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Run For The Cure II: Remission Accomplished

Labels: Family, My Friends, Run for the Cure, The C Word

posted by Lindsay @ 10:55 PM 1 comments

Snapshot

Okay, so I've been slacking on my blog since we got home a week ago. I have a couple of good excuses if you're interested...

We got home and immediately (less than 24 hours from landing in Winnipeg) left Briony with my parents and had a date night: Pizzeria Gusto - of course - and the Keane concert. Awesomeness. It was such a good show, and it's ALWAYS good food. We tried a new appetizer this time, a grilled octopus, and Geoff convinced me to get out of my rut and try a new pizza. I switched from the Waterloo to the Miki, and now I just might need to alternate. Turns out that CHANGE might not be a total disaster every single time :)

And in the spirit of CHANGE, I tried changing up my coffee at Starbucks last week. It caused all kinds of drama and nervousness here... And Geoff mocked me mercilessly. But guess what? I found something I like *more* than my usual. I am now a Double Tall Nonfat Caramel Macchiato, and I'm pretty okay with that.

My mom turned 50 on Tuesday. We celebrated with a surprise party on Sunday that totally and completely caught her off guard (yay!). It was so much fun to have friends and family celebrate with us. It's hard to describe, but this felt like a 'bonus birthday' that we got to spend with her. I'm still a little bit emotional about it. We are so blessed.

We're gearing up for Run for the Cure in a little over a week and a half. Our team has seventeen members, and we've raised over $1,000 so far. Getting to participate in the run at the MTS Centre on October 4 with thousands of other people who care about finding a cure for breast cancer - and seeing the sea of pink t-shirts representing breast cancer survivors - will be icing on the cake. Can't wait to see my mama walking in her pink t-shirt :)

Briony is *so* mobile now. My baby girl isn't feeling very much like a baby anymore. She's a speedy little crawler, and easily pulling herself up on furniture and starting to creep around. Gaaaaaah. We've been busy reorganizing, installing gates, and just generally trying to stay one step ahead of her since we got back.

I've been flared up since we got home. Nothing very serious, just not feeling 100%. My energy level is in the toilet and I've been fighting off pain and stiffness (and a cold) for 2+ weeks now. Blech. I'm waiting for that morning where I wake up and feel a little bit better than the previous day. No luck so far.

I started a new book club on Monday. We're meeting monthly at Starbucks and reading books that are being turned into movies. The very best part? It's a completely random group of women, and most of them didn't know each other before. Out of the eight of us, I met three brand new people on Monday. I don't know if I'm more excited to get to know a couple of new people or to be reading and discussing books with fellow book nerds. Both are pretty fun.

Em and I are apparently going to Keith Urban this weekend. It was kind of a last-minute decision, but I'm starting to get excited about it. I'm not usually a big country music girl (in fact, I mock people who listen to country music) but he's cute and has a bunch of good songs - and can play guitar like nobody's business. Should be a good show. And a fun Girls Night Out, of course.

We had a big day here on Friday. This is going to sound stupid to almost everyone who doesn't live with chronic illness, but I gave my ten month old a bath totally by myself for the first time ever. Geoff was there just in case, but Briony and I did it by ourselves. On a regular basis, it still needs to be Geoff's job - but I can't explain what it means just to know that I can if I need to. It was like this piece of quintessential mommyness that I just needed to feel. It was awesome. Geoff was getting her into her pyjamas after and I was just sitting there beside them and bawling... It was a Moment, one that I will treasure for a very long time.

I'm working! Still a little bit less than my goal, but I have another month or so to get there - and I'm working every day now. I love it. It's incredibly difficult sometimes with a super-active giggly little monkey child on the go around me, but it's a challenge I'm *so* happy to take on.

School started again this past week. I'm taking a Case Studies course - my second last before I graduate from UVic's public relations program next summer. YAY ME.

That's not everything, but it's a pretty decent snapshot.

Now I really need to get some studying done and get dinner started before the lovely B wakes up from her nap. We're a little bit behind on things because I totally blew off EVERYTHING yesterday in order to play with my tiny gigglepuss, and then we met a bunch of other moms and babies for a walk this morning in the gorgeous September sunshine (and met my mom for lunch). Ah well. Such is life. My life, at least :)

Labels: Arthritis/Fibromyalgia, Back to School, Back to Work, Bookworm, Briony, Emily, Family, Going Rogue, Mommy Stuff, My Friends, Run for the Cure, The Boy, The C Word

posted by Lindsay @ 5:02 PM 1 comments

Remission Accomplished

Would you consider sponsoring me for this year's Run for the Cure? We're putting together a team to run/walk in honour of my mom who has spent the last eighteen months fighting breast cancer, and raising money so that other families don't have to walk this road in the future.

