LOL!

Because when you are training to walk 60 miles in 3 days you've gotta have a sense of humor!

tee shirt found at www.cafepress.com

Where O Where?

Just a few months back (or so it feels) I thought I was going to be back in the blogging saddle and ready to go.  Then life happens, kids to get up, ready, on their way, work a little, training for my 60 mile walk(not as much as I should be at this point!), be a (mostly) good wife, so on and so forth.  I always feel like I'm an hour short in the day to day madness (except when Hubby and Old Faithful are on the road and then I'm thankful that there isn't more hours to be a single parent!).  In the past 5ish months we've managed to squeeze in:

Some quality beach time (but I could always use more salt air in my lungs)

Getting to know the (non drama) neighbors that I had shied away from the past 2+ years thanks to
the resident drama queen in the 'hood.

A weekend getaway to Old Edwards Inn for just the Hubs and I (the first such trip in 3 years!)

A fantastic gun safety/personal safety class (yes, the Wife is locked and loaded)

The Hubs first cancer screening. Yep.

Two nights in the hospital with Macho Man (and of course, that included an ambulance ride in the
middle of the night for he and I since Hubs was 7 hours away!)

Birdie was ran over by a fellow child on a bicycle...and after he hit her with his first wheel he              proceeded to ride his brakes across her chest with the back wheel.  And his parents have yet to
apologize or even have a conversation with me about it. Yeah, don't get me started on that one.

The beginning of Clemson football again--GO TIGERS!! Lovebug and I got to walk in right
behind the players this past weekend and she got to rub the Rock right behind them! Loved it!

A few little day trips here and there.

And the list goes on and on and on.  When I was little I remember that it took forever for it to be either your birthday or Christmas and I vividly remember my Dad saying that when you get older that time moves faster.  For the life of me I couldn't understand what that meant.  Now, I know all too well what that means and it just leaves me wondering "Where has the time gone?"

 
 

Reminder

Please remind me this summer when it's blazing hot while I do my training walks that I prefer that over the frigid temps...and yes, I know that walking in DC in October will probably be cold (especially in our tent at night! YIKES!), but that is beside the point right now.  Bring the Spring weather back!!!!

Bachelorette Party

A Bachelorette Party weekend at my age reminds me of one glaring truth...I'm definitely not as young as I once was. But, I did make a 20 something year old cutie's jaw drop when he found out that I am pushing 40 with a 10 year old at the house. Can someone say "ego boost"!!!

60 miles...

I can do that.

I have recently been asked by several ppl about my decision to become involved with the Susan G Komen 3 Day Breast Cancer walk. The simple answer is that I walk to raise money and awareness for breast cancer. Here are some statics to ponder:

1 in 8 US women will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime.

A man’s risk of breast cancer is about 1 in 1,000. (yes, the men in our lives need to do self exams too!)

In 2011, about 40,000 women in the U.S. were expected to die from breast cancer.

That’s the black and white, factual reasons why I walk. Then there is the grey area, the reasons of the heart that motivate me to walk. Less than a year after Hubby and I were married, we lost his father to cancer. Before I ever had an opportunity to meet my father in law, Wayne, he had already been diagnosed and undergone a double mastectomy for the treatment of his breast cancer. It all started when he felt a tiny pebble like area on one of his breasts. Wayne is more than just a statistic for us. He loved rebuilding old cars, the Beach Boys, his friends and his family,. Lots of times I feel cheated. Cheated because I only had a chance to know him for a short while. Cheated because my husband lost his first hero. Cheated because my children never had the opportunity to meet him. Now we are approaching Hubby’s 40^th birthday, the doctors have advised him to begin the yearly PSA testing given his family history. So begins a journey of always trying to stay on the offensive should this nasty disease try to rear it’s ugly head in our family again. Or at least that is what my head says. My heart sometimes has moments of weakness and feels a little like it’s been gut punched. Like somewhere from the dark the other boot is going to drop down. I walk so that maybe before that happens a cure can be found.

There are several ways you can help me during this adventure. First is the most obvious, donations. If you are interested in donating, leave me your email address in the comment section and I will get in touch with you to provide you the information you need. Second, I need your prayers for strength during this process. Third, I need volunteers to take time to walk with me. I hate walking alone! It also helps to have people hold you accountable for getting your miles in.

As I continue with this journey I will try my best to keep you all updated to how things are going so you can experience all the trials and tribulations with me. This is my second time participating in the walk so I know that are a lot of moments to come that will be both emotional and hilarious!

Bump Up

Today I was involved in a bump up...with a parked vehicle. Luckily, the Hubby was there to witness it with his own eyes or I don't think he would have believed how it all went down. He was as shocked as I was when he heard the horrible crunching sound because I (and he!) truly thought I had plenty of room to make my turn into a parking place. I revert to the frightened teenage girl when these things happen. My dad would completely freak out over things like this (no, not beat me, but rant and rave like the world would stop turning) and it just gets my heart racing. Of course, we went into the restaurant and found the gentleman who's car I sideswiped and exchanged info, etc. I was amazed when I was actually thanked for not driving off and letting them know what I had done. I can't even imagine leaving that mess behind! I had a brief little cry in the restaurant about it and the Hubs was super sweet per usual and I pulled myself together. After getting home from picking the girls up he told me the insurance company called and said we would have to pay a thousand dollar deductible. Well, that led to another meltdown. The silver lining? My sweet, precious 10 year old girl got up from the table as I sat there with my head buried and came up from behind to just hug me and hold onto me for a moment and to tell me it would all be ok. And you know what? She's right. I had an accident, I was called upon to do the right thing and in the mean time, my daughter showed me the compassionate young lady she is turning into. Priceless.

Back Pain

My back is tired. Macho Man is a little over two and I still pick him up and carry him around a good bit. People question why I don't just let him walk. Because. Because I don't want to. Because when I pick him up and he puts his little hands on my cheeks to be able to look me in the eyes, my heart melts. Because one day in just a few short years I won't be able to. And he wouldn't want me to even if I could. Because he is the last of my babies I will ever have the privilege to carry in my arms. The evil irony to having three children is that your last baby wants to grow up fast to keep up with the "big" kids. As a mommy, you realize how quickly those years slip past and you want to keep them a "little" kid. I can't remember the last time I walked around carrying Lovebug in my arms. I can remember the first time walking around with her, but not the last. Birdie is already too big for me to carry around. But Macho Man? While he may seem "too big to carry" by many, to his mommy, he is still just right for a little while longer.