I'm Baaaaaaack!

Hello all! After a very long hiatus from the blogosphere I am finally back and ready to update you all on what's been going on in my life! I know this is 18 days after I said I would be back, and for that I apologize. But, life's been a little hectic lately, and you will soon see why!

I got back from Austria around April 26th (at least I think it was then). And I was SO relieved to be able to spend some time at home in Dubuque! I got to hang out with my two favorite men, Dad and Eric, and do some of my favorite things! While I was at home, I knocked out several of the things on my 101 in 1001 list including:

57. Go to one of my brother's baseball games.

I'm sure this is about to be a home run :)

61. Play softball catch. (I did this with Eric)

62. Pitch a softball. (And it actually turned out to be somewhat under control!)

63. Go to a driving range.

Perfect form....kinda :)

After having a conversation with USA Volleyball head coach, Hugh McCutcheon, it was determined that I would be an "on call" player this summer. So, that gave me the okay to head back to Lincoln to finish up my degree. I took two classes during the three week May session. Yep, two classes in three weeks. It was definitely stressful. I was in class everyday for six hours with a short break for lunch. After a full day of class, I quite literally had to go straight home and get on the computer to get all my homework done. And that was my schedule for three weeks. BUT, it was SO worth it because...

17. Graduate college!

And since I was at home for two weeks and in class for the next three weeks I didn't play ANY volleyball. The longest I've gone in awhile without training or competing. And that means...

30. Take a month off of volleyball to relax.

This is such a HUGE relief! I'm glad to finally be done! After my last day of class, I headed to Iowa City. For those of you who don't know, my mom has been in the hospital for awhile. She was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis about three years ago. When she first was diagnosed, the doctors gave her steroids and meds and got it under control. Well, she had a flare up and went back to the hospital during a trip back to Dubuque. The steroids and meds weren't working as well as they did three years ago, and she ended up having to have surgery to have her colon removed. Bad news bears. So I went and spent three days with her at the University of Iowa hospital. Good news though, she has been released from the hospital and is slowly but surely traveling the road to recovery. She will have to have a follow up surgery in 4-6 months but soon after that things should be back to normal for her. So please send up some prayers for her speeding recovery.

Next up was Nebraska Volleyball Camps! A week and a half of coaching young girls and hanging out with some of the coolest camp coaches ever! Let's just say I am super pumped for camps to start every summer and by the end of camps, I am just dying for it to end! But, it's a great paycheck and I get to spend a ton of time with my favorite people!

So after an awesome time at Husker camps, I got the call to come back out to California and start training with USA Volleyball again. So, I am currently sitting at my mom's apartment blogging to you. I'll be here until July 21st at the latest, and I'll do my best to keep you updated on what I'll be doing. My agenda for the month is pretty much gonna be train in the morning, sit by the pool all afternoon, watch TV and movies all night, and then sleep. That's the plan thus far. But, I will be getting out some more and I'll be trying to get some more of my 101 in 1001 things done. Here's to a month of adventure! 

Sending all my love from California!

Kayla 

P.S. I know you have all been desperately longing for more "The Office" clips. So, here ya go! Enjoy!

The Perfect Weekend!

Okay I know it has been waaaaay to long since I've blogged and to those eagerly awaiting my next masterpiece, I apologize. A lot has happened since my last post so I guess I'll just start from the beginning. We played the Japanese Youth National Team on March 1st and 2nd. I was lucky to start both of those matches at libero and I didn't do too bad of a job. The first match I was pretty much fighting butterflies the entire time. It was the first time I had ever worn a USA jersey. It was just so mind-blowing. The second night I found a better rhythm and played a lot better and closer to my standard. It was amazing. The most surprising thing about the entire night is the entire new meaning that the playing of the National Anthem took on. Can't describe it. It just was a lot more meaningful now that I was representing that flag.

Here is our group shot after the match.

This past weekend was amazing because my very good friend Jess Yanz was in town! She was on her spring break and decided to come spend it with me! How lucky am I? For those of you who don't know Jess, here is a picture!

