Proud Mom post

[JMTStone]

You all may remember our Little Ninja from ICOT15. She was one of the only kids at Gary's Column. Anyway our 11 year old girl, after 2 years of hard work, received her black belt in American Kenpo Karate yesterday.

But its just the beginning for her. The academy is a family not a corporation and she is interested in continuing. You don't pay for the belt, you earn it. We're very proud.

She's also received their All American Award. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoDbw...W_erPB4n9N_P2wThere's a picture of Gary's Column there!

Now she can defend Gary's Column in the manner it deserves.

With me going to kickboxing and a black belt in the house, my husband should worry

[VWL Mom]

Congratulations to DD, such an accomplishment!

[Strmchsr]

Congrats from our family!!! You're right, 1st degree black belt is just the beginning of the journey, not the end. Now she knows enough to really start learning the arts. I have advanced black belts in 2 different arts, as does DS13, and my wife is 1st degree black belt in taekwondo so we definitely appreciate what it took for your daughter to make it.

[SBETigg]

Cool! Congratulations!

[MNNHFLTX]

Congratulations to Mackenzie! I enjoyed watching her video. I took Taekwondo for a year in college; only made it to a green belt, but they were the funnest activity credits I ever earned!

[Niecyboo]

Congratulations! I loved meeting all of you.

[JMTStone]

Thank you everyone for your kind words. I have a question though... is it weird that I seem to be more excited about it than she is?

She worked so hard. Its not that she wasn't nervous testing or excited when she first got it. She was beaming.

But I am shouting this from rooftops and she hasn't told her friends. Is this a pre-teen girl thing? I have a 20 year old daughter who would have tweeted it the moment it happened, then uploaded the pictures to facebook and instagram.

Maybe she took the instructors "mat chat" to heart. This doesn't mean you know everything... but it is an accomplishment.

[Melanie]

Super congrats to Mackenzie! I think her reaction is a typical tween thing. No worries. I bet she's bursting with pride.

[LauraF]

Wow!
Good for your daughter.
My husband has his brown belt in Shaolin Kenpo, and is working on his black belt. I know how hard that is to earn, from watching him work at it, so I'm so delighted for her!

Don't worry if she's not walking on air. All kids are different. Some show it more on the outside, and some use accomplishments to build their internal strength. Be as proud as you want! :-)

[Strmchsr]

Maybe she took the instructors "mat chat" to heart. This doesn't mean you know everything... but it is an accomplishment.

I think this could definitely be part of it. As an instructor, I see way too often kids hit 1st degree, have a huge celebration, and then drop out. They think they've arrived. In the last couple of years we've intentionally been training the kids, as I mentioned in my previous post, that 1st degree is only the beginning of the journey. It doesn't mean you've mastered anything other than the basics. As we've been intentional about that, we've seen a real shift in the attitude of the kids. Fewer are dropping after achieving 1st degree and most have the same attitude you described with your daughter -1st degree is great, we celebrate for a couple of days, but then it's back to work getting better and starting to learn the advanced stuff.

[JMTStone]

Everyone,
Thanks for the congrats!

Chris and Mel,
I think you're both right.

1. She's a tween girl and this accomplishment makes her special/different than the others. They don't want to be appear different to their peers at this age.

2. Our academy focuses on growth (believe me, we were at a place where you just pay for your belt for a month before we found this place). We chose this place because of their high standards and commitment to the kids in every way - in and out of the building. They want to see her grades, they want email feedback on home behavior, etc.

Thanks
Melissa (Mom of the defender of Gary's column - when Mikki isn't there)

[DVC2004]

Congrats, what a great accomplishment! I know she worked hard for that! Great job!

My son enrolled in Tae Kwon Do at the beginning of summer and is testing for his first belt (yellow) this weekend. I think it's a great sport and teaches them discipline and respect.