Monday, Monday....

Wow....Monday, ALREADY?? We had another fun, but tiring weekend! Sundance Kidz performed again on Saturday night at a big end of summer party in Higganum, CT.

The party was at the beautiful home of Freddy Perkins, the man who bid on and won the band at my last Team Hole in the Wall fundraiser at Black Eyed Sally's! It was a great party with lot's of food and drinks (including an Apple Pie cocktail which tasted like apple pie and had QUITE a kick to it!!), a bouncy house, outdoor movie theatre for the kids, and of course.....AWESOME music! Once again, Sundance Kidz were GREAT and everyone had a good time!

Alex and a couple of her friends were there, and Conor met a new friend, Ryan, and they had a blast shuttling party goers from the parking area to the house on a golf cart! The golf cart was signed by many race car drivers, including Richard Petty! Oh, I forgot to mention that Freddy is a race car driver and he has some pretty amazing cars!

I had a really good time....listening to the music, chatting with some of the other band members wives,as well as some other people! Freddy was so nice to include the band members families, and he and his girlfriend, Allison, made us feel so welcome!

Sunday was a very relaxing day! Ray was pretty sore and tired from the gig, since he had all of the equipment to load afterwards, plus....he does work pretty hard, playing drums!! We spent most of the day just watching TV....flipping channels between football games and an NCIS marathon! It was really nice to be able to do that!

Conor spent the afternoon with his friend Jack, going to the corn maze, eating lunch out and playing some football at Jack's house! Alex was just getting over a couple of day's of having some bad headaches, so she spent a pretty low-key day at home herself.

SOOOO.......since yesterday was a pretty lazy day.....WHY am I so darn tired TODAY??? I guess it takes a little longer these days to get over a little weekend partying??!!! Oh well, I wouldn't trade my life for anything! I am SO grateful to have my wonderful family...I'm glad that Ray has his music! I also LOVE the fact that even though this gig wasn't a fund raiser....Ray still talked about Camp and asked that people please check out info on Camp and contribute if possible! I LOVE that Conor and Alex are involved in helping out with the band (they make great roadies!!) and that the band members families are so nice to hang out with!! Yeah, it takes a little longer to recover from weekend fun than it used too, but it's SOOO worth it!!

Now, time to get moving! I have a lot of laundry and housework to do, but first......I MUST RUN!!!

2012 Fandango Gala-Hole in the Wall Gang Camp

Wow, where do I begin?? Saturday was one of the most amazing days ever! Talk about a "roller coaster of emotions!" This was my first Gala that was at The Hole in The Wall Gang Camp. I have been to several Gala's in NYC and they were great, but this was just....MAGICAL!! The events that were held in NYC were wonderful, glamorous and there were lot's of celebrity performances and appearance's by people like, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Michael Buble, Kristen Chenowith, Stevie Wonder, Trisha Yearwood, President Bill Clinton, Julia Roberts and SO many more, and still.....NOT as magical as the Gala at Camp!

How do I explain what made this Gala so special? Sure, there were celebrities there too! Alec Baldwin was the auctioneer and he was absolutely AMAZING!! He was hysterically funny and he made it clear that he really cares about Camp! He did a fantastic job of getting people to GIVE!!Oh, and HE gave a LOT himself!

 One of the items up for bid was lunch with Bradley Cooper (sexiest man alive) and there were a LOT of ladies interested in that one!!

 In the end....Camp got $200,000 for the lunch with BC!!! NO, I was NOT the winner! Although Ray is a wonderful husband, I just could NOT convince him that he should take out his retirement money in order to get the lunch for me....um...I mean, for ALEX! After all, her birthday will be here in just over a week and I was thinking that Bradley would make a GREAT birthday surprise!! One gentleman was up to $95,000 in the bidding (a gift for his very young, teenaged daughter!), and Alec Baldwin said that if he would make it $100,000, he would match it!! No prob!! What's a mere $100, 000, right????? Anyway, there were so many wonderful live and silent auction items....some that went for $50, 000 to $100, 000, and some that went for a few hundred! I won a signed poster of Jake Gyllenhaal for Alex! It was just a wonderful event!

After the Auction and Gala, Ray's band; Sundance Kidz performed at the dinner! They were absolutely WONDERFUL!! I was SO proud to be there with the band! Of course, after a couple of drinks, I had fun telling a couple of people; when asked what my role with the band was, that I was, "sleeping with the drummer!!"

                                                           

 People were dancing and having a wonderful time! One of the people dancing was James Naughton, the wonderful singer/actor. I chatted with him for a while a little later and he was one of the warmest, most genuinely nice people I have ever met! He was a friend of Paul Newman's and he has had a big role in helping keep Paul's Camp going!

