Basketball!

Austin had a blast playing basketball this winter!  This was the first time he played on one of the Shakopee Basketball Association recreational league teams.  He played with other 3rd graders and 4th graders.  A lot of his friends from school were played on various teams, so he got to play with and against his friends for most of the games.  He was always very excited about it and intense about it.  He got a little too upset after losing some games at first, but he is learning that you win some and you lose some and not to take it so hard!  He is always a spirited player, cheering loudly even when on the bench waiting to sub in or encouraging his teammates when they make a good play.  He even does a little celebration when he makes a basket.  We look forward to him playing again next year and watching him continue to learn and develop as a player.

Here are some of the photos I captured of him playing.  He is #2.  It is quite difficult to get good action shots in the gym lighting, but after a little editing and messing with settings on my camera, I think some of them came out looking OK.

 Nanny and cool dude Trevor watching the game.

Our tall girl Sarah also played basketball this year!  It was her first time playing and she played in the Little Dribblers program at her school.  They had 4 sessions to learn how to dribble, shoot, pass, etc. and then had a little "tournament" when they divided up into 3 on 3 or 4 on 4 teams and played little half court games.  It was totally adorable to watch Kindergarteners learn to play basketball.  They all did a great job learning new skills.  Dribbling is still a challenge for most of them and we all cracked up watching them run around holding the ball or shuffle their feet bit by bit until they were close enough to shoot.  It is great to watch them just get to try it out and have fun without any pressure or expectations.  I love little kid sports!

Here are some photos of Sarah in action.