Glam Easter Eggs

Happy Good Friday/Easter Weekend!

I want to share a fun Easter egg decorating project Jon and I just completed. We were invited to Easter Sunday by some friends of ours and I wanted to make some simple parting gifts. What better gifts to give on Easter Sunday than Easter eggs?!

Our set-up include every possible dye color, egg trays (dishwasher safe from Bartell Drugs), electrical tape, hole puncher (for polka dots!), and of course beer.

I had some leftover gold and copper leaf from a project, and with a little bit of food dye, some Martha Stewart and Pinterest inspirations we had some awesome results.

 

Day before the race! #TNTWhidbey

Today is the day before our big day. I'm not going to lie it felt awesome to sleep in today.
Jon was gracious enough to drive Andrew and myself to/from the race. As is everything in life Murphy's Law was in full effect and did not disappoint us today :-).

First it started with the cadence of getting ready. Despite getting up at 10 a.m. Today we were still over an hour late picking up Andrew in Kirkland. We also have to deal with Mercer St being closed for part of the way to I5 due to construction and the 520 bridge closure.We made pretty good time heading to the ferry terminal. And only had a half hour wait before we got in the ferry queue.

Then we got the announcement that one of the ferries had electrical issues and that delayed are arrival by a half hour. We landed at Clinton a few minutes after 6, dashed to check in to our bed and breakfast,  and then drove into Oak Harbor to pick up our race bid numbers.

We were nearly an hour late to the team dinner, but they graciously greeted us with smiles, and hot pasta! Coach Erica was our inspirational speaker and shared how she started her fundraising with TNT and her sister's battle with a rare form Lymphoma. It was another great reminder of the impact and power that comes to change lives when people come together.

After the dinner and advice from the Washington and Alaska chapter coaches we decorated our TNT Jerseys for the race. Here is a photo of Jon's cheer signage and our run jerseys.

We then picked up some snacks and water at the local Safeway and headed back to our bnb to relax and play some Five Crowns. Logging off now. Feel free to send all your supports through Facebook and twitter using our hashtag #TNTWhidbey!



Mission Mile Run- Sammamish River Trail

Saturday was the last Team in Training run before the half marathon event. We met that morning at Red Hook Brewery in Woodinville. For the Whidbey Island Half/Marathon runners we ran for about 80 minutes. Our Nike half marathon counterparts had their longest run that day.

Everyone gathered at the Sammamish River Trail that runs behind the brewery. We started our run with a very powerful, and emotional mission mile. The mission mile is a Team in Training tradition. The first "mile" has photos of loved ones, friends, and LLS patients posted on opposite sides of the trail. We start out in a silent walk to honor those we know who have lost to blood cancer as well as survivors who are here because of treatments funded by LLS. I only took one photo because I thought it was really awesome but was also trying to be respectful of the tradition.

Mission Mile at Red Hook Brewery

It was another very real moment for me that this isn't about the physical endurance and breakthroughs I'm making in my training or even the fundraising. It really is being a small part of something bigger- saving lives and giving hope. Below is another photo of the trail. The start of the run was very emotional, yet serene and beautiful at the same time.

 

 

I hit the turnaround point (about 40-45 minutes in) and began making my way back to our starting point. The mission mile the run was just as powerful as the beginning. The captains wrote inspirational phrases on the trail and the faces of the cancer patients and survivors still lined the trail cheering you on.

 

 

Towards the end I had to stop running. I was sobbing uncontrollably, embarrassed, and frankly stunned how much mission mile had made this real for me. One of my team mates Valerie and I stood hugging  and telling each other how proud we were of the team, our fundraising efforts, and training.  To date our Spring team has raised over $150,000!

Every dollar makes a difference. If you haven't yet donated please take a moment to make a generous donation on my fundraising page.

My next blog I'll be sharing real time updates from my half marathon this weekend at Whidbey Island!

Leaving All Doubt Behind

A quick little note before I get on with my work day. I want to share with you my new motivational phrase that practically fell in my lap today :).

A few weeks ago our TNT newsletter encouraged runners to find ways to stay motivated and get through mental toughness. I find it useful to re-read the past newsletters because I always notice something I've overlooked or missed reading. The goal of choosing a word or phrase is to help dilute any negative thought, help propel you forward, and inspire you to keep going. And then you put it on repeat and do it again!

I've been re-reading Om from the Mat by Dana Damara during my home yoga practice. Dana is an amazing and inspiring yoga instructor. I was fortunate enough to take a class from her during Wanderlust last summer. She had a lot of wonderful phrases and passages for meditation to deepen your yoga practice and grow spiritually. I was finding it difficult to find a mantra to calm my busy mind when I'm running and as much as I love Dana, it wasn't quite working for me. I guess I find running energizing and not relaxing :).

I was running at the gym going through my mental checklist of to-do's for the day it hit me: Leave All Doubt Behind. It was one of several inspirational phrases posted on the wall by the elliptical and treadmill machines. It's cheesy, but I'm sure the gym designer must have known most people feel like hamsters on a wheel!

I won't go too deep on this, but as I was running I mentally transitioned from pre-stressing about my day to pondering what does it mean to leave all doubt behind for me?

For me it means several things. It means having faith. Taking chances. Going with your gut. Having confidence. But most importantly doing your own thing and having your own perspective on life.

There's never a right time to add something else to your plate. But if it's something your passionate about and you want to have fun with why, not? A colleague of mine is coming back from a three-month sabbatical traveling all over the world, and her post on Facebook really resonated with me today when I saw my new mantra on the wall today:

"If you put your mind to what's important in your life and make a plan to get it or there, anything is possible"

The context of my colleague's post was to not make excuses for not traveling because she was able to find a way to make her dreams a reality. But I think this can apply to any situation, goal, or aspiration. Today try to find one thing you would normally doubt yourself on and make a plan for getting it done!