This weekend was the Run For Ribbons 5k.  It’s a run/walk for ALL cancers.  They give you a t-shirt with a blank ribbon, and you decorate it with the color(s) that you are supporting.  I did mine in gray for my step-mom who has brain cancer, and lavender wich represents all cancers.  Tasha’s was dark blue for colon cancer, and lavender as well.  I know I had shown Tasha working hard on her shirt in one of my other posts.  Here was the second day of decorating….and you can see she is still JUST as focused on the task at hand as she was the first day.  🙂

Waking up that morning I was pleasantly surprised that the sun had held on another day for us.  Yay!  But…by the time we got down to the park, the wind had picked up quite a bit….and it was c-c-c-cold!  We both had long sleeve shirts on under our newly decorated t-shirts, but we were really hoping not to have to wear a coat…..cuz, that’s kind of the whole point, to show what you’re supporting by the way you decorated your shirt. Besides, there were some crazy people, I mean, adventurous people wearing shorts and no layers. If they could hack it, so could we.

We went and signed our waivers, and took a looksy at the booths they had set up for Ribbon Fest, that were all but being carried off by the wind.  I felt bad for all those people, trying to hold down all the papers on their tables, while the tent they were standing under was about to blow away too.  Our looksy didn’t last long.  We realized we had an HOUR till the walk/run actually began. Rather than risk death by exposure, like a couple of diehards (not), we hurried back to the parking lot to sit in Tasha’s car with the heater and music on for the next hour. Here we are “braving” the elements in her car….

And here is Tasha saying “Dude, what is UP with this WIND!

I cannot believe how many people were there!  It was awesome.  They had a 1 mile walk, and a 5k run/walk.  We of course, chose the 5k (remember, we are diehards).  😉

It’s sad yet amazing at the same time to see just how many people’s lives have been touched by cancer.  The support is strong though, that is obvious.

Oh, and I of course, had my choose joy necklace with me…..I was supporting cancer, and it was supporting me.  I know it sounds a little “kooky”, but it really IS a great reminder, having it hanging around my neck 24/7.  Every time I catch a glimpse of it, or feel it….I remember ….to CHOOSE JOY, no matter where I am or what I’m doing.

So we hoofed the 5k in the hurricane along the Columbia River (which had white caps the entire morning), along with literally hundreds of others.  There were small kids, baby’s in strollers, teenagers, “real” runners, people in wheel chairs, and elderly folks.  There were a couple of elderly couples just trudging along holding hands…..just how I imagine Tasha and her hubbs when they are old and gray.  It was so cute.

We made it to the finish a couple of minutes over the one hour mark.  The couple minutes was my fault, I managed to get a blister on EACH foot (I belive in equality) and had to take my shoes off to examine them at the halfway mark.  You know, to see just how much pouting I could do the rest of the way.

Blisters, frozen ears and lips and all, it was an AWESOME way to start the day.

When we finished, my mom and Emma had arrived at the playground in the park so Em’s could play a little, in the hurricane.  They brought Riley.  Here he is standing with his ears blowing in the wind.  I think he looks like the flying nun when they do that. His shadow in this reminds me of that commercial where the guy is sitting in a chair in front of a giant speaker, and his hair and everything around him is being blown backwards.