Reese's Run

My participation with the Joints in Motion Training Team is not new to most of you but now I can announce that I am officially participating in the Barbados event in December with Marci!  We are really excited to do this and I am extremely humbled that Marci has chosen this event to give back to running.  The fundraising is daunting but having already completed my first marathon, I feel more excited than ever for the event!  

March is Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis Awareness month so it fitting that we commence our campaign today.  For most people, arthritis in children is unheard of.  My husband and I didn't even know how to react when we first heard the diagnosis as we had no idea what that meant for a 2 year old who is growing every day.  We have had ups and downs and the future is unknown but as of today, we have a happy, busy little 3 year old thanks to the efforts of her doctors and treatments that didn't exist even a few years ago.  This is why I participant with Joints in Motion because it is all I can do to continue the research and advancements not only for Reese but all the other loved ones who suffer from chronic pain.  

Below is an article posted by the Arthritis Society of Canada:

Affecting about 1 in 1,000 Canadians under the age of 16, juvenile arthritis (JA) is a leading chronic disease among kids in this country. The Arthritis Society uses Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month in March to heighten awareness of this disease and to raise much-needed funds for research that will find better treatments and, ultimately, a cure.

“Arthritis is a crushing reality for many children in Canada; it’s not just their parents or grandparents who are at risk,” says Dr. Brian Feldman, Vice Chair of The Arthritis Society’s Medical Advisory Committee and a paediatric rheumatologist at The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. “The course of juvenile arthritis is unpredictable. Painful flare-ups may occur without warning and the child has to undergo a rigorous, time-consuming and sometimes unpleasant treatment program.”

Juvenile arthritis is the result of the body’s immune system not working properly. The immune system fails to recognize healthy body tissue and attacks it. Symptoms include excruciating pain and inflammation in the joints. Depending on the severity of the arthritis, some children experience irregular growth or physical disability.

The rest of the article can be found at the following link.

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT

In order to kick off our fundraising for the marathon, Marci and I are hosting a virtual race to raise money for the Arthritis Society.

Here are the details:

What:  Reese Run:  4 Mile Virtual Race

When:  April 24^th, 2009

Registration:  $10.00 minimum donation (feel free

 to donate more if you can!)

Prizes: Great prizes

Early bird prize (Register before March 24^th)

First male

First female

On April 24th, Reese will turn 4 years old.  She has decided that for her 4th birthday she wants to have a Floor Hockey party!  This makes us very happy as less than 2 years ago she couldn't climb the stairs.  To celebrate this, we are hoping that everyone will participate in the event and pass the banner and link on to others that may want to so as well!  Below is the link for the fundraising page:

REGISTER HERE FOR REESE'S RUN

We hope to have great success with our event and welcome your thoughts.  Thank-you for posting on your blog if you can and we are excited to see the results!   

Run for Reasons

Some fun news! Actually, two things are fun in the Run Mommy house...

Joints in Motion: I had a fantastic experience participating in the WDW marathon weekend in January and it was very fulfilling to participate with the Joints in Motion Training Team. Obviously we have a personal reason to participate with this group but I would put it out there for all to consider. There are so many great reasons and organizations out there and I have no doubt that people want to do things like this for issues close to their heart. However, you might know someone who suffers from arthritis or other autoimmune diseases or perhaps it is even something that you yourself have experienced. Maybe you have considered participating for a cause but don't have one that is of high importance to you. The Arthritis Society does not necessarily have the same level of exposure as other groups do so they could use your help. To stay in theme with my previous post - It is a great way to make your running feel exceptional. If you don't know someone that could be your hero for the cause.. I happen to have a great little fair-haired arthritis hero for you to borrow.... :)

I have decided to participate in the Barbados Marathon event with the The Arthritis Society (Canada) JIM team. I am sure the Arthritis Foundation (US) does something similar as we saw a lot of team shirts at WDW. The Barbados event is in December 2009 so there is plenty of time to get registered and raise the funds. Trust me when I say that you will have a very fun time. Marci is in too....right Marci???

Second fun order of business... My better half has decided to train and run his first half marathon! I am very excited because I really wanted this sport to be something that could do together. I know there are significant limitations to this because of his long work hours, travelling schedule and the fact there are few times we can run together with two little kids. However, I really want to encourage him. The best part - we are going to Walt Disney World again!!! Him and I are going to go back to Disney in Jan 2010 because he wants his first race to be there too. We are both going to run the 1/2 marathon and I may toss around the Goofy...we will see. This time we are going to try and sneak away for the weekend WITHOUT the kids but going to WDW without our kids might be some very bad parenting. Unless we don't tell them... :)

Fun times all around! Now if only I could get rid of this nagging pain coming back to my foot.

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

Here we go! Today I am working then packing, organizing and fretting over details but tomorrow we are off! Children have counted to the sleeps to 1 and I believe I spent more money in the last 2 days then a few months ago when we actually paid for our trip.

Thanks to everyone for all the encouraging words and now all I can do is go and do it! I pray I don't let anyone down and that we have a perfect family vacation.

