T Helping With Class…

T is helping with class while he lets his body heal and recover from Texas. He’ll get back at it with Team Core either Sunday or Monday depending on how he feels. 

T's New Belt Is Ordered

 T's new TaeKwonDo black belt has been ordered for the new school.  It will have this on one side:

And this on the other:

He is really looking forward to having everything so that he can wear it for classes.  He is so excited about the change.  He is really looking forward to all that he will learn with Master Doug.  

Keep T in your prayers though.  He is getting ready for another tournament and it will be the first one that the new Master/Coach will be coaching him at.  Also, T has been dealing with sinus issues so pray that whatever is going on there will work itself out quickly.  He's been miserable the past couple of days since being back home from Texas.  We really think it's his allergies.  And we also think it's the dogs hair that is the problem.  He sheds so much.  T was fine while we were in Texas then he's not even home a day and he's having issues all over again.  We love our dog and T doesn't want to get rid of him so we are trying to figure out how to keep his allergies under control.  We appreciate your prayers as always.  God bless!  #GodsPlanistheOnlyPlan

A New Adventure!

 June 1st is tomorrow.  It is the beginning of a new adventure with a Master that T has respected and loved for years.  He's going to be doing all of his TaeKwonDo training with him.  There will be lots of learning because this is a new beginning of sorts with this Master.  Tonight T helped with class since he couldn't train himself.  He helped his fellow teammates fix mistakes they were making and also helped the younger ones with what they were doing as well.  He helped make sure that they were kicking and holding paddles and kicking pads correctly.  T really enjoyed doing that.  He is so looking forward to all that he can learn with Master Doug.  It's a whole new road that he is traveling now with this new TaeKwonDo school.  He seems to be in a much happier place and we are seeing more and more maturity happening with him.  He is ready for this next step in his TaeKwonDo journey and we are looking forward to walking this out with him as he continues to make forward progress towards his goals and dreams.  #GodsPlanistheONLYPlan

T and Master Doug at AAU Virginia State Championships 2022

Recap On T's Tournament Weekend

 Just to fill you in and give you more details of this past weekend I'm doing this post.  

I wanted to take a moment of reflection and give you a deeper look into everything.  We arrived Friday morning around 10am after starting our drive Thursday afternoon to Forth Wort Texas.  It's a 17 1/2 hour drive straight through but with stops for fuel, food, and potty breaks it ends up being about a 20 hour drive as long as you don't make a stop to rest and if you do that then it could take 22-24 hours to drive the trip from where we live.  We got checked in on Friday around 2pm.  T had to be at a training session from 5-6:45pm.  During that training session the coach told all the kids don't hurt one another and go easy.  Well, that didn't end up being the case with the partner T had.  During the drills his partner punched T too hard in his ribs.  They weren't wearing chest guards because the coach was just doing an easy session.  This particular partner is still new to sport TaeKwondDo and I don't think they really know how to go easy but still pull off the techniques well.  At any rate that training session caused T lots of pain from that point forward in his chest where he got punched.  He had a hard time being able to take deep breaths because of it.  Breathing normal was fine but when you are sparring you take deep breaths pretty frequently.  

Side bar, T went to the Chiropractor this morning and he had 3 ribs misaligned because of the punch(es) he took from that training session from that partner on Friday.  T doesn't complain or say anything to the coach because he doesn't wanna get yelled at or look weak so he just sucks it up and doesn't say anything in the moment but tells us when we are alone.  I was just glad we could get him in to see the Chiropractor so quickly.

The team had another training session on Saturday from 11-12:30pm but T just did stretching so as to not get any more injuries because he had to fight on Sunday.  

This kid walked around all weekend with his foot bothering him, from another injury from a teammate two weeks prior at a training session, it was just soft tissue still irritating him, plus his ribs were hurting, without once letting on to anyone that he was even having any issues.  The only time he let anyone know he was having issues is when he told his dad and I.  Not one competitor had a clue and he didn't fight letting them see it either.  He was determined to stay strong no matter what and deal with the injuries in the aftermath when we got home.  

It seems he always gets injured in training but never in an actual competition.  

T has now been instructed by his Chiropractor to do no training for the next four days.  The Chiropractor wants him to have time to let his body heal and recover so that is just what we are going to do.  

T really did have a great time at this event this weekend even with his injuries.  He learned a lot while watching the fight offs.  Fight offs were of the kids who are the top five in each division in order to be able to earn the USA Team spot to represent our country at Worlds.  T won his first ever International fight with a competitor from Tahiti.  That kid had won gold pretty much everywhere he had fought in his country and T beat him easily.  That made T feel so good to have had his first international fight and to have won it.  The bracket T was fighting in was large and it was going to take 3 matches to get to where he could earn a medal and T lost his 2nd match.  One match shy from getting a medal in an event such as this one was still a huge WIN for T.  Every open event up to this one that T has been in he was beat in his first match.  We saw lots of improvement in his fighting at this event and we couldn't be more proud of how he did even though it didn't result in a medal this time.  True fighters absolutely hate losing and T definitely hates losing.  At the end of day if you lose and you learn it's not a loss at all!  It's something we've been teaching him for a long time now.  Because if you learn then you can continue to move forward but if all you do is lose and not learn then you will keep losing.  It's the learning that sets him apart from just losing.  He's really starting to understand that now.  

Now after we get past this downtime while he heals and recovers he begins training and getting ready for the Grand Prix in Daytona on Father's Day weekend.  This event is the qualifier for USA TaeKwonDo's National event that will happen in Salt Lake City, Utah later this summer.  We are still undecided if T will actually attend this event but we have him doing the qualifier just in case.  

