Summer 2011

The girls:  Hazel, Iris, Gertrude, Pearl, Beatrice and Harriet are doing great! No eggs yet, but we are having a great time watching them scratch around, doing their chicken thing.

The boys have been having a great summer!  Lots of beach trips and hanging out with their buddies and cousins!

I can't believe that Tristan will be in 7th grade next year and Nathan is entering his last year of elementary school!  Time is flying way too fast! 

Both the boys have been racing their mountain bikes this season and doing very well.  We are very proud of them!

Sean has also joined in the fun and started racing his mountain bike this season with the boys.  He's doing pretty good at it too! 

Along with racing, Sean has been having a blast as a coach of the San Gabriel Valley Composite High School Mountain Bike Team. At the end of the season they were in first place in Southern California! Not bad for a first year team! Sean's goal is to be coaching a Monrovia High School Mountain Bike team by the time Tristan is there. 

And as if Sean weren't busy enough, he and his co-coaches have joined forces with our local Boys and Girls Club to start a mountain biking program for the kids that are enrolled at Boys and Girls Club.  They are currently starting their second session of the program and I think it has worked out beautifully as kind of a sister program with the high school mountain bike team, as the team members do their part and volunteer at the Boys and Girls Club twice a week to help teach kids how to ride bikes. 

It's a WIN-WIN!

For me, I'm busy trying to come to terms with not having my thyroid!  I'm not trying to sound overly dramatic.  But, I have to be honest and say that it has been difficult!  My energy level is WAY down and I've gained 13 pounds since April!  Coming to terms with being on meds for the rest of my life has been somewhat shattering to me.  I DO NOT like the thought of that in the LEAST!  So come to terms with it I must, but honestly, I'm not quit there yet!

I'm trying to be patient with myself and focus on other things that I am passionate about.  The biggest of which is supporting my husband and kids as they race their mountain bikes and help the Pablove Foundation fight childhood cancer with LOVE!  With the help of the Pablove Foundation, we are currently in the process of  growing our team, Mountain Biking for Pablove  and working on getting solid sponsorships. 

In early June, Nathan submitted this video and entered the Farm Rich Kids Who Give  contest. 

We found out just today that he is one of the finalists. This is the video we will submit so that they can make the final decision. Keep your fingers crossed.

They will be announcing the winner on August 15th. If Nathan wins, he could win, among other things, $2,500 to go to the Pablove Foundation and an all expenses paid trip to New York this fall to attend the Kids Who Give awards dinner!

Among our Mountain Biking for Pablove activities, Sean and the boys were featured as part of  The People's Fleet  contest that the Pablove Foundation entered this summer in the hopes of winning a $5,000 empowerment grant.

I continue to be inspired by my husband and my boys and hope that it lifts me and brings me to a point where I will participate in my own athletic endeavor.  I am very proud of our work with the Pablove Foundation!  They are doing such wonderful things for kids and families living with pediatric cancer!  I know that our efforts go towards something very positive and loving and it feels good to know that my boys can do somethinig they love and give back at the same time.   We are helping the Pablove Foundation fight childhood cancer with LOVE!  We've set a very big goal for our team this year of $5,000.  We have a ways to go to reach our goal by the end of October.  October 2nd the boys will participate in the California State MTB Championships and October 6th Pablove Across America  begins their over 1,400 mile ride from Milwaukee to New Orleans. We would love to have your support!

Please click on the link below to visit our team page.  You can donate to one of us, all of us, or the team.  Either way, you will be helping the Pablove Foundation fight childhood cancer with LOVE and that is AWESOME!

                         MOUNTAIN BIKING FOR PABLOVE

Love,

Lisa

2011 Full Speed Ahead

Our family is charging into 2011!

Both the boys will be racing mountain bikes for Team Pablove this season and their first race of 2011 is Sunday, February 27th in San Diego. We couldn't be more thrilled that both boys are going for it this season.  Here's the race schedule, in case you want to come cheer them on!

