Greg Grunberg on his role in the romantic comedy 'Group Sex.' (Sept. 1)

My philosophy on traveling is to have a tool box. It should be full of everything and anything you could possibly need to help deal with hunger, tantrums, etc.

My toolbox has premade bottles for the boys and millions of snacks. I usually pack things like yogurt bites, crackers, baby food, and fruit. I also pack Joey's backpack full of books and toys. I bring stuffed animals and toys that do not make a lot of noise so we do not bother the other passengers. We will read Five Little Monkeys five times on a one-hour flight; Joey loves it. He is also just starting to watch videos. Joey will play on Casey's iPhone and watch Elmo or Mickey's Play House.

I also recommend having hand sanitizer. Joey touches everything so I make sure to wipe down the trays and seats as soon as we get on the plane.

Recently my nutritionist suggested an all natural supplement to give the kids to help build up their immune systems. I give the kids Congaplex a few days before we travel to help fight anything they may catch from other passengers.

I was in high school for the beginning of 9^th grade and then I was homeschooled. I like to say I got the best of both worlds because my parents wanted me to be able to experience normal childhood memories and experiences and to be able to go to homecoming games and the dances, yet I was able to come out here and live my dreams.

We come from Long Island, New York and my mom’s side is Sicilian and and my dad’s side is Calabrese. Everybody has Christmas lights and you still go pumpkin picking at Halloween and make jack-o-lanterns and church,and every Sunday dinner my dad makes sure that we’re always at the dinner table every night, like seven, eight o’clock, whatever the time is. We can’t miss. We’re never not together for dinner, so it’s a really big deal in my family.

Every Sunday is meatballs and pasta and a feast for the army that my mother cooks up. We’re loud, we’re crazy, we’re very close knit, very traditional. My family had the biggest part in who I am today, just keeping me grounded and teaching me to respect myself and have morals, because some girls lost that out here in Hollyweird.

This much we know: Aisha Tyler is beautiful, intelligent, hilarious and talented.

What we don't yet know is what Hollywood wants her to be.

This decade, Tyler has served as a talking head (Talk Soup), a comedic actor (Friends, Balls of Fury), a dramatic actor (The Ghost Whisperer, 24), a voice-over artist (the adult cartoon Archer, the upcoming video game Halo: Reach), a director (the short film Committed) and an author (Swerve: Reckless Observations of a Postmodern Girl). All of it has made her famous. None of it has made her a superstar.

This we cannot understand.

At least Tyler can always fall back on her first love, standup comedy. She's performing this weekend at the Improv in Ybor City. But first, she called from Los Angeles to discuss her peripatetic career, the much-anticipated Halo: Reach and secret celebrity speakeasies (they exist!).

I'm saying this not as a journalist, but as a fan: I don't feel like Hollywood knows what to do with you.

I think that's fair, in the sense that Hollywood tends to narrowly categorize what people do, and they want you to have a very specific bailiwick. And I do do a lot. Part of that is wanting to be challenged, part of that is not wanting to be pigeonholed, and part of that is just wanting to work. I like to stay busy and engaged, so I try to do everything that I am excited about.

What's longer, the list of stuff you can say about Halo: Reach, or the list of stuff you can't say?

I can tell you that I've actually played the game, about a third of a campaign. Microsoft has this special underground playroom right now where celebrities can play the whole game. I love this franchise. I was a big video game lover as a kid, but the first Halo game was what got me back into gaming as an adult.

I feel like I need to know more about this underground celebrity video game club. Where is it?

Um . . . now I'm trying to figure out how much I can say about it. It is a press-free environment. There's no paparazzi. There are no photo ops. This is a place where you can go in your shorts and flip-flops. It's totally pressure-free. There's a bar setup, and there's food, and you can play the game any time you want, any time of the day, anytime between now and when the game comes out. You can also bring friends. If you wanted to throw a party there, you could throw a party there. And after this is over, people are going to get to play Kinect, which is the new platform. They're going to turn it into a Kinect club. So yeah: Pretty. Freaking. Awesome.

