Audition Day is here!

My little girl has wanted to be a little Disney tv star ever since she first learned that the people in the big box were real, but pretending to be somebody else. She was always fascinated by it, but even more so, she was drawn into this idea by actresses like Raven Symone and Selena Gomez. She liked Miley Cyrus for all of ten seconds, too. Lindsay Lohan didn't even make it that long, thankfully.

When I was a little girl, I had the same types of big dreams. I was always told how unattainable they are though or how unrealistic it was to have these goals. As a teenager, life took me down a different path.

As a young adult, I did have an opportunity with the Ford Modeling Agency. I turned it down though. I used my job (as a nanny) as an excuse when in reality, I think it was just fear of the unknown causing a self destruct.

I didn't want any of these things for my kids. I'm one of those parents that says, "if that's what you want, I will support you and help you in this venture in any way that I can." So, when she heard the commercial for Premier Events on New Year's Eve, I had to call for her right away.

Now, I've done my research and I already know that this particular company has a nasty reputation for scamming others. I had Pie do some research as well, so she knows what to look for and what to say the very second that they start bringing up front payments to the table. She knows a real casting agent doesn't make you pay for the portfolios, acting classes, etc, up front. That payment for all of this is taken out as a percentage of one's earnings.

So even though we know about these methods, we are still going. Why? Because I can't tell my daughter to chase her dreams in one breath and then knock her back down again. She has to learn the underbelly for herself. That doesn't mean that she has to learn it alone, though.

Mostly, we're having an explore San Antonio day, with a pit stop at the beginning. As a parent, how do you encourage your children with their 'pie in the sky' dreams and goals?