One Thousand Heroes

This is my mom. She is my HERO.

She is looking for 1,000 heroes to donate $18.00 each (one dollar for every step of elevation she climbed on her trek to the Base Camp of Mt. Everest) to raise a total of $18,000 for Cystic Fibrosis research. She decided to take GREAT STRIDES to a new level this year by literally taking GREAT STRIDES up a mountain! She explains why she decided to take this journey on her GREAT STRIDES webpage.

http://www.cff.org/Great_Strides/ColletteLarsen

Would you like to be one of her heroes (and one of mine!)?

Click on the link above or on the GREAT STRIDES Widget to the right to join us! Give... and be a HERO!

Weekend Warriors!

What a great weekend! Ryan follows Jenny Cavnar on Twitter. She works for Channel four here in San Diego and she was giving away tickets for the Padre Game. He tweeted to her that he would love to take his wife to a game and he WON!!

We had no idea what kind of tickets they were but thought it would be fun to have a spontaneous date night. We dropped Harrison off at my mom's who so generously wanted to watch him for us...thanks mom! Then we headed downtown to Petco Park. We picked up our tickets at Will Call and and this funny old man giving us our tickets asked if we knew where we were sitting. We told him that we won the tickets and had no idea where they were. He showed us a map and pointed to the worst possible nose bleed seats and said, "you are way up here in the corner." We were kinda bummed but didn't really care. Then he giggled and said, "just kidding, you have awesome seats right behind First Base!!"

THANK YOU JENNY!! We had a blast!!


During the game Jenny came down and introduced herself, what a sweetheart she is! We told her about the funny old man who played a little trick on us! She said that her and her boss were trying to decide who to give the tickets too and then they decided on Ryan because they thought it was cute that he wanted to take his wife : ) Thank you for a fun date night honey! I don't know if you can tell how cool our seats are from this picture but I have never sat so close to the field before and it was so fun to be able to see the players chatting and blowing bubbles with their gum...definitely a different experience!



This weekend was also our Great Strides Walk. If you're not sure what that is, check out this post!! To be honest, we hesitated in being involved in GREAT STRIDES again this year, we were going to take the year off. We thought it would be hard to ask for help in this economy but then we realized that people with C.F. don't get to take a year off struggling to breathe and fighting this disease. We can't wait for the day that we don't have to "solicit" dollars for C.F. research, it has not been easy. However, we know we can't quit until the cure is found... my life depends on it!

In a last ditch effort to raise more funds, I sent out an e-mail blast to family and friends and was OVERWHELMED with the response I got!! As we were at the event I seriously struggled to keep the tears back while I thought about all the wonderful people (some of whom I don't even know!) who just poured out their love and gave what they could to support this cause that is so dear to our hearts!

They (The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation) have extended the deadline for donations so it's not too late to help! We know times are tough and seriously, it sounds cliche, but every dollar counts so even small donations are appreciated!! It's so easy, just click on the GREAT STRIDES Widget on the right hand side of my blog to go directly to my webpage. From there you can read part of my story and donate! I have never been so hopeful that a CURE for CF will be found SOON!! It is a day I pray for and anxiously anticipate. Here is a picture of my little family at the walk. Harrison is smiling despite having been woken up and taken from his warm bed at such an early hour : )

Still Making Strides!

Visit my NEW GREAT STRIDES WEBPAGE!!

GREAT STRIDES is the largest national fund-raising event for Cystic Fibrosis and I am personally so grateful for this event and for the funds that have been raised by it. They have directly impacted my life because 90 cents of every dollar raised goes toward vital CF research and programs to improve the quality of life for me and others with CF. Our family has supported Great Strides for years and I plan on continuing to be involved until a cure is found!!

The thing that I love about Great Strides is how easy it is for everyone to be involved. It is really about getting A LOT of people to do A LITTLE (or a lot!!) Robert Beall,PH.D. who is the President of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation said, "In our quest to find new treatments and a cure for CF, there is no such thing as doing enough or doing it fast enough."

