White Wedding Cake

Sometimes something so simple becomes something extraordinary.  That happened today. It only lasted a moment, but it was magic. I'm writing it all down so I won't forget that little bit of bliss, and so that one day Bereket can read this and know something special happened to her, too.

For Bereket's 3rd birthday, my dear friend Jolene (one of Bereket's two amazing godmothers) gave her a gift certificate to The Children's Theatre Company in Minneapolis. Since Jason is away hunting in Wisconsin this weekend, it was the perfect time to use it for a girl's day out. I couldn't believe my good luck when I got front row tickets for the three of us to see Cinderella.

Jolene wanted to make the day extra special so she got us reservations for brunch at Hell's Kitchen, one of the most popular restaurants in Minneapolis. I had always wanted to eat there and the food and atmosphere didn't disappoint.  But my sweet, strong willed three-year-old reminded us throughout the entire meal that she has her own ideas about things...refusing to try even a bite of her lemon ricotta pancake (she has no idea what she missed out on!) and then refusing the french fries we ordered as a replacement and then deciding that sitting under the table was way cooler than sitting on her seat.  No, taking a day trip to Minneapolis with a preschooler isn't a recipe for perfection. Or is it?

Jolene and I had read incredible reviews of the production, but they had not prepared us for the creative, modern, colorful, hilarious spin on Cinderella we were about to experience.  Bereket was on the edge of her seat the entire time and Jolene and I were just as enchanted.

When Cinderella had been released from the closet her evil stepmother and stepsisters had locked her in, and showed the king's servant her glass slipper, I found myself sad the fairytale was about to end.  Little did I know it was just coming to life.

In the final scene, Cinderella appears at the top of the stairs in an exquisite white gown. It is her wedding day to the prince.  I could feel Bereket holding her breath in awe on my lap. After Cinderella and the prince exchanged sparkling rings, a huge white wedding cake was rolled onto the stage.  That's when something magical happened.  Cinderella and her prince cut the cake. Then Cinderella paused. She turned her head and looked right at Bereket and smiled. Then she bent down and handed Bereket a piece of her royal wedding cake.

Jolene looked at me with tears in her eyes.  There were tears in mine, too.  Jolene said, "It is so perfect!" And it was. Is there anything more beautiful than seeing Cinderella pause in the middle of her wedding to give your princess-obsessed child a piece of cake? 

As the curtain was coming down on this very special moment, Cinderella made eye contact with Bereket one last time and gave her a little smile.  Jolene and I melted again.

I think we were all floating a bit as we left the auditorium, but by the time we reached the front door,  reality had returned.  My strong willed child refused to put her coat on.  We had a potty training accident in the car seat on the way home.  Still, my heart is warm and thankful as I write this.

Bereket clenched the piece of cake in it's wax paper wrapper all the way home in her little fist.  It was a little mushy by the time we unwrapped it and she could finally have her special treat at the kitchen table.  But as I looked at the table smeared with white frosting and watched Bereket lick every last bit from her fingers, it was proof that something magical had indeed happened. And it happened to my little girl.

And it was perfect.