Nike Women's Marathon

I did it! The Nike Women's Marathon was absolutely amazing. Sorry that I didn't write about it sooner. I've been trying to catch up with everything since I've been back. Friday afternoon, Dani, Lindsey and I arrived in San Francisco. We checked into our hotel and then ventured off to the Nike tent which was just around the corner from our hotel. It was filled will all kinds of random activities... free samples, massages, button-making, etc. We then went to a Top-Fundraisers party and had free drinks and dinner! It was great! We also listened to a lady named Amy speak about her battle with cancer this past year- the similarities between her story and mine were uncanny. It was wonderful to get a chance to meet Amy- she was incredibly inspirational. The reception was a very rewarding experience- thank you for all of your support in helping me get there!

The next morning, we unfortunately went across the street to Starbucks to do school work! Chris flew into San Fran and his aunt picked him and then got us and took us to lunch. We went to a great place on the coast and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Later the 4 of us went on a catamaran for an hour and a half from Pier 39. We sailed around Alcatraz and underneath the Golden Gate bridge. We also saw lots of noisy sea lions. It was quite fun.

That night was our team pasta party. It was insane how many people were there-- over 8,000! And the food was actually tasty! It was time to carbo load so we had lots of pasta and rolls. There were a couple of speakers and we learned that over $18.5 million was raised for the LLS- how awesome is that!!! We made it an early night since the next morning was the marathon and we had to get up bright and early.

Over 20,000 people participated in the marathon, (900 were men) so the streets around 5:30am were packed! There was a DJ there blasting music while we waited to start. Dani, Lindsey and I walked together for the first 7 miles then Dani picked up the pace to she could finish the full marthon in time. Lindsey and I continued going between a 15-16 minute mile pace. Chris found us right before mile 10 and took some pics. He walked with us a little over a mile and cheered us on. It was nice to see a familiar face! He was a great cheerleader.

Lindsey and I finished our 13.1 miles in about 3 hours and 20 minutes which was a-okay with us! We went to the TNT tent and relaxed for a bit and ate lunch. We then got to see Dani cross the finish line a few hours later- it was such a great feeling; seeing so many people there supporting the LLS.

That night was our victory party- somehow a ton of people managed to make it to the dance floor. I'm not quite sure how! We definitely made it through the buffet and then relaxed the rest of the night.

Thank you for all of your support! What a fantastic experience:)

Hello all,
Sorry that it's been so long since my last update. Before I forget, check out these articles:

http://www.upstatetoday.com/news/2007/sep/06/comeback-kid/

http://www.upstatetoday.com/news/2007/sep/06/walk-way

I've been going to the gym more this past week since the last few have been a little busy! With classes, work and football session, things have been pretty hectic but good:) I've reached over $13,500 so far and am totally blown away by everyone's generosity. The marathon is quickly approaching and I'm getting excited. Hopefully I'll be able to make it to a few team walks before we go to San Fran.

My parents are flying in tomorrow for the weekend which should be really fun. Hopefully my poor mama will be able to get around ok. She chipped a bone in her foot playing tennis the other week and isn't supposed to walk for a few weeks :( We're going to the ticket office tomorrow to hopefully get some better seating for the football so she doesn't have to walk up the tons of stairs in the upper deck!

I thought I'd post some pics so everyone can see how my hair is growing in. I just took these a couple minutes ago. I'm slowly but surely developing a mini-fro. I can tell my hair is going to be sooooooo curly. I'll probably look just like my mom in a few months!

So I've decided I'm definitely going to do the half marathon. The training was just too intense for the full. I don't want to wear myself out too quickly. This past week was pretty busy for me. I started working at Debbie Nelson & Associates again and I had my first day of classes. It all went really well. I'm just excited to get my classes over with and graduate in December.

I went to the gym today and did about 3.75 miles. It's still incredibly hot down here all the time, so I haven't walked outside much at all. But I figured as long as I get some walking on the treadmill, I'll be good to go. Thankfully the course in San Fran isn't too hilly. Less than 2 months till the race :) Chris officially decided to come out and cheer us girls on. It should be a fun weekend!

I just got back from spending a week in the Outer Banks with Chris and his huge family. Thankfully I never got too much sun but at least I got a little bit of color. (My skin is super sun sensitive from the chemo so I have to be very careful.) It was very nice to come to the beach and relax. We had great weather all week; a couple of cool looking storms in the late afternoon. The Roeder's always have one theme night during their beach weeks; this year it was a pirate theme. It was pretty funny seeing everyone with eye patches and funky skull and cross bone bandannas.

