I am so happy my friends could come see my cheer showcase! They were so proud of me!

He said

This week was way busier than I thought it was going to be. Naturally with Emelia’s Cheer Season coming to a close, my instinct was that we would have a lot more time on our hands. The reality is however, we have a very busy kid. She’s in rugby now, she has a job, Softball is getting ready to start, and she has a social life. All of that – with the exception of softball – was all over our calendar this week. It all started with a rugby during the day on Thursday and then that night there was a school dance, and then a sleepover with friends at our house on Thursday night because Friday was a PD day which meant her and her friends had plans to hang out. By the time Friday rolled around I was ready to relax… The reality is, we did anything but.

The really big day this week for Emelia was the Season X Showcase for parents and friends by CheerStrike on Saturday. They had sold out the Western Fair Agirplex and Emelia had a group of 4 friends that wanted to come see her show off her Cheer prowess. When Danielle got to the event with Emelia’s school friends, she sent me a pic of the lineups and it was all down the side of the building and into the back end of the parking lot. Suffice it to say a lot of friends and family were excited to see the Showcase. It was great to see Emelia’s friends with the jaws dropping when they got to see her team’s routine. But it was also great to see her navigate her large net of friends made through all the things that she does. And, of course two of those friends were the twins, her besties since JK in school. The event was a lot of fun to watch without the worry of judges’ scoring—all Emelia’s parents bias aside, her team was my favourite performance!

Today was a big day for me as it was my first bike event of the season. Last year the first race I ever did in my life was the epic Paris To Ancaster Bike Race. I had so much fun last year that I made my mind up that I would do it again this year literally as I crossed the finish line. It made it all the more enticing when they announced it was the named the inaugural Canadian Gravel Championships. So in December I registered and then it was months of waiting and riding to prepare. Finally race day arrived this weekend! The forecast I knew was going to make it an interesting go, as there was a lot of steady rain all through the forecast for the entire weekend, but specifically lots in Ancaster where the race is. Last year I was spoiled with wonderful sunny, warm weather. But, in the races 29 years of history, there has been some really challenging weekends like this one.

The race lived up to the hype when there has been a lot of rain—more than half of the 42.9km course was a soupy, muddy mess where it felt like I was riding in cake batter… downhill! Where last year I clocked in just under 2 hours, this year there was a lot more getting off the bike and slogging through mud which pushed me to the 2-½ hour range. And, while the time was longer, it makes sense given the dramatic difference in the terrain. And that I was riding the last 10km with what turned out to be a broken front brake that was grabbing the rotor and slowing me on the murderous 270m Martin Road power climb that the race ends on. I ended the race completely caked in mud, gassed from the effort, and soaked from the rain—but I had an absolute blast! This event since me starting bike racing has quickly become the must-do one when I plan the summer.

She said

I would love just one week that we didn’t start with wow what a busy week. But honestly I don’t know if we would have it any other way. This week was focused on Emelia’s cheer season wrapping up. Not only to show off her routine to more friends but also a sad good-bye to the team that has been through so much this season. That is what team sports is like, for the first time Emelia is on teams that do not mostly move on together. In cheer there are age levels, skill team levels and atheletes moving on. What this means no matter what happens from last week’s assessment 4 of the team are aging up officially and an additional 3 have decided that they are moving on from cheer. One being Olivia who has been in the same sport as Emelia since they met at gymnastics when they were 9. It is a bittersweet moment. The team bonds so strongly through mastering their routine but with these skills means changes. Emelia has a hope for a certain team but we won’t know that result for a week or two.

Back to the showcase! This is our first real cheer showcase since joining cheer 3 years ago. The full gym performance showcased all 21 teams routines. Emelia’s best friends Anna, Grace, Carys and Sienna all came to cheer her on. Anna and Grace came last year to the team showcase and were so excited to see it again not only to see Emelia perform but a number of the girls friends from school are on various teams. The girls with flowers in hand came in and were blown away at the performance. They happily hugged Emelia and told her that her team routine was their favourite. She was beaming!

Once we were done the showcase we drove all the girls to the mall so they could hang out even more. This group of girls are attached at the hip. They essentially spent half the last 4 days together. The girls have the best time and they really cheer each other on. I adore how supportive they are. This past year Emelia has been fortunate to really find her core tribe. Not only her friends at school but at cheer. It was so incredible for us to see how many kids at the event on Saturday all came up and hugged her and said they could not wait until next year, how many girls came up and said I hope we are on the same team next year! Emelia has made such strong friendships in cheer. She met two of her best friends Ashlyn and Emma at cheer but this group is even bigger than that. We love seeing her so happy and thriving!

Next week we have a quieterish week. For one week Emelia only has one sport. Rugby! She is loving rugby and being part of a another school team. We are so proud of her, not only did she put herself out there for another new sport she is starting and a real standout player! They play again this week and are really hoping for their first win. Every game the girls learn more and gain more confidence. Starting their first two games against two very strong teams means they haven’t won a game but they were really competitive in both games. That first win is going to happen any day!

Tomorrow is another big day for us. It is the official start of our camping season. Now we won’t be actually camping but it is the day we can deliver our trailer for the season. Once Emelia is at school John and I will head over to get the trailer and then off to Auburn to land the trailer for the season. We cannot wait!!! Before we know it we will be sitting around the campfire making another summer of incredible memories.