Dirty Girl

That was the name of my race back in September. For real - the Dirty Girl Mud Run. I was waiting for more pictures before I finally blogged about it. I didn't think it would be almost two months later, but better late than never, right?

A group of women from church decided that since the guys did a mud race last summer, we should do one together. I'm always up for stuff like this so it took very little convincing. I started training for this thing about 10 weeks in advance. We did the race as a team and although I don't mind going slower for team other members, I wanted to make sure it wasn't me who was holding everyone up. Thus, that is how the running began. Basically, the Dirty Girl was the beginning of the story of how I started training for a half marathon.

I volunteered to take charge of the event for our team - team Muddy Buddies. This included planning a team practice. The original idea was for us to meet at a local park and exercise and run together the week before the race. Well, it rained that night so we met at Village Inn for pie instead. I know, coach of the year. Honestly, I partially believed everyone was training on their own...turns out, not so much.

Well, the day of the race we drove to Calhan, CO and I think all of us were a bit nervous about what this race would look like. This was my first race ever and I had no idea what to expect. Before the race started we said a prayer together and then made our way to the starting line.

I think we all expected the race to be much harder than it actually was. The obstacles were pretty weak, and our team walked most of the trails. I'm not convinced our entire team understood we were supposed to be running the whole time, but that's fine. 

About one mile in, one of our team members said, "This is so great! How often do we have the chance to just talk without kids around?"

For team Muddy Buddies the race was obviously more about building relationships than it was about actually racing. If I hadn't already made the decision to do the half marathon I probably would have been upset that my weeks of training were for nothing, but because I had already started to train for a bigger goal, I could just enjoy the mud run and even the time we had to take a leisure walk without kids around.

Even though it took us nearly an hour to do a three mile race, the finish line still seemed like an accomplishment. 

I finished my first race...ever! Plus, it was a great feeling to accomplish something as a team, and as a church. We had quite the cheering section waiting for us at the finish line. That alone is reason to celebrate. 

After the race, we were given a complimentary cocktail. Any race where they give you a post-race mixed drink is a great race. 

Me and a few of my favorite team members following the race.

Team Muddy Buddies BEFORE the race... yes, the all black and matching headbands was planned.

Team Muddy Buddies AFTER the race...

By the time we left the race festivities it was nearly 2:00 and we were starving. So where do you go when you are desperate for food and covered in mud? Sonic, of course! 

Do you ever feel like everyone is staring at you? Well, imagine the attention you get when you get out of the car with six of your friends, all covered head to toe in mud and then sit down to eat. We made quite the scene. 

Fun times. Great memories. Dirty or clean, I'm blessed to have these women in my life. 

Fall Favorites

Last Sunday was a pretty big day. First of all, Tebow started! Unfortunately, he started at 11:00, the same time church starts. Fortunately, I live in 2011 and we have DVR, and my new friends Alicia and Aaron came over after church to watch the game with me. 

Aaron played on the mighty Phat Bhatts with me and I am starting to get to know his wife Alicia. They are great. I feel a long term friendship coming on with these two. 

If you're my friend I feel like I don't have to tell you that after three of the most boring quarters of football I have ever seen in my life, and I truly mean that, Tebow had what my friend Megan refers to as his Matt Saracen moment. 

I mean seriously, look at Saracen's face. Add some stubble and change the jersey and I would think I was looking at Tebow last weekend. The whole fourth quarter and into overtime it was like watching season 1 of Friday Night Lights. The lovable, QB2 becomes QB1 in a matter of seconds. It's rough for a while, but then Tim, just like Matt, remembers he CAN in fact play football and the game starts to turn around. Welcome to the fourth quarter of the Broncos' game my friends. 

Do I even need to tell you what happened? Well, just because watching the highlight reel still gets me fired up, I will go ahead and tell you anyway. 

After my heart rate slowed to a reasonable pace, it was time to carve pumpkins. For the first time ever I tried out one of those pattern books. Next year I'm stepping up my game. The patterns were pretty lame. Alicia was so proud of Tim she had to carve a pumpkin in celebration of the win. Aaron, well, he was there to take our picture afterward.

Where the Magic Happens

They always say that on MTV Cribs when they get to the master bedroom. I know what is implied by this statement, but unless you are Hugh Hefner, I'm not quite sure what's so "magical." You know what's "magical?" The fact that high schoolers get it on in the bathroom without vomiting or getting caught. That is magic.

