.he.ever.

before i sit here and cry on my keyboard, let me just tell you the top ten highlights of his big production of 'practically perfect in every way' [streetsville academy, 2012]

1. he came out on stage and opened the show by breakdancing in front of an audience of about 200 people. he spun on his head. the crowd went wild. i kind of couldn't believe it. he went to town on that stage and we loved every second of it. i wish i had caught it on cam but was just too present to pick up either my phone or my embarassing soccer mom dslr.
2. the costume. oh my. the costumes. this little school of nemo's was just about the cutest thing, next to the 19 month old penguins. they looked like miniature people up there on that enormous stage. marcus didn't flinch in his big nemo head piece - he rocked it for the full 2 hour show. amazing.

3. james got called on stage to dance alongside a few other choice dads. side note: james is a wicked dancer and while the other dads seemed genuinely humiliated, james loved the attention and rocked it out onstage.
4. marcus' first number: peanut butter and jelly. oh. my. ovaries. he came bounding out from the wings with his little bright orange leggings and big nemo head and just trotted out barefoot and took his place in front of the mic. check it out:

marcus on the mic. far left.

5. this one particular song about having food in your belly and love in your family. i took a vid. the quality is quite terrible but actually, that's a good thing. i'm not comfortable posting anything with other kids in it, and you can't really make out any of the kids so i'm good with it. please note: marcus is on the far left. he is the one you can hear belting out the song above everyone else. i am the one dying in the audience. during this song i literally almost died of pride. also if you have good eyes you'll notice he knew all of the choreography to boot. + his little swaggy sway kills me. +he started playing air guitar during the music break. oh my heart is so full. i'm a lot right now. sorry people:
check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNB8acB-7FU&list=UUXC5-FgybWYlTvpie1fowSg&index=1&feature=plcp

[there may or may not be more vids as well.]

6. i got to do costumes and make-up backstage. the kids were so wonderful and gracious for every bit of bright pink blush and red lipstick we painted on their little faces. the little girls literally just stood so quietly in their perfect little costumes. not making a peep. with their eyes so wide, watching the red lipstick so closely and hoping that one of us make-up moms would pick them next. cute. like a lot of cute.

7. grandpa and gran di drove all the way from kemptville [which took like 7 hours thanks to some amazing traffic] to see marcus in the show. they drove back right after the show because they both had to work at 7 am the next morning. do the math. that's a lot of driving to watch your grandson in a 2 hour production. we appreciated it so much that they came. marcus was so excited to see them at the stage door after the show, and i think it's safe to say they loved it.

8. kind of crazy that they put on a pro-style production with 50 kids ages 19 months-7 years. like. fully involved. intermission and everything. james joked more than once 'i think this is why we pay for private school'. but it's kind of true. this school [streetsville academy] offers marcus so many experiences and opportunities that other daycares just don't. plain + simple. plus we totally adore the staff like fam. unreal.

9. marcus sang 'turn up the music' during curtain call. it wasn't supposed to be a musical number. but he loves that song and put on a show anyways.

10. it was kind of all kinds of awesome to share such a special night with approx 200 other proud parents/fam/friends who were equally thrilled with their kids' performance and the whole night in general. the energy coming from the audience was amazing. at 9:30 am yesterday, dropping off our little stars for dress rehearsal, all of us parents were meeting wide eyes, trying to contain our excitement but totally acknowledging how freaking great our kids are.

truth times? one of the most memorable days of marcus to date. it also would have been our wedding anniversary. it was kind of heavy. of course we are good with where things are at. but yesterday was a quiet reminder that we had failed at marriage. it definitely made me think about that day. the dress. the moet. the dance floor. marcus walking down the aisle ahead of me. the dog tags we presented to him during our family vow to remain commited to 'our fam'. and last night, sitting in the audience with my ex-husband; both of us beaming and tearing up with pride, totally joking around and nervous for our son... you know what? a year ago yesterday, we made a decision that we hoped would be in the best interest of our son and ourselves. + last night was a wicked reminder that we have only continued to make decisons that are totally. absolutely. in the best interest of our son and ourselves. and as a couple of co-parents? that anniversary date [aka august 22. marcus' bday] is one we will totally continue to celebrate together, along with awesome memories in the making - like last night.

practically perfect in every way? yeah, i'd say that's about right.

-kare

xo