Day 116

I'm so sorry that it's been nearly 2 weeks since my last posting. I can say that it's been very busy and very hectic, but also a very productive two weeks. As you know our 3-Day team has been gearing up for our 1st team fundraiser (our Silent Auction / Bake Sale). The event was yesterday and for all basic purposes went great. We advertized, we prepped, we got the word out, we got some awesome auction donations (67 of them to be exact)and more baked goods than I could even count. We really had no idea what to expect. The turnout was lighter than we had hoped for, but it was dreary and drizzled out all day. I don't know if that played a factor or not. Overall, though, I was impressed with the final outcome. As a team more than $2600 was raised for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure. People were very supportive not only of the event and the walkers, but also for the cause itself (which to me is the most important).

I want to thank each of my teammates and their families. Every one there worked very hard and displayed nothing but genuine 'niceness' (if that's the right way to say it). So thank you to my teammates: Cindy, Stefanie and Kristen. Thank you to Cindy's family, Kimmy & her friend, Emily. Thank you to my family, Steve & Emily. Thank you to Kristen's family, John & Natalie. Thank you to Stefanie's family, Kraig, Alyssa, Jacob & Pam. And thanks to our friends Nancy & Michelle. None of this would have been so successful without everyone's dedication to the cause.

For me now it's time to get serious about my training. No more excuses about event preparations.

Day 98

Sorry I got a bit behind last week. I realized this morning that it had been a week since I'd posted to my blog. Last week was Holy Week and a busy week for me since I'm an Administrator at a church. Good Friday ... Easter ... egg hunt ... Easter lily delivery ... you get the idea.

On the weekend we drove to Indiana to visit our son for Easter. It was wonderful to get away for a couple of days. Everything there was green and blooming, leaving me very hopeful that Michigan would not be too far behind. Although my 'white' legs left a little something to be desired in my shorts, but that's ok. Everyone else looked the same. :0)

It was a bit difficult to get my walking in over the weekend since I spent a total of 14+ hours in the van. I was only able to get 2 miles in on Saturday and 2.5 on Sunday. However I have signed up for 2 outdoor training walks this week (today & Thursday). 3 miles & 5 miles respectively. I've grown tired of walking laps in the mall and am looking forward to walking with some fellow 3-Day walkers. Walking with others always makes the time go by so much faster. I'm optimistic that this group of women will be a good match ... the location of their walks is convenient and so are the times. I get off work at 5:00 and can get there for 5:30.

I also picked up my proceeds check on the weekend for my recent Buffalo Wild Wings fundraiser ... $184.53. I think it was a good response. So, as they say, the 'check is in the mail' and just awaiting posting from the 3Day staff.

Day 89

Today is Sunday (actually Palm Sunday). Had a nice morning at church followed by a celebration birthday lunch with some good friends. I had a really nice time. Ironic that they gave me a summer Vera Bradley purse. Here I am training for the 3Day event and I got a new purse. Getting a purse isn't odd, but the ironic part is that Vera Bradley (the designer) puts a lot of her profits into breast cancer research. Very admirable in my opinion. We're all doing what we can for the cause with the tools we have. Doesn't matter how big or how small ... it's about being productive and making a difference.

We had our first 3Day team meeting yesterday to review some stuff for our upcoming team fundraiser on April 24th. Mostly everyone seems to be enthusiastic and excited about the event. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good event with a good turnout. The team spirit is definately there!

Day 84

Today is Tuesday ... still a bit cool, but at least the sun is shining. Makes such a difference. I'm heading over to the mall after work with my daughter in tow do get 3-4 miles in. I promised her if she'd keep me company walking then I'd feed her dinner ... such a deal!

Today I hit a milestone. I've raised over $3,000 for the 3Day for the Cure. Truly unbelievable how much support I've received and how generous people have been. We'll be having our first team meeting this Saturday for our team's Silent Auction/Bake Sale in April. It will be the first time that everyone has met everyone. I figured it was about time. I'm looking forward to it. Mostly everyone's fundraising totals are starting to climb which is awesome. When I comes to fundraising ... I get pumped! I hope it's contagious. :0)

Day 80

TGIF ... Thank Goodness It's Friday and TGFF ... Thank Goodness For Friends. My graphic may seem weird, but does anyone remember the 'Happy Baby Dance' on the TV show 'Ally McBeal'? Made me smile everytime I saw it.

