Kendra's Favorite Things

Megel Bagel, Megaroo, Megs, Megsters, Meggie, I have a dozen nick-names for Megahn but in my heart there is only one place for her as my very best friend. Megahn and I met a little late in life considering how quickly we became close. It was in Mrs. Waterbury's 2nd Period History class our Sophomore year at CFHS that we started to really bond. The bond expanded quickly and all of the sudden we were best buds.

We spent our High School afternoons laying out at my house after school, carpooling to school, having Tuesday night sleepovers, going to Breugger's, running stadiums at U of A, complaining about working, watching Megs down 1/4 pounders after a tough swim practice, and driving all the boys crazy.

Megs and I share a bond that makes it hard for us to explain to other people. We were devastated when we went our separate ways for college but realized quickly how easy it would be to stay in touch and con our Papa Bears into annual trips between Dallas and Tempe.

One "special" evening while I was visiting Megs in Dallas we took a little trip to the nearest Tattoo parlor to let our new found friend Dutch stamp us with what we still to this day call our "love marks." Every time I look down at my right foot and see my Dallas star it makes me think of Megs.

She's getting married next May and I'm incredibly honored to be her Maid of Honor. I am so happy for the love she has found in her soon to be husband Seth and can't wait to share their life with them. I wouldn't have it any other way because Megs and I are kind of a package deal. He takes it like a champ and even sleeps on the couch when I come to visit... what a guy!

I can't wait for so many more memories with Megs. The times we've shared are the happiest times of my life and I know the best is yet to come. LOVE YOU MEGS!!!!

Do you remember in Elementary School how your teacher used to give you a Gold Star if you'd done something well or achieved a gold? Well, today I feel the need to give myself a Gold Star. I've been up running for the last two mornings in a row before work... feels so good to be back! My favorite thing about being a routine morning runner is seeing familiar faces in the morning and the way we give each other the runners wave. Marathon training here I come!

My new certificate for Employee of the Month and all my Marathon Medals are now nicely hung right next to each other in my office. They help to remind me that hard work pays off!

“Falling out of love with you does not make me bitter or cynical about love. But rather makes me realize that if I wanted so much to be with the wrong person how beautiful it will be when the right one comes along.”

If family is the heart of our lives, then it's no surprise why I feel like I have a good heart. This past weekend made me realize several things about my family. First, I have been blessed with the most incredible family ever. My parents and my brother and Lindsay are the most important people in my life. Extend that out to Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousisn, etc. etc. These are the people that have made me who I am today and I am ever so grateful to them. I also realized that there are some friends that I consider to be a part of my family. These people are so special, because they have been chosen. I feel incredibly grateful and lucky to have these people and I know that they encourage me to be the best person I can be. Life is good!

I'm sitting here on the couch with my roomie, and it just reminds me how nice it is to have her. We've been living in our cozy little home for about 6 months now and we love it. Just thought I'd want to remember this moment. :)

It's Sept-Oct, which means... Birthdays!!! Lindsey, Jennifer, Grandma Dwyer :(, Aunt Kathy, My Dad, Shelly, Devin, ME, Bill Roeder, Uncle Mike, Patrick... the list goes on, Happy Birthday to us. Excited for lots of celebrating and togetherness. I've realized over the years that birthdays have less to do with ourselves and more to do with spending time with the people we love... so here's to another year!

It's been said that "when a woman cuts her hair, her life is about to change"... well I didn't exactly cut my hair, (I made a major change in that department last year, and my hair is FINALLY starting to grow back again) but I did decide to change the background on my blog, which is kind of a big deal! Let me know what you think, if you like it, hate it, think I should look for a new one or don't really care. I figure that although consistency is a good thing to have in life, it never hurt to shake things up a bit!

What a relaxing weekend up in the Mountains. My Grandpa was completely surprised that I came out to see him which made it even better! We had a great weekend and I feel so relaxed and stress free. Now I'm back in Phoenix hanging with my bro and having dinner at my Dad's.... I love my family!

While cleaning out some paperwork tonight I found a "short" list of 131 attributes that would make up my ideal man if I had a magic wand. Don't judge me I had a 4 hour flight from Nebraska to put this together. I wrote this list ironically exactly one year ago today on the way home from Jason and Angela's wedding. Prompting this list was an absolutely amazing weekend spent with many of my favorite guy friends. My brother, Jason & Justin, Jeff, Phil, Toddy and Marky... these are the men that have protected me my entire life. I remember them asking about my current dating situation, and all they had to say was "You deserve the world, don't settle for anything less." So thanks boys for helping me to create this list. Jennifer helped me refine it to the Top 20 make or breaks... This is what I'll focus on for now, these are the things that mean the most to me in a partner.

