Dry feb: done & nearly dusted

Another year doing Dry Feb and I approached it the same as I typically do: with a ‘Let’s see if I can pull this off’ attitude. Well, these past few days I’ve been sick with a virus requiring medicine so I there is zero chance I’ll be drinking today - or tomorrow - or probably for the next several days/weeks. I’m considering that a win!

Did I have some drinks on Family Day Long Weekend? Yes. Of course!

The truth is (for me) that I enjoy social drinking and am in the best shape I have probably ever been in (in my life - thanks to this surgery you may have heard me talk about). This Dry Feb I challenged myself to stop drinking during the week and that, as it turns out, was pretty easy.

Every day is a good day to re-evaluate your dietary/life choices. Just as every day is a good day to check in with yourself physically and mentally. This initiative is predominantly to promote awareness and raise funds for the Canadian Cancer Society.

Over $50 million went towards cancer research through last year’s efforts. In addition to said research, funds also helped over 6,800 people get to their cancer related appointments through Wheels of Hope. To learn more about Dry Feb: Click Here.

That said, I have one day left in February and haven’t reached my fundraising goal. If you feel so inclined, you can donate (and get a tax receipt) by clicking the button below!

Thanks for reading & following my daily adventures.

My 2023 Birthday Wish for CHEO

Thank you all so much for your kindness - I was able to really celebrate turning 37 with this years edition of the Birthday Wish campaign. Every spring, I promote giving a gift to a kid receiving in patient treatment at CHEO through their Child Life department.

I started this in 2019, raising over $1,000 in this first year. This helped me set a baseline for future goals… For example, I double that to around 2.5k in 2020… 5k in 2021 and 7.5k in 2022. This year I went BIG with a dream of hitting 10k and…

Well…

Words cannot describe how special this is - you are giving sunshine on a cloudy day. I still have some of the things I was given (by surprise) while living at CHEO. Just ask my husband, Ryan, why we have SO MANY BLANKETS! Blankets, activity books, craft kids and more; your money buys a gift to a child, age 0 through 18, who is receiving in patient treatment at the hospital.

This is an ONGOING fundraiser; as long as I am around to celebrate my birthday, any person who wishes to, will be able to give a gift to a kid in hospital.

CLICK HERE to learn about CHEO’s Child Life department.

CLICK HERE to learn about other ways to give & perhaps start your own fundraiser.

I will be moving the goalpost to 12.5k for 2024 - and if we hit that, it means that in six years we’ve given approximate 500 gifts! As it stands, for the fifth year of us doing this, we’ve given a mighty impressive 455 gifts!

REMINDER: You can donate at any time towards this fundraiser. Some people choose to give on their own birthdate, or in honour of someone special. All proceeds will always go towards CHEO’s Child Life dept. who do important work for not only the little patients but their families, too.

Mid April Update

Back at work for my second week after having COVID. Seems the whole family is in good health now and I haven’t personally noticed any lingering symptoms or issues. Looking forward to meeting my new rheumatologist (rheumatoid arthritis specialist) next week (!!!) so there may be a few days of ‘wonky schedules’ to get through at the radio station. I’m thankful for the support I have and continue to receive at work regarding my health issues. Gotta take care of this body and this life while I’ve got it!

BIG NEWS: My birthday wish for the kids at CHEO is getting a signal boost from my radio station. For the next week or so, you’ll hear ads encouraging donations for the hospital’s child life department - they then give gifts to kids receiving in patient treatment. Something I’m very familiar with. This is my biggest cause that I love to support. If you’d like to contribute, please CLICK HERE.

COTTAGE NEWS: Some major expenses are on the immediet horizon, like: new chimney, water line (well & pump) corrections and a visit from our local neighbourhood exterminator! Woohoo! Now, before you judge me for hiring pest control LET IT BE KNOWN that I’m hoping to only have one inaccessible area of the cabin cleared out; the nightly scratch-scratch-scratching behind the head of my bed (in the wall) has GOT to stop! I’m not going murder-happy on the local fauna.

We’re hoping to get the cabin ready for guests earlier than May 24 weekend, so if you’re a pal & want to book some time at the lake - get in touch! Someone’s gotta help me pay these bills!

If you’re reading this, I hope you had a wonderful easter weekend. Sunny days ahead!

DryFeb: Day 15

Happy Dry Valentine’s Day to you! Well, I’m a day late but better late than never.

Thank you for donating to the DryFeb cause. This money raised by us not drinking will help Canadians living with cancer through the Canadian Cancer Society. A noble cause on its own BUT I have noticed some selfish perks to being alcohol free:

• no hangovers or lingering foggy brain (Just the regular life induced type)

• weight loss (i am down 2.1 lbs and it’s been 15 days, like, woah.)

• healthier habits are emerging (eating better, sleeping better, saving money)

Are you doing DryFeb? How is it going for you? You can comment on this post below or in the comments section wherever this gets posted (to social media).

I do have a holiday coming up this weekend (using a vacation day + the STAT holiday) and I am considering having some alcoholic beverages… maybe I’ll feel less guilty about it if we reach our team goal of $2,000… we’re almost there!

It’s been strange times in the capital and being alcohol free during this two week period has been a blessing but WOW, I SURE DO MISS BEERS and/or GIN!

Hope you are doing well right now - Dry or Not. We’re almost there! We can do it! And if we hit pause: that’s okay.

DryFeb: Pressing pause on alcohol for 28 days, again.

Inspired by my folks, one of whom is a cancer survivor, I’ll be participating in DryFeb. The Canadian Cancer Society asks people to consider giving up alcohol (getting sober, drying out, abstaining, whatever you wanna call it) for any length of time during the month of February to raise awareness and funds for the Cancer Society.

To learn more: Click Here.

Goes without saying how much I hate cancer. Most of us have had a close encounter and/or lost someone because of it. Could there be a future without cancer? I think so. I do.
Trying something healthy to help people living with cancer for a few weeks: sign me up! Join my team & let’s document our experiences.

Join the “Dry Babies” and get a little dry, have a little cry! Let’s go! I’m ready!

This is my second year participating in DeyFeb. Last year, the team was called “Oh God, What Have I Done?” and we raised a wack of dough and got healthier together.

The first few days of DryFeb 2021, I actually got quite sick. Hoping for a different outcome this year. Follow my progress and consider trying it yourself as part of Team Dry Babies!

This year, I will also be trying to lose weight and improve my overall health with DryFeb. My physical health has been in decline the past few months because of my rheumatoid arthritis. I am awaiting ortho surgery & have near-future plans for a double hip replacement. These procedures and my recovery will be aided by me dropping a few excess pounds. Since weight loss is a typical side effect of cutting alcohol from one’s diet, I’m excited to see where DryFeb 2022 takes me.

Check out our past achievements: