Disclaimer for those without small children in your lives in the last 10 years: much of this post will make no sense to you and will likely bore you to tears. However, if you’re curious about how those of us with little kids spend our time and money, read on!

My husband and I and our girls attended our family’s sixth Wiggles concert on August 14. We first saw them as a “preview” clip on a Barney tape we had. They were  a no-frills group of four guys (Greg, Murray, Anthony and Jeff) in their signature yellow, red, blue and purple t-shirts singing about fruit salad. The song stuck in my  head, and the Wiggles have been stuck in the hearts of our kids for the better part of a decade!

In the beginning, before the Disney empire got a hold of them and before the Wiggly Dancers, the shows were in small venues. Our first two concerts were international affairs! We crossed the bridge into Canada and saw them at a small theater in Windsor, The Capitol. The first time we went, it was just Michael, Zachary and me. Noah was only a few months old, so he stayed with his grandparents. That was 2001.

Zachary sports his new Wags the Dog hat at his first Wiggles concert. 11-17-01

We were so impressed that they left the house lights up, interacted with the kids–even coming down into the audience to collect roses for Dorothy the Dinosaur. Because of the small size of the theater, the kids were literally dancing in the aisles and we felt safe letting him beyond our grasp (though not out of sight). We were sorry we had left Noah home, even as young as he was, he would have had fun.

Waiting for the Wiggles concert. Check out the shirts! 8-22-02

The second time we went, we felt like pros. We picked roses up on the way so the boys could give them to one of the Wiggles who would deliver them to Dorothy on their behalf. We also wore yellow, red, blue and purple t-shirts.  Hokey, I know, but fun! We saw a psuedo-celebrity, Geoffrey Fieger, in the lobby. Ooh, aah… That was 2002.

Our third and fourth Wiggles concerts were at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, Michigan. The Fox is a similar theater to the one in Windsor, but without the benefit of the American-Canadian exchange rate on ticket prices and souvenirs! While the “feel” of the show didn’t change, we started to notice a more elaborate “production” with the introduction of  “The Wiggly Dancers.”

The grandmas and the boys at the Wiggles concert. 8-20-03

For the third one, Michael and our moms took the boys because Leah had just been born. That was 2003.

Leah's first Wiggles concert. 8-6-04

I was back, and Leah was there, too for our fourth one, we took roses for Dorothy, but left our Wiggles-colored t-shirts at home (there were five of us now, so it didn’t really work anymore).  Leah was a year old and I’ll never forget how she sat mesmerized by the stage– nobody on it–just the stage while we waited for the concert to start. That was 2004.

Sometime after that fourth concert, the Wiggles joined Disney, the venues got bigger and so did the price tags of the tickets, and “the yellow-shirted Wiggle,” Greg (Page) had to leave the group due to health problems. Are any of those the reason we didn’t go for a few years? If so, it wasn’t a conscious decision on our part, but none of us saw another concert again for four years.

They don't look too tortured!

This time it was at the Palace of Auburn Hills (that’s where the Piston’s play, if you don’t know, so we’re talking BIG venue). Michael took Zachary, Noah and Leah while I stayed home with Sarah (funny that they seem to come to Detroit in August and I seem to have babies in July). The boys declared they were “too old” for the Wiggles (bah! I’m 41 and I’m not too old!), but Michael reported that it was still a great show and they all had fun.That was 2007.

Now, it’s 2009 and we have a two year old again. What better reason to see another Wiggles concert! Back in April, we bought the tickets–only four because the boys insisted they were way too old now. I still don’t know about that, but was willing to let them stay with Granny for the afternoon rather than have them complain about their mortification at being dragged along. After purchasing the tickets, I promptly put it on my calendar for Thursday, August 20th and set a reminder a couple weeks ahead so I could print the tickets.

So, Friday morning at 10:00, I was sitting at the computer, still in my pajamas (don’t judge me) and thought, “now’s as good a time as any to print those tickets.” So, I opened the email only to find that the concert wasn’t next Thursday, it was that very day, in 4 short hours (two of which it would take us to drive there). Did I mention I was in my jammies? So was everyone else, we hadn’t had breakfast, my mom didn’t know she needed to babysit, I was supposed to be spending the day with my friend and her kids, Michael was working and had a lunch meeting and the list goes on…

But…we made it! Just the girls, Michael and me. Again, the show was at the Palace. It was my first time to see them in a large venue and without Greg. I have to admit, I thought the  “small venue” feel would be gone and I wasn’t sure I would enjoy seeing Sam wear the yellow shirt.  I was sure it would  be very different and figured I’d lament the good ol’ days before they became the stars they are today.

We're ready to Wiggle. Wiggles go Bananas. 8-14-09

But…I have to admit, I was wrong! The lights were still up for most of the show. Murray and Sam (who I liked) both went into the audience, not just up and down the aisles on the floor, but way up in the stands, to interact with the kids. When it was time for the customary collecting of roses for Dorothy–and, now, also bones for Wags, the Wiggly dancers made their way through the Palace to collect them all. Another time, Murray spent several minutes reading all of the signs children had made to wave at them. He collected one that was made for Wags and at the final bow, Wags was wearing it around his neck.

The Wiggly Dancers did these great production numbers that included lots of acrobatics. We were very impressed with Anthony and Captain Feathersword/Pierre as they held their own with the dancers. They later introduced one of the dancers as Dimitri, a former member of the Soviet Olympic gymnastics team. His influence was obvious.

The Post Wiggles Collapse

When all was said and done, the show was 90 minutes with no intermission. The kids were enthralled with every bit of it and promptly fell asleep in the car (the post Wiggles collapse).

The bottom line? These four guys from down-under really know how to put on a show that kids and adults can enjoy together and the best part is that no matter how famous they’ve become, how big the concert hall, or how much money they rake in, they clearly know it’s really about the kids!

See ya next time, guys!