Running with Kellsie's Krew

Hey, everyone!  It's Friday AND this weekend is a 3-day weekend.  How exciting!

I'm especially excited today because I have something really awesome to tell you about.  Remember when I said I'd missed the sign-up for the Disney Princess Half Marathon this year?  Well, I looked in to running it with a charity group.  At first, all of the groups were full.  Then, I heard from one of the organizations!

This year, I will be running the Disney Princess Half Marathon for the Kellsie's Hope Foundation!

I'm honored to be a part of Kellsie's Krew and am so excited to raise money for this great organization!  Let me tell you a little bit about them.

The mission of Kellsie's Hope Foundation is to "assist families in need with gifting, funding trips, and will also fund cancer research and various programs and/or other support for the medical field such as nursing scholarships." (From their website)

You can read Kellsie's full story here, but here are the highlights:

• Kellsie was 15 years old when diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, an aggressive form of bone cancer, when she thought she just had a sports injury.
• She spent a year receiving aggressive treatments, including chemotherapy and surgery to replace 4 inches of her shin bone.
• After that year, she was declared cancer free!  The next three years were great. She went back to school, back to dancing (when she was told she'd never dance again), and became a speaker at events for Make-A-Wish, H.I.S. Kids, and other organizations.  She started college and was maintaining a long-distance relationship with her boyfriend Joey.
• During this time, Joey proposed to her INSIDE Cinderella's Castle at Disney World!  Kellsie didn't know it, but her family was there to greet them as they walked down the spiral staircase in the castle.  How magical!
• Unfortunately, her cancer returned.  It was in her lungs this time, and she had surgery to remove 2/3 of her right lung.  After the surgery, she continued living  her life, including family vacation to Maine and another Disney vacation with Joey's family.
• The cancer returned a third time in the remaining part of her lung.  Kellsie spent much of her time in the hospital receiving chemo and radiation treatments.  She stayed positive throughout everything and was even able to come home for Christmas, travel to Chicago with her family, and take one last family vacation with Joey to Disney World.

Image Source

• Kellsie lost her battle with cancer on June 8th, 2011 after a long, hard fight.  

The foundation was started so that other families with children fighting cancer could make their child's dreams come true.  They also fund cancer research and offer scholarships to people going in to the nursing field (that's what Kellsie was going to school for).  Click here to see some of the recent programs Kellsie's Hope has funded!

And guess who runs the foundation?  Her fiance, Joey!  When I found that out, my heart was just touched!  In spite of his tremendous loss, he is making Kellsie's legacy live on is just a positive way!

I am honored to be a part of raising money for this organization.  I find it so special to be doing so by running through Disney World, one of Kellsie's favorite places!

If you are able, I'd love for you to support me in my efforts to help this organization.  You can give online through PayPal using this link, or you can give by cash or check.  See the details on this website, and just make sure to put my name on it.  Donations are tax-deductible.  If you can't give right now, there will be a link on the sidebar very soon.

Thanks for making it through this post, and thank you in advance for any donations you are able to make!

WIAW #20: Quest Bars

Hey everyone!  It seems like Monday and Tuesday are not good blogging days for me.  I'll work on that for next week.

Today is Wednesday, so it's time for....

Hooray!  Head on over to Jenn's blog Peas and Crayons to see what the rest of the blogging world is eating.

This week, I wanted to talk about Quest Nutrition bars.  Their protein bars are made from (mostly) natural ingredients.  Their slogan is "Cheat Clean," and with flavors like Double Chocolate Chunk and Cinnamon Bun, I can see what they mean!  Most of their bars are very low in sugar, high in fiber, and a great source of protein.  I've heard a lot about them on other blogs, and last week I stopped by GNC to pick some up.

They were buy 3 bars, get 1 free, so I mixed-and-matched to try a few different flavors.  The sales clerk was very helpful and told me the flavors that seem to be really popular.  Here's what I wound up with and what I thought about each!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Quest Bar

I heard a lot of good things about this flavor, so I was expecting a lot.  Let me tell you, it lived up to the hype!

The bar literally tastes like cookie dough and also has the consistency of it.  Yum!  There is a slight protein-y taste to it, but if you didn't know you were eating a Quest bar, you would think it was actually cookie dough. I'd give this one 4.5/5 stars.

Double Chocolate Chunk Quest Bar

This is the newest flavor, and it's been getting good reviews.  I enjoyed this one, but it was not quite as good as the cookie dough bar.  This one was in the fridge with my lunch, so it was a little more solid than the other one.  Maybe that effected my enjoyment of it.  Rating: 3.5/5 stars.

Cinnamon Bun Quest Bar

This was another flavor I'd heard a lot of good things about, and once again, it lived up to the hype.  It was a little softer and had a delicious flavor without overpowering you with cinnamon.  I'd have to say, I think this one was my favorite of those I tried!  Rating: 4.75/5 starts.

Chocolate Brownie Quest Bar

Another yummy flavor!  It really did taste like you were eating a brownie, but again had a slight protein-y taste.  Rating: 4/5 stars.

Overall Thoughts

The flavors of all the bars were really good.  At first, the consistency was a little weird to me (I'm a little picky about consistency).  I got used to it, though, and think I'll definitely pick up some Quest bars again.  They are on the expensive side at GNC, but you can find boxes of 12 for a pretty discounted price online.

