Relay for Life Wrap-Up

Thank you so much for your support as I participated in the West Shelby County Relay for Life. It was an amazing event, filled with emotion. I walked in honor of my Mom, who has been cancer free for several years now, and in memory of a precious little girl, Cassidy, who our church family just lost in March. A story was done on the Schuttingas, and in the photo with it, you'll see me holding Elijah in the middle of the background behind the Schuttingas.

If you've never joined a Walk for Life, I highly recommend it. It was a beautiful occasion to focus on life, and how valuable it it - worth fighting for. Your financial support was so helpful, and I exceeded my goal of personally raising $200. More than 300 walkers participated in the event. A total of 34 teams raised over $60,000. Our Shelby Crossings team raised the most money at this Relay also! I appreciate your gift so very much.

http://www.shelbycountyreporter.com/news/2009/may/14/family-walks-memory-daughter-sister/

Relay for Life

I was so excited to be able to participate in a fundraising event for the American Cancer Society this weekend. Our church had a team who did the Relay for Life, and numerous other friends came out to support us. Our Shelby Crossings team raised the most of all teams there, and because some great guys spent the night and walked while the rest of us were home with our kiddos, we also were recognized with the most folks still on the track at 5 a.m.! I walked in honor of my Mom, who has been cancer free now for a couple of years, and in memory of precious Cassidy. She was the youngest ever survivor in past years at this same walk, and it was very sad to be there without her last night. She has inspired and motivated so many through her short 4 years on earth. A song sung at her memorial service that summed up her life was "This Little Light of Mine." The children participating with our group all received shirts with this on it. It was amazingly touching, and I'm so thankful I was able to do a little raise funds for research for this awful disease. Seeing the children especially, just enjoy life last night, was a great reminder to live every moment we have. Thank you to all you who supported me financially, and prayed for this event! (You can click on the collage to see the photos better. The kids all have their Cassi shirts on).

Relay for Life

This year, hundreds of thousands of people will hear the words "You have cancer", and there's a good chance that some of them will be people we know and love. In my family, my mom was the one who was diagnosed, and through surgery and treatment God has restored her health and she is well today. We have all been touched by cancer in some way ... and we all have the power to make a difference. That's why I have chosen to fight back right here in my own community by participating in the American Cancer Society Relay For Life®.

I want to invite you to join me in the fight against cancer by making a donation in support of my efforts. Further down in this message is a link to my personal Relay For Life® web page where you can make an online contribution. Every amount, no matter how small, makes a difference and provides hope. You can also sign up to join my team and learn more about Relay and how it's changing lives.

Relay For Life® brings more than 3.5 million people from across the country together each year to celebrate the lives of those who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against a disease that takes too much. This fun-filled, overnight event empowers everyone to help fight cancer by raising money and awareness to support the American Cancer Society's lifesaving mission.

Thank you in advance for your support. Together, we will celebrate, remember, and fight back.

For state fundraising notices and the American Cancer Society's Privacy Policy, please paste the following link into your browser: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/SU/su_0.asp.

Click here to visit my personal page.

Question.

Does this lady look like a senior citizen to you?

I don't think so either. :-)

We celebrated my lovely Mom's birthday this past weekend. We spent the morning with my cousin's son's first birthday, saw my grandmother, and did a little shopping. Then, she, Dad, Jacob, and his friend Caroline, joined us Saturday afternoon for a little fun playing in the creek, looking for crawfish, building a dam, and splashing around. It was quite refreshing to be in that freezing water on a warm day. We had dinner afterward and enjoyed talking, eating, and listening to the AU game. I had to document her youthfulness in photos, and say what a treasure she is. Mom is a kind and encouraging woman of God, who has become a dearer friend to me as we have gotten older. She is also very wise and dependable - character traits that go back to her godliness I'm sure - and ones I would like to be known for as well.

Here are a few more photos from the creek and dinner.

Happy Birthday to my Mom!

I've been pondering an impossible thing the last few weeks. I wanted to compose some great post on how incredible my mom is, and how to convey her lifelong impact on me. Though it seems easy to write about friends and meaningful things they do, summing up a lifetime of devotion to one's family is a pretty daunting task. So, I'll just share things about this wonderful lady, in hopes you can catch a glimpse of the gift she is.

I love you Mom. I'm so happy to be your daughter. It's an honor to celebrate you.


She...is the baby of 5 girls...grew up all over the place as a result of her parents' divorce, remarriage, and her stepdad's Navy service: AL to FL to Germany to CA to FL to AL...graduated high school early...worked hard to become independent at 18 with her own place, Pinto, and job...self-motivated and driven...met and married my dad...became a mom to me at 19...stayed home in a new town with a newborn and very few relatives anywhere around to help out...became a mom again at 23...was always disciplined, with a weekly schedule of ironing day, laundry day, grocery day....sewed clothes for herself and me...is a meticulous, detailed person...skilled and talented...bravely helped clear over an acre in the woods with my dad so we could build our own home...the hardest-working lady I know...kept that land landscaped, and weeded, and in beautiful condition, with only our family's help...prepared nearly every meal we ate my 18 years at home, with eating in restaurants being a treat that happened only about 1 time a year...supported my Dad in his job...managed what was for years a tight budget without complaint...taught my class at church...remains faithfully committed to Christ and a relationship with Him...made our family her priority behind following Jesus...devoted herself to relationships, even difficult ones, to be an encouragement to others no matter whether they deserved it or not...unconditionally loves...is the picture of Southern charm and grace...is often mistaken for my sister, due to her youthful appearance...gave of her time and energy and emotion to take in foster children and love them as her own...loved our Isaac first, as his first real mom, then lovingly entrusted him to us as our son...is not self-seeking...never had a babysitter, daycare or girls' night out...wisely gives advice and shares experiences, when asked...corresponds with multiple friends across the world, and maintains close relationships through her letters...is no technical guru, but awesome at email...is not proud..loves documenting our lives with photographs, but with 35mm film..is fiercely loyal to her family and proud of our accomplishments...is a interior decorator extraordinaire...is sensitive and kind...willingly uprooted with my Dad to move to a new town 2 hours from the home they'd had for 30 years...never gossips or speaks unkindly of others...always hopes...immersed herself in a new church, neighborhood and community and made new friends that are dear kindred spirits...always perseveres...bravely confronted cancer, and chemo, and won that battle...is a tender, loving Gramma to our babies...
and an inspiration to many for her godly testimony.