Anyway, quite a few months ago I painted my master bedroom. It's still the room I am the most proud of in my house, probably because it's the only one that is actually finished, minus replacing the ceiling fan, which is purchased but still sitting in an unopened box in my garage. I gave my parents the guided tour via iPhone FaceTime months ago, so I guess that's why I wasn't in a huge hurry to post the pictures.

Unfortunately I only have one picture of the room on move-in day and it isn't very good.

Just so you have a better idea, this was the color of the entire room before I painted. No offense to the color yellow, after all, my kitchen is yellow, but my bedroom is just not the place for it.

The first order of business was removing the horrible TV stand that was screwed into the wall. You may remember that fiasco from a former blog entry. 

Once the stand and screws were removed and the hole was patched, it was time to paint. I wanted to live on the edge a little with the decor in the rest of the house, but my bedroom is like my safe place. It needs to stay cool and tranquil, and above all, remind me of the beach. What color can bring me all of these things? Tan! 

When my roommate and I were renting the townhouse, I went a little crazy and painted an accent wall in my bedroom. I know this isn't crazy for most, but for me it was like dying my hair pint and getting an eyebrow ring. I actually liked the accent wall, so I decided to do the same thing in the new house. What color goes perfectly with tan and will complete the beach scene? Blue of course! 

My roommate also had this great idea to paint my entry way into my bedroom the accent color instead of tan. I have to hand it to her, the idea was genius. The entry way looks awesome in blue and it really added a unique touch to the paint job.

I've never been a fan of curtains. I don't know what it is, but my whole life I've been so happy with just plain white blinds. However, I think something inside me finally snapped, because after a few weeks of looking at those plain blinds above my bed, I knew something had to be done. It just looked terrible. A $15 (on sale) valance from JC Penny's and this curtain thing from Wal-Mart did the trick. It's a window treatment that is not really curtains. Perfect. Plus, it frames the bed so nicely you pretty much forget I don't own (and have never owned) a headboard. 

After the walls were painted I gave the trim and doors a fresh coat of white paint. I couldn't believe what a difference it made. It was like a brand new room.

The closet in my room is pretty big, especially for an older home, but the closet doors were terrible. It was like looking at a wall of wood. Unfortunately I forgot to get a before picture, but you can at least tell from this picture what the closet doors looked like after I removed them.

The doors were ugly, but they were in good shape so it seemed pretty pointless to buy new ones. Plus I had an entire gallon of white paint. So I painted the doors white and bought some silver knobs. 

That's it, my new bedroom. Once I install a new ceiling fan this room will be 100% completely finished. 

I Need Your Support

WARNING: This letter is entirely a joke. Please read it in the spirit in which it was written and do not take this seriously. This letter is purely for the amusement of the five people (including my own mother) who happen to read my blog.

Dear friends and family,
I am writing you because I have a great mission ahead that I want you to prayerfully consider being a part of. I am currently raising support for my latest endeavor - serving as a missionary for organized sports, specifically NCAA football and the NFL. I realize you may think this is a mission that does not need your time, energy and support, like raising money to fight the common cold, but I assure you, we are in desperate times.

I have positioned myself among the most un-reached people group; the least likely to ever become football fans of any kind. I work every day in the IT Department. Just this week I was told, "I bet you are excited Kevin was named the starting quarterback for the Broncos." Are the names "Kevin" and "Tim" easily confused? I don't think so. Someone else told me he felt bad for Brett Farve because Tim Tebow took his starting position. Sorry sweet friend, I think you meant Kyle Orton. Then there was the most shocking conversation of all. One of my coworkers said he had a lot of respect for the owner of the Denver Broncos for reasons outlined in an online article he read earlier that morning. His reasons did not make much sense because I believe he had the roles of the owner and the coach confused, but when we informed him of the name of the owner - John Elway - his response was, "The guy who owns the car dealerships?"

These conversations are happening, on a daily basis, and I know people even among the most resistant people groups, are open to hearing the message of football. They are hungry for knowledge; like this week when I spent almost two days trying to explain why football teams do not and should not go for a 2 point conversion after every touchdown.

The last few months of living among the lost have been an eye opening experience for me. I thought everyone was just like me. Doesn't every family plan vacations around football schedules and raise their kids to be a fan of their alma mater? The answer is NO! There are people out there who desperately need our help. There are children right now all over the United States living in households void of team jerseys and without any knowledge of mascots or fight songs. They will never hear the roar of a crowd on a fall afternoon or experience the emotion of a last minute touchdown.

My hope is that one day everyone can say they have watched at least one football game in its entirety. You can help make this a reality. I have learned to stay the course and to fight even among those who would rather talk about servers or computer configurations than a game winning field goal. We must not be discouraged but let our passion for the game speak volumes to those we come in contact with.

