Abigail performs first solo

"You don't have to be famous. You just have to make your mother and father proud of you." Meryl Streep 

I am so incredibly proud of my Abigail. Abigail has never performed ballet by herself in front of people ... ever. She's done many dances with a group but never gone solo.

For about a month now, she has been working on a solo that she will do in some competitions next month. She's been working on that dance for awhile. 

Abigail's friend (from ballet and co-op) has a disease called icthyosis. There are almost 30 different types of ichthyosis, and while some are not dangerous and life-altering, many are. 

On Saturday they held a benefit on Carlie's behalf. Abigail and Isaac both agreed to perform for the benefit. Isaac played the piano, and Abigail performed her solo. While Isaac has played piano often for people, Abigail has never done a solo like this.

I'm not going to show a video of the solo yet since she is still really working on it for her upcoming competition. But here are some pictures from the event: 

Abigail taking a selfie

The program

A panel of women with varying levels of the disease talking about their challenges.

Abigail with me getting ready to perform.

A silly face with our friend, Zach. We were so excited that Zach and his big sister Zoey and their parents were able to attend the benefit with us -- especially because Erin (their mother) was a professional ballet dancer herself once upon a time.

With Zoey and Zach.

Abigail preparing to perform. 

A picture with all the performers!

Now while performing is old hat for Isaac, I do want to share something funny he did. He didn't really want to rehearse before the performance. He tried out the piano, liked it, and said that's all he needed.

So when he got up and did his first song: The Spy, I was a tad nervous. But it was outstanding. And in fact, it was the best he'd ever performed it. When JB asked him what he did differently, Isaac said: "Well, I decided to experiment and play it with more of a swing beat. I guess a performance isn't the best place to experiment?" 

That's so Isaac and his piano. :)