Disney World!

With the Nighthawks competition at Summit officially concluded, it was now time for Kaitlynn and I to enjoy the fruits of her labor with her PAID BID to Disney World, woohoo! A paid bid is essentially a monetary credit for Kaitlynn which covered her hotel and Disney park tickets, based on her team's outstanding performance at the Jamfest competition earlier in the season. It was a huge honor for the team, and we were ready to take advantage of it and soak in ALL the Disney fun. We decided we weren't going to stress about the rides and just try to focus on enjoying some of the Disney food experiences instead. But first, we reached out to Grandma Cheryl and Grandpa Jerry to see if they could squeeze us in for a dinner at Disney Springs. We were so excited to see them and catch up during our impromptu visit with dinner and ice cream.

It was the perfect way to close out the day, and then I had to switch gears to plan for the 2 full days of Disney fun ahead. I was admittedly super nervous and overwhelmed at the prospect of taking on the Disney experience without any knowledge whatsoever. Even though Kaitlynn and I initially planned to just eat our way through Disney (LOL!) I soon realized that I might need a better plan. I previously asked a few fellow cheer moms but when they would start to explain their tips and tricks, it was like they were speaking in another language because all I heard was "wah wah wah" since nothing made any sense to me. Thankfully I was able to reach out to my Disney planner bestie, Katherine, who gave me a 1-hour phone tutorial for everything I needed to know.  And that was just the basics, HA! Sufficiently armed with her suggestions, Kaitlynn and I set out for Epcot on a Saturday morning and vowed to go with the flow as best we could. It was a beautiful spring day and we were so excited to experience Epcot! 

We managed our time so well and got to enjoy all of the best rides, including Guardians of the Galaxy - which ended up becoming my all-time favorite ride at the Disney parks. We even ran into several friends while we were there at Epcot, who eventually talked us into park-hopping over to Magic Kingdom and riding more rides until the late closure at 11pm. Kaitlynn couldn't believe I was up for it (and neither could I) but we had the BEST day together and with friends. So much fun!!

After our LONG day at Epcot and Magic Kingdom, Kaitlynn and I totally crashed. But we were up and ready to head out again the next morning, back to Magic Kingdom to continue riding all the fun rides. By now, I was getting more comfortable with using the Disney app and all the little tricks to maximize our time. By the end of our Day 2, we had ridden everything we wanted and even rode our favorite rides more than once, meeting up with friends again along the way. We both loved Guardians of the Galaxy and Tron the most across the 2 parks we visited. And we were able to enjoy lots of yummy Disney food and treats as well. We ended up park-hopping back to Epcot to close out our day with our favorite pizza and milkshake at their cafe. By the end of Day 2, we were SO pooped but felt super proud of ourselves for managing the overwhelming Disney experience - and loving every second!

It was the most fun and rewarding time together with my girl, and I was so thankful for the experience and the special bonding moments we had along the way. As a byproduct of this crazy cheer life, I am just soaking in all the time with her and I wouldn't trade it for anything! 

Kaitlynn's First Summit Cheer Competition

Before we could recover from the Taylor Swift concert, it was time to switch gears and focus on another huge milestone for Kaitlynn - her very first Summit Cheer competition! Her Nighthawks team was having a monumental year, winning all of their competitions against formidable teams in their International U16 Level 2 division. But now it was time to take the stage for the largest competition of the season against the toughest teams across the world. First, they hit the mat for their Summit Showcase where friends and family cheered them on to success in the week ahead. They looked great and ready to go!

Summit is held in Orlando, Florida at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex right next door to Disney World. The Nighthawks were scheduled to compete on Thursday and Saturday of that week, so we flew to Orlando on Wednesday morning to get settled into our hotel and get our bearings around the crowded Disney World area. We were thankful for some down time, and we decided to hang out at the Disney Springs area for some food and shopping while enjoying the beautiful spring weather. Then we drove about the ESPN complex to make sure we were prepared for the following day's schedule. We also managed to do some early shopping at the Varsity store, which is always one of our favorite activities at any competition.

I was thankful for a leisurely day, because the next morning it was Go Time! Kaitlynn and I both got ourselves ready for a fun day of competition at ESPN. The complex was bustling with activity and cheerleaders with their families from all over the world. Kaitlynn was so excited for the Summit experience of practices and warm-ups outside on the ESPN lawn. We were thankful to be competing on Thursday when it was less crowded, but the nerves soon settled in as Kaitlynn prepared to take the stage. 

The Nighthawks were soon off to their warm-ups, and we all felt the nerves and excitement in the air. When it was time for their performance, Kaitlynn later said she was SO nervous! She wasn't the only one, because I could barely cheer for them with my heart racing and mouth completely dry. Go Nighthawks!

Those Nighthawks rocked that stage on Day 1 and hit a zero! They were so excited and relieved when we met up after their performance, and we made sure to celebrate their achievement while hanging out to grab food and watch other teams while waiting for Finalists to be announced. The awards ceremony was held in the big baseball diamond at ESPN, and it was quite the celebratory atmosphere as all the teams waited anxiously to hear their names called. Only the Top 12 teams in Kaitlynn's division of 45 teams would advance to Finals.

And wouldn't you know it, right when it was time for the Finals announcement, it started to rain and the stadium was cleared. It was a little chaotic for a while, but they finally began the ceremony on Varsity TV while we all hung out in the covered areas of the stadium. One by one, teams were announced from bottom to top. Finally, the moment we were waiting for - Nighthawks had advanced to Finals and were currently in 5th place! On to Day 2 of competition!

Day 2 was a repeat of Day 1, except it was MUCH more crowded in the ESPN complex. The Nighthawks were competing against the best of the best, and we were so excited to see how they would perform on stage. It was exciting to find out that the Nighthawks hit another zero deduction routine, but unfortunately it wasn't their best performance. Most of the team was pretty upset at some minor things that went wrong on stage, but we were all so proud of their effort. When it came time for the final awards ceremony, the Nighthawks didn't have high hopes, but they ended up taking 5th place in the WORLD! Such an amazing accomplishment and SO MUCH to be proud of for their winning season.

Though we felt some disappointment, there was no time for sadness or tears. With the competition season officially behind us, it was time for some much-deserved fun and down time at the Disney World resort!