Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 I thought it may be fun to follow Nadia along her journeys of gymnastics and see how she does for her meets this year. This is Nadia. Yeah, I know. Kinda a weird pose, but that's the type of poses they do in gymnastics. Kinda a traditional thang methinks. She first got involved in gymnastics at the age of 3. In short, that gymnastics gym went under because the owner's husband became sick, died, and she couldn't run it by herself. A strict coach from Romania. She was on her country's Olympic team and then taught after retiring from the sport. Her gym/equipment/student list was bought by a much bigger center that hires Russian coaches that have almost all competed in the Olympics. That's where we are now. Louie and tinyplants 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 Nadia's brothers all have Asperger's. A type of Autism. It wouldn't surprise me if Nadia has it too, but it manifests differently in girls most of the time. Her muscles are very loosey goosey and she has trouble holding her legs and arms straight out, but gymnastics has been great in helping her slowly learn to control her balance and body. ADD pretty much runs in my wife's family, so no surprise Nadia has trouble paying attention, but once again gymnastics has helped somewhat with her focusing for longer periods of time. So far Nadia has 1 medal and 1 trophy from showcases previously. She has taken those to school for show and tell because she has been proud of those. She's 6 now. Her and her twin brother turn 7 five days after Christmas. Causes challenges splitting up Christmas presents and birthday presents! LOL Louie, tinyplants, Pneumonic and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 So this year Nadia received this balance beam: She absolutely adores it! She is on it almost everyday! She loves gymnastics! At recess she is hand over hand on the school monkey bars, she does round offs on the way home from school, she constantly practices handstands in the house and routines! Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 Nadia made Level 2 last year and we are sooooooo proud of her! She was thrilled! Think of gymnastics levels like belts in the martial arts. When you achieve certain skills and get tested, you go up to the next level. The challenge with gymnastics is you have to display the required new skills on all 4 apparatus to move up to the next level after a season of competing. The apparatus are uneven bars, floor, balance beam, and vault. More about that later... See how long her hair is? We had to learn a special bun for her hair for the meets this year. If we were to use a traditional bun, it would be HUGE! Instead, this is the bun we had to learn: Shrimpie, Louie, sarah and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 So we are not very knowledgeable about gymnastics yet, but I'm learning. heh Like any other sport or hobby, once you get serious about it, it takes lots of time and money. Gee, we don't know what that's like do we? LOL So, she has gymnastics practices about 13 hrs a week. Gymnastics is weird in the sense that there's no real season off. You compete, but you still have to attend practices all year round- otherwise you lose your flexibility, conditioning strength and balance. The strength is a careful balance between endurance and isometric power muscle. So she made it to level 2 and has been working hard to make level 3. She still finds it hard to keep her legs and arms straight, but is doing better. The season average she has to have on all 4 events is 8.5 if she doesn't meet this, she stays in the current level until she does. Shrimpie, Louie and Wygglz 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 26, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 First mock meet was Saturday. Her scores were: Vault: 8.8 Bars: 8.75 Beam: 7.6 Floor: 7.6 This is something the gym did to give them an understanding where they are at in terms of base points and what to expect from the real meets coming up. Each meet has different judges, so we'll see how she scores in her first meet the first weekend of November. C'mon Nadia! I'm routin' for ya, gal! Louie and Shrimpie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimple minded Posted October 26, 2015 Report Share Posted October 26, 2015 Soothing Shrimp 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wygglz Posted October 27, 2015 Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is great, Bryce! Let Nadia know she has Montanans pulling for her too. And I don't know how other members feel, but I'm thrilled to be able to read about her progress, especially since it is your shrimping that helps finance her dreams. dr0p, wot_fan, Louie and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shrimpie Posted October 27, 2015 Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 What a champ, Nadia!! Congrats! Soothing Shrimp and Louie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillznglass Posted October 27, 2015 Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 This post. So full of win. Soothing Shrimp and Louie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr0p Posted October 27, 2015 Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is really awesome! Thank you for sharing with us. Add to her growing list a Marylander/Virginian pulling for her! I can't imagine trying to make a bun like that! It's incredible! I probably couldn't handle a balance beam either, now that I think about it...I want to be young and invincible again. Louie and Soothing Shrimp 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 This is great, Bryce! Let Nadia know she has Montanans pulling for her too. And I don't know how other members feel, but I'm thrilled to be able to read about her progress, especially since it is your shrimping that helps finance her dreams. Only way I can do it. heh We don't earn enough otherwise and this forum has become my shrimping family as well. So family helping family is a win-win. Louie and Wygglz 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 We appreciate the support folks. Thank you! She's excited to have so many people virtually routing for her as well! I'm reading her each and every comment! She was a bit bummed after the mock meet because she didn't place. I sat her down and told her it's good to compare herself with others to see where she places, however compete against her own self to better her own scores each time. Gymnastics is a funny sport. It's team, but individual as well. Whereas some people on her team have the talent naturally, she has to really work to get the skills down. I'm super proud of her for her tenacity! This is really awesome! Thank you for sharing with us. Add to her growing list a Marylander/Virginian pulling for her! I can't imagine trying to make a bun like that! It's incredible! I probably couldn't handle a balance beam either, now that I think about it...I want to be young and invincible again. heh It's more