Abby Lee Miller (of Dance Moms) Book Signing!

I've been trying to come up with some fun, memorable things to do with my 14-year-old daughter this summer, and when I saw that Abby Lee Miller of Dance Moms was coming to a local bookstore for a book signing, I knew we had to go meet her.  My daughter is a huge fan of the show, even though it makes me cringe to see Abby's "tough love" teaching style.  She certainly gets great results with her students, but as a mom, it's difficult to watch.  Nevertheless, my daughter enjoys the show, and now that her older sister/viewing buddy is away at college, I've been watching the show with her.

It was definitely an adventure. First, we had to buy the book in advance in order to get wristbands for admittance to the signing. Then we had to wait outside for more than two hours in 90-degree heat--and then a thunderstorm--before we could get inside the store.  Then it was another 40 minutes of waiting in a non-air conditioned basement room to get our books signed and a photo op with Abby.

As we neared the front of the line, we saw Abby chiding the bookstore owners for the huge fan they had blowing on her. It was sending her hair billowing in her face while she was trying to sign the books and take photos, so she stood up and made them adjust things before she would continue. It was exactly the kind of Type-A behavior we've seen from her on the show, and it was great to see her in action up-close.  And I tell you what--she was 100% right, that fan was ridiculous, and it was sweltering down there in the signing room.

I decided while I was standing in line (lots of time to think, you know) that I wanted to get a picture with her that imitated her "screaming" face on the cover. It really is an eye-catching photo for a book cover, and I thought it would be fun to replicate that. My daughter was mortified, but Abby was a great sport. She made me "take a nice one first" and then my daughter slinked out of the shot while Abby and I hammed it up.

All in all, an unforgettable experience--exactly what I was hoping for!