Upward Basketball

Anna had her first basketball game today playing in the Upward Basketball League (click on link for more info). The Upward league is a Christian league that focuses not only on learning how to play sports but also on what it means to be a follower of Jesus. We are so impressed with this league! The focus is not on winning and being the best athlete but on having a personal relationship with Jesus and exhibiting Christlikeness in all you do, even sports. The teams pray together (as seen below), memorize scripture verses, and talk about what it means to follow Jesus. At each game the players get little stars for something they did well during the game. Today Anna got the star for being Christlike and to me, there's no better honor or trait I'd want her to have. Her coaches are so good with the kids (they must have lots of patience) and do a great job teaching them how to play and encouraging them often. She had fun and we had fun watching her and the rest of the team. I was amazed at how much I resembled my dad... I was hollering like crazy (coaching from the bleachers) so much so that Michael had to give me "the look" a few times. I refrained from screaming at the refs or saying anything negative. :) Here she is sticking with her opponent... like glue! She even guarded him when she was on offense. :) They put a colored tag on each child's jersey (see the yellow tag near her shoulder) and it matches up with the same colored tag on the jersery of a child on the other team so that they can easily see who they're supposed to be guarding. Anna was all about matching her color to a child on the other team and she NEVER left his side. :) Trying to dribble, she doesn't do too bad. This is how they introduce the kids before the games start. You can hear them call her name as soon as the video starts. I wasn't sure how Anna would do with the loud music and adrenaline of it all but she did well as you can see. She was a bit uneasy but for it being her first time I thought she did great. I tried to rotate this video but I can't get it to work so if you have a laptop, turn it sideways to watch. Anna did lots of running and did well sticking with her man but obviously needs a little bit more understanding of how the game works. She'll get there with time and practice. I couldn't help but laugh several times at the kiddos trying to figure it all out. We were proud of her for listening to her coaches and doing a great job on defense. This is big stuff for a 4 year old! =)