With great satisfaction, Ellie finished up her 8th performance of The Bridge of Terabithia. It was a very fun and rewarding role. I know I am her momma, but she rocked!!! She never missed a line (had about 130), had about 5 costume changes, and in order to be Maybelle, she had to conjure up tons of ENERGY! The whole cast was fantastic and just to share a little of the story with you, I have posted pictures below....
This is the director Catherine Christy who did an amazing job of directing this cast of 25 kids who were all between age five and seventeen!
The play starts with Maybelle bugging brother Jessie. She couldn't wait to tell him the news that a new family was moving in the old Perkins' place. He pretty much ignored her and told her not to get her hopes up! Being the only boy in a poor family, Jessie feels a lot of pressure and very little love. He is sheltered and knows nothing outside of the bubble he lives in.
Before Jessie goes on his daily run, Maybelle teases him and tells him she KNOWS why he is going to run! He is wanting to beat the fastest runner in the school, Gary Fulcher!
School starts the next day and school bully Janice Avery is already at it, harassing the other school girls and scaring everyone in the school.
Leslie, the new girl in town, makes her appearance and school and quickly becomes a laughing stock. She looks funny and acts funny and doesn't even have a TV in her house!
At recess, the boys get ready for their race, and Leslie asks if she can join!
Gary Fulcher tells her in no uncertain terms that "No you cannot!" but Jessie comes to Leslie's rescue and asks Gary if he is afraid to race a girl. Gary relents and the race is on!
As the kids race, everyone else in the schoolyard is riveted! Who will win?
Jessie nearly beats Gary Fulcher for the first time in his life, but Leslie beats him out at the last minute and he is sorely disappointed.
On the way home from school, Leslie and Jessie talk about the race and begin a tentative friendship. Leslie decides they need a place "just for them" and the idea of a magic kingdom called Terabithia begins to form. 
They swing across a dry creek on a rope and enter a magic world where Leslie sees nymphs and fauns and goblins and dragons. She declares herself the queen and Jessie the king, but Jessie can't quite see the magic world yet. 
A couple weeks later, Maybelle shows Billy Jean a special treasure: some twinkies her daddy brought her all the way from Washington!
It isn't long before Janice Avery steals those twinkies and Maybelle is hurt and furious! Jessie and Leslie retreat to Terabithia to make a plan of revenge. During this time, Jessie and Leslie become closer friends and Leslie begins to share open Jessie's eyes to the amazing world around him. Leslie, (along with their teacer Ms. Edmunds) appreciate and encourage Jessie's gift of art.
His family, however, still does not understand him. They ridicule him and for Christmas get him a race car track that shows that they have no understanding of his true interests. 
Jessie, meanwhile, wants to get a present for Leslie, but knows it's gotta be "just about free." When he sees the "Free Dog" sign, he knows just what he will get her.
It was a scene that always brought oohs, aahs and lotsa laughs.
Leslie gave Jessie a paint set, exactly what he wanted! The Terabithians were pleased at the gift giving, and they declared it a "time of greatest joy!"
After intermission, we learn that Janice Avery herself has a heart. Leslie catches her crying in the girls' bathroom and there is a lot of discussion about reaching out to others in need. 
Meanwhile, Leslie and Jessie continue to wage epic wars in the land of Terabithia. Once the seasonal rains start coming in, however, Jessie becomes afraid and tries to face his fear of water. The dry creek becomes a rushing river and he dreads visiting Terabithia. He no longer feels like a king.
One rainy day, he gets a call from his teacher who wants to take Jessie on a field trip to Washington to see an art museum. He slips out without asking his parents or telling Leslie.
Leslie goes on to Terabithia by herself and...
as fate would have it the rope breaks as she is swinging across.
When Jessie returns his family is worried. Leslie's body has been found, but nobody knows where Jessie is. Maybelle knows, but they are not sure whether to believe her.
Once they see their son is safe, they have deliver the news of Leslie's death. Jessie's world as he knew it is crushed. Will all the things Leslie taught him die too?
For the first time, Jessie's father talks to him as a son and shares some of his own experiences with death. Jessie returns to Terabithia but is despondent when he can't see the Terabithians or feel the magic. Finally, he begins summoning them with everything within him, and they appear, one by one. 
It is a time of greatest sorrow. They have a procession for their queen. 
Suddenly, a little voice yells out. It is Maybelle. She has followed Jessie to Terabithia and is about to fall into the creek. He pulls her across and gives her a queen. He then boldly begins to introduce her to Terabithia, just as Leslie did to him at one time. 
Jessie tells Maybelle that she is the queen the Terabithians have been waiting for and crowns her with a wreath of leaves and berries. He tells her he will build her a bridge to Terabithia that she can use anytime. 
~The End~
We went to see Toy Story 3...
Ate cookie cake and opened presents...
Played a couple of games including this one where the boys had to wear whatever item of clothing was pulled out of a pillowcase. Hilarious! 
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