Crohn's and colitis are painful and chronic digestive diseases for which there currently is no cure. Over 1.4 million Americans, including 150,000 children, are affected and live day-to-day not knowing when their disease will strike again.

The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America's mission is to cure Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, and to improve the quality of life of children and adults affected by these diseases. The Foundation ranks third among leading health non-profits in the percentage of expense devoted to research toward a cure, with more than 75 cents of every dollar the Foundation spends goes to mission-critical programs.

I am committed to training and working with Team Challenge to raise funds for Crohn’s and Colitis research and patient services and to complete my third 1/2 Marathon on July 19, 2009 in beautiful Napa, California.

Thank you for visiting my page and I hope you are able to donate to a cause that personally impacts my daily life. Please remember that every contribution helps!

Love,

Erin

Training Update

Week 1: Completed the first group run, 3.2 miles - then ran another 3 miles home.

Week 2: I was in Birmingham, therefore, did not participate in the group run. Got in a few miles on the Embassy Suites treadmill after eating yummy grits!

Week 3: This week's group run was right in my backyard on the Capital Crescent Trail. I did an out and back route that was approx. 6.5 miles.

Week 4: I've decided to slow the training down a bit (afterall, the race isn't until July). I ran almost five miles with the group this weekend at beautiful Burke Lake in Virginia.

Week 5: Wow, I cannot believe I've been training for a month now. Ran a beautiful and crowded 7.5 miles with the group past the cherry blossoms.

Week 6: I missed my group run this week because of Passover. But I was able to get in a three mile run in the windy city.

Week 7: This week our group run was a little different. We were divided into two teams, DC/VA vs. MD and went on a scavenger hunt around downtown DC. To find out if my team won, check out my blog!

Week 8: I skipped my group run this week to race in a 10k, which went well minus the fact DC skipped from winter to summer.

Week 9: This was our last relatively easy long run, the remainder of the runs are no less than 1.5 hours... yikes!

Week 10: The first of many long destination runs. This week, Ben and I were in Cleveland for Mother's Day. We did our first truly long run, covering 9 miles of beautiful Shaker Heights. Next week NYC stay tuned...

Week 11: Two months until race day! Ben and I just booked our tickets to California, we will be spending an entire week there!!! This past week we did a 10+ mile run on the west side of NYC. Minus a little rain, I loved the trail and it was flat.

Week 12: Back in DC, but since it was memorial day there was no group run. Ben and I did a two hour run on the C&O canal. Minus a small hiccup (I fell on my butt, which slowed me down a bit for the last 25 minutes, but no major injuries) the run felt good. I'm curious to see how the remainder of our training will go, since during training for prior races, this would have been my final long run before tapering.

Week 13: Back with Team Challenge for this first time in a month. We did a 90 minute run around the national mall and partly into VA (I got us lost and stuck in the middle of a highway). It was an excellent run, did just over 9 miles at 9:48 pace. Couldn't be more pleased with this run. Wine tasting happy hour this week...

Week 14: This was by far the hilliest long run I've ever done. We were in Arlington and did an hour 40 minute run. Because of the hills, our pace was around 10 minutes, instead of the 9:40s we had been doing. But still, a pretty good run minus a little knee pain on the downhills. THANKS TO EVERYONE THAT CAME TO MY WINE TASTING FUNDRAISER!

Week 15: This week's run was in my backyard (the capital crescent trail). We did over 12 miles and I'm still feeling it. My pace was right on target in the 9:50s, however, the first half was def. a lot faster than the second hour, which was mainly uphill. Next week I'm traveling again...

Week 16: After our really long run last week, this was a semi-rest week. Ben and I were in Chicago for JoJo's birthday and we did a nice 6+ mile run on the lake (however, it was pretty hot, so I'm glad that's over and done with)

Week 17: My second Burke Lake run. Went a lot better than the first, did around 10 miles.

Week 18: Went to Vegas... yes two weeks before the race, oops. Actually woke up and did a 60 minute treadmill run at the Mirage with JoJo. I also have to say I averaged between 9:40 and 9:50 pace, which is amazing for me on a treadmill since I hate them so much. I cannot believe I only have one training run left, tear.

Week 19: This was it! Our final training run before the race. Did a very hilly taper run in Arlington, VA. Now a week of rest and it's off to Napa Friday morning. I cannot wait!