Tag, You're It!

A survey about me...thanks, Meagan!

10 years ago: I was halfway through college, in the midst of my junior year at Florida. I had met and started dating Steve just three months earlier. And I was coping with the loss of my grandmother, who was my 2nd mom.

5 things on today's to do list:
1) get the kids up and feed them breakfast
2) laundry
3) digital ads for jax4kids.com
4) possible grocery shopping
5) try to get some organizing done in the garage (should only take about 10 more years)

Snacks I enjoy: I have a terrible sweet tooth, so basically anything that is NOT "good for me." Chocolate is always my friend.

5 things I'd do if I were a millionaire:
1) Invest half in a high-yield savings account so I could make it grow with interest!
2) Donate a nice portion to a charitable foundation or organization.
3) Pay off ALL of our bills (car, house, student loans, etc.).
4) Tuck enough away to cover the kids' college expenses.
5) Help out our parents and family members with their bills, too.

Places I have lived:From birth: South Carolina, Florida, New Hampshire, Florida, Virginia, Nova Scotia (Canada), Florida, South Carolina, and Florida (Dad was in the Navy...we moved a LOT).

Jobs I've had:
1) Babysitter
2) Tutor
3) Ice Cream Scooper at Dippin' Dots
4) Public Relations Specialist for a hospital
5) Mommy

Meagan tagged me to share this, so now I pass the challenge on to anyone and everyone who reads my blog. I know there aren't that many, so it should be interesting to see how many actually do it. :)

Fall is in the air...

OK, so we live in Florida. Fall isn't in the air here until closer to Thanksgiving...or sometimes even Christmas! :) Steve likes to tell people that in Florida we have two seasons: Summer, and Summer-Lite.

At any rate, it's getting closer to the end of October, and that means HALLOWEEN! The kids are really excited this year, probably because they understand more about dressing up and playing pretend than they possibly could have last year. When I chose their costumes, I brought them home from the store and they tried them on. They were SO excited. Ariel (from the Little Mermaid) is one of Megan's favorites, and Buzz Lightyear is Jeremy's hero. He constantly runs around the house saying, "To infinity, and beyond!"

Their first chance to wear their costumes outside the house was this past Thursday at one of the local county libraries. The library held its annual "Unscary Halloween Party," and we went with my mom and my niece, who is only 6 weeks younger than Meg and Jeremy. We all had a lot of fun, and it was a nice way to make a test run of their costumes before it's Trick-or-Treat time. Plus, Aunt LaLa is one of the youth librarians at that library branch, so we got to see her, too!

Walking For A Cure (Part 2!)

I was asked to follow up on my walk for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer with the American Cancer Society. The walk took place last Saturday, October 11th. There were more than 2,500 walkers on the beach that morning, and it was so awesome to see so many people all there for the same reason.

My team was "Katie's Pampered Pals," associated with the kitchen product company I'm an independent consultant with. :) My parents walked with me and the kids (in the photo above they are pulling the kids in their wagon...truly the worst idea my dad and I could have come up with, since it was SO heavy to pull that across the sand in certain spots). My friend Alyssa (aka Aunt LaLa to Megan and Jeremy!) also walked with us. The storms were trying to roll in but it didn't rain on us!

Thanks to everyone who has been so supportive about this effort. I'm still collecting money through the end of this month (October), so let me know if you're interested in making a small donation.

Walking for a Cure

The kids and I are participating in the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk this Saturday. I'm excited, but a little disappointed in myself because I haven't really put the effort into the pre-walk activity that I should have/planned to. I haven't raised much money. I haven't done iron-ons for t-shirts so that the people I'm walking with have matching shirts of some sort. I know I can always do better next year, but since this is my first year doing this particular walk I was hoping to be more prepared than I am.

On a positive note, my mom and dad are going to be walking with me and the kids. I have a couple of other friends who are (hopefully still) planning to walk with us. It takes place at the beach in Jacksonville, and we have to be there at 8-something in the morning because the walk kicks off at 9. It's less than 3 miles, definitely not a marathon, and I can walk the whole way...no running for me.

I am fortunate that I have not had anyone in my family go through the horrors of breast cancer, but the future is never certain. Some very good friends of ours are dealing with this in their family at the moment, and the lady who was diagnosed recently had a double-mastectomy performed. Their whole family has really been an awesome testament to the power of hope, and it's given me so much purpose in what this walk will represent.

We also are already planning to be involved with the St. Augustine Relay For Life again in May of 2009. Steve and I are hoping to spend the entire 18 hours at the track again, something we haven't done since the Relay right after the kids were born and my parents kept them at their house for us. For more information about the American Cancer Society and all of the services and programs they offer, visit www.cancer.org!