blue belt

Zoo Boy tested for and earned his next karate belt -- a blue belt -- this past weekend. If this seems fast, it is -- he was supposed to test in May, but we were told that he knew the material well enough that they were using him to demonstrate it to the other students in class, so decided it made sense to test him early. Fine by us, this shifts him into a better time slot for classes.

In this first photo, he demonstrates some moves in his final moments as a purple belt.

The Boy accepts his new belt and certificate from Master Ken.

This new belt comes with new privileges and opportunities, which I'm sure I'll be posting about in the future.

Master Ken helps Zoo Boy tie on his new belt. Zoo Boy tied it himself (with my help) for class this past Monday, for the first time. He said he doesn't want to be the only blue belt that doesn't know how to tie his own belt.

Rosebud had a front-row seat for the ceremony in the arms of Master Ken's wife, Lisa.

The belt testing class.