The Toy Soldier

Followers of this blog may recall when Palmer fearlessly embraced the stage at his school's fall festival.

So, when Palmer came home with a flyer advertising the local high school's holiday production and their need for K-5 participants in the show, I asked Palmer if he wanted to participate.  Palmer's response was ecstatic about the possibility of a real stage, real costumes, and a real audience.

I quickly signed him up and committed the family to 6 weeks of rehearsals in preparation for the high school show.

I didn't read the fine print...the show was the Nutcracker and I signed my son up for a ballet.

Nevertheless, Palmer never seemed to notice that he was the only little boy in practice and took his new roles as the lead toy soldier and a gingerbread man very seriously.  Rarely have I seen him work so hard or be so proud of his parts in the show.

Palmer was beyond thrilled that so many family members, friends, and even his kindergarten teacher attended his show.

Right before the show, the kids had one last rehearsal on the stage.  Word on the street is that Palmer danced his heart out, came offstage and said, "Wow. That was so fun!"  He had to be informed that the previous run WASN'T the actual show.  He still had one more go-round.  ha

Incredibly determined and in character, Palmer's soldier role stole the show (no bias here).

If you want to see more...

After the show, Palmer handed out autographs like a boss and received a bag of skittles and a performance t-shirt in lieu of a flower bouquet.

A star is born...

-Bethany