The Cutler Crew: December 2008

Yummy! Above is the best part of the Thanksgiving meal in my opinion - the desserts! Including these delicious Oreo Balls that I make every Thanksgiving - they are sinful!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving; this is Preston's favorite holiday! He loves "spending time with his family" and "the food"; he adores his cousins and loves getting to hang out with them all day! And really that's all we do on Thanksgiving - spend time with my family, eat, hang out, watch football... the usual! Here is Preston enjoying his Thanksgiving feast.

And here we are with Poppee (my dad)... we only get to see him a couple of times a year - don't be a stranger, Poppee!

The cousins... playing Guitar Hero! Preston is not into this game yet, but it won't be long I am sure! He loved watching them play.

And this was the cherry on top for Preston - getting to go fishing on Thanksgiving Day! The best day ever! My cousins have a little lake behind the house, so the boys (and girls) got out the fishing gear and went for a quick fish!

And Evan is also at his happiest when he's outside... he loved running around with Daddy - here he is figuring out his first dandelion.

Love this picture - one day I'm sure Evan will tower as tall as his Daddy, but for now he is our "little man".

We spent most of the day outside wandering around on their land... Preston wore out his cousin, Chandler, running up and down these hills!

Fun in the leaves... love the Fall; can't wait to have big trees... one of the downfalls of a new neighborhood.

Getting to hang out with Poppee... and Evan - not wanting to be held for even a moment, just put him down and let him run! And trust me - we are no longer walking, we are running!

Preston loves playing pool... here he is getting a lesson from his cousin, Tristan. One day when we can get all the toys out of the playroom maybe we'll get a pool table... a big kid toy! Erick and I started dating when he was down in College Station and we spent many a Friday night playing pool, great memories.

I am so thankful for the many blessings that God has generously given me and my family. I am so grateful for each day and every adventure. This is the day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice and be glad in it! Many blessings to everyone!

Oh, I almost forgot... so my Thanksgiving is not complete on Thursday... the girls always extend the holiday to Friday with Black Friday shopping! It is a tradition with us girls for as long as I can remember - me with my cousins Tiffany and Erika and their daughers Lexi and Chandler and my Aunt Linda. We call ourselves the "Boo Ya Shopping Club". After the boys retreat or head home we spend the evening going through the paper and sales ads and preparing our itinerary for Friday! Normally we get up around 3:30am to be at the stores bright and early, but this year we heard that the Outlet stores were opening at midnight, so we got the bright idea to go there first... so yes, we stayed up all night, headed out before midnight and shopped all night! But we got tired around 7:30am and "called it a day".... I think I came home and slept until 3:00pm!

Of course, our Friday was not without adventure and a funny story or two! First, so we were not the only people who got the idea to go to the Outlets at midnight. I think the whole city was there; the highway was backed up as far as you could see, it took us almost an hour just to get close enough to park in a field behind the Outlets. A fine field at the time; however, while we were shopping it began to rain! And it rained pretty hard - and well, that nice field turned into a swamp of mud! So, here we are - me and my cousin, Erika, heading to get the cars to pick everyone up - and we are literally slushing through the mud, sinking in it and it is covering our shoes. I almost lost my shoes once because the mud was so thick and heavy! And then we have to get in the car and drive with these disgusting shoes - fun! It's dark and raining and muddy and I am in Erick's car spinning out trying to get the thing out of the mud - I honestly thought I was going to get stuck! The mud was slinging everywhere and covered the tires... I think I left a trail for two miles on the street... it was like a scene in a movie, so hilarious. But we were headed to Kohl's for their 4:00am opening - where Erika and I spent the first 20 minutes washing our shoes in their sinks... sorry Kohl's! What a great memory and one of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving.... shopping with my family, spending time with the girls. Can't wait until next year!

On November 7th, 8th and 9th I was so honored and privileged to get to, once again, participate in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk through Dallas/Ft. Worth. I did this walk with my best friend, Susan, in 2006 and we were very excited to embark on this adventure again! This walk is a 60-mile walk spread out over the course of three days - each day being about 20 miles, although they normally make Day One the longest and toughest day! And although we trained a little, nothing can prepare you or your little feet for 60 miles... that's a whole lotta walking! Trust me, 60 miles is a long way.... even for this former cross country runner, it ain't easy!

