Day One- 10 miles in. . .

And We're Off!

Well, we got a slow start this morning.

We were both very wound up lastnight. I guess excited and nervous. . . I really could not believe that it was time to do this. At midnight I received a text message that I thought was the alarm. I thought it was time to get up. Needless to say, we were both restless and when the real alarm buzzed at 4:30 a.m. we were exausted.

Downstairs in the hotel we got our first taste of 3 day food. Seeing that it is 5:30, Jill and I had to practically force down a hard boiled egg and yogurt but now that we are at lunch (starving), I am glad we did.

We met two gals at breakfast that were on their 10th Walk together from California. It is amazing to see how many of us are out there... all with our own stories.
We board a bus at 6:15 a.m. and head to the opening ceremonies.

Opening Ceremonies--- note all the PINK and my co-walker's GREEN :) Atleast I know I will be able to find her if I lose her!!!

It is still dark outside and cold as we enter the world of PINK. A large decorated stage, inspirational balloons and flags all greet us.

The Opening Ceremony begins with a stretching activity and ends with a very moving survivors circle. Behing me is a mother with her two daughters. They are sobbing... I could not help but to get teary eyed. Emotional and exausted does not suit me well.

We are off 45 minutes later, single filed to begin our journey. Since we all left at the same time we are moving slow. It has taken us 3 hours to walk 10 miles.


We are at our first 3day lunch... not bad and we are SO HUNGRY! They keep reminding us to hydrate, urinate and masicate (chew). Kind of gross but cannot get it out of my head.
(Crew members are riding along on bikes and motorcycles with words and songs of encouragement-- As a fundraiser you can choose walker or Crew.)

Out 1st Adventure!

Well, we are here.
It is 9 p.m., the debates have started and Jill and I are FINALLY getting settled at the most overpriced Best Western I have seen. We left Radford today at 2:45 and really made good time to Woodbridge. Traffic was minimal, conversation was good and tunes were great (Jill entertained us with everything from Dolly Parton to Kayne.... you know you have to love a little LIVE Judds :).

When we get to our hotel (again, more than our DC boutique hotel) I realize that I forgot contact solution. We are on Potomac Mills road so we were certain we could walk to find something. After checking in (they did not even ask for my ID) we hit the streets to get the goods (you know, a little warm up for tomorrow morning...). Almost two hours later we are still wandering , looking for this magical WALMART people speak of, checking every convenience store in sight.... WE STILL HAVE NO CONTACT SOLUTION.

We then decided MAYBE it was not wise to wander the highway in NOVA so we went to the Chilis (PS- WORST MEAL EVER) and then got the car. Giants had the goods and now we are off to bed. We must be downstairs by 5:45 a.m. to catch the shuttle. The way we figure it, we are +5 miles into our 3DAY adventure.

And We're Off!

We just got our route and we are off to Woodbridge as soon as we get packed! YIKES!
We must be at Ikea by 6 a.m. ready to walk. Wish us luck :)

We've Got Mail????

There's nothing like a letter from a loved one to inspire you to keep going.Your friends, family and supporters can write a letter to you, which we'lldeliver to you on the event at the Breast Cancer 3-Day Camp Post Officeinside the 3-Day Cafe.
Send letters to:
Breast Cancer 3-Day CampPost Office
ATTN: INSERT NAME OF PARTICIPANT
P.O. Box 50273
Washington, DC 20091

Envelopes only, please.No boxes or large packages. Mail must be postmarked no later than September 23rd in order to ensure delivery at the BreastCancer 3-Day Camp Post Office. Any mail that is not retrieved by the walkerby November will be destroyed.

Cupcakes for a Cause....

Can you believe that we sold 300 cupcakes?????
Thank you to Kate Brennan, Karen Gore, Kate McCoy and Sister, Cindy Miller and Shop Gals
for delectable cupcakes! Thanks to Becky and Main Street for allowing us a table! Thanks to David Horton for pumping them on the mic! Thanks to the cupcake lovers for shoppin...

