Have a little Faith

I saw my patient, Faith, the other day. She came in for her 6 week check up, after delivering Colin in March. She and the baby looked great! I made sure to snuggle him and spoil him as much as possible before I had to run to see another patient. He has a full head of brown-ish hair (maybe borderline red-ish) and his hands are really big (maybe training for the 76ers?). Faith said that Chris is feeling well. He's finally finished with his lumbar punctures (13 in all) and will have to follow up with oncology every couple of months for a while, but his prognosis is excellent. This is really a new beginning for their new family. Faith told me that they found out about Chris' diagnosis right around the time they discovered they were expecting Colin, so it was a really hard time. But I think she and Chris both feel like the birth of the baby is also a re-birth for them as well! We pray that the Lymphoma will continue to stay in remission, and someday, it's nothing more than history. I am so happy for the 3 of them as they get their "fresh start"!

I promised I would call them from the finish line in San Diego! Let me know if you want to be on the list as well!

Our trip is coming up so fast! We have our "dress rehearsal" this weekend. I will complete the Half Marathon (13 Miles) and Dan will be doing 20 miles. Our friend Beth said she did her 20 miles last weekend and "only wanted to die a little bit" at the end. I think for all of us, it's not necessarily fatigue that gets us, but the little aches and pains that happen along the way. The muscles in back of my knees start to ache at around 8 miles, and sometimes my heels ache as well. Beth said her left foot tends to ache during the longer miles as well. I still get blisters after a long walk- though not NEARLY as bad as in the beginning. It must just be the way I walk, because I have the special (read "expensive") socks and the running shoes, and I apply Aquaphor beforehand... I thought about scheduling my post-marathon pedicure for the Weds. after we get home, but I am afraid that if I have even the smallest blister, I really won't want anyone touching me!

Our travel plans are coming together as well. We arrive in San Diego on Friday around lunchtime. I assume we'll check into the hotel and then go to the Marathon Expo, where we get our race bibs (I'm #22050) and can purchase souvenir t-shirts/sweatshirts etc. I will definitely be getting SOMETHING to commemorate my first marathon! Friday evening we are going on a scavenger hunt with our team (and honorary teammate Beth) around San Diego. The tour company breaks us into smaller groups and we sight see our way through the scavenger hunt. We end up at a neat bar, called the SIDE BAR, for dinner afterwards. I looked online, and it looks like a pretty cool place.

On Saturday, we have decided to go to SeaWorld. I kind of wanted to go to the San Diego Zoo, but both Dan and Beth had already been, so we decided to visit Shamu instead. We were also nervous about the Zoo on the day before the marathon-- apparently it is very large, and very hilly, and you walk ALOT. We certainly want to stay limber for the marathon the next day, but don't want to be fatigued! Saturday night is the big TNT pasta party with everyone from the organization. I expect there will be thousands of us from all over the country. My cousin has some friends from Texas that will be there, so I will try hard to find them in the crowd!

We'll need to go to bed early on Saturday night, because the race begins at 6:30 on Sunday morning. This means getting up and leaving the hotel at an ungodly hour! We are in corral 22, so we'll have a little bit of lag time before we really start. I've heard there is alot of pent up energy and excitement when we are waiting for corrals #1-21 to go ahead of us. Dan and I will be able to walk together at the start-- he usually stays with me for the first 1/2 mile. Then, he will set off on his longer legged pace, and I'll hang back with the rest of the tortoises (tortoi?). I anticipate being finished with the marathon in about 4 hours. The only drawback to being the only one from my team doing the half marathon is that I don't think there will be anyone waiting for me at the finish line. I mean, I am sure there will be plenty of people, just nobody who knows me. I plan to carry my camera and ask some stranger to take my picture at the finish line! I'll hang out at the finish line for Dan and Beth so I can get their picture too.

Sunday night there is a post-race victory party and concert. The concert headliner is Seal. We are still deciding whether or not we want to go to the concert. We were sort of thinking about it, for lack of anything else to do, but we are considering heading to Old Town San Diego. We hear the Mexican food there is amazing! Then there is a post-post victory party with the team at a piano bar in the GasLamp district-- do marathoners EVER sleep??

We'll probably do something low-key on Monday: shopping, lunch, or a visit to the waterfront. Our returning flight on Monday isn't until 10pm, so we'll be able to have a little more time to enjoy the area before we leave. That is, if we can WALK....

Thanks everyone for checking in with us. We are still about 3500$ from our goal. There is still time to make a donation! Our final money is due on Friday, at which time we will be charged for the remainder. We have 30 days from race day to continue to fundraise and then we will be reimbursed if necessary. Thanks for all of your support! GO TEAM!

-Sara