AAU Nationals 2019 Proof Pics

These are the professional shots that were taken at Nationals. 

Tournament in Georgia in August

We found out yesterday from T's coach that there's a tournament in Georgia in August that he wants T to attend.  Now we reset and get in gear for that tournament.  It will give T more ring time and he'll be able to get more experience in the ring to help him get ready for when he moves to Cadets next year.  The cadet division is the 12-14 year old group.  It's broken down into weight classes but he could be fighting kids that are 14 years old next year in his weight class so he needs all the ring time and experience he can get now in getting ready to be in that division next year.  Lots for him to do between now and then.  Busy times but we wouldn't have it any other way.  We are doing our best to support him in his endeavors.  We are always so thankful for family and friends who help with their support as well.  Every little bit helps when you are chasing hard after goals that you are trying to accomplish.  T knows what he wants at such a young age and you can't say that about most kids his age.  I love that about him.  I'm so glad he has goals.  He's such an amazing kid with so much enthusiasm for what he loves to do.  God has blessed this kid with an amazing gift.  We are so proud of all his accomplishments thus far.  He's going to go far in life because he has set such a great foundation now at the young age of 11.  When you actually think about it he's been going hard after his goals since he was 9 years old.  I can't wait to see the man he grows up to be someday.

Got ‘em hung!

We got T’s new pictures up on the wall last night😁. 

Plus we got the extender for T’s medal rack hung. It won’t last through next year though and then we’ll be buying another one...LOL! 

Black Belt World Last Night

Now that T has started a testing cycle at BBW he is attending classes more to get ready for each testing portion. The first pre-test will be on his forms and he will have to do a creative forms. Next month will be self defense and he has to come up with a five knife self defense. The last pre-test will be the sparring/knowledge portion. I can’t remember if he has to fight three or four opponents but suffice it to say he has to fight multiple opponents. Then the final test will happen the last of October with T doing power and speed breaking. Graduation will be happening in December. Lots of classes to attend in the meantime with doing leadership hours. He has almost all of his leadership hours done. He also has an essay to write. Testing should never be easy and it’s not. T loves everything about TaeKwonDo. He’s very thankful for all the Masters and Instructors who have taught him through the years. He’s praying that he passes all his pre-tests and his final test to earn his 3rd Dan black belt. Last night at class his Master put a medicine ball on his back for him to balance while he was doing planks. He welcomed the challenge and did surprisingly well. Here’s a picture. 

2nd Dan Professional Pictures 2019

T picked out these pictures from his photo shoot. 

A Pop of Color

I like the things you can do to pictures these days. Check out this pop of color I did to one of T’s pictures. 

What a Difference a Year Makes!

T’s Form Competition at the 2019 AAU Nationals

Here’s the video of T’s 4 performances at AAU Nationals that won him Bronze. Two he did great and two he lost. One of the losses was to a 3rd Dan doing his forms and that particular form shows very well and the kid did it extremely well. The other that he lost he lost because his power in his forms wasn’t what it should’ve been. His opponent in that round had great power. Learning moment for T with his forms. Overall it was a great first time out doing forms on a National level. 

A Stroll Through The Years!

Recently I’ve taken pictures from years gone by and more current and added text to them for T. We are going to have them printed on thick poster board so he can hang them on his bedroom wall once we revamp it. He wants to get rid of the bunks and get a full or queen sized bed. He informed us recently that he’s not a little kid anymore and wants a big kid bedroom. #changes #growinguptoofast 

Home Sweet Home

We drove home today after watching almost all of T’s teammates fight. Left Fort Lauderdale at 1 and got home around 1:15am with driving through rain, making fuel stops, and food stops. Made pretty good time. So thankful to have someone I can switch off with when driving those kind of distances. Goodnight all. Hope everyone had a very happy and safe holiday.