The kids' first feis has come and gone. And, it was pretty intense.
A Feis (Irish pronunciation: [fʲɛʃ]) or Fèis (Scottish Gaelic pronunciation: [feːʃ]) is a traditional Gaelic arts and culture festival. ... The term "feis" is commonly used referring to Irish dance competitions and, in Scotland, to immersive teaching courses, specialising in traditional music and culture.
Feis - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feis
My daughter has been in dance since she was three. She started Irish dancing two years ago, but this past fall she really started to take it seriously.
My son started, too. I've been trying to get him to do it for years and this year was the year he was all for it.
As a bonus, both kids' friends started, too.
When they started, I wasn't sure if either would want to compete. I really hoped they both would go to the feis. But, my wallet was thankful that both didn't go. This sport isn't cheap.
I still hope my son will do at least one, but I also know that he probably won't want to do it. He enjoys the dancing, but not the spotlight.
The weeks leading up to the big day was nerve-racking for me. Not for the kids, but for me. The cost, the shoes, the wig, the hotel! Ahhhh!
The shoes took two months for me to get the right size. The first pair, I thought they were too small and I exchanged them for too large. Two more exchanges later and we were back to the first size.
Through Amazon, I found MedUSA for her shoes. They were amazing! There are mixed reviews, but I don't think any of the bad reviewers reached out to the company. Their customer service was spot on and helped me to get the right shoe for my daughter.
I found Feis Buddies on Instagram for her poodle socks. It also happened to be a sale so we got four pairs for the price of two.
Finally, her wig. Again, I went to Amazon. It was the last thing I got and it was what I worried about the most. I even did a dry run to ensure I could do it.
After registering for the feis, we booked our hotel. Yes, we were only an hour from home. But, the hotel we stayed at had a mini water park! And, her event started at 8:30 AM. Driving at the crack ass of dawn was not something anyone wanted to do on Sunday morning.
The last thing to do was to make sure her bag was packed.
I talked to a lot of seasoned parents, read dancer blogs, and even watched a few youtube videos about what to expect. I came up with a list of what we would need for our first event. After attending, I added one more item to our list.
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- Costume
- Shoes
- Poodle Socks
- Wig
- Hair necessities
- First aid
- Safety pins
- Make-up
- Water
- Snacks
- Time killers
- Blanket/chairs
Any guesses which one I ended up adding?
I learned immediately that seasoned families stake out a space with blankets and/or chairs. They don't mess around.
I'm sure this list will grow, but for now, I'm not trying to go overboard.
After it was all over. The preparing, the nerves, the money, it was all absolutely worth it for the look on her face after she performed. It helped that she took first in both of her dances.
I'm looking forward to the next one!
