More Pics of the Tornado Disaster

As we drove around and saw all the damage done by the F2 tornado that ripped through the Wendell/Zebulon areas we found out that it was actually 1/4 of a mile from our home. We were really blessed that it didn’t hit us. But as we were driving around we saw tons of tree damage but little actual home damage. We were relieved to see that. But the tree damage is something else. It’s a mess everywhere. Sad part is we know all too well that if it’s not sitting on an actual structure on your land home owners won’t lift a hand to help in the cleanup. Here’s more pics:

Training in Matthews Time Again

T and I leave on Friday for Matthews and won't return home until the 25th or 26th.  Time to get some more training time in so that he can hopefully compete at the Empire State Championship 4.0 even and NJ Championship 10.0 event.  NJ 10.0 event is an event that earns the gold medalist 100 points + strength factor points.  So if 60 kids sign up (it more than likely won't be near that many) in T's division it could earn the gold medalist 160 points and of course it trickles down depending on where the opponents land in the rankings from the event.  Even the kid who gets last place stands a good chance at earning some really good ranking points at this event.  It's worth it for T to compete at it.  But for now we are concentrating on training and getting better.  Focusing on fixing what needs fixing and then hopefully doing battle at the tournaments and seeing how he does.  Nationals is just around the corner.  The 10.0 event will be T's last event before Nationals.  Life sure is crazy busy but it's a good busy.

I'm thankful today for all the moments we have had with our son.  The good and the bad.  You never know when it will be your last shared moment and we make it a point to cherish all the moments we have together.  We are never promised tomorrow.  So live for today and make sure you make it count and make sure those you love know that you love them.  Until next time.....

Drinking and Driving

Please talk to your kids and then talk some more and then still talk some more about drinking and driving. My son isn’t even old enough to drive but we talk to him a lot, like beating a dead horse, a lot about what to do in uncomfortable situations with friends. I don’t hold back either. I don’t lie to him telling him we won’t be angry if he’s been under the influence but I make sure he knows that we want him alive and not taking risks with his life. We have brought up many scenarios with him, at the young age he is, asking him what he would do and showing him the better way to deal with them if his answer is one that could get him in trouble/hurt/possibly dead. Please talk to your kids a lot and keep lines of communication open. Help them understand that they are not invincible. Help them know as a parent your objective is always their safety. No matter what, having a parent upset with you and being alive is a way better option than taking risks with your life that could end in death. It’s sad that these kinds of conversations/posts always seem to happen after a tragedy has occurred. A young teen with their whole life ahead of them had their life snuffed out this past weekend because they were in a vehicle with a drunk driver. My heart sunk reading it in the news. My heart felt so deeply for the parents of the teen then I read the name of the teen. I knew her when she was my sons age or maybe a little younger. I went to the same church her family goes to. Her family is amazing. I have no doubt that they talked with her about what to do in that kind of situation. I had several friends die in a drunk driving accident my senior year of high school. It shook our school. These were good kids who made poor decisions. It could only be one drink and you think I’m in control or you think the one driving is ok because they only had one beer. They aren’t staggering or anything so they must be fine to drive. One drink is all it takes for you not to be 100% alert behind the wheel. Please beat the subject into the ground with your kids. You’ll probably get eye rolls because they are hearing it for the 100th time. Drill it and drill it some more. You may just save your kids life and the lives of other teens because of the conversations you have with yours. And don’t take for granted for even one moment that because yours is a Christian home that your kids won’t make poor choices. It happens. It happened this past weekend to a teen who has been raised in a devout Christian home. 

This is how I remember her. It’s how she looked last I saw her when she was a young child.

This was her profile picture on Facebook. Beautiful girl. Just 17. Probably her senior year in HS and it may have even been Prom night. I’m not sure. I do know her life has been snuffed out. And it’s so sad and heartbreaking. 

DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE!!!  SAVE LIVES!!!  TALK TO YOUR TEENS!!!  DRIVE IT HOME AND DRILL IT INTO THE GROUND DEEP!!!

Tornado Just Moments Away from Our Home Earlier Today

Earlier this morning a tornado came through Wendell. It came close but missed us. Here are some pics of downed trees on HWY 264 and a home that was hit near by. These are just a few pics but there’s lots more damage in the Wendell/Zebulon areas. In one of the pics you’ll see the funnel. I did not take any of these pics. 

