2012 Calendar Shoot: Day 5

Today is Day 5 and I have decided to sleep in. My photo shoot was scheduled for early morning on day 6, so I was going to take advantage of the extremely comfortable beds at the Ritz Carlton. I hear a knock at my door. Naturally, I ignored it. Its Sunday 9 a.m. and the person knocking clearly has the wrong room. The knock continues and I got out of bed to answer it. Two of my teammates, Allyson and Margaret, are at the door. They inform me that my photo shoot has been changed to today. My first thought was “No big deal, I am just going to roll with the punches.” Plus, the crew was already shooting at the first location so I assumed I wouldn’t have my shoot until later in the day. My second was to get back into my bed. No more than five minutes later I hear another knock at the door. I get up and it’s Allyson again telling me that I have to be on location for my photo shoot ready to go in less than one hour. I thought she was joking around, but when I started to wake up a bit, I picked up on her sense of urgency. Ultimately, I decided that if I wanted to have my calendar photo taken I should probably get out of bed sooner than later.

I am not going to lie to you Broncos country, I had an overwhelming feeling of panic when I shut the door the second time. I wasn’t prepared to take my photo today. I will spare you the details but trust me friends, I needed more time than one hour! I had made it a personal goal to take the best photo I could. I was worried that being rushed was going to ruin that goal. My panic stopped when I reminded myself, that there are real problems in the world and having to rush around for a couple of hours to have my photo taken was not one of them. So, I got some coffee, I got over myself, and in less than one hour I was ready to depart to the location for my photo shoot.

A short car ride later I arrived at a beautiful house called “The Ski Castle” located in Arrowhead Colorado. I was warmly welcomed by the home owners Scott & Janie Cliver. I was honored to meet some of their family and enjoy the delicious coffee cake and cookies that Janie had made for our entire crew. After arriving at the home I had the opportunity to watch three of my teammates take their photos. The first shot of the day was third year veteran Katie Kosters. She was breathtaking in her gold suit standing in the main arch way of the home. Katie’s smile lights up the room and it ended up being a wonderful way to start the day. Next up was one of our rookies Patricia. Patricia’s photo was taken in a fantastic brick waterfall that was located on the back deck of the home. As I watched Patricia I was blown away by her ability to take the direction from Rob, our photographer. She looked beautiful and I was so proud of her. Last but not least, was second year veteran Lelanna. The setting for Lelanna’s photo was the Grotto located inside the home. The grotto area, for those of us without them, is basically an indoor hot tub. It was all stone, had a waterfall, and the most inviting seating area. Lelanna wore a red suit and looked absolutely amazing.

I blinked and I was up next. It was now or never and I said a little prayer as I walked up the stairs for my shoot. I took my photo on the “Romeo and Juliet” balcony located in the front of the home. I wore a navy blue laced monokini (it is a real word, I am not making it up) and I was put at ease when my coaches and a couple of my teammates were there to cheer me on. With the help of them and the crew I started to relax. I had a blast and the photo turned out beautifully with the architecture of the home and mountains as my back drop. Scott and Janie even jumped in and took a couple photos with me!

After we got back to the Ritz, I went downstairs to the lobby and caught some of Sam’s photo shoot taking place in the hotel bar area. Sam is a second year veteran and professional model. Sam looked flawless in her sequined black suit and sliver heels. As I watched Sam I was thinking two things; I can’t believe someone’s legs actually look like that in real life, and Sam is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.

As an avid “planner” I realized being rushed every once in a while isn’t always a bad thing. If I hadn’t shot on day 5 I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet the Cliver family. I also wouldn’t have been able to take a moment to be reminded of the true beauty of each one of my teammates. My teammates and coaches talked me through my anxiety and put my mind at ease. It was with the love and support of my Broncos family that I made it through my rushed day, and made my third calendar experience my most successful.

Go Broncos!