Hollywood Dance Jamz - 2019

Life seems close to insane lately.  As of last week, I was preparing and planning for (3) events/trips ALL within the next 30 days.  In addition to two dance competitions and basketball tournaments.  What a whirlwind.  I am thankful that ONE of those travel events is now complete.  Lilah had her first out of town dance competition in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was called Hollywood Dance Jamz. It was an entire fun-filled packed weekend of convention classes and dance competitions.  Lilah was blessed to be taught by choreographers who have worked with celebrities such as Brittney Spears, Katy Perry, Christina Aguilera, Pink, Nelly, Taylor Swift, Ricky Martin, and  Busta Rhymes are just to name a few.  Lilah was super excited to spend the entire weekend with her dancing friend Ella, attend convention classes, and compete. 

We left on Friday around 8:30 am and headed to one of Charlotte's Malls, SouthPark.  I've been there before, several times. I wanted to use the "downtime", in-between Hollywood Dance Jamz, to shop for my business seminar in Tulsa, Oklahoma next month.  Lilah enjoyed shopping TikToking with Ella, while Lori and I shopped.  We shopped for a good 5-6 hours and then headed to our hotel to check in.  

The actual convention and competition was held at the Hilton University Place.  We made it convenient for ourselves and just stayed there Friday-Sunday.  I had booked this hotel back in July.  LOL!  Talk about planning ahead. The hotel was nice and the hotel staff was sincerely one of the most accommodating and kindest staff that I have ever experienced at a hotel.  The hotel also had a small, stand alone Starbuck's inside too. What I loved MOST about this hotel was the fact that it was less than a 10 minute drive to Charlotte's Outlet Mall, Concord Mills Mall. Lori and I would get our girls ready, drop them off at convention classes, grab a Starbuck's, and hit the mall.  It was a bit of a tease because we could only really shop 3-5 stores, in between their convention classes and their lunch break, but it was still nice to do a little something fun for ourselves.  

(Below) My girl sleeps hard to prepare for the BIG day!

On Saturday, we were able to get a good 2-3 hours of shopping in during class time.  At about 2:00 pm, the girls had to begin getting ready for their dance competitions.  Unfortunately, we have TIGHT/STRICT rules to follow regarding videography and photographing the actual dances.  We will be so excited to share their dances after Nationals, in July, but they did look very beautiful and they were READY!

#232 was ready for Day #1 of convention classes.  She sported a cute pair of black dance leggings and a white long sleeved shirt.  I straightened Lilah's hair Friday night to prep for her dance competition and to make the early a.m., Saturday, wake time tear free.  Curly hair creates a ton of knots and agony.

Lilah and Ella were ready to spend the day together.  

My girl was so happy and beyond excited.

I was one proud mommy for sure.  Lilah danced her little heart out and after all of the junior competitions were over, it was time for awards.  Here were the results of Lilah's dances:

Hip Hop Performances, to SuperSonic, by JJ Fad, Lilah and her team WON PLATINUM aka FIRST PLACE for her division AND Platinum/FIRST PLACE overall. 

SuperGroup Performances to Dance TV (80s music collection) won PLATINUM aka FIRST PLACE, BEST COSTUME, and best overall.  Whoopsie, I didn't take pics of her in her SuperGroup costume.  What a bummer too because this dance won best costume. I'll try to snag one at this weekend's dance competition.

I was extremely ecstatic naturally and very proud.  

After awards, we went to a delicious Mexican restaurant to eat.  The girls STILL didn't stop dancing.  They danced in the hotel room after awards, on the way to dinner, and after dinner.  Dinner was fun and so, so yummy.  Lilah and Ella took on a challenge, from me, to walk up to a couple at the restaurant, pretend they were their waitresses, and ask if they were enjoying their dinner.  It was so hysterical. The couple really enjoyed the few minutes of entertainment as well.  

On Sunday, the girls had convention classes all day, up until scholarship awards. Lori and I headed out to Nordstrom On The Rack and back to Concord Mills Mall.  I felt extremely accomplished in so many way after this weekend was over, but DUE TO the seasonal time change.... I AM STILL recovering from what I like to call a "Dance Mom Hangover".

(Above) Lilah's favorite choreographer was Nico O'Conner. Here are a few of the dances he choreographed: Video 1 and YouTube Channel. 

I am grateful that Lilah was able to experience this opportunity. It opens your eyes to the competitive talent that is out there and it will certainly push you, as a dancer, to work harder if dancing is the route you desire to challenge yourself in OR for your future career path.  There were a ton of dancers at this convention. The talent was all over the place.  Lilah nor Ella received a scholarship.  BUT THEY LEARNED A TON! I told Lilah prior to the auditions, "You are ONLY in competition with yourself.  IF you do NOT win a scholarship, use that as an opportunity to fulfill God's command to rejoice with others.  AND IF YOU WIN, way to go!!!"  It is certainly NOT the end all be all.  I believe whole heartedly that rejection is GOOD.  It gives dancers that slap in the face to work that much harder or to show them that maybe they aren't as good as they think.  Sometimes these dance moms also need a dose of reality too, especially those who think their daughters are the best dancers in the world. [Insert eyeball here].  You do not get what you want in life, you get what you work for! My girl works hard, but she still has a lot to learn and could dance a little bit more on her down time if she really wants to work towards a scholarship. I am okay with her loving being a kid because once you are an adult, the fun and games are VERY scarce.  However, I do want her to take her extra cirriculars very seriously and discipline herself to practice in between being a kid!!!
We have another competition this weekend.  Thankfully, it's local.  Stay tuned for all of the other fun events/trips I have been planning for in the next few weeks.  I'll leave it up to your imagination for now.

Oh and while Lilah and I were away, Darren held up the fort beautifully, taking care of an entire day of basketball games (Ty had a tournament) and then the next day a basketball banquet for Jax, which consisted of having to get coaches gifts.  When I returned home, the house was spotless and the hardwood floors was cleaned.  Darren knows the key to my heart.   

I hate being a divided family.  I have always said that wouldn't happen, but if we desire to give each of our children equal opportunity to get ahead in life, this is a sacrifice we are willing to make because we know it is temporary. Besides, our little break away from one another really did make our hearts grow fonder.  Darren couldn't keep his hands off of me when I returned home.  LOL!

Until next time Charlotte!

(Below): The big named choreographers performed at the very end of the event.