Hello lovelies! Thanks for your visit and for your support during this running & fundraising season.

   * * * UPDATE 12/6/11: WE DID IT!!! Team Challenge Northwest hit Vegas this weekend and ROCKED the Las Vegas Strip! It was an amazing and intense weekend; together with our 1200+ teammates from all over the country, we have raised over $4.5million for Crohn's & colitis research! Race weekend was incredible for both Ruby and me, for a number of reasons: we got to be together, nonstop, for 5 days; we got to see the incredible gusto of Team Challengers from 40 different chapters; I finally got to introduce Ruby to my awesome teammates as my honoree; Ruby got to just hang out with other athletes living with IBD, and talk about medications and treatments and problems and just feel normal. For her, that alone was huge. For me, it was a joy to see. Thank you to everyone who has supported both of us throughout this entire amazing season and made it all possible!
    Y'all donors have shown an unbelievable amount of support these past few weeks, and rocketed past my initial goal of $2500 just before race weekend. We are SOOOO close to my personal goal of $3500! Reaching that level of fundraising would be the icing on top of the Team Challenge cake -- can you help me make it there? Every dollar counts! We have three weeks left!
    Deep, deep gratitude to everyone who's donated so far! I hope the holidays find you well and happy! Go Team Challenge!

   * * * UPDATE 11/25/11: Thank you to EVERYONE for the outpouring of support in the past few weeks! There's been a terrific jump in my fundraising, thanks to many amazing individual donors and a generous contribution from The Wish List Foundation! The last two Sundays have seen us trucking through very cold 10-mile runs; at only 9 days away from the race, we're now tapering -- reducing our distances and letting our bodies rest & prepare. Thank you for your consistent support through the entire season!

   * * * UPDATE 10/28/11: We are going out for 8 miles at our training this Saturday -- whoot whoot! Donate in honor of someone you know living with IBD, and I will carry his or her name on my jersey during our final 13.1 run this December. Thanks to everyone for the support!

   * * * UPDATE 10/2011: Run safe and ride smart with your very own Road ID! Access the Road ID site through the logo posted here, and 10% of your purchase price will go to my Team Challenge campaign.

   * * * UPDATE 10/9/11: We are halfway through our season! Our distances are getting longer (we're up to consistent 6-mile runs), and fundraising is gaining momentum. With your backing and encouragement I have passed the $1000 mark! We're well on our way to my goal of $3500! Seattle locals might be interested in Movie Night fundraisers that are starting up in the next two weeks; keep an eye on Facebook for details. Again and always, thank you for your support!

   This fall I've joined Team Challenge to raise money for research on Crohn's disease and colitis. I had very little idea of what these diseases were about until I reconnected with my cousin Ruby this summer. We live far apart and hadn't seen each other in years, but I found out that Ruby has ulcerative colitis. The formal definition of colitis is "an inflammatory disease of the digestive tract" -- but really, it's basically like your guts are on fire. Colitis causes pain, fever, diarrhea, bleeding, anemia -- and a whole raft of independently debilitating secondary issues like depression and social withdrawal -- plus side effects from steroidal medications. Ruby explains how colitis has impacted her life on her web page -- and hers is a mild case. Research-driven improvements have been made in medicines and treatments, but there's a long way to go.

   So when Ruby found Team Challenge, we decided that we're going to each raise $3,500 for the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation, AND we're going to run a half marathon together. But wait, you say -- doesn't Ruby live in Minneapolis? How can you run "together?"

   Ruby has joined Team Challenge in Minneapolis, and I've joined Team Challenge in Seattle. We'll train this fall with our local chapters, and at the end of the season -- December 4, 2011 -- we'll meet up in Las Vegas to run 13.1 miles on the Vegas Strip! Woohoo! So please donate to CCFA through this page and support our mission. This is all about raising awareness of these diseases, raising money to find a cure, and (bonus!!) doing something fun and healthy together. Any support you can provide helps us toward the finish line and toward a cure, and every dollar counts.

   Keep your eyes open for fundraising events throughout the season, and training updates from both of us! Thank you for your support!