Oh boy. It's a boy!

Attention all baby-lovers:

I am so delighted to report that one of my best friends on the face of this planet is having a baby boy in January! Got the news a few days back, but as you can see I am days behind time in the 'real world' since I am currently stuck in fantasy land. Abby and Jeff are going to be the funniest pair of parents (in the best way possible). I can assure you that mommy will have every single last detail planned prior to the baby's arrival. This includes color coordinated everything and a to-do list waiting for the boy right when he comes out of the womb. 

On a serious note, it has been an amazing experience to watch both Abby and Jeff grow as a couple and I can only imagine what great role models they will be to their future bundle o' joy. God bless both of these wonderful people. So happy for them and so happy to have them in my life. 

From an excited soon-to-be Auntie, 
ANW

Money Train.

I just realized I have not yet written about the beloved Money Train. Coincidence or coincidence, the Management Tour bus is called the Money Train. For obvious reasons, all of the staff on the bus felt it was necessary to create a Twitter handle that was named after the big bad bus that gets us everywhere we need to go. All have access to this account, so it is fun to guess who is tweeting from the account throughout the day. Not so fun when the tweets are about you. :) This idea could be dangerous for all parties involved. 

And, so you know, Money Train t-shirts are in the works. Pictures to come, I promise. 

Choo-Choo. 
ANW 

All the right friends in all the right places.

This is a day late, but better late than never, right? Last night after 14 days without a day off, we were able to hit the town in Las Vegas! To top it all off, a good friend and co-worker got us backstage passes and tickets to see Mystere. It was an amazing show. In any other situation with acrobats flying 1000 feet in the air, I would undoubtedly get sweaty palms and my anxiety would fly through the rough (no pun intended). However, being surrounded by our gymnasts that flip and fly all over the place all day long (and then some), definitely improves my ability to handle such stressful situations. Mystere made it to the top of my favorite shows. 

Thank you, Mr. Bregman. IOU.
ANW

True inspiration.

Today was exhausting but heartwarming, nonetheless. Jake made appearances in Sacramento all day, beginning at 5 am. When our feet and eyes started getting tired around 1 pm, we stopped at the Shriners Children's Hospital...not really sure what we were in for. I expected a quick TV hit, a few interviews and an insane amount of autographs. Lucky for me, I was wrong.

When we walked up the stairs, a nice little lady with a heart of gold told us what we should expect. Mostly burned victims under the age of 10 - some Hispanic who could not speak English. It was quite an experience in the best way possible.

I had never seen so many children so badly burned and my heart hurt for them. It was truly an inspiration to see each and every kid so delighted with the presence of an Olympian in their "home". This was the perfect pick me up that reminded me there is absolutely no reason to complain about something so little as my feet hurting.

Thank you, God, for today.
ANW

How did I get here?

How did I get here? A term commonly used in my office when we don't believe what is in front of our eyes. 

I was fortunate enough to attend the Video Music Awards with John O. recently in LA. We attended with Disashi from Gym Class Heroes and his wife. It was such an honor and an awesome experience. One thing that I was surprised about were the seat fillers. Contrary to popular belief, not everyone sits in the same seats for the duration of the show. During commercial breaks, there are stage hands working to fill seats and switch people around. They also stage all of the people who will win the designated awards in the front row, which means those people know they are receiving the award prior to the announcement on air. Crazy, huh? 

One of the funniest moments of the evening was when Rihanna started walking toward our seats. For some (odd and strange) reason, I thought she had made eye contact with me. Stupid me, she was looking at John (obviously). He stood up to greet her and she shared how much of an inspiration he was to our country. When John sat down, I asked what Rihanna had said to him. He slumped down in his seat and said he had no idea. Starstruck much? 

As we were walking away from the VMA after-party, some of the girls on the Olympic Team told me this was their first party. Probably why they are Gold-Medalists. Maybe I could have been too, if I would have stayed away from the wrong people and things in high school. Oh well. You live and you learn. 

Going for the Gold at age 24, 
ANW 

Jumping Jacks.

I am pretty sure it's Monday, but not entirely sure. We don't have a show today and we are in another city. Process of elimination...

Today we flew from Orange County to Sacramento. I bought Tina Fey's new book 'Bossypants'. How fitting for me, considering my reputation from 3-16 years old. I laughed out loud at the airport and therefore recommend to all friends if in need of a little chuckle. 

After a dry spell from sushi, I was able to get some tonight with an athlete. My guilty pleasure, hands down. Tomorrow we are doing a 12 hour media day. Will need extra prayers for patience and hope that we don't have any criers like last week. After wrapping up with media day in Sacramento, we head to Las Vegas. Last time I was in Las Vegas, I witnessed my dear sweet mother doing jumping jacks to stay awake. Speaking of my mother, best news ever from her today. She booked a trip for the two of us to Puerto Rico this December. As long as jumping jacks are involved, I can assure you that we will have a good time. I am so looking forward to it. Lots of laughter will be involved, I can assure you. 

Lovies. 

ANW 

Fresh Prince Fever.

Hello my darling friends and family! 

Meeting Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air was the best thing that happened to me yesterday. Or maybe even during the month of September. He somehow, someway he ended up at a USA Gymnastics function in LA. Apparently his little girl is an avid gymnastics fan. I asked if he could do the Carlton (the ever-so-famous dance move he did on the show in the 90's), but he wouldn't accommodate my request. What I did end up with is a measly picture. Better luck next time, AW. 

Today we are in Anaheim. I am starting to forget where we are and what day it is, but I guess that comes with the job considering we work all days of the week and all hours of the day. It was nice to see a familiar face at the show today. My friend Kyle who moved out to CA a few years ago came with his roommate. We reminisced about all of the bad things we did when we were the age of the Fierce Five girls (15-18) and both decided that we turned out okay. So we don't have Olympic gold medals, but we are both happy. :)

The next few days I am on point for an advanced promo visit in Sacramento with Jake Dalton while the rest of the cast and crew is in Las Vegas. Hoping to squeeze in a Cirque show on Wednesday night and a little bit of fun with the homies if possible. 

Tata for now. 

ANW