James Naughton-Blue plaid shirt!

 I also chatted with Paul Newman's daughter, Lissy, whom I had met a couple of times previously and once again....she is such a beautiful, kind and generous lady! She also has the most amazing singing voice! I met Nathan Lane, and Alec Baldwin very briefly. The actress, Bridget Moynahan was also there and has recently become involved with Camp.Sandy Koufax was on the dance floor at one point in the evening!

Again, meeting these wonderful people was great, but the REAL reason that this Gala was so amazing??....Let's see if I can even begin to put it into words! I met several wonderful people from all walks of life, some who have been involved with Camp for a long time, and some who were there for their first visit. I talked to friends from Camp, whom I have known for awhile now through Team Hole in the Wall and from previous visits to Camp and it is ALWAYS a joy to be around all of these wonderful people! I could write a BOOK about how I feel about these kind, and caring folks! I also had the pleasure of talking one on one with a couple of Moms' of former Campers. These ladies were there to volunteer their time, helping out with putting on this event. During one of the Mom's breaks, we chatted about the wonder's of Camp. This beautiful lady was trying to explain just how much the Camp experience had meant to her son, and to the rest of her family. Through many tears, she said that even though she had some amazing friends who loved her and her son, that they couldn't TRULY understand what she was feeling. She said that when she went to the family sessions at Camp for the weekend, she got to talk to other Mom's who REALLY KNOW deep down what she's going through and she got to listen to them, bond with them and not feel so alone. As for her son....She said that she didn't really want to drop her sick child (cancer) off at Camp and leave him for a week Through her tears she said to me, "I just kept thinking....what if he dies there, what if I'm not with him?" OMG, I CAN'T even imagine. She really didn't want to leave him, and yet, because his doctor's thought he needed to go and deep down SHE knew it would be good for him, she put a smile on her face and dropped him off at the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp! Of course, after she left him at Camp, she had herself a good cry, but she's a Mom and she did what she KNEW in her heart was the right thing for her son. I'm not sure just how long it's been since her son went to Camp, but he's doing well now. She still feels that she can never give back enough to the Camp to even come close to what they gave her son, but she volunteers and works there every chance she gets. This same woman, along with quite a few others, were so overcome with the generosity of some of the people at the auction, that they were crying. I saw so many people crying at different times in the evening! Mother's, father's, people who work for Camp, former Camper's......SO many people, and yet, this wasn't a sad event! These people were crying because they were so happy to know that this MAGICAL place, has the funds to continue on for other sick children!! These same people who were crying at times, were also celebrating, dancing, singing along with Sundance Kidz, and just being THANKFUL for so many caring people! I also got to see so many of the beautiful children who attend Camp and hear directly from THEM how much this place means to them.

In the middle of the evening, I thought of something that Paul Newman said in a video clip about Camp that sort say's it all....."Whenever I'm feeling down in the dumps, I come here and this place reaffirms everything that is good and generous about this country."

I ALWAYS leave Camp with a smile on my face and in my heart!!

NEED.NEW.RUNNING.SHOES.....

Wow, I am feeling pretty good right now about my running and walking! Since I've been out of work for a couple of weeks, I've had much more time (and energy!) for working out! The downside to being out of a job though, is that now I won't have extra money for race fees, running shoes and all of those nifty gadgets that I have been dying for (Garmin 610!), and such!!! That's okay though, I am still going to move forward with my plans for another marathon. I'm not sure WHICH marathon just yet, but I'm going to make that decision very soon!

Of course, whatever marathon I decide to do....I will do it to support The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp! I'm really bummed that I won't be doing NYC Marathon with Team Hole in the Wall in November!

This Is The Day The Lord Hath Made, Let Us Rejoice And Be Glad In It!!

Just Another September 11th.....

Today is September 11th and so many people are thinking about and mourning for, all of the victims from that horrible day 11 years ago. We use the term, "Never Forget" so many times when referring to the horrible tragedy that occurred on Sepember 11, 2001. One can only hope that the people that perished on that day and in the following days and their families will TRULY "Never Be Forgotten." Yes, life must go on for those of us still here and we should be trying so hard to do whatever we can to make this a more peaceful, caring, place for our children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren.........But we MUST NEVER FORGET! We shouldn't live in fear and we mustn't dwell on "what ifs".....but we should always set aside a time to reflect on the events that took place on that horrible day and to be grateful to those courageous men and women....firefighters, police officers, civilians who were near the scene....all of those brave people should be remembered, as well as the people who perished.

We mustn't let September 11, become "just another day".......We must NEVER FORGET.

