We did it!

I rocked it!

Running the Rock and Roll ½ of the half in Las Vegas last Sunday night for Chai Lifeline was a truly an unbelievably amazing experience.

Even before I ran the race, I was so proud of how much money Devorah and I had raised for Camp Simcha.  We raised over 8,700 dollars. The pre-race pasta party was so emotional for me.  Just watch the following videos.  You too will be in tears.  Watching these videos really hit home and made it all worth it.

Here are some pre-race pictures.

3 Bader kids in one location at one time and none of them live in Las Vegas. Next year, lets have all four of us there and maybe we can all run the race together. 

We asked this guy in the hotel to take our picture and he gave us a 100 dollar bill towards our race after he learned about the cause.  How awesome is that?  True kindness in this world.

Two amazing people that we met on this adventure.  They were running the 1/2 marathon in honor of their sister who is very sick.  They both rocked it!

Pre-Race lunch

Walrus Joe.....

 Jack....I will always love you.....Titanic

  It was really cold before the race.  As the sunset the wind picked up and we were chilly.

I ran hard and pushed myself during the race. I had been running and raising money for months. I didn’t want to let myself down.  After the pre-race pasta party, I didn’t want to let those children down as well.

I could not have done it without the cheers from my brother Joe.  He was there at mile marker 3 and helped me get to the finish line.  Thank you for the cheer leading Joe!

Devorah and I are an amazing team!

Overall, this was an experience to remember and I will be there for those children again.  I am counting on you to help me reach my goal again next year. I am counting on you to run with me!

Thank you to Stephen for all his support over these past few months.  Thank you for holding down the fort while I was running the streets of Las Vegas for the children of Chai Lifeline.

Thank you mom and dad for helping with the kids and supporting me on this journey.  Thank you for continuing to push me to achieve my goals.

Thank you Devorah for encouraging me to run for Chai Lifeline!

Thank you to all my contributors.  I hope you will be there with me next year!  I really could not have done it without your support, motivation, and encouragement.

Chai Lifeline Race

Chai Lifeline Race

What have I learned since I joined the Chai Lifeline team?

 For starters, people are very generous.  I am in awe of how many people have helped me reach my goal.

I also learned that it can’t hurt to ask.  There were several nights that I went through my Facebook list of friends and asked four or five people if they would be willing to donate.  For the most part people donated 36 dollars.  In some cases some people donated more.  The best was when I would ask one person to donate and then another person would also donate.

 I started this adventure accepting the fact that I would have to fork over a lot of money to make my donation goal.  Even after Stephen said I only need 100 friends to donate 36 dollars each, I was still doubtful.  The first time I posted the link, I got a few people to donate.  The second time, I got a few more.  Then it was slow for a while.  I learned that I had to be proactive. 

I learned that I am a stronger runner than I was back in June. 

I learned that I can push myself on Sunday mornings and then feel great for the rest of the day.

I decided to run on Chai Lifeline’s team because they help sick children.  I interact with children all day long. I love teaching my students and being such a big part of their learning experience.  As I run my 6.5 miles next Sunday there will be a few former students that I will really be thinking about.  These students fought cancer or a pediatric illness while in my class.  They were brave and courageous individuals. I will run with them in mind.   I want to say a special thank you to:

