Basketball Princess

Anyone who knew me in jr. high or high school knows I lived and breathed basketball. I was a bona fide wind suit wearing, Nike clad, basketball toting, 1990-something scrunchie haired, scarce on the make up, Umbro obsessed tomboy. I know--hard to believe I was ever athletic. But it's true. I think I was always a pink-loving girl at heart, but it took years for me to come out of the closet. Clearly, today, I am out in full force. My wind suit days are far, far behind me. Far.

I think, back then, I thought I was much better than I actually was. I was ok. Maybe good. Far from great. But still... I could hang. That being said, I have high hopes for my girls and their basketball playing futures. Granted, they still sometimes say they want to be cheerleaders. On those rare occasions, I smile, nod, then silently pray the pom pom demon out of them. (Kidding. Sort of.) Anyway, this week Belle's first experience with organized basketball was attending Shiloh's basketball camp. And I wish I could tell you my kindergartener burned up the court. Sigh. Between cartwheels and dance moves, she did pretty well. I was a bit mortified when, on one occasion, she opted for 'granny' shots rather than the proper shooting technique they had JUST SHOWN her. But all in all, she was awesome and really enjoyed herself. A pink-loving princess can only go so far at her first go at the game, right?

In her words, she came away with "three sheets of paper and a medal." That's right. She medaled. She won it for Knock Out. I have no idea what that is, but it sounds way cool. And the 'three sheets of paper' were a certificate of participation, Camper of the Day award, and Knock Out champion certificate. She is so proud.

Here is a video of one of her first shooting sessions with Coach H. She does fine on the first three shots, and then pulls out the granny. You'll be happy to know I bit my lip and didn't yell from the bleachers. I did, however, tell Coach W to promptly beat her the next time she did it. I don't think they took me seriously. But I was.




Who says a baller can't be a princess, too? She doesn't need a pair of Umbros to rock it out. I think a crown will do just fine. Still.. we're gonna have to do something about those cartwheels.