Nathan will be working hard at raising money for the Pablove Foundation again this season. With all of your help, Nathan raised close to $2,000 last season and had a thrilling time keeping up with the Pablove Across America peloton, for the last 20 miles of their 1,452 mile journey from Seattle to Silverlake. It has been a tradition for Nathan and Sean to ride the last 20 miles of Pablove Across America for the last two seasons. However, 2011 takes Pablove Across America from Milwaukee to New Orleans. Nathan's goal this year will be to raise $5,000 with his campaign Mountain Biking for Pablove, with the "HIGH" hopes that we can all make it to New Orleans next October, so that he and Sean can ride the last 20 miles with the peloton.

                         MOUNTAIN BIKING FOR PABLOVE

                                  CLICK HERE TO DONATE


Soccer is Tristan's first love and he had a rough 2010 season playing for an older club team. It was hard on all of us watching him struggle through the season. Thankfully, that is past us now and we are totally stoked that Tristan has made the Clifton Middle School Soccer Team. One of only 3 6th graders chosen! He really, really needed that boost of confidence and I'm looking totally forward to taking lots of pics and sharing them here! Sports aside, Tristan really shines academically! He as been a consistent 4.0, Honor Roll student all year! We are very, very proud of him!

Sean has been busy helping to form a high school mountain bike team and acting as one of the team's coaches. Our hope is that we can establish a mountain bike team at Monrovia High School by the time Tristan enters high school and then obviously grow it and have it going strong by the time Nathan gets there. That's the plan, anyway! Right now the team is the San Gabriel Valley Composite Team, with kids from all over the San Gabriel Valley. Mountain biking has been a passion of Sean's for close to 30 years now, so I'm thrilled that he is able to give back and help kids establish a love of the sport that he has loved for so many years.

As for me, I'm the person that tries to hold it all together on the homefront.  How well? I'm not really sure, at times! I love my boys and I would do anything in the world for them at any time. However, this year I will be doing a bit more concentrating on ME! We've been through some doozies since 2011 began, trust me! And all those "little" happenings, plus finding a lump on your neck kinda puts things in major prospective! I'm not panicking yet...well I did at first, but now I've had the biopsy and I'm feeling pretty sure it's a cyst on my thyroid (get biopsy results in mid March). Anyway, all that said, it's way past time for me to spend a bit more time making me HAPPY.  There's a big part of me that wants to be "on the farm!"  So, this Spring I'm plotting out a spot for my organic veggie garden and Nate Dog and I are building a chicken coop big enough for 5 or 6 laying hens.  I'm so excited!  I have all my hens named already:  Florence, Betty, Marge, Ida, Penny & Ruby.  How many animals will we have then?????  2 dogs, 4 cats, 19 fish in our pond, 6 hens? 

Exercise used to be a big priority for me before kids.  Believe it or not, I used to be Sean's favorite mountain biking partner!  That's what he says!  So now,  I'm making it a priority again!  Yoga is a must 3 times a week; and I'm enforcing my old rule of no "house work gets done today, until I've gotten outside for some exercise." This rule worked really well when the boys were little....so I'm enforcing it again.

I'm learning alot from my boys right now and one of the biggest lessons is: I need to have my own thang! So, one of my things this April is joining Team Pablove to help Children's Hospital of Los Angeles TURN ON THE LIGHTS of the new hospital building! This project was in full swing while I was working at CHLA and it is so gratifying to see the day finally approaching when the lights of that building will be turned on! My friends and past co-workers have worked tirelessly for this day to arrive! It will be a very emotional and exciting day! Nathan is an ongoing patient at the Genetics Dept. at CHLA, so I know how important this building is for children and families throughout California. If you can, PLEASE HELP ME TURN ON THE LIGHTS of this amazing facility!

                 CLICK HERE TO HELP ME TURN ON THE LIGHTS

Love,  Lisa

Summer 2010 and The California State Championship Mountain Bike Victory

We had a great summer!  We stuck around home, for the most part, but we still had a great time!  We hung out at the beach alot and the boys started learning how to surf.



