Tutus for Tatas Supports Force of Soles

First of all, I want to thank my sister, Michelle and her family for coming out for dinner to support us! And my friends, Becky, JoAnn and Fawn for having lunch and margaritas with us! We had a BLAST with you guys!

And WOW! What a nice suprise to see Tutus, Nancy, Marsha and Ann at On the Border Sunday night! We had such a good time getting to know our fellow 3-Day walkers! They even brought their families who were also awesome! These ladies know how to have fun!!! ;)

We don't yet know how much we raised, but we thank each one of you for your participation! And thank you to On the Border for your support of us and Susan G Komen!

UPDATE:
OTB said we generated $374 in sales; 10% is $37. They kindly rounded it up to $50. NICE!  
But what a let down. I had really hoped more peeps would show up and eat lunch or dinner! ;(

Force of Soles Celebrates Tutus for Tatas

My fellow teammate, Kelly who is Crewing Atlanta this year, met some Tutus. She owns, IT Factor, www.gotitfactor.com, image consulting. The Tutus for Tatas asked Kelly to help with their Taste of Hope 2010 fundraiser on October 9. The event consisted of a fashion show featuring breast cancer survivors and Kelly volunteered to help produce the show and provided the makeup artist for the models. I was invited to attend the event also.

I was overwhelmed when I arrived at The Bridge Church on Braselton Hwy. The positive vibe was immediate upon entering the church. And the ladies were all buzzing around preparing for their guests to soon arrive. There were too many vendors to count each offering a percentage on their days sales back to the Tutus. Then, Kelly took me back stage to introduce me to the some of the models and some of the Tutus. The models were so excited to be participating in this event. A few told me they were nervous, but they didn't show it.

I spent some time visiting the various booths and meeting many Tutus and attendees alike. I would up spending a small fortune of my own by the time the day ended... :) ooops... But, it's for a good cause right, honey!? heehee

Finally, it was time for the fashion show portion of the event. WOW... What a grand event! There was a very professional slide presentation running in the background and the host was very entertaining while he introduced each model. And along with Barb, the Captain (and founder) of the Tutus who described each model's attire. It was a great time.

Then, time for the cry fest! They put a beautiful presentation together to honor those who have been lost to breast cancer. They modified Maya Angelo's "We Speak Your Name". It was very moving... At the end, the audience was asked to stand up and honor our own lost soul... I stood up and proudly spoke, Janice Warren. Tears...

Thanks so much Tutus for allowing me to honor my aunt Janice. :)

Force of Soles Fundraiser - Sunday, October 10

Please join us for lunch or dinner at Fiesta For the Cure at On the Border in Alpharetta, GA. The event will last all day. OTB will donate 10% of your food and drink purchases to Susan G Komen on behalf of our team, Force of Soles!

We'll be there ALL day beginning at 11:30 today! Come see us!!!!

Training, Sunday, October 3 – 12 miles

Today, was Day #2 of our attempt to manage two back-to-back training walks to see what it's all about and test our gear.

We walked the same loop as yesterday, twice to total 12 miles today.

What I learned today was that I NEED new insoles! I just bought these not too long ago and didn't realize how quickly I would wear them out after putting in some SERIOUS mileage! :) WOW... Now I have to buy TWO sets of these to make it through 3-Day! I'd thought I could get away with only one... But they're too critical for my endurance... WOW!

I also learned that a nasty blister can BLISTER on itself! Ewww!!! I will be purchasing a case of mole skin! I sure hope it works as well as folks claim! ;) I see some "hot spots" trying to form also... And I'll need some serious sockage! ;) I need lots of stuff, too... But it scares me to think about that tonight... And I'm sooo pooped!

Speaking of which... After walking 33 miles in the past day and a half... Surprisingly, I feel OK. I was really tired when I got home and my feet were really BARKING! Now that I've rested, overall, I feel pretty good! My buttocks are still sore, but not too bad... And my feet are "normal" again... At least they stopped barking. The blisters are another story... ;)

I was slow today which has me worried... And it took me a while to wake up and consequently speed up, but eventually I did (about the time the day ended). which was weird...

Gonna do another 20 miles next Saturday. And Sunday is the Give Back at On the Border so we can't plan a crazy, long walk anyway... ;)

All-in-all, I do feel pretty well prepared for the 3-Day... And I never really thought I ever say that! ;) Training is an extremely important step! ;)

Training, Saturday, October 2 – 20 miles baby!

Today was a BIG deal! My teammate, Grace and I tackled our first 20 miles! WOW! I can't believe how proud of myself I am!!! And am surprised by how good I feel! Really curious how tomorrow will go down. But today, I feel amazing considering we walked more than 20 miles today! 21 to be more exact, but who's really counting anyway? OK, ME! But... :)

We walked in Martin's Landing subdivision where Grace lives. We thought the hills (which felt more like mini-mountains by the 2nd and 3rd trek around) would be great training ground... OK... My butt hurts, but it's nothing like last weekend after Sunday's 15 mile day (more than 1/2 of that in the rain)!

The day now feels like a blur... And it seems ages ago that we did this! haha! Either I'm getting old or I'm more tired than I give myself credit for! ;) But then again, it was HOURS ago! ;)

We started out about 8:30-9:00 AM... A little late really (but that was my fault – long week, ugh). And our journey began... It started great with a nice, steep downhill incline where when we finally reached the bottom, we were followed by two small kitties for a little ways... Thank God we didn't have to take them back home! It was beginning to look like maybe we would!

Then, we headed out of the subdivision and down Riverside Drive along the Chattahoochee River, up Eves Road (where we encountered the first of many, up hill climbs on a mini-mountain!) and turned back into the subdivision via Eves Circle and up and down a series of mini-mountain hills back to Grace's place to complete the first 6 miles... Time for a break! ;)

There were also a couple of potty breaks/rest stops mid-walk which veered us on/off course a few times (the walk took us out of our way roughly 1/4 mile round-trip each stop).

Break was a great time to rest, eat a sandwhich, change/adjust footwear, dress blisters, etc. Then, back out to tackle the same loop for the next 6 miles to complete our first 12! ;)

For the next half of our journey, we decided to break it up by walking 4 miles down the mini-mountain, past the kitties, to the lake and around and back.

Two rounds of this completed our day which totalled 21 miles!

At the end of the day, I inherited a few blisters and sore buttocks. :)

And not to forget the two fabulous ladies we met today! Once at the tennis center on Eves. There we met Sarah from Top Shelf. Sarah was wearing her SGK T-Shirt which caught my attention and I HAD to speak to her! Sarah tells us she is/was walking TWO SGK walks this year! You go girl! One was in Chicago. And with us in Atlanta. We'll be looking for you lady! She was great to talk with and we learned some fabulous tips from her! ;)

We also met, Sandy with the Miller Zell Souls. We met her at the Riverside Tennis facility. She was awesome and stopped us because she noticed our team shirt! ;) We also learned some great stuff from Sandy, too! ;) We'll keep an eye out for you guys, too! ;)

I'm so amazed how many people are involved in this cause in some way! It touches my soul! :)