Michelle, Elisa, Robin & Mike, Kimmie, Erica, Connie, Adele, Judy & John, Jayne, Linda & Gary, Aliza (my awesome Sunday running partner-you have made me a stronger runner), Risa, Jennifer, Mom & Dad (you guys have helped me so much, I love you!), Jill, Allison, Christine, Cheryl & Jason, Julie, Charles &Malka, Michelle, Margaret (you are an awesome coach!  Thank you for always having me in your thoughts and helping me stay on the roads), Joanie & George, Michelle & Leo, Micah, Alex, Galit, Ilan, &Noah, Ricki & Joel, Kathy, Brian & Quentin, Suzanne, Lauren, Rebecca & Tyler, Stacy, Coach Paddock Rome, Karen, Penny, Anne, Alex, Erin & Matt, James, Chris, Susan, Melissa, Jim & Danielle, Ellen, Ben, Kelly, Kevin & Cheryl, John, Robin, Amy, Gitty, Corrin, Gerry, Tiffany & Shane, Becky, Lori, Daniel, Mike and Mickey, Dominique, Jenn, Neil & Sandy, Annette & Bob, Erin, Menashe & Rona, Judy, Shoshanna, Stacy, Robin, Nicole, Kim, Teri, Jennifer, Jeff, Emily, Nina, Shira, Anita, Rachel & Joel, Jen, Julie, Ishai & Family, Bill, Judy & Bob, Ilana, Bria &Steve, Scott, Debbie, Joanne, Vanessa, Sara, Aileen, Heidi, Ardith, Caryl, Sandy, Aaron & Karen, Leah, Benita, Shawn & Beren, Kurt, Crystal, Melissa, Marcia, Rachelle, Susan, Katie & Josh, Barbara & Rich, Becky, Jen, Eileen, Lottie, Susan & Mort, Robin, Dawn, Barbara, Joie, Erin, Faith, Dean, Roni, Erica, Maura, Susan, Karen, Scott,  Mary, Helen, Avi, Sue, Stacey, Anne

A very special thank you to Devorah for encouraging me to complete this challenge!

A super special thank you to Stephen for helping me get in all my runs!  

Thank you all for being a part of this adventure!

September 2014

September 2014: 

A few weeks ago I ran five miles with my younger brother Aaron.  He really pushed me and helped me run at a faster pace than I would normally.  When we finished running I said to him “To think, two and a half years ago you were helping me with my drains post- surgery and now you are running five miles with me. It is truly amazing how the body heals and how people push forward with life.”

A really good friend gave me this birthday present.  I have been wearing it ever since I got it. I think it is very pretty but I love the information that came with the gift.

“The graceful starfish is a regenerative creature, consistently growing and transforming whenever necessary.  Courageously it moves forward through both calm and troubled waters.”

I can’t help but think of myself as a starfish at times.  There are times that are tough but you just have to keep pushing forward.   I am so happy to report that the Islers had an amazing summer.  We were able to watch our children learn to swim. I was able to hang out with the kids and watch them play nicely together and truly use their imaginations. I was able to sit on the beach at WML and watch Ruthie swim out to the dock for the first time. I was able to meet up with an old friend and teacher. We got to watch our children experience Disney World for the very first time.  It was magical to see their excitement and soak it all up.  We were able to spend time with family and share laughs.

As a teacher my year start s in September and not January like the rest of the world.  I am looking forward to another great school year at CMS. Of course I still get the butterflies and have those first day of school nightmares.  Here’s to a great 2014-2015!  I can’t wait to see what adventures are waiting for me! 

( I put a few extra pictures up for you Erica Arrington)

July 8th Diagnosis Day....several years later

I used to blog all the time.  Every now and then I think about how much I used to write and then I think about how little I have shared this past year.  Of course there are certain dates and times of the year that cause me to stop, reflect, and live life to its fullest.  As we got close to Shua’s birthday I started to panic a little and have those days where I found myself near tears.  It was shortly after we celebrated his first birthday when I found the hard mass that rocked my world.  Here is a little recap of events throughout this year.

          I started September off in 6^th grade.  I had taught 7^th grade for 13 years and asked to try something new.  I was a bit nervous towards the end of last year and the start of this year.  Making the change was the best decision for me.  The truth is cancer is depressing.  I know that I don’t have to tell you that but sometimes it needs to be said.  The change in curriculum is just what my mind needed.  I needed to explore new topics and do new projects and meet new people.  It is hard to be a teacher now-a-days.  The truth is that there is more work and less pay but I can honestly say that I loved going to work every day (except that one winter snowstorm when I saw my life flash before my eyes). It was great to be healthy and working.  It was great to smile, laugh, and enjoy teaching again.

          Late October, I ran my second race with my best friend/sister-in-law.  We ran through the Battery Park Tunnel to ground zero.  It was an extremely emotional run.  Coming out of the tunnel and seeing the streets lined with cadets from West Point was truly amazing and inspiring.  A special thanks to Margaret and Adele for convincing me to run it with them.

