Happy Birthday

We had my daughter's 8th birthday party today. She's so tiny so I have a little trouble thinking of her as growing up. That's my mom in the background. She's 5'2" Lex got her short genes. The party was at a local roller skating/ arcade/bowling alley/movie theatre place. She did roller skating and arcade for her birthday. My camera decided to stop working just as she went roller skating so I got no pictures of that. Also, I'm only posting the one picture here because I don't feel right posting pictures of other people's children on my blog. Isn't she adorable with the Hannah Montana cake -- and her eight candles? She had a sleepover last night which went amazingly well. Apparently if you don't have six kids at one time it isn't so bad. Go figure.
My other baby (I only have one biological kid so I mean my brother's oldest son Matt) is turning 19 tomorrow. One day they're little babies in your arms, the next they're running little cars up your legs like your knees are mountains and the next they are all grown up.
Where do the years go so fast? Lexie told me yesterday that I was the best mom in the whole world. Why I ask? Because I have to work harder than any other mom. I laugh. She wants to know why that is funny. Before I know it Lex will be 19 too... apparently it only gets harder.

Broken Leg Sitspin

Here is a video I shot today of the broken leg sitspin. The spin itself is okay but she messed up on the entrance and the exit. I guess she has time to clean it up so it looks nice for competition. Its still a fairly new spin for her. And I'm sure she'll have 3 revs in the broken-leg position in no time at all.

The new Freestyle Pre-Pre Test Program

For about six months now I've waited for the Pre-Pre Test Freestyle event to arrive. I had a lot of high hopes for this event and the announcements for the first two competitions of the season came out with the event not being offered.. Finally, the first big competition of the season's announcement came out. There was a sentence left out in the Pre-Pre Test event which changed what could be allowed for her to do. Basically rendering this event an even lower level than the one that she competed in last season. So it didn't look like her competing in this event was going to happen. My daughter's coach - who I absolutely adore by the way - took me around to talk to several different judges about the wording and what it would mean for my daughter (if she decided to compete in this event). All these judges told me that I wrong. That the wording clearly said that only moves that are on the test are allowed in the event in competition. Which is contradictory to other parts of the description seeing as how it also says at least 2 solo spins of a different nature are needed and there is only one spin on the Pre-Pre Test. So again if she couldn't do the singles (loop, flip and a lutz) and the spins (broken leg sitspin and camel) then I didn't want her doing the event. So after being told that I was wrong by SO MANY people and I just didn't want to argue with anybody anymore or be labeled a trouble-maker. And just when I had completely given up hope of her even being able to compete in a freestyle event this year - an amendment came out to the announcement. And guess who was right all along. I won an argument I had stopped arguing. I have to say that kind of caught me off guard. I had given up. I'm really excited about this event. And this program. For the first time in a really long time I feel like its a program that she can do well with. I also want on my wish list for this program a catch-foot or victory spiral. I know parents and spectators like these - judges do not. But shouldn't some of this damn sport be about pleasing parents??? And some twizzles would be nice. I may not get twizzles. I'm holding out for the broken leg sitspin (that's still not consistently good). The deadline for the competition has arrived (today) and she's all signed up for her events. So we're really going to do this thing. My biggest fear at this point is that my daughter's coach is going to give birth before we get this program pieced together and we switch coaches mid-choreography. I got high hopes for this program - ya know? I've been waiting almost six months for this event to arrive.

Remebering Melanie....

