Back in February when I was organizing the school Spelling Bee, I found a trophy shop that had the most adorable Spelling Bee trophy. In fact, they had lots of trophies. I thought it'd be fun in the summer to allow my kids to devise some sort of competition and award the winner a real trophy. As soon as summer started I mentioned the idea, and the kids were game.
I introduced the idea of the traditional triathlon. They were down with the swimming and biking, but not so much with the running. Much discourse occurred regarding the third and final category. The idea of using an app and creating some sort of movie was a serious possibility for a few days. When I pointed out that this really wasn't in the spirit of athletic competition, they rolled their eyes. They decided each "athlete" should have one dominant category. Swimming was selected for Julia; biking for Isabel; and basketball for Isaac. They devised a typed three page document outlining the rules and scoring. They each signed. In short, the two less dominant contestants in a category would face off. The winner of that match would then play the category's dominant player. Scoring was a 3-2-1 deal. Total score at the end of all three events won the trophy. I was named judge of everything.
We started. Each child won their category. Isabel surprised everyone with some serious basketball agility. No one doubted that Isaac would win basketball but I thought Julia would beat Isabel and play Isaac. Fast Isabel easily won the bike race. On the way down to the park to complete the swimming portion, Julia began to pout a bit. I reminded her of the contract she signed which clearly stated, "No Pouting." Swimming was based on form not speed and she won.
After totals were tallied, Isaac won first, Isabel second, and Julia third place.
As we were packing up at the park, I said that everyone did a nice job. I went on further to compliment Isabel on her basketball skills. I said, "You surprised me. You've got some basketball skills. To be honest, I thought Julia would beat you in basketball." Julia tossed her towel over her shoulder and said (and she meant this with all sincerity), "Yeah, to be honest, I thought I'd win the whole thing."
That's the spirit in her that I never want to break.
Isaac now has his engraved trophy and the girls each have a ribbon. Julia was a bit down afterward. I told her if she ends up in third for three years in a row and doesn't pout I will give her a "Lifetime Achievement" special trophy.