If these stories have moved you, I urge you to not only prayerfully support my ministry, but to start one right where you are. There are lost people all around you who may never experience the happiness and joy that football can bring unless you intervene in their lives. You do not have to work in the IT Department. The fields are ripe with harvest right where you are. Your local theater, seminary, video game store, library or nail salon are all great places to start. We are also working with a team to develop curriculum to help you better share your message.  

I urge each of you to consider the difference football has made in your own life. Thank you in advance for your support.

Your humble and grateful sister,
Danielle

The Commercial That Still Hasn't Made Me Famous

In honor of my favorite season...football season, and the fact that Tim Tebow was named QB1 for the Denver Broncos, I wanted to pay tribute to one of my favorite commercials of all time, Under Armour is Football.

Did you see me? I'm in the commercial! Replay the last few seconds. Do you see everyone rushing the field? Well, I'm there...somewhere on the field. 

That infamous scene in college football was the night Texas Tech beat #1 ranked University of Texas and in a few seconds robbed them of a trip to the National Championship. I still can't believe I was THERE when it happened! It's such a bummer this night will probably trump my wedding as the best night of my life. Sorry future husband. 

Me and my friend Suzanne right before we rushed the field

Phat Bhatts

This year Tyler, the worship pastor at our church, decided we needed a softball team. So basically he signed us up for the "Leisure League" at Cottonwood Park with the hopes enough people would agree to this crazy idea. I think when it was all said and done our team roster had around 18 people on it. Let me tell you, the resumes of some of the people on our team were pretty impressive. We had everything from active military guys, to people who had run marathons, half marathons, triathlons, and completed iron man competitions.

With that much athleticism and determination on a giant roster, you would think the season was ours for the taking...but let's just say the Bad News Bears had nothing on the Phat Bhatts. Side note: props to Tyler on the team name! The head pastor of our church is Sam Bhatt....thus, we are the Phat Bhatts. Clever. We did consider the name team name Vanguard Church (the name of another church in town) just in case some of our pastors got a little too competitive.

We finished the season 0-8 or as Tyler likes to say, almost-7. Our last game actually ended up being pretty close. I think we only lost by 3. The other games the closest we got was a 7 point loss...no kidding.

What we lacked in wins, we made up for in great memories though. I mean there was this one time an umpire straight up asked me if this was the first time we had ever played in a league before. When I asked him if it was "that obvious" his answer was dead silence. He said he would rather ask then just assume. I asked him to not ask any of my teammates these same questions.

Another umpire was shocked to learn we were a church team because we were so fun. Not sure what that means, but he was so intrigued by us. He said we weren't very good, but we sure do make for a fun hour of softball.

Then there was the time Greg, the smallest guy on our team, broke a metal bat in half. He swung, the ball flew to right field, he threw the lower part of the bat on the ground to run to first, and the top half of the bat flew right over the second baseman. In one night Greg might have become a softball legend. Aaron, one of the biggest guys on our team, was quick to tell me he used that bat all season and he had been hitting pretty low so he probably cracked it and then Greg just finished it off. Aren't guys amusing? I'm sure that's what it was Aaron. After that impressive performance, I thought that might be the end of short jokes for Greg, but no such luck.

I slid into second once this season and boy did I feel it for the rest of the week. But let's focus on important things...I was safe. Also, after I made it home a few batters later and went into the dugout, I saw the three Fernihough boys sliding around in the clay. They said they were "sliding like Dani." Seriously, so adorable.

I played infield positions most of the season - 3rd base, 2nd base, 1st base, a half inning of a pitching disaster....then eventually I made my way to catcher. I played softball for 7 years when I was younger and I never once played catcher. I don't know the first thing about it. Here is what I know now though.
1) I am terrified pretty much the entire time I am behind the plate.
2) I warmed up to it because you get to actually participate every play, which is fun and always keeps me on my toes.
3) I make all kinds of friends playing catcher. By the end of the game I know something about every player on the other team and have had a pretty decent conversation with the umpire.
4) No one cared to mention this...but about half way through our last game I noticed something. None of the girls on other teams who played catcher actually PLAYED. Sure, when the pitcher threw the ball they caught it and threw it back, but they didn't even stand near the batter's box. In fact, they would stand behind the umpire near the fence of the backstop and wait until the pitch rolled over to them and then toss it back. If there was a play at the plate, they would just move out of the way and let the pitcher or first baseman cover the plate. What is that all about? How did I miss that memo? Here I am crouched down behind the batter trying to give our catcher a good target and hoping to not get knocked unconscious by an out of control swing. I even went for foul balls and caught a few. I think in the 3 or 4 games I played catcher I made 3 outs behind the plate. Not too shabby if I do say so myself, but for real, some one could have told me that catchers are just there for looks.