apparent to me the young truck has passed me by. LOL The bun is simple really, but complicated to make look right. At this point, it takes us about an hour to do it. I'm sure the time will go down as we get more experienced. The real challenge is doing that on someone who has ADD. LOL Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 Nadia wanted to write and say: "I love gymnastics because I love doing everything! " DreaminginBlue, Louie and dr0p 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2015 I should probably mention she had to go to the emergency room a few weeks ago. She fell in gymnastics and hit her forehead. It can be a pretty dangerous sport at times. We went to the emergency room, had the face full of blood cleaned up, and found she had a cut on her forehead. So, deciding how many stitches she was going to have, she spoke up for herself and said she didn't want a scar. me: Gymnasts are warriors! You'll have a great battle injury to brag about! her: No scar. me: You'll have a great conversation starter to tell others about! her: No scar. me: You'll- her: No scar. I got the impression she wanted to minimize her scar. LOL Funny since many other gymnasts have scars and injuries. The doctor then decided that she may be young enough to heal quickly enough with steristrips and a sterile type of super glue. Here's her after the procedure. Ironically she's not on any meds, she just kept asking when she can get back to the gym. I *did* manage to convince her to take the rest of the day off. LOL She had a black eye for about a week. Now about 3-4 weeks later she looks like this. Sorry for the morning hair. heh Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2015 Just got official word her meet starts at 7 am next weekend. A 3 hr drive. Not sure if we'll do a motel, or take off at 3 or 4am... ugh... Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Water7 Posted October 29, 2015 Report Share Posted October 29, 2015 Thank you so much for sharing about your daughter, Nadia. I appreciate all the time and effort you put into helping your daughter do something that is important to her. I also have a six-year-old daughter. She will be 7 next month. I homeschool her. It's nice to get to know your family a little! Louie and Soothing Shrimp 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Great! So you know what it is like to have a 6 yr old, as well. What's her name? When I was growing up, I had an interest in the arts. My mom was willing to support me, but my father was against it. So, of course my dad won out. It was only after my father died at my age of 15 that I could start seriously exploring performing. Now after lots of years in the theatre acting/directing, I'm switching my media and exploring becoming a filmmaker....but I digress... I promised my daughter if she had an interest in something, unlike my parents, I would do everything possible to support her exploring it. All she has to be is the best SHE can be. That doesn't mean going to the Olympics, or nationals- heck, that doesn't even mean placing!- that means finding a love of something and keeping the passion for herself. If she goes through this and just wants to be a coach or instructor, then God bless her- go for her dreams! Find a job you love, and you'll never have to "work." But yeah. It's very expensive, but a commitment to my kids is a commitment. I'm hoping on trying a couple other things to sell to help offset her costs as well. Her team leo alone cost $340! Louie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wygglz Posted October 30, 2015 Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 My sister homeschooled her kids and her daughter loved to dance. She ended up teaching for a while but now has a Master's in dance therapy and works in a hospital in NY; pretty cool twist. Tell Nadia good luck this weekend! Soothing Shrimp and Louie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted October 30, 2015 Author Report Share Posted October 30, 2015 Her meet is on Nov 8, but we'll still take the good luck! Haven't home schooled her yet, but as she progresses to the upper levels, it may take so much time she'll have to. Time will tell. And cool twist on the dancing! Sometimes we have to morph our dreams, but how great she found a niche for herself doing something she loves! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Water7 Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 Thank you for asking, Soothing Shrimp. My daughter's name is Naomi. I think she would have something in common with Nadia. She loves to climb trees. I have a low dogwood in the front yard and she enjoys swinging from the branches. By the way, the bun that you make for Nadia's hair is intricate and beautiful. I can imagine it is a lot of work! Best wishes for Nadia as she practices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted November 2, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 Thanks Water7! Nadia loves climbing her grandmother's tree on days off. heh I think it must be in kids' natures to like climbing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wygglz Posted November 8, 2015 Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 Hey Bryce, doesn't Nadia have a meet today? Good luck to her and be sure to let us know how she does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted November 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 She sure does! Yesterday she had to go home early from practice because her stomach hurt. Some 250mg of C and supplements later, she felt good by the end of the day. She had her hair made into a bun last night and stayed overnight at the motel with her mom and grandma and twin bro. (I had opening night this weekend and had to stay home to do my job as director here.) She had to wake around 5am this morn and be whisked away to the meet. One of the dads of a girl on the same team is keeping me advised of scores this morning live. Each judge is different, and each meet has different judges, so you never know which judge is is more forgiving and which is more "tough as nails." So far she has: Bars: 8.5 Beam: 8.6 (YAY! Up a whole point from the practice mock meet!) Floor: 7.2 Vault: 8.0 This meet is the first of the season and will give her first official avg. She has something like 7 more meets to go. She has to end this season with an avg of 8.5 to move on to level 3. Like a shrimp swimming against a current, not impossible, but very tough for her to do... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soothing Shrimp Posted November 8, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2015 Next weekend I won't be at her 2nd meet because it's the Sunday closing night for the performance. I'll still be there in spirit and virtually though! Luckily her mom, bro and grandma will go while I take care of their older brother here and attend to my duties at the theatre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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