Seriously! It's like Fight Club meets a speakeasy.

It is a Halo speakeasy. And it's literally hidden! It is underground, and you need a password to get in, and it's behind a secret panel. I try to live a pretty normal life, but every once in a while, you have an experience where you say, "Okay, this is not particularly normal." When you're able to play in an underground Halo: Reach fight club, that's a little out of the ordinary, I admit.

I can picture it someday, when your star has faded a little, and you show up and knock on the door, and they're like, "Sorry, but we can't let you in." And you're like, "But I was in that game! I helped build this club!"

(laughs) That will never happen! My star will never fade, my friend! Never! If it ever starts to dim, I'll get a DUI or fall out of a car without my underwear on. It hasn't hurt Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan.

As anyone who's ever gone out to dinner with Mike Swick can tell you, watching the UFC welterweight order is an ordeal unto itself. He can't have garlic, or any of the great stuff that makes spicy food spicy. He can't have many of the staples of the American restaurant industry, in fact, and it's not just when he's cutting weight.

Because of an esophageal issue that he's struggled with for the past four years, even minor interactions like ordering at a restaurant have become exhausting.

"I know every time I have to order food somewhere, it's going to be a problem," Swick told MMA Fighting this week. "When the waitress comes up to ask for my order, I know ahead of time it's going to be an issue. I have to explain that I can't have garlic, can't have spice, go through this whole spiel every time, and then there's about a 50% chance that I'll just be ignored and it will be in there anyway. Then I'll be up for four hours feeling like I'm having a heart attack."

It's a problem that's affected his social life and his fighting career, but now he's hoping that he may be on the verge of a solution.

As Swick explained in a video blog, he recently learned that he'd been misdiagnosed with the stomach condition dyspepsia. He was told there was no cure, and the only effective management was adhering to certain dietary restrictions. Those restrictions included eating much smaller meals and not eating within hours before laying down.

For a pro athlete burning through several thousand calories a day in intense workouts, it was next to impossible. The breaking point came the week he flew to England to face Dan Hardy at UFC 105.

"That was a fight where I really wanted more than anything to back out of that fight the week of the fight. I would never do that, but it was just the worst week of my whole career," Swick said. "Every aspect of it was terrible. I got almost no sleep. My stomach was at its worst because of my esophagus issue. I was cramping pretty much non-stop and I wasn't able to eat anything. I was just really malnourished."

Just the fact that he made it through all three rounds of the fight felt like a feat, Swick said, even though it hurt to watch Hardy celebrate as if he were on top of the world.

"I had to just suck it up, and [Hardy] went on to act like he climbed Mount Everest. He got a title shot, was on the cover of all the magazines, and he beat the weakest version of me that has ever fought. The world had no idea, and I just had to swallow that. I went ahead and fought him in his backyard. I had no support. Even my hat was stolen when I walked out to the cage. Not a single good thing happened to me that week."

After that fight, Swick went to his doctor in a desperate state. Maybe there was no cure for dyspepsia, but there had to be something they could do. Even if it was some experimental surgery, Swick was up for it. He'd done it before when he was 19 and had a risky surgery to repair a congenital heart defect that would have kept him from ever pursuing his dream of becoming a pro fighter. Now he faced a different, but similarly troubling issue. If he couldn't do something about it he felt the career he'd sacrificed so much for would soon be over.

But when he was referred to a specialist, Swick found out he'd never had dyspepsia. Instead he had a combination of esophageal spasms and acid reflux, which produce similar symptoms.

"[The specialist] said, the good news is it's treatable. The bad news is, for years you've been living with this problem that you could have gotten help for. So it was kind of bittersweet news."

Now Swick is in the final stages of getting approval for a treatment that would use a neurotoxin to paralyze his esophageal muscles in order to stop the spasms. The success rate for the treatment is around 60%, Swick said. If he's among the 40% for whom it doesn't work, a potentially dangerous surgery might be his only option.

