Dragonwing Blog
PassHat: Coach's Gifts Made Easy
Every sports parent has been there, right? You offer to be the organizer of the end-of-season gift for the coaches. You send emails. Talk to parents at practices and games. Send reminders. Collect money from those who have cash with them. Send reminders. Figure out what and how to buy a gift. Send more reminders. And a few more reminders.
Thank goodness for PassHat, a new secure online group collection service, that makes the process soooo much easier. PassHat isn't just for coach's gifts. You can use it for any group collection effort: class gift for teachers, co-worker's retirement gift from the office, even a birthday present for a friend from a group of friends.
From the PassHat website:
Create, invite, remind, collect and deliver a gift from your group from the comfort of your browser. No more collecting cash, depositing checks, nagging people for a contribution or remembering to buy a gift card - PassHat does it all for you!The added benefit that I consider the icing on the cake? PassHat offers a variety of gift cards right on its site, so you can select and deliver the gift with a click. PassHat can be used to collect dues, registration fees, pretty much anything that requires the collective donations of a number of people. They're offering a special 50% DISCOUNT for the Dragonwing girlgear community, so don't hesitate. Now, if only it could do laundry.... Check out a PassHat video by clicking here or see below.
Sports Parent's Role: The Cheering Section
Dragonwing girlgear's mission is to "empower girls to play - and be - their best" with the highest quality sports apparel for tween and teen girls. I believe we can advance that mission when we encourage parents to support their athletic daughters at every level of competition. Over the past seven years, I have seen all sorts of behavior from parents at summer swim meets. In our city, summer swim is a rec league sport, or to put it bluntly, no college coach is going to scout a swimmer at summer meet. Summer swim is meant to be fun, build teamwork, develop sportsmanship, and teach leadership. We all love to win, but at the end of the night, the score is really not that important. I'm proud to say that our summer swim team is known throughout the league for good sportsmanship. The coaches receive numerous emails from opponents about how well our kids behave and that is a BIG point of pride for us. However, it's past time for many parents to step up and learn to be good sports parents. Parents need to learn that our children are not miniature versions of ourselves. They are their own unique individuals, with their own sets of skills, abilities, likes and dislikes. I nearly drowned as a child and have a very healthy fear of water. I have to be coaxed into a pool. My daughter lives to swim. Go figure. Our job as parents is to get our young athletes to practice or competition on time, with the right gear, fed and hydrated appropriately. It involves planning, logistics, lots of laundry, and teaching organization and time management to older kids. The coach's job is to coach. He or she generally knows more about the sport than any parent does. It is his or her job to take a group of kids with different abilities and personalities and teach them to work as a team. Even if you were a high school or college athlete, it's time now to stay on the sidelines and support your growing athlete. Cheer for her and cheer for her teammates. Offer support and encouragement. And enjoy!
Rockin Woman in Power
With Emma Watson's amazing UN Speech, women's rights has made it's way front and center in the media recently. It's also been highlighted more in my life, too. As part of a class I'm taking on leadership, a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to interview a leader in our community. I was put in touch with the head of school at a local independent school. We talked about things all across the board, from her career path and how she got to where she is to her role as a woman of power and her suggestions for leaders, both young and old. A quote that stood out to me from her interview was:
"I think there's a certain grit that I would like to see in young women."She was talking about how women desire to be doctors and scientists but when they get into these classes and situations that are finally difficult for them, they leave. They drop out and find easier classes in something they don't love. They don't fight and grit through. Emma Watson said a similar thing :
"I don't want the fear of failure to stop me from doing what I really care about."Both of these successful women have set goals for women to push through the hard times if they're doing what they love. I love physics. In the past three years, not one girl has taken the Physics II class at my school. Right now, in my Physics II class, there are three girls and eight boys. We don't even represent one half of the class! And the three of us ladies came from the same class last year, with an awesome female teacher. Without her encouragement, we probably wouldn't have taken it this year. Everybody asks me and my best friend in the class with me, "why are you taking physics, again? Physics was so hard last year! I hated physics last year!" And we respond, "Because we love it!" They're always so confused.
Tween Confidence-Boosting Sports Bra
You've heard me say that our mission is to empower girls to play -- and be -- their best, with freedom and without distraction.
