A Successful Open House

Ken and I decided to try something new this year to help bring in the money; We had an Open House this past Saturday from 10am-2pm.

I spent several weeks talking it up on Facebook and in person and via email. I invited everyone I could think of and then invited them again. I pestered people with cheerful reminders and then held my breath waiting for RSVPs. While I waited I baked and plotted and planned yummy foods and lined up gifts to give away.

Ken decorated by laying our Trek bikes out in the snow bank by the driveway (shiver!), hanging up his bike shirts on the windows and laying his medals out on the food table.

We served:

Chicken and Barley soup

Homemade Irish soda crackers

Pretzels/Goldfish crackers

Olives

Peach Trifle

PB/Chocolate Chip cookies

Oatmeal Raisin muffins

Veggies and dip

Grapes and Oranges

We also lined up 5 gifts to giveway to guests whose names were pulled out of a basket:

*a lovely basket full of goodies - soap, a pretty pillow, candles, jam, a decorating trinket, a heart shaped mirror and more.

*a Cheesecake, made with love by GrammaJ

*Toffee, made with love by Girly-Girl

*Granola from the Egglectic Chick Bakery

*Original Art from Beyond the Box Artistry

Only 5 people gave me a "fer-sure" that they were coming so I was a little nervous. Though we would certainly enjoy visiting with a small crowd, it would be rather disappointing to only pull in $20 after all my hard work!

Happily, 18 people came!

All of them donated - either money or cans/bottles for us to redeem or prizes for us to give away. Everyone seemed to have fun visiting and they certainly enjoyed the food! ;-)

When everyone was gone, Ken and I headed over to redeem the ENTIRE VAN FULL of cans and bottles. We got $43 for those! Then we came home and tallied up all the donations.

We made $317 in 4 hours. Not bad at all!

Better yet, we got another $20 the next day and several other folks wo couldn't attend have said they would like to donate. So all in all I would say the Open House was a BIG success!

Now if the weather would just warm up so we could ride more. So far I've been out for three 11.5 mile rides, each one colder than the last. COME ONNNNNNNNN, SPRING!!!!

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What? YOU haven't had a chance to contribute yet? You can RIGHT NOW. Just click either my or Ken's fundraising link in the sidebar (fear not, we share all our incoming funds) and use your credit card to make a tax deductible donation to the American Lung Association.

Whether you can give $5, $50, or $500, I and my asthmatic lungs THANK YOU!

Baby, It's COLD Out There!

Thus far I have managed three training rides - all at 11.5 hilly miles. There is still snow on the ground and the rides have been chilly and uncomfortable. Yesterday there was an icy Nawth wind that kept me shivering the whole ride. All 3 rides were at 40º to 42º F, but with that wind the last one felt like 25º!!

I do ride better in cool weather - I don't tolerate heat and humidity well - But by "cool" I mean in the 60's, not the 30's or 40's!!

The biggest problem I have in the cold is my toes. They get so cold they go numb. Yesterday I wore a pair of wool socks and that did help a bit. The rest of me would have been fine with what I wore if it hadn't been for the wind. As it was, it took a long hot bath and a cup of hot tea to restore to normal and stop the shivering. Next time I'll need to check the weather/wind a bit more carefully and add a layer or two and a pack to stuff them in if I get too warm.

Waiting, Waiting, Waiting!

It's warm today (in the 40's!) and I'd love to be on my bike, but it's raining like crazy. The good news is the warmer temps and the rain are MELTING THE SNOW! The bike miles will start piling on before the month is out. WOOOOOT! In the meantime we keep hitting the treadmill and lifting weights.

Last year, Ken got discount coupon for an ALA fundraising ride in New Hampshire. The coupon allows him to enter without raising any money beyond the entry fee. So yesterday he signed up to ride a "Century" (100 miles in one day) and the girls and I signed up as volunteers. That ride is on May 1. Should be a blast!

Fundraising for the Trek Across Maine is going well. We're trying hard to have all our money in my the end of April. I picked up more cans and bottles from a friend yesterday and we got a couple more checks in the mail. I'm sending out more "begging" letters today and we're trying to publicize our Open House on the 26th of March. I baked a cake a couple of days ago and froze it for the gathering. Today I'll be making and freezing cookies for the same. Once the weather clears up a bit, I'll take the van out and pester my neighbors for all their cans and bottles. I think I'll take the girls with me so they can contribute some cuteness to the endeavor!

Right now Ken has $279 of $1,000 and I have $280 of $1,000 toward helping the American Lung Association fight pollution and help research lung disease in Maine and New England. Please help us out by making your tax deductible donation. Just click Ken's or my donation links in the sidebar and use your credit card. Your money, be it $5 or $500, can really make a difference!

I and my asthmatic lungs thank you!

Fundraising Fun

Training continues. The snow is still quite deep - unusually so for this time of year - so we haven't gotten on our bikes yet. But Ken and I are both training hard on the treadmill and with weights so we'll be ready to crank out some miles as soon as the roads are clear.

I've been trying to come up with some new tacks on the fundraising aspect. So far I have sent out my usual general begging emails, asked for cans and bottles on FaceBook, and mailed letters to several businesses we frequent. To date, we've raised $509 and 3 more people have pledged to give us "something" in the near future. That puts us at 25% in early March. Not bad!

The last Saturday of March we're planning to have an open house from 10-2. Ken and the girls and I will all wear Trek related shirts and bring up our bikes to use as decorations. ;-) I'll make oodles of food and I'm planning to give away one or more door prizes each hour. Anyone who donates any amount of money will be eligible for a prize! It should be fun, but we've never done anything like this before, so we have no idea how much money it will net in donations.

I'll keep you posted.

In the meantime, if you'd like to donate to the American Lung Association via our Trek accounts (it's tax deductible!), just click one of the links in my sidebar.

My asthmatic lungs and I thank you!!! Ken thanks you too!!!

I mean it! We're REALLY thankful!!!!!

The Return of Cycling Mania!

I'm Baaaaaa-aaaaaack!

Hello?

Anyone out there?

Tis the end-ish of January 2011 and Ken and I are once again starting to prepare for the Trek Across Maine. You know, that epic three day event where 2,000-ish people ride their bicycles 180-ish miles across Maines hills to the sea.

Why do we do it?

Because WE'RE NUTS!

No, no, not entirely. We actually do it to raise money for the American Lung Association of New England. I love that the ALANE is helping to make Maine pollution and smoke free. I so appreciate their efforts to help those with crippling lung disease through research and education. In short, the ALANE is Groovy!

Very soon-ish, I will have links up so all my faithful readers can...

What? I don't have any faithful readers? I am setting out to change that post haste! Twitter, FaceBook, Squidoo - Links to this blog will be everywhere.

You will not be able to escape me!!!

BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-ha-ha...ahem.

Anyway - I will have links up so all my faithful readers can easily make a tax deductible donation to either Ken or myself or to both of us. We're hoping to raise $1,000 a piece.

This blog is where I will keep you all updated on our training progress, our fundraising progress and where I will occasionally use the words fart and burp to keep your attention.

Stay Tuned For More!

We're Home!

Ken and I got home safely last evening. Photos and a full report are coming soon...

We're OFFFFFFFFFF!

I am leaving tomorrow morning for a day of volunteering before the BIG RIDE. Keep Mulletman and I in your prayers. Catch you on the other side!

(And many, MANY thanks to all of you who supported us!)