Breast Cancer Myths

Hey Y'all!!

I just read this blog about breast cancer that blew my mind! I can't believe that people still think some of these things really cause cancer?!?!?? I hope everyone out there gets educated on Breast Cancer because knowing the REAL risk factors and how much early detection can help are super important... Scroll through my blog and check out the BC block - side 6 has the risk factors in it... Can you believe the 6 out of 10 people still think underwires can cause Breast Cancer?

Check out the article if you missed it on Yahoo's front page...

Breast Cancer: busting common myths

On a lighter note - did some great scrapping this weekend. Will post pics later in the week! Enjoy!!

Fab Find on CC - Yippee!!

I'm excited!! I got picked for the Fab Find on Coordinates Collection again!! Yippee!! They liked the page I did for my March Design Team assignment on Annde's love of the color pink. I just love the KI Memories die cut paper.... It's so easy to use and creates different looks with each type...
Check it out here: http://coordinatescollections.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=4047&highlight==

Happy Easter & Spring (belated)...

Just wanted to give a shout out to all - Happy Spring! Happy Easter! We had an illness in our household that took 2 out of the 3 of us out... (Not me!) so Easter was pretty slow and relaxed. We spent some time dyeing Easter Eggs with Mom and Dad P. in Lansing and then did the hunt thing around our house. Annde had a lot of fun! Steve and I had lots of fun also - watching State advance to the Sweet 16 in the Men's NCAA tourney! Go State.... Beat Memphis! (It's on at 9:27pm EST on CBS Friday for all who are interested) I would be watching but instead my hubby, Dad-in-Law, friend Kevin, and I are going to the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 playoffs here in Detroit at Ford Field! Soooo excited!! AND - if that wasn't enough - I'm doing a scrap night at Tracy's on Saturday! Can life get any better?!?!?!

On a different note... Today, we celebrated Spring with a "green hunt": we looked for signs of spring around the yard. We didn't find much but some budding trees and a dead chipmunk. (eewwhhhh!!) We still got some time outside and Annde showed off the newest in Spring fashion, complete with hot pink sunglasses and white purse. Stylin!

On a fun note... My mom is doing her first show! She's into Icon Painting and she's been taking classes for a couple of years. We (the kids) tease her about it but she's got her first showing going on right now at University of New Mexico - Los Alamos. We got a postcard in the mail with her Icon for my sister (mine is here in Michigan and is a Guardian Angel) - How freakin' cool is that!!! Congrats to my Mom!!!

Well, its really late... signing off for now... Sweet dreams, Y'all!

My Breast Cancer Box for Tracy is finished...

Okay folks! Here it is... the breast cancer box!
Previously, I posted the sketches of the logos (printed in transparency and added to some of the sides of the box. Each side either shows the reasons or lists interesting facts. I love the quote Tracy picked from Garth Brooks' pink album (also donating money to the Susan G Koman Foundation), "God bless the risen and God's strength to those who walk..." In reality, the box is just over 5"x5" in size. I will be doing one for Tracy's Mom too as she is also walking. My sister, Susan, is getting a book (I'll post it when it's done) so that she can take it along to rallies...

I am so proud of how it came out! I hope Tracy will be too. Go out and donate to those who will be walking (you can donate to Tracy or Susan using the links to the right -->)

Scattegories with a twist!

I've been tagged with the Scattergories game... Copy/paste this and try it yourself in your blog! Don't forget to resend it to the person who sent it to you...

Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following...
{they have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up!}
Use different answers if the person before you has the same 1st initial and you CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl.

1. What is your name: Jana
2. 4 letter word: Just (tee hee... easy so far!!)
3. Vehicle: Jaguar (launched the X-type as my very first car after becoming an engineer!)
4. City: Jerusalem (in honor of Holy Week)
5. Boy's Name: Jon (sorry, Jeff!!)
6. Girl's Name: Joyce (sorry, Jane and Jacqui!)
7. Alcoholic drink: Jungle Juice (Ahhh... brings back those college memories!)
8. Occupation: janitor
9. Something you wear: jumper (at least my daughter does... me, not so much!)
10. Celebrity: Jenny Jones (you know, the talk show host?)
11. Food: jambalaya (Ummm... YUMMY!)
12. Something found in a bathroom: Dang this one is hard... joint creme... (you know, like BenGay?)
13. Reason for Being Late: "jumping the battery," which was dead... (I know that this was a stretch!)
14. Cartoon Character: Jana of the Jungle (See the George of the Jungle cartoon...)
15. Something You Shout: Jerk! (I know I said this like ten times today already!!)
16. Animal: jackrabbit (in honor of the Easter bunny)
17. Body part: joint (my knee is throbbing so this was easy to come up with!)
18. Word to describe you: jovial!

