A Night to Remember - Part Two

Once we finally arrived at the Pepsi Center, we decided against valeting the car - $30? Psh! - and found a perfect spot that was well-lit, it cost all of $12.  With the anxiety of getting downtown during rush hour dying down, I felt a rush of excitement surge through me as Jay and I crossed the street with other "Beliebers" and their Moms. This was gonna be good!

Of course a basketball arena doesn't have the best food, so we found something decent that would tide us over during the concert. I was reminded that I don't go to many concerts when I found myself getting impatient waiting for the show to start.  We got there early so we could have time for any issues that might arise, but it seemed 7:00 would never come.  And when it did, Carly Rae Jepsen took the stage.

There were a few people who fully enjoyed her performance, but it was quite clear most of us were there simply to see Justin Bieber. The sooner Carly Rae got off the stage, for those of us who weren't really fans, the better.  But after forty minutes of performing, she announced that Justin Bieber would be on next. So we waited. We could have gone to get more food and drinks, gone to the restroom, gone to the car - parked it somewhere else if we saw fit, and still made it back to our seats in time for the show.  It wasn't until 8:35, nearly an HOUR later, that Justin Bieber finally appeared on stage.

Jay.went.wild.  She was SO happy when Bieber 'flew' in with white wings behind him.  I must say I enjoy his latest CD, "Believe", so I knew the first song he performed, "All Around the World".  It was so cool to see how excited the little girl in front of us got, but the 11-year-old girl next to me was screaming, singing, jumping when instructed to do so, and dancing.  My oh-so-mature middle schooler exhibited every tween girl behavior she should when one of her favorite artists is LIVE on stage. And I loved every screaming-girl minute of it.

The concert was well-done, the kid definitely knows how to entertain. He even asked the crowd how we live at this altitude - 5,280 feet above sea level - and whether we got used to the thin air or not.  As we moved through the songs it seemed all the fans knew, Bieber let them know that anyone can achieve any goal they want - if they only believe in themselves and never give up. To hear that from a teenage boy who has done more than most of us will in a lifetime, had to inspire those who were open to it.

When he announced that he would be singing his last song I knew Jay was sad this huge moment was coming to an end. I'm not a fan of leaving an arena with a horde of people, so we left at the end and bought Jay a t-shirt with Justin Bieber on front and his tour dates on back. I knew he would perform an encore, but it wasn't a song Jay loved so I figured we would get out of dodge with the other people who left.

In the hallway our ears were still ringing from all of the loud music - music loud enough to drown out the screaming girls! - and I looked at Jay to ask her how she liked it.

"I can't believe it's over!" She said with tears in her eyes.  Mission accomplished.  She wanted to experience this so badly and we were able to make it happen for her.  It's something she likely won't ever forget, nor will I.  I'm not the one who has Justin Bieber pictures and posters plastered on my bedroom walls, rather I'm the Mom who wants to scream, sing, jump and dance when her kids get to do things that they truly, truly enjoy.  This was a Mommy moment I will never forget. Babe came through for his baby girl and let me be there to see her become the Jay-Baby we know, love and adore.  It truly was a night to remember, one I will forever cherish as her Mother.

A Night to Remember - Part 1

     A few months ago Jay asked for tickets to see Justin Bieber in concert. Mind you, the tickets had gone on sale in April, and this was October when she made her request. So, being the kind of Mom I am I hopped online to see just what said tickets were going for. Being the kind of Mom I am, I don't want nosebleed seats because if that's the case we could just buy the DVD and watch it on screen the way we would have to if we bought seats up near the rafters.  Tickets for even semi-decent seats were anywhere from $400 to $800...each, times two.
     So needless to say Justin Bieber was going to perform for many of his fans at the Pepsi Center, but Jay and I would not be part of the crowd.
     Then it occurred to me to have Babe ask one of his co-workers/friends if they could help.  I had to remind him a couple of times, but once he did the ball got rolling. Bieber's touring management company sold tickets for the face value - read: NOT $400-$800! - and we would get details the week of the concert after we paid for the tickets.  I was cautiously optimistic and Babe and I had decided to keep this information from Jay until we knew for sure. Then we decided that the day of the concert, after school, we would deliver this wonderful information.
     We got the tickets! Keeping it a secret from Jay? That would be the hard part. I told my Mom and my best friend because they were both excited for her to see Bieber, and of course I probably would have exploded had I not been able to talk about it with someone!
     On the morning of the concert I thought I would just have to tell Jay. She was so sad. When she sat down for breakfast I asked her what was wrong.
     "My friends who are going to the concert are talking about how excited they are on Instagram," she said. My heart broke.
     "Oh well, we'll be talking about our own excitement in June when he's here again," I said. We had convinced her that we could make it happen for the June 2013 concert date Bieber had added to his tour.
     "Yeah," she said in her most pathetic tween angst-ridden voice. "I dreamed we got tickets but you guys surprised me with them at 9 o'clock tonight so we couldn't go anyway. Then I dreamed we got tickets but I had to wait for Nana and Auntie and they made us late so I missed the concert," she recounted.
     "Don't be sad, Jay. We'll get our turn." Meanwhile all I wanted to do was run upstairs, shake Babe awake and tell him we just had to tell her. But he wasn't budging. So when Jay's ride arrived to take her to school I was SO glad I didn't have to look at that pitiful face anymore. The next time I saw her we would be able to tell her just what we'd be doing that night with the rest of the screaming fans!
     After a full day of anticipation Babe and Jay walked into the house and I had my phone camera all set to record the moment.
     "Jay, go put away the dishes and get ready to go because you're going to see Justin Bieber tonight," Babe said in his usual calm voice.
     Jay didn't believe it. Then when she decided it must be true she started shaking her head in disbelief. As she turned to walk away I knew I had to follow her because this was the moment I'd been waiting for - I expected a tween girl squeal! When she turned around, my phone still pointed in her direction, she was crying happy tears - then she requested I turn off the camera. She's not the crying type so she definitely didn't want it recorded!
      After much excitement, adding her own Instagram 'I'm going to see Justin Bieber tonight!' picture to the feed, and getting ready, Jay and I headed to the Pepsi Center. I couldn't have been more excited for her!