"We're hoping it works, because that would get me back to training and fighting really fast," Swick said. "It's put a damper on my life outside of fighting. My personal life, my social life, this just stops you from enjoying life so much. ... It basically feels like you're having a heart attack. It's these spasms inside your chest, and if you eat the wrong food it triggers it for hours."

Finally Swick may be close to ending to this personal nightmare. At least he's got a better than even shot. After all the pain it's caused him over the years, the part-time poker pro will take those odds.

Chuck Liddell is looking to help charity and doing it in a great way.  Sitting in a barbers chair this morning the UFC champion was shaving off his Mohawk on 'Fox and Friends'. The show doesn't see many UFC fighters, but this cause was an important one.

The UFC champ is asking others to consider shaving their head too. For every person who does, Bic is donating $40 for a photo and $400 for a video with a minimum of a $50,000 donation. Obviously, the funds goes to a charity, but you can participate even if you virtually shave your head!

According to the Bic website, this cause has Chuck Liddell helping as well as hundreds of others: BIC will make a donation to www.DoSomething.org on behalf of every head shaved (for real or virtual) — up to a total of $60,000. We will guarantee a donation of at least $50,000.

In her latest blog, Walsh, 32, talks about how tough it is to spend time away from her boys — and why hugs are needed (and welcome)!

I’m sitting on the floor in the United terminal, waiting to board my flight to Chicago for work. Leaving the house this morning was tearing my heart out — I’m flying solo this weekend and I’m devastated. I have been giving myself pep talks for days in preparation, but they didn’t work.

My eyes are flooding and my chest is heavy. A little baby just cried out and it made me think of my boys. Are they still asleep? Are they happy? Do they know how much I love them? Two full days without them … It’s been 30 minutes and I’m already struggling. How on earth will I get through this?!

This love I have is really something else. It’s hands down the most beautiful thing in all the world and it’s also the scariest. Why does my mind drift to terrible ‘what if’s'? Why, when I have so much faith in my heart and soul?

I guess it comes down to the fact that I am a control freak and the fact that I can’t keep my boys constantly by my side and free from worry, harm and sadness absolutely kills me. How did my mom do it with five kids? So much love, so much worry! The love is the easy part, the worry … oh hell!

Faith, hard work, humility, family and my husband — these things fortify me on my tough days. Gosh, I could use a hug! Anyhow, to all the mommies out there — whether you have one child or 10, whether you are a stay at home mom or a working mom, I applaud you and I am beyond proud to be one of you.

This job is not easy, but it most certainly is the MOST WONDERFUL, blessed, character-building job in the world. I send you love on your good days and a big warm hug for your tough days — please feel free to reciprocate.

Love and so much respect,

– Kerri Walsh

Two-time Olympic gold medalist talks about coming back and her future with Misty May-Treanor

Kerri Walsh hoped to make her second comeback from pregnancy in as many summers three weeks ago, but the collapse of the AVP derailed those plans. Luckily for her, Hahana Beach in Cincinnati will still host a tournament this weekend as scheduled, put on by local promoters and sponsors instead of the AVP. We talked to Walsh this week about why she decided to play in Cincy, what she has planned for the rest of the summer, and what her future looks like with two-time Olympic gold medal-winning partner, Misty May-Treanor.

In Cincinnati this weekend you'll be playing with Brooke Hanson. Is this the first time you've played with her?
Yeah, this will be the first time. We've gotten good training in a couple times, but we're still trying to figure out each other's rhythm. She's been overseas for a month (playing internationally) and I'm still learning how to dance again, so we'll learn it together.

They invited eight men's and women's teams for the tournament. Why did you decide to go to this event?
The promoters in Cincinnati, Mario Cicchinelli and Bob Slattery, they always put on one of the best tournaments on the AVP. They busted their butts all year, they pre-sold tickets and basically I'm going to honor them, honor their commitment to our sport. It's definitely not the prize money we're used to for a typical tournament, but we're definitely willing to overlook that for this tournament because I respect what they're doing, I respect our sport and ultimately I'm really optimistic about the future of our sport.

