Even though it didn't start until 6 pm, we were in full prom mode from the moment Teen Queen got up until go time. We primped and preened, pampered and poofed. We had hair and nails and facials, and we just couldn't possibly eat anything! Well, she couldn't; I had no problem eating.
So we got all dressed up, her dad surprised all of us with a beautiful wrist corsage.
We made a quick stop at the Veteran's Memorial gazebo for a little photo session:
That's the new Veteran's War Memorial and VFW Hall behind her. |
We made it to the Venue by 7:15 after mom got lost a couple of times, but oh so worth it. She walked in to a chorus of greetings and "Oh, you're so pretty! I'm so glad you came!" Let me tell you something about the kiddos, correction, young men and ladies of this little Texas town. There's not a one of them who doesn't address adults as Sir and Ma'am, the young men hold doors open and the young women say thank you and mean it. I have NEVER worried about bullies in this town. The kids grew up with Teen Queen and Baby Queen and consider them family. Nobody messes with them without having an angry crowd of Panthers. So Prom never gave me a worry, I knew down to my soul TQ would be welcomed with open arms. Of course that meant she was swallowed up by her friends and carted off to a table by the dance floor and I was left to cool my heels with the teachers and chaperones.
She left my side when this absolutely adorable brunette in a stunning formal and cowboy boots came over and hugged her and invited her to sit with them. This young lady was last year's Homecoming Queen and is headed for UT Austin in the fall. They had TQ on the dance floor for every fast rock dance and country line dance that played, but it wasn't what TQ was wanting. After a particularly rowdy Cotton Eyed Joe (no, the kids weren't allowed to say "bull shit"), TQ and R came over and I could see something was cooking. She hugged me and asked, "But where is my boy?!" Oh. Shit. R tried to reassure her that not every girl there had a boyfriend, SHE didn't have a boyfriend, and after all, boys were stinky and mean. I could have hugged her for that. But TQ would not be deterred. With a twinkle in her eye, she looked at us and uttered the phrase that will haunt me forever. "I'll take my chances." Double OH SHIT.
She walked over to a table of boys and sweetly asked, "Which one of you will dance with me?" To their credit (and I could have hugged all of them), they all volunteered and eventually all led her across the floor in some of the most interesting versions of a two-step I've ever seen. She had more dances last night than I had all through college. Moral: Take the chance and dance.
I didn't get any pics of her dancing, but the school photographer did. I should be getting those Monday. She lasted almost 3 hours, which is really late for her. When she finally pooped out on me, we walked out to more hugs and "glad you cames". This is going back a bit, the Venue is an old three story hacienda-styled building with a lovely courtyard with fountain and seating areas. A lot of the kids had retreated from the loud music to the courtyard by later evening; and it was through here that we left. As we got outside, TQ announced, "Mom, thank you so much, this was the best Panther Prom ever!" We exited to a chorus of, "Go Panthers!"
13 comments:
Yep, small town Texas kids are pretty big hearted. The homecoming queen here this year is a Downs Syndrome girl. She was unanimously elected after the other girls donated all their votes to her. Nobody prompted that, the girls came up with it on their own. Made me proud!
Glad your daughter had a great time, and she did look lovely.
Things like this make all the trials and tribulations of parenting seem trivial.
The behavior of TQ's classmates gives one hope for that generation.
Good job, mom.
1. She got to go
2. She had a great time.
Nothing else matters.
Fantastic! What a great post!
Your post has proven that not all is lost in the next generation. Thank you.
I am so touched by your story, and I'm so happy for you and your family. You raised your daughter well, damn well. I live in California, and I don't see that much compassion and sensitivity in most of the teenagers anymore. It's there, but just not the prevailing attitude. Texas is sounding so good right now.
Fantastic!! What great young folks - all of them.
Great pictures taken by a great mom.
Terry
Fla.
Feel good story of the year from the Mom of the Year! Made me (almost) feel mushy, and the Missus cried!
What a fantastic town you live in!
Makes me proud to be a Texan...glad y'all had a good time. Stuff like that only happened once, it warms my heart that she had a blast. Good times...
Congrats to Her for making prom , and to you MOM for surviving it LOL
Angel she is beautiful. Your daughter is darling, and I'm so happy she had a good time. Sounds like there is an especially awesome group of kids at her school, and some wonderful memories made!
-CM
Frikkin. Awesome.
Goes a long way to restoring my hope for the future of this country.
Fantastic! What a lovely young lady. Good to see she is adventurous and bold, that will serve her well. Glad she had a great time. She rocks, and you, Mom, rock as well. Dad did good, Mom was on it and all the teens did what they should have. Great work, all, and so happy for her. Hard to hold your breath for that moment, but kudos to you for not stepping in. Congratulations. Dammit, it's dusty in here...sniff.....sniff
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