How Did He Get Old Enough for This?

Yesterday was the first day of Junior Cotillion for Bryant and many of his friends from school. He actually missed baseball practice for this. Doesn't he look handsome? It was the first time he's worn a coat and tie, escorted and seated a lady, danced with a girl. It was also the first time I tied a tie. (Carey still went to practice since he's the coach, but we figured it out! You really can find anything on google.) ANYWAY, I did not do cotillion as a child, but my cousins did. I guess it might be something you do in smaller towns. As it turned out, I was asked to chaperone this week, and I am really glad I was there. We both learned a lot. In this first class, Bryant learned:

* He should offer a lady his right arm to escort her. He is responsible for choosing where they are going to sit. But, she went ahead and told the boys that even though they are officially in charge, it is nice and polite to ask the lady where she would like to sit. So, really, the lady decides. I thought that was probably a good lesson to go ahead and learn when you are 10!

* He learned to button his coat when standing, unbutton when seated.

* He learned to place his nametag on his right side.

* He learned the electric slide, the fox trot and the shag.

This is just a list of a few of the things he learned. I was so impressed with how well everyone behaved, and I was super impressed with how clearly the teacher taught the children. I'm glad I was there to learn the fox trot! There were basically two schools represented in this session of cotillion, and many of the moms from the other school stayed and watched. I would never have thought that was an option, and Bryant did not want me to stay anyway. We talked ahead of time about what I should not do to embarass him, and he told me not to get mad at him and not to take pictures. I told him the only thing I would be upset with him was if he was mean or rude or in some way made a girl feel bad when he was told to dance with her. He did a pretty good job with this. I only saw him cringe or roll his eyes once. We've already talked about how this can be very hurtful. I held true to my promise and did not take pics, but another mom there snapped a few for me. If I get them I just might post them as well.

Anyway, now I can dance with my son. It isn't fancy, but we can do it. How in the world did he get old enough for this? As you can see by this last picture, he's not quite sure what he thinks about this just yet.