10 Weeks and Counting

Boy does summer fly when you are counting down the days... in miles that is. So far, so good logging the miles. I took a week off while traveling-- I worked out but no walking (unless you count walking all over showrooms) and I thought I would start having panic attacks :) Back on track this week with a 12miler ahead of me this a.m.As for fundraising, we are almost at our goal... Just as I hoped, we are there and it is just July! We had our version of a bake sale yielding $300 on Friday in form of Cupcakes for a Cause. A special thanks to Kate M, Karen G, Kate B and Cindy M for helping Jill and I bake! They turned out yummy... resulting in a sweet sucsess.

Thanks again for all of your support!
Stacey P, aka Shop Girl

Clothing for a Cause!!!!

Thank you to EVERYONE who donated clothing, accessories, etc! We raised almost $1000!!!! . . .

. . . . and once again, forgot to snap the pictures. For those that did not see it, we had an entire recycled clothing store downstairs. A special thanks to Karen and Kate for helping us get set up and for Dianne Morris for helping us break it down. The items that did not sell went to the Radford Clothing Bank.

One Event down....

Two more to go!

Celebrate for a Cause was a sucess....

. . . but were too busy to take pictures :( Until the end of the night, that is! We had GREAT desserts donated from Liz Alteri, Kate Brennan, Cindy Miller, Jenny Wagstaff, BTs, Coffee Mill, Macados, Our Daily Bread and Pascals Kitchen! Even with the wine snaffoo it was still a great time! Thank you Vintage Cellar and the Gallery for improvising and adapting!

14 weeks to go

Can you believe it? When I got this weeks training schedule I was so shocked that we were that close. Last week we had our 2nd Fundraiser- Clothing for a Cause, a recycled clothing sale. We raised $1000 and received an outpour of support from the community. We had so much stuff that we filled the entire downstairs of Encore with clothing, shoes and accessories. Thank you to all the donators and shoppers. The remaining goods are going to the Radford Clothing Bank this week.Our next fundraiser is planned for July 18 and it's a fun one... Cupcakes for a Cause. Main Street is closed from 5 to 9 p.m. that night for an Embers Concert. We will sell an assortment of cupcakes and iced tea... a perfect southern fundraiser! Someone asked how training was going yesterday and i said "All I feel like I do is WALK." She said, "Then you are really training!" It is good and I feel like with over an hour plus daily I have gotten some good and much needed counciling time with myself. It is amazing what surfaces in your thought when you are solo. I have started long walks on the weeked (8 this Saturday and 10 on Sunday) and am suddenly wishing our town was larger.Signing off for today but like to keep whomever reads this posted!

Your favorite Shop Girl, Stacey

3 months in. . .

WHEW!!!
Hello everyone. It's been three months since ShopGirls for a Cause was born. We are almost at 50% of our goal!!!!! Lastweek we had our first fundraiser-- Celebrate for a Cause Wine and Dessert Tasting. A special thanks to everyone that came out to support us. Our next Fundraiser is June 14-- Clothing for a Cause at the Farmer's Market Lot. We will sell recycled name brand fashions for $5, $10, $15, $20 and $25 to go straight to the cause!!!!! Just cross your fingers for nice weather. Thank you again for all of your continued support for our efforts!

XXOO, sdp

Shop Girls for a Cause in FULL EFFECT!!!!!

It is official, Jill and I recieved our traning schedule and we have set up our team page. Visit http://08.the3day.org/goto/ShopGirlsforaCause to check it out. We are ready to get new shoes and start training. Thanks to the first six donors that are helping us reach that 10% line. My goal is to be at the 25% line by April.

Jill, are you up for it????

Week One

Whew! We did it... we signed up... We are committed! Let the fun, and the fundraising begin. Still waiting on our training packets so why start the training??? (Spoken like a true procrastinator, right?). Thanks in advance for helping me train and fundraise. As we come up with events I will post on the blog. I could not do this without the support of my friends, family and customers! THANK YOU for allowing me to do this!