{"id":1059,"date":"2015-05-29T12:46:35","date_gmt":"2015-05-29T19:46:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/?p=1059"},"modified":"2015-05-29T12:46:35","modified_gmt":"2015-05-29T19:46:35","slug":"di-2015-global-finals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/?p=1059","title":{"rendered":"Highlights from DI 2015 Global Finals"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Thanks to all of you who supported, encouraged, cheered &amp; contributed financially to help The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans get to compete at Destination Imagination\u2019s 2015 Global Finals! We couldn\u2019t have done it without you all!<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1071\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1071\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1071 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_2-300x186.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans team and team managers\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_2-300x186.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_2-768x477.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_2.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1071\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">PDX carpet selfie on the way to DI 2015 Global Finals<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1070\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1070\" style=\"width: 235px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1070 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_3-235x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans team and team managers\" width=\"235\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_3-235x300.jpg 235w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_3-768x982.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_3.jpg 782w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 235px) 100vw, 235px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1070\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">On our way to DI Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now\u2026 How do I go about explaining such an incredible week, a week in which I saw so much growth and maturity in the kids; a week where we had a total blast! Well, since there\u2019s too much to tell, I\u2019ll give you some highlights of our week\u2026<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Global Finals was at the UT-Knoxville, TN campus and had 17,000 attendees, 8000+ students from 17 countries, 544 volunteers and 1,468 teams in 6 challenge categories. To say it was an epic week is an understatement!<\/li>\n<li><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1101 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_6-720x447.jpg\" alt=\"20150528_DI-2015GF_6\" width=\"720\" height=\"447\" \/><\/li>\n<li>What an honor to have walked through this year with the team and then get to watch them compete in their Instant Challenge and Central Challenge (Technical Challenge: Creature Feature) and watching the team work together, have a fabulous performance and let their personalities and skills shine for the appraisers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1073\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1073\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1073 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_25-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1073\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team ready for their central challenge at Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1074\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1074\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1074 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_26-300x295.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"300\" height=\"295\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_26-300x295.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_26-768x756.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_26.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1074\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Friends who came to support The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans at Destination Imagination team at GF15<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1075\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1075\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1075 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_27-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1075\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Central Challenge time at DI GF15 &#8211; Penelope&#8217;s steam punk top hat is made out of duct tape, straws and decorations!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans tied for <strong>14<sup>th<\/sup> place in the world<\/strong> out of 87 teams \u2014 crazy over-the-top proud of them! {once you&#8217;re done reading this entire blog post, feel free to head on over and watch the team&#8217;s performance: <a href=\"http:\/\/youtu.be\/LZw06R54LnQ\">HERE<\/a> and if you want to hear the introduction by the Appriaser about what the challenge was about watch this first: <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/mE9An2KEPVo\">HERE<\/a>}<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">Especially when they got the <strong>highest score<\/strong> in the story sub-category: \u201ccreativity of the world portrayed in the Story of Adventure, Creativity of the Creature\u2019s role in the Story of Adventure, Integration of the Creature Actions and World Features and Clear and effective storytelling\u201d!<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">They got the <strong>fifth highest score<\/strong> in Team Choice Elements (Savannah\u2019s puppets including and Angler Fish puppet which she created a pattern for herself and the team\u2019s \u201cRescue Submarine\u201d song sung to the tune of \u201cYellow Submarine\u201d and Penelope\u2019s excellent communication of the details to the appraisers): \u201ccreativity and originality, Quality, workmanship or effort that is evident and Integration into the Presentation\u201d!<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\">And <strong>eleventh highest score<\/strong> in World Features (Duncan\u2019s roll up backdrop change and Savannah\u2019s elaborate control panel complete with electronic schematic): Successfully demonstration of World Feature 1 and 2, Technical Design and Innovation of World Feature 1 and 2\u201d!<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1076\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1076\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1076 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_28-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1076\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Duncan is Mr. DeMarcus, Penelope is a Steam Punk Inventor and Savannah is an Electrical Engineer&#8230; together they create a team from NASA: National Aquatic Submarine Association, which is part of their solution to solve their Central Challenge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1077\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1077\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1077 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_29-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1077\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">CUB (their creature submarine) doing one of his creature actions&#8230; diving into the ocean!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1078\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1078\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1078 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_30-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1078\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Puppet show, control panel, pier\/dock and laptop&#8230; all created on their own by this amazing team!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>Noelle!! My photographer friend who lives in Knoxville that hung out with us all week and graciously was our chauffeur, tour guide, encourager, entertainment and photographer to document our week! It allowed me to not have to pack all my gear and actually be in some images!!! If you live anywhere near Knoxville, TN\u2026 you should totally hire her!! Seriously! <a href=\"http:\/\/www.noellebellphotography.com\">www.noellebellphotography.com<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1082\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1082\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1082 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Noelle-Stacee-720x240.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"240\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1082\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Stacee &amp; Noelle, so thankful for this friendship (we&#8217;re even twinning in our DI GF15 shirts!)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1102\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1102\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1102 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_33-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"\u2022The team got to walk in the Welcome Ceremony; they were three of the 16 people chosen to represent the state of Oregon. They got to sit on the arena floor during the entire ceremony. Then toward the end of the ceremony they were asked to carry and wave flags of other states\/countries. It was quite an experience! Mark, Noelle and I missed having them with us, but enjoyed the plush leather recliner box seats where we were seated!!!\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1102\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">UT-Knoxville&#8217;s Sun Sphere is sort of an icon, so we had to make sure we got lots of pictures in front of it!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1103\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1103\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1103 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_19-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1103\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans getting ready for their Instant Challenge (left) and afterwards doing their Tada (right)!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1104\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1104\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1104 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_32-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1104\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">One more Sun Sphere pic, because we had our own photographer!! Woo hoo! And some fun art that the DI kids created this week!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>The team got to walk in the Welcome Ceremony; they were three of the 16 people chosen to represent the state of Oregon. They got to sit on the arena floor during the entire ceremony. Then toward the end of the ceremony they were asked to carry and wave flags of other states\/countries. It was quite an experience! Mark, Noelle and I missed having them with us, but enjoyed the plush leather recliner box seats where we were seated!!!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1084\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1084\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1084 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_12-720x432.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"432\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1084\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans walking in the Welcome Celebration<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1085\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1085\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1085 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_13-720x432.