You've heard about our Saturday in the city seeing Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella. It was a wonderful day.  It was a great experience for Ella, too, to see another version of Cinderella.

The main point of this Cinderella is that...Anyone can make a wish.  A wish, once made, just sits there, but if you act on your wish, that's when it comes true.

This was not a passive Cinderella, it was an empowered Cinderella. She dreamed, she wished....and she made it happen.  There is a scene where the Fairy Godmother sings to Cinderella.  She tells her that her dreams are impossible...unless she makes them happen.

Life is an endless opportunity to make things happen. Even Ella, who tends to be very shy with strangers had her heart set on meeting Prince Christopher (not "Charming" in this play) and Cinderella.  She was scared and nervous, but when the time came, she took a deep breath and walked right up to them!

In Act II, Prince Christopher sings to Cinderella: Do I love you because you're beautiful, or are you beautiful because I love you?

I can't get that song out of my head.  So much of life, emotion, experience, etc. is what WE make it.  I'm challenging my perceptions - Do I dislike someone because they are selfish, or do they just seem selfish because I dislike them?

I am thankful for this play to show me another way to look at my own prejudices.  Who knew Cinderella could teach an old princess a new trick?

We woke up simple maidens with sleep in our eyes.

But it was a BIG day.  We were going to the theatre and must get ready!  Luckily, there were no wicked stepsisters or stepmother to interfere. We did our hair and our make-up and dressed up. It was time to depart.

We drove our carriage to the city and found the theatre.  Cinderellas everywhere!  Mine was the only one who chose to be Cinderella before the ball. She's so her own girl!

We found our seats in the front row. The lights dimmed and we were entranced for two hours. It was wonderful.  My budding actress loves the theatre and I'm feeding this interest all I can.  She even got to sit on the stage.

We stayed after to meet the cast and then walked to our restaurant.  Ella's first tapas experience....for a girl who will eat anything but olives and mushrooms, it was quite an experience.

What to order?  She told me - "Just surprise me mom!" So I ordered 3 'small plates' and a dessert.

Our evening came to an end.  We danced until midnight and fell peacefully asleep with memories to last a lifetime.