So you could play against Misty, who will play with Nicole Branagh, her partner all year?
Absolutely, I hope to play against her. I know it would be lovely.

Have you ever played against her?
In Queen of the Beach stuff I have, not in a legitimate tournament match. So it'll be really fun.

Have you heard anything lately on the future of a domestic tour in the U.S.?
I don't know any details but I know that there's cause to be optimistic. I think people understand that it's an unbelievable product and the timing of it is that it's such a great time to be coming into it simply because the Olympics are coming up and beach volleyball is one of the most popular Olympic sports. In that respect, it's huge. So someone's going to come in, see the value and take us to the next level.

You came back quicker after your first child. Do you feel better this time around?
In some respects I feel a lot better. I feel stronger, which is huge. I feel my touch on the ball is wonderful. But I came back for a short time last year and I feel like I forgot the dance of the game -- the rhythm isn't coming back as quickly as it did last time. I think in my head I know this is it, this is official. I'm not going to get pregnant again. So this is kind of 'My road to London starts now,' and that makes things a little bit more pressure-filled for me.

After Cincinnati will you play in either of the two FIVB World Tour events?
I think I'm going to go to China (Oct. 28-31). I want to touch that ball and see the competition and not let two full years go by without competing over there. So I believe China.

Will you play with Brooke?
I'm thinking about playing with Nicole because Misty doesn't want to play in China. I think it would be fun to play with Nicole. We played together in 2008 at the end of the year and we won a tournament together (in Dubai).

Will you discuss your future with Misty soon after China?
Yeah, I kind of want to give her space this year and not crowd her. She needs to focus on her season but hopefully soon. I wasn't going to talk to her at all (about the future) this year but I need to play in China and that required a conversation with her. So we're going to talk a little bit in Cincinnati and I don't know how deep that conversation will go but I would like to know what she's thinking because I can't think of anything more special than going for No. 3 with her in London. But I know that her heart is wanting to have a family and that's a decision she's going to have to make and I'll kind of roll with the punches.

So about the Manhattan Beach Open a couple weeks ago, you sort of got labeled as the leader of a boycott. Why did you feel so strongly against them using old rules?
I know, boycott is such a bad word. Well, it's not that I feel strongly against the old rules. It's that I feel strongly about my sport and they're hosting the biggest event. Basically our NBA Finals, our Super Bowl, our Wimbledon. And for them to call it a professional tournament and to change the rules, the ball and the playing field, that to me isn't a professional tournament. That's not how the professional game is played. If they would have called it the Charley Saikley Open and totally promoted that, that's fantastic. But don't call it the Manhattan Beach Open. Do that a different time, not on the 50th anniversary of the Manhattan Open.

It could have been a fantastic tournament. I would have played for zero money and just gone and had fun. I've been busting my butt so hard to get out there. And I really wanted to compete in that tournament but I felt more strongly that you have to respect our tour because if we don't, people who are bidding on (the AVP) will think that we take it for a joke. It's kind of a slippery slope.

So your husband Casey Jennings went on quite the run this past weekend in the Netherlands with Kevin Wong.
Aaah, I'm so proud. He's so excited. He's had such a really tough year emotionally with volleyball. So for him to be a lucky loser, get his name pulled out of a hat by his best friend on the tour, and to go from lucky losers to the champ is awesome.

Who pulled his name out of the hat?
(Brazil's) Pedro Salgado, who's like his brother. He loves him to death. I think there were three teams in the hat and another player picked one out and it was China. Then Casey was like, 'Have Pedro pick it!' And Pedro picked it and they saw his name and they all started dancing and hugging and yelling. (Casey) works so hard and Kevin is such a stud. I've been waiting for years to see that team together and I hope they decide to stick it out because they could be fantastic.

