Am I a Stage-Mom?

Did you know it is dance competition season?  I am just learning the ropes of little girl dance competitions.  And I had no idea that there were so many of them and that they are such a big deal.

So many of them, I’m getting to learn if I am a “Stage Mom” nearly every weekend.

According to Wikipedia, this is the definition of a “stage mom”  — In the performing arts, a stage mother is a term for the mother of a child actor. The mother will often drive her child to auditions, make sure he or she is on the set on time, etc. The term sometimes has a negative connotation, suggesting that the individual is prone to obnoxiously demanding special treatment for her child, or suggesting that the individual has placed inappropriate pressure on her child to succeed. Some believe that a “stage mom” is vicariously living out her own dreams through her child.

I fear that in some ways I just might actually be a stage mom, and that scares me.  I don’t want to be a stage mom, but what if I AM?  Because, we all know, a “stage mom” is a BAD thing.

So, you tell me, am I a “stage mom”?

1.  I love taking my girls to their dance classes and I am the only mom that ever takes advantage of watching the last 15 minutes of class when we are allowed to.

2.  I encourage the girls to practice their routines at home and even record them during their class so that they can watch themselves and the teacher.  (I’m nice though, I send it to all of the other moms).

3.  I require my girls stick to their commitments.  When they auditioned for their companies, I let them pick which ones they did.  Once the classes got going, one of the classes was NOT the favorite.  I told them they made a commitment to stick it out through June, they are sticking it out through June.

4.  I am constantly reminding the girls that they need to focus focus focus in class.

5.  I am one of the few moms that is back stage helping change their costumes during the competitions

6.  I take a million pictures of them whenever I get a chance – performances, rehearsals whenever they are in a leotard.

7.  I get more nervous during their auditions and shows than they do.

8.  I want them to have no regrets.  (One of these days, I’ll go into my regrets as they pertain to dance).

9.  I want them to always thank their teacher before they leave.

10.  I’ll practice leaps and turns with them in the family room until they are tired of doing them.

So am I?

Well, I guess tomorrow I get another chance to find out.  We have to be at the school at 7:00 AM for Jade’s first number.  Both girls are so excited and have been looking forward to this week’s competition since they finished the Spotlight competition last week.

I’ll twitter the results – so if you are interested follow me at @familytrifecta.