What a Saturday!

We had a baseball playoff, a dress rehearsal, a Tae Kwon Do demo, a black belt test and a dance recital.  Somewhere in there we managed to get food and secretly buy some flowers (and other "little" things)!  Mom and Dad came down for our big day.  Adam and Daddy went to Seth's game.  This was Seth's first time playing baseball, but he did really well.  His team, however, was the youngest, the most new players and a coach who is just nice, so there wasn't a lot of great playing, so on that note, they never won a game --needless to say, when they only had three players who could hit (luckily, one was Seth), they were very quick innings)!  BUT by the end of the season, we got a few more occasional hitters and  two boys who really learned how to catch (that was not Seth, he's still working on that) and that got us some really fun to watch games.  One game, our new hitter boy got a triple and homerun, and they made a double play.  So the boys were having a great time (I think they only lost 17 to 4, that time)!  There was cheering, chanting and high fives.  So for his first season, he hit every time he was up but once and, of course, that is always fun.  He can throw great!  He is adorable at third base when he practices catching the "pretend" ball and stepping on third.  And he is "getting better" at catching.  So in our minds this season was a success!  He wants to go back to soccer in the fall (no summer sports for us-- too HOT!).  But I am hoping baseball makes it back on is list!
As for Ryan, she is the dancing queen.  They performed "Peter Pan" and they did the whole show as the entire story with narration and everything (they even got the little kids in at the beginning with Wendy telling nursery rhymes).  She was a fairy, a pirate and a lost boy.  She loved it all, even with a headache and sore throat.  When she left my black belt test crying with Adam because her throat hurt, I was so worried she wouldn't make it (of course, as a mom, I was freaking out that I wasn't the one to drop her off and take care of her, but luckily she has an awesome Dad), but out she came on stage with a smile the whole time.  She knew every step and looked adorable in her costume.  Even after her parts, we went and got her back stage to finish the last half hour of a 3 HOUR show (it was already 9:15pm) and she sat with her eyes glued on the stage.  When we got to the car, it was DUMPING rain.  Daddy had to run two blocks to the car and was soaked by the time he got back to us.  But he got out the umbrella and escorted each of us to the car.  This one teenage girl kept saying "How cute!", "How sweet!".  I told her "I know, Daddy is the best!"  She answered, "I wonder if ---- would do that?"  I told her "Of course, they could! Escorting in the rain and opening doors, luckily my husband had a great mom who taught him that already, but I had plenty of dates who figured it out eventually if you just never get out of the car.  They are either going to come open the door or go to dinner by themselves.  (Luckily, no one ever left me in there)".  Anyway, back to Ryan, she was exhausted with a sore throat by the end.  She refused an offer of a Kit Kat (really?!?) and was asleep on my lap within minutes, but, man, it was worth it!  She looked great on stage and her smile was just to die for!  Oh yeah, she loved her flowers- pink roses (Seth picked those) with white carnations (I got those because last week while Mom was down for Homearama, I let the kids dye carnations and they loved it- in fact, we still have a vase full of orange, green and  bluish ones on the counter).  She loved them!  What a girl!  And I love that she is!
OK, so Tae Kwon Do.  With so much going on, it was hard to remember I was getting my black belt.  I knew I was a little nervous that I had to get up in front of everyone and didn't want to forget anything, but mostly my mind was occupied with making sure everyone got where they needed to be and Mom and I made it to video Ryan's rehearsal dances.  So the demo was fun!  Mom got to watch and I didn't get hurt before my test.  Then we made it out to the rehearsal and fed Ryan lunch, then made it back to TKD for the test (everything Saturday was about 35 minutes from each other and we made it about 15 minutes early to each place... WOW!)  It was a long, quiet (except when we were yelling) 3 hours, but it was awesome having all my family there!  I loved looking back at their smiling faces.  I felt like a little kid- you never don't need the support of your family.  But I did my kicks, my forms, sparred and broke my 3 boards (Seth wants me to add about sending one board across the room) and it went great!  Adam kept telling me how proud he was of me!  It was really nice to hear.  I changed into my new black belt dobak and then Master Park put on my new belt (with my name engraved on it and everything) and I read my essay while Mom, Daddy and Seth got to sit in special chairs.  I wish Lacee had been there, but other than that it was great!  I had asked if I could go first for the presentation part, so as soon as we walked off we started driving to make it to Ryan's (which we made with another 15 minutes to spare). 
I'm sure I am missing more wonderful things that we squeezed into a single day but you get the picture.  Lacee, I am putting my essay below so you can read it-- anyone else can to!