Thanks to my lack of posts, I've fallen behind on my 30 Days of Thanks challenge!

Day 4
Day 4 is dedicated to this special man:

My husband!  After two weekends of us being apart, I was especially thankful to spend time with him on Monday.  Joe is very patient with me, encourages me, and makes me laugh.  He's caring, affectionate, and very helpful.  Look at these delicious burgers (ignore the blurry picture) he made for dinner on Monday!

He's always looking out for my best interests and supports me in everything I do.  He's a keeper, and I love him!!

Day 5
On Tuesday, I was thankful for answered prayers.  Driving to work, I just felt really down and couldn't figure out way.  I prayed over the day and asked for God to be with me, and He was faithful!  I am thankful that He listens to us, provides for us, and that His will for our lives is perfect!

Day 6
Today, I am thankful for the luxuries of life.  I'm thankful for the roof over my head, the food on the table, the cars we have to drive, having a job, and having funds for the "fun things."  For example, I went to a play on Saturday evening.

Tickets were not cheap, and it was in Orlando (about an hour drive).  Plus, Joe was away this weekend on a boys' trip to the Georgia/Florida game.  I am thankful that Joe and I are fortunate enough to take advantage of those fun opportunities.

Question for you: Have you tried Quest Bars before?  What's your favorite flavor?  Also, feel free to share anything you are thankful for today!!

Disclaimer: I purchased Quest bars with my own money and am receiving no compensation for this post.  I just wanted to let y'all know what I thought.  All opinions are my own.

State of My Knee Run

Did everyone remember to set their clocks back an hour?  Luckily, my phone and computer automatically updated.  Now, I just have some clocks to take care of in the kitchen (and the car).

Yesterday, I did my first workout post-Lighthouse Loop Half Marathon.  I did what I thought of as a "State of My Knee" run, where I ran a minute, walked a minute for about two miles.

My knee wound up feeling fine!  I was nervous to get back to running so soon, but things seemed to be ok.  I'm still going to be taking it easy the next few weeks and make sure to focus on stretching pre- and post-run, foam rolling, and getting back to yoga.

After the run, I wanted to get in a good ab workout.  Julie from Peanut Butter Fingers recently mentioned the Nike Training Club app, so I decided to download it and give it a go.  I used the Ab Burner workout in the Get Focused section, and it was definitely a good one!  I haven't done ab work in a long time, and the way my abs felt afterward reminded me why I love working them so much!

Ok, time for Day 3 of the 30 Days of Thanks Challenge....

Day 3

In addition to being thankful that my knee is improving, today I am especially thankful for the Word of God and those that preach it.  I started my morning with a great time of Bible study completing my homework for the Breaking Free study...

...then went to church this morning and heard a great sermon.

I'm thankful for the Bible because it contains God's instructions for our lives and many answers to our prayers.  I'm thankful for those who help us discern what the Word says because sometimes, that can be a really hard thing to do!

Question for you: Do you have any favorite workout apps?  What are you thankful for on this lovely Sunday?

30 Days of Piling on the Bootie Bustin

Good morning!  How's your Saturday going so far?  I've been having a lazy morning, and the rest of the day will be filled with football (and maybe an impromptu trip to Orlando...).

Today, I wanted to talk about all the things going on in blog land in the month of November that I'll be participating in, as well!

Pile on the Miles 2013

Are you in to running? Monica over at Run Eat Repeat is hosting a challenge to see who can run the most miles in the month of November!

The goal is to pile on the miles instead of the pounds in a month that is traditionally dedicated to eating a lot.  I joined in the fun last year and really enjoyed the challenge to log more miles during the month!

Head on over here to learn more and sign up for the challenge!

Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge 2013
Amanda at Run to the Finish is holding her sixth annual Holiday Bootie Buster Challenge!

I participated last year and thought this was a great way to motivate myself to focus on healthy living from mid-November to beginning of January!  You compete with people at the same fitness level as yourself to earn points for various forms of healthy living (eating 7-9 servings of fruits and veggies, different workouts, etc.)  Amanda gives away A LOT of prizes, and everyone who participates is so supportive!

It starts on November 17th, so go on and sign up here (and make sure to say that I referred you!)

30 Days of Thanks
I stumbled upon this post from Amanda at Diary of a Semi-Health Nut via Amanda from Adventure Year.

Amanda is hosting a 30 Days of Thanks challenge to get us to be thankful for the good in our lives during the month of November.  How appropriate with Thanksgiving coming up!  I will be participating in the challenge, and here are my first two days of being thankful!

Day 1:
Yesterday, I was particularly thankful for this new coffee I picked up at the store.

I love Dunkin' Donuts' chocolate glazed donut, so I thought the coffee form would be pretty epic.  I was right!  I made a cup when I got home from work, which was the perfect way to unwind after the week.  Yum!

Day 2:
I woke up at 7:00 when it was still dark out and got angry with myself.  Why the heck would I be up so early on a Saturday??  Well, then I looked at the window.

#nofilter #noediting

It's not often I get to see the sun rise, and this one was just spectacular!  As pretty as the picture is, it doesn't do it justice.  And guess what? now its cloudy and rainy.

#nofilter #noediting

I'm thankful that I woke up in time to catch the beauty of this morning before the clouds came in.  God apparently wanted me to praise Him to start the day, and I'm certainly not complaining now.

Question for you: What is your focus for the month?  What are you thankful for this morning??