Making Dreams Come True

Pass it On

                One cool winter evening nearly 20 years ago, my mom took my sister and me to see Disney’s Beauty and the Beast on Ice. It was like a dream to see larger-than-life clocks, candlesticks, and silverware spinning and Belle dancing on white glistening ice. We had fluffy pink cotton candy to make our fingers sticky, and left the coliseum full of dreams – Mom of seeing the Broadway version of the show, Becky of being an ice skater, and me of living in a little French village where I would be swept off my feet by a kind and gentle man. Mom eventually got to see the Broadway version at the Buell, Becky was an ice skater for a season, and I lived in Paris and was swept off my feet in Denver, so dreams do come true!

                Dad invited Addie, Jeff, and me to attend Ralston Valley’s version of Beauty and the Beast this evening. It’s nearly spring, so Jeff’s baseball schedule has already started to consume his weeknights, so I left work (after an ever-so-graceful presentation at a staff meeting), raced home, grabbed Addie’s Belle dress, Sleeping Beauty high heels, Ariel crown, and Addie, and returned to Arvada for dinner and a show.

                Two. Addie is two. So naturally she wanted to walk in her high heels and long dress. Grandpa was able to strike a deal with her, and he carried her to the sidewalk before she began her I’m-two-and-big-enough-to-wear-high-heels balancing act, and she didn’t want to hold my hand because then it didn’t look like she could do it her independent little self. We made it up the stairs and into the beautiful, but packed theater and found three seats together… in the very back row! Truthfully, there can’t be a bad seat in the house, but some are more convenient than others with a two-year-old.

                30 years ago, I was 15 months old. 30 years ago, I decided I wanted to be potty trained. Throughout my childhood, Mom said things like, “I didn’t want you potty trained yet. Diapers were so much easier,” and, “You insisted on using the potty rather than a diaper, so whenever we went anywhere, I had to know where the restrooms were located. Three toddlers and public restrooms are a pain.” Throughout my childhood, I thought, “Wow! Look at me! I was potty trained at 15 months! I hope my kids do that!”

                A year ago, Addie was 15 months old, and when she started going in her princess potty, Dad said, “Like mother, like daughter.” I thought he was referring to Addie being like me, but I am slowly realizing he could mean me like my mom. Don’t get me wrong… I like that Addie can take care of potty all by herself, and the fact that she can really do the whole process by herself has freed up a little of my time. But, whenever we go anywhere, I have to know where the restrooms are located, and if we go somewhere and stay in one spot for awhile – like a Rockies game or musical at the high school – I have to be prepared to see only part of the show because I don’t trust the world enough to let my two-year-old go potty by herself in a public restroom.

                “I want to watch Beauty and the Beast with Grandpa,” Addie said as we sat down. We pointed out the gigantic book on the stage and then music started playing. The lights dimmed and the show began.

                Addie saw Belle and said, “She’s singing, Mommy.”

                “She is honey, but you have to whisper.”

                “Okay,” she whispered.

                These little conversations went on for several scenes before Addie said, “I want to go potty.”

                I thought, “Of course you do. We have been in one spot for twenty minutes, and though you love Beauty and the Beast and dancing and singing, you need to move.” I whispered, “Hold it for a little while longer. We will go at intermission.”

                “Okay,” she whispered, but two scenes later, “I want to go poopy.”

                “She’s good!” I thought. “She knows that gets our attention faster than potty these days!” I whispered, “Hold it for a little while longer. We will go at intermission.”

                “Okay,” she whispered, and I began whisper-pointing out different things on stage to take her mind off of getting out of the dark theater.

                By the time Beast showed Belle to her room and Belle sat on the canopy bed talking to the dresser, Addie wasn’t just restless…she was exhausted. “She’s sleepy,” she said.

                As we exited the theater and I apologized to Dad for not getting to see the whole show, he said, “That’s okay. It was really just a fun way to spend time with you guys. Didn’t Mom take someone to see Beauty and the Beast on Ice?”

                At that moment, I realized that I am not the only one who dreams of passing Mom on to Addie and her cousins through things she loved to do, and I was reminded that Mom is not the only one getting passed on to my Addie Girl.