Day 1: And we’re off….

I woke at 3:45 am because my dad drove me and he LOVES breakfast so we stopped, ate and relaxed a bit because I was a disaster. I kept telling my dad I wanted to throw up. My nerves were just a mess! I didn’t know what to expect at all from this and I was very nervous. We headed to downtown Phoenix and arrived around 5:30 am and I immediately felt lost in a sea of pink once I got out of my dad’s car. Everyone had a buddy or an entire group of friends and the panic of signing up for this walk alone set in. I wandered around and put Gloria & Pamm’s name on a board to honor those with breast cancer. Luckily not too long later I found my “team” that I had joined once I met some fun ladies a few weeks prior and done some training walks with them. I was so grateful to have them!! 

 

The opening ceremony was great. The speaker was fantastic and a very motivating. I cheered and cried and off we went! I’ll admit it was a very slow moving day. They said there was about 1450 walkers and we were all trying to leave Park Central Mall in Phoenix at the same time during rush hour traffic. I felt like we were jam packed together for the entire day. But it was just amazing to see how many people were already set up and out cheering us on first thing in the morning. I met Skye around mile 4 who came out to cheer me on before she went to work and then I walked and walked and walked. We went up thru Paradise Valley to Scottsdale. They said it was going to be 22 miles and it turned out to be almost 25 miles. It was a great day though. Between the amazing crew and the supporters, we had music to jam to and it kept up our spirits. I got to camp and was excited to see my tentmate Crissy (and she is a camper so I was excited for her expertise in setting up our tent), I couldn’t find her anywhere and after standing in my tent spot staring at my tent for what seemed like forever, I finally said loudly “I don’t know what I am going to do, I don’t know how to set up a tent” and instantly a young girl  (turned out to be a girl scout) and a lady swooped in and had my tent up in 3 minutes. They were my saving grace!!

The rest of the night is a blur! We decorated our tent (finally found my tentmate who was the last walker in and it’s a big deal! She was having a shin splint and I couldn’t believe she walked 25 miles with that! I was VERY impressed),  I ate a tiny bit of pasta and a roll (because everything else had cheese on it!), showered (and yes they were HOT and clean showers) and at the end of the night, I joined up with 3 other girls who were flirting with the massage guys so we could get a massage after they closed. I think the massages were meant to be 5 minutes yet ours turned out to be over 20 minutes and it was fantastic! Lights were supposed to be out at 9 (I got back from my massage around 9:30) and thank goodness I brought Tylenol PM and ear plugs because West World was hosting a wedding right next to us and it was loud! I slept thru it all and woke up at 5:30 am for Day 2….

Crissy (tentmate), myself & Skye

The porta potty line at the first pit stop. LONG!

Monkeying Around!

Doing the Hula

We learned quickly that a Susan Komen mile was a lot longer than a mile!

MOOOO! These ladies were everywhere and had some great cow jokes!

Awesome Signs!

Maureen, Myself & Valerie. They are sisters who lost their mother to breast cancer when they were 8 & 14.

Every 3 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer

 

We did it! Day 1 is finished. Notice how dark it is? We got in late!

My tent Angels.

Heidi & Karyn putting up their own tent ;-)

T minus 7 days.

This past week has been filled with tears. Everything about this walk from packing to just thinking about it, brings tears to my eyes. I have cried so much and I just can’t stop. I wonder how much I will cry when I am out there experiencing all this. I have been told that this will change my life and that this will change me as a person because it’s an experience like no other. I am looking forward to being a part of it and knowing the money raised for this is going to such a wonderful cause.

Today the Dallas walk began. When I was first considering participating in this walk, my cousin, Stacy, introduced me to her friend Robin. She is a breast cancer survivor. Today she is walking her 6^th 3 day Walk for the Cure!! She was diagnosed with breast cancer on the same day she found out she was pregnant with her 2^nd child and doctors told her that her best chance of recovery was to terminate the pregnancy . She did chemotherapy while pregnant and this year she walked her son into his first day of kindergarten despite the odds being stacked against them. Thank God for that and for the all the research & progress that has been done over the years that made all of this possible.

(If you would like to read Robin’s AMAZING story, please click here):

http://www.dallaschild.com/showarticle.asp?artid=597)

Gear

Gear is the official term for "the amazing amount of crap that walkers have to bring with them". -Anonymous

WHOA! I had NO idea how much Gear I would need for this. I went to a What to Pack Clinic last week and the list they provided me with of “what to bring” was 2 full pages typed! Time to go shopping…

I need everything from a rolling duffel bag, a miniature size sleeping bag that will fit in the duffel bag along with all my other stuff, I need an air mattress, tent decorations, 2 pairs of shoes, 6-9 pairs of socks, flashlights, hats, plus everything else you would normally pack to take a trip. Your bag can only be 35 lbs when it’s all said and done too. Those who know me, know I am known for over-packing so this could interesting. 

Anyone have any packing tips they want to share with me??:-)

What did you do this weekend?

