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The American Cancer Society Relay For Life represents the hope that those lost to cancer will never be forgotten, that those who face cancer will be supported, and that one day cancer will be eliminated.

Relay For Life is more than just a fundraiser. It’s a life-changing experience. At Relay, every person in the community has a chance to celebrate, remember, and fight back. And every person who participates joins others around the globe as part of this worldwide movement to end cancer.

No matter why you take part in Relay, however, one thing is clear: with every step you take, you are helping the American Cancer Society save lives. With your help, we aren’t just fighting one type of cancer – we’re fighting for every birthday threatened by every cancer in every community. Each person who shares the Relay experience can take pride in knowing that they are working to create a world where this disease will no longer threaten the lives of our loved ones or claim another year of anyone’s life.

One of the many ways the American Cancer Society saves lives is by finding cures through groundbreaking research.  The American Cancer Society spends $130 million a year on cancer research and has invested more than $3.4 billion in cancer research since its research program began in 1946.

As a hotel brands that care, Vantage Hospitality has teamed up with The Skin Cancer Foundation for their summer promotion.

Stay Healthy.  That’s one of the American Cancer Society’s tips for reducing your risk of cancer.  Exercise is one of the best things you can do for your overall health, and may help reduce your risk of cancer, too.  (It’s a start to walk in the Relay for Life, like our Girl Scout Troop did as part of the MedXray team).  Think color when you think healthy eating.  Learn which cancer screening tests are right for you.

Here are some other things that you can do to take control of your health and reduce your cancer risk:

Bridal t-shirts are great for showers and rehearsals because they give the bride and her attendants the opportunity to “stand out” even before the big day arrives.  Custom rhinestone shirts come in all colors and sizes at Just Jen.  Have fun designing your shirt and choosing your rhinestones and let Just Jen do the work!

For every person who clicks the “Like” button on their Facebook page, Bali Intimates will donate $1.00 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

This opportunity to help in the fight against breast cancer is available until 8/22/10 and Bali Intimates will donate up to $25,000 to the cause.

This week I’m dedicating most of my posts to Cancer Research Awareness and companies that support that cause.  My daughter’s Girl Scout Troop and a couple of  us adults, participated in the Relay for Life on July 30th, to raise funds for cancer research. 

Cancer is a word that evokes strong emotions, when the patient and their family first hears it in a diagnosis.  But what exactly is cancer?  The American Cancer Society puts it this way:

The Relay for Life in our vicinity took place on July 30-31, and we were privileged to take part.  October is widely known as Breast Cancer Awareness month, and many of the sponsors you will see on my blog this week, are ones that donate to that specific cancer cause.  Interestingly enough there is a month dedicated to the focus of all Cancer Research and that is the month of May. 

For Amber and I this walk is significant as my Mom is a cancer survivor.  Just last year she was found with a tumor.  Fortunately she received excellent treatment and care, and her follow ups indicated that there was no trace of it left after her treatments were done.  If only we could get to the point that everyone diagnosed with any type of cancer would have the same results.

The estimated number of new cancer cases expected to be diagnosed in the United States in 2010 is 1,529,560, with a number that large, it’s not difficult to believe that it will effect each one of us somehow, whether it is a diagnosis for ourselves, a parent, sibling, relative or friend.

The Relay for Life 2010, was the first ever fundraiser walk I have participated in.  At Relay, teams of people camp out at a local venue and take turns walking or running around a track or path. Each team is asked to have a representative on the track at all times during the event. Because cancer never sleeps, Relays are overnight events up to 24 hours in length.

Our Girl Scout Troop walked on July 30th.   The event was supposed to take place at our local stadium.  However because a signifcant amount of rain had fallen the evening before, the grass on the ball field was too wet.  So they moved it to the convention center, where we ended up walking inside, which while crowded was a lot cooler than if we had walked outside!

The Drum Line started the evening out with a Survivor’s Lap around, and later on in the evening there was a live band that played.  Which was kind of neat since a lot of people (like me!) walk to music.

I write the Switched-On Schoolhouse Series twice a month to share our family’s experience using this software based curriculum in our home.

One of the “chores” of homeschooling on an administrative end is grading.  Amber has three subjects that we use formal text books for.  I do have answer keys to mark the assignments, but it’s rare that I get to them daily, and they tend to pile up.  Once I get around to grading them, I admit to feeling a little overwhelmed.

As the teacher, I really like the automatic grading feature of Switched-On Schoolhouse.  It makes my job much more enjoyable . 

The way automatic grading works is;