I read this morning that the daughter of a good friend of mine started a tradition of taking a cake to the local firefighters at the station near her house on the anniversary of 9-11......Just a small way to honor, show respect and gratitude. While the daughter is away at school, her Mom has taken over that task. What a wonderful idea!! We can all do some small thing in remembrance, to show our gratitude, and respect for firefighters, police officers,military people, and all of the other people who put there lives on the line for us, not just on 9-11, but every day of the year..

September 11....NOT just another day.

My Hero--Paul Newman

As I was running on this lovely fall-like morning, I started thinking about something that I had read about how today's young people have so many seemingly (to me anyway), unworthy hero's and idol's--so many of them are either musicians, singers, athletes or actor's. When I look at how some of these people seem to live and what they stand for---I am a little upset that so many of today's youth want to be like them.

Having said that, I have to admit that I TOO have a hero/idol from the acting world! Without a doubt, Paul Newman is my hero!! Not for the reason's that some might think though! Yes--without a doubt, the man had the most beautiful blue eyes that God ever gave a man.....and YES, he was a great actor...and one can't deny that the word "HOT" comes to mind also!! The reason that Paul Newman is my hero is because of the amazing way that he dealt with his fame and fortune. One of my favorite Newman quotes is----"I'm not running for Sainthood--I just happen to think that in life we need to be a little like the farmer who puts back into the soil what he takes out."

The reason that this man is MY hero.....is the same reason that he is a hero to so many children and their families. Many of the kids who call him their hero are too young to even KNOW about Paul Newman the actor.They know him as the amazing man who had a dream for a place where sick children could go and "Raise a little Hell" and just "Be kids"....and he made that dream come true in the form of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp.

My family had the honor of being at the Camp this past weekend. This wasn't our first visit to Camp, we have been there a couple of times a year for the past several years...and yet, every time we go there, I am just filled with a sense of wonder and awe! I can't even describe the way the place makes me feel. To use the words of a former Camper..."it's just MAGICAL!" Ray and I went up on Friday afternoon and slept in Lulu's Lodge, which is a place that was built to lodge staff members and families of Campers, etc.This was the first time that we ever had the opportunity to sleep over and I felt like a kid getting to go to Camp!!

These lovely bunny ears were in our room at the lodge! I'm sure someone placed them there just for Ray!!

Ray had to bring band equipment this time because his band, Sundance Kidz had been asked to perform on Saturday for the Camp Challenge Bike Ride. We had to unload the equipment Friday night so that we could load supplies, tents, etc for the Rest Stop that I would be in charge of for some of the riders on Saturday morning. We had a wonderful dinner catered by Vanilla Bean and there was some awesome BBQ pulled pork!!I was so happy that Krissy Juhaz, a trainer for some of the marathons and a big supporter of camp sat and ate with Ray and I. Krissy is one of my favorite people EVER and I had not had a chance to really talk with her in awhile! I talked to her about helping me with a REAL training plan for another marathon and she said she would be glad to help!!

After dinner there was a meeting for the volunteers on safety and some other issues. Then, Ray and I took a nice little walk to the lodge and got settled in our room.

Saturday morning we were at the dining hall at 6:30 to get started setting up for the band. I won't go into all of the details of the morning, but I was amazed by all of the work that goes into such an event! All of the people who work for Camp and Team Hole in the Wall are the most amazing group of people and you can tell that they don't just WORK  for Camp....they LIVE for Camp and the kids!

Ray worked his butt off getting the sound equipment set up before he had to go with me to set up the rest stop! After getting the tents set up he headed back to Camp to get ready to perform. I had an amazing group of helpers at the rest stop,Colleen Brown and her children, Lillie and Francis, my sweet guy Conor and a lovely young woman named Corey, whose boyfriend was riding in the event! Alex was supposed to help us but got recruited by Ray to run the sound board for the band! It was a hectic and yet wonderful day! We were at the 10 mile mark of the 15 mile bike ride route and the riders had endured a LOT of hills before getting to our Rest Stop. The kids were wonderful about taking riders water bottles and filling them, or just handing out food, drinks, etc! Colleen and Corey both worked so hard at their jobs and made sure that the riders all got what they needed....including a lot of encouragement and praise for their hard work!

We didn't get back to Camp in time to hear much from Sundance Kidz, but what we heard was great! Alex said that she had a LOT of people come up to her and say that they thought the band sounded AWESOME!!

It was a great experience and the riders raised a lot of money for Camp!! But back to my hero.......