Good luck to all others running Disney this weekend and if you see a blond woman wearing a lime green singlet that says "Joints and Motion" and a hat that says " Reese's Runners" , who may or may not be in motion at the time - feel free to kick her in the butt and say "Get MOVING!" :)

Inspiration Mile

I have talked about this in the past but I thought this was worth posting.  As everyone know, I am running in Disney with the Joints in Motion training team.  I am running for my 3 year old daughter who was diagnosed last year with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis.   I am in the final stretch for fundraising so I put this out there for anyone still interested in sponsoring me at  Run for Reese !  

That aside, I have also been asked to speak at the reception and tell our story.  While I am not a fearful public speaker, I have really struggled on what to say??  I don't want it to be a quiet sad story and I also want to be sure to talk about running a marathon - not just arthritis. I have been asking around for ideas and have several people send me little quotes, jokes etc...about running and I thought I would post but a few of my favourites for all my blog friends!  

If you want to win something, run 100 metres.  If you want to experience something, run a marathon. - Emil Zapotek

Most people run a race to see who is the fastest.  I run a race to see who has the most guts.  - Steve Prefontaine

You have to forget your last marathon before you try another.  Your mind can't know what's coming.  -Frank Shorter

We can't all be hero's.  Someone has to sit on the curb and clap as we go by. 

- Will Rogers

The advantage to exercising everyday is that you die healthier 

- Anonymous

Michael Johnson, the Olympic gold medal runner, was on his way to a club with some friends. At the door, the bouncer turned to him and said: "Sorry, mate, you can't come in here - no denim". Michael was quite annoyed at this and retorted: "Don't you know who I am? I'm Michael Johnson".  The bouncer replied "Then it won't take you long to run home and change, will it?" 

Last year I entered the "New York City marathon". I finished last. It was embarrassing. And the guy who was in front of me, second to last, was making fun of me. He said, "Hey buddy, how does it feel to be last?". I replied: "Do you want to know?" and I dropped out.

The difference between a mile and a marathon is that a mile is like burning your finger and a marathon is like being slow roasted over coals.

Most men take the straight and narrow. A few take the road less traveled. I chose to cut through the woods."

Runners just do it - they run for the finish line even if someone else has reached it first. 
  - Unknown

Some individuals dream of great accomplishments, while others stay awake and do them. 
  - Beth Lukens, Florida State runner

Everyone is an athlete. The only difference is that some of us are in training, and some are not. 
 - Dr. George Sheehan

If I am still standing at the end of the race, hit me with a board and knock me down, because that means I didn’t run hard enough. 
  - Steve Jones

Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever. 
  -Lance Armstrong

Marathoning is like cutting yourself unexpectedly.  You dip into the pain so gradually that the damage is done before you are aware of it. Unfortunately, when the awareness comes, it is excruciating.          - John Farrington, Australian marathoner

I welcome any other thoughts, jokes, top 10 lists..anything I can put into my speech so I don't sound like a total cornball.  It will be hard enough to be a room full of people running for something that is so important to us and I think I would rather have an uplifting and positive story to tell the night before running the longest thing I have ever done in my life. Don't you agree?  :)

-      

My Joints are in Motion

As most know, I am participating in with the Joints in Motion training team with the Arthritis Society. It is a wonderful way to participate in an international event and raise money for something that affects all ages (as we have discovered). This week, I received a call from the organization asking me to be the speaker at the reception and to tell our story. This is a great honour but also very intimidating! I am not a fearful public speaker but I am not normally speaking about things so close to home. Now I will train for my race and practice my speech!

I know a lot of people run for a wide variety of reasons but I recommend that everyone do something like this at least once. There are lots of other organizations that offer a similar opportunity such as the Diabetes Association among others. My husband, kids and parents are all coming so it may be costing us a truckload of $$ but we haven't even given that as much thought as we might have for other trips. It is a great experience and I am getting more and more nervous!

2 Months To Go

Tomorrow is it officially two months until my marathon in Disney.  While I have not fully recovered from my PF injury - I am sucking it up and moving on.  I have a great coach with the Joints in Motion team and he has been really thorough on helping me get back to it.  

I don't normally summarize my training plan for the week (usually out of shame) but here it is:

Monday - 5km

Tuesday - running rest but doing Body Attack class at work (learning to instruct)

Wednesday - 8km (this is also tennis night but I think I may cancel for this week because hubby is away and getting a sitter is impossible)

Thursday - rest

Friday - 4-5 km

Saturday - 6km

Sunday 12km (followed by my traditional Sunday spree at the bulk barn where I endulge on very healthy and nutritious items - that happened to be dipped in chocolate.  Come on...you know you do it to). 

I know I should be much higher on Sunday but as this is my first full week back to running post injury, we thought keeping it lower would be best.  Next week I make a bigger jump and the week after that (provided all is well) we are back on schedule.  I was originally planning for 4:30 but now I just want to finish.  Besides, the trip is already hit our VISA and the kids told Nana they wanted "Mickey Money" for Christmas.  NO turning back now!

On the upside, I have raised $6,300 for the Arthritis Society so far.  It is a little lower than the $10,000 we had dreamed of but higher than my original goal of $4,000.  Do you think if I don't finish, people will want a matching percentage of their money back?? :)