Special thanks

The girls and I would like to thank you all for your donations. We could not be more proud of the staff, parents, and students in supporting our fundraiser. It is truly an honor to be a part of ATA Maryland. This trip was a learning experience for us all and we can truly say our school is first class and we are so glad to be home!
I would like to highlight some very special people that made this trip possible. Without their help, we could not have been successful . Mr. Josh Hayhurst . You started this trip with a simple challenge... thanks for your $500.00 donation and yes, we beat your challenge :). Thanks for pushing us so hard to do our best sir.
Ms. Sharon Gladson , Mr. Richard, Ms. Brie, who created this site, the cards we handed out, the paypal account, and to many other things to list. Thanks for all your help and support. We are so blessed to have you in our lives. We absolutely appreciate all that you do.
Mr. Danny Seal, who took my phone calls, listened to my complaints, never hung up on me or told me "it can't be done". Thanks for going out of your way to make this happen. You are truly first class sir.
Mr. Jason Morgan, who taught me to keep going when I really just want to give up. I learned so much over the past few years by just watching you work. Thanks for making me do those events I thought were a waste of time...I get it now. Your ability to turn any negative into a positive truly inspires me and it has been my honor to train and learn from you. Good luck to you sir, you will be missed!
My family and friends who let us invade your homes and take over your lives for the weeks we were traveling. It was great to see you all again. Feel free to return the favor anytime you are in Md. We love and miss you all.
Anita Gable, William Gable, and MR. Fuqua. It was our honor to be your special guest and we had so much fun hanging out at your favorite restaurant"Chitlins" (thats for you Tony). Anytime you are in Md. please call us, our home is your home.
Mrs. Mcdaniel, I can't tell you how much it meant to look up in Atlanta and see your face. I don't think I could have gotten through the day without you. It meant the world to me that you and Cody were there.
Thanks again to the ATA students, staff and family members who donated over $1,000.00 before we ever left Md.
Thanks to the people in Louisiana who donated over $600.00 and the town of Jonesville who donated supplies for the Grand Opening celebration where we continued our Fundraiser.
**The fundraiser will continue for the rest of the tournament season**

We are home

Hi everyone.
Sorry I did not update the blog but we have been spending a lot of time in very remote areas of Louisiana and Mississippi. I did not have phone service for quite some time.
We are now home so I will just do a complete summary.....Tenn. was great as far as tournament points go but the fundraiser was a disappointment. We raised about $38.00 due to the fact that I knew no one and could not be at the table, TT ring, and Jr. ring at the same time.
Atlanta was a huge disappointment. The competitions again went well but no one could hear the announcements and it did not take long to figure out that I was completely invisible. I tried my best to announce to the crowd what we were doing but I got little response and made $2.00. No, that is not a misprint, we made $2.00.
Finally, we reached Louisiana. The tournament itself was first class and I was allowed the floor, microphone, and all of the time I needed to tell everyone what we were there to do. I was very touched by the countless stories people were sharing with me throughout the day. It became clear just how important what we are doing really is to so many. The girls and I met some amazing people and now have new friends all over the country. This trip has given me some of the best opportunities to teach life lessons to my girls and when I least expected it, I got a huge lesson of my own from them.
The Grand Opening celebration in Jonesville, La. was a small turnout but we had a great time. I was concerned about a few things in the beginning but soon discovered that ATA Jonesville is truly a diamond in the rough. The instructor, Mr. Jerry Fuqua, is an awesome guy with a huge heart. He drives an hour from home to the school to instruct classes and with surprisingly little to work with, he does an awesome job. His students are first class and he is making a huge impact on the town of Jonesville. The girls and I were honored to be their guest and had a wonderful time training at their school. We look forward to returning and training with Mr. Fuqua again.
We will be back at ATA Maryland tomorrow and are eager to get back into our routine. We all came home with many souvenirs...my broken nose, Lauren's black eye, Leah's allergy to watermelon, and Lilly with over 50 mosquito bites...LOL and lots of trophies. We are no worse for the wear and we really enjoyed ourselves. We managed to raise over $700.00 and have many great memories. Some of the best are times spent with family....priceless

Bayou Brawl

Good morning everyone.

