ret·ri·bu·tion
Noun
| Punishment that is considered to be morally right and fully deserved. |
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Synonyms
requital - retaliation - punishment - reward - penalty
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We are more than halfway through the cheer competition season for 2012-2013 and after the competition this weekend I think it's high time I posted about the season thus far. At the beginning of the season i have to admit not only was I surprised at the precision of Bailey's team early into the season but I was impressed. Not only was I impressed from what I saw from Bailey's team but more so I was impressed with Bailey. I have watched her cheer for years and have loved every minute of it. There have certainly been proud moments when I've watched her overcome obstacles in her path but I haven't felt anything comparable to what I felt the first time I watched her run through her routine this year. My baby girl was certainly no longer a baby, nor was she even a little girl anymore. What I saw was a confident, capable, and strong young woman. It was something different from pride. I was surprised with how happy she looked doing what she loves. I was surprised by the strength I saw in my oldest daughter. Indescribable.
The first competition that we attended was great. Bailey looked amazing (including the rest of the team). She brought tears to my eyes to see the confidence she clearly had in herself. I was blown away. Her team took a well deserved first place.
The next competition we attended was also fun and while they only had one other team they were competing against they were not only able to win their division but they were the grand champions of the competition beating out the other teams on their perfection score and also having the highest overall score there.
Their third competition was a a little frustrating. Two of the girls on the team would be competing with broken bones and the day just felt off. Watching the team perform they did good. Not great but good. They didn't drop a stunt and they didn't fall on tumbling. Unfortunately they were deducted for what the judges called a bauble on Bailey and another bauble from another girl. I'm not one to sugar coat things and I will admit that the incident concerning Bailey didn't look great but it certainly wasn't a bauble. They ended up taking second place.
This past weekend there was time for redemption. Okay I felt the need for a little bit of retribution because the team they lost to at the previous competition would be in Vegas for this past weekends. I think the girls wanted to feel a little bit of vindication as well as the coaches. Unfortunately
the team struggled all week. Bailey's backspot injured her wrist and would not be able to backspot Bailey for the competition which meant a lot of shuffling so there were be someone to catch Bailey on every stunt. When this happens I get very nervous. When Bailey's bases get switched injuries have been known to happen. Also, the coaches added a few higher scoring elements (aka harder) to the routine which meant the girls would need to step up their game as well. All week it seemed things just weren't going well and the coaches held a quick emergency practice Friday before we left town. I caught the end of it and I admit I was worried the girls would even place knowing what teams they were up against. Luckily the team I watched in practice the previous day (and apparently even in warmups before they performed) wasn't the same one that took the mat. They completed their routine flawlessly and in that 2 minutes gained a huge amount of their confidence back! They got back to where they were and took another first place!
Whether they took first or not that day I was thrilled. They performed like everyone knew they were capable of performing. They've been together for so long and worked so hard to get to where they are it was such a pleasure to see the smiles after the routine was completed.
