JAWS Medal fest day 1

Wow...what a day! Rachel has not done much swimming in almost two weeks because of holidays and being out of town, and she was stuck in the car all day yesterday while we came back from South Carolina, so I didn't have any idea of what to expect out of her swimming today. But Rachel and I agreed ahead of time that if she swam well, it would be only from the Lord being with her and we would give him the credit! So....we started out with the 100 backstroke. She cut 14 seconds off her time (2:00 down to 1:46) and just barely missed the B time! Next came the 50 breast stroke. She cut 9 seconds (1:05 to :56) and won her heat! By now, I was getting a little excited that perhaps the 50 free divisional time that has been eluding her would finally be in her grasp! Next up was the 100 butterfly. She started out looking pretty good, but was obviously tired for the last 50. She added about 9 seconds to her time...but still came in 15th place. This meet is pretty special in that they give out medals down to 16th place (I think that is how it works) so Rachel will be getting her very first individual medal! She was VERY excited about that! Finally, the event that we had drove all the way back in one day for...the 50 free. Rachel and I were initially hoping that she might get a medal for this event...but once I saw the competition she was up against, I knew that there wasn't much likelihood of her accomplishing that. But the divisional time was still very achievable (as mentioned from the last post, we know that she has it in her to do this...she did it in the relay). So....she dove in....and added a split second to her time. She was disappointed, of course, but she got over it quickly, especially because right after that event is when she found out that she had gotten the medal in the 100 fly. So, we'll thank God for her good swims today and look forward to tomorrow!