A Cruise to Mexico...and no I did not get the Swine Flu.

So about two days after finals I left all my cares behind and drove to San Diego where I would board the "Carnival Elation." On the way to California four of us stopped at Zions and hiked "Angels Landing." It was a beautiful hike- the only problem was that it began snowing and all I had on was a tank top. You gotta love Utah weather. The cruise was three nights and we stopped in Catalina Island. We were supposed to stop at Ensenada but because of the darn Swine Flu we didn't leave the ship. It forced us to stay on the ship where we ate, bathed in the sun, hot tubbed, ate, read and chat. Rough life. The cruise had all you can eat pizza and soft serve 24 hours. Every night we enjoyed dancing at the "Jeckel and Hide club." Some other highlights were the "Hairy Chest Competition," riding beach cruisers on Catalina Island,and going in the hut tubs. Overall it was a fantastic vacation. Here are some pictures!

Try

This isn't me...but it is a rugby player scoring a try. Close enough.

Tumbleweed.

So I play rugby now. It is no longer just a rumor, I am officially on the BYU Women's rugby team. We have practice Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and on Saturday we have games. I had my first game two weeks ago. I should have put a post up to describe it but I think I needed some time to recover. I got to go in the game in the second half. I ran onto the field to join the girls that have played for at least a year, but the girls on the sidelines were supportive and cheered for me. I soon found myself running around diving at the other team- doing whatever it took to take them to the ground. It's amazing how much power an adrenaline rush has over you. You suddenly are willing to tackle a girl head on when she is running at you full speed. At one point in the game I got the ball passed to me and I did what I was supposed to do- Sprint. I broke through one tackle, then two, and found myself running all by myself with only five meters to the try line (like the end zone in football). Then it happened. All of a sudden I was face down on the ground. With no one else around me I had tripped and fell flat on my face. My teammates told me after that I had slid at least 5 meters and that my legs had flown over my head...My coach laughed as he said that he had never seen anything like that in the history of Women's Cougar Rugby. The forwards coach didn't say a single word to me except..."Hey Tumbleweed." Hence, my new nickname. Needless to say it was a memorable first game. No worries though- the only thing that got hurt was my pride and even that wasn't bad. It was too funny not to laugh about it.

Now- Last week on the otherhand I had my second game of the season. I was able to start this game (I guess my coaches had forgiven me of my previous tumble). I was determined to redeem myself and prove that I am an athlete and that I can run without falling. For the first 20 minutes of the game I didn't get much action playin on the outside of the field. After getting tired of not touching the ball one of the girls was about to go down in a tackle and I was able to grab the ball from her. I sprinted like I had done the previous game, except this time girls were trying to trip and tackle me. Yet I was determined not to fall this time. It worked and I managed to place the ball past the try line to score my first Try (Like a touchdown in football). My teammates and coaches were yelling "Go Tumbleweeed!!!" and "You didn't trip!" on the sidelines. It was nice to be able to jog back with my head held high this time:) So after scoring that try I am hooked on rugby. I love the girls on the team, the sport is a blast, and of course I love the exercise. Next weekened the team is off to California for the Pac Coast playoffs. It's the first round on the way to Nationals where we are seated 5th in the nation and 1st in Utah. So hopefully I can have pictures up and updates for you all!

Birthday Fun

I'm 21!

On February 27th it was my birthday. So this weekend I was spoiled with phone calls, letters, and gifts from my friends and family. On Wednesday night my friend Kristin made my favorite meal for our weekly Dinner Group- Fettuccine Alfredo and cheesecake. The three of them Jill, Lauren and Kristen got me balloons, a sweater, earrings, and makeup. Yeah- they know me well. On Friday night I went out to Macaroni Grill with Meg, Christina, and Lauren where I ate my favorite Penne Rustica pasta dish and a free chocolate cake that they gave me. It was great- thanks Dad! Then on Saturday night the girls in my dinner group hung out with me again. We went to a dance party then came back to Kristen's apartment where we ate hommade cinnamon rolls and played the game "True Colors." I'm starting to sense a running theme- FOOD. Mom and dad spoiled me with a birthday dinner, funding the cruise I'm going on at the end of the semester, and the Jane Austen book collection. I got a cartoon from Grandpa and heard from all of my siblings. Needless to say, it was a wonderful birthday. I felt so loved and I am grateful to have such wonderful friends and a loving family. SO THANK YOU everyone for making my birthday a special one!

Rugby anyone?

So I'm sure some of you have heard a rumor that I started playing Rugby. Well, it's true. I joined the BYU Women's Rugby team- the only thing is, is that it is not an official "BYU team" because of the number of girl's team sports already. So we are a club and we have to do all the funding on our own. However, we are still ranked in the top 5 of the nation and we have three coaches who want a National Championship. Last weekend I went down to St. George with the team. We stayed in one of our coach's parent's house(which was a mansion...it had 7 showers) and spent the weekend playing rugby because there wasn't snow. It was actually a really fun trip- I've always loved team bonding. I'm not in love with the sport yet though. I honestly believe it is the hardest sport out there- physically and mentally. I have been playing for about 3-4 months now and a lot of it is still over my head. I have been getting a lot of questions from my friends because they are noticing that I am covered in bruises. I promise I don't have an abusive boyfriend...Anyway here is one of the bruises I got over the weekend. It's a good one! (Don't freak out mom:)

Danielle's Math World

Hello everyone! So my friend came over and said it was time for me to update my blog. "NOVEMBER 2nd Danielle! November 2nd!" She is right. However, I wish I had some super exciting news for you but everything is pretty consistent in my life right now. The only new update I have is that in this new semester I am taking a "Teaching with technology class" for my Math Ed minor. It's pretty neat so far. We had to make a website for us to post various assignments and other things about ourselves. I'm a bit nervous considering technology has been a source of frustration in my life so far- but the teacher is awesome and patient so I may end up liking this tech stuff after all. Here is a link to the website- check it out if you like!

Halloween!

First of all, I just have to say that the pictures of all of my nieces and nephews are adorable. I saw Tyler the army man, Traven the giraffe, Logan the disco boy, Madison the fairy, Ainsley the mermaid, and I'm sure I have yet to view the rest of costumes! Halloween in college is a little different than the normal trick or treating. This Halloween I was able to do both. I trick-or-treated with Tyler before coming back to my house to get ready for some party hopping. When Meg and I went to her house in Kaysville for General Conference we went through her costume boxes to see what we could find. We found her sister's old flapper costume and a mini mouse dress thing that Meg wore when she was on the dance team. So we pulled what we could together and went out for a fun night of dancing, doughnuts, and candy. Overall, I must say it was a good time. I am happy to say that this Halloween I did not get my purse stolen like I did my freshmen year...and that I was back in Provo instead of across the ocean in Hawaii. Now, I have officially set one of my radio stations to 106.5 to start listening to Christmas music! Oh and if you look at the group picture, you can see all the guys dressed as Mario and Luigi. They have real mustaches...some people go all out for Halloween. These guys planned this for a long time...oh and the one where I am with Meg I look sorta creepy but she looks cute!