Before ordering, Robyn checked our size chart and double-checked her selection with us, just to be sure she'd get the right fit. And she did! We offer free shipping on every order, including for returns and exchanges, to ensure that girls get the right size and perfect fit.
The notion of girls being able to move freely without being self-conscious or distracted by their clothing is simple and yet oh-so-powerful.Robyn, mother of soccer-playing girls ages 8 and 11, wrote to share her -- and her older daughter's -- delight with our Keyhole Sports Bra. Her daughter didn't like the tight fit of other sports bras, especially under her arms. They selected the Keyhole because its design allows for more arm movement, the fit is snug, not tight, and the fabric is super soft and stretchy. A winning combination, as Robyn wrote:
Before ordering, Robyn checked our size chart and double-checked her selection with us, just to be sure she'd get the right fit. And she did! We offer free shipping on every order, including for returns and exchanges, to ensure that girls get the right size and perfect fit.
Sweet Senior Soccer Season
Spring soccer has started for Dragonwing ambassador Emma, and wow, is she excited! In her recent blog post -- complete with ALL CAPS and 4 exclamation points!!!! -- she recounts the somewhat surreal feelings of the spring semester of senior year.
Senior night will be for me. It’s my last year in the CA jersey. Whaat.Despite twinges of nervousness after not playing for 10 months -- "I had no idea how good or bad I would be getting back into it" -- her overwhelming feeling was how much she loves the sport and the competition. Emma has high hopes for the team's season. "I think our team is pretty stacked, and I personally believe a state championship is in our future." Isn't that how every season should start? Subscribe to Emma's blog so you can follow along.
Girls Athletic Wear "Made in the Carolinas"
I recently spent several hours with a film crew from TWC's "Made in the Carolinas" series for a featured story on Dragonwing. We traveled to the North Carolina manufacturing plant where our seamless sports bras are made and then to a soccer scrimmage and practice with our spokesperson Cindy Parlow Cone and a team of amazing teen girls. We're all delighted that TWC's "Made in the Carolinas" profile captured our mission and spirit perfectly. And we take pride in our seamless sports bras being Made in the USA, right here in North Carolina. Reporter Richard Green explained part of what makes our girls athletic wear perform so well, "Dragonwing incorporates elements that wick away moisture, prevent chafing and essentially allows girls to compete without worry." Soccer great Cindy Parlow Cone echoed that Dragonwing's sports bras, compression shorts, and other athletic wear "empowers girls to be free and not worry what they're wearing under their uniforms." 
"Girls on the field who wear Dragonwing clothing are sold on the benefits," said Green. Teen soccer player Sarah agreed, "It's nice having something locally made, locally created, and
something that actually fits." 
I was pleased to have the opportunity to highlight our mission of empowering girls to play -- and be -- their best. "We want to give girls an advantage. If their gear performs better, they will play better."
Please help spread the word by sharing this post with your friends and family -- by email or social media.
Searching for a new running playlist?
Need a great soundtrack for your runs? The inspiring olympic hurdler, Lashinda Demus, has shared her pump-up playlist. Check it out here.
Ronda Rousey rocks it!
Ronda Rousey is a true, powerful, female warrior. She is a great example for all women to take obstacles and fight through them fiercely. She recently has undergone minor surgery but is expected to "return to the Octagon by December". The full article is here.
Looking for a new softball pitch?
Is your daughter an avid softball player? Have her check out this article on the "rise ball" - a new and impressive pitch practiced by women in the College World Series.
Young Woman takes on Summer 2016 Olympics
With the 2016 Summer Olympics coming soon, it's time to read up on the talent. This year, 16 year old, Lauren Hernandez, will fight for a coveted spot on the U.S. Gymnastics team. With only 5 positions open and steep competition already underway, Hernandez feels the heat.
"Among the four American women to win an all-around Olympic gold medal, three — Mary Lou Retton, Carly Patterson and Gabby Douglas - were 16"
Read more on Lauren's story in this awesome article seen in The New York Times.
World Fame 100 List
Wondering which women made it to the World Fame 100 list for athletes? What's more surprising is how few amazing female athletes made the list... a grand total of 8.
Check out the full article here.