Veggie Tales Live

A couple months ago, I received a mailer advertising Veggie Tales Live here at Hylton Chapel. Of course, buying tickets to the show was a no-brainer: Leah loves VT, and something like this would be a special (and memorable) experience for both of us. The only catch was that I didn't want her to know about it.

Keeping the secret was easy the first month, but as show time drew closer, it was harder not to mention it in front of Leah. Finally, the day arrived, and we could reveal part of the surprise:

Me: "Leah, we have a special surprise for you today!"
Leah: "What is it?"
Me: "I'm not telling you. It's a surprise! Get in the car so we can go."
L: "Is it ice cream? Is it a pet? Is it the library?" (Those were just a few of several "surprises" that would have made her day.)

When we arrived at the venue, people were lined up outside the door. I could hardly keep the secret any longer, so I scanned the crowd for a clue for Leah. Finally, I spotted a man in a Bob the Tomato shirt.

Me: "Leah, who's that? On that man's shirt?"
Leah, squinting, trying to figure out which man: "Bob?"
Me: "Yup. So guess who we might see inside?"
Leah: "Veggie Tales!"

She was actually pretty subdued (surprisingly), but I guess that was to be expected considering 1) it was her rest time, and 2) large groups tend to overwhelm her. No matter. I reaped the benefits: instead of sitting next to me on the pew (though, it would have been hard for her to see over the person in front of us) or dancing in the aisle, she snuggled in my lap for most of the show. Every so often she'd dance in the aisle, but most of the time she wanted to watch the show from the comfort of Momma's lap. (Like I was going to refuse a chance to cuddle with my little girl!)

At one point, a little girl in the same pew asked Leah to play and dance. I tried getting a photo of Leah and her new "friend", but they were moving too fast for a good photo. I didn't mind, though. Leah was dancing with abandon and singing Veggie Tales songs. Before we knew it, the show was over, and it was time to head home... but not before stopping to view the merchandise.

We had managed to avoid that area before the show and during intermission (thanks to the crowd), but we exited the sanctuary early enough that nobody was at the merchandise table yet. They must have been emitting some child-sensing beacon because Leah walked right over there to view the wares for sale. Considering the special occasion (and the rarity of it), I caved and bought a toy for Leah and Hunter to share. (They LOVE it, too; it's a VT bath toy. Now bath time is even wetter than before!)

All in all, I loved making that memory with my baby girl, all the while filling her love tank and mine. Thanks, Veggie Tales!

Momma and Daughter

Junior Asparagus, Leah's fave VT

"Pizza Angel" one of Leah's fave songs

"The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything"

Try as I might, I couldn't get a good photo of Leah dancing in the aisle, so this will have to suffice.

Hmmm, Bob's missing something (a pupil). As soon as the performers were aware of the wardrobe malfunction, Bob turned away from the audience until someone could deftly re-apply his eye.

Ahhh, THAT'S better!

Hunter might have missed the show, but at least he, too, got to enjoy something from it: the VT bath toy Leah picked out for the two of them to share.