Last Competition - Stars United

We are away this weekend again!!

After about 5 years of my daughter twirling a baton, we are finally attending the Last Competition.
We will be away in Kitchener this weekend to attend Canadians!  It's the big one. What the girls spend all year working for. The FINAL seasonal performance. In Canada that is.

Problem is....she wont be there. It's bittersweet.

She let them down. It happens. Kids! All a part of their learning I guess. Sad, but true. But...the show must go on. Hotel has been taken care of, other things that came up to do for the weekend had been turned down because we had things to do - root for the Stars United Baton Club.  And by golly...that's what we are going to do with or without my daughter. They have been like a family for the last several years and it will be sad to part ways without my daughter properly completing the season. I couldn't let them down, so we are still going. I know i'm just a parent but I feel that it's the right thing to do. Something I always try to teach my kids. I don't always know, but I do my best. So, Furman and I will be there cheering them on as if my daughter is on the floor with them. In my mind, she will be. Looking all cute in her costumes. Love her so much. I know it will be a bit tough but i'm willing to do it. I'm doing it for my daughter too because I want her to learn from me! Just wish things were different.

What happened? Not quite sure actually. She is a teenager. She started becoming unreliable and I guess she lost some of her passion for the sport. The coach couldn't take the chance that she'd disappoint the team on the big day. So, she was removed right before competition. A decision I unfortunately had to agree with. Coach Satyne has always had a rule in place for as long as I could remember that if anyone misses practice right before competition, that they would be pulled from competing. She meant it. That's what happened! My daughter's first, and last time. Lesson learned I hope. It's all about remembering that there is no "I" in Team. It's all about our choices and how they affect others sometimes. It's not always about US!

My daughter started twirling baton about 5 years ago. One day she was just so excited to show me what she could do. She made me sit down on the couch as she stood in front of the television with a small curtain rod that had been sitting around waiting to be put up. I can still remember her excitement. :) Such a happy memory. Anyways, when she felt she had my full attention she started spinning the rod in her fingers. I must say, I was quite impressed. She was really good. I have no clue how she initially learned how to do that. Certainly wasn't from me. lol She said she had been playing with it and I guess she was a natural. So...when she was finished with me I hopped on the computer. I knew there was a name for what she was doing but couldn't quite remember. Oh yeah...Baton!  So I searched for baton in my area. I had no clue what I was looking for exactly. Were there baton twirling clubs? There sure are and one in my area. It was called Progress Baton Club at the time, later changed to Stars United Baton Club run by Satyne Ward. So, I gave them a call and set something up. The rest is history.


My daughter started twirling on Saturdays for a season. Not sure if it was a complete season though. There was only her and a smaller girl in the class. Like I said, my daughter was a natural. It didn't take the coach long to see my daughters potential. With that said, the following season my daughter skipped a level and moved right into competitive. It was a proud moment. The coach had confidence in my daughters abilities. She was a great addition to the teams. For my daughter, it was a bit scary because everyone on the competitive team had been twirling baton for years. Not keeping this in mind at times, my daughter was very hard on herself....but, she was good. I had to constantly remind her of this.

At home 5 years later, we have tons of baton trophies and medals. It's crazy. My daughter has even had the honor of holding the titles of Miss Majorette of Ontario as well as Miss Majorette of Canada I think in the same year. Got those sashes at home too. Makes me smile because when I was younger I wasn't a part of anything. That's probably part of the reason why I did whatever I had to do to foster my daughters passion for baton twirling. The friend I had at the time couldn't imagine how I did it, after she got to experience a full day at a baton competition with me. lol It's a long day..let me tell you! We've been to plenty. Kitchener, Oshawa, Hamilton, Stratford, Whitby, Walkerton....all over I tell ya! But, it was so worth it to see my daughter do her thing and look cute in her costumes. To watch ALL the girls who are just totally awesome at what they do. I'm proud of them all. Heck, their appearance on Breakfast Television one morning even pulled my own father out of the woodwork to try and get a glimpse of the granddaughter he had never met. He was looking for me too! lol He recognized his granddaughter. That prompted him to dial a phone number I never knew he had, mine, to let me know he was proud too. And..he sure sounded it.

Oh...but there is nothing like the pride you feel when you get to attend the really big one. Yup..bigger than Canadians.  AYOP..at the University of Notre Dame in Southbend, Indiana. We went twice. Such an awesome experience. Wonderful memories. Proud as a peacock. Reminded me of the times my mom would boast "That's MY baby!"..lol Although I never did anything special other than be her baby. But, I get it now. Furman and I had been dating and on both occasions he flew from Miami to Toronto just so that he could drive to Indiana with us as a family to attend. Told ya...I got a really good one! He's always made me feel very special and treats my daughter like his own. I told him, twice, he could fly there and meet us. Eventually, I understood and it all made sense. Took a while. Just wasn't something I was used to. For 5 years I couldn't even get my daughters father to attend her competitions in the city let alone one out of town. Here, was a man that I was dating (and now happily married) playing the part of the doting father. It was awesome. We're blessed. Oh..but the other baton parents can attest to the fact that he is actually great company too! lol Gotta love Furman!

Like I said....loooong days. This was at AYOP 2010.

                                     
So....one last time! Well, who knows..maybe in the future my daughter, Furman and I can surprise the team with a visit to one of their competitions. We are a Stars United family so we will surely be keeping in touch. My daughter will be an alumnus of the Stars United Baton Club and that will always be. I have soo much to be thankful for and so does my daughter. I guess here is where I lose a few tears as I think about the support that the awesome coaches have given our family over the years. Many thank you's to Miss Satyne, Miss Simone who really had my daughter under her wing for a while, Miss Diana, Miss Andrea, Miss Michelle and Miss Stephanie who was my daughters very first coach when she was twirling on weekends.  You've all helped my daughter grow so much and get through some trying times. Thank you to the other parents as well for being great company as we cheered our children on. Oh..and thank you to the other athletes. You ladies Rock!

It's been a blast! I dedicate this song to you all. THANKS FOR THE MEMORY

Look forward to seeing you all this weekend to cheer on the rest of the girls as they complete another great season!  Stars United is Numero Uno!! Bring home the bling again girls!!!!

On behalf of my daughter, I truly THANK YOU ALL FOR EVERYTHING! 

And apologize for not being there this one last time. 

Message to my daughter:  I LOVE YOU SOOO VERY MUCH! I AM SO VERY PROUD OF YOU FOR ALL YOU HAVE ACCOMPLISHED AND ALL YOU STILL HAVE YET TO ACCOMPLISH. 

The Sky is the Limit!  Your choice!  I'll give everyone an extra special hug just for you.

We'll all miss you there.