We've had such beautiful weather all this week, I just can't wait for it to stick around. I heard a nasty rumor that it was going to get a little icky this weekend into next week. Funny how a week ago it was 45 degrees and that was nice, but now we've been spoiled and consider it a setback. Go figure.

Last weekend's 3Day fundraiser at Buffalo Wild Wings was a success, at least as far as I'm concerned. The event raised more than $225, but not only that it was an opportunity for fellowship and increasing awareness. I had several people attend, many of whom who had never been to that restaurant before(so that was a perk of publicity for the restaurant). I had 2 teammates and their families attend. I had friends and family attend. And I had total strangers (to me) attend because word of the event had been passed on in one way or another. I also got to meet my daughter's 9th grade honors English teacher; funny how my daughter wasn't quite as thrilled as I was (but then everything is awkward when you're 14 ... lol). I was also honored to have 2 other 3Day walkers attend because they'd seen the information on the 3Day website. How awesome is that?

I hope to get some good walking in tomorrow. At least 6 miles. My schedule has been a little crazy the last 2 weeks, but I am a church administrator and it is the lenten season ... so I guess that kind of explains it.

Day 76

I'm loving the blue sky and sunshine outside my office window. While it was only 32 degrees out when I left the house this morning, I skipped the coat and wore a thick sweater instead. I'm optimistic for the rest of the day.

My 3Day fundraiser at Buffalo Wild Wings on Sunday seemed to go well. Thank you to everyone who came out to show their support. I did discover that doing a 50/50 raffle was difficult given the circumstances. I couldn't go to the customers at their tables to see if they wanted to purchase a 50/50 ticket. I was only allowed to have a sign at my table and they had to come to me. Knowing what I know now I think I would have been better off getting 3 prizes donated for a raffle instead. I would have had the visual of the prizes to draw attention to it. Lesson learned. I won't know the actuall $$ results of the day's activities until a little later in the week.

Now it's on to planning auction items for the team's event on April 24th. It's been a very tiring couple of weeks. Between work, additional functions at church and Emily's school, family obligations and a time change thrown in for good measure ... I'm feeling pretty tired. However I did enjoy the fact that last night the sun was still out when I got home from work. I was able to walk my 3 miles outside before dinner which was nice - however having an 8:00pm dinner wasn't a real good idea. I think that said, my schedule just needs a little bit of tweeking.

Day 72

This week has gone so much better for me than last week. My fundraising donations are still trickling as a result of emails and letters. Plus I have my Buffalo Wild Wings Fundraiser on Sunday. I'm anxious to see what kind of response I get. Once this one is done I'll need to focus on getting my donations for the team silent auction / bake sale next month.

My training feels like it's back on schedule this week as well which makes me feel good. I'll be honest though the next couple of weeks of training look a bit overwhleming to me. My long days of walking for now are on Fridays and Saturdays. But I still work til 4:00 on Fridays, then my daughter has music lessons til 6:00. getting 8-10 miles in on Fridays is going to be difficult. Starting in June I will have Fridays off during the summer months which will help a lot. Until June I may have to work with Saturdays & Sundays and improvise when I have to. I'll get the total mileage in somehow, it may just not be in 2 back-to-back days like I'd like. That part may have to wait til June.

Day 57

It's been a very snowy week, also nearing the end of my 2nd official week of 3Day training. The training has been a bit challenging to fit in around a full time work schedule. I can't walk outside yet ... it's dark in the morning and in the evening. I've been relying on my walking dvds & the gym during the week and hitting the mall on the weekend. It's getting done somehow, but did I mention that I'm REALLY looking forward to the springtime ... warmer temperatures and longer amounts of daylight? I'm sure I did.

Fundraising has been going really well. I've almost reached my minimum required goal which means I'll be able to walk in the event. But I've upped my goal and probably will again before it's all over. I've got a personal fundraising event coming up on March 14th at a local Buffalo Wild Wings and then we have a team event (silent auction & bake sale) scheduled for April. My hope is that any of my fundraising event donations (that are cash or check) I will be able to put aside til the event gets closer then apply them to any other teammate who made need a push to hit their goal. I'm extremely fortunate to have had the response that I've had. I'm not exactly sure why people have been so generous unless it's because I am SO passionate about the cause because of my own personal cancer experience that perhaps they sense that. I am truly thankful for everyone's support, but like I told my husband last night ... 'It is about the money because every donation could bring us one step closer to a cure, but also about the fact that EVERY person that make a donation (no matter how big or how little) ... well it means that I've extended the awareness'. If EVERY person who makes a donation, comes to an event, or goes on a walk with me gets a mammogram or makes sure that they talk about breast cancer with their wife, their mother, thier sister or their daughter ... just think of the possibilities.