In order to participate in this walk each walker MUST raise a minimum of $2,200! That's a lot of money to raise and a huge commitment - but it all goes to a very worthy cause... breast cancer research and education. And over 85% of the money raised goes right to the cause... pretty good considering the amount of work and effort and organization that goes into this event! It is truly an amazing, well-oiled machine - they do an unbelievable job of putting on this event. So, for all of my amazing friends and my husband's generous clients, thank you so very much for your donations and for allowing us to all make a difference in the battle against breast cancer!

I just can't blog about this without personally thanking each and every one of my supporters!! I came so close to reaching my goal with your help! I think I was $188.00 short... which means that Erick and I made a personal donation of $188.00 ourselves, which we were happy to do!

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

The Amans
Nancy Bahr
The Barners
Marla Bishop
Sheryl Bradley
The Bradleys
Lynne Brody
The Dawsons
Susan Dumas
Tracy Ellis
Brian Harvey
Jennifer Hicks
Kayla Hicks
Dee Jones
Eddie Jones
The Landrums
The Lindstroms
The Mikeskas
Stella Oefinger
Jeff Payson
Jan Ragland
Susan Roche
Robbie Ryan
Traci Schoenradt
McAfee
The Simms
The Sipes
The Snyders
The Uldrichs
Nancy Wendell
The Winklers
Intuit
Christine Zimmerman
Sidney Goldin
Barbara Prather
Sledge Killion
The Manuels
Quality Powder Coating

I hope that I included everyone on this list.... what a wonderful thing you all did! No matter what the amount - $10 or $100, it all made a difference! You gave what you could give and I thank you from the bottom of my heart - you have made a difference and I thought of you so much during the walk!

So now on to our adventure! This year I walked again with my best friend, Susan, and we were also joined by her husband, Todd,this year. And in addition, my cousin, Tiffany, walked with us too! It was such fun sharing this experience with people that are so special to me.

Here we are below bright (well, not so bright yet), and early on Day One. This was probably around 6:30am before Opening Ceremonies began. I think I woke up at 3:30am, Todd was picking us up at 4:00am! It was cold, and dark and way too early! But as soon as we arrived, there was excitement and hope in the air; we knew that we were going to have a life-changing three days. This year the walk began at beautiful SouthFork Ranch!

Here we are departing on the first day in front of SouthFork Ranch...

The start of the walk was very crowded, we were walking down small sidewalks through neighborhoods and with 3,500 people all walking to the same place, it was hard to spread out... you can see that by the lines at the port-a-potties at the first pit stop! Needless to say, we did not stop to potty.... we found a CVS instead!

I have to say that Day One is always the toughest day for me. They always make it the longest day, almost 22 miles I think and by the time you get to that last 3 miles or so, you are just done! Your feet, your body just don't want to go anymore. And unfortunately this year on Day One I let myself get really dehydrated and those last two miles were pure misery not only because my whole body hurt, but also because I was very nauseous from the dehydration and there were no pit stops left! It was totally my fault, I should have drank way more - they certainly provide plenty of pit stops and drinks, I was just foolish! Poor Susan thought I was going to pass out - and so did I! But I made it all the way - whoo hoo! I was pale as a ghost, and had to sit down and drink lots of Gatorade at camp.

It was awesome to finally be at camp - I think we got there around 4:30pm. Funny thing though - as soon as your feet cross that finish line, your whole body just says - see ya later, I have done enough for you today! You start limping, your whole body tightens up and you wonder how in the heck you just walked 22 miles! And you definitely wonder - how in the world am I going to do that again tomorrow??? It seems impossible! Both nights I went to bed and my feet were so tender and so swollen I just knew that I wouldn't be able to do it the next morning - my feet wouldn't even fit in my crocs without serious work and discomfort! But fear not, by God's grace and his power you are always ready to go again the next day! There was lots of praying for my little feet... there was no way that this stubborn red-head was not going to finish this walk!

