Cancer Blows

Let me just start by stating the obvious--Cancer Blows.  My favorite line from an upcoming breast cancer awareness movie trailer goes "I hate my thighs!  Why couldn't I have thigh cancer?"  Now that's what I'm talkin' about....
But October is all about the Tatas.  And it's always one heck of a month for me--#1 My husband travels a great deal of October for work every year.  #2 I'm bombarded by pink & the awareness of that little "c" word that has followed my family around for the past 5 years.

I've learned a few things since that day--July 7, 2006.

• Doctors are not perfect.
• Go with your gut.
• Peace of mind is a great reason to do whatever you think you should do.
• You ARE worth it.
• You DO deserve the best care.
• 2nd opinions are not luxuries.
• You know your body best.
• People will listen if you say it out loud.
• You're never "not at risk".

I fought back in 2006 with a bilateral mastectomy & then followed my doctors orders at my 1 month post-op appointment, even when I questioned his advice.  Eighteen months later, when the cancer was discovered again & that same doctor insisted that the pathology reports were wrong and he was right...I fought again for a 2nd opinion.  When that 2nd opinion agreed to further treatment, I fought for 2 more years through 6 more surgeries.  

And now I fight to get the word out.  My 8 year old daughter came to me concerned because she felt "something" in her breast a couple weeks ago.  She was so worried.  She's been listening.  It was nothing.  But why is only an 8 year old hearing our fight?  Everyone needs to take charge & not be afraid to own their own health.  

This will be my 4th year walking in the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer 3 Day walk--60 miles over 3 days.  We raise thousands of dollars every year as a team.  Along the way to our fundraising goal, we're educating--passing along the important information of breast awareness.  One of our favorite events is our Save the Ta-tas poker tournament.  

If loving Ta-tas is wrong, I don't wanna be right.

Totally Tubular Ta-tas

This event brings friends together to raise money for important breast cancer research.  Everyone comes in their favorite Save the Ta-tas gear & our winner picks out a t-shirt from www.savethetatas.com as their prize.  That purchase from the Save the Ta-tas site also generates funds that are donated back to research for breast cancer.  While I know that I am very open about my surgeries, my scars & my resulting "ta-tas", the gear we have purchased from the Save the Ta-tas site (everything from t-shirts/tank tops to bracelets & car magnets) provides my husband & me a way to keep the topic in the forefront of every one's minds, even when it's NOT pink October!   You can't help but smile when someone sees my husband's bracelet --I love (.Y.)--and they get it!  (Btw, one lucky fan will be receiving one of these tshirts to have for your very own.....just leave a comment on this entry & I'll choose one winner!)



Save a Life.  Grope your wife.

Princess Ta-tas & Ta-tas make me happy.

It's a simple fact that cancer blows.  For me, breast cancer happens to be the cancer that hits too close to home.  Do what you can to support a great cause--pink ribbons are pretty, but www.savethetatas.com makes them fun too!  

Done.

I did it & I'm done.  I finished my 2nd ever 5K this weekend at the Baltimore Running Festival with the CT5K team & my sweet friend Michelle. 

Friday night I took the kids up to Michelle's house for a sleepover so we could slip out at 5am, leaving the children & Dennis sleeping.  We had a wonderful dinner & then stayed up catching up on all things mom/wife/friend since it's just been too darn long since we've been able to just chat.  Tho, it probably would've been smarter to hit the bed earlier than we did.

Saturday we made the trek to Baltimore in the cold, dark morning.  And met up with the CT5K team--including my sherpa, Colleen, who I was meeting for the first time that morning.  The running festival scene was a little overwhelming for me as I'm so new to the running world.  But having a friendly face & a confident sherpa by my side made for a relaxed atmostphere.

I had a shorter training season this time plus surgery mid-season with some time off from running, so I wasn't sure what I even expected to be able to accomplish.  Ultimately, just like in the spring, I wanted to run the whole thing without walking, but beating my time was a nice idea too.  After a couple of very challenging but accomplished training sessions last week, I knew I had it in me to run the whole thing without walking...even if sllllooooowwwwwww.  

Unfortunately, I awoke to my stupid period & cramps that stopped me in my tracks.  And I don't do mornings--in case you don't know that about me.  My body doesn't function quite right in the morning.  I don't know if there are races that start at 3pm or 6pm....Joel's idea was for me to wake up at midnight & then by 8am it will feel like the afternoon to my body?  Dunno if that's the answer either....BUT, I didn't have a choice.  It was morning.  It was the first day of my period.  I had cramps.  And I was running.