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"432\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1085\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans (see arrow) in the middle of the fun at DI Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1087\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1087\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1087 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_15-720x432.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"432\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1087\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laser light show at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015 Welcome Ceremony<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1083\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1083\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1083 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_16-720x432.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"432\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1083\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Arial acrobat an confetti fun at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015 Welcome Ceremonies!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"color: #000000; font-family: Calibri;\">\u2022 Closing Ceremonies were also amazingly cool\u2026 check out the laser light show and fog machine combo!<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1098\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1098\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1098 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_36-720x337.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"337\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1098\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Funny pic of the Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015 Closing Ceremonies {thanks for taking it Donna}<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1097\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1097\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1097 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_37-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1097\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Amazing fog and laser light show and my favorite guys: Duncan and Mark<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The team (and adults) got to attend a workshop with THE Buzz Aldrin! At 85, he\u2019s still doing his thing! He\u2019s adorable, hilarious and it was such an honor to be in the same room a NASA icon! Definitely a highlight! Our only disappointment was not getting to get a photo with him.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1088\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1088\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1088 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_18-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1088\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Buzz Aldrin workshop at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015 &#8211; it was such an honor to be in the same room as Mr. Aldrin!!!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>NASA sponsored Nighttime Sky Observing event. We looked through huge telescopes and were able to see Jupiter, Venus, and our Moon. Fun side note\u2026 Mark was able to help me figure out how to angle my cell phone so that I could take a photo of what the telescope was seeing. Still cell phone quality, but amazing none-the-less!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1089\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1089\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1089 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/NASAnighttimesky-720x175.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"175\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1089\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans looking at Venus, Jupiter and the Moon at a NASA event at DI Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>Pin trading \u2013 this is a HUGE event at Global Finals! Each affiliate (state\/country) produces their own set of pins each year. Then these pins, and often pins from previous years, are traded. It\u2019s a great way to meet kids from other states and countries. It is also fun to watch which pins become the favorites each year and, by the end of the week, are worth more than a straight 1:1 pin trade.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1099\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1099\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1099 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_11-300x240.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"300\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_11-300x240.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_11-768x614.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_11.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1099\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Savannah and Penelope with Box and Ball, the DI mascots<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1090\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1090\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1090 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_20-300x227.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"300\" height=\"227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_20-300x227.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_20.jpg 744w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1090\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Pin trading with kids from other states and countries! FUN!!!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>Giga Balls \u2013 this are hysterically awesome\u2026 think HUGE beach ball meets squirrel cage ball\u2026 result\u2026 a whole lot of fun. The highlight of the Giga Balls, however, was Duncan being strong and fast enough to literally bowl over the UT bouncer guy who was supposed to stop the balls. It was super funny as he flew into the arms of a nearby dad. The best part, as we were all dying of laughter, was when he turned back to the dad and said, \u201cThanks for saving me, but I think we should have gotten to know each other a bit before all that!\u201d Then he congratulated Duncan on being able to bowl him over. I have video of it, but kept focused on Duncan and missed the flying bouncer guy! LOL<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1092\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1092\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1092 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_21-720x451.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"451\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1092\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1094\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1094\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1094 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_23-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1094\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Waiting in line for the Giga Balls at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1093\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1093\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1093 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_22-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1093\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Penelope and Savannah in the Giga Balls at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1091\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1091\" style=\"width: 720px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1091 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_24-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1091\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Our new UT friend that Duncan bowled over with the Giga Ball at Destination Imagination Global Finals 2015<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The weather was beautiful and not overly humid. The food was yummy \u2013 our favorites were the abundance of fruits, veggies and ice cream treats and desserts!<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1095\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1095\" style=\"width: 219px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1095 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_35-219x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"219\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_35-219x300.jpg 219w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_35-748x1024.jpg 748w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_35-768x1051.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_35.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 219px) 100vw, 219px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1095\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Eating cotton candy treats<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>We were blessed with safe travels, health and a lot of fun!<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_1096\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1096\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1096 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_38-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans Destination Imagination team at Global Finals 2015\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_38-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_38-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_38-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_38.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1096\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heading back to Atlanta to catch our flight home<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Thank you to all of you who helped us along the way!<\/p>\n<p>And thanks to my parents and my brother&#8217;s family for welcoming us home at the airport and for our sign at home and the beautiful lavender roses (wish I could capture the smell to share with you all!!).<\/p>\n<p>Thanks to Duncan and Savannah&#8217;s friends for decorating our front door with love in the form of post-it notes.<\/p>\n<p>The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans {and team managers, Mark &amp; Stacee Taft}<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1100\" src=\"http:\/\/staceetaft.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/20150528_DI-2015GF_39-720x317.jpg\" alt=\"20150528_DI-2015GF_39\" width=\"720\" height=\"317\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Thanks to all of you who supported, encouraged, cheered &amp; contributed financially to help The Tongue-Twisting Turquoise Toucans get to compete at Destination Imagination\u2019s 2015 Global Finals! We couldn\u2019t have done it without you all! Now\u2026 How do I go about explaining such an incredible week, a week in which I saw so much growth [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1068,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1059"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1059"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1059\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1068"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1059"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1059"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staceetaft.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1059"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}