The Story of Camp

In the beginning, there was a dream, the vision of Paul Newman. Flush with the early success of Newman’s Own, his company that gives all of its profits after taxes to charity, Mr. Newman began receiving scores of letters asking for help from parents of children with serious illnesses. Tax rules, however, prohibited the thriving young company from making donations to individuals. He began pondering other ways to help these children and decided to establish a camp where they could retrieve some of their lost childhood and “raise a little hell.”

What better place to fire the imaginations of youngsters than a village scene right out of the Wild West? He built it in record time and dubbed it The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp for the rag tag bandits from his film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Like Butch and Sundance, The Hole in the Wall is a place where our children find a refuge from the outside world and the care and worry of serious illness. Then, Mr. Newman filled his Camp with caring, capable staff – because it is people that make the magic happen.

Camp welcomed 288 children that first summer; twenty five years later, more than 1,000 children enter our gates from June through August alone each year. Today, The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp is the first in a family of camps for children with serious illnesses in the U.S. and overseas with more than 100,000 youngsters served worldwide.

Need I say more???

I am very happy to say that my 17 year old daughter puts Paul Newman at the top of her list of hero's also!! Yeah, she still likes a lot of those cute young singers and actor's.....but she KNOWS the importance of people like Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and some other people who truly CARE about the world and the people in it and she strives to be like them! I totally believe that the "magic of Camp" has helped instill in my children the importance of helping other children! Even Conor who at age 11 can have that...."ME--ME--ME" attitude sometimes, REALLY believes in supporting Camp and totally enjoys volunteering there! As much as he would LOVE to attend this amazing Camp, he understands how important it is for sick children to go there and he wants to help make that possible!

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Labor Day Weekend in Boston

On Friday afternoon, Ray, Alex, Conor and I headed to Worcester, MA to watch Nick coach some football! It was Fitchburg's first game of the season and it was against Becker College. The good news--We got to see Nick.......and that was it for the good news! The game was a disaster! I won't go into detail, but they lost pretty bad! After the game we spent the night in Worcester.

Early Saturday morning, we headed out to Boston on the commuter train. We didn't really have any definite plans for our stay....just to have some fun and relax! The train ride was nice, but then......We got to the Westin Hotel where we were supposed to have a room for 2 adults and 2 children. Imagine our surprise when we were told that the only room available had a king bed and a couple of chairs! Oh, not problem we say, "just give us a roll-a-way"....NO ROLL-A-WAY'S available??! Okay, how about some BEDDING?? Conor and Alex were thrilled (NOT) to learn that they would be sleeping on the floor for 2 nights!!

All day Saturday we just wandered around and did a lot of touristy things! Fanuel Hall, the Old State House, walked along the waterfront, etc!

For dinner, we looked on Google for a restaurant that wasn't too far away and we decided to take a walk to check out a diner that looked interesting! We didn't want to get dressed up since we were so tired and we thought a diner would be perfect! It was a pretty long walk to the L Street Diner, but it turned out to be well worth the walk! In addition to the food being great....we chatted with some really nice locals and had a BLAST with our waitress!  Talk about a REAL South Boston accent!! After Ray told her that we had walked all the way from the Westin....she say's, "Yeah...that's like right down the street! You want me to be impressed or somthin'???" After some fun-abusing of Ray and her sharing a lot about her family life (hysterical stories!).....she said she was working a double shift the next day and Ray said, "So if we come here for breakfast, can we expect you to be as nice as you are tonight??".....She say's, "Oh yeah...I'm a real freakin' PEACH on the early shift!" We also heard stories from a couple of people that were eating there about how the neighborhood and diner had some colorful, mob-related history! 

Unfortunately, we didn't get much sleep Saturday night. Evidently there was some event going on in Boston that involved a LOT of kids/teens and they were all staying at our hotel. They were banging on doors, running up and down the hallway and screaming ALL night! At one point after looking into the hall and seeing a couple of guys laying on the floor right outside our room, Ray called security and they came up and ran the guys off. That worked for about 20 minutes and then they were back.
 

Early Sunday morning, Alex and I headed out for a run on the waterfront. We didn't run for long, but it felt great to get out in the fresh air! YES....I HAVE to be more consistent with the running!!

We DID actually go back to the L Street Diner for breakfast and had almost as much fun as the night before, AND some awesome pancakes!
 

Ray and I at Castle Island

After breakfast we walked down to an area called Castle Island, which was really pretty. Next we headed to an outdoor market/festival in the South End. Later in the day we took a trolley tour and then headed to Little Italy for dinner!

 On Monday we headed home. Of course, we HAD to stop at Cracker Barrel for dinner!

So, we are back home and it's time to get serious about eating healthy and running now!! I feel like a BLIMP!!