Swim Meet 2013

Cate had her fall swim meet last month and again it was awesome!  You'd think we'd get bored of this or at least lukewarm but it is so much fun to watch these kids swim.  They all have worked so hard to get here regardless of their challages - on this team they are all equals and that is a great thing.  Cate swam in 4 races - 50 yard freestyle (new for her), 25 yard freestyle, 25 yard backstroke, and 25 yard breaststroke (new for her).


I did get a cute pose before the first race!

She started with the new 50 yard freestyle race and got 3rd place because she wasn't really sure she wanted to swim after the shock of cool water.  She wasn't the only new one to the race so finishing it without stopping got her 3rd place even though she spent way more time doggy paddling and looking around than being the competitive swimmer.  Cate has to be invested in something to do well and after that first race I was worried she was more interested in the birthday party for afterwards than the races at hand.    I don't know if she used that first race as a warm-up, was inspired by the ribbon she got, or just clicked into gear but the 25 free race was a totally different story.

game face on - ready to go!

#1!!!

Not only did she finish first, she did it in 48 seconds which is almost 10 seconds faster than her time in the spring.  Cate's stroke looked good and she was moving fast!!  She rushed over to show off her to cheering section which included my parents, my aunt and my cousin the blue ribbon!

 

first stop was to show her proud daddy!

and then "surprise" grandma and Kim

 

Of course because she won that one she was ready for the backstroke which she placed 4th in last season.    

ready for backstroke

off she goes

First Place for Backstroke!!!

a hug for sister!

 Not only did she get first place she got her time under a minute! 

One of Cate's friends was doing her first backstroke race and so Cate decided to give her some encouragement just like we gave her the first time she when she took 4 minutes to finish!

After this we set up for breaststroke which is the new stroke she just started this season.  She had a little problem getting started since she wanted to do free but there were a couple new to this race so she wasn't the only one.  But she got into it after a little while and did a great job.

Cate is the middle lane slightly ahead of the girl next to her at this point.

 

a little "I did it wave to the crowd"

Even though it is awesome that Cate did so well and made us so proud with her competitive spirit and hard work the best thing about this meet was that she sought out her friends.  They aren't really new friends but somehow this day it seemed that the relationships had matured which is awesome because they are great girls!

swimmer girls (A&L) and their sisters

 

A & Cate are proud of their backstroke ribbons

 

Our awesome swimmers!

It was a successful afternoon all around!

"enough pictures mom - ugh"

 



3 for 21 Blog Hop - November

Jumping in for a quick blog hop entry since I've missed a few! 3 for 21 is a Down Syndrome blog hop in which the participants do a post with one truth, one tip, and one picture.

One Truth: Cate is a great swimmer!  I have a long overdue post about her recent swim meet with some pictures about half ready to expand that.  Cate being a great swimmer is in and of itself a truth but behind that lies a every bigger truth.  If you are/were like me when you find out your  baby has Down syndrome you go through a time of sadness that comes out in thoughts like "she'll never do <something> like I did".  And really I still do it sometimes even with experience of being wrong in the past.  Some of those things you thought that about will be silly or turn out to be irrelevant, some with haunt you, but a lot of them will just turn out to not be true.  I worried when Cate was little she wouldn't be able or love to swim like me.  The truth she loves it and is great at it.  So the moral of my truth - that every time you think "she won't" remind yourself "she will if she wants to" if you just give her the tools.

One Tip:  Trust your instincts.  When Cate was a baby I was still in that "doctor/teacher/therapist knows best" frame of mind.  These days I'm more likely to take all professional opinions in mind and add them to own ideas before I make a decision.  No professional who sees Cate once a year, a month can know how she'll react to something.  For example when Cate get sick, a lot of the time she'll push herself harder and become more stubborn instead of seeming tired or telling you something hurts.  Actually if she says her tummy hurts or she feels sick it is very likely a reaction to a task that is hard for her (even when you don't see it that way), it is rarely actually a virus or bug.  Many times when she was a baby she didn't get treatment for a bug until she was running a high fever or developing pneumonia.  Now I try to trust my instincts that something is wrong when she starts getting whiny for no reason or seems to be pushing away from activities she normally likes.   You always know your child best.


One Picture:

as proud of herself as we are of her!

Halloween Pictures - just for Aunt Brandie

Didn't think I could be more of a blog slacker did you?  Life is rolling along these days and not leaving much time for anything.  Everyone has been healthy and is very involved in their activities which makes for a busy mommy with very little down time.  Pretty awesome huh?  Much better than the alternative of having sick kids, bored kids or no job.

Last week the girls' Aunt Brandie asked me for Halloween pictures - which I never even thought about sending until today.  So here is an overdue post for Halloween!  Lucy was a kitty cat.  She had a few choices including a cowgirl, princess, panda or the cat.  Smart girl choose the cat because it was slightly chilly and "it is like wearing a blanket so I don't have to wear a jacket".  Cate wanted to be princess Sophia from the Disney show Sophia the first.   The girls' Nana sent a huge box of old dance costumes that she got at a garage sale a few month ago (best care package ever!) and there was a perfect purple dress for a princess.  We added a purple amulet (Sophia's prize possession) and a crown, added a little curling iron action and TA DA - Cate was Sophia!  They had a fun at our neighborhood party complete with hayride (first time for Lucy!) and then a great time trick or treating home.


Princess Sophia and the white kitty cat!

The pumpkins are Wilbur and Charlotte - Cate's class made them and I won them at the fall festival auction.  Cate begged for them it is her FAVORITE book.

Cate spent a lot of the night showing us her curtsy - and you can just see the pink cowboy boots underneath!

hay ride - they went by themselves :-)

they are both still asking how long until Halloween again as they see the candy dwindle down!