Racing to Save Lives

I'm doing it again! I'm training to participate in both the 2010 Walt Disney World Marathon (January 10) and the Princess Half Marathon (March 7) as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Team In Training. This will be my first-ever marathon and my third half marathon since joining Team in Training in the fall of 2008.

All of us on Team In Training are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. I am completing this event in honor of all individuals who are battling blood cancers. These people are the real heroes on our team, and we need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

Please make a donation to support my participation in Team In Training and help advance LLS's mission.

I hope you will visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress. Thanks for your support!

December 16 update

I completed my longest run ever on Saturday: a jaw-dropping TWENTY miles. It wasn't pretty, nor was it fast, but I did finish strong. That being said, I was very thankful I didn't have to go another 6.2 miles that day! Now that the longest training run is behind me, however, I feel a little more confident about my ability to go the full distance on January 10.

In other news, my first fundraising event took place on Monday, December 7. California Pizza Kitchen donated 20% of the meal price for everyone who brought in one of my fliers, and we had a pretty nice turnout.

My next fundraiser will be on Sunday, December 20. I'll be gift wrapping at Barnes and Noble in exchange for donations. I hope those last-minute shoppers are generous!

December 19 update

Who wouldn't want to try a coffee called "Jittery Joe's"? If you purchase their TNT blend through my link, a donation will be made to LLS. Check it out here:

http://www.easywebautomation.com/app/?af=1108935

January 8 update

Happy birthday to my husband, Chuck!

I am about to head to the airport to embark on my journey to my first full marathon. I am excited, nervous, apprehensive, eager, frightened, and a million other emotions! I will post more when I get back -- hopefully with my finisher's medal in hand!

January 15 update

I am now an official marathoner. I finished the Walt Disney World Marathon on January 10 with more than an hour to spare, and I had a great time doing it. I ran most of the distance with my coach and one of my Teammates, and we all survived the frigid conditions. "Frigid" is no exaggeration: it was so cold, ice was forming in the water and PowerAde cups! The cold weather made for nice running conditions, however. I never hit the dreaded "wall" and was able to finish feeling quite strong.

I've spent the past few days recovering from the race and reminding myself that my little aches and pains are nothing compared to chemotherapy. As incredible as it was to push myself and achieve this goal, it feels even better to know I did it as part of a greater cause. All told, the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend participants raised $5.4 million for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, which will certainly go a long way in the fight against blood cancers!

February 8 update

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has a new campaign and I'm on board: I'm going to go BALDacious (www.totallybaldacious.org) if I hit the $2000 mark this week! While I don't plan to shave it all off, I will dye my hair a lovely shade of Team in Training PURPLE if I reach this goal. Chuck, on the other hand, is going to go all the way -- totally BALDacious!!! Look for an updated photo a week from today (assuming we reach the goal and have to actually go through with this crazy stunt).