Getting to know me...

Hi and welcome to my blog! I figured that since this was my first post it would probably be a good to start to have my first blog be about getting to know me and why I have the luxury of writing these blogs.

I am currently a forward on the U.S. National Ice Hockey team and an Assistant coach for the University of Minnesota women's hockey team. I am pulling a bit a double duty but it is well worth it and there is nothing else id rather be doing than playing and coaching hockey.

Now a little bit on how I got to my present state of my life. Growing up you could not get me off the rink. From the minute I woke up to the minutes I laid my head down on the pillow at night, hockey was on the brain for me. I am the youngest of three children so naturally I got carted around to whatever my older sister and brother were involved in. Luckily for me, my older brother played hockey and my dad coached him. While that was going on my mom was taking my sister to tap dance class. Without a hesitation I would choose to hang out at the rinks with my dad and brother. Looking back I can now understand the concern my mom had. My youngest daughter would rather go to a cold, smelly hockey rink with the boys? YES! At the age of 5 my parents allowed me to play hockey after a good two years of bagging and crying about it when I would get to play hockey like my older brother.
I grew up playing hockey with the boys, I was the only girl on the team. I did not see it that way. In my eyes I never felt like a girl or realized they were boys. To me, we were all just hockey players. I continued to play with the boys until 7^th grade and switched over to girls hockey school hockey. I played high school hockey up until the 10^th grade and then was asked to train with the US Olympic Team in preparation for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah where we captured a silver medal. I then went on to start my college career and played three great seasons with the Gophers where we won back-to-back National Championships and have had some of my greatest hockey memories. I was fortunate to make my second Olympic team in 2006 and won a bronze medal.

In August I was hired to be an assistant coach at my alma mater, The University of Minnesota. I am having a blast being back at the U and coaching some great athletes. I am also striving for my 3^rd Olympics in 2010 in hopes to win a gold medal with my teammates. I am currently training with thirteen of my teammates in Blaine in preparation for the next Olympics!