Okay ladies at CC -> this is me, officially tagging you... I can't wait to read it on your blogs so send me a comment to go look!

Luck o' the Irish to all of you!!

Happy St. Patty's Day! I love this holiday because its fun to wear green and eat Corned beef and cabbage... and drink good irish beer! Annde "got it" this year - wanting to wear a green dress and green beads and take green frosted sugar cookies to school with her this morning. Yep, it was supposed to be a great day!

Then my car happened. I am soooo frustrated by my crappy Equinox! Its only 2 1/2 years old and I just had to put my 3rd set of rotors and pads on it. To be blunt, my brakes suck! And, it makes me mad because brakes are what I do for a living!! I can't get the dealership to listen to me or fix the problem (they won't admit there is one) so instead I take the car in, listen to them blow me off again, pay them $50 each time for crackin' open the system (which basically means putting it up on a hoist and taking off a tire - I could do that!), and get it back without them fixing anything. I know what the problem is... my independant mechanic knows what the problem is... but I can't get them to fix it under warranty! ARRGGHHHH!!!!! So, there has been a battle going on all day... I refuse to accept that my calipers are blowing through pads and rotors due to "normal wear and tear... " when it is because they aren't retracting fully after each brake application. I refuse to accept that my rear wheel cylinders have "some weepage which is normal wear and tear" when a brake system is CLOSED for a reason (aka -> no fluid should EVER leak out of the system). I hate the fact that my vehicle should have been designed with 13" rotors, not the crappy 11.5" rotors I actually have... (Think about this: my SUV Equinox has the same brake system as the Chevy Lumina car... DUH! That isn't going to work... my Equinox is bigger and heavier than a car!) My new nickname for it: The Equinoxious... Stay tuned for results...

So, to make myself feel better about this crappy day (so far), I wanted to list the things I am lucky enough to have ... and be thankful for...
* My wonderful husband and daughter... They are my world!
* My health - my knees might not work too well, but I am pretty healthy!
* My family across the country: I love each and every one of you...
* My friends who give me endless support... and listen to me complain!
* My warm home and everything in it...
* That I have everything I need to survive and a lot of the "extra creature comforts" I want...
* That I made the Design Team at the Zone (who said dreams can't come true?)
* A very stressful, but well paying, job
* A (crappy but still functioning) car that gets us around safely...
* Love from Above... I thank God every day to be here, regardless that it turns out crappy.

So, happy St. Patty's everyone. Happy Easter-to-Be! I hope everyone takes a moment today to think about all the things in life - and appreciate - that make each of us lucky! Cheer for Michigan State as they take on Temple for the first round of the NCAA March Madness... They need some of that Irish luck too!

I challenge you to make a difference....

I have been inspired by 2 women in my life who will commit to walking 60 miles for Breast Cancer...
These two women, Tracy Jerome and Susan Daniels, are training hard and raising at least $2200 each to make a difference in this world:
* to save just one woman from the pain of breast cancer
* to save just one man from losing his wife
* to save just one child from growing up without a mother...
* to save one person from losing a friend...

Each one of us can make this our own challenge - each one of us can stand up and say, "I will walk too..." or, if you are like me where you can't walk, I challenge you to stand up and say, "I will support someone who will undertake this extraordinary effort." On the side of this blog are 2 links, one for each woman, that you can step up and say, "I will help you..." I challenge each one of you, if you can, to donate $5 to each woman. That's only $10... the cost of going out to lunch one time... but it could be the $10 that ultimately leads to the cure for Breast Cancer. Do you know that Breast cancer is related to other types of cancer such as pancreatic or esophageal cancer? Do you know that if they find the cure for this type, it might lead to the eradication of cancer from this earth? Wouldn't it be nice to let our children grow up in a world where they wouldn't have to fear it like so many in our generation do? Please help out these two ladies! They need your support so that they can make a difference in the world!

In helping out these women, I am working on a little project for each one so that they can show others and ask for help... This is the start of Tracy's... (just a little teaser!) I will post both projects here when they are finished. If you know someone who is walking, let me know... I will donate to them too... (Thanks to Stephanie at Homegrown Hospitality (see link on side of blog) for inspiring me in these doodles...)