Boosting my system

This has been a rather rough month.
In addition to training and working to raise the last dollars to meet our fundraising goal, I have been sick almost all of April.
It started with an infection in my wisdom teeth, which soon led to a nasty cold that prevented my teeth from immediately coming out. Finally, I had four teeth pulled and for the last week and half have worked to recover from that surgery.
But then, on Tuesday while traveling in Denver, I woke up in the middle of the night sick, again. This time it was food poisoning and I ended up having to cancel my flight home and instead head to the emergency room.
After several bags of IV's to rehydrate me, the doctor sent me on my way. A long sleep ensured that I could make it onto the plane to get home to Phoenix yesterday.
At least today I feel so much better.
But I have to make sure my body is in the best shape possible for the hike next week. And that's why I've been downing these guys pictured above to get my immune system as healthy as possible. They are packets that are packed with Vitamin C and I'm sure they will help tremendously.
I'm also getting tons of sleep, eating lots of soup and planning to get back out on the trails this Saturday.
And for the record, because it's the first thing everyone wants to know, I do not have swine flu - whew!

The devil is in the (hiking) details

The fundraising is complete. We're in good physical shape. And we've finally figured out our travel itinerary.
Kelly and I will head up to the Grand Canyon next Friday in my car. We'll eat pasta at the kick off dinner and then sleep for a few precious hours before we hit the Bright Angel trail at 4:30 a.m. Saturday morning.
Meanwhile, the Mikes will head up to the Canyon on Saturday morning. They'll grab some lunch and check out some views as they wait for us to drag ourselves up the last few yards.
We'll all meet up and drive down to Flagstaff, where I plan on taking the best nap of my life before heading out for a celebratory dinner.
We'll stay the night, hit the Downtown Diner for breakfast on Sunday, check out my favorite candle store, and then head back down to Phoenix.
Now that all the major details are complete, and the big hike is only 12 days away, it's time to start focusing on the little things.
Such as socks.What socks does one wear when hiking more than a dozen miles? I have a coupon for 20 percent off any althetic sock from Dick's. Should I get one really good pair of $15 hardcore hiking socks? Who spends $15 on socks?!
Or, should I buy a pack of "moisture wicking" cotton/bamboo blend socks from Sam's Club? Those are only $8, and I'd get four pairs. But cotton is supposedly bad for hiking, even when mixed with bamboo. And do I really want to find out that I should have spent the extra $7 when I'm six miles deep in the Canyon?
(At this point in the conversation, my husband sighs and says, "Just get a good pair of socks, Meg. It's a long hike. You need good socks. Get good socks."
Ok. I have to think about it some more.
Then there is the topic of layers.
It is cold at the Canyon right now. At 10 p.m. last night, the local news weather lady said it was in the low 30s there. This was the same day I hiked in a tank top and shorts in Phoenix, and thought it was a bit too hot.
I don't even know how to comprehend hiking in 30-degree weather. And to complicate things, it's only cold at the top. As you go down into the Canyon, it gets warmer. And, I suppose, as we hike, we'll start to work up a sweat ... or will it be so cold that we won't work up a sweat?
Just in case, I'm thinking I might need a moisture-wicking shirt for my first layer. This is supposed to be essential for long hikes, so that you don't sweat and then stay damp for the whole thing.

I've personally never owned anything that "wicks" moisture. I just throw on a t-shirt or tank top and call it a day. So do I really need this? My coach seems to think I do, and again, do I want to find out he was right and I was wrong halfway through?

(This is where Mike rolls his eyes and says, "Babe. Just buy the $10 moisture-wicking shirt from Target. Ok?)

Ok, ok. Moisture-wicking tank top. Check. Then a long-sleeve t-shirt? Then maybe my Team in Training jersey shirt? Then something else ... maybe a hoodie? Top it off with a fleece?

Will all of that be warm enough for 30 degrees? Will my movement be too restricted by so many layers of clothing? Will my pack quickly fill up with all these layers as I work up a sweat and start yanking them off?

Am I overthinking this?

Then there is the debate over the type and quantity of snacks we should bring...

A fresh batch of macaroons (and my eternal gratitude) will go to the person who saves me from my misery and packs for me!

It's snowing in Denver

Yesterday I flew into Denver, Colo. for the 2009 Society of American Business Journalism and Editor's Conference. I was hoping that I'd get a chance to hike while I was here, even though it's a quick work trip and I'll be back in Phoenix on Tuesday.
I knew that hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park was not possible, but still, I had hope for hitting at least one trail, even if it was urban.
Then I woke up this morning and it was snowing. I had to blink several times to make sure I wasn't imagining the little white flakes falling from the sky. After all, I do live in Phoenix.
But it was indeed real. It was snowing in April.
I'm no long worried about hiking. It's obvious snow took that option off the table.
Now I'm nervous about the fact that I have short-sleeve shirts and a little spring jacket. Oh, and high heels that don't really qualify as winter shoes.

