Happy Birthday!

Today is my birthday and it’s been a fantastic day! I played netball here in Seattle with my team and got to spend the day together. The day started out beautiful; we started our tournament playing in a park outdoors surrounded by the Seattle greenery. I love that I spent the day surrounded by netball players - the hospitality and friendliness of the host team (Emerald City Netball Club) here makes the game fun both on and off the court. We started the tournament and played four of seven games but as the day progressed, Seattle lived up to its reputation and it started to rain… then it poured. It was my favorite game of the day nonetheless because I never get to play netball outside in Ann Arbor and to play in the rain was a really special experience. It pushed our team mentally and physically in a way that we’ve never been pushed before and that was great practice for what we’re about to go into. We’re leaving on our journey to South Africa tomorrow!
After the tournament was rained out, we joined the teams at a restaurant to celebrate the accomplishments of each team and spend some time together. Today I am 21! However, the team is committed to being 100% for our upcoming challenge so I have chosen to remain alcohol free with the rest of my team. It was surprisingly difficult for me to be in a place where I finally had the individual choice to drink or not at a restaurant and have that newfound freedom given up. I am proud and privileged to be a member of this team and not drinking alcohol is one of the ways I am committed to this opportunity. Even if I did order a drink, it would be difficult to stand among my teammates and coach who have all also chosen to make healthy drinking choices. After spending time with the teams (and being sung happy birthday!) our team went back to the hotel to recover. Over dinner, I opened presents that my mom sent with me from Michigan and a gift from my teammate Shallyn!
After recovery, our team ate dinner together in the hotel and then we went out to Jamba Juice for my birthday! It’s not how I thought I’d go drinking with friends for my birthday but it was better than I could have imagined. I’ve wanted to go to Jamba Juice since I ran the Chicago Marathon in October last year (we didn’t make it after the run) and it was awesome to finally go!
We went from there to spend time with the host team at a bar and grill. There was a DJ and our team was absolutely hilarious on the dance floor! I was surprised with a birthday bowl of ice cream and cake that our team shared and then even more surprised when I was delivered a drink from our host family in Seattle – with permission from Coach! I was SO surprised that she said yes! It was a great birthday present because it was completely unexpected.
Today was an incredible day! I played netball with my team and friends, spent the day with great people from Seattle, and got to drink Jamba Juice and one 21 year old juice all in the same day :) I am so thankful for everyone who has blessed my life over these past 21 years. Love and hugs to all of you!
Tomorrow, we begin our adventure to South Africa! We’ll be flying from Seattle to Los Angeles to New York to Johannesburg, South Africa! All together, it’s about 22 hours of flying. I’m so excited to get going!