Day 1 - Amanda

Not sure what I have got myself into here, but last week sometime I signed up for this health blogging challenge where I am supposed to blog about something health related every day for one month. I don't like to look on the downside but blogging every day does not seem realistic to me. However, I am going to give it the old college try. Probably the hardest part about doing it, is not necessarily that I might not have anything to say...I rarely run out of words; it's more likely going to be the old 'I don't have time' whine.
Today, though, I am going to start out talking about my daughter, Amanda. Amanda was here today. I didn't go to church because I was feeling punk. I have a cold and have been feeling generally run down. So a day in was my intention. Amanda and I had made plans for this weekend. We weren't going anywhere but we knew we had to set aside a few hours to go through all our Zeal for Teal 'stuff' and sort things out. As we dug through all the wonderful prizes and items we have accumulated over the past few while, I started to reflect upon what we were doing.

     When I was first diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2008 it knocked us all back a few blows. I always fancied myself healthy as a horse and I rarely popped a pill for anything. Cancer slapped me in the face back in April 2008 and sent me reeling. I remember when Gilles and I first told our family about this new journey we were about to embark upon. Amanda shed a few tears but it wasn't long after that that she became a great source of strength. She got on the internet and researched ovarian cancer. She found out about Ovarian Cancer Canada and before I knew it, she had me put on my 'big girl panties' and she signed us both up for the Walk of Hope which was to take place in Barrie, Ontario. We loved it and we were hooked. When we head back up to Barrie this year, we will do so with that continued hope and a wagon load of gratitude.

     Then the following year, after my chemo was complete, Amanda had another idea. "Let's do a scrapbooking fundraiser to help raise money to combat ovarian cancer!" I had raised a fighter...

Thank you God for letting me live to enjoy my grandbabies!

      I hardly even knew what scrapbooking was about. But I was soon to learn. On April 28th we will be enjoying our fourth Zeal for Teal scrapbbooking and crafting fundraiser day. The first Zeal for Teal took place at our church and we had 40 people in attendance. Since that time, our numbers have more than doubled (we have almost 100 people registered!) and we had to move to the arena to accomodate our day.

Zeal for Teal 2011

 This year's theme is The Wild West, so we are looking forward to a Yee-Haa! kind of a day. Tomorrow, I might talk about the details of our day. Right now I am heading to bed. I will continue to reflect a little on Amanda and how she didn't let me, for one moment, give up. She blasted a whole lot of hope and that old British fighting spirit into my psyche! I was glad she came today...

Onward and Upward

I am proud of my daughter and thankful as she continues to encourage me. Amanda rallied us last September to participate in the Winner's Walk for Hope in Barrie, Ontario (and we're going to do it again this September!)

Recently Amanda has been working hard to make our 'Zeal for Teal" scrapbooking for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Fundraiser a special day on May 2nd.
Amanda coined the phrase - Zeal for Teal - and I was impressed. Ever since my diagnosis and subsequent battle with ovarian cancer and chemotherapy, she was determined to do something tangible on my behalf and her "zeal" continues to spill over.

Thanks to her creative talent our scrapbooking crop plans are culminating in a meeting this weekend. Amanda, Janice (my sweet supportive daughter-in-law) and Darlene (my faithful friend and equally supportive pretend little sister) and I will be putting on the finishing touches and defining our duties!
We still have about four or five spots left so if anyone out there is still thinking about joining us on this special day, then come on down...let us know and we will sign you up.
The day promises to be a wonderful time filled with freebies, door prizes galore, games, make-and-takes, grab-bags, free mini-pedicures, on-site stores, fine food and more. And the best part is we get to do it all in our pajamas!

I get to welcome everyone and share a reader's digest version about what it has been like to live with cancer and to also share what God has taught me on my journey. Ovarian Cancer Canada is very supportive of this project and have helped us with promotions. They have sent us some literature to share with women so I am manning the little information area.

My hope and prayer is that we have a rocking good time on May 2nd but at the same time we do our part to help raise awareness about ovarian cancer, which is often dubbed the silent killer. Bring it on!