Bas and Kenny were joined this past week in studio with guests Mike Swick and Sherdog’s Greg Savage. UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar joined the panel via satellite.

Swick talked about the medical diagnosis that has seen him lose a tremendous amount of weight over the last couple of years. Edgar talked about his upcoming rematch with B.J. Penn and the guys previewed the UFC 118 fight card. As always, they also took a look at the past week in MMA news.

Ron Kruck talks to James Toney in part two of an interview he did with the professional boxing champion prior to his MMA debut against Randy Couture.

This episode of Inside MMA originally aired on HDNet on 8-27-10.

UFC Hall-of-Famer Chuck Liddell checked in with Scott Zolak and guest host Gary Tanguay to talk about UFC 118 in Boston. Liddell gave his thoughts on what it takes to succeed as an ultimate fighter, UFC’s need for a Muhammad Ali-esque transcendant star, and the James Toney beatdown at the hands of Randy Couture.

In a plain, on a train. Atop a mountain, near a fountain.

I will fight him here. I will fight him there. I will fight him anywhere.

Such could be the words of Josh Koscheck... if he were a fan of Dr. Seuss.

The American Kickboxing Academy fighter filmed Season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter” coaching opposite UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, a man that has defeated him once before. The two will step back in the Octagon in December following the conclusion of the reality series’ run on television.

Koscheck had been hoping to drag St-Pierre into his old stomping grounds of Pittsburgh for the fight, but UFC president Dana White on Monday revealed the bout would take place on a return trip to Montreal, St-Pierre’s hometown.

It marks the first time the UFC has run two events at the Bell Centre in the same year.

It makes no difference to Koscheck, who isn’t exactly a crowd favorite there.

“Wherever the UFC wants the fight is fine with us. Montreal has great, enthusiastic fans and will provide a sellout crowd,” Koscheck’s representative, Heidi Seibert, told MMAWeekly.com Monday night.

“Kos has been ready for this title fight for a long time and is looking to win on Dec. 11.”

The St-Pierre versus Koscheck rematch headlines UFC 124 at the Bell Centre, the same venue where Koscheck was sucker punched following his win over Paul Daley in May of this year.

With the start of Season 8 just weeks away, the leading lady of "One Tree Hill" reveals the secret of the show’s success -- its fans. Bush also talks about the possible future of the series and why she's continually making movies during her hiatuses.

For the past seven seasons on One Tree Hill, the talented and gorgeous Sophia Bush has been one of the main reasons that a loyal contingent of television viewers have continued to tune in, week-after-week, to watch the Pasadena-born actress portray the flirtatious character of Brooke Davies on the CW Network’s hit drama series. Consequently, if Bush had her way, she’d love to give her fans seven more seasons.

“We have the most devoted group of fans that any show could hope for,” the radiant, 28-year-old brunette concedes. “I know that they have always been there for me, and for everybody else on the show. I guess they just haven't gotten sick of me, yet.” While it was widely rumored that the upcoming Season 8 – set to make its debut on September 14 – was to be the last for the show, it was recently reported that the Wilmington, North Carolina-based series had gotten an order from the CW for an additional twelve episodes for a possible Season 9. It’s a turn of events that pleases both followers of One Tree Hill and cast members of the long-running series. According to Bush, who spoke during a press gathering for the series, her interest in One Tree Hill remains as strong as it was when she landed the gig in 2003. "I’m happy for all the time that I've been on the series, because I learn something new every year that I’m on the show,” Bush, who is currently dating her co-star Austin Nichols, admits. “I have even gotten the chance to direct an episode of the show, so it’s a really fertile learning ground for me. So, I’m always keeping my fingers crossed that the series never stops.”

