Where to start, where to start. It was certainly something to experience and I am so happy that we went. It's not every day you get to get dressed up and act like adults.
Here is us before we left and what the tickets looked like.
We left around 4:30, drove to the metro and then hopped on the orange line to metro center. So far so good. We get out and we start walking and walking. Yeah, a girl in 3 inch heels pounding the pavement while my dress was blowing up, not my idea of how the evening should start. We get in contact with our friend and find out we have to walk more. Fine, I'm numb what was the difference, it was all about the experience. While we are walking we pass a CVS and I dip in for a Snickers (it's what's for dinner) and a pair of socks. These socks to be exact - remember them for later.
We find our friend, we say hello and we go in. Coat check and we are on our way up to the ball. Apparently, there were three balls at the Convention Center. The Commander and Chief was upstairs, another ball downstairs and the one we were going to.
I thought it would be a little more "bally" then it was. I guess I was thinking there would be dancing and such but really it was a convention center with stages for acts to perform. There were bars and food tables. Not a seat to be found unless you were in the VIP area. Here is the room.
The first picture is where Alicia Keys and Jamie Foxx played on the piano. The second picture is the room and the third picture is me in front of where the President and First Lady took their first dance. Jennifer Hudson was amazing.
We kind of mingled around for a little bit. Katy Perry was first and she was really good live. She gave a lot of great energy to the room. The picture I have is not good but we could see her. Then it was Alicia Keys and Jamie Fox. They only played a song each. Vice President and Dr Biden came out. Then we waited and waited and Jennifer Hudson came out and the President and First Lady danced.
After that Smokey Robinson came on the stage in front of us. He still have some good moves. This is how close we were to him.
And here is a little Smokey for your listening pleasure. He was really good and it was great to see such a fun act perform.
Please note by now, I was carrying my shoes. Three inch heels and a broken foot don't really go together when you have to stand for six hours. The bars were getting more crowded but they were moving rather quickly. While we waited in the bar line, Amber and Blaine from Glee came on the stage. They have some serious pipes.
After them the Black Violins came on. Holy cow were they cool. One guy played an electric violin and the other played a regular one. Sorry for the lack of terms. They had a DJ and a drummer. Look them up, it was just so fun to see them play.
It's getting late and we are closing in on 11pm - yes that is late for parents. I told Charlie I was not leaving until I say Usher, he agreed and we continued to stand and chit chat with the people around us. The lights get low and Far East Movement comes on, on the far stage. They were good, but really at this point I just wanted to see Usher and we do.
WOW - he is a great performer. Unreal and he had the whole crowd going. Here is a picture of him and a video or two.
Totally worth the wait and it was a great ending. The mad rush out was not that bad. We got our coats, saw our friend again. He escorted us out and we were on our way.
Now those socks I showed you, they were on my feet and I walked to the metro and all the way home with just those socks on. It was probably the best outfit change I could have done. There is no way I could have walked all the way back to the metro in my shoes - not a chance. Did I care that I was walking on rocks and glass and dirt in socks, no, my feet were happy.
We got home and into our bed around 1:30am. Look at us crazy kids staying out that late. Was it worth it, absolutely, would I do it again, probably. It was a once and a lifetime experience and I loved every minute of it, but next time I will know.....long dress and a pair of flats. No need to get your hair done or anything crazy like that because really it's more like a concert then a ball. Don't get me wrong I loved dressing up and seeing all the celebs perform, but I just wish it was more of a ball.
The best part of the night was spending it with Charlie. We know we were very lucky to get to do this and were so thankful to go. I could not have asked for a better night out with him. Now back to reality and our normal every day life.