Yesterday was the best day ever! The Louisiana tournament was first class. The tournament director did a wonderful job. Mr. and Mrs Prajean and Mrs Crump were very accommodating and went out of their way to make sure I had everything I needed for the fundraiser. I was allowed to have the microphone and take all of the time I needed to tell everyone about "KicksforCasey". I could not be more pleased with the donations...which I have not counted yet but a very nice lady gave me a big hug....and a check for $250.00. I heard many stories yesterday about how this disease has affected so many lives and it suddenly became clear to me about just how important this fundraiser is for so many. I have decided that regardless of whether we reach our goal or not, we want to continue the fundraiser for the rest of the tournament season....all the way to WORLDS! I got several invitations from other school owners to come to their tournaments and do the fundraiser with them. It was truly an amazing day! I would like to say thank you to all who helped out yesterday. One person stands out in my mind. David Frith from West Monroe came down with one of his friends. They drove all night, he had not slept. This kid (about 15) sat at the table all day and did not move. He nodded off a couple of times but never left the table. He handed out cards and was happy to do so all day. Thank you sir! You are amazing.
The competitions were awesome. Leah had a great time sparring and made some new friends. She has become quite a little scrapper. The judge had to pull her back several times. I was a little shocked and disturbed to be honest. One of the girls was much taller than her.
I placed first in weapons and third in sparring. We won't even talk about forms. Master Dendi was my center and he had a nice chat with me after....about having to much fun in the forms competition....I laughed my way through much of it....the crowd seemed to love it :D But he did tell me my weapon form was awesome....that's what you call justice!
I had the honor of being introduced by Taekwon Lee. He was there with his mother and sister and ofcourse it was an honor to just be in the room with the three of them. I went over to just say hi before the tournament began and told him I was from ATA Maryland and thought nothing more of it. He made me stand up and had everyone clap for me for driving all the way from MD. It was nice...I was totally embarrassed of course...but I thought that was very nice of him :)
Today my aunt and uncle are taking us out into the swamps on a tour boat to see the Achafaliya water basin. We drove across it coming into town (the bridge is about 10-15 miles long). I grew up here so it is not really new to me but the girls are completely thrilled. They can't wait to see alligators in the wild. I am a little excited as well....and wondering if I can get some fishing in today...sorry I am home..this is what I do.
My aunt and uncle took us out to a very nice restaurant on the bayou last night. We had everything on the menu. The girls LOVED the alligator tail. It was the best I have ever had. Lauren said she was just glad MS. Gladson wasn't there to watch. LOL I was just happy that the girls were not allergic to anything. We had catfish, oysters, shrimp, stuffed crab, alligator, etc. I was in a great deal of pain when we left. It is so good to be home!!

Hi everyone,
We are visiting with my mom and aunt in a small town...in the middle of nowhere...(I am so serious) called Harrisville, Ms. What started out as a very relaxing day soon became a mad rush to the Emergency Room....30 minutes away...because apparently Leah is allergic to WATERMELON!! I could be wrong about this but I am thinking I probably am the only person on earth with a child allergic to watermelon. She was asking for figs all day from the fig tree and silly me...I kept saying "no " while thinking...she might be allergic to figs..that will teach me!
We will be leaving on Friday and while I have enjoyed reliving all of the wonderful childhood memories that I have accumulated over the years of my summers spent here, I find the croaking frogs and singing birds at 6am to be quite annoying. Don't get me wrong, it is still as peaceful and tranquil as ever but after days of peace and quiet, I am ready to hear some action and I aint (yes, I said aint) talking about fighting squirrels!
The girls are having a wonderful time with grandma baking cookies, roasting marshmallows at night, chasing fireflies, and all of those things that make up the most amazing childhood memories..I know because I still have them. They are most happy when doing absolutely nothing at all. It has been nice spending time with my mom in this sheltered little place deep in the woods completely secluded from civilization. It seems that God always gives us just what we need...and I can't help but think that grandma Sharon (Gladson) would totally love this place.
I think I totally needed time away from the craziness to reflect and think about where the next step should take us. I was so completely frustrated and disappointed about the fundraiser and how I had made so many mistakes up to this point. I feel more determined than ever now so I think I got the message...Look out Louisiana, here we come!