I survived cancer because I detected it early and then I had choices. I had stage II cancer AND it had already traveled to my lymph nodes. If I had ignored the symptoms til later, my Stage II could have easily become Stage IV because my cancer grew very quickly. If that had happened you might not be reading this blog.

Day 53

Today is definately a SNOW DAY. I made it in to work this morning without too many problems ... slow & steady wins the race. Tonight I will have to do my 3 miles at home using my walking dvd but that's ok.

It was a good weekend for fundraising. Got a few more donations in. People have been very generous. I decided that I would change my fundraising goal from $2500 to $3000. I've had an excellent response so far to the emails and letters. I figure since I have my Buffalo Wild Wings fundraiser day set for March 14th and the team fundraiser (silent auction, bake sale) set for April 24th that increasing the goal is doable. I did receive my Buffalo Wild Wing flyer email today so I hope to start emailing that out this week some time. I will try to hold my cash donations (from the BWW 50/50 raffle & my pop cans) aside and hold on to them in case any of my teammates need it to get them to their goals. It's all about the cause and not an individual contest (although I won't say that I don't have a competitive streak in me).

All in all, things are moving along smoothly so far - which is a good thing.

Day 50

I found this week's training to go pretty well ... of course, this is the easiest week of the 24-week schedule. I think my biggest problem is going to be trying to get all of the training in, work full time and still keep up with all my regular (wife & mother) responsibilities. And that doesn't even include the fundraising aspect. Fortunately that part is moving along at a good pace. I still have a ways to go, but feel confident that I'll get there.

One of my problems (or strengths, depending if you're a 1/2 empty or 1/2 full kind of person) is that I have what a friend of mine terms 'Gene 126'. That's the extra gene that can either make you REALLY organized or REALLY anal about stuff. If the minimum fundraising goal to walk in the 3-Day walk is $2,300, then I want to start with $2,500 (it's a more well-rounded number) ... and if I'm shooting for $2,500 ... well $3,000 sounds so much better. I'm sure my friend (who shall remain nameless) and I probably aren't the only people out there with this extra 'gene', but who really knows for sure.

On a positive note, I did get up early this morning and walk my 3 miles before coming in to work. I knew I'd be busy tonight and didn't want to feel guilty when I was trying to have a little down time and little fun with friends.

Thanks to everyone for your continued support with fundraising, walking, motivation and prayers. I certainly couldn't be doing any of this without you.

Day 46

I was able to do my walking at the mall tonight (4 miles). My new shoes seem to be doing ok so far. My daughter has the week off of school so I told her if she'd tag along and be my walking partner for the night I would take her to her favorite store (Forever 21). She had a gift card she'd received for Christmas that apparently was burning a hole in her wallet (lol). Ahhh ... to be 14 again!

I received a donation yesterday at church which was very encouraging. I have 4 donations that I've mailed in now for a total of $145. It seems to be taking a little while to get them processed (but that's normal). But it is a good feeling to look at your 3-Day participant page and know that you've raised more than what is currently reflected on the page. Kind of like having a little bit in reserve.

I ordered 2 3-Day tshirts yesterday. I figured it would be nice to have one to wear in time for my fundraiser event at Buffalo Wild Wings on March 14th. I hope to receive the flyer back from their office this week so I can start putting the word out there for it.

Day 42

Today was another BUSY day. I'm wrapping UP a big project at work and I had to take my daughter to her high school orientation this evening. I was able to send out a few emails this afternoon for potential silent auction donations for our upcoming team fundraiser in April.

Saturday I plan to walk at the mall with my sister and another teammate, Stafanie (who just joined our team this week). For now I seem to be the common denominator of the team (my sister, a fellow church member, a lady from the community that I haven't actually met yet and another woman I met at the Getting Started meeting). I'm anxious for all of us to get together soon to not only talk about the upcoming team fundraiser event but also for everyone to get to know each other a little.

