I really hate to brag. I have sat next to parents who brag about EVERYTHING their darling child is doing, and I can't stand it....but now I just HAVE to or I'll burst!!!!

I am just so blasted proud of my dd! First, she finally starts landing her axel with some consistancy. Then, mid July, she lands her first double sal. So those are two brags...

But this weekend, was about the proudest moment so far! We kicked off her competitive season with a new program, new level, first time with an axel in the program. She went out there and knocked it out of the park! Everything in the program looked fantastic! Spins, footwork, and she LANDED THAT AXEL!!!! Well, at least the first one...the second attempt ended in a pretty big splat, which we remembered was another first for her...first fall in competition! But she got right up and continued and still ended strong. After I saw that, I really didn't care what her placement was (not that I ever do care about placement), she had exceeded all my expectations and skated to the best of her ability, and that is all we ask of her. Then, as if that weren't enough, she got the gold!!

But to me, that gold was the reward for so much more than that program. She has been through H*** at our rink. Without going into detail, she lost some friends, lost her club and lost all her confidence since Feburuary this year. I have watched that child struggle through this total isolation and hostility, and have ended up in tears myself because I could see it, but there was nothing I could do to make it better. She learned some very hard lessons for a 9-10 yo. But she pushed on. We went away to two skate camps this summer. As soon as I got her out of that atmosphere, she blossomed. Her axel came while we were gone. Her 2 sals came while we were gone. And best of all, her confidence returned while we were gone. She came back with a new attitude. I saw her rise above the nasty atmosphere at our rink and succeed anyway, in spite of it all. Instead of losing her love of skating, she is more determined and in love with it than ever before! Her coach commented after we came back from the last camp, "She grew up during that week!"

And indeed, she did.

So I am bragging on more than my dd's medal. I am just so proud of her for what she has become...a confident, strong little lady!

Props to my little Buggie

Congratulations and good for her. I've always believed figure skating was a good for character building - it's just hard to watch sometimes!

j

Congrats to your daughter!

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Jessica

http://ilove2skate.livejournal.com/

http://www.myspace.com/sk8fabulous

Congrats! Especially for that first fall and competition and getting right back up -- in my mind, that's the biggest accomplishment! I've seen so many kids just fall and completely give up on the program, especially when it's their first fall and they're not used to it yet.

Well done her! And I hope you've told her how proud you are of her, not just us!

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

Congrats to you and your daughter!!!

I hope you have found a more positive environment for her to train in on a more permanent basis. I remember your previous posts on this subject but forgot if there were other options.

The home rink of the club we now belong to is 3 hours away, but I plan on taking her up there from time to time to have some "away" time, and get to know the kids that are now her teammates. Also, as I said, she seems to make massive leaps in progress when she is away, so I am hoping that will continue, and even further boost her confidence. We will continue to train where we are, but I know that going to the other rink is always an option if I feel she needs a boost of "positivity".

I have told her all along the way how proud I am of her for every little step she has taken. Sometimes, she has been the one to boost *me* up when I had almost had enough of the rink. I asked her the other day what has made the difference between the days when she was close to quitting, and now, when she is on fire to skate. She said that she has learned to ignore what others say, and just focus on her skating. She also said she loves the feeling of landing those jumps, no matter how many times she falls trying, she just loves that feeling!

And I love seeing the pure joy on her face when she does!

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BuggieMom
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Some people are like a Slinky...not really good for anything,
but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs....

Congratulations to your daughter! That's wonderful! Skating can be a cruel, cruel sport, but it can also offer some great life lessons. I'm glad she found that something that lit that fire of passion beneath her to persevere.