And here is her blog. The very blog that inspired me to do my own blogging. Yeah it's pretty sweet and I suggest you check it out. Anyways, she got in Thursday and right away I took her to see one of my favorites spots: Laguna. 

Okay, you caught me. I didn't take this picture, but it was honestly just as pretty. It was a cloudy kind of evening but still the beach was gorgeous. We checked out the scenery and took some beautiful pictures and then made our way to the surf shops right along the beach. I didn't get anything, but I didn't need to. Having Jess there completely made my night. We finished with a good dinner at a restaurant called BJ's. When we got home we started what would be a Criminal Minds marathon that lasted the entire weekend. 

Friday was uneventful. I had to give a couple of private lessons after practice so Jess came along and kind of hung out while I was doing my thing. Afterwards, she picked up a ball, looked at me and said, "Kayla, can we pepper?" Can you say volleyball withdrawal? She should so be out here training with us. Yeah she's a baller with absolutely perfect hands. She played at Penn State for two years, with me at Nebraska for two years, and she finished at Dayton. She's pretty legit. Anyways, after a good fifteen minute pepper, we went and cleaned up and headed to a UC Irvine guys volleyball match. It's pretty much my favorite pass time here. I love watching men's volleyball. Maybe it's because they are physically capable of doing things in the game that women can't. Maybe because it's a plus when guys are volleyball players and it automatically makes then ten times cuter than they would appear off the court. For whatever reason, it is mesmerizing for me. After that we went back to the apartment and hung out and continued with our Criminal Minds marathon. And then...gasp! Jess had the most brilliant beyond brilliant idea ever. CAKE BALLS! For those of you who don't know what these little balls of deliciousness are, they are pretty self explanatory. Tiny balls of rolled up cake dipped in chocolate. Is your mouth watering yet? I know mine is just thinking of it. They are quite possibly the most delicious thing I have ever tasted. And just because I want to share them with the world, here is the recipe. Enjoy!

Saturday was quite possibly the most perfect day ever. It was sunny and about 80 degrees and we spent the entire day at Newport Beach. It was perfect. And at night, if you hadn't noticed the pattern, we chilled and watched Criminal Minds. Neither of us were even a little bit upset that we didn't go out. I was just glad she was here. 

Shot of Newport Beach from my cell phone. Pretty perfect huh?

Sunday we went back to Laguna in the hopes of laying on the beach for a ridiculous amount of time. But, it was pretty cloudy and a little bit of a chilly breeze going on, so once again we walked the streets checking out some more shops there.

And Monday morning I had to take Jess back to the airport :( it was the worst ever! I was about to call Hugh and be like "Hey I know a legit setter who should be here training with us" and then begin to beg him to let Jess stay. But, I had to say goodbye. And thus ends the best weekend ever! And I know Jess has been waiting for this picture for a few days so here it is: Jess and I at Laguna Beach.

Until next time...

Kayla

Let the Blogging Commence!

I did it! I am officially a blogger. Thanks pretty much 100% to Jess Yanz who inspired me to join the blogging world. I am still exploring my blog and trying to figure everything out. But, I like journaling a lot, and what a great, fun new way to get my thoughts down! Seeing as how there is probably a grand total of three people who will read this (Jess, Mom, and Dad), I'm using this as a test blog to continue to get acquainted with this new hobby.

However, if there happen to be some newbies reading, I'll give you a mini update on my life. I'm currently living in Anaheim, CA training with the US National Volleyball team. I grew up a midwest girl, so the California lifestyle is completely different. It's as if I took a running leap and cannon balled right out of my comfort zone. But, so far, it seems to be going very well for me. I'm getting used to the area, and adapting fairly well to the level of USA volleyball. I have no idea what the future holds for me. Literally, I'm not sure where I'll be or what I'll be doing in two months. I dream of one day playing in the Olympics, so hopefully USA volleyball continues to show interest in me as an athlete. Anyways, to put it simply, I'm in California "livin' the dream".

It was sunny and 70 today. Pretty sweet dream, huh? :)

Kayla