Halle enjoyed soccer very much this last year but we were always waiting to see that little spark of competitive spirit kick in during the season...it never happened! Now don't get me wrong she is still very good at soccer she just appeared to lack desire to own the ball/field. We decided she is just too kind spirited and we were most likely not going to see a Katie Jr. out on the field!
As soon as soccer was finished basketball season started. Halle was given the choice to play basketball or take some time off...she of course wanted to play basketball so we signed her up. She again has practise twice a week and a game every Saturday...yes, we are exhausted but she loves being on the go!
On the day of her first game Halle was very excited to be putting on her uniform and lacing up her b-ball shoes! I couldn't get her to stop dribbling the ball inside the house for the life of me and she was running around like a mad woman asking..."Is it time to go yet?" and stating "I don't want to be late!". I kept telling her "No, you still have 3 hrs to go" every hour on the hour until it was time to go! When we finally gave her the go ahead she was yelling at us to hurry up and get in the car, assisting her siblings in buckling up, and making sure to tell her dad exactly where to navigate the car!
As we pull up to the gym Halle looks out into the sea of little basekballers running into the gym and can not contain herself..."Dad just pull over and I will run in...Dad hurry up and park the car...Dad I am so late HURRY UP!". After multiple comments to calm down the car is parked and she jumps out to run in by herself...Dad is just as excited and says "I am just gonna make sure she gets in"...leaving mom to get the diaper bag and two babies in all by myself!
When I enter the gym a flood of old memories wash over me...the smell of popcorn, the smell of the gym floor, the sounds of the scoreboard, the whistles, the crowd cheering, coaches yelling, the sound of the bouncing basketball echoing through the gym...I'm not going to lie I am extremely excited to be involved in basketball once again! I look around for the rest of the family and see them sitting in one corner of the gym and head in their direction. As I get closer I notice Halle's look of excitement has turn to pure fear. She says..."Mom I don't feel good and my tummy hurts". I tell her she will be fine once she gets to shoot a few balls and she states "I think I will just sit with you guys". I tell her that is not an option if she doesn't want to play we will just leave. Her dad gives me the look of...seriously Katie...and walks her over to her coach. When he gets back over he tells me Halle told her coach right away that she didn't feel good and that the coach had said she could sit out the first quarter.
So the game starts and if you have every watched 2nd grade basketball you know what I mean when I say it is much more fun to watch paint dry! There is not a lot of action at this level and I am thinking to myself this is going to be terrible to sit through if she decided to play sick! We make it through the 1st quarter and the score is 4 to 0 with Halle's team losing. To my surprise Halle walks out onto the court for the 2nd quarter. I find myself very excited to know she is overcoming a fear and that we are actually going to see if she can play ball!
The whistle blows and we are off! The opposing team gets the ball and heads down the court. They pass the ball twice and during that second pass I see Halle heading towards the ball and with a graceful jump into the air she steals it...I lose it...I was jumping up and down and screaming...I thought Matt would be telling me to shut up but when I look in his direction he is jumping up and down and yelling as well!
Now in 2nd grade basketball they don't exactly get to fast break down to the other end once they steal the ball. The whistle is blown and the ref comes over and takes the ball. Apparently, Halle had stolen the ball from a girl that she was not guarding so technically even though it was a great play the red team got the ball back. I, of course, am in the corner making it well known I think that is a stupid rule and at this point Matt is now telling me to keep it down. So the whistle is blown and the ball is in play. This time, as the ball is attempting to be passed to the girl Halle is guarding Halle just steps in front of her and steals the ball again...with the attitude written all over her face like this is way to easy! We again go nuts and Halle gives us a thumbs up sign with a huge smile on her face! She takes the ball out and throws it into her teammate and they are heading down the floor. Halle makes it to her center position and is intently watching the ball being passed around. Finally they pass the ball into her and she turns, shoots, and scores!!! Matt and I are going ballistic and she turns to look at us with shock and excitement written all over her face! She through her hands in the air and jumped up and down. All her teammates gave her a high five and her coach was yelling "Great Job"! It was a great moment!
Now I could go play by play during this game...but I will spare you the torture! Halle played an excellent first game in her basketball career! She scored 8 out of the 10 points scored by her team...the other team never scored another basket, she had 12 rebounds, and 16 steals! She was very excited and proud of herself...and that is all we ask for her!
Hope you all can make it down to a game sometime in her career...I would record it but I am a bit more vocal in this game in comparison to soccer!!!
