So Official

Thassss right, the Melissa Erickson Foundation is elevating to new heights. Of course, the Ring Around the Needle is Saturday and you ALL are going. AND we are in the jewelry market...and by jewelry, I mean this!!!

Oh yeah, limited addition, plastic stretchy tennis bracelets that are inscribed with "WHY I OUGHTA FIGHT FOR MO" on one side, and "CURE ALS" on the other. They were created with love by a well known karaoke-er/designer, Michelle Boline. One for $3 or two for $5. With Husky football around the corner, you better get both so you can show your support in multiple ways. On sale at the pub crawl or message me for a PRIVATE viewing. Hurry, do not miss out on this special offer!

(insert a giddy Ashley Sofie here)

Pub Crawl!

It's that time again! Time to drink beer, stumble from bar to pub, and feel great about it!

RING AROUND THE NEEDLE is BACK FOR MO'!!!!!!

August 28th from 1-5pm in Lower Queen Anne...do NOT miss this. Click the link to register!

Sitting On the Dock By the Bay

When the Young Faces of ALS Campaign presented me with the opportunity to help raise awareness while attending Major League Baseball games, I was ecstatic. I then found out I would be traveling to San Francisco, I could hardly contain myself. I consider San Fran to b

e one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Bridges, beautiful buildings, unique neighborhoods, wonderful food and awesome public

transportation. The last being important to the wheelchair dependent.

Back to baseball. First up, the Oakland Coliseum for the A's vs the Giants. Being a Seattle girl, I was uncertain who to cheer for. However, being a University of Washington graduate, I was immediately drawn to the Giants' Cy Young Award winner and UW grad, Tim Lincecum. Once a Husky, always husky, so Giants it was. Plus the A's are one of the Seattle Mariners division rivals and the M's need all the help they can get.

Our crew headed down to the field to catch a little batting practice and hopefully the attention of a few all-stars. Visiting ball parks always excites me. Each one is so unique, the atmospheres electric in their own way. We watched the Giants hit bombs out of the park and enjoyed the perfect weather. I hoped to grab Lincecum for an autograph but he had better things to do. I guess warming up for your game against your cross town rival may be a little more important. Game time was nearing to we decided to make our way up to the suite. Just our luck, Mr Lincecum was chilling in the outfield near our exit. He was kind enough to visit with us, sign autographs and take pictures. What a great guy!

After our epic star filled pregame we met the real all-stars of ALS. Our two suites filled with patients, family, advocates and supporters of ALS-TDI. Being surrounded by people that are passionate about finding a treatment for a disease that makes my life hell, gives me hope and happiness. Attending sporting events and visiting with truly inspiring people gives me respite from worries about my future. Meeting other young people living with ALS helps me not to feel isolated in my neurologically challenged world.

Our baseball fun did not end in Oakland. Across the bay a few days later, our crew set out to watch the Giants and Nationals at AT&T Park. I had heard from multiple people that this is one of the most beautiful parks in all of Major League Baseball. Beautiful does not do it justice. More like stunning, gorgeous or breathtaking. The hosts and Giants staff we inviting, warm and intrigued by our campaign. The weather and sunset set the perfect stage for a Giants win. To our luck, my main man, Tim Lincecum was the starting pitcher. A win was inevitable, right? Not so much. The only disappointment out of our trip was two Giant losses.

The positive experiences of being surrounded by inspiring people completely outweighed the outcomes of each game.

The pleasure of my trip; meeting, campaigning and dreaming about a day when the letters ALS become as obsolete as childhood chicken pox. A day when this diagnosis doesn't give the innocent a death sentence. A day when ALS becomes understood by the people who can lobby for funds for a treatment. The young men and women whose lives have been stunted by this disease deserve a chance. All men and women living with ALS deserve a chance. We owe it to all who have lost their battle to ALS to make sure that no one else perishes from this disease. Treatment is not impossible. ALS-TDI will one day prove this true and I am happy that my name will be linked to this progressive group of people.

The In's and Out's of ALS

I recently participated in a video for the ALS Association and it gives you a glimpse of my thoughts as well as another brave PALS (person with ALS). You have two opportunities to help...the bike ride and the Pub Crawl. I promise it will change your life and bring a huge smile to mine.

Mo's Biker Beauties!

It's about that time of year again: The ALS DoubleDay Bike Ride is coming up in a few months and registration is officially open! Mo's Biker Beauties have participated and partied at the event for the last two years now, and we'd LOVE to have your support to make this year's DoubleDay Ride the most successful yet.

Last year, the event raised over $159,000 for the cause, which was a new record. We think that with the support of friends and family, as well as some corporate sponsorship, our team can help to burry that old record and set our sites even higher.

The ride will be July 24th and 25th, so there's plenty of time to prep. If you're thinking you're not the type for cycling, it's really not that tough! And there's no easier or more enjoyable way to get your summer body back than to get out on a bike and take in some of the amazing scenery we have here in the Northwest.

Entry is just $35* and includes a pasta feast Saturday evening, breakfast and lunch Sunday as well as full bike support and snacks at rest stops throughout the ride. (Drinks and Karaoke at a local Conway pub Sat night not included but optional-mandatory for team members ;)

For more info, check out the website:

http://webwa.alsa.org/site/PageNavigator/WA_Bike_homepage

To join the team and ride: >Team List >Mo's Biker Beauties >Join Team

To donate: >Donate >Search for Team >Mo's Biker Beauties

* Register by May 1 and pay only $35

* Register by June 31, and pay $50
* July 1 -July 24 = $60

Thanks, hope to see your names on the team list soon!