Oh, by the way - Day One took us through Murphy and Plano, beautiful downtown Plano, then through North Dallas, all the way down Campbell Road, past UTD, down Frankford Road and we headed to camp in Carrollton. You get to meet so many fun people along the way - we played trivia games, people sing songs (I say people meaning not me - you don't want me singing, although you'd probably start walking really fast then)... anything to pass the time and make you forget about your feet! And the food, every time you turn around they are giving you food - you'd think you might lose a few pounds walking 60 miles, but not with all the food they're giving you! I think I gained a few pounds! Ha!

We also had the privilege of seeing a group of 4 soldiers walking on the first day - they walked in full fatigues with the big backpacks, boots everything! I'm sure it was a walk in the park for them, but they sure were motivating and inspiring. The walk is mainly women, but there are definitely a few men who bravely and generously take on this journey! Yay 3-Day guys! Especially you, Todd, for doing this with us!

So, I know lots more happened on Day One, I should have kept a journal every night (I will next time), but anyway, on to Day Two.... here we are beginning our journey on Day Two. We started at camp, walked through beautiful parts of Carrollton, Plano, past Plano Presby, through gorgeous Willow Bend, then we looped back around to Carrollton. Day Two is always a big loop because we need to end back at camp for the night!

We had a beautiful stroll through Willow Bend.... the beautiful scenes and homes took our mind off of our weary feet! Although just like in 2006 - the end of Day One was tough for me, but Days Two and Three weren't too bad! As long as I keep moving and keep my legs going, I do okay. A familiar view for us girls - the back of Todd. Poor guy had so many blisters on his feet, it hurt him if he wasn't walking at a really fast pace.... I have been there, I had to walk really fast in 2006 for the same reason. We tried to keep up with him, but sometimes our short little bodies just couldn't keep up with him! I was able to keep up with him on Day Three though...

Here we are crossing the finish line on Day Two... thank you to all the Crew and to the literally hundreds of people that come to cheering stations with signs and their cute dogs and hand out candy and water, it is so much fun and you feel so supported!

Glad to be back at camp again, a tent never felt so good! I was prepared with a warm sleeping bag, warm PJs.... it was comfy cozy! It was pretty chilly at night, but those pink tents did the job! They provide us with yummy meals, entertainment and portable showers, ahhhh!! It is camping, but with some conveniences! Oh, and camp is pretty big.... they don't add all the walking at camp to that 60 miles?? It's probably more like 62 miles - ha! I think we went to bed at 8:30pm on Day One and then at 7:00pm on Day Two - really!

Tiffany and Todd both had to take a trip to the medic tent before we started Day Three. Tiffany needed to have them align her hip and Todd was getting those blisters checked out. In 2006 I got so many blisters that this year I decided to just wrap my feet completely from the start and it helped tremendously. I only got one blister - under my big toe. I thought I was going to lose it at first, but it's still here and I didn't have to go to the medic tent! I will definitely wrap my feet again - it helped with the pain and it helped with the two-hour wait at the medic tent... you can't imagine how long this line is - seriously! I'm thinking that's what it's going to look like when we all have government healthcare - kidding!

So Day Three is a little hectic because you have to get your bag and gear all packed up before starting the walk... here is Susan TRYING to get everything back into her bag and get it zipped up! Hee hee! It was cold on this last day... we had to wear layers because we knew it would get warm soon.... oh, Texas! You are only allowed to bring one bag, not weighing over 35 pounds and you have to fit a ton of gear and clothes into that bag!

Starting Day Three... we started at camp and our end destination was the SMU Campus! It seemed like it would be impossible to walk that far in time for Closing Ceremonies? It just seemed like more than 18 miles... they give you the easiest day on Day Three. But sure enough, that was the plan!

It was so hard to get a good picture of the line of people walking in front and behind... it was so amazing and inspiring to just see people literally as far as you could see both in front and behind you. We seemed to stay in about the middle of the pack each day... around the 1,000 mark and there were about 3,500 walking. On Day One we actually started at the very, very back and ended up making our way to the front somehow.

