Seussical is Over

"Seussical the Musical"

Kelsey and Spencer performed 8 shows in the last two weekends and now they are suffering from major PPD (post-play depression!) We are all suffering . . . being a part of a show, even for me backstage and in the audience, is such a wonderful and emotional thing.  There is a sort of let-down after it's over.  Just like a fun vacation---you want it to continue on and on and on . . .

Spencer is on the left in the red sequin vest (third kid in from the left) and Kelsey is to the left of the Cat in the Hat on the right side.  

Since it was their last weekend for performances, we decided to get Kelsey some beautiful yellow roses and Spencer got a fun candy bouquet (perfect for boys!)

 This picture cracks me up because Hailey was SO mad that she didn't get a candy bouquet.  She is not afraid to show her true feelings!  ha ha

 Many of their cousins and aunts were able to come to their last show.  It was super special for them to hear everyone cheering them on!

 It's a fuzzy picture but here is Mary Jo, the artistic director, hugging Kelsey after the show.  

 Here is Hailey with Jana, the "Sour Kangaroo!"

 This is Bre, one of Kelsey's sweet friends from the show.  She even shared her roses with Hailey!

 This picture really made Hailey smile---Dale picked her up and wanted to take a picture with her.  (remember, Hailey has a big crush on Dale :)  The Grinch even snuck into the picture!  ha ha

I have some more professional pictures to add later but there are over 2,000 of them on a disc and I don't  have time to sift through them this morning.  What an incredible experience for our kids.  We feel so blessed to live in this area and have the means to be able to give our kids these fabulous opportunities!

Seussical is On Again!

The curtain rises . . . the music starts . . . and I get all choked up to the point that I cannot speak . . . because I am so completely proud of my kids and this amazing cast!

 Today Spencer and Kelsey had to be at the theater by 8 a.m. and they did two matinee performances for over 1,750 elementary school students!  Incredible, isn't it?  The kids cheered SO loudly for them you would have thought Justin Bieber entered the building!  It was crazy!!!  Anyway, it was such a great experience for them. I came and spent the entire day helping to usher in those 1,750 students!  Wowzers . . .

 I wish every night they had a crowd like this size!

 After each show, the entire cast came up and they did a question and answer session.  One kid asked "Where did all the costumes come from?"  Then, our sweet costume mistress, who NEVER gets recognition, just happened to be on the wings of the stage and they pulled her out front to receive a grand applause for her efforts!  It gave me chills------SO COOL!!

 There is Spencer, with Kelsey right behind him.  What a ham!  Seriously, he is hilarious to watch on stage and Kelsey is such a great dancer!  I think I've seen the show well over 10 times, and I'm still not bored of it.  

 Just look at the workmanship of those adorable "who" people's dresses and hair!

 They greeted the kids as they left the theater and all felt like SUPERSTARS!   

It was a "Terrific-al Seussical" day. 

Everybody has HAIR issues!

OK - so this weekend, we had some major HAIR issues!  First up - let's work backwards . . . This is what I found in my garbage can this morning before school . . .

Yes - those long pieces of hair belong to my little daughter.  I couldn't believe it!  When I asked her why she would cut her hair like that she said, "Well, the hair was getting in the way of my flower and nobody could see it!"  Then I told her that she should have asked me for help and Hailey said, "Well, I'm the littlest in the family soooo . . . . ."  I think she was wanting me to fill in the blank with "oh that's ok honey, you are little and you don't know any better."  But not this girl---she is smart and knows exactly what going on . . . well, most of the time.  Apparantly this time she took matters into her own hands and took care of it the fastest and easiest way she knew how.  Oh me oh my!!!

Notice the spikes of hair sticking up.  She cut it practically to the scalp!!!

 This is the face of one unhappy little girl.  :(  I had a little talk with her and told her that no matter what she did to her hair, I still loved her very, very much.  Then, I had to chuckle inside as I thought that many of us, at one point or another, have wanted to just chop off that piece of hair that is driving us nuts.  Today it was Hailey's turn!


