Lipstick Cover-Up

Relay went well, we're recovered...glad it's over for now, planning will start in the fall so I have the summer to recharge! Thank you to the well wishers, it was more work than I thought, but it turned out well.

I read a funny post today over at Half Mama, and I don't know how to put the link in b/c I'm just not savvy with that, but suffice she's so funny, I love to read her and she shared how her young daughter was cleaning with a panty liner...so I just had to share the following about my youngest Izzy, 18 months old now.

She's taken a liking to playing with tampons, out of the box of course, loves to unwrap them, take them apart and walk around with them in her mouth like it's a cigar with a string on the end....?!?!?!? I have no idea, but if there's one in my purse while where at the ball field for practice or one of the kids games, she finds it and before I know what's going on she's getting lots of laughter from the onlookers...she looks like this tough little baby, strutting around like a long shore man, just plodding all over with her "cigar"...she also likes to grab a couple and bring them in the tub because when they expand, you know HOW COOL IS THAT!

She's my first child of the 3 to show any interest in this paraphanalia. Who knows what or if it means anything...any thoughts?


The school year is winding down here, just a week and a half to go till Em and Greenie are out for the summer...we've got some camps and stuff planned, lots of swimming, baseball, and horseback riding to be sure...G loves his baseball, his spring team is wrapping up, 2 games left, he'd like to do summer ball and then fall ball...did I mention he loves baseball. We're originally from NY, as I've shared before, growing up we went to Yankee games, so hate me if you must but I'll always be a Yankee fan...in July we're taking G and my nephew Pat and 2 other boys G plays ball with to an Orioles/Yankee game since it's pretty close and its the Yankees of course! I'm looking forward to that weekend, I'm a bit nervous about 4 boys for a weekend in Baltimore but hopefully I'll survive. I need to ask OTR girl for some Baltimore tips, things to make sure we do, places we must eat, etc..if anyone else has some Baltimore suggestions pass them along!

Hope you each are well!

Lots of love,
lil'sis

My annual Relay for Life post.

If you don't know Relay for Life, just google it, go to the American Cancer Society website, check it out...they're all over the world, so chances are there's an event in your area on an annual basis.

You all know why I Relay, for my daugther Emily, my husband, my dad. It's a personal thing, and some folks are ok doing it, others aren't comfortable with the setting, that's ok by me...we all deal with things differently. I choose to do Relay. For me it works, I know I make a difference with my action of taking part and I need that.

This year I'm co-chairing the event, that's right the entire event. It's more work than I thought, more rewarding than I imagined and so very very time consuming over the past month it's CRAZY. I owe calls to old friends, cards to folks, a care package that I started and haven't finished to a fellow blogger buddy who could probably really use it, IT'S STILL COMING I'm sorry I stink at follow through right now if it's not RELAY.

I remembered to eat today, good times. A yummy wrap, good for me too.

I think I may be too tired to cry this year, maybe not, I always get the sniffles at luminary, all those lights, the silence, all the people. It can be very overwhelming for me.

We may set a fundraising record, to date where about $100K ahead of where we were last year at this point, fingers crossed.

I have to give a speech this year, ugh, I hope it's ok, I hope I can inspire, I HOPE.

I have to add some new Luminaries to my list this year, sadly more "in memory" of and a few more "in honor" of ones.

If cancer has never touched you in anyway yet through your own experience, as a caregiver, or a friend of someone who's had it...you are so very blessed. If it has touched you in some way, and I imagine that's more the case for folks than not, you know it sucks, it's brutal, it hurts....and for me it was a blessing too. It put me contact with a community of people I wouldn't have known otherwise, other moms who are now my life long friends, other children who went through similar experiences...I wouldn't have chosen this "clan" but you get what you get and they are good people.

If I ever write a book I want it to be funny, not sad, lots of laughter. I live the same way, I want the laughter, I'll deal with the sad, but I will keep moving on, and carry the laughter and the smiles, and the love, I chose to not carry the hurt, the sadness and the remembrance of pain all the time. The memory is there, but it doesn't define me like the laughter does.

I HOPE for a Cure, I Relay for ME.

Lots of love to each of you,

Lil'sis