The after-party....

Since Thursday was such a stressful day (for everyone else!), I think they were more than glad to have our Posada zona escolar that night.  It would be held at Anabel's (1st grade) since she was hosting our Posada for the teachers at Rafael Buelna the next night (and also the celebration of December birthdays- hers).  The last I had heard was 5:00 starting time, and bring Mabel if I wanted.Around 4, she and Cosette get home.  I've been making my little benedictines and pimento cheese sandwiches.  I discuss the potential of our Posada tonight and Mabel says she'd love to go.  Cosette tells me she has a dance at her school.  Do I want to go?

Do I want to go?  Who does she think she's talking to?!

We hop in the car around 4:45 and head that way.  The show is supposed to start (you know where this is headed) at 5.  Around 5:05 they're welcoming us and basically telling us to pipe down so they can get started.

It began with a production by the high school kids.  The mics malfunctioned and it was awful to sit through.  But thirty minutes later, they were beginning the actual song and dance part.

Cosette's school is a private school that is much like the immersion school in Nashville.  The school goes from pre-K through high school, but there are two separate buildings.  The elementary school gets a building all to itself (the doors of classrooms, however, still open to the outside, motel-style).  Within the elementary school, there are two programs: elementary (called that in English) and primaria.  The primaria is your typical elementary school in Mexico with English instruction (though I think they might get English daily).  The elementary school is taught all in English with Spanish lessons daily.  I think it's a pretty cool program.  

Cosette only enrolled this year, so her English is not that good...yet. 

 It should already be great by the end of her first year.  I'll be the judge in June!

They divided up the show by age group, so we sat through the 4 pre-K's from the elementary school, and then the 4 pre-K's from the primaria.  Then we sat through the K's of each.  

The pre-K's were absolutely hysterical (pun intended I suppose- I was laughing hysterically because there were at least two kids in each group who were crying hysterically).  

One group (see picture) rocked it out to Jingle Bell Rock and the boys had blow up 

guitars.  They weren't the most talented (most of them stood there like a lump on a log) but the teacher was totally into it!

Most groups did a Christmas number, and even the primaria kids did English songs for the most part.  The costuming and dancing is by far more important than the singing.  This is a production, not a singing show.

Cosette's group, much to my disappointment, danced to the chicken dance.  

There was no singing, at all.  The dancing was given since it was the chicken dance.  And their formation was mostly walking around in a circle while doing the motions.  Cosette was a butterfly, but I think her costume was a dance outfit from at least a year ago!  

After their dance (at 6:45), we posed for a few pictures and then headed home to cut and de-crust the sandwiches and head to the posada.