Morrow Family: Panda Fashion Show!

We got to be a part of a very special event this past weekend! Last year at the Runway for Research we met Lori and she asked Tati to be in a fashion show called P.A.N.D.A (People Acting Now Discover Answers) in Phoenix.. which I said of course!

They get donations from the fashion show to help research Pediatric Cancer and it's in partners with the Steele Center and Dr. Katsanis who is researching Immunology..a different treatment than chemo.

This show was AMAZING and huge! This was the 11th annual event and have raised about 3 million dollars total so far.

We were very honored to be part of this special event and especially Tati.. loves this kind of stuff!

First we went to a boutique in Scottsdale called the Garage..quite expensive and suuuper cute stuff! She will be showcasing a dress from this boutique, and doesn't get to keep the outfit this time..like she has from the previous Runway shows in Tucson.

Then, the kids had rehearsal at the Biltmore, where the event takes place. Erika was her supervising adult for her group..the Orange Group. Michellina (I think) was the model helping the kids learn how to walk down the runway.. of course Tati didn't need much help in that department.. she is a natural!

We then had to leave early during rehearsal because I was hosting Bunco that night and had to go make dinner! I made pollo and lomo saltado with rice..yum! We just played one round and talked, since it was just me, Colette, Suzette, and Cari!

Saturday morning we had to be at the Biltmore at 8:30am. The parents weren't supposed to be part of rehearsal and backstage, etc.. we were supposed to just drop them off, but I was a little uncomfortable just dropping her off to strangers, but did get comfortable with the whole Panda team very quickly..although I wanted to be with Tati the whole time and really had no where else to go and certainly didn't want to drive home and come back!
They had crafts, snacks, movies, etc for the kids before the show and got to practice on the real runway a couple times. They also got Paradise Bakery for lunch.. Tati loves that and I even did a good job not eating all the cookies :) There were lots of auction items in the lobby that I would have loooved to purchase any one of them! tons of cute stuff!
The show was so much fun and let me tell you about the FOOD! gourmet lunch.. antipasti was asparagus wrapped in proscuitto and fresh mozzarella cheese and some cheese tart, salami, and some other stuff.. yum! and this strawberry parfait custard.. oh my gosh.. delicious! there was also chocolate and I ate both..haha. Hailey had fruit and veggies and ate a lot of it.. she did great! For lunch, it was yuuummy chicken with risotto, grilled artichoke, which I tried for the first time and it was sooooo good. Hailey had crispy chicken and tater tots :)
So just before lunch was the show and Tati was close to the beginning.. She stole the show.. no joke! everyone even mentioned.. strangers even.. how she stole the show..she is just too stinkin adorable! She wore a pink and grey dress and carried a cupcake lunch pail and wore pink jeweled converse. When she walked down that runway people just awwweed and clapped and it was ridiculous! She did this perfect twirl at the end of the stage and then on her way back, her shoelace came untied..poor girl, and tripped. She got up and ran the rest of the way..haha! Then after all the kids finished, she came out again! haah they let her walk again and she did perfect! and once again.. everyone went crazy over her! Unfortunately I didn't get any good shots, cuz I didn't put my big flash on and the hot shoe flash didn't reach the distance I was taking the shots from... bummer. The 2nd time she went on the runway, she gave one of the kids that was walked past a high five..haha..she's so funny.
They then did a slide show of how the money raised has helped and then one of the kids who had liver cancer's mother spoke about Andreas, her son's story.. Tati, Noah, and Andreas were the only 3 kids in the show who had cancer. We got to meet Noah's parents which was pretty crazy, because he was in the hospital in Tucson getting a transplant the same time Tati was.. but we did spend most of our time in the PICU, but I was surprised we didn't get to know them then.. bummer. They are from Scottsdale.
The show was wonderful and I was so glad to have Tati be a part of it..I think it will be a fun memory for her :) and she got to keep the awesome jeweled pink converse.