Block party

This week at the block party I was sad that I didn’t break my last board. I broke it the same way I tried three days before, when I broke it. I was very unhappy. But I got happier after I did the demo performance. Good Job Everybody.

4th Monday again

Hi guys - it's early and I know I will see you all Saturday but Monday it is my board meeting again. So I won't be in class.....train hard! :-)

So much to do, so little time :)

K, so it seems like everyone is ahead of me on numbers. I'll have the sit-ups, etc all done by testing time, but I'm afraid I'm going to forget things. :) Saturday trainings always knot my stomach up. I'm afraid I'll oversleep, so I set two alarm clocks... How sad is that? I'm stressing over conditioning day and pretty much everything else. We won't even go into my stress level when it comes to brick breaking (but Jessica's going to work w/me on that, thank you Jessica!)

When testing is done and I have my belt in my hands, I'm going to get a massage, a pedicure, go out to a theater to see a movie, go to the coast, sleep in, fold all of my laundry and plan a real vacation for my family. Then I want to go to class, hit things, kick things and even break things. But this time, with no pressure. Oh, and then we get the blue gi tops so we don't look like Stay-Puft marshmallow people. ;) I look better in blue & black anyhow. Heh Heh!

Knowledge

So monday night bsbn asked us some of the knowledge base stuff and some I knew before but i now forgot so what i need to do is practice all those and know all I need (maybe even more). But just so I get great on the stuff I need to know I will stick to that first.

saturday

Saturday was kind of a crazy, exciting and fun day for me. 

The crazy happened at belt testing. Chandler and I volunteered to help with the lil warriors and there were only four of them.  We stuck around for the jr warriors/kids and there were 12 of them... total!! KJN/BKJN had put the junior dtd black belts to work, so we stuck around again for the adults... only 4.  How crazy is that? 

It was so exciting to break our boards and bricks in front of individuals who don't see us on a regular basis (at the studio and at home).  I'm always nervous, like everyone else, and I must have a trigger inside my head that says... suck it up and do it (lol), because when I got up there, I was fine.  Now if I had to talk... that might have been a different story!  lol :D

The day ended with getting dressed up and attending the Amy Roloff charity event.  It was so much fun being a part of the AH table and having CGN Jessica there as part of the Edwards Center table.  We even got to see/visit with a parent whose son used to come to the studio!  It was so great to see Michelle! 

A Saturday of Growth

Wow, what a Saturday. I'm really happy about how everything turned out, and I feel genuinely relaxed right now. My leg is propped up on some pillows, and I'm lounging on the couch listening to some of my favorite mellow music.

Saturday morning I woke up with an expectation of how everything was going to work for the block party...and then I got a couple calls from KJN and BKJN. It was raining--we needed to figure out a plan for dealing with it. Of course, plan B for the block party in the case of rain has always been to move things inside OGA, so I already knew that was going to be fine. However, this year we had a lot of BIG things, and I wasn't sure how everything was going to work.

During my initial conversation with BKJN, the stress overwhelmed me a little, and I had to hang up with him so I could cry. I was already flustered by trying to bathe and get dressed while hobbling around on my crutches; already had the normal anxiety that comes with the responsibility of running an event; already wondering how my breaks were going to go, and the rain just had to come along and add that final straw. Like I said in my letter to next year's candidates, I'm a 30 year old woman who cries when under stress. I'm not ashamed. Once I cry, I feel better, my head is clearer, and I can move on with the task at hand.

Moving the event inside was a good decision, and the event progressed very well. There were so many helpful people--I'm trying to make a list of all the people so I don't forget to thank someone. The exhibitions were amazing! The raffles and dunk tank were more successful than previous fundraising attempts at the 2009 and 2010 block parties, and we still have sponsorship dollars left over! Both Aim High and OGA will share the funds to make gymnastics and martial arts available to kids with special needs and at-risk youth.

I am so proud of all of the DTD testers for board and brick breaking awesomeness! I surprised myself a little with the front kick...not sure if everyone could tell, but I wasn't quite sure how to position myself for that break...I felt so off-balance. I loved that so many people were watching us!

The night ended with an amazing time at the Amy Roloff charity dinner. It was great to finish a successful event and then get "dressed up" and spend the evening with great friends and some very interesting people supporting a wonderful cause.

I feel great about everything that happened yesterday. I know that if I can get through a day like yesterday and allow myself to trust others to get things done when I can't, then I have truly grown as a professional, and as a person. I owe much of this to my training as a black belt at a place like Aim High.

Now, I'd like to say that I am so glad the block party is over! :o)

From CGN Sarah

Dear 2012 Black Belt candidates,

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS. You have worked so hard to get where you are now and it’s well deserved. Coming up, you will be faced with some challenges that might make you doubt yourself and your totally awesome skills. No matter what, you must remember that if you set your mind to it, you will succeed. Your instructors would have pulled you out by now if they didn’t think you could handle the test.

During the test, you are going to have to make some sacrifices. For me, I had to give up a few soccer games and practices to attend some training. But sports aren’t the only things that are sacrificed. I had to give up a lot of time with my family and friends for my test. My friends would ask me to come over or spend the night and I repeatedly had to say that I was busy. Or my cousins were having a sleepover but I had special training the following morning so I left early. Spend all the time you can with your loved ones and make good use of your nights off.

Don’t fall behind on your numbers. Once you’re too far behind its hard to catch up and you’ll end up with tons of pushups/sit-ups/rows to crank out at the end. Try keeping a chart in you binder and fill it out after each day. Whether you had P.E. or you rode your bike to work, everything counts.

Rely on your team. They are your family for this test and they will support you no matter what. Aim High, Dream Big, and never give up.

With love and best wishes,

CGN Sarah :)