As a mom, and an aunt to a nephew and niece who also have CF, I feel this urgency every day of my life. I realize all of us with this disease are in a race against the clock that ticks too loudly sometimes and although I strive to find peace in faith and trust, I get scared sometimes and pray everyday for the scientists to find THE CURE!

Please visit my GREAT STRIDES WEBPAGE to read some of my story and to give just a little (or a lot!!)

Great Strides...Great Success!!

The Great Strides walk in San Diego this weekend was a Great Success! Mission Bay was absolutely gorgeous and we had a blast! I was so touched by the friends who came to walk with us. Syndea Mendioroz came with Mique and Julia and Jess and Clint brought Owey too! Laura Brownwood was there with her friend Mike and Steve Netherby was also there to walk with us. The whole family showed up with all the kids and it was such a special day for me. The only thing that would have made it better would have been to have Ryan there. Ryan was home at my insistence with a horrible sore throat, stuffed sinuses and a cough : (

Along with the loved ones that came to walk, so many people donated for Harrison's birthday and donated on my Great Strides Webpage. I was so touched and overwhelmed by the generosity of family, friends (old and new) and even complete strangers. Our goal was to raise $10,000.00 and right now we are at $9,740.00. It is not too late to donate and we still have donations coming in so we are confident we will make our goal! Thank you all who gave so generously to support a cause that we are passionate about, you have truly made a difference in my life and in the lives of all those that are affected by this disease.

While we walked in San Diego, Chels, Cam, Ben, Lauren and Ethan gathered with "Ben and Lauren's Buddies" and walked the Great Strides walk in Maryland!! They also received an outpouring of love and support from their loved ones and their darling community. What a wonderful, hopeful day for all of us!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day:

Grandma, me and Harrison

Kelli, Addie, Sawyer, me and Harrison

Me and Jess

Mique and sweet Julia

Syndea and Julia

Adorable Owen

Mom and Steve Netherby

Laura Brownwood with me and mom

Laura and her friend Mike

Harrison and Grandma

Dax and sweet Kaya

Zak with Jaydie and Zachary

Mom and Ric

All the Kiddos!




I am so humbled by the love, support and generosity of people. I hear negative things about our world and people, how you can't trust anyone and how our society is becoming more and more evil and I just haven't experienced the world and people in that way. In my life, my family and I have been the recipients of compassion and unconditional love and amazing kindness. I seriously feel surrounded by earth angels who lift me and give me hope and encourage me everyday. I hope that I can also be a light to those around me and always find ways to serve others in the way that I have been served. I just love people and think they are good and kind! Saturday was just another validation of that belief!! Thank you simply seems inadequate...

It's a Party!

It was a perfect day for a Party... confirming my belief that the Sun shines on Harrison! Bubbles, beach balls, balloons, good friends, yummy food and a first Birthday cake made for a very fun birthday bash for our baby boy. He was fashionably late as his nap ran a little long but I don't think he even noticed the party had started without him : )

We were overwhelmed by the generosity of our loved ones as we raised almost $400.00 for Cystic Fibrosis research! When we decided to have a party for Harrison we were very sure that he didn't need any more toys so we gratefully accepted donations for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation instead of gifts. We felt that raising money for this cause that is so close to our hearts was a great way to celebrate Harrison's birthday. This year we are walking in the GREAT STRIDES walk and all these donations will go towards our walk. If you would like to donate, please go to:

http://www.cff.org/Great_Strides/dsp_DonationPage.cfm?walkid=5213&idUser=225591

We are so blessed and are so grateful for Harrison's good health and for my sustained good health. I have had a few setbacks this year but have continued to bounce back! We are very excited about the research that is happening right now in the C.F. community. There are three specific drugs that encourage us as they aim to treat the genetic defect and not just the symptoms of C.F. This is a first! One of the drugs is currently in trial and the two others will hopefully follow shortly. We have many reasons to hope...the future is bright and life is so wonderful! We are confident that our little family will be strong and healthy and together here for a long time...