Coming Out of Her Shell

Once upon a time, Taylor was the girl who used to hide behind other kids or turn bright red when forced to stand up in front of an audience. Over the past year, I have been amazed by the huge transformation in her self confidence. Last year, we enrolled Taylor in the Hollywood Kids Academy which teaches children to sing, dance and perform in front of an audience. Taylor has always loved singing and putting on shows at home, but NEVER did I think she would be able to do it in front of other people. She was assigned the part of Meg from "Hercules" in her first play which involved singing a solo. This caused a few tears at first (some of the tears were due to the fact the song was about being in love), but she eventually built up enough courage to perform and did great. During the second season of Hollywood Kids, she was assigned the part of Mrs. Potts in "Beauty and the Beast" which involved memorizing a ton of parts in an English accent and singing 3 solos. She literally brought tears to my eyes during her performance, especially since I know how hard she has worked to overcome her stage fright.

Last week, I received a call from Taylor during school hours. She has just got a flyer about the school dance team holding auditions that day and asked her teacher if she could call me to get permission to stay and try out. My supportive, mother-of-the-year response was, "Uhm, why are you just getting the flyer if it's today, you have never taken a dance class, and do you even have an audition ready?" Her nonchalant response was, "Mom, I'll just figure out a dance while I am up there." WHAT?!! Immediately, I freaked while flashes of Napoleon Dynamite's dance scene popped into my head. Although every fiber of my being wanted to tell her "no", I went to the school and signed the permission slip. The good news is that she made the dance team and loves it! The team had their first performance this morning for the "Hats Off to the Community Day" at her school.

Sheldon did NOT like the costumes, did NOT like her makeup and was shaking his head after watching his baby girl shake her booty. However, he found a smile somewhere deep down for her and cheered her on. I am so proud of Taylor and her newly found self confidence.