This post is off-topic from skating. This blog is also about my little girl. And well this post is about the loss she is going through right now. We just got back from the funeral home an hour or so ago for my daughter's friend and classmate, Melanie. We ate dinner and I got my little girl settled into bed. There have been just a few times in my life where I've actually been afraid for my life and well-being. When I was pregnant with my daughter I was thrown from a neighbor's horse. He had teased me about being scared and pretty much forced me into riding this horse he had just bought. I knew better. But I couldn't stand his teasing. While I was being bucked I remember thinking this is not how I want to die at 23 years old. I haven't ridden since. Occasionally people like to tell me about the proverbial horse. Well let me tell ya - proverbial horses can't kill ya but real ones can. I know that accidents happen and we can't live our lives being afraid. After all, living is the only worth dying for. There are some fates worse than death like actually having to live through being bucked, thrown, stomped and drug to death (or nearly to death). My God, what that poor little girl must have went through waiting to die.
Friday night my daughter sat down and wrote out her list of people to invite to her birthday party. She wrote Melanie's name at the top of her list. When I told her that Melanie had died she said now Melanie won't be able to come my birthday party. A few more thoughts from my daughter.. Melanie won't be able to turn eight. Melanie won't get to be what she wanted to be when she grows up. She said Thank you Mom for taking care of me and not letting me die. I told her that Melanie's parents didn't let her die. She's been really sad and clingy the past 2 days. I slept with her Sunday night - something I rarely do. I know she's scared now that she could die too. We all think we are too young to die.
Hug your babies whether they are one years old or seven or twenty or fifty. You are never too young to die. Tell all the people that you love "I love you" and listen when they say it. When I tell my brother I love you he says "I love you too but I'm not going to die; you're not going to die."

Random Thoughts about Nationals

Now about Nationals. I can't believe I waited a week to say anything. The shock of it all has had time to wear off. I know I'm not the only one who feels bad for Johnny Weir. I've gotten email about it. I know not everybody loves Johnny Weir but I think this sport really, really needs people like Johnny Weir to set the ice on fire. I mean isn't that the direction we want Figure Skating to go? Now that I've seen the Nationals Exhibition - and Johnny Weir skating "Ave Maria"I have to say it just makes me like him even more. I can't help it... Go Johnny!

McLaughlin and Brubaker - they really tore up the ice too, huh? I'm not sure how many more performances we'll be seeing of Baldwin & Inoue.. but that was some moment on the ice for those two. Maybe they stole a little of McLaughlin & Brubaker's thunder?

The ladies - the 14 yo Mirai Nagasu and 15 yo Rachel Flatt. A whole new generation of skaters coming into their spotlights. I have a feeling there will be even more of that.

And you know we love Tanith & Ben. Which is saying a LOT. Because sometimes I think my daughter just pulls for whoever is against whoever I'm pulling for. Not just figure skating but in all sports. We love Tanith & Ben - such incredible passion... Absolutely beautiful skaters.


***For those of you checking the blog to see if I've posted "Getcha Head in the Game" - I'm haven't and I'm not. Not yet anyway. Its been shortened to a minute version for this competition. And I think I'm going to wait until it is the full program to share. I did take my camera to the rink to try and video her during her lesson but she was pretty small in the view finder and I don't think it would turn out well unless I was skating myself and 'chasing her around the ice' as I like to call my filming. So that said... sorry you're prolly going to have to wait til April to see it.

Holiday Video

My daughter's coach gave me a video today of the whole competition from December. It played in my dvd player. I was able to record the tv with my camera (which works some of the time but not all of the time; it worked today). So I'm sharing. Remember that she had a really off day and this is the competition where she fell a lot. I'm excited to be able to share. I know its not the best quality though. Also sorry that I didn't turn off my camera before it added the next skaters names.

Nothing to Share

I guess this is going to be a venting post. My dvd of the Christmas competition - I don't even know what I did with it. It won't play in my computer, won't play in any of my dvd players. I should've just gave it to my parents. Or my brother. At least that way somebody would be able to actually watch it. And my pictures from High School Musical on Ice. None of my daughter's friends' parents have emailed me any pictures. I don't think their parents read my blog so its probably okay for me to complain about 'em. But I'm out there trying to skate. And talk to the cast. And juggling 3 cameras so I can take pictures for everybody else. And I end up with Nada. Its not fair.
Good News. The music is cut to "Getcha Head in the Game" - I've got to come up with a costume. Seems simple enough. But a red basketball jersey and shorts to fit an 8 year old. Ought to say "Wildcats" or "East" on it. A number maybe 14. or 4. Is 4 Chad's number? Or maybe she could just have her own number? At any rate.. I'm pretty glad I don't have to build a fluxcapacitor. Or draw popcorn (you know like one kernel at a time) my daughter skated to "Take me out to the ball game" a couple of years ago. Yep I think I learned my lesson on that one.
Lots of incoherent sentences strung together. .. No pictures... No video. I just figured I needed to say something - its been long time since Christmas.
Aren't you glad you read the blog today?