Third Time's A Charm

Pink balloons, lively music and tents on the lawn would seem like a carnival to an untrained eye, but this spectacular sprawl is apart of the annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure hosted at Meredith College in Raleigh. This was my third year running in the competitive 5k, and it never gets old. I train hard to break my personal record in this slightly hilly route, but what keeps me coming back is the people and their stories.

I arrived early Saturday morning to warm-up and drop-off our Team Vend Raleigh t-shirt for the team shirt contest. I was met by a race volunteer who directed me to the team t-shirts that were to be displayed on a clothes-line set-up between a few stately Oak trees. The volunteer inquired about our shirt, asking about Vend Raleigh and FitTriangleMom.com. I explained to her our partnership, me blogging about being a mom and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, and Cary Heise supporting other mompreneurs through Vend Raleigh. She was intrigued with our outreach towards moms, but she was most impressed with our t-shirt sponsors that helped us raise $210 that went directly to Susan G. Komen. Her face lit-up and her eyes sparkled as she gave me a high-five. "I'm a survivor," she said to me. "Awesome," I replied. It was then and there that I remembered why I run this race. I run for the survivors, the ones fighting and to remember others.

You don't have to listen to someone's story to know why someone is running or walking in the race. Many participants pin pink papers on their backs with either "in celebration" or "in memory" of tags. I saw one woman celebrating herself and her husband celebrating his wife; another in memorial to Mee-Maw.

Fellow teammate, Pamela Nogle of It Works! wanted to share her incredible experience. "Thousands... I mean thousands of people walked in support," said Nogle. I felt blessed to be part of the walk and humbled to know many were walking in honor of loved ones.. many were walking to support loved ones and many were survivors."

The race might be over, but the fight for a cure against breast cancer continues. You can still donate to our team and all the proceeds will fund Susan G. Komen. Visit Donate to Team Vend Raleigh.

A special thanks Green Pea Baby & Child, Inked Custom Apparel, Triangle Chiropractic & Rehabilitation, Hedoe Paper, It Works! Pamela Nogle, Mickey World Travel, Fitness 19 Cary, and North Raleigh Family Eye Center for sponsoring our t-shirts.

Summer Break, Sorta.

It feels like forever since my last post, and I feel like I do a million things everyday except writing. The kids are out of school, and we stay busy all day, everyday.  I like it that way, I like to keep busy, and the kids like to have fun. School begins in July (year-round school), and my oldest will start kindergarten. So we are packing in the fun. We are going to museums, the pool, parks and the library. We've been exploring our town and taking pictures of new fun spots. I've started posts about the places we've found, but our busyness has left them dangling.

My exercising and training has been kicked into high gear with a 5k right around the corner. I've sworn off sweets and wine, and drastically cut back on carbs. Yea, I've been eating clean. I go to the gym at least 3-days a week and workout at home on my non-gym days. I have found some great resources to keep me motivated.

• The Tone It Up Bikini Series offers free videos & print outs, encouragement and prizes for check-ins.
• The 30-day squat challenge
• The 400/month burpee challenge my gym, Fitness 19 is doing. It's about 14 burpees a day
• Running 2-3 miles a couple times a week

I also took a fun kickboxing class at Excel Fitness and did one-on-one kickboxing with a trainer at my gym. Mixing up your workouts make it fun too.

Not only am I physically training for this race, but I am the team captain. I have been coordinating team members, sponsors and the team t-shirt. I'm super excited about the race. I love how Susan G. Komen makes this race a celebration for survivors and a memorial for the fighters.

I hope to have some down time after the race, Father's Day and vacations, then maybe I can finish writing about our museum trip. So here's to a busy summer of fun. May you stay active, eat healthy and have FUN!