We have some great news today. Amanda won a silver medal in her weapons category yesterday. Now that she is a black belt and older, the level of competition has risen so very much. The categories are wider and she has a lot of people now to compete against. She started the morning with board breaking and placed 5th. She was a little disappointed, but her routine was flawless and well executed. I think that she was just outclassed by the older, more experienced competitors. It really tired her out though, and I was worried about the rest of the day. She is still so weak from the stomach flu and hasn't been able to eat anything for about 4 days now.
Then it was time for weapons. She was competing against the biggest group that she had ever competed against, and boy did she rise to the occasion. She performed her heart out and had a nearly flawless routine with one tiny bauble on her one-handed throw. She did not drop her staff though, but it was right in front of the judges. :( By a mere .3 of a point, she missed out on the gold medal, but we are so proud of her and happy. The gold medalist executed a perfect katana sword routine, that was not very difficult but traditional, and the judges are always swayed toward the traditional in martial arts. Amanda was a little disappointed but given her sickness and the stress, I think this was phenomenal.
After the weapons, it was time for forms. Amanda was really nervous about forms. Her category was huge this year - 54 other competitors. She was really tired at this point and we realized that she had just about given all she had, but this girl keeps on giving. She went out there are made it to the finals! She made it to the final 8 before being eliminated. We were amazed, it was her highest finish ever in a major competition in forms. Her coach was astounded.
We are just all so proud of her and her dedication. Lesser kids would have quit and given up, but she just kept on plugging away this whole tournament. I know all the hours training that this child has put in and it showed. She has worked so hard every step of the way and I am in awe of her accomplishments. All the hours I have sat at studios, watching her, and driving her 45 minutes away to train extra at other studios has all been worth it!
G3 is feeling better, he just spent a whole day in bed the other day, while I took care of the kids and took Amanda to training and the tournament. G4 felt a little bad for a day, but he never really succumbed. Unfortunately, I seem to have gotten the flu now. It started yesterday as I was throwing up before Amanda even started, and just got worse. I just came home after the competition and rested. Amanda wanted to go back to train with her friends that are competing today, so G3 and G4 drove her back in. I stayed at the hotel and Alex stayed with me. He is very protective and watched over me, covering me up with a blanket and sitting with me while I rested.
Today we fly home and get to start worrying about packing and the move. Now that Nationals are over, we need to focus on the next thing, which is moving and getting G4 settled at the University of Washington.
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