We had a great time hanging at the beach with all the boys friends.

Every time we went, we saw our dolphin friends.



The highlight of our summer fun was Nathan's California State Championship Victory at Bonelli Park on September 12th.  He really took it to them this year and came home with the following titles under his belt:  2010 Kenda Cup West Series Class Champion in the jrs. category, the Specialized Invitational Finals Champion and the California State Champion.



As we look forward to next year and Nathan's racing season, we hope that Nathan continues to grow in his sport and follow his heart as he brings awareness to the fight against childhood cancer.  Nathan rides to show support and strength on behalf of kids who are in hospital rooms around the country, getting poked by needles, losing their hair, feeling sick to their tummies and fighting everyday, just to be a normal kid. Nathan races his mountain bike and raises money for the Pablove Foundation.  He will partner with Pablove Across America this October and ride the last 20 mile leg of the ride from Sylmar to Forest Lawn.  Nathan has riden his heart out this season and really given it his ALL.  Please visit his Pablove Across America fundraising page and help him reach his goal, as he helps to fight childhood cancer with love.

                            MOUNTAIN BIKING FOR PABLOVE



CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Now, it's ALL SOCCER and TRISTAN!!  GO STRIKERS!!



Love, Lisa

Southern California State Championship Series & Pablove

July 18, 2010, our little Nate Doggie won the Southern California State Championship Series in Cross Country Mountain Biking in the Jrs. 10 and Under category!

We've gone into this mountain biking scene with the thought that "Nathan should have fun" and he is having fun, but he's also got this raw, natural talent that makes it difficult not to be completely hard core about the whole racing scene.  At times, I have to stop myself from having this crazy, worse than "soccer mom" mentality.

I think this was the most nervous I've ever been before a race.

Look at that face!  Doesn't he look like he's having fun!!

You know, as a mom, I worry about lots of things.  Obviously, all of it centers around what is best for the boys.  The question always being "Is this the right thing for them?".  From praise to punishment, always the same question.  So wanting them to put the demons of past family mythology to rest and leave it in the past. To take with them into their lives, the best traits of Sean and I.  I have lots of inspirational friends and family, who are outstanding parents.  Girlfriends and sister-in-laws of mine that I learn so much from about "not sweating the small stuff."  I'm in awe of so many of them and there "child whispering" skills.

Ultimately, the same reasons that have us striving to be better parents, are in some ways the same reasons that, as a family we want to fight to end childhood cancer.  Parents of kids with cancer, have absolutely NO time to "sweat the small stuff!"   They are dealing with literally horrifying circumstances all around.  One story that is breaking my heart into a million pieces right now is about Daisy Love Merrick. http://prayfordaisy.com/   Her family could use your prayers right now!

Pablo Castelaz's fight with childhood cancer propelled us into action. http://getwellpablo.blogspot.com/   A few weekends ago, Jeff Castelaz, Pablo's dad and the founder of the Pablove Foundation, invited Nathan to go riding with him in Griffith Park.  Talk about an inspiring guy!

They rode 13 miles and had a great time!  I think they are all looking forward to riding together again in the future.  And they will because in October, Nathan and Sean will be joining the last 20 mile leg of the Pablove Across America Ride 2010 from Sylmar to Forest Lawn Memorial Cemetery.

Nathan's mountain biking season is about coming to an end with the Southern California State Championship Series victory.  There will be a State Championship race September 12th at Bonelli Park in San Dimas.  Nathan's race starts at 9:07am.  If you can, come on out and support our Nate Doggie.

All of it comes down to the fact that, Nathan is our little Champion and he is still riding to fight childhood cancer with love and raise money for the Pablove Foundation one mountain bike race at a time.  With the kickoff of Pablove Across America 2010, Nathan has a new goal with his campaign Mountain Biking for Pablove. Please help him do some SERIOUS CHILDHOOOD CANCER BUTT KICKING!