Oh yeah, at the recital during intermission, Adam told me he and Seth got me something little for getting my black belt-- a new Nook-- not something "little", but awesome!  I guess the present was Adam's idea, but the nook was Seth's, and it felt really good that they thought of it!  I have a great family!  As for special days, Seth and Ryan went to breakfast with Grandma and Papa yesterday morning, McDonalds, of course, so they ate out for the only meal that we could have given her the red plate.  So I gave it to her this morning and during breakfast, Seth and Ryan decided that I should eat on it for lunch and Seth for dinner.  Thanks Mom (Pauline) for the special red plates!


Black Belt Test Essay


By K.C. Merrill

June 11, 2010



I have always loved trying new things. In high school, my sister started Tae Kwon Do and I soon joined her. We loved the camaraderie of our instructor and fellow students. I looked forward to the next kick or form that we were going to learn to see how good I could get. I liked doing something that not everyone else was doing and I liked doing it with my sister. 15 years later, those same things hold true. It is fun being here at Tae Kwon Do. I like seeing my friends, joking about how old and sore we are, and talking about life. It’s not just an exercise program. It’s a new family.

As for the exercise part, I hate exercising, but at my age it’s a must. Tae Kwon Do isn’t just exercise though. It is a workout for a reason. It’s not just running to run or lifting weights over and over again just to look better. I come and sweat so I can do the next form better, so I can kick higher, so I can spar faster. I look forward to coming because I want to be better. All my other exercise programs just wear me out. I don’t want to run another mile even if I am reading a book or watching a movie while I do it. I just lose interest. But this is something I look forward to. I like the hurt of stretching farther, the excitement of breaking boards and the exhaustion of trying to get that kick in during sparring. The bonus is that it is exercise and I do look better as I do it. I am in better shape and my body is stronger and those two things as important as getting to the next belt.

I sometimes laugh that I am the only mom doing Tae Kwon Do without my kids, but doing things out of the norm is pretty par for the course with me. My family is always waiting to see what I do next. I wish my sister were with me, but she supports me along the way even if it has to be by phone. Tae Kwon Do brings me the joy that I felt as a kid of doing something new and exciting, something that took effort and something that caused a little bit of giddy anxiety… how is it going to go? We don’t do that as much as adults. There aren’t many soccer games, math finals, or dance recitals and I liked those things. I liked feeling half excited, half nervous, knowing all my family was cheering for me. So this is my thing now. My tae kwon do family are the ones normally cheering me on during the week, although my real family gets to see me do some of the fun stuff at demos and tests, even my mom and dad sometimes. And for all those long distance supporters, I have even put up a video of me breaking. Kinda childish, but super awesome!

The one thing that is new this time around is that I am the leader. Once I put on my black belt, I will have more responsibilities, but even before that I knew it was different. Most of the time I was at adult classes which was a group of peers, but when I was at the Jr. black belt class I was the often the only adult. I liked being with the kids, helping and encouraging them. I loved when they were sweet to say, “Good job, Miss K.C.!” It was a different type of camaraderie, but I enjoyed it just the same. I know that if I had been aloof and stayed to myself, the kids would have gone on as if I were not there, an adult that was not part of their group, but by teaming up with them and joining in their fun, I looked forward to seeing them and enjoying their improvements as well as my own. It may not have been my skill that they looked up to, but my fun attitude. And hopefully I have plenty of that to share!