Tempo!

Yesterday's lesson was all about tempo.  I think, and my instructor agrees, that it's time to pay attention to little details like time signatures and playing on the beat rather than learning new songs and embellishments.  Thus, I have no new song this week, but I have to practice my repertoire with a metronome and I have to pay attention to timing.  Turns out-this will be a lot harder that it was many years ago when I played the piano because of the grace notes.  My grace notes are really, really slow and by the time I play the grace note, then the actual note, I've missed the beat.  I barely managed to play Will Ye No Come Back Again with the metronome and sorta kinda staying on beat after playing it over and over, one measure at a time, and at a very slow tempo.  The good thing is it sounded much better, and more like my instructor plays it.  I could hear where I was rushing the tempo and crowding the melody together.  I'm getting a digital recorder today so I can record my lessons and listen to the instructor play the tunes; she thinks if I do that and work on playing along with the recording, I'll improve on my timing.  This issue scares me a bit-how am I ever going to play in a band if I can't keep up?  And the PM intimidates me.  Don't get me wrong-he's a great guy, and I consider him a friend (he's the guy that sparked my interest in bagpiping).  But I also know he's a perfectionist and I wonder how tolerant he'll be of a newbie with no talent and little skill.