Promenade

Okay, I realized I'm SUPER behind in posting, so I'm gong to attempt to get caught up so I can focus on Sam & Holly's fiesta this weekend (they got married last weekend, but I will do that in another post) and then the remodel.

The first weekend of the month, we went up to Moab for Sarah's Jr. Prom. Apparently Jr. Prom is the big thing in their town, not the senior prom. And let me tell you, it was pretty much the coolest thing EVER!!!

All the parents and students get together and decorate the gym the week before the prom. This year's theme was something like the seven wonders of the world, so they had decorations like the great wall of china, the pyramids, the aurora borealis, the Eiffel tower, etc (I know, some of those aren't the 7 wonders, but they made for some cool decorations). It seriously looked amazing. I tried to get pictures of the decorations, but none of them really turned out. Here are a few to attempt to give you an idea of what it was like.

This is where the promenaders came out onto the dance floor.

The aurora borealis.The Great Wall of China.

Sarah looked absolutely beautiful as you can see. :o) And what a cute date too.

We had been telling Addison all day that we were going to a dance, and let me tell you, she was SOOOOOOOOO excited. When we got there (about half an hour early to get seats), though, everyone was sitting in the bleachers waiting for the Promenade to begin. Addison was very distressed that nobody was dancing. So she went out on the dance floor and began dancing herself. It was SOOOOO cute! She was seriously the pre-show entertainment. Tons of people were taking pictures of her. Pretty soon several other little kids joined her and they were having their own little dance. It was dang cute.The Prom is begun with family and friends coming to watch the Juniors "Promenade." Each pair of juniors dances (and not just regular teenage dancing, an actual choreographed ballroom type dance) out to the middle of the gym where they are introduced to the audience by the MC. Once all the juniors have been introduced, they all come out on the floor and do the big choreographed "Promenade" together.
If you're thinking, "Wait, I swear she's not dancing with same boy as the one Rebecca said was her date." You're right. Apparently picking your promenade partner usually happens WAY before your junior year, and a lot of times isn't who you go to prom with. If you're thinking this is weird, I did too, until I heard the explanation. The promenade is for Juniors ONLY. You can take someone from any grade to prom, but the promenade is to showcase the juniors, so often your partner is different than your prom date. Makes sense.Bart's cousin Levi was elected Prom King. In my school the prom king and queen was mostly a popularity contest, but in Moab they vote based on who did the most to help set up the gym for the promenade. Isn't that cool!?! From what I hear, Levi being king was well deserved. He was ALWAYS at that gym setting up. Way to go Levi!
After the promenade, they have a parent dance, where the parent dances with his or her Junior. This is why we came down. Bart got to dance with Sarah for this dance. It was really special. Addison got jealous when she saw her dad dancing with someone else, and ended up joining them. Aunt Debbie & Levi:
They had a few family dances after that, then the parents and family members were invited to leave so that the Juniors could continue their prom.

Sarah and Leonard dancing.Geneava & Jacob dancing.Addison & Grandma dancing. Back home our dances were nothing like this, so it was really fun to be part of it. Thanks Sarah for letting us come down and be part of your Prom!