Practice, Practice
The last days of December, 2016, Dennis and I drove to Eden Prairie to take in Megan’s first official ice skating lesson. 
Not too far in the distant past we had been on board when Nicholas got his Black Belt in Karate. It is always a joy to see the kids involved with something near and dear to them that pushes their limits. Megan had been having quite a bit of ice time when she had decided to get down to business. Just going forward on the ice was no longer enough of a challenge. At the time we were at the arena and taking in that first lesson, my heart went out for her as the tension showed in her posture, body language and in her feet. There were lines of concern on her brow.
Megan’s first judged competition was yesterday. What a difference from just a short time ago. Her form was right on and if it wasn’t apparent in the fluidity of her routine, you couldn’t miss the expression she wore. It didn’t hurt either that a placing of “first” in the compulsory portion and then a third in “over all” just kept a smile going for the rest of the day. Nicholas gave her trophy a thorough inspection and deemed it a good one. Confidence for both Megan and Nicholas comes in trying new adventures with a huge amount of time, energy and resources invested by the mom and dad. Good job all the way around.