Pub Crawl!

That's right...Ring Around The Needle is back! Save August 28th for a day of heart felt debauchery. Remember to check out www.ringaroundtheneedle.com for updates and info. Please email me if you would like to be a captain or official sponsor. I will leave you with some pictures from last years event....enjoy!

How Does She Do It?

People always ask me, "How do you do it?", and my answer is typically pretty short and simple. However, when Janet Pelz and I sat down to discuss this topic, it lead to a long talk which seemed to be between long lived friends. Janet is an inspired writer/journalist/blogger who enjoys talking to women who daily, battle adversity head-on. Her blog, How Does She Do It, dives into the lives of many local women who have left their "normal" lives, some willing, others not, for a new path. Whether leaving a financially stable job to start a non-profit or battling disease, these women are a unique bunch that I like to call, "gamers".

In basketball, a gamer is someone who rises to the challenge of each game in spite of their deficiencies in preparation, lack of knowledge about their opponent, or general ability to fight. Granting all of these, a gamer rises to the challenge each time, putting up triple-double sort of numbers. Not worriying how tall the mountain to climb, how much money she won't have, or the statistical odds of survival, a gamer rises to the occasion.

If this type of a person piques your interest, check out my link above. Read my story as well as about the other courageous women.

Peace-Love-Basketball

I have to let all of you faithful readers know about an amazing woman. Sonya Elliot, owner of Full Court Design and founder of Peace-Love-Basketball, has an amazing story of tragedy, strength, faith and perserverence. I cant recapsulate the story with the same elegance she has shown, so I won't even try. However, I want to encourage everyone to check out the link highlighted above.

She is strong. She is beautiful. She is smart. She is selfless. She is kind. She is woman.

She is the type of person you want to have in your corner in times of need. She is also the lady you want to shop with because her style is evident by the clothes she designs. Check her out for yourself....you will love her inspiration and style. Her is a snipit of her ad. I am telling you, it does not do her or her story justice. Take a minute and check it out for yourself.


Thank you, Sonya, for caring about me. Sonya was graceful enough to send a few shirts my way and I have a hard time taking them off. I am currently wearing the black long sleeve despite the chili stain from lunch earlier. Sonya has also offered to partner with the Melissa Erickson Foundation on a t-shirt design for March Madness. Stay tuned to this blog or check out hers for more details.

Wrong (a little right) in Soooo Many Ways

My Dad decided to put this gem on facebook (yes, he is on facebook...alllll over it).



Let's see here...where do I start?

1) Yes, I am wearing pearls. Even at a young age, living on a farm, I had style beyond my years.
2) Mullet...maybe. That just stole my pearl style points. In my defense, I dressed myself but could not cut my own hair so I am going to chalk that up to a bad stylist.
3) Paris/Britney/Lohan...you all stole the exposed vajayjay from my book of tricks. They just didn't have paparazzi in S. Dakota.
4) The glasses....they do not deserve an excuse. They are just plain wrong.
5) I was Bowing Down to Washington from a very young age. The purple and gold are just natural for me. Go Dawgs!

I thought long and hard of what I might be praying for in this picture. Since I already had a pony, amazing clothes and a great family, it could only be one of two things.

A Gene Juarez gift card, or to just open oneeeeeeeeee present, pleaseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee mom, PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Mr. Juarez didn't travel that far inland so it must be the present. Of course my praying (begging) worked. I mean, really, how could you turn that face down?!

Ol' Skool

Taking it back to the ol' school, Cause I'm an ol' fool, who's so cool....

Ok, I'm not as old as Tag Team but damn, "Whoomp, There it Is" has some classic lines! I mean, right?! All right, I was 14 when that ish came out but I am not revisiting that period in my life...just yet. I would rather concentrate this entry on a much more hip era in my life. The one where I had...how do they say it these days....HELLA SWAG!


Please notice the white headband and corn rows. This suburban white girl had it going on. The other two in the pic...well, they did too. In the All Pac-10 sort of way.



And yes...this picture wasn't exactly taken during my hay days either but this is how Hec Ed looked for a women's game. At any rate...it's a great day to be a dawg!

Are you out there?

Whoa...has it really been almost 4 months since my last blog? I AM SORRY, SORRY, SORRY! I have no excuses for this type of behavior. But I will say, that I promise to try harder.

Sooooo, what has been going on, you ask? Welp, of course the holidays (which were great), basketball season is in full swing, retirement, relaxing, etc. That's right, I said retirement. As of November 20th, I have been a lady of leisure. Work was starting to cut into my fun time a little too much so I decided to nix that situation. :) Really though, I decided to take time for me and spend my energy in ways that fulfills me. My friends and family deserve all of my energy at this point in life so I made steps to give it to them. Boy, has it been great! I have filled my time with lunches, reading, sleeping, Super Mario, late nights with friends (late for me is about midnight, man am I getting old), and enjoying life. I mean, that is what we are put on this earth for, right?!

So, that is me...in a nutshell. I am determined to update this thing way more often than I had so I have decided to keep updates short and sweet. I hope to become a little more knowledgeable about blogging so I can add videos, instant pics from my phone, etc so you guys know what is going on at any given time of my life. SO, to all you blogging pros, if you know how to accomplish this, let a sista know!