So I know personally I got a little giddy, or probably even delirious on Day Three. I think your brain just stops working because your body is doing so much work. You're so tired; you'll laugh at just about anything, or at least I will. I found myself cracking up over and over again on Day Three. As I've said, the support along the way is amazing, people stand outside their homes waiting to greet you and cheer you on... it's awesome! But then with that support they say phrases like "you're almost there" or "just a little more"... well, let me tell you - they are lying! They mean well, but you are not "almost there". Our joke is that "one more mile" on the 3-Day Walk is really two miles! We appreciated the encouragement, but as a supporter yelled "one more mile".... Todd jokingly said to us, "If this pit stop is more than one mile, I'm coming back and kicking ?*&%$#" Ha! Seriously, you have to laugh and keep the comedy of it all! He said he was going to come back and kick her butt with his good foot, but he wasn't sure which foot that was yet! Hee hee!

So, at the opening ceremonies on Friday they handed out these cool flags which represented "Why We Walk" and everyone took turns carrying the flags throughout the walk. There were probably 35 or 40 flags and you'd carry one for a while and then pass it on... here is me and Susan with the "Best Friends" flag. Love you, Susan... the sister that I never had; God finally gave me her 12 years ago!

Like I said, this event is so organized, they put so much into it. The Crew is all made up of volunteers and they are amazing! They provide so much support and motivation... even silly little things like these bras on a port-a-potty. Let me tell you - there is no boob joke or boob reference that is off limits during these three days! You've got husbands wearing shirts that say "Saving Second Base".... all of the team names and slogans are hilarious! Next time we are going to come up with a great name... we are hoping to walk again in 2010!

Here are a couple of pictures of sweep vans... these vans come by just in case anyone needs a ride... if you need a ride you give them the "thumbs down" and they'll take you to the next pit stop. Luckily I was walking with three people that were as passionate and stubborn as me... we would have rather crawled on the ground rather than be picked up by a sweep van. No matter how much pain, we pressed on and all made it every single step!

Me and Tiffany.... one reason we walked, in honor of our Grandmother, Nanny, a breast cancer survivor. It was so fun to walk with my cousin, one of my favorite people in the whole world... it was nice to spend this time with her and share this memory forever!

Day Three was the most beautiful walk as we walked through Addison, following the Tollway and then down Arapaho and through North Dallas and the Valley View area, then through the Highland Park and Park Cities area down Turtle Creek Blvd. Literally some of the most beautiful trees, homes and neighborhoods that I've ever seen... finally ending up on the gorgeous SMU Campus. We had finished - and we had the t-shirts to prove it!

They kept us in a holding area for a while until everyone could finish and then we all marched together in rows of ten through the campus to closing ceremonies. This march was one of my favorite moments, you are able to see how many people walked and it's a never-ending sea of white 3-Day shirts. At closing ceremonies, we listened to a wonderful speaker and then were greeted by thousands of supporters, including our families! You couldn't help but tear up and feel proud of your accomplishment!

At closing ceremonies everyone takes their shoes off and waves them in the air in honor of breast cancer survivors and in memory of those we have lost... and also because you are so stinkin' sick of these shoes and you just want them off! I think Todd said he was going to throw his tennis shoes in the trash!

All the flags came back together on stage at Closing Ceremonies...

My sweet family there to greet me at Closing Ceremonies! I missed them so much! Thank you, Daddy, for taking care of the boys for three days and for raising so much money for this cause. I love you all so much!

And my favorite picture, and of course it comes with a story... but let's just say, Susan, you finally got your flowers!

I know that I am only sharing a small taste of the adventures we experienced during our three days. This is really a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I have been blessed to do it twice. I can't thank everyone enough for their support, their prayers and encouragement. I would do this walk every year if I thought I could raise the money! Hopefully every two years will be possible and we will continue to grow our team and raise more money for this great cause. If you have ever thought about doing this event - do it! Do it with us in 2010! You can't imagine the hope that you feel seeing thousands of people walking for the same purpose - wearing their pink and even dolled up in costumes. I know the stories of the people who walk are too numerous to tell - but you'll see men walking in honor of their wives and mothers that have lost the battle to cancer, you see daughters walking with their surviving mothers, and you see those who simply walk because they dream of a cure one day. So, thank you again - and thank you to all the kids, adults, little puppies and even strangers who came out during the route with their music, signs, costumes, food, drinks and needed encouragement! It is three days that I will never forget.... and I hope the $9m raised for this DFW walk will make huge strides for this battle against breast cancer!