Gearing Up For The 3-Day Walk

I'm training for this year's Komen 3-Day Walk on 2 November in Dallas.  Nicole and I are doing it together again this year and I thought it would be good to post an update along with the fund-raising link on the blog after posting to Facebook as well since not everyone uses Facebook.
Ben, Sam and I are doing well and have been keeping very busy this summer with lots of travel, camps and activities.  Sailing, karate, guitar and family trips have lead right in to the beginning of the school year and now suddenly it is time for the 3-day again!  I've started my training on the treadmill and will have to prepare for a colder walk in Dallas this year, but nothing that a good pair of sweat-pants can't handle. :)
Please donate to our walk this year if you can.  The link is: http://www.the3day.org/goto/sixtyforsarah.  Thank you!
On a personal note, I was struck as I read back through our blog by one posting on "hope" just before we lost Sarah in December 2010 - it talked about how, after so many years of hoping for a cure or something that could save Sarah's life, we had run out of time and could only hope for comfort and togetherness in her final days.  Everyone facing this terrible disease needs to believe that it is possible for a new treatment to change the picture, to "save" them from the certainty of an early end to life's journey.  It helps us carry on. It helps us find the courage to fight harder for more time. The tears still come quickly when I remember how time ran out for Sarah that snowy December, as it does for many people... Now I want to do what I can to give others the same hope we felt was so important - a hope fueled by people continuing to raising money for breast cancer research, so that someday there will be breakthrough treatments, and even a cure.  I want someone to be able to feel the relief that Sarah and I hoped for so much - the amazing news that there really is a path back to life from the diagnosis of stage IV metastatic breast cancer.  I think pushing to make that a reality is worth our support and our time!

March Update

At the end of February I finished a big product launch for work at a tradeshow in Las Vegas while my parents came up from San Antonio to be with the boys.  After that, I went to Salt Lake City for some *great* skiing at Alta, Snowbird and Solitude resorts together with my neighbor Eric and some of his college friends.  Wow, it has been a while since I was able to enjoy skiing in the Rockies and it delivered 100%. :)  Now Ben, Sam and I are on spring break at Grand Cayman and having a great time with lots of adventures in "paradise!"  I've loaded quite a few pictures into facebook (http://www.facebook.com/alan.lopez2) if you'd like to see more. :) 
Ben and Sam are doing well in school and overall as well.  Hard to believe Ben is already going to be in middle school next year, but he's really starting to transition in to being a teenager now.  Sam is still playing guitar and likes it, although getting him to practice is not so easy when playing outside is also an option!  We might start him off on karate since right now that seems to be the only physical sport he is interested in.

9 February - Update

January kept us pretty busy.  We celebrated New Year's Eve with Thomas and Kerry in New Orleans, and then we've also been spending lots of time with friends over the weekends.  We also welcomed our new au-pair, Nicole, after Lovisa's departure - she is settling in great and taking great care of the Ben and Sam so far! Ben is getting a lot of use out of his new Kindle and he's doing well in Karate, too.  About to get his next belt (orange) in a few week, hopefully. :)  Sam is keeping up with guitar - his latest song is "Come As You Are" by Nirvana.  We'll be heading to our Indian Guides winter campout soon and are also looking forward to a great Spring Break vacation to Grand Cayman - exciting!