In this first picture, it was taken by North Hills and its about 20 miles from where we are and where the tornado was. 

HWY 264

HWY 264

In Zebulon

We think this is on 97 near Zebulon somewhere. 

Highlight of Spar Wars 2019 for T

The highlight of Spar Wars for T was getting to fight a kid a second time that he lost to the first time they fought. Second time he fought great. It was a fantastic match ending with a headshot that sent the other kid out of bounds in the last seconds of the fight giving T the win. Here’s a picture of T and Chris enjoying the win just moments afterwards. 

Chris is actually one of T’s teammates but at Spar Wars he got the rare opportunity to be on the other side of things and coach. This was an amazing win for them both as coach and competitor. T learned from his losses and made adjustments and it paid off. He only wishes he had had another shot with another one of the kids he fought earlier on that beat him but the other kids coach said no. I know they will meet again and we are hoping and praying T is ready to beat him next time out. He’s growing up so fast. We are doing our best to cherish and enjoy every moment. 

Spar Wars 2019

In the first picture, this was hanging in the HS T fought at today for the Spar Wars Tournament. Giving it up for Charles Alejo-Dickey. T lost to him today for the USAT points portion of the fighting. He is a more experienced fighter and T had a learning experience today fighting him. In the unlimited matches T had to fight 5 matches to get a medal. T had a 3-2 day with those matches. All in all he learned a lot today. Now he knows what he needs to work on with his coach next week. 

Happy Birthday T 2019 with His Sparring Team

T got to eat a Mexican dinner with his sparring team tonight. Here’s a picture and video of T enjoying time with them.

T’s Chiropractor

T stays adjusted. We are in to the Atlas Orthogonal office in Raleigh, NC every couple of weeks because of how hard he is training and the level he is competing at. Today his chiropractor gave us a last minute appointment after T took a spill while training at home. He put him right back in and T didn’t miss a beat. He weighs in tonight and fights tomorrow. He’s resting at the hotel now waiting for time to weigh in. This will be T’s first time to Spar Wars. He is looking forward to all that he is going to learn at this tournament. Here’s a pic of T with his Chiropractor, Dr. Bill:

Yet More Events/School Update

We were looking at next weekend being T's last regular event this season since Nationals are in July but now we are looking at 3 more events.  2 are in NY and 1 is in NJ.  2 are 4.0 point ranking events and the 1 in NJ is a 10.0 point ranking event.  Life with an elite athlete having to travel, do events, and train never ends.  Chasing points is going to be never ending it seems.  Chasing points aside, going to these events also gives T more experience with fighting the tougher kids in his bracket.  It gives him more ring time with them and to learn how to better fight them and hopefully learn how to beat them too.  Between homeschooling and all this TKD that we are doing life is crazy to say the least.  There is never a dull moment and things are constantly changing in this sport and we just roll with it as it comes and keep moving forward.  We've been blessed to have some awesome competitors, parents, coaches, and masters touch T's life along the way.  He's really loving every moment of this journey.

He does school because he has to but he loves all the training and doing the events.  My boy is growing up so fast and is so smart and mature for his age.  We may be struggling through math at the moment but he got a high praise from a sales person a few weeks back about how well spoken he is and how well articulated he is.  He does so well in his other subjects and I know the struggle with math will get better as he gets older and matures more.  I'm just glad that we are able to homeschool because without doing homeschooling he couldn't compete like he does.  He's living his dream and we are supporting him as much as we can for as long as we can.  He's an amazing kid and I can't wait to see the amazing man he is going to be when he is all grown up.

Stephen Lambdin Sparring Seminar

Today T got the rare opportunity to train with an Olympian. Stephen Lambdin has represented the USA 15 times in his careeer. He is a very nice young man and he made quite an impression on T at this seminar. Master Lambdin dubbed T as T-Bone today at the seminar. He was quite impressed with T and was very encouraging to him. Sometimes it’s nice to get different perspectives on sparring. T walked away from the seminar learning things that will help him in the long term as a fighter. He also got a rare chance to sit down and have dinner with Master Lambdin earlier this evening as well and get to know him better. Doing the seminar was the highlight of the day for T. Master Lambdin is one of T’s favorite TKD fighters. Here are some pictures from the day.