Counting, counting, counting: 380 right now!

For someone who really stinks at math (I still count on my fingers), I've been pretty obsessed with counting lately:

1) Seven weeks
That's how many weeks we have left until the walk. Seven weeks from tonight, I will be sitting in a hotel room, getting myself psyched up to walk 20 miles a day for 3 days. (Actually, since it's 10 p.m., I'm really hoping that I'll be comfortably snoozing away, dreaming about all the wonderful things we're going to see and do over the next three days!)

2) 41 miles
That's how many miles I'm supposed to get in for my training next week. And did I mention we're on vacation, up north? Not sure that 41 is going to be the magic number, but I did pack an extra bag with just walk stuff, and we're planning to spend some time getting in some good mileage.

3) 380 dollars.
That's how much I have left in my personal fundraising goal. That's it! I have raised $1,920 of the $2,300 minimum required to walk. And I've done it in personal donations. I'm so incredibly thankful to the 32 friends and family who have made a direct, personal donation in support of my efforts to walk with Stef this year.

So here's my question: Are you one of them? Could you be one of them? I only have seven weeks left to raise $380. This time, it's for me. Stef and I have been kicking butt in our team fundraising. I'm not worried about not being able to walk... we'll both meet our minimum and then some. But right now, for the first time, I'm realizing that I could do this. I can raise $2,300 in personal donations, because the people I call my friends are kind, generous, supporting, loving people. And for that, I'm eternally grateful.

9 weeks and counting ...

When I registered for the 2011 Susan G Komen 3-Day for the Cure, I had 51 weeks to prepare. With fewer than 9 weeks to go before the event kicks off, I'm a bit bipolar about it ... I'm really excited about our fundraising progress, but there's also a little bit of anxiety setting in... walking 20 miles a day for 3 days doesn't seem any more likely 15 weeks into my training regimen!

So to stave off panic, I'll focus on the positive:

• We're officially done with our fundraising events for this year! Saturday night we worked our last Tigers concession stand, and had a blast. The weather turned out great, and I had a lot of fun. Thanks to the hard work of our "Tigers Team," we had a high sales night. Early tabulations on our part show we should make close to $800!
• The event information has been posted! I'm excited to see the event info officially posted online. We'll be kicking off the walk at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi (formerly known as the "Rock Financial Showplace), camping at Rotary Park in Livonia, and celebrating during Closing Ceremonies at Ford Headquarters in Dearborn. 

So save the dates ... you're invited to a cheering station on Friday, Saturday or Sunday (Aug. 12, 13 & 14), and you're welcome to come to the Closing Ceremonies to celebrate with us. More details on that to come!

Finally, with the event info posted, they've also shared a fun way you can show your support to Stef and I during the walk: Send us a note of encouragement! There's a "post office" at camp, where we can retrieve mail. (They specifically say "no packages," so I'm guessing the fifth of Captains is out...) If you send something postmarked by Aug. 3, we'll have it at the walk. You can send mail to:

3-Day for the Cure PO

ATTN: Jennifer Carbary (or Stefanie Smith)

P.O. Box 611

South Lyon, MI 48178

And with that, I'm feeling pretty good. We're back walking this week, and I'm back at the gym (working on cardio ... walking's hard when it's hot!). The kids are out of school on Thursday so we're heading up to the lake for a long weekend, which will include some long walks... 60 miles in 3 days? I'll get there ....

Some days, life just gets in the way

My training has been a bit stalled the past two weeks, and I struggle with that ... On the one hand, I feel bad that I'm not getting in as much walking as I should be, but on the other hand, there are just some things that take precedence. On the third hand.... oh wait, I only have two hands. That's probably the problem.

It reminds me of the story often told, about "filling your jar with rocks."  You know how it goes ... if you don't figure out a way to fill the jar with the big rocks first (the high priority stuff) and then the little pebbles, you'll never fit it all in.

And this past week, it's been about the big rocks. I had some  health issues that precluded me from doing a lot of walking last weekend, and this week we're completely occupied with other activities ... namely the kids' dance recital (including dress rehearsal and two recitals) and our final Tigers game concession gig on Saturday. (When I looked at the schedule, it's insane ... dance class on Tuesday, dress rehearsal Wednesday, recital on Thursday, work function on Friday, dance recital on Saturday morning, then Tigers game Saturday afternoon. Ugh, I'm tired just writing it.)

So, training has taken a back seat this past week. This week, other life factors are my "big rocks." They're filling my jar completely. And I'm OK with that. 'Cuz they're really darn cute, and I love them a ton.