All in all, I think this was good for us. There were plenty of laughs and just to go to a church that puts themselves in a city league instead of a church league is a blessing.

Watch it 2012 season...we see you and the Phat Bhatts are coming back with a vengeance....and by "vengeance" I mean we are determined to win at least one game.

Go team!

10 Things I Would Ask Tim Tebow

I get this question a lot - If you met Tim Tebow what would you say to him? The truth is, I have no idea. I pray that if I ever do meet Tim, it would be a supernatural experience and that the Holy Spirit would just speak through me resulting in the most wise, witty, (Is the Holy Spirit witty?) and memorable opening line Tim has ever heard. However, I would be willing to settle for anything that doesn't involve me standing and staring like a mute or shaking and stuttering over every word.

So if I met Tim and only had 5 minutes with him...I have no game plan, (I should probably work on that) but if I had dinner with him....like say, a whole hour to just sit and talk over a burger, well, that is a whole new ball game.  In that case, I have an abundance of questions and conversation topics.

So to answer a common question in way too many words, I present to you (in order of importance) the top 10 questions I would ask Tim Tebow over dinner.

1) Where do you keep the Heisman - did the University of Florida force you to let them put it on display somewhere in their athletic department, do you have it at your house on your mantle (and in that case can I go and see it?), or did Pam insist you leave it in Florida where she can keep it in a "safe place" alongside your baby pictures and first pair of cleats, which let's be serious, were probably Robby's then Peter's then yours?

2) Off the record, what is your relationship like with Kyle Orton? Obviously this question would have to be off the record, because when asked this question in a public setting we all know Tim. He just finds the best in people and then tells the world how great they are. But I want to know for real...do you and Kyle talk? Do you text? Do you hang out? Does Mrs. Orton insist that Kyle invite you over for dinner after practice? Do you see Kyle as a mentor or strictly competition?

3) What do you keep in your quarterback armband? Obviously I know there are plays in there, but I happen to have a quarterback armband of my own, and I know there isn't much space. You certainly can't draw out all your plays in there. So do you just have the names of the plays written down or what? If it's just the names of the plays, how can it really be that helpful?

4) How many girls have you kissed? Ok, for real, I have no reason for this question other than the fact that me and the rest of America are really curious. 

5) When you think about having your own family, what do you picture? I would bet that most people assume his answer would include something along the lines of 10 kids (5 biological, 3 adopted from The Philippines, and 2 foster kids) all of which are home schooled on their family compound by his stay-at-home, conservative, Christian wife. There is nothing wrong with that. However, I would not at all be surprised if he said he pictures a nice house in a gated community, 2 public school attending kids, and a career woman wife whose idea of cooking dinner is bringing home takeout. The truth is, just because you come from a giant family doesn't mean you want one of your own. I am one of 4 kids and although I love my brothers and had a great childhood, trust me, there is absolutely no part of me that wants 4 kids of my own. I just have a sneaky suspicion that Tim might be the same way.

6) While we're on the subject of family, tell me more about your family dynamic. How in the world did your brothers end up in Denver with you? When I moved to Colorado, my parents and my brothers were excited about visiting me, but no one was really jumping at the chance to leave sunny Florida for snowy Colorado, and it wasn't because I didn't ask if they wanted to come with me. 

7) Changing gears...Can you show me the jump pass? No really, can we find a high school football stadium and can you throw me the jump pass into the end zone? 

8) I've noticed over the years that when you are calling a play in a no-huddle, hurry-up offense, you always put your hands together as you're screaming the play to your teammates. The position you put your hands in is fairly typical for quarterbacks right before the snap, but with you it's the whole time leading up to the snap. What are you doing? Is this a part of some top secret play call technique? (How hilarious would this be if Tim didn't even know he did it until I pointed it out half way through my burger? - side note: knowing these kinds of details makes me a fan not a stalker!)

9) What does an average day (you know, one where you aren't making a guest appearance on Jimmy Kimmel or The Biggest Loser) look like for you? I don't know why, but I just can't picture Tim grocery shopping at King Soopers, loading the dishwasher or doing laundry. Also, I am kind of intrigued by people who work without sitting at a desk with a laptop and a calendar full of board room meetings.