The future of One Tree Hill depends, as Bush contends, on the series' devoted and hopefully, continually-growing fan base -- a fact she never takes for granted. “Like I’ve always said, ‘I’ll do this show as long as the fans wanted to see it, but it’s always been like that in a way,” confesses Bush, who was married to her former One Tree Hill co-star Chad Michael Murray for several months in 2005 “All these years we’ve done it, we never really knew if we were coming back the next year or not. I think it’s hard to say we should call it an end. It guess it really does depend on how long our fans keep watching it. It all depends on how long we can keep the viewers entertained. Which always keeps us on our toes, making sure we are doing the best shows we can do."

Warner Bros/CW Sophia Bush and her co-stars on 'One Tree Hill' Like this

Each year, during your hiatus from One Tree Hill, you always seem to have time to make a movie (The Hitcher, Supercross, Stay Alive, The Narrows, John Tucker Must Die and the upcoming Chalet Girl). You are constantly working. Don’t you ever take a vacation or even some time off? "Hollywood is an industry where you can get pigeon-holed really quickly if you don’t watch what you’re doing. That’s one of the reasons whenever the show goes on hiatus, and I have the time, I try to make a movie or do a guest spot on a different TV show (Nip/Tuck) -- playing a character as different from Brooke as possible. I feel like it’s up to me to show the directors and casting directors in LA that I can play any character. So far, that’s a plan that seems to be working."

You’ve made a lot of interesting, different movies, like the remake of the bloody, suspenseful thriller The Hitcher. That was a real butt-kickin’ role for a woman. Since you only have basically two-and-a-half months between seasons, is that the kind of roles you look for? "The Hitcher was the first big studio film I did, and that was a big thing for me. It was something that I definitely looked into a lot before I started filming it, because I wanted to show people what roles I could play. I didn’t want to start playing the damsel in distress kind of role in every film I did. I never want to be that girl, running around whining and being irritating. And at the same time, it’s like, I don’t want to come out like Lara Croft with guns blazing, because that’s not quite right either. So, The Hitcher fit the bill."

CW/Warner Bros Sophia Bush on 'One Tree Hill' Like this

On both television and in film, do you like to spend as much time as you can rehearsing? "Oh yeah, as much as I can, but it’s not always possible. I learned how important it could be when I did The Hitcher -- luckily, I had a few chances to rehearse while making it. Zach (Knighton) and I spent a week in Texas working on the chemistry of our characters’ relationship -- how this couple in love behaved and reacted, and the ways that we kind of messed with one another. And, I think that gave me some license to go on this crazy emotional roller coaster, instead of just be one kind of woman or another. On One Tree Hill, we always get in as much rehearsal time as possible. It’s great for the characters. I love it, when I can get. It’s harder to get the time on the smaller, independent film, and television to some extent, because you are always just trying to rush to get it done. But, you do as much as you can, because it gives you the chance to give the audience a more accurate portrayal of who they’re watching."

Do you still enjoy doing One Tree Hill? "Oh yeah, are you kidding? I love doing it, because it’s the show that has given me the chance to do all the other things I’ve wanted to do. I got the chance to direct an episode, which was a really great experience for me. I mean, I continue to learn a lot about this business by doing One Tree Hill. I’m thankful for the chance to be a part of it."

CW/Warner Bros Sophia Bush on 'One Tree Hill' Like this

So far, how are things going for the new season? "Great. We're pulling all the things that we started last season together. And, it’s all coming together, and it’s looking and sounding great. Basically, we’re still figuring out what pool we feel like diving in for the season." (laughs) How hard is it to find roles -- especially in motion pictures -- that really challenge you? "I think it’s definitely hard to find films of quality that you want to make. You never know if you are making the right decision. Thinking back, even when the script for The Hitcher came across my desk, it was like, prior to reading it, I thought, ’Do I really know that it is going to be anything other than a typical movie from the horror genre?’ And as I was going through it, I realized there was something special about it. Because not only did that tomboy side of me get to completely freak out, in my stunt junkie way, and do all of these amazing things and watch cars get blown up, helicopters fly over our faces and run around in the desert with guns. Luckily, in the film there was just such an arc, and such a development of a character. And a real sort of slope for my character to fall down."