Moving on

Good morning all! I am feeling somewhat better this morning and have decided to move on to prepare for the Louisiana tournament. The girls and I had a very relaxing day poolside with some old friends we have not seen for quite a while. They have two daughters close to Lilly and Leah's age and a nephew visiting close to Lauren's age.
Yesterday was a tough day for me physically. I was very weak and reflecting on the day before did not help much. The fundraiser has been a major disappointment and so I find myself sitting around a lot trying to come up with new ideas about how to raise money. If anyone has any ideas, now would be a good time to give me a call. I will be hitting the road soon. I think it is a 7 hr drive to my mom's house....and I can't wait to give (and better yet, get)a big hug. I will be training later in the week with the ATA Jonesville school...let ya know how that goes. P.S....I will be in full gear. Especially the facemask! Hope you all enjoy the pictures from Atlanta.

Tournament results are in!

First let me start by letting everyone know that Casey is back at ATA and doing well. I spoke with mom and she says Casey's test all came back great! No bacterial infection in her lungs! She is again free to run and play until the next little mountain comes along.
Casey is a big reason I am working so hard on this trip and to this point, it has been a major disappointment in the fundraising area. We raised $38.00 in Tn, and $2.00 at the Atlanta tournament. The tournament in Tn was completely my lack of planning and experience and therefore I am very dissapointed about Atlanta. I could give you a number of reasons for it's complete failure but I instead will push forward and keep going. I will not give up because not only do I have a huge competitive side, but also because I have an 8x10 photo of a little girl who needs my help. My faith in mankind has changed today therefore I am on a mission to restore it. I know that this is just another challenge that I have to overcome and if I have to extend this fundraiser until the end of August then I am ready to do that. Look out Louisiana, we are on the way...Oh yeah, I managed to pull out a first place win in weapons on Saturday (complete anger at its best).
I just want to say thank you to the Taekwondo school in Douglasville, Ga who let me come in and work on my weapon all week. Mrs. Gayle, you are the finest example of Southern Hospitality I have come across in a very long time. Your husband, instructors and students are first class and I sincerely thank you all for putting up with me all week. Alicia, I got hosed in sparring yesterday..sorry..I will try harder in Louisiana...thanks for all of your help ma'am. Sorry about all of the blood you guys had to clean up. Thanks for the beating. LOL The nose is surely broken, eyes are swollen shut today...tell your 12 year old student I still love him very much and I will be sending a postcard from home. He inspires me!

Puzzle Pieces

Today was by far, the most amazing day yet. It began with a crashed computer, broken digital camera and far toooo many other issues to mention. I always know that when the day starts like this, I am in for a huge life lesson and someone is trying to get my attention.
I purposely chose to wear ATA kicker pants and an ATA tshirt (the one that says "obstacles are those pesky little things that you see when you lose sight of your goals"). My personal favorite. I knew I would need to stand tall today.
The girls and I headed to the nearest Kmart to replace the defective camera but had to wait for the manager therefore we decided this would be a good time to walk the strip mall and hand out our CF letter with Casey's photo. This is where the puzzle pieces come into play..At first we got a warm reception and met some great people who LOVED what we were doing. It didn't take long until we stumbled upon the other side of the coin. We went into more than one place where a number of people decided we did not exist and refused to give us more than a passing glance...this was upsetting to the girls but Mr. Jason Morgan used to tell me "don't take it personally, just keep moving". That's just what I did and that is where I found my first puzzle piece. I had just been handed the perfect opportunity to teach my daughters about a world they had never seen. As adults we all know this world exist and that is what I have been fiercely protecting them from since birth. This moment sparked the most amazing conversations. It was today that I realized that my girls follow my lead and mimic my every move. Today I was a Black Belt...and so were my girls! This trip has become so much more important to me than I could have ever imagined. I thought it was all about a very important cause but it seems God has more than one very important cause in mind. As far as tournament points, I won before I ever step one foot in the ring. I will be in Atlanta on Saturday to do my very best to raise money for C.F. and yes I will still be competing for points because I love the rush and love being a part of such an amazing organization, but my greatest joy comes from collecting puzzle pieces along the way...pieces I will pass on to my girls!