This past week, I got to see Montana on what he called, over and over, "my best day". For the first day in almost a year, he felt a bit of joy and felt that he was starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. His symptoms are really improving and his energy and stamina are lengthening. This has been such a long and exhausting road for him and I found myself in tears when I realized that he wasn't being sarcastic in the above words and statements, nor was he trying to convince himself or me. He radiated joy and gratitude. Here is a pic of he and I... you can see the huge change from the pictures in earlier posts. (Picture and information shared with permission from Montana)

That big smile and that joy, make every mile of this journey worth it and make every one of your donations so very valuable. Thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart and from all of my patients whose lives have been affected and improved by LLS. Even the smallest donation makes a difference.

T-Minus two weeks from today! We are almost there! I can't wait to conquer the hills and give back to such a phenomenal organization!

Time is winding down and I am officially less than 5 weeks away from race day! Its the home stretch... I remember my first home stretch in San Diego. I was so bound and determined to get to that finish line and all I could think about was getting one foot in front of the other and crossing the finish line for Alex & Colten. I wore their names on my jersey and I thought about their journies as I made mine...

I now am in the home stretch of my training and fundraising and I cannot wait to see what my home stretch on October 16th will be like. I have been so incredibly inspired as I have taken this journey and I have felt so blessed to be running for many who can't and for many who need the work of LLS. Specifically, I am moved during every training run by my amazing honored teammates.

While two are no longer physically with me, they have been alive and well in larger than life spirit, willing me and almost carrying me forward when I feel like quitting, and giving me joy beyond words through the easy steps. They have been along side me as we work hard to ensure that the future brings less death and less separation from loved ones.

I am so fortunate and blessed to have two honored teammates that continue to make inspiring strides in their very own home stretches every day. One is taking back his life and regaining strength. Everytime I feel tired and feel like the end of a run is so far off, I only have to take a moment to think about Montana and all he has endured and overcome. The other is living vibrantly and looking towards next year when she will venture off to college, likely far away. She reminds me to soar and to be joyful as I accomplish things I didn't know I was capable of.

How lucky am I?!?!

I love the home stretch! I would love for you to join me in closing the gap and getting to the finish line... I have 70% of my funds raised and am so, so close. Would you consider narrowing that gap? $900 is nothing...

9 of you donating $100

18 of you donating $50

36 of you donating $25

You get the picture. Even if you can only do a few dollars, every single penny helps and every penny takes us steps closer to cure. Thank you so much for helping me close the gap and for helping me in my home stretch!

Lucky for me and for you, all who guessed and played along in my "guess my age" donation contest, guessed that I was closer to 35! And, ding, ding, ding.... You were correct. I turned 37 last week! Lucky for me I feel better at 37 than I felt at 18!

And the winner of the TNT Fuel Belt is...

Audrey!

Thanks so much for your thoughtful support! I know that Montana, Dominie, Colten and Rowan appreciate it. You are making a difference for the children I take care of!

While I am giving shout-out's, I want to give a very special THANK YOU to Chris for his thoughtful and generous donation in memory of Colten. You are very special to Colten and his family and your generosity will go miles in helping LLS ensure that treatment for kids like Colten will improve in the coming years. You absolutely ROCK!

Colten would no doubt blow you a huge kiss!

My birthday is rapidly approaching and while I am not all that excited about the number I will be celebrating, I am really excited to invite you to celebrate with me!

I would love for you to celebrate with me by donating your age (if you are 30, you donate $30) or by playing my little "guess which age I am closest to" game. If you think I am closer to 35, you donate $35 and if you think I am closer to 40, you donate $40. Don't worry... I won't be offended either way! The simple fact that I am older than 30 is offensive enough! Even better, on my birthday, September 3rd, I will draw a name from all of you that guess correctly and will give away a special gift:

Your very own Team in Training Fuel Belt!

Valued at more than $30, Fuel Belt allows you to take up to 32 oz of water with you while you run, walk, hike, bike or exercise. It also has a small pouch that fits small valuables. I love how comfortable it is to wear and that I am able to keep my arms free of having to carry a water bottle.

So instead of taking the three minutes it takes to write me a birthday email or birthday post on Facebook, take that time to click the button to the right and join my party! What better gift could I ask for and what better way to give back to so many amazing people who are living with and conquering blood cancers!

I introduced you all to Montana, one of my honored teammates. You can read a bit about his story on my front page. We recently celebrated the end of his treatment by allowing him to come back to our in-patient unit and "hit the gong"

To give a bit of history, we were given this beautiful gong by a family that had been to MD Anderson in Houston for radiation. At the end of radiation all patients hit the gong to symbolize the end of that chapter and to be a symbol of cleansing, purity and new beginning. This family felt that we needed a gong as well and donated one to our in-patient unit. It has become a sacred tradition that all patients partake in following their last round of in-patient treatment.

While Montana finished his treatment at another hospital, we would never let him pass up the opportunity to sound the gong and mark the cleansing and beginning of his "new life" with new bone marrow. Here are a couple of pictures of him ringing the gong and signing his name with the date.

This is a huge milestone for a transplant patient and one that we celebrate with a lot of excitement and attention.

Congratulations Montana!

LLS has had a profound impact in Montana's life and in giving much needed support to he and his family. Help me continue their mission by making a donation over on the right hand side of this page. Thanks so much!