Mother's Day

I've decided to come back! And what better way to start than a couple pictures from Mother's Day, a day I never thought I would get to celebrate. Six years ago, I didn't think it was possible. I didn't think the in vitro cycle would work. I thought I would never experience pregnancy, motherhood, the joys, fears, and love. And now...

Look at my girl! She is 5! Five whole big years old. It is crazy how time flies.

I chose for our family to go to Mary Poppins at Theatre Cedar Rapids. Wow! What a show! I have been there for 3 different shows, now, and they have all been awesome. This was certainly no exception. Mary Poppins was Aria's first show at TCR and she really loved it, too. I know I see a play or two in her future. It was a great day!

Cinderella

I'm not sure who came up with the idea for Playtime Poppy.  I do know it was more than 60 years ago.  And I know that it is a fabulous thing!  We took Aria to the production of Cinderella last week and it was fabulous!  I'm not real big on princesses, but Aria has picked up a love for them somewhere so she was thrilled to watch live princess action. 

What I love about Playtime Poppy in general is the chance for high school students to put on fun shows for young audiences.  I think a lot of the shows give opportunities to underclassmen for these shows, which is great.  They work so hard and practice long hours and then become stars to all the young people who come to watch.  I love that for those kids.

I also love the chance for my kid to see live productions at such a low cost.  They are also usually a good length and we always get to meet the characters when the show is over.  I think that is Aria's favorite part.

Back to Cinderella.  The show had wonderful music and dancing.  It had funny characters and polished performers.  Of course Aria's favorite was Cinderella.  I liked the mice and the funny dancer guys who were basically entertaining the audience while Cinderella changed clothes.  That would be another reason I love the shows; they usually have something that is entertaining for adults, too.

Usually I have a rule that our princess dress up dresses don't leave the house, but we made an exception for Cinderella and dressed like a princess for the show.  Aria was thrilled to get comments about her dress from all the high school girls in princess dresses from the show.  I guess she is a pretty cute princess!

 

Brucemore Children's Theater

Another local masterpiece!  Every summer Brucemore puts on an outdoor children's theater performance.  We went to The Amazing Story Machine tonight and really enjoyed it!  I read in the program that these plays are original creations of a local guy, which makes it even better.  We sat in our lawn chairs and watched the performance on their outdoor stage.  The story is about a guy named Arthur who has made a machine for the king that allows you to be a part of any story written.  It was really well done.  The stories performed by the machine and its cast were The Mouse and the Lion, Hansel and Gretel, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and Cinderella.  There was a lot of audience participation, which was fantastic, considering the average age there.  The story machine had to be powered by silliness, which the audience had to help with.  There was also a need for three bears in the Goldilocks story and guess who was Papa Bear?

Aria thought it was fun that Daddy got to go up on stage!  I think she was a bit mesmerized by it.  Overall, it was a cute story and a fun evening for our family.  I consider it in the medium price range at $5 for adults and $3 for kids.  And the only bad part was when the dragon sneezed really loudly and it scared Aria.  Otherwise I call it a great success!

Sesame Street Live

Last night we took Aria to Sesame Street Live at a local theater.  It was fantastic!  She absolutely loved it!  Not only was it her favorite characters, but the storyline was about making music--another of her most favorite things.  When we asked what her favorite part was, she said, "when they sang."  They sang pretty much through the whole show, so I guess she liked all of it.  And her favorite character...no surprise...Elmo.  It was really well done and we had good seats.  Before it started, Aria was excited about getting popcorn, but as soon as it started, she was mesmerized and didn't even eat the popcorn.  We saw several people we knew, including one of Aria's best friends!  It was a wonderful night!  I really love the stage we are in as a family and all the fun things we get to do together!  We are so incredibly blessed!