Upward Basketball 2016 Season - Games 5-8

**GUEST BLOGGER**

 ~ Eric Hendrickson ~

If you missed the post about Sarah's first half of her basketball season, you can CLICK HERE to read the post about games #1 - #4.

Game #5 - February 6th

Game 5 was a dominating performance.  The other team was missing one of their best players.  Look at Sarah (#3) above keeping her hand in the passing lane and keeping her eyes on her person and on the ball.

Our girls all have their hands up playing good defense.

Hannah (#31), on the opposing team, getting triple teamed.  Sarah did good help defense here.  Cari (#12) keeping a hand in the passing lane.

On the right:  Nice looking shot by Nienna.

Stars are handed out at the end of the game to recognize the individuals areas of excellence:
Red: Defense, Gray: Offense, Yellow: Sportsmanship, White: Christlikeness, Blue: Effort.
(We also hand out green stars to each girl for scripture memorization)

Our team motto this year is: "How do we play? - Aggressive; We play as a? - Team; We play for? - Jesus"

The blue star iron-on/sticker best represents Aggressive, the yellow best represents Team, and white best represents Jesus.

I handed out the stars to the girls after this game.

We won 50-20.  Sarah had 24 points.

Game #6 - February 13th

Sarah has been working on layups.  She is getting better but sometimes goes off the wrong foot.

We won 37-17.  Sarah had 14 points.

Game #7 - February 20th

This was our best all around game of the year.

This week at practice, we focused on being aggressive for rebounds, and the girls responded well.

Above, Cari is taking a shot.  She has vastly improved this year.  She plays with a lot of effort and is quite aggressive, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

Addison, #2 below, had an all around great game.  She is really understanding the game.  Hopefully, she is on our team again next year.

We won 44-26.  Sarah had 22 points.

Game #8 - February 27th

Our last game.  Although we won, 29-22, it certainly was not our best game.  Sarah had 13 points.  The girls had their game faces on before the game (above), but we played a very flat first half and we were tied at halftime.  Coach Ro and I's halftime speech must have been effective because we played a much better second half.

The super aggressive girl played defense on Sarah all game.  They finally called a foul on her.

Sarah went 1 of 2 from the line.

Above, Sarah and Hannah:  Best of friends and fierce competitors

Grandma Sharon (my Mom) came up from Texas to watch Sarah's last game.  Grandma Great (my Grandma) and Mike also came.

We accomplished our goal - An Undefeated Season!

Team Party ~ February 27th
Coach Ro hosted an after season party.  Both his son's and daughter's team were celebrated.  Combined record for the teams was 14 wins, 0 losses, and 2 ties.  Great job teams and coaches!  The highlight of the event was the ice cream treat below.

Awards Ceremony ~ February 28th

There was an awards ceremony the next day.  Above, we took a team selfie before we went into the ceremony.  Each team was called up on stage to be introduced and to receive a basketball and DVD. 

Sarah quietly introduced herself as did the rest of the girls.  We had a great bunch of girls this year.  NUGGETS FOR JESUS!

SARAH STATS

Stars Received: (1) red, (1) yellow, (2) white, (3) gray, and (1) blue.  Sarah could have gotten (1) of each per game, but only one is given per game.
(Red: Defense, Gray: Offense, Yellow: Sportsmanship, White: Christlikeness, Blue: Effort)

Total Points: 137, which is 17.1 points per game

Record: 7 wins, 0 losses, 1 tie

Front Row Left to Right:  Bella, Kylie, Cari.  Second Row Left to Right:  Nienna, Addison, Sarah

SARAH, YOU HAD A GREAT YEAR.  I REALLY ENJOYED BEING YOUR COACH AND I LOVE BEING YOUR DADDY!

Annie Oakley'in It

I had the opportunity to go shooting with my Dad and his cousin again last weekend.  I must say that I LOVE shooting.  And, PS ~ I am pretty good at it.  Surprised?  Nah, you shouldn't be, it's in my genes... Got it from my Dad I tell ya.  I am ready to jump on board some hunting trips this fall.  Doc?  Josh and Katie?  Dr. B?  Who will take me on my maiden voyage?  This girl is ready to shoot her guns.  PPS ~ I jumped to super hottie status with my husband now that he knows he is married to Annie Oakley's great great granddaughter.

(Just kidding, my great great grandmother was not Annie Oakley, but how cool would that be if it were true?  Here's a little FACT for ya... Annie Oakley's given name was really Phoebe Ann.  Sound familiar?  It should.)

Sarah went along with us this time around.  It was cold outside so Sarah mostly sat on the cart for the first part of the day and watched us.  She was bundled up in her hat, hoods, coat, layers of clothing, a blanket, and my coat.  

There were moving targets to shoot in the air going away from you and coming right at you.  There were targets rolled on the ground and some that were bounced off the ground a few feet in the air  Some were in the trees and some in the open.

Dad was his usual sharpshooter self.

I love that I can go and do this with my Dad.  It is fun, a little competitive, and helps me practice my skills with tips from Dad and his cousin who have been doing this for a lot of years, hunting, shooting ranges, and Military.

Pictured below, Christopher, Jerry (Dad's first cousin), Steve, and Julie.