This year we had our first Thanksgivakah ever.  It was nice to share in these two holidays with my family.  It was great to see the kid’s excitement and spend family time together.  There has been a lot of snuggle time in my house this past year.  I have spent hours reading to my kids and coloring with them.  There were so many moments that I had missed or didn’t have the strength to do in recent years. I was making up for lost time.

Recently I went to see my breast surgeon for my annual check-up.  It was a very emotional visit.  I went to the appointment happy. I have been feeling fine and doing well.  I met with the nurse and reviewed my medical history since my last visit to the office.  I asked “so how have things been since my last visit?”  The nurse replied “well the doctor had to take on a partner because she is so busy with new cases.”  I then replied with “well, this is one job where having so many new cases is not a good thing.”  It worries me that there are so many more women getting breast cancer at such a young age. 

After the nurse left, I got dressed into the million dollar luxury hospital gown and sat down to wait for the doctor.  As I flipped through a magazine scanning the pages, I heard the door next to my room open and close.  I then heard through the wall the unforgettable speech.  Of course it was muffled a little but, having heard it once before, I knew what she was telling this individual. “You have cancer, and you will need chemo and surgery.  You will be fine……every moment counts, cherish every sunset and every kiss from your kids……”  No lie, I started to cry. It just broke my heart to hear that speech again. It brought back all these horrible memories. 

I knew that it was going to be a while before the doctor came to my room because the person next door needed the comfort of the doctor and needed time to wrap her head around the news.  I spent this time, texting a friend and trying to block out the noise from next door.  The doctor gets my chart, knocks on the door, and comes into the room.  You can tell from my face that I had been tearing and not doing well.  I told the doctor “you need thicker walls or soft happy music playing in the rooms.”  She laughed and then said “you are not the first person that has told me that they have had to hear the speech more than once. I will definitely bring this up when we meet again and love the idea of happy music.”  I was a bit of a wreck for a day or two afterwards.  I am healthy though and doing great so it was easier to move on from the speech.

This past May, I ran the Komen race for the second year in a row.  I know that some people don’t support Komen.  Put the politics aside for a minute and listen to my little story.  Three years ago, I attempted to complete the walk with my friend Cheryl.  I had just had surgery a few weeks prior to the walk.  My body was still swollen from surgery and recovering from 30 days of radiation.  I didn’t finish the walk. My friend was kind enough to ask if I wanted to turn around.  I could barely walk a half a mile that year.  The following year I ran it with my sister-in-law.  I was throwing around the idea of running the race and she said that she would do it with me.  We signed up, she flew out from CA, and together we completed the race.  This past year, I started the race with Stephen who continued on at a faster pace.  I ran most of the race by myself.  I ran hard and completed it faster than I did last year.  There was a friend in front of me that kept me going and encouraged me to carry on when I wanted to give up and slack off a little. Of course she didn’t know that she was helping me finish the race. Since then though, we have spent our Sunday mornings running together.  Komen fan or not, this race encouraged me to stay healthy and strive for a better race time.
Just yesterday I met with my oncologist for a check-up. She informed me that the medicine that I take to keep the cancer from returning has caused some thinning of my femur bone.  This was a known side effect of the drug but always hits you harder when it becomes the reality.  I always take the stairs to my oncologist's office.  I take it so I can walk past this on the wall.

It sort of pumps me up before going to meet with the oncologist.  I walk past it on my way out.  If the doctor has not-so-great news, it is a good thing to read before I head out of the building. Words to live by......

As the anniversary of the dreaded day the phone call came, I think of all that I went through. I think about the ups and the downs. I think about the tears and the giggles. I think about all the love that was shared by so many different people.  I think about the phrase “it takes a village” which was so true for my situation.

So what is next on Rachel’s plate?  Once again, I have challenged myself to run a race with my best-friend.  This is our longest race together.  I have also pledged to raise money to help children with pediatric illnesses.  I started fundraising in the middle of June.  I have since raised over 800 dollars. I do hope some of my blog readers will go to the below link and make a pledge of at least 36 dollars.

 www.teamlifeline.org/my/59994