Is playing a multi-layered character one of the most important things to you when you’re choosing roles? "Yeah, yeah. I think that is it for me, it’s really about choosing things that give me some meaningful work to do -- and things that I haven’t done before. I’ve been really fortunate, from One Tree Hill to all the movies I've done, I’ve gotten to play so many different characters and push myself as an actress."

CW/Warner Bros Sophia Bush on 'One Tree Hill' Like this

What do you think is the fascination with tough, butt kickin’ gals in movies or on TV? (Laughs) "Sorry, I can’t stop laughing. Am I one of those butt-kickin’ gals? (laughs) Okay, I’m good, I’m okay. You know, I think what’s great about it is, we’ve seen some great heroes in men -- from your iconic Dirty Harry and Indiana Jones. And you’ve got that. And we’re at a point where, thankfully, in our sociology we’ve evolved to realize that women can kick just as much ass. And people want to see it, because there’s something that’s a little less expected about seeing the girlfriend end up with the hero. It’s exciting."

Why do you think guys really respond to seeing tough gals who can take care of themselves? "It really gives the guys something to root for. But it gives the girls in the audience something to root for, too. So you no longer have women being dragged to an action movie by their boyfriends. Couples are going together, because they’re both really excited about the film. And you know, it’s something I enjoy, definitely. I just want to play all kind of characters, and I think I’ve shown, even with my time on One Tree Hill, that I can be believable in any role you cast me in."

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One Tree Hill: The Complete Seventh Season is now available on DVD. During its seventh season, One Tree Hill continued to explore the journeys of its beloved characters, while seamlessly introducing new favorites. For exclusive clips and behind-the-scenes moments from One Tree Hill, visit the series’ Official Site at www.onetreehilldvd.com

Season 8 of One Tree Hill debuts on Tuesday, September 14 on the CW Network. (Check local listings)

Almost a year has passed since Kerri Walsh, now a mother of two, has competed in a beach volleyball doubles event.

Ever since winning her second gold medal in beach volleyball at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, she has been focused on first raising a family, and then on making a run for the London 2012 Olympics.

After giving birth in May to her second sun, she hoped to compete in several Association of Volleyball Professionals tournaments this season.

However, when the AVP cancelled the rest of its season on August 13, she has had to alter her plans and compete wherever she can, to regain her championship form.

Enter the AVP Next Championship Cup on Saturday in Milwaukee, WI - where she’ll be competing with Rachel Scott in an impromptu, exhibition-style contest to be held after 45 lesser-experienced teams contend for the title.

Barefoot Wine, the sponsor of this 24-stop tour, also had to quickly adjust.  In the wake of the AVP tour’s termination, this company was forced to scramble  - holding  this capstone event on Saturday (instead of Thursday), and at Bradford Beach in Milwaukee (instead of Chicago’s Oak Street Beach).

On the fly, Barefoot’s marketing manager, Joshua Fine, first invited Walsh and Todd Rogers (Beijing Olympics gold medalist) to compete as a pair in a showcase exhibition. Then, after discussing these plans with Rogers, he opened-up the competition.  He next contacted Rachel Scott and Phil Dalhausser who agreed to compete, with Walsh and Rogers, in two separate matches against the men’s and women’s AVPNext tournament winners.

“I’m so excited that the AVPNext Championships event is still being held,” said Walsh, given the AVP’s demise. “Whatever I can do to support the up and comers, I’m going to do. They are the future of our sport.”

Despite this eagerness, Walsh does admit, “I am really nervous about my first competition. When I think about it now, my heart races.”  While she has been training for the last couple months, she has not had much practice time with Scott, thereby adding to her anxiety.

After all, although this match is purely for show, the AVNext season champions will be pumped for this special and possibly once-in-a lifetime challenge, seeking to pit their skills against the best in the world.

But Walsh, looking for any opportunity to test herself, is pragmatic. “They are helping me with my comeback.”