A few weeks ago, Rowan came home and let me know he qualified from a class competition to be in the school spelling bee. I had never been in a spelling bee, but I thought they looked fun. A while back I had a friend who told her daughter that she would give her an American Girl doll if she placed in our annual schoolwide race. She hated to run and didn't want to participate. With the motivation to get a AG doll, she went on to get second place. My friend was stunned. I told this story to Rowan and then told him that if he placed in the top three, I told him I would get him a 3ds game or two. He studied every night with me and above all I was so proud to see him be diligent about a goal.
The day of the spelling bee came and Rowan was a bit nervous. We encouraged him to do his best. He competed with 27 other top spellers in our school, including the upper grades. I was hopeful that he would be the last fourth grader standing.
Getting prepped while the students got situated in the audience.
Sage was a trooper. It took about 2 hours from start to finish. Elsa, thankfully, was at preschool. I don't think she would have been as patient.
I took a video of each round he participated in. Here they are in order. The sound isn't that great, but I had to be in the back so it is what it is.
They went back and forth between the two of them for quite a while. They had to get two words correct in a row before they could be done. I was on pins and needles the whole time.
By then end, I was texting Steve, "top 5!", "top 3!!!", "top 2!!!" It was insane and so fun. I'm not a sports person, but I imagine that's what sports fans feel like at the close of a tight game.
Needless to say, there's a trip to Gamestop in order. I'm so proud of Rowan for studying words that I can't even pronounce day after day.
Next he gets to go to the state level I think. There's another one at UVU in March.
