Two weeks from now, I'll have completed my first ever marathon. One week ago, I ran the furthest I have ever run - TWENTY miles. This journey has been a challenging, inspirational and life-changing one...and we haven't even gotten to the main event yet :)

"Never give up on a dream just because of the length of time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway."

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Within a few hours of me making a comment about how close I was to my fundraising goal, I received an flurry of emails notifying me about donations and a special one pointing out that I had reached my goal!

Not only has my fundraising goal been reached - it has also been exceeded now. And based off of the donations that have been marked as applicable for 'Company Matching,' it might end up even closer to raising $3,000 in my inaugural season :)

"It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action, and discipline that enabled us to follow through." -Zig Ziglar

Seven weeks from now, I'll be completed with my first TNT season and first ever full marathon. It's incredible to think about how far each of us on the team have come since we began in February. The mileage has significantly increased, and my body (specifically my knees and hip flexors) hasn't been shy to voicing its occasional unhappiness with the increases. It was especially pleased with my racing the Inaugural Hollywood Half Marathon on Saturday, April 7th.

As a result, I've been extra-conscientious about my post-run routine of stretching and ice (in bath, pack or cream format - whatever helps mentally and physically, obviously.), and I've even taken up regular yoga classes to improve my flexibility and strength.

I cannot say enough about the awesome support from my SGV team, family and friends. This Saturday marked a milestone - 16 miles! Coach Kevin, Josh and I met up pre-sun-rise to crank out one of the big loops up along Arroyo Blvd and Linda Vista Ave followed by a loop around the Rose Bowl. With 10 miles down, I was able to attend the team meeting where one of our teammates shared her personal story for the mission moment - inspiring all of us to get past the aches and pains we face while running by keeping in mind the people we run and raise funds for. It was really awesome to get to see some of the alum who came out to help with this week's practice. Who would've thought it would be that easy to convince others to wake up early on a Saturday to knock out a super long run? :) Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stick around for the post-run tunnel of love and chocolate milk station - but I was able to add onto the healing chains that Ginny had set up for us to leave messages on for Honored Teammates Ale and Marisol. After that, I headed over to She Runs LA 10K to crank out the remaining 6 with Cameron and Liz.

Granted, it was broken up into segments - but I officially logged in 16.2 miles of running in total on Saturday. I am feeling more confident each day that I'll be able to run the full 26.2, and am looking forward to the next few long(er) runs. I'll be traveling throughout the next few weeks, so I will definitely miss my SGV team mornings...but I will hopefully be able to link up with local TNT teams in the areas that I'll be traveling to, which would make the 18 and 20 milers much more bearable :) GO TEAM!!

Aside from research for cures and better treatments, LLS aims to improve the lives of patients and their families via other support channels:

• The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society sponsors telephone and web education programs for patients, caregivers, survivors and healthcare professionals about various blood cancers. Upcoming programs are posted at www.LLS.org/programs and archives of past programs are available at www.LLS.org/pastprograms. During 2011, there were 251,077 participants in these programs.

• First Connection is a program that links newly diagnosed patients to a peer volunteer who has experienced a similar diagnosis. A trained patient-volunteer currently in remission contacts the new patient to share information and support. In 2011, there were 5,094 First Connections and in our local area there were 105. It's a wonderful program that eases fear and uncertainty in patients and their families!

• The Co-Pay Assistance program provides assistance up to $5,000 per year based on diagnosis and income for insured patients with many, but not all, of the blood cancers. Last year, 10,985 patients across the nation received LLS co-pay assistance. Visit www.lls.org/copay for more information.

San Diego Rock & Roll is a little over two months away - the last two team practices have been especially eventful. Over St. Patty's Day morning, we met up with members of the other Greater LA teams to run in Village Runner's 5K in Redondo Beach. This Saturday, we hit the double digits with our mileage - 10 miles!!

I started the 5K off strong at a 7:20 first mile and managed to maintain a good pace - coming in at just under 23 minutes, earning a third place finish in my age group! Still a bit far off from my PR back in my racing days, but I'll take it as a great start back into racing :)

Check out the sweet hardware:

Training is going well - I've gotten used to running with the hydration belt and have been trying out different snacks during long runs. So far, my favorite is Gu's Peanut Butter. The awesome SGV team also has a great aid station set up for us each run with plenty of water, gatorade, fruit, (my other favorite) peanut butter pretzels and other snacks to keep us fueled along the miles.