Another Gold Medal Winner - Drill Sargent Mom. . .

There was another drill competition. They are almost every weekend through December and January as State happens around February. 

At each competition, they do team competition and then an individual "drill down" to see how well the girls can follow commands and take "orders." 

Well, Princess number four is getting good. She has always done well like her sisters and there were probably 12 teams in her division and average 22 girls per team. They drilled down and wouldn't you know,  Princess number four took the Gold Medal. 

I sat laughing in the audience as I remember when Princess number one was drilling down. I would get so nervous for her and stress for her. Now, I video near the end if the girls are still in and take some photos if they get near the top ten.  There was a mother in front of me video taping the entire group her daughter was in (different division) and talking with another mother. Her daughter got to the top few and they were discussing why one got out and not another. She was upset when she didn't see what her daughter did wrong to get tapped out by the judges. You can see in the photo that there are women standing all around the outside. In the right corner, there are three discussing which girl got out first.

Sometimes, it really comes down to one judges opinion. However, flinching or false starts will get you out quickly. They also call different numbers than you are on to trip you up. If you move on the wrong number, you are out. 

They also have you following by command and then pull out and delete a command in the middle and have you execute all the remaining commands. Then, they have you march, stop marching and remain by the numbers and call a command and many forget that it is by the numbers. 

Many times the judges even mess up. It really is a difficult contest and takes lots of concentration. I follow directions well so that may be part of it but I really believe it is I am a "drill Sargent" with the girls and if I ask them to do something, they know they better do it or when they ask me to do something, it doesn't get done. 

Take the dishes last night, Princess 5 rinsed them and decided not to put them in the dishwasher. Now, she is washing the dishes for a week. They, for the most part, get them done when they are to be done but for some reason, at certain ages, they think they need to test it to make sure you will follow through with threats or punishments. Age three and thirteen seem to be the magic numbers. Then a bit more at 7 and 15. It is just to make sure you are still there and still care before they gain more freedom in life or something. 

Someone asked me why my girls are so good at "taking orders" as they always do well with drill down. I sat and talked after the competition to her for an hour. She is a friend and just had her sixth child. Her oldest is on drill with Princess number 4. Since she asked, I gave her some advise.... 

"Hold them until they aren't mad and don't cry anymore..." When the child doesn't get what they want, they usually throw a tantrum. At that point, I pull them into my arms and hold them until they stop throwing the tantrum. Sometimes they tell me they "hate me."  Other times have tried to spit, bite, scream etc. I just tell them it is "ok to feel upset but I love them" no matter how upset they get, I don't get upset. I just hold them firm and tell them I love them. When they were getting older, sometimes we ended up laying down with them screaming at me but in the end, they would get the anger, upset or behavior out and they would relax and tell me they love me and they were sorry for the behavior. A few times, I let go when they "calmed" but were still mad, that didn't work. I had to learn to hold them until they cry and get the anger out. I think they just need to know they are loved and have boundaries. Sometimes when they feel like their life is "out of control" in another way, they try to take control in a negative way. 
 
I have had to leave stores before as a child threw a tantrum about not getting to buy some candy. We left the store, sat in the car holding her for about 15 minutes until she calmed and we talked and her behavior, then we went back into the store. Her behavior was much better the second time around. I never had to take her out of a store again but neither did I, or other shoppers, ever have to hear her whine or cry about not getting something at the checkout, candy or sugared cereal isles. 

One trip out of the store at age three is much better than years of a child whining for what they want at the store every trip. They can ask for an item, I will decide if I want to buy it. If I say "no," that is the end. Sometimes it is "yes" just to reward their behavior or it is something I want anyway. I never bought it when they did their tantrum or that showed them that if they threw a fit, I would buy it for them. 


No one in life gets everything they want and children need to learn how to take that and deal with it appropriately. Most of the time, they handle it fine, just at those critical ages, they test the boundaries of your love and need to know that you love them even if they "hate you."   For me, spanking didn't work. I felt bad and didn't feel it was getting the point across and I had one that didn't care if she was in "time out", got her backside swatted or had things taken away. The only way to get her attention was to hold her until the behavior stopped. Funny, that another hated things to be taken away. Each child is different but I did the holding thing with each. Some only needed it once, others more often.Now we sometimes joke and say, "Do you need holding time?" if one is in a bad mood. I haven't had to do it for years now as they catch on fairly quickly.

The last photos is Princess number four watching herself perform on the way home. I must have done something right in there somewhere to have been blessed with such amazing and kind beautiful princesses. How is one women blessed so much....

Click here to see Princess three's gold medal.
Click here to see another of Princess four's medals  
Another post where both girls did well.  

I didn't blog when the older two drilled but they did well and had lots of medals as well. Today was a brag day but the girls have asked me to put parenting advice on so when they have kids, they can know how to handle different situations. So, since my friend asked, I thought today would be a good day for "tantrum" advice.