I walked almost 30 miles this weekend! I have NEVER walked so much in my whole life & never thought I would. This was my big training weekend – this weekend we were supposed to walk 18 miles Sat and 15 on Sun. Saturday I went at it alone and could only do around 12 because it gets SO boring after 3 hours of being by myself. Sunday was amazing because I walked with a larger group that is doing the 3 day also. They set up a “mock walk” that was 15 miles with pit stops, a sweep van (it was great having someone drive by you often and honk/wave/cheer you on!), a lunch break, etc. I try not to be, but I am a pretty shy person so walking this alone is a big step for me. I walk into these situations (like Sunday) and panic that I won’t meet anyone and I still have nightmares that I could possibly be walking all 60 miles by myself but it always seems to work out and I meet wonderful people… some of whom I hope to continue a friendship with after this is all over.

And after walking all that… I felt great! A little heel pain while walking day 2 but that happens every weekend to me, some hip pain after sitting at work on Monday but otherwise no blisters, no hot spots, no leg pain! I actually feel like my body can handle this which is fantastic. Of course I do need to give a little credit to the awesome shoes & crazy expensive socks I wear. I will never be able to go back to my Nikes & normal socks again.

24 MORE DAYS!

29 more days....

29 more days until my walk!! I. CANNOT. BELIEVE. IT!! I am sooooo excited and sooooo nervous! It is going to be fantastic, even if I am in complete pain & agony on that 3rd day. I started this walk because of my friend, Gloria who passed away from this horrible cancer and now I am also walking it in my friend Pamm's honor, who is fighting breast cancer right now. So it doesn't matter how much pain I am in that third day because I am doing this for them!

Side note: The Spectator Info on the http://www.the3day.org/ (under the Get Involved tab) is being updated often if you are interested. 2 weeks before the event they will post "Cheering Stations" where you can come out and cheer me on! I will need the motivation and I am begging you to come!  You can also mail me a letter (seriously when was the last time you wrote a real letter, it will be fun! hee hee)! If you have the time, I would love to get one. Here is the information from their website:

Send letters to:
3-Day for the Cure
ATTN: INSERT NAME OF PARTICIPANT

P.O. Box 1089
Chandler, AZ 85244

Envelopes only, please. No boxes or large packages. Mail must be postmarked no later than November 1st in order to ensure delivery at the 3-Day Camp Post Office. Please note: This address is not the actual location of camp, but a PO Box for mail delivery only. Any mail that is not received by the 3-Day by the date above or retrieved by the participant by November 27th will be destroyed

Luv you all!

Team Gloria

Part of our team. Christin, Stacie, Myself, Yolanda, Andrea & Skye

On Sunday I did the Race for the Cure here in Phoenix as I do every year. These days, I laugh at 3.1 miles! That's nothing to me :-)  We have been doing this race since Gloria Myers was first diagnosed with  breast cancer. We have always done the walk in her honor to show her & her family how much we love & support her and in the end, the walk was always a lot of fun too. This was our first year without her and not having her at the finish line waiting on us was hard. It was hard on me so I know it was excruciatingly hard on her daughter Skye who also walks this every year. We got a BIG team this year and we tried to surround Skye with love and we all crossed the finish line together. Gloria would have been proud!!

October is...

Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Just thought you needed to know if you had forgotten :-)

Spread the Knowledge, Stop the Cancer

I feel like when I go on a long walk, I either see something interesting or I meet someone interesting. I have walked down the road with a Rooster & two hens. I am not a fan of Roosters after being attacked by them on a daily basis the year we moved to Arkansas but this one seemed nice enough and I guess he wanted to know where I was headed. Eventually he got bored with me, cock-a-doodle-doo’d, and they moved on. I have even stepped in a group of GIGANTIC cockroaches (I am sure you heard me scream) that must live in a particular spot on a sidewalk and I forgetting they are there so I step in them almost every time. Ick!  Last weekend I took one of my long walks and went into a gas station to “refuel”. The guy saw my hat and thanked me profusely for doing this walk (it was really sweet). He said his grandmother had breast cancer and it was her goal to inform everyone about the disease. She had worked with teenage girls so that they would start doing yearly checks since cancer can affect you at any age. He said she had recently passed away (not from her breast cancer though – she won that battle) and that her motto was “Spread the Knowledge, Stop the Cancer”. She sounded like an amazing woman and I love the line… I might even steal it and put it on a shirt to wear when I’m walking!

Fanny Pack & Flair

A fanny pack & flair are two things that I told myself I would NEVER wear again after the 80's. However here I am strutting my stuff walking down the road with a fanny pack with some flair on it and though I know the cars driving by me are laughing at me, I am still proud to be wearing it!

 

15 week training schedule

Only one rest day now and 16 miles of walking this weekend!? What happened to my nights at home of putting the kids to bed and enjoying a glass of wine?

They have been replaced with lots of walking & lots of cross-training. It's better for my body in the long run right? I do miss my wine though and I'm pretty sure it misses me too :-)

Monday		Rest
Tuesday		3 miles		Easy walking
Wednesday		15 minutes		Moderate cross-training
Thursday		5 miles		Moderate walking
Friday		30 minutes		Easy cross-training
Saturday		10 miles		Easy walking
Sunday		6 miles		Easy walking