Dream on, my baby girl - Ariel's first concert performance

Close your eyes and dream...
Dream of anything,
Dream of everything,
Close your eyes and dream...
Dream of anything.

It was a day that we've been looking forward for a long time. Yup, after being a cheerleader and supporter for her sister all these years, it was finally her turn to shine. For the first time ever, dear Ariel was going to dance on stage and perform in front of an audience!

This little girl has always loved to dance for as long as I can recall. She learns every dance that jiejie teaches her, she loves to boogie to Just Dance on Wii, she remembers choreography really quickly, she loves to perform for our friends, family and people she has never met before, and she was even hailed as the Dancing Queen in Club Med when she was barely two years old.

I could tell she was really excited about performing with her friends and that enthusiasm of hers was infectious. She would come home from school and show me the dance after her rehearsals, she taught the elder sister all the moves, we played the Hi-5 song so two of them could dance together and they couldn't even stop singing the song when we were in the car.

Talking about the song, I really love what the teacher chose this year as I find it very meaningful. It is a song titled "Dream On" and speaks about how we can dream of anything and everything, how our imagination can take us to faraway places and how we need to be able to close our eyes and be able to dream. The kids were also tasked to recite the poem "Let No One Steal Your Dreams" by Paul Cookson at the start of the performance, which I thought was very apt and beautiful too.

As for my star of the day, she woke up promptly at 7am and was all ready to bring it on. I sent her to school so she could change into her costume and get her makeup done. I thought she looked really cute in the rainbow dress coupled with the hair buns. Haha. My little china doll! Still can't believe my baby girl is going to graduate from N2 and has gone to school for a year already. Gosh.

We managed to steal some shots with her teachers, Teacher Sarah and Teacher Filis. They told me secretly that Ariel was the best dancer in class and even asked me if she learnt it anywhere. I'm hoping she will always be able to dance like no one is watching and never lose that confidence and passion in life.

It was also a rare moment that the hubby managed to take a couple of hours off work to come and support the little girl, which really made a huge difference and I could tell she was really happy to have Daddy there cheering for her. As for me, well, I wouldn't miss this golden opportunity for sure! Regardless of the fact that I've been in this position once a few years back, my heart was still pounding when the curtains were about to open and every bit of me still felt like the proud and emo mama who was smiling on her face and tearing in her heart. Time flies, it really does, and I can only remind myself to cherish motherhood every step of the way.



When the performance was about to start and the curtains opened, I could see that the girl felt overwhelmed by the sight of the audience in the first few seconds. Then, she spotted me in the audience (I had snuck up to the first row so she could see me easily) and we gave each other a knowing smile, I gave her a thumbs up sign and her nerves calmed instantly. Yup, it was like magic. And once the music began to play, she was in her comfort zone and everything just went like a breeze after that.



So here's presenting her first ever concert performance and it's amazing how these fleeting three minutes meant so much to us. I know, if you've been through this with your child, you would perfectly understand what I mean, right?

Dear Ariel, I just want you to know that Mummy is so proud and happy for you that you finally did it, better than I could ever have dreamt you would! This will definitely be a milestone for us to remember and I promise you to get the concert DVD so that you can watch and re-watch it as many time as you like, okay? 

I love how you put your heart and soul into the dance and I felt every bit of your emotions. Mummy told you to 'feel' the music and you really did. That's my girl and I am just so happy to be able to see you grow up. But no matter what, you'll always be my baby girl in my heart.

Remember to smile when you see a rainbow after the rain, to sing when it feels like you are having the worst day of your life, and to dance when life throws you a curveball. Love you so much, my dear!