10) Will you marry me? - Except I probably wouldn't have the guts to ask this, and I think it's totally weird...my REAL #10 would be...Now that your days in Gainesville are behind you, how often do you talk to Urban? 

5 Mile Miracle

WARNING: This is by far the most vulnerable blog post I've written in the history of this blog.

Tonight I ran 5 miles! 

I would also venture to guess that not many people in my life know just how big of a deal this is. The truth is, this whole training for a half marathon thing is something I was told I would never be able to do.  

When I was 20 I moved to West Texas to go to the best University on the face of the earth, also know as Texas Tech. I lived in Lubbock for about a month when I started to notice my health was taking a steady decline. In just a few weeks, I went from exercising at least an hour a day three times per week to not being able to walk across campus. When I woke up in the middle of the night because I had stopped breathing, that is when I knew it was time to see a doctor. 

The next few months were a blur. I was in and out of doctor's offices on almost a daily basis and no one seemed to have any answers. After a few weeks of failed solutions, a was sent to a specialist. He was less than encouraging. He looked me straight in the eye and said, "You will never have a normal life again." He told me that I needed to forget about my active lifestyle and focus on survival. He was scared that one of these times I would go to sleep, stop breathing, and never wake up. 

I had some big decisions to make, but I knew for sure the Lord led me to Texas Tech; and I refused to believe he asked me to move 1,500 miles away from home for me to die in a dorm room in my sleep. I wasn't ready to pack it up and go back to Florida. I stayed in Texas. 

As you can imagine, my parents were concerned. I was taking about six different medications multiple times per day and although it was helping me to breathe, they were also making me very sick. My mom started doing research and found another specialist in Lubbock. This time she flew out for the appointment. This doctor was a lot more hopeful. He said although everything the other doctor said was correct and that I did need to be careful. However, unlike the other doctor, this one was dedicated to giving me back my life. He wasn't willing to accept "survival" as a goal. He also figured out I was allergic to the main ingredient in all of my medication so although I didn't exactly get to lessen the number of meds I was taking, at least the new ones didn't make me sick. 

Exercising was still out of the question, but slowly but surly I was starting to get healthy again. By spring semester things were starting to become manageable and by the following fall I was starting to feel normal again, with the help of regulated medicine and frequent doctor visits. 

However, not too long after I turned 22, I went in for one of my doctor's appointments and they found some spots on my lungs. That's when things got really scary. 

I was so thankful for my Bible study partner John and his girlfriend (now wife) Elisabeth. They went to doctor's appointments with me and sat in waiting rooms while I was undergoing tests. What a blessing to be in their wedding a few years later.

After a few weeks of blood work and more scans to rule out cancer and a few other diseases, the doctors decided it was scarring. We still aren't sure how my lungs are so scared, but out of all the things it could have been, I'm thankful for the scarring. 

A few months after the cancer scare, I went to work for Student Life. I remember having to sit and tell a team of people I had known all of 3 days about my medical journey. This was a big part of my testimony at the time, but I mostly had to tell them because I still wasn't 100% healthy and for people you are living and working with for three months to not know that stuff....well, as much as I really do like to keep things like that to myself, it's just a bad idea in that kind of situation. Working camps takes quite the toll on even the most healthy bodies and there was a good chance the next three months would be a struggle. 

I did have some hard days while I was working camp but less than expected. There was one night when we were in California that my lungs were so tight my whole body was in pain. Out of desperation, I pumped myself with too much medicine. I could barely hold my head up. I ended up falling asleep under the lighting board during the evening worship service. The guys on the production staff were so sweet to just leave me there until we were done for the night and then wake me up and make sure I got back to my room and into bed. 

My team was so great! They had this awesome way of looking out for me without ever making me feel like a sick patient. 

After that summer I went back to Texas to finish college and that next year things really started to return to normal. I was starting to take less medicine and see fewer doctors. Slowly but surly over the next few years, things got better and better and now I only take medicine if I really feel like I need it, which is less than once a month.

My mom called me last week and asked how my body was doing now that I am running all the time. She was worried (and rightfully so) about the effects of the constant cardio in the high elevation. To be totally honest, it took me about five minutes to even figure out why she was asking. It was like all those prior years of struggles (that weren't all that long ago) were totally forgotten.

That doctor was right. My life was never the same, but not in the way he meant it. I am doing things physically now that I have never done before. I have never run five miles before and now I'm doing it and I plan on running 13 miles in just a few months. The conversation with my mom made me realize this upcoming race is so much more than just another goal, it's truly a miracle!