                                 MOUNTAIN BIKING FOR PABLOVE

                                       CLICK HERE TO DONATE


Love, Lisa

Celebration and Loss

from bottom right to upper left

Roberta Ann, Rosalee (Pinky), Robert, Regina (Gigi), Rochelle (Shelley), Rita, Richard (Mike), Robin, Ronald (Patrick), Renee, Roxana, Rhonda, Raeleen, Roch, Ralinda, Rex and Randoloph (Sean)

I married into a huge Irish Catholic family!  My husband is the youngest of 17 children.  Being a part of this family is a once in a lifetime experience all in and of itself.  I continue to learn all the time, that celebration and loss are just a heartbeat apart.

Lisa and Sean 6/24/95

Grandma Roberta

Sean and I celebrated our 15th Wedding Anniversary this past June 24th.  15 years ago, as we were celebrating and joyously planning to become husband and wife, we also had to say goodbye and mourn the loss of my husband's Mother, Roberta Hickey.  She passed away on Father's Day, just one week before our wedding.  It was very difficult and yet this family came together and celebrated her life and our marriage, like nothing I had ever known.  It was a tremendous celebration!

Six years ago, as we started getting ready to celebrate our oldest son, Tristan's entry into elementary school and his kindergarten year; and all the fun that was to come, again we had to mourn the loss of my dearest sister-in law, Rita.  She was the closest thing to a Grandmother my kids had on their Dad's side.  She is dearly, dearly missed every single day by Sean and I and our boys.  I knew that my family's world had changed forever the day she gained her wings.

Aunt Rita and Tristan

This past weekend as our family celebrated the awesome victory of our youngest son, Nathan, at the California State Championship Mountain Bike race in Big Bear, we also mourned the loss of one of my husband's oldest brother's, Patrick.  Patrick had a long hard battle with drug addiction and prison life.  He was the middle child of 17 siblings.   "Eight above, Eight below.  How I go, the rest go."

Nate Dog, the California State Champion Jrs. 10 & Under! 

Ronald Patrick Hickey

I am especially proud and thankful for my sister-in law, Shelley.  She has worked so very hard to help Patrick gain his freedom from all the addiction and incarceration.  Just a week or so ago Shelley posted this on facebook:   "Pat gets out of prison July 12th. I am feeling how he has no one except Chuck and me. I know this is his last chance to live in freedom. He will attend my reading performance on July 30th. I hope he will hear his own powerful words in a way that makes it clear that his work is done, he simply needs to implement what he... has already accomplished. This has been a very long road."

Patrick and Shelley

This reading performance that Shelley refers to, "is the product of her work in family mythology and self-discovery. Beginning with the question "What was it like for you to be part of our family?", she collected oral histories from her seventeen siblings and turned them into first person narratives. These memories are stitched into a dialogue between one incarcerated brother and a silenced sister. Dr. Duffy's work demonstrates both the power of memory and dream to ignite voice and transform spirit, as expressed in her reading performance of  Prison Is Where I Learned to Fly: Shelley's Sibliography."  

Click hear to read the informaiton regarding Shelley's talk at C.G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles:
http://www.junginla.org/t/publicprograms/2010/summer/month/july/p/shelleys-sibliography-releasing-the-incarcerated-voice-through-memory-imagination-and-dialogue

I will write more about Nathan's State Championship victory on his mountain bike later this week, but for now, I'm just going to say - I'm happy we had a couple of Sean's siblings with us at the race.  It made the bittersweet emotions of the day much more sweet all around.

Nathan with cousin Adam and Uncle Roch

Nathan with Aunt Raeleen

Nathan with cousins Leland, Ethan, Adam, Beckham and Abel

Nathan and cousin Christina

I am so proud of my family!  I know that quit a bit of the spirit that lives within my boys, comes from the "Hickey" side of the family.  The zest for life.  The energy.  The CELEBRATION!

Nathan and Tristan with Uncle Pat

Love, Lisa