New pictures of Carter - 20 months old

It has been a while since I have had Carter's pictures done. So I took him in. I made sure that he had a good nap and ate before we left. Even with my efforts he was so honory! He kept thinking I was going to leave him and would start crying. Luckily we had an awesome photographer who was very patient with him and did a great job. The little cowboy outfit was worn by both of my brothers when they were Carter's age. Cute huh?

Maryn Video

Some people have said they can't view the video on my sidebar of Maryn. I have posted the link below so please check it out. The run/walk is only 11 days away! We have had some awesome sponsors donate for the raffle at the end. Please come and support little Maryn! 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQvt5i7I1js

5K Race details/Creative juices

I have been hesitant to post anything on my blog since I have all of the race details on the previous post. But that would mean no posts until after Oct. 24th, so I decided I will post as I normally would, then just periodically re-post the race details (See race details below).

Most of my day today was spent finding sponsors for the race. I got passes to Flo-rider & I-rock, A $50 gift certificate & free foot analysis to Peak Performance, some free fliers from Kinkos, & 100 no studio fee coupons from Color Me Mine. Color Me Mine also offered to let Maryn come into their studio and make anything she wants! Color Me Mine is a ceramic studio where you pick out what you want to paint, paint it, and then they will fire it for you! Awesome little place on 25th St.

I guess all of that searching for sponsors got my creative juices flowing. Plus, I also found a SUPER CUTE digi scrapping website called www.ettesandcompany.com. They have THE cutest stuff! It is my new fave by far! I'm still not a pro at Photoshop or My Memories Suite, but I did come up with this little number which I think is pretty cute! It is a free kit from ScrapWow.

Please help me spread the word...

To all who read this... please help me spread the word about a 5K Run/Walk that I am organizing for a little girl named Maryn Cella (details below). Post this on your blog, or pass it along on Facebook. Any exposure we can get helps! I can also e-mail you flyers for your work, local businesses, etc.

Event: Hope for Maryn 5K Run/ 1 Mile Walk

Date: Saturday October 24, 2009

Location: Celebration Pointe Reception Center - located in the Business Depot - Ogden, UT.

Time: Registration starts at 8:00 am; Race starts at 9:00 am

Registration: Same day - sign up before the race at Celebration Pointe Reception Center

Cost: $20.00 (includes shirt for 1st 75 people)
$50.00 family pass (2 adults, up to 5 children under the age of 15. Includes 2 shirts)
Strollers/Wagons free (please for the safety of all participants no bikes or dogs)
Montetary contributions will also be accepted

Other Details:

The 5K route can walked or ran. There will also be a 1 mile route for walking.

We will time the run but since it is a charitable event we will not use a professional timing service. To make sure that you get an accurate time, we suggest you bring your own stopwatch.

There will be a raffle for prizes at the end of the race

Prizes will be given to the first runner, walker, and stroller/wagon at the finish

One last thing... we are also looking for sponsors for prizes, food, and $ for the T-shirts. If you know of any local businesses, your own business, or have a little bit of $ to help out we would REALLY appreciate it! All sponsors will have their names printed on the back of the T-shirts.


About Maryn:
On June 17, 2009 Maryn was diagnosed with Diffuse Pontine Glioma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. She was given 9-12 months to live. We are raising money to help with some treatments that could extend her lifespan. One of which is treatment at the Burzinski Clinic in Texas. People who have been treated there live 4-5 times longer. The cost is $100,000. We are also working with the Maryn's Hope Foundation that is helping to work towards a cure. More information can be found at https://marynshopefoundation.org/

After reading Maryn's story on my cousin's blog I really felt like I needed to do something. I couldn't get her out of my mind. The day she was diagnosed was my birthday. Maybe that is why I feel some connection. All I know is that we need to have hope, pray for a miracle, and give this little girl the best life she can have for the rest of her time here.

Please view these two videos created by Alexa Nofsinger. Alexa's mom, Erica Shields has created the Maryn's Hope foundation. Erica also organized a benefit 5K in Littleton, CO. It was a huge success. The video below showcases the run. Thank you Alexa and Erica for all your help!

Benefit 5K Run/Walk

This was an event that a friend Erica Shields, who is part of the Maryn's Hope Foundation organized to help raise money for Maryn. Her daughter Alexa made this video to show how the event went and show some of the awesome runners, walkers and sponsors. This event turned out to be a huge success.

California - August 2009

We had the opportunity to go to California in August because Mark had to do some training for his work. All we had to pay for was my flight, so Carter and I tagged along. We have definitely taken advantage of the under age 2 flies free because this was Carter's 3rd time on a plane and he is 18 months old. Mark's training was in San Diego. While Mark and his coworker were at class Carter and I explored the city - on foot & stroller. I loved being able to see the city more instead of just the local theme parks. The city is beautiful except for the bums EVERYWHERE! But, if I had to be homeless that is probably where I would go too because the weather is always perfect. We hung out at the Gaslamp quarter a lot, Little Italy, The Pier, Seaport Village, and Old Town. The only negative was when Carter got sick... he was teething which resulted in constipation (from not eating), and one day he threw up all over in the car. That night and the next day was spent cleaning up from that. Not fun! Poor guy! and Poor Mom & Dad! Oh, and we missed our flight home.. long story, so we spent one more day in San Diego.

After 5 days in San Diego we headed up to Disneyland for a day. When we were there in May Fantasmic wasn't showing. We really wanted to see it, and it was worth it! Best - show - ever! Carter was really good at Disneyland. He really seemed to love it and enjoyed being there. The cutest thing was when it was time to get a picture with Tigger. I sat him down to see what he would do and he timidly walked up to Tigger. Tigger gave him a hug and as soon as he let go Carter ran back to me. It was so cute!

After Disneyland we went and saw Mark's mom and stepdad for 2 days. They live in Indio - which is extremely hot! It was about 114 degrees when we were there. We fed the fish, went swimming, went geocaching, went to Jackalope (awesome restaurant!), and just relaxed. Thanks for your hospitality Robin & Mel!

These first pics are at Jackalope. It cost $34 million to build and it was awesome!

Looking cool when we were Geocaching

Feeding the HUGE fish! One came up and splashed us. Robin, Carter & I got soaked. Carter just sat there like, "what happened?"