I DID IT!!!!

A week ago I ran my first half marathon. It was in Moab and was absolutely beautiful. I finished in 2:34 min. A lot slower than I would have liked to, but hey....I finished. I had started training in January and when I moved in February I hurt my back:( I was down for 2 weeks and missed a lot of training. And the week before the race I had mid-terms and well...let's just say that I totally felt under trained. I went down with my friends and got a a waiting list. I had to go back the night before and find out if I was in or not. I got in!! And the reality of the situation sunk in...in the morning I was running 13.1 miles!! AHHH! But I have amazing friends that I run with, and they made me feel better about it. I didn't sleep the night before and my body would not let me eat in the morning. Well the race started out great...I fell getting out of the bus! And yes even I laughed:) Well miles 1-11 were pretty easy. At mile 10 I took an energy gel that had caffeine in it and it kicked in about mile 11. Needless to say, I felt funny at mile 11, my heart was racing! I couldn't figure out why. But I had been running for a little over 2 hours and I hadn't eaten anything for about 5. It scared me and I had to walk for about 20 seconds...and again about a half mile later. But then I realized I had only 1.5 miles left and I just wanted to get it over with. I had ran the whole race with my BFF Nicholle and when we were about to cross the finish line she grabbed my hand...I cried. Mostly because I knew I was done, but also because I felt so glad I was able to do this!! And yes I will do it again!

Burn Camp Auction

Almost 11 years ago my nephew Alex was burned. He was 8 years old and him and a couple of his friends decided to play with fire. Alex was burned over 70% of his body and was life flighted to the University of Utah Burn Trauma Center. He stayed there for over 2 months and had several surgeries including skin grafts. I was very involved in his treatment and recovery, I got to know several people in the Burn Unit. When Alex was recovered he was told about a camp here in Utah that was for kids that have been burned. He has received a lot of support through this camp and made several life long friends.

7 years ago I decided I wanted to be a part of this camp. I interviewed and was accepted as a counselor at camp Nah nah mah (it means togetherness and friendship in Ute). My first camper was a little girl named April from Idaho. She has similar burn to my nephew and was just a joy to have! After that I was hooked, and this August it will be my 8Th year as a counselor. I love it. I get so much from the camp and have made so many friends! BCR! ( that's what we say to each other, it means BURN CAMP RULES!)

These camps provide and environment where no one stares or asks questions about their burns. They can talk about them only if they want to. We go from sun up to sun down with activities for these kids. My favorite is the pool because some kids have never taken off their shirt before, but feel completely comfortable in front of other kids who truly understand what it means to be a burn survivor!

3 years ago an auction was started to raise money for the river trip (kids 6-12 go to nah nah mah and 13-18 go on a river trip) so there is no cost involved to the kids or their families. This past Saturday was the 3rd one and it amazes me to see how generous people are. And I would like to thank everyone that donated and everyone that continues to volunteer to make this camp possible for these kids! They have sure made a difference for my nephew!

So I thought I would post a few pics from the auction. If anyone would like to donate or get involved...let me know!