Many people await their sweet 16’s, the celebration when children are accepted into a different and older stage of their life. For freshman Alondra Mireles, her celebration comes a year early.

In Hispanic culture, a girl’s 15th birthday celebration is called a quince anos. The girl herself is called a quinceanera. A quince anos celebrates the transformation of a little girl into a young lady. It is a huge event for the family and close friends. However, it is the girl’s choice as to have the celebration or not. For Mireles, the thought hadn’t even occurred.

“It was kind of a blur, but it was really fun,” said Mireles with a smile.

With a night full of dancing and food, it was the celebration of the evening. It was a night decorated with culture, life and high spirits.

One of her Mireles’ friends, Alexandra Pisell, attended the quince anos.

“I went home very happy,” said Alexandra Pisell, recounting the evening. “I had very high spirits from all of the dancing and being able to meet her parents.”

The night was exciting and full of fun, but also full of emotion for Mireles and her family.

“It was kind of emotional because in a few years I’m going to be moving out and it’s kind of sad. My mom was (also) really sad, but she was proud because I’m starting to become a young lady.”

One of the highlights of the evening was the surprise dance, a dance choreographed by Mireles herself, scheduled to be danced by her and her father.

“I saw the happiness in her face when she got to dance her surprise dance and how well she had planned it,” said Monica Acosta, a close family friend of the Mireles.

But after three hours of getting ready, photos, dancing, and talking, the highlight of Mireles’ night was just to sit down and enjoy some free time.

“The highlight of my night was just being able to eat cake after a long day of taking pictures.”