I won't bore you with the details (tho, I have written them out, so if you're interested, let me know), but here are some highlights of my 3.1 miles...the first mile was a HILL.  We already knew this because Coach Bob had lined out the whole route for me ahead of time.  I was mentally prepared but it still sucked.  There were a couple of pretty funny shirts that gave me a distraction & a good laugh mid-race--one said on the back "If you're reading this, I'm in front of you."  And as we PASSED her, my sherpa Colleen said "Not anymore!" HAHAHA!  In the final mile a mother passed US with a couple of elementary age kids & made the comment to them about how proud she was that they were running the whole thing & not walking.  When a man on the sidelines shouted that we couldn't let a kid pass us, I shouted back that I'd win this whole race if I could bottle up the ENERGY of an elementary age kid!  I think I've figured out that kids have so much energy because they SUCK IT all from their MOMS!  And in the final .2 miles, I ran so fast that I honestly had no control of my legs anymore.  I just wanted to be done.  Done.  Done.

Funny, within about 5 minutes of finishing, we were already talking about "our next race".  I've experienced this before--Day 2 of walking 60 miles as I'm sitting in the rain trying to eat my soggy lunch & I'm tired, sore, cranky & cold and I tell my team "Remind me of DAY 2 if I EVER mention walking this 3 Day thing again!"  Yeah, that was 2 years ago....

So here we are, 2 days post race.  I am officially registered for my next 5K in December (it's called the Hot Chocolate 5K, seriously, who wouldn't sign up for that one???).  I have 2.5 weeks till we start our 3 Day journey in Dallas TX with my team, Jenny's Army of Angels.  It's Breast Cancer Awareness month--funny how getting cancer is the ultimate reason I have started doing any of this & I'm getting healthier as a result.  Training continues....stay tuned!

Thought for Today...

Countdowns....

We have multiple countdowns going on at my house right now...

Countdown to Race Day--3 days

Countdown to End of Tour--2.5 weeks

Countdown to 3 Day Walk--3.5 weeks

So...we've got a lot of things on the calendar right now.  But first on the list is Race Day--Saturday!  AH!  This one kinda snuck up on me.  I finished my CT5K training in the spring, ran my goal race (and finished it!!) in June, then immediately had surgery & 6 week recovery...which turned into a summer long recovery.  We hit the pavement again in August but this training season has been a tad shorter for me because of another surgical procedure which kept me from running for 2 weeks and the fact that my goal race is 3 weeks earlier than the rest of my team!  I will be starting Day 3 of my 60 mile walk on the morning that the NoVA/DC Cancer to 5K team races.  This Saturday with HoCo and Baltimore CT5K it is....

"I often hear someone say I'm not a real runner. We are all runners, some just run faster than others. I never met a fake runner."--Bart Yasso

This quote made me laugh because you all have heard me say that more than once.  I am not a fast runner & as Coach reminds me, I am not getting graded.  But as much as I deny it, I am a runner.

Saturday I will be running with a group of cancer survivors & volunteers all of whom are complete strangers to me.  But, even as nervous as I am, it can't possibly be more scary than having someone tell you that you have cancer--or that you have cancer AGAIN, right? 

Well, I'm excited to see what my body can do Saturday--after our mid-season 12 minute test just 2 weeks ago, I already know that I can do more than I thought I would at this point with all my set backs.  I am also beyond thrilled that my dear friend, M.H., will be running by my side!  It's quite a relief knowing there will be a friendly face to cheer me on for however long it takes me to get thru the course.  Ultimately I want to finish the race without walking--but it sure would be great to beat my June time....we'll see what happens. 

3 days to go..................

Big Ol' Wagon

 Joel sent this picture to my phone during dinner last night. 

 I showed the kids & Jamison looked confused. 

"How did Daddy get so tiny?" 

Lessons Learned

This weekend we watched the movie Soul Surfer--the story about the surfer whose arm was bitten off by a shark & she still continues to surf.  I wanted my girls to get the message about not letting anything get in the way of following & achieving your dreams.  I wanted them to see that they could make anything happen if they wanted it bad enough.  I wanted them to know that they are in control of what they do with their life & only they can make it happen.  You know, all that "feel good" stuff that these movies are about, right?

As the credits were rolling, I told the girls "See, wasn't that great?  You can do anything--you just have to want it & believe you can!"  And then I asked them what lesson they learned from the movie.

My sweet Josie Mae--without any hesitation or even a crack of a smile--says with all the seriousness in the world..."I learned that I am not gonna put my arm in the water if I'm in the middle of the sea."

I laughed till I had tears rolling down my face.  That's not exactly what I'd hoped she would get from the film...but she's 6, so what can I expect.  Especially when I told her dad her reaction and all he said was "That makes sense to me."  Ahhhhhhh.......