Green Belt

Madison earned her green belt tonight, just in time for St. Patrick's Day!  And look who came along to watch the testing tonight:

Nana and Ye-Ye were there as well, which was a nice addition to the evening.  We got there and found a good seat close to the mat this time, and had a really close view for much of the night.  We had a view like this one here:

This was a great moment though.  She had fifteen seconds to get that other girl off of her, and that other girl was bigger and a more advanced belt, and not going to give her that opportunity.  An extra advantage working against Madison is that the other girl knows exactly what to do, and is expecting and anticipating every move.  So Madison had to really figure how to get out of it, and do it in fifteen seconds.  It was so textbook how she managed to roll that girl over - you can see her smile above, a thrill of victory that she was talking about all night.  We all were talking about this one moment here all night, and will probably be bringing it up from time to time in the future too.  You can see Mrs. Edge in the background, also celebrating!

Of course, there's the moment where the students demonstrate their forms, and Madison had been practicing this at home too.  The big moment came, and she was out there doing her thing with everyone watching.  She was fantastic, fluid and taking her time through each form.  She did great!  At the end, she even earned an extra medal for an extra special performance tonight.  It was an evening she probably won't forget, and of course it ended with this moment here.

You can see the symbolism in action once more.  Mommy and Daddy are holding one end of the belt, and Madison is holding the other.  On the count of three, we both pull and close the knot, symbolizing our working on this belt together.  It's a great moment each time.

Here's the group tonight, and this is just a small selection of students.  There are quite a few in various time slots all going up ranks.  There was a class before this, and tomorrow night another session as well.  This place is flourishing, and you can see why.  Madison loves it, and will keep moving forward - by May, she'll have a new belt.  But for now, we're all quite happy with this one, the green belt.  What a great night!