Think about it. And if you feel like donating, you can do so here. Thanks in advance - I appreciate it *so* much :)

Labels: Run for the Cure

posted by Lindsay @ 10:36 PM 0 comments

I Need Some Help

We want to make custom t-shirts for Briony and Chloe to wear at Run for the Cure in October, seeing they'll be participating in strollers as opposed to participating in utero this year (and causing their mommies to waddle rather than RUN for the cure)... We're currently trying to decide between two different ideas:

1. My grandma beat breast cancer (and all I got was this lousy t-shirt).

2. Please cure breast cancer before I get boobies.

What do you think? Or do you have a better idea?? :)

PS - Notice how too much blogging totally removes the ability to make your own decisions? hehe

Labels: Run for the Cure

posted by Lindsay @ 7:06 PM 14 comments

Remission Accomplished

Have you done anything lately that makes you feel like you made a difference? No? Well, I can help you change that in under two minutes :)

It's really pretty simple...

Go to the Run for the Cure website.

And now, either...

1. Click to donate to a participant, and support me or my mom (or another member of our team).

OR

2. Register to participate on October 4. You're committing to either paying a small registration fee OR fundraising $150 (it's not that hard) and joining us at the MTS Centre to walk either 1K or 5K (it's *really* not that hard - people, I did the 5K when I was 8 months pregnant). Be sure to sign up under team REMISSION ACCOMPLISHED so you get all the news and details.

There you go... Not so hard, is it? And a pretty nice way to feel like you've done something noteworthy with your Wednesday morning. Because you did :)

I'm really excited about being Team Captain again this year. Last October, we participated in honour of my mom, who was too sick from chemo to be able to come. This year, we're praying that she'll be strong enough to be there and witness this amazing event. I don't really have words for what it feels like to be in the presence of so many breast cancer survivors, and to feel like you're actually DOING something to help support research so that other families don't have to go through the same kind of year we just did (and we were one of the lucky families).

Labels: Family, Run for the Cure, The C Word

posted by Lindsay @ 9:27 AM 1 comments

Clearing Out The Clutter

Last month - a few weeks before we left on our trip - I joined an online friend in a project she started called Be Here Now. The idea was incredibly simple - to live more mindfully and make an effort to be present in every moment. Over the past month or so, I've been making an effort to do exactly that. It has NOT been easy, but the effort has been so worth it.

I've noticed myself being a little less frustrated in situations that would ordinarily have pushed me right over the edge. And I've noticed that each day holds just a little bit more joy - living in the moment forgives a dirty house in favour of some giggle time with a baby, it realizes that a phone call with a friend should be spent sitting with a cup of tea and not folding laundry, and it gives permission to just STOP every once in a while. The funny thing is that I expected my house to become a disaster zone while I 'lived in the moment' and gave up my multitasking way of life. It actually isn't *too* bad. Turns out that focusing on one task at a time is actually quite efficient - who knew.

All this focus on living more mindfully has made me incredibly sick of the clutter in my house and the baggage it represents. And so I'm getting rid of it. The events of this past year - specifically, becoming a first-time mom and helping to support my mom through a fight against breast cancer - have really impacted me. There's nothing like new life and a life-and-death battle to really set you straight and help you figure out your priorities. I realize more than ever that it's people (and not STUFF) that makes my life so valuable. Don't get me wrong... I like stuff. Particularly stuff in the form of books and clothes and shoes. But I'm finding that I really crave a home full of a little less stuff.

And so, I am embarking on a mission to get rid of all the stuff that I haven't touched in a few months. Seriously. I'll never miss it once it's gone. And the best part is that it's going to go to a great cause: the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. We're registered to do Run for the Cure again this year, in honour of my mom. And I'm planning a yard sale for sometime in June to kickstart our fundraising efforts. Anything that doesn't sell is getting packed up at the end of the day and taken straight to MCC.

For me, this clean-up of my house is also a clean-up of my heart. I want to be surrounded by people I love, not just stuff that I love. I'm really excited :)

Want to join me?

**UPDATE: We have tentatively selected Saturday, June 6 as our 'Yard Sale for the Cure' date.

Labels: Be Here Now, Chronic Babe, Run for the Cure, Yard Sale

posted by Lindsay @ 2:17 PM 3 comments