Thanks for your prayers everyone as we drove there and back and for our health as well.  We so appreciate and deeply covet your prayers.  They mean the world to us and T as he continues to do what he loves to do.  God Bless you all!  #GodsPlan

T’s Techie Outfit

T wanted to buy his own outfit with his birthday money and this is what he chose. He’s into the tech look. It looks good on him too. His shirt says, “Only God Can Judge Me”. Love this kid so much. 

Before Leaving Texas…

Before we left Texas we got these shots. It’s not a trip to Texas unless you get pics with these:

Before Leaving Forth Worth

Before leaving Fort Worth we got these pics. T’s hair is seriously wind 💨 blown…LOL! 

Water Gardens in the background. 

Videos of T Matches

First Match he won and 2nd he lost but he learned a ton and is taking that with him back to fix so he can continue to move forward in this new weight division. 

Won 1st Match

T won his first match. He did so good. It’s best of 3 rounds now and T won the first two rounds. Match over and T winner. Videos to come when we get home. 

Fight Day

T has a report time of 8am in the morning. His first fight is with a kid from FPO (French Polynesian). We know nothing about this kid. Out of all the teammates here T, Greg, and Emerson have the hardest brackets. T especially. There’s a lot of really good fighters in his bracket. We got to watch some of them fighting today for team spot (only gold medalist) to represent Team USA in Costa Rica then Bulgaria this summer. T didn’t qualify for that fight off today because of his injuries last year. Win or learn T is in a good place physically and mentally. Looking forward to watching our boy tomorrow. He has already learned so much watching the fights today. I’ve highlighted in green the ring/time and also highlighted his name on the bracket sheet. #GodsPlan

Results:

JFK Memorial in Downtown Fort Worth

Here’s a couple of pics at the JFK Memorial. 

Although I wasn’t alive when he was President JFK is one of my favorite Presidents. 

In Line to Weigh In

T is in line for weigh in. Once they start he’ll been done fast and can go eat. He was 3 pounds under this morning @ 96.3. He’s in a really good place and looks so gooood and healthy.  #GodsPlan

T’s Credentials 😊

They did something smart for once and emailed the credentials to the athletes. Such wisdom and it will save a ton of time.  #GodsPlan

Found This Interesting…

Found this interesting as we walked around downtown Fort Worth this afternoon. 

Us In Front of the Fort Worth Convention Center

So excited to be here and looking forward to seeing T compete. Pray 🙏 for his left foot. He has had a soft tissue injury for a couple weeks now that is still causing him some pain. It’s better than what it was but still bothers him. We covet your prayers. 

T has to be -99.2 and he’s 96.1. He’s well under where he has to be. Eating healthy for the win and doing no cutting🙌🙌🙌!!!  

Fort Worth Water Gardens

We had fun walking around downtown Fort Worth this afternoon and evening. My dogs are hurting me like crazy. Got a couple of shot at the Water Gardens though. 

Looking Forward To The Competition

Team USA is Kicking Off Competition at Not One but Two Events this Weekend; the PATU Pan Am Series 1 and the 2022 Team USA Cadet and Junior Fight Off. T did not qualify for the fight off because he has no points because of his injuries last year so he’s just doing the PATU Pam Am Series event.   

The collaboration of Team USA and the Pan American Taekwondo Union is launching the first event of the Pan Am Series this weekend in Fort Worth, Texas.  In parallel to this event, Team USA is hosting the Team USA Cadet and Junior Fight Off Competition to identify the athletes that will earn their way onto the United States Taekwondo Team.  

T is looking forward to watching the fight offs so he can learn the fighters in his division for next year. 

We Made It!

We are in Fort Worth and checked into the hotel. Our first stop in Texas though was The Galleria Mall in Dallas. It’s a four story mall that I wanted to show T plus we had some time before we could check in to burn too. 

Here’s some pics from the sunset last night after we got past all the rain and storms. 

Traveling

We are just outside of Memphis and getting some rest until daybreak then we will be hitting the road for the last leg of the trip to Texas for the tournament. 

Texas Bound

We are in the throws of packing right now for Texas.  It's hard to believe that we leave tomorrow for Texas for a tournament.  T expects to gain lots of knowledge at this tournament that will help him with his training and moving forward in this sport.  The more knowledge that he gains its more that he has to be able to guide and teach his own students some day.  He is very motivated towards that end win or learn.  While he loves to win, as all athletes do, he is also focused on learning so that he can coach his own students someday to winning.  It will be an adventure for us because we are driving to Texas and back and not flying.  Road trips are fun and exhausting as well but we always see and learn things along the way that we would have never seen or learned while flying.  Pray for us as we make this trip there and back.  We are looking forward to a fun event filled time.  

On a personal note.  It will be fun to back in that neck of the woods of Texas again.  I went to bible college there and loved every moment of it.  I'm hoping that we will have time to go by and I can show T the campus and book store.  Spring session should be ending soon and, if they still do it, the summer camp sessions should be starting.  The summer camps are so much fun.  Such great memories of going to school there and I'm looking forward to sharing those memories with T.  

Also, I'm secretly hoping we get a chance to go to the Galleria Mall in Dallas.  It is quite a mall.  I've never seen anything like it in my life.  I was blown away by it the first time I went there.  T will love it.  

Love to everyone and I will do my best to keep you updated as we make this trip and T competes.  It's not about the medal this time although if he earns one that will be awesome too.  He really wants to learn as much as he can this year to get ready for his new age and weight division next year.  Love this kids heart and attitude when it comes to TaeKwonDo.  

The next time you hear from us we should be in Texas.  God Bless!  #GodsPlan