Getting into the gear; a strange challenge

Last week, Meghan and I had decided to hike after work.
That was not a complicated concept.
What presented a challenge for this jaunt around Lookout Mountain was the complicated task of changing into hiking clothes after work.
Why is this so difficult? Well, we can't exactly walk through the office in a tank top and yoga pants. I have a feeling that outfit might get some strange looks.
So we each had develop a changing system.
Meghan opted to sneak into her work's bathroom on the way to her car and at least get her tank top on. That way she could still put her sweater over it, so nothing would look different to co-workers. This was step one for me as well.
The tank, it turns out, was easy in light of what was to come.
Next, while driving, Meghan hit a red light and worked to get her shorts on under her skirt. Yes, I know this might sound strange and I might even think exactly like her husband who later said, "why were you doing that?"
But I understand this method. Across town, I wasn't doing the same thing in my car, desperately trying to avoid a trip to change in the Jack in the Box bathroom where I found myself last time we did a hike after work.
(It's pretty scary in there, just for the record.)
Eventually, and I'm still not fully sure how we pulled off getting into all of our gear, we met at Lookout and were climbing the mountain with ease.
That workout was hardly a challenge compared to the one we had faced just before as we worked to get fully into our gear. Hopefully before this is over, we’ll develop a consistent system for changing that doesn’t have us swerving in our car as we put on our clothes.
But for now, this is what we got.

Some REALLY good news!

We did it.
Kelly and I each hit our goals of $2,900 this week, just two weeks before we lace up our perfectly broken-in hiking shoes and head down into the Grand Canyon.
I won’t lie – it wasn’t easy. Nearly $3,000 is a lot of money to raise, especially if you’ve never really tried to raise money before. We dedicated nearly every weekend (and many week nights, too) in March and April to hiking and fundraising. And sometimes, it felt like we were spinning our wheels.
But whenever we started to get down about it, wondering if we were doing enough, wondering if we’d ever meet out goals, we’d get a $25 online donation from an old friend. Or we’d come home from work to find a check in the mail with a note of support from an aunt and uncle.
Friends and family would thank us for what we were doing; they would tell us they were proud of us. It really, truly kept us going.
So, thank you. We couldn’t have done this without you.
Tonight, Kelly and I are going to hike after work. For the first time since we started on this journey, we’ll be able to talk about how great it feels to have made our goals, to have raised a combined total of almost $6,000 for cancer research. That’s pretty awesome.

A photo finish

I got up at 4:30 a.m. on Saturday. Yes, 4:30 A.M. Those who know me well know I’m barely functioning by 8 a.m., let alone 4:30 a.m.
Nonetheless. Mike and I had an important task ahead of us: the 4.2 mile Pat’s Run (that's my race number above). I blogged about the event here.
I just wanted to give you all an update and let you know that we’re both still alive. I’m a little sore from it. (Hey, I hardly ever run! I used totally different muscles!) But we clocked in at just over 48 minutes, which isn’t bad for two people who never run.
I did make one vital discovery – my endurance is definitely building. Normally I’m ready to keel over after a mile of running. But I felt pretty strong and steady throughout this whole race.
And the best part? We saw ourselves in the newspaper the next day!!!
See if you can find us:

No? Ok, we’re just above the big yellow balloon in the bottom/middle of the photo. I’m in a maroon #42 shirt and have pasty white legs. Mike is (sprinting) slightly ahead and to the left of me in a bright blue shirt and black shorts. That’s us!!
I know I’m a reporter and my byline is in the newspaper every other day… but somehow, this was still very exciting for me.
Anyway, more than 13,000 runners and walkers finished this race. That’s a pretty awesome way to honor a pretty awesome guy.
But enough about running. It’s time to get back to hiking. After a short tooth-and-soreness-related hiatus, Kelly and I will be back on the trails this Thursday, in our final push for the Grand Canyon!

Working the last game

I have been so whacked out from my teeth that I completely forgot to post this promised picture of my cousin Connie working at our last Little League game.
We wrapped up our action at the games last week and as you know, Connie was a huge help in our success.
Thanks to the Horizon Little League's board, coaches, parents and athletes who supported us while at the games by purchasing a Gatorade or a bag of fruit snacks - we owe you.
I can't believe we are already finished with our stand. It seems like just yesterday we were stressing over what kinds of items middle school kids like to eat and how much a sucker typically sells for.
Now, we obviously know that kids love red suckers for 25 cents and that they are crazy about all types of candy, but not so much for granola bars. Red Gatorades are a favorite, way cooler, than juice.
We could run a stand with our eyes closed now. We've come so far.