Winners, and my TaeKwonDo Girly

Yay for giveaway winners!  Here's what I got:

Socks go to Suz @ Cows and Lasers and Everything in Between

Soap goes to Darcy @ Chunky Wonder Woman

Coffee holder goes to Kim @ Just Another Mom on the Run

Headbands go to April @ Mom on the Run

Congrats ladies, and thanks for following my sometimes odd but always fun journey!



So now my fun and exciting news of the week--my daughter passed her TaeKwonDo belt test yesterday with flying colors!  I could tell she was nervous about it, and in class on Monday she completely fell apart.  She wasn't able to do the form to save her life, and she was getting openly frustrated.  We unfortunately had a very full evening, so we couldn't just go home to practice in quiet and private.  So I gave her a little pep talk in the car and we saved the practicing for Tuesday after school.

She got home, and in her usual style got majorly pissy because she was hungry.  There are only ever two reasons that my kids (and most kids I think) are in a bad mood--they're tired or they're hungry.  And when both happen, you might as well give up for the day!  But fortunately she was wide awake and excited, so after a few struggled crying attempts at pushing through her form, I gave her a sandwich and sat her down for a talk.

I went about it all a different way this time.  I told her exactly what I wasn't supposed to tell her but exactly what the actual truth was--no one fails these tests.  When she was given her final "tip" in class, that was showing that she was proficient enough to test and move on to the next belt.  The test is a formality, a way for us to get pictures and them to get more money.  So there was no need at all to be nervous, she simply needed to go out there confident in her abilities and ready to have fun and kick butt.  Then we ran through her forms again, this time with me telling her to smile the whole time.  And it was PERFECT!  She did an amazing job, we yelled some cheers about kicking butt (the neighbors were probably very confused), we laughed, and we didn't practice it again.  I wanted to end it on a good note and just let her relax.

When it was her turn to test, she was with four other children but in front of an entire room full of parents and cameras and other belt levels.  And you know what?  She didn't care in the least.  They did their forms, with the boys next to her rushing through like bats out of hell, just as boys do.  It threw her off at first, and she got out of step with them, and then at her own, slightly slower pace she did the entire form correctly.  The Master even talked about her at the end, bragging on her level of concentration and ability to go her own pace and recover so well from the beginning hiccup.  He said that's what the test was really about--how they performed under pressure.  And she aced it!  She was beaming with pride by the end, and we celebrated with a trip to McDonald's.  Don't judge, when my kid kicks ass I oblige her with what she wants!

She's the only kid I've ever seen who skips in TaeKwonDo

iPhones--good for keeping little boys busy in quiet moments!

"I want that belt!"

Happiness

Let's hope this motivation pushes her into some awesome hard work in her new belt, because the next belt is green.  And green belt means sparring and alllllll sorts of fun!  If I can hold myself back from slapping the kid who kicks her first, that is.... :P

Have a happy Wednesday!!