Thanks Dad.  It was a fun day.  Sarah and I will be ready to go again when it gets warmer outside.  And, start looking for those Father/Daughter shooting contests.  I think we'd make a great team!

Torquay Hunting

Towards the end of January I decided I wanted to give my Torquay Pottery eyes a try.  I went to a antique mall southeast of our house and started looking around.  There were well over 150 booths to browse through, but I was on a mission and hopeful that I would spot at least one piece of Torquay.  And I did!  I found two pieces in the same booth, down on the bottom shelf of a glassed cabinet there they were, sitting there waiting for me to find them!  What I found was two pieces of Watcombe with mottos on them.  A hot water jug handmade around the 1930's and a sugar bowl.

For those of you who are new to our blog or who may have forgotten I am a member of the NATS, (North American Torquay Society).  My Aunt Judy introduced me to this pottery back in 2006, when she invited me to go to the annual NATS convention with her in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  You can read more about the 2015 NATS convention, held in Rogers, Arkansas, by clicking HERE.  

And, you can read more about Torquay Pottery and its history by clicking HERE.

Below, is the hot water jug.  Its' motto reads, "Sweep before your own door first".  The picture below that is the mark on the bottom of the jug.

Below is the sugar bowl.  Its' motto reads "Speak less than thou knowest".  Pictured to the bottom right, is the mark on the bottom of the sugar bowl.

 

I was very excited after finding these two old pots.  I couldn't wait to get home and send my Aunt Judy a message with some pictures of my two new hunting finds.  About a week later I decided to "hunt" again.  This time I headed to a large well-known antique mall northwest of our house.  I had made it about a third of the way through the mall when all of a sudden as I approached a booth filled with glassware I saw it.  A small table top filled with Torquay! I absolutely could not believe what I was seeing in front of me!  I stood there in awe for a moment and then came back to reality and realized I either would have to buy every piece of pottery on that little table or get a hold of my Aunt Judy on the phone immediately.  I got my phone out of my purse and called her, hoping that she would answer.... She did!  She then gave me a little pep talk and got me snapped out of my awe and into shopping for great pieces of pottery mode.  She asked me all kinds of questions about the pieces in front of me, and prepped me on the check-out process, then asked me to take a picture and send it to her.  I did and then I called her back while she had the picture in front of her, and we discussed which pieces I should purchase for her and for myself.  I found some GREAT pieces of Torquay again!  Yay, go me!

I bought 6 pieces of Torquay Pottery from the table, two for myself and four for Judy.

Below, a Torquay cheese tray.  The motto reads, "Eat well of the Bread Be easy with the Cheese".

 

 Below, is my favorite find... a large Torquay Rosy Sunset Jug.  The motto reads, "May the wing of friendship never moult a feather".

I see more Torquay hunting trips in my future.  It was a lot of fun to hunt, and so exciting to call my Aunt, and for her and I to share this excitement together.

Tribe Of Levi Church Services

**GUEST BLOGGER**

 ~ Eric Hendrickson ~

We had a Tribe of Levi event on Saturday, January 23rd at Westview Baptist Church in Wichita, Kansas.  We have started to do Saturday evening services for churches throughout Kansas.  If you would like to host the Tribe Of Levi for a service at your church, please contact Carl Carnnahan, the band's General Manager, or Stacee and I, and we will gladly help arrange your event.

It was great to see Billy Soverns (in red).  He was in my IFI (Innerchange Freedom Intiattive) group, #26, and was recently released from prison after serving 30 plus years. 

The band has a few new members and they sounded great. 

The band did not play, "I am Free", which was not to Silas's liking.  Silas voiced his displeasure after the event to Carl so Carl rectified the situation by playing the song just for Silas.  Silas and the girls ran around the church as is the standard procedure when this song is played.

Cameron (above) was the one who decided they should not play the song during the event.  Cameron did apologize to Silas.

Rob (above) gave his testimony.  I met Rob that day and got to spend some one on one time with him prior to the event.  I appreciate your heart and your efforts with prison ministry, Rob.

Gary (middle) is contemplating doing oversees missionary work (Mark 16:15).  God bless you brother.  It was great seeing all my brothers, worshiping Jesus, and enjoying our freedom in Christ. 

Please follow the TRIBE OF LEVI on facebook.  (Click HERE)

We invite you to watch for band updates, new pictures, news, and upcoming events by "liking" the Tribe of Levi on facebook.

Nicklefritz

**GUEST BLOGGER**

 ~ Eric Hendrickson ~

I got a package in the mail yesterday.  It was my "Nickelfritz" trophy that I received for winning our family fantasy football league. 

The inspiration behind the "Nickelfritz" is my grandpa George Bowers (my mom's dad).  He used to like to say that word.  He also made the statue that sits on top of the wood platform of the trophy.  It is fabricated from horseshoes, a railroad spike, a washer, and some formed metal.  Grandpa liked to make these along with many other items made of metal and wood.

You can see the past winners are all from the Schroeder family.  I am glad I was able to break the Schroeder dominance.

I am impressed with this trophy, and I have it sitting in my office at work.  It complements the trophy I received for winning my work fantasy football league.  I like that I can look at it and remember a great man, my grandpa.