Island Girl participated in a Spelling Bee tonight and it didn't go well. We ran into quite a bit of traffic on our way so when we got there she and I and the Island Boys jumped out and went on in to get her signed in while the Island King found a parking spot. We were just in time and she went directly onto the stage - ready to spell her heart out. Her first word was Parsley and she got that right and went back to her seat. The kids ran through the words really fast and then it was her turn again. She got Qualm and spelled it correctly. The Island King comes in and sits down just as it's her 3rd turn. Her word was Beefsteak. The minute she spelled it I knew we were in trouble. She ran the two Es together and it sounded like she spelled it Befsteak. I knew she said both Es and was hoping the judges would ask her to spell it again to clarify but they heard one E instead of two and she was out. Bless her heart - she looked at the judges and for a minute I thought she was going to say "I know I spelled that correctly" but she must have thought better of it so she walked off the stage and came to where we were sitting in the audience. Meanwhile, the Island King has just sat down and is fumbling with his camera and getting ready to take her picture and it was over before he even got the lens cap off. She was a good sport but I could tell she was really disappointed. We watched the rest and I think she would have had a good chance of winning because the words were pretty easy. She got a certificate for participating and I mentioned that she could make a scrapbook page with it and the Island King spoke up and said "She could if I had taken even one picture" LOL
On the way home she said that she realized she'd run the sound of the two Es into one but it was too late once they were out of her mouth. She kept saying over and over "I know how to spell that word". It didn't help when the Oldest Island Boy said "See, I told you you mumble when you talk." LOL She wants to try again next time but says she will be sure to pronounce each letter clearly. Poor girl.Labels: Staying