Kendra's Top 20: 

1. Would do anything to make me smile.  

2. Allows me to be myself and appreciates who I am. 

3. Thinks I am beautiful and not hot. 

4. Has aspirations to succeed in life and a plan on how to get there. 

5. Enjoys dressing up for theme parties and isn't afraid to "match" with me. 

6. Knows when I need support and wants to provide it. 

7. Thinks I make him a better man. 

8. Makes me a better woman.

9. Impressed by ME; my struggles, my accomplishments, my goals. 

10. Able to admit when he's wrong. 

11. Has boys night with his buddies and encourages me to have girls night with my friends. 

12. Tells people how he feels about me, but keeps the details of our relationship between us. 

13. Enjoys his job and does what it takes to do well at it. 

14. Wants to provide for and protect his family. 

15. Is okay with me being a "planner".

16. Appreciates my body exactly the way it is.

17. Is friendly to people in his every day life; at the grocery store, at a restaurant etc. 

18. Respects his exes for what they've taught him. 

19. Exercises at least 3 times per week. 

20. Considers his family the most important thing in his life. 

I've such a fabulous long weekend. The David Gray & Ray LaMontagne concert was nothing short of AMAZING!!! It was honestly one of the best concerts I've ever been to, and I go to a lot of concerts. Ray started the night off and his voice is truly one of the most incredible things I've ever heard live. He couldn't leave without playing my favorite song of his... "You are the best thing." Then came Mr. David Gray. Seeing him in concert has been on my Bucket List for a while and I'm so happy that I got a chance to experience him live. It was the perfect venue and perfect evening. Reminds me how much I love good music and better company! It was the perfect end to the perfect day. Click here to listen to my jam! We still have one more day with the girls in town and I'm sure we'll be able to conjure up some fun to top off the weekend. 

Living With Breast Cancer is something I hope I never have to do, although to be honest, the statistics aren't promising for me and the other women I love in my life. The scary truth is that 1 in 8 women in the United States will be diagnosed with Breast Cancer in her lifetime.

In the time that it takes you to read this e-mail, several women will have been diagnosed with Breast Cancer. What does this mean to their friends, their families, and their own lives?

Hopefully you'll never have to experience exactly how much pain, suffering, and anxiety living with Breast Cancer causes. I do want to share a story I found that may help you to at least understand.

Here is Bonni's story on her journey with Breast Cancer:

"It has been six years since my last chemotherapy treatment...I was 31 years old and did not need a mammogram and certainly did not have time for one...it was very suspicious of malignancy...decided that ok, I was the one who was suppose to go through this and I was gonna be strong for my family and kids...I told the man I was dating that he was dismissed from the relationship...just like a man, he wanted to stay...I was not really ready like I tried to get my family to believe, I hate needles, I hate pain...I was dry heaving before my first session was complete. Oh joy and rapture how many more of these do I get? ...the chemo would make me vomit for five days and I could not get up only to get sick...so when I completed that I did my radiation which was a walk in the park...it was a very humbling experience, losing your hair and half your breast...by the grace of God I have a beautiful 10 month old son, along with a gorgeous 10 year old daughter (Whom looks just like me) and a very handsome 12 year old son, and a hunk a hunk of burning love Husband who without him I am not sure if I would even be here."

Read more stories like Bonni's by following this link: http://www.pinkribbonshop.com/breastcancersurvivorstories.aspx

About 40,170 women in the U.S. were expected to die in 2009 from breast cancer. Please, please, please help me fight for a cure. I don't want to worry about losing my mother, my grandmother, my aunts, my friends, my sister-in-law or my co-workers to this horrible disease.

Click here if you are able to donate: www.the3day.org/goto/kendradwyer.

Sincerely,
Kendra

While I'm not going on a "real" vacation for another two months... we have some fun things coming up that are definitely exciting for me to think about. For example, my dear friend Lindsey has never been to Little Italy in San Diego. Can you believe that?!? She grew up here and she's never been there. Based on the amount of eye candy that hangs out at The Princess Pub on Friday nights; I think she's missing out, big time! So I've decided to rally up a few friends and plan "The Little Ladies Little Italy Pub Crawl." We are going to hit up a few different bars this Friday night and see what she's been missing all this time. Should be fun.

Then coming up I have the David Gray concert, Brittany's Bachelorette Party, Spa Day at La Valencia, Lindsey & Jennifer's B-day Parties, Kevin's B-day Party, Carrie Underwood Concert, My B-day.... I'm actually getting tired thinking about it all! Just kidding... Who said Summer is almost over?! For me the fun never ends!

xoxo,
KD