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!

Good morning everyone,
It is Wednesday morning and aside from an all night battle with a spider who refused to give up the bed I chose to sleep in, all is well...P.S. He was successfully released into the wild at 3:56 am when I finally caught him in the blanket after he walked across my face for the last time!!
I really miss being home...I don't recall seeing Granddaddy long legs to much. I have ants in the kitchen but happily no long (Danny Seal long )legged spiders.
I drove around town yesterday to try and collect money for C.F. but temps soared into the 90's and the girls had a difficult time so we called it off and instead headed for air conditioned businesses. The Waffle house that my husband and I used to have breakfast at every Sunday morning was nice enough to let us put a container with Casey's story beside the register. The district manager just happened to be in yesterday and encouraged me to put one in the waffle house across the hwy. Hopefully this will generate something so that we can make up for the funding we missed out on in Tn. We are meeting some very nice people around town and the experience alone has been wonderful.
The big tournament is on Sat. here in Atlanta so hopefully it will be successful.

Hi everyone!
It is a beautiful sunny day here in Villa Rica, Ga. The girls and I are very much enjoying spending time with family. The girls are really happy to be out of the car and are pleading with me to leave them with aunt Michelle while I go to Atlanta and compete. Aunt Michelle has lots of fun things to do...and 2 little boys under the age of 2 to chase around. They very much would like a baby brother...NOT going to happen!! Leah has really taken to my niece who will be 13 on Friday. Katie is handling it well. They have all been sitting in Katie's room making bracelets and necklaces for a church fundraiser...she chose the right little girls to help out with that. (Mrs. Gladson knows what I am talking about for sure). It has really been a very relaxing couple of days but I am eager to get to black belt class tonight and get some training in. I am getting very nervous about Saturday.
Casey has a Dr.s appt. today so if you should see her today, wish her well. We really miss you all. Good luck Casey!
Colin, hope your having fun at karate sir. Give Mr. Hayhurst a kick for me would ya. Okay, a high five would probably be better. Thanks sir.
I am trying to post pictures but am having no luck so far. Hopefully I will get that done soon. I have some good ones from the Tn. tournament.
Have a great day everyone!

Good Morning all!!
The girls and I had a wonderful time in Tenn. We headed out on Thurs. afternoon to find an ATA. We saw an ATA sign and turned in thinking it was Giles ATA. After embarrassing myself by asking the owner if he was Master Giles, I learned that I was at Mr. Sage's ATA. What a wonderful man!! I asked for permission to train at his school (the only way to redeem myself) and he agreed. We went in later that evening to train and instead of taking classes, Mr. Sage himself worked with me for an hour and had his World Champion instructor Mr. Irving work with the girls. I was honored to soak up every ounce of knowledge and felt so happy to be welcomed in from nowhere. True Southern Hospitality at its finest. To watch this man do the black belt form was amazing and his wife tells me he has turned out 16 world champs! It was a true honor to have so much attention focused on myself and my girls when he had other students in class that night. Thank you to all of those who had to give up time with your instructor.
The tournaments was CRAZY..I got 2nd in weapons, 3rd sparring. Lauren placed 2nd in forms, lilly 3rd (same ring...12 competitors...awesome) and Leah got 1st in forms but totally kicked butt in sparring. She had to help her opponent up twice...his name was Micheal. (We had to hear about it for the next 5 hrs). That was the first time she had ever had sparring gear on and Mr. Hayhurst, you have created a monster!
The fundraiser was not very successful I am sad to say. I sat up a table but had no way to collect money because I was literally running from room to room (at the middle school) watching Leah and trying to get her ring finished (which I had to also judge..no I didnt give scores) and making sure Lauren and Lilly didnt miss their ring and therefore....no one was at the table to take money...lets just say we sure have all of the bugs worked out of our system for the next tournament! I will have family at the next two tournaments so someone will be at the table always. It was tough but we got through it and I think we made a whopping $38.00 by the end of the tournament. We have decided to not get discouraged because it was a very small tournament and our system was very flawed at best but we now know what not to do and it has been a learning experience in every way imaginable.
Casey is recovering well from her last battle with her devastating illness. I spoke with her dad this morning and he tells me she is back in Taekwondo class and doing well. She has a check up on Tuesday and hopefully her tests will all come back with good results. We are pulling for you Casey!! Be well, and keep your eyes open for postcards recently mailed out!

Good morning everyone...
We slept over in Crossville, Tn at Holiday Inn express. It was alot of fun to watch the girls unwind in the indoor pool. After 12 hrs in the car they really needed to burn some energy. They slept like a rock as did I.
We are counting road kills along the way...2 skunks, 1 deer, 3 woodchucks (surprisingly) 1 raccoon, 1 jackrabbit, and 1 very large loggerhead turtle...umh...kamakazie style lets just say. It was not fun trying to avoid it...yeah...anyway..not much to report today due to 12 hrs in the car...heading to next destination in a few...Happy Birthday Danny Seal...do something fun today. Love you all...
The Villone Trio

We did it. We got almost everything done today that had to be done today. We are very excited about our "big trip". We will be leaving very early Thursday morning and hopefully make it to Tenn. before we stop for the night. We will be competing at the Medina Tn tournament on Sat. and will travel to Atlanta on Sunday. The tournament sponsors all agreed to let us do our fundraiser and I have spoken with some really great people that I am very excited to meet.
Master Keith Giles of Medina tells me I will be sharing the floor with the Army and Navy so ofcourse it will be a huge honor just to be a part of that. I cant wait to see the opening ceremonies. Keep your eyes open for postcards....will update you all after I reach Tn.

Okay you guys....its Tuesday and I only have 48 hours to get tires, oil change, pack kids suitcases, load Kicks for Casey info in car, prepare for Tournaments...is it bad that I forgot to book hotel rooms for Thursday night...I should just breathe now. I am excited but beginning to panic. Anyone want to babysit two Toads...my girls refuse to leave them behind. They say I just don't understand that they LOVE their toads...its a toad....okay refocusing now....so we are leaving at 4am on Thursday...We have decided to expand our trip to take in another tournament. Wish us luck....
We got a chance to see Casey yesterday. She was her usual happy little self. She has a Dr. s appt. coming up soon to see if her infection has cleared so I am counting on you all to say a little prayer for her! Good Luck Casey!
We will be sending post cards to Colin and Casey at each of our big stops. I am really trying to learn how to use my digital camera so I can post pictures...oh yeah, I gotta find that thingy that attaches to the computer....maybe I should give Mrs. Gladson a call...yeah...I should get started on that now...have a good week...we will update you when we stop Thursday night.