This is all very exciting ... working on fundraising, beginning my 'official' 3Day training this weekend, and meeting new women who all share a common goal.

ALL IS GOOD!

Day 30

Well I'm 30 days in to my journey. Time sure seems to fly by fast. My official training will begin in 2 weeks, but I've been walking and getting ready (& getting organized). My fundraising is in gear and I've been amazed at the response so far. People are VERY generous and supportive. I even had one person who said they weren't able to donate financially but offered to supply a few items if I had an auction or fundraiser. People are just AWESOME! Support comes in many shapes and sizes. Prayers, especially, are HUGE!

Day 28

Today was a good day. I received a few new donations. I've now reached 23% of my 3 Day fundraising goal. It gives me a boost that if I keep at it, I'll be able to reach my goal and therefore be able to walk in the event. I can't imagine how I'd feel if I couldn't raise enough and couldn't finish what I'd started.

My REAL training will begin in two weeks. I feel like I'm in good enough shape now from my 'pre-training' that I'll be able to get started ... then the walk increases are gradual each week. I don't feel quite as scared and intimidated now, but ask me again in 2 months ... lol.

Day 16

It's a busy Saturday today. Took my daughter this morning and we both got haircuts, then headed over to bring my mom lunch & a cupcake for her birthday. Now I'm sitting at a computer at the library while my daughter prepares study guides for her midterms this week (she's a 9th grader).

I'm going to try and make some progress on entering my email addresses in to the 3 Day database (for my participant page). I going to get started on phase 1 of my fundraising campaign. Phase 2 will involve prepping for the first outside fundraising event. The nice thing about having an event is not only that it raises more money in a shorter period of time, but more importantly it brings people within your community together and creates awareness. It's a win-win situation.

Day 15

Wow, I can't believe that we're already half way through the month of January. Not alot of spare time for walking today, so I decided to wear my pedometer. I've walked nearly 2.5 miles so far just doing normal stuff today. How awesome is that?

Don't think that I wasn't productive though. I did speak with a manager of a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant today about doing a fundraiser for the 3 Day. All I have to do is fill out a form & pick a date ... once it's approved (in about 2 weeks)they'll send me a computer generated flyer with all the information on it. I email it out, hand out paper copies, put it on MySpace or Facebook and I get 20% of ALL revenues that whole day (the customers have to bring their flyer). All they ask is that you try to distribute at least 250 flyers. You know that old shampoo commercial don't you? ... 'you tell 2 friends, and they'll tell 2 friends, and so on and so on and so on'. You'd be surprised how quickly the word can spread. All you have to do is have people download their flyer or have them make more copies and hand them out. Now all I have to do is pick a date! What do you say? Are you getting hungry?

Day 12

They say you've got to start somewhere, so today I sent my first small batch of fundraising emails for the 3 Day Walk For The Cure. I sent 12 emails out at 5:00pm and received my first donation tonight. Thanks Kyle! Every time you get a donation you realize that someone out there believes in you and has chosen to support your cause. It's a wonderful feeling and reinforces your drive that you're doing something with a purpose.

Day Seven

I can't believe it's day 7 already. I had a slow ride home tonight ... the first snow of the year. Of course people drive like it's something new in Michigan and they've never seen it before. I decided to spend the evening with a cup of hot tea and some planning. I got a great idea for a fundraising event today and once I get an idea ... well let's just say 'the pen started flying on the paper with notes'. I get so excited about this kind of stuff. Then I started reading through my walker handbook and the 24-week training schedule. It's alot but you have to start somewhere.

Day Two

Well, it's day two of my journey. Yesterday I worked on compiling a basic list of contacts for the purpose of fundraising letters & emails. It's amazing how many people we know when we start compiling a Christmas card or invitation list. I'm optimistic on the fundraising aspect of this journey, only because I've always been involved fundraising ... whether it was silent auctions at church, PTO bake sales at school, or band booster events. I enjoy that part. The training part, however, is a bit more intimidating to me. I'm 46 years old, not too overweight (although I could easily stand to lose 10-15 pounds), and in relatively good shape. But the idea of walking 60 miles in 3 days is a BIG stretch for me. But I'm looking at it as a challenge and I know that I can be systematic about it and train at a slow and proper pace. Wish me luck.