To sum it all up..........AMAZING!

So the Dallas and San Diego 3 Day events have come and gone, and I STILL can't stop thinking about how amazing both events were. Here's a quick recap of Dallas....San Diego will have to wait for another night.

Day 1 - chilliest morning (I think it was in the 40's...warmer than last year, but still chilly), huge lunch site, smooth set up and successful lunch!
Day 2 - got to count walkers in as they entered lunch....so much fun to see their faces light up once they realized they made it!
   - Camp show that night was so inspiring! The survivor who told her story was in the middle of her second battle with cancer, was still participating in the event with the help of her teammates, and had the most infectious optimism....great reminder for why we were all there.
Day 3 - compact lunch site in downtown Dallas with a little rain at the end to get the last walkers moving....great finale to the weekend and unfortunately missed closing to get back to Houston :(

Here's some pics

Too inspired to be tired,

Jungle Safari - Dallas Lunch Crew Style

I can't believe tomorrow is Day 1 for the Dallas 3 Day! I'm so excited to see my fellow crew-mates and can't wait to spend 3 days serving lunch, rocking out to great music, and of course camping under the stars. Our theme for lunch this year is jungle safari. I must say I don't have much in my wardrobe to support a jungle safari theme. Luckily my mom has couple of hats that are very safariesque and the Ross by our apartment had some sweet cheetah print shirts on the cheap. I did make some sweet accessories for our safari theme - a camera and binoculars...definitely must haves for a safari goer! They are quite funny (pic below). All I can say is "E for Effort"!

Stay tuned for pics from lunch, updates on the hilarious team names and slogans we see over the next three days, and of course a full report on the hopefully beautiful weather!

15 days until San Diego!!!!!

Too inspired to be tired,

28 Days Left and Thanks Y'all!

The San Diego 3 Day will be here in just 4 weeks! I can hardly believe it.....and I've raised and surpassed my minimum fundraising amount!! Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the Komen foundation and supported me as I worked to raise money for my walk. And to those who would still like to donate here's the link :)
https://secure3.convio.net/npt/site/Donation2?idb=1816333726&df_id=3088&FR_ID=1627&PROXY_ID=2969006&PROXY_TYPE=20&3088.donation=form1

This weekend is going to be a jam packed weekend full of training and fun. The hubby and I are headed to Dallas for a friend's wedding, and fortunately for me I'll have training buddies Saturday for our 18 mile walk...yes 18 mile walk! This will be our longest walk thus far, and I'm so glad to have some company because let me tell ya', walking for 6 hours by yourself gets a little boring. We're going to celebrate after finishing our walk with some ice cold beer and watching the Alliance air show. Nothing gets a girl walking like the promise of ice cold beer at the end.

In just 2 weeks the Dallas 3 Day will be here. Although I won't be walking this one, trust me when I say myself and the other crew members (voluntters) will be working just as hard. You know you're crazy when the idea of waking up at 3 am on a Friday morning to volunteer all day for 3 days gets you excited. Our ttheme this year is jungle safari....definitely need to get crackin' on my costume. I'll make sure to take tons of pictures to post on this bad boy of all the crazy costumes and decorations we come up with. It's usually quite entertaining......so excited to rock out during lunch crew!

Too inspired to be tired,

Testing out the blog from the blackberry....

just got done walking and wanted to test out the blog from the blackberry...hopefully it works so I can update during our 3 days in Dallas and San Diego :)

Why I walk.....

It's been a while since I've posted in this bad boy.....not without a good excuse though :). I had a wonderful 10 days of relief from the hot Texas sun in Milwaukee and San Francisco. Training/meetings were great, and the vacation with the hubby and long time friend Miss CJ were even better! We went to Tyler last weekend to visit AP, and I finally got back on the training band wagon this weekend. It was a busy but WONDERFUL August!

As I walked my 9 miles yesterday morning, I got to thinking about why I walk....

I've never had anyone in my immediate family affected by breast cancer, although I have plenty of friends who have. I've heard criticism about how much attention breast cancer research/fundraising gets when there are plenty of other cancers out there that affect millions of people too. I guess I understand where this concern comes from, and my two cents are that any cancer research breakthrough no matter how big or small could have an effect on the way we treat a multitude of other cancers. In science we can learn the individual solution to the individual problem, but many times adapting something that worked for one problem to solve another can be just the spring board we need.

I lost one of my personal heroes to lung cancer on May 22, 2008. Just 2.5 weeks before Kev and I were married, my Grandma Mary passed away from stage IV lung cancer. She is one of the driving forces behind why I walk and support the Komen foundation. She taught me so many things in the years we had together - how to be patient, love with all of your heart, see the good in people, and more than anything to laugh and not sweat the small stuff. I know that the money I raise for this foundation, the many hours of volunteer work I put in the Dallas event every year, and the painful blisters I will probably get over my 3 Day walk are all worth it because if one small step of progress is made in fighting breast cancer then maybe someone else won't have to lose their hero to this terrible disease.

Thanks to all who have supported me thus far - I'm over halfway to my fundraising goal and getting pumped with each day the 3 Day gets closer!

To those that would like to support my walk please click the link below to donate:
https://secure3.convio.net/npt/site/Donation2?idb=1816333726&df_id=3088&FR_ID=1627&PROXY_ID=2969006&PROXY_TYPE=20&3088.donation=form1

Too inspired to be tired,

Training Week 2 - 19 miles!

So last week was supposed to be my first full week of training, however a random display of my electric personality pushed my plans back and therefore I am jumping right in with week 2 of training. (For those who don't know I had a seizure (first and hopefully only!) two weeks ago and thought it best to wait until I felt completely healthy again before starting to train).

What's on the training schedule for this week:
Monday - Rest (not a hard one to accomplish)
Tuesday - 3 miles
Wednesday - 15 minutes cross training
Thursday - 5 miles
Friday - 30 minutes cross training
Saturday - 6 miles
Sunday - 5 miles

That'll bring my first/second week of training miles to a grand total of 19! Here's to hoping the hot Texas sun decides to cool it some so I can walk in the brisk 99 degree heat instead of 104.

Too inspired to be tired,

And we're walking....

So we don't technically start training for another two weeks, but who wants to wait to start all of the walking goodness?!  I put in a solid 10 miles this week, and the ankle feels pretty decent. Hopefully with continued ice and more passing of time I'll be as good as new!

This week also starts the beginning of my fundraising efforts. Each walker is challenged to raise at least $2,300 to participate in the 3 Day. You might be wondering what does Susan G. Komen do with the money donated? Here are some fun facts for you:

-  In 2010 the 3 Day took place in 15 cities and the sum of raised money for all of these events was $87 million
- Komen uses 75% of the funds to award research grants focused on decreasing breast cancer incidence and mortality, and the remaining 25% is used to fund community based breast health programs and Komen affiliates
- In 2010 Funds from Komen went to provide:
     2.2 million people with breast cancer education materials and information
     More than 275,000 clinical breast exams
     More than 351,000 potentially life-saving mammograms were funded
    2,000 people were enrolled in breast cancer clinical trials
    7,000 people were educated about clinical trials

So if you're looking to help in the fight to end breast cancer, or just want to support my crazy decision to walk 60 miles, please considering donating to help me reach my $2,300 goal. You can donate at the link below, and if you're company matches donations I'd appreciate you submitting the request to have them match your donation.

Click here to donate!

Too inspired to be tired,