The Lee Family: Sofia's First Cotillion

Last night was Sofia's first Cotillion, which had a 1950s theme. Cotillion is held in the cafeteria of the middle school four Fridays in a row and each have a different theme. The first week is the 1950s, the second is western, followed by disco and then formal night! I told Sofia a few weeks ago that she was going to go to Cotillion and that it would be fun to get at least one friend to go with her. We ended up paired up with Lilliana and Frankie, who are both in the Aspire Academy. Sofia isn't really friends with either of them but they are nice and I really wanted Sofia to go with someone and not go alone. I was worried she would balk at the idea of going if she had to go by herself. Of course, she originally suggested going with Liam, but I figured everyone would assume they are "dating" so it's better to go with a few girls and then meet up with Liam at Cotillion.

Thankfully, our friend Beth has a really cute 50s paddle skirt and outfit that we were able to borrow. I was really hesitant to buy a skirt or outfit because I doubt Sofia will ever use it again, so it was great to be able to borrow such a cute outfit! Sofia was so excited to wear it that she actually came downstairs in her 50s outfit Friday morning wanting to wear it to school all day. I pretty much knew how that would work out in middle school, so I told her that I was worried she would get it dirty and she would need to wait until that night's Cotillion. Her best friend, Carmel, isn't going to Cotillion and she really wanted her to see the outfit! I convinced her to change into her regular skirt and t-shirt even though it was a high of 37, and headed off to school.

When she got home from school that afternoon, she and Olivia played for a bit and then she took a shower and washed her hair. I was super excited to get to style her hair for the night! After she was showered and dressed, I blowed her hair dry and styled it like it would be styled in the 50s. It really turned out super cute, even though I had no idea what I was doing! Thankfully, the hair spray I bought was magic and really held everything in place all night.

Around 5:15pm, Frankie showed up and soon Lilliana arrived. By then, Sofia was dressed and more than ready to go! We had a fruit tray, pita chips and hummus and peanut butter Ritz "sandwiches" for snacks. We were told that the evening would offer pizza and other food for Cotillion, but apparently they had cupcakes and popcorn. So we were glad we had some snacks for the girls beforehand. The girls hung out, ate, and talked before we took a few photos together and then I drove the girls to the school so they would be there for the 6:30pm start. They were so cute and it was hard to drop them off and drive away! I so wanted to stay and see how it all went down! Thankfully, Kelley, one of the Pink Pirates moms was chaperoning and send me a bunch of photos and videos throughout the evening! Sofia was having so much fun and Kelley said she danced with a bunch of boys, while her daughter only danced with other girls. Since Sofia went to two different elementary schools, she actually knows a lot more of the kids, and danced with a few boys she knew from her CES days. I loved getting little glimpses of their evening.

I picked up the girls at 8:30pm and each of them was escorted by a boy! It was adorable! The boys were so thoughtful and kind and told us to have a good night and called me "ma'am"! Love it! The girls got in the car and were chattering like little squirrels! They had such a great time and Sofia told me who she danced with, and I told her I knew. She said "Wait, where you there?" I told her Kelley kept me updated with photos and videos and it looked like she had a great time! I dropped both girls off and when Sofia and I pulled into the garage, she looked and me and said "Mom, I had such a GREAT time!" and it was obvious that she really meant it. I loved that she'd had so much fun and was so open to the event! She is now super excited for next week, which is Western Night! I love the tradition of Cotillion and love that she's enjoying it so much!

This is the inspiration for Sofia's hair! Found on Pinterest and love it!