Training has been a little slow this week! Oops! But when the heat index is in the 100s there is noooo way I'm walking outside; let's be honest, I don't like walking outside if it's over 85. Next week I'll go back to the air conditioned gym and walk on the treadmill. I'm still not sure if I'm going to do the half or full marathon. I'm starting to lean more towards the half. I think I'll need to decide for sure by August 20th because that's when I have a lot of paper work to turn in.

I start classes next Thursday- I cannot believe it! I am really looking forward to graduating in December although I'm still not 100% sure what I'd like to do. I'm thinking I want to try and find a job with the Cancer Center of the Carolinas or the LLS; something like that!

Sorry that it's been so long since I've given an update. Things have been quite busy! I flew up to PA on Saturday and have had 6 Dr. appts in the past 3 days... radiation oncologist, dentist, plastic surgeon, CT scan, oncologist, primary Dr. My CT showed that everything is still looking good and in remission :) All of the appts went relatively well, aside from dealing with stupid insurance crap! It's been nice hanging out with my mom and dad though! This visit has gone by extremely fast.

(The first pictures are me with my adorable little cousins; Daniel & Kelly. A couple weeks ago, Chris and I went to Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia and met up with his best friend from high school and his family. This is a pic of us on the boat at night- thought everyone would like to see my hair growing in a bit!)

Tomorrow I'll fly back to Greenville for a hot second then Chris and I are going to the Outer Banks for the week with his entire family. It should be a good time; normally we only go for a few days, but this time it will be the whole week!

I've been going to the gym probably 4-5 times a week and walking a couple miles each time. I need to start doing longer walks on the weekends but it gets so boring on the treadmill and it is way too hot outside for me! The orthotics have been helping my foot/ankle pain. I'm still getting tired in the afternoons from the radiation but I'm making an effort to work out, cook dinner, clean, etc so I'm not a lazy bum!

Back in Greenville!

My bedroom & Turtle!



My nice & roomy closet!
My bathroom

Dining room area/ Front entrance
Kitchen
Dining room table
Living room (still needs some work!)

Kait, Turtle and I moved into our apartment on Thursday and things have been pretty crazy! Thankfully all of the "big things" are finished and I'm loving the new place. My parents drove down to help me move in. I don't know what I would have done without them. They left this morning and it was very bittersweet:( I'm glad I'm back down here and healthy but we've all become so close that it's sad to think we'll be hours away from each other.

I've been quite the slacker recently when it comes to training. We've just been so busy driving and moving in. Hopefully today I'll get in a few miles. Also, my armpit is extremely sore from the radiation. It's like a really bad sunburn under there :(

Thanks to everyone and their generosity, I was entered to win an iPod Nano & Nike Chip from the TNT and I won!! I'm so excited because the chip goes into your shoe and sends signals to your iPod telling you how far you've walked, your pace, etc! Thanks for all of your support:)

One week till I'm in my new apartment!

Before you read this post make sure to look at the picture I added of the port. I thought most of you have never seen one, so I thought I'd share. I've now made the port into a funky looking key chain :)

Anyway.... I've been getting back to the gym since Monday. I haven't done any really long walks or runs but I've gotten in a few miles here and there, and I've done some lifting. My orthotics are starting to feel a little bit more normal but it's still going to take some getting used to.

Kaitlin and I move into our new apartment in one week!!! We're both super excited and antsy to get in there. My parents and I are starting the drive down right after radiation on Wednesday. We'll get to Greenville sometime Thursday afternoon and start unpacking. It should be interesting having Turtle in the car with us the whole time. She's a trooper though! I really need to start doing some packing and organizing! Thankfully we have a lot of stuff for our place already- we just need a washer/dryer, tv, microwave, etc.... and I need to furnish my entire bedroom. Hopefully that won't take too long to do.

After getting settled, I think I'm going to apply for a job at one the Starbucks around Greenville. I enjoyed my job as barista when I was in highschool and I think it will be a good way to make some money and start living a semi-normal/routine life.

I have almost hit the $10,000 mark- it's soooo crazy!!!! Thank you everyone who has supported me. If I haven't sent you a thank-you yet, I apologize. Things have been crazy around here! My granddad had surgery last week to have a pin put in his hip and my grandma has been staying with us. So on top of going to Mercer for radiation everyday, I've also being going to St. Marys to visit him. Everything is going well though- thanks for all of your support :)