PLEASE HELP US RACE FOR RESEARCH!

One cool thing about road races is that they are a great way to raise money for a good cause. On Saturday, July 12th, our family will be participating in the Southeastern Brain Tumor Foundation's 9th annual Race for Research. Last summer a dear family in our church received devastating news - their oldest son had a brain tumor. Logan underwent two surgeries and radiation treatments to remove the tumor. He has lost part of his vision and the medications he will be on for life have caused some serious side effects. This boy, who is a friend of my oldest son, has shown tremendous fight and determination. He has continued to go to school and participate in activities like children's choir and bible drill. He wasn't able to continue playing baseball so he became a bat boy.

I have set up a donation page in honor of this family and I welcome any and all interested readers of this blog to check it out and consider giving a donation. After you click on the link, click on the donate button, click on donate to an individual and then type my name, Meredith Beatty, in the search field. You can then click on my name to go to our donation page.

Setting a personal record in a 5K is definitely not what this race is about. Have a blessed day and go hug your kids!

WHY I WATCH SPORTS I DON'T PLAY

I've always been a little goofy about this. As a kid I watched the typical sports like baseball, basketball and football. But I also watched bowling, golf and tennis. One of my favorite memories was watching Jimmy Conners play his last U.S. Open in the early '90s. I stayed up really late one night watching that classic match against Aaron Krickstein. I actually have quite a few memories of watching tennis, from Boris Becker diving at Wimbledon to Jennifer Capriati finally winning her first major tournament. Do I play tennis? No. I did play a little as a kid but I don't think that counts.

I've given up on bowling, but I still watch golf. I've played an actual round only once and I won't embarrass myself by telling you my score. Needless to say, it was over 100. One of the reasons I watch is because it's a great way to relate to my parents who play all the time. But I actually really enjoy it. Case in point - today's third round of the U.S. Open. If you can't get excited about Tiger Woods gutting out the 18th hole for an eagle on a bad knee that just had surgery on it, I don't know what will. It was simply amazing. And if you want to hear what a consummate professional sounds like, go listen to his post-round comments. He's honest, humble and down to earth.

Every four years there's some great stories about young men and women chasing their Olympic dreams. My family and I are looking forward to watching that this coming August. Meanwhile, though, I will enjoy tomorrow's final round of the U.S. Open and in 9 days, Wimbledon. Tiger Woods has never lost going into the final round of a major with the lead. And Rafael Nadal will try again to stop Roger Federer from winning his fifth straight Wimbledon title.

Am I weird or what? Ha, I really don't care.