Well, on to the other hair story.  Last week was dress rehearsal for "Seussical, the musical."  All the "who's" are suppossed to have blue wigs, even the boys.  So, I looked and looked backstage only to find that they never assigned a wig to Spencer.  So, when I asked the director where his wig was, she grabbed something out of a box and said, "Here, have him try this on."  OK - she pulled out a women's wig that was cut with bangs and curled under like a bob.  Spencer put it on and I wanted to die with laughter---but had to bite my tongue so he wouldn't freak out and get embarrassed.  As I was adjusting it on his head and talking myself into "how can I possibly make him like this wig??"---other cast members walked by and said, "nice wig, Spencer"  "you look like an oompa-loompa" "you look like a girl!"  That was it . . . the wig came off.  Spencer actually took it in stride (no stomping off and throwing fit which I was grateful for).  But, there is no way that I was going to let a wig be the one reason why my son will never do theater again! :)  So, he went "wig-less" for the next two rehearsals.  Still---the director never got him one like the other boys.  By now, I am fuming . . . So, I took matters into my own hands and went out to a costume shop and bought him a wig myself!  Nobody else had to pay for a wig---but here I am paying $25 for one. The only one they had that was the right color of blue was a women's punk rocker wig so I bought it and thought I could make it work, somehow.  I came home and cut off the length (you can still see the blue fuzz in the garbage can in the picture above)  But it still looked too much like a GIRL!  
So, my mom suggested I take it over to my good friend, Jody Peterson, who is a hairstylist.  She laughed when she saw it and said she had never cut a wig before.  But, we dove in and she worked a miracle!!!!

 It's suppossed to be really funky and crazy---like Dr. Seuss's images.  Jody really did a great job and this definitely doesn't look like a girl! Ahh . . . we are saved!!!

 Spencer rolled in to the theater from the Grand Canyon field trip with 45 minutes to spare before the opening night show.  When he saw the wig, he just SMILED so big!!  That was all the payback I needed.  I didn't care about the $25 anymore---my kid was happy and that was enough for me.  

Tonight is Opening Night for Seussical!

Kelsey and Spencer have been rehearsing ever since the week after "The King and I."  They are in a fun musical called, "Seussical, the Musical."  It's a wacky show--just like Dr. Seuss but the music, costumes, and sets are really FUN!  This is a picture of rehearsal one week ago and the show was very rough---(I was a little nervous to be honest!)

 But last night, my mom and I went to the full dress rehearsal and honestly, it BLEW US AWAY!  The costumes and wigs are SO fun to look at and the music just makes you want to get up and dance.  It is a show full of color and energy!  They have worked so hard this last week and it really shows.  We were totally impressed! 

Spencer is wearing a hat and khaki shorts and Kelsey is behind him on the other side of the stage.  This was taken two nights ago.  

 Spencer missed dress rehearsal last night but is ready for the show. His fourth grade class went to the Grand Canyon and they are coming home today.  I just hope the bus isn't late so he can make it on time!  I am so glad Tom was able to go with him.  Next week I will post some pictures of their trip.  But, check this out first . . .

 Last Sunday, we all came home from church and it was raining (one of our favorite things!).  As we were eating dinner with my parents, Hailey said, "Hey, I see a rainbow!"  We all went to the window to check it out and found that it was actually a DOUBLE RAINBOW! how cool is that??

 It put us in such a good mood that we decided to make creme brulee and try out my new torch Tom got me for my birthday.  It was awesome!

 It's been a busy week---I helped my mom watch my nephew, Keegan, so they could go on a quick trip to California.  It was a lot of fun having him around!

 All the kids were so kind to him.  He is such a sweet little guy.

 One of the greatest moments of this week was hearing my mom play the piano and Hailey sing.  They must have done this for about 45 minutes and they went through every primary song Hailey knows.  My favorites were, "Tell me the stories of Jesus," "I'm Trying to Be Like Jesus," and "I am a child of God."  It was a precious moment of time for me to hear my sweet daughter sing so pretty while my angel mother played for her.  

Yesterday, before school, my mother had a nice talk with Hailey.  She told her how much we all loved her and how much her mommy loves her.  Hailey told her grandma that one day she wasn't being very nice and that her mommy (me) thought she didn't love mommy very much because of how she was acting.  Hailey said that she really did love me and this is what she told her grandma (and my mom wrote this down so she wouldn't forget it)  

"I love my mom to infinity.  I have loved her every day I lived, even when I was in her tummy, even before I didn't know what she looked like, I still loved her!"  

What a little sweet angel girl to say those things. I am so blessed to have her in my life! 

This is a short video of Hailey singing "I am a Child of God."  Watch what she does---it melts my heart every time.