Family, Friends, and the people you meet along the way!

Last night my friend Laura came out to take pictures of my family on our bikes as my oldest son will be soon going back to college in VT... Having 3 older sons that are bigger than me, plus a husband that hates to have his picture taken, along with 4 bikes, Laura had her hands full needless to say! Trying to whip those guys into shape to behave to take pictures is a tough job! A job only a mother wants done! haha But I am so thankful for Laura to have come out to do it for us, taking time outta her busy life to do this for us! I told someone tonight, I wanted to get the pictures taken as you never know what tomorrow will bring! Hard to think about some days, but something that we do need to think about!



Each day I am asked by a family member, a neighbor, friends or someone on facebook that I haven't met yet, "How did the ride go? How many riders were there?? How much did you raise???" or "WE HAD SO MUCH FUN, Can't wait until nest year!!" It is so amazing how many people that knows about the Angel Ride, not only our families that have put up with things not getting done around the house, or laundry backed up. Or forgetting about an appointment, hanging out with a friend... many things!
The people that we are just meeting! Ones that have gone thru Breast Cancer, that have come up to us and said, "With the money you have raised, you helped me with..." You just want to hug each and everyone of them! I have told some people, when they talk about HERO'S, these people that are fighting each day because of their Breast Cancer, or any other cancer, they are the real heros because they fight a long and hard battle, that I know I would have troubles fighting. You think a bad day at work is one thing, hurting each day would be worse. I, myself have bad days, and wonder to myself wow can it be worse? Then you think of others, ones that we are trying to help to make a small part of their life go better! If everyone tried to make some ones day a little better, they would feel so much better, and I do think that the word would & could be a better place, if only... we tried!




I do got to say tho, the people from the bars that we had stops in to the ones we have met on rides (and from other benefit rides too)you make wonderful friends along the way! Even thru facebook, I have met some amazing people that follow us on there about the Angel Ride, to ones that are following us because of Breast Cancer! I had one gal that lives in Nevada, IA that I haven't meet as of yet, but have emailed, talked on the phone, and are friends on facebook, she has gone thru breast cancer and had hit many bumps in the road of life, but I enjoy seeing what she posts on facebook! Also a gal in Iowa City area, that her group got together and bought allot of shirts from us, the Chrome Divas, in hopes to meeting up with them someday too!

These people that we meet where ever we go in life, they have put a print (like a finger print on glass) in our lives, in our hearts and in our memories! We might forget their names (or can't place a name to their face!)but they are there with us daily! I know I have met so many people this year, and plan on meeting many more in years to come!
I want to thank all those people that have come into my life for one reason or another, you have touched my life in ways that are hard to express! Family members, friends, old school mates, daycare families, to new people along the way! You all have touched my life in one way or another! If ever person in the world would reach out to meet one new person a day, to be kind to a person, to just say HI to someone you pass on the street, just think of all the smiles there could be!



Just remember, life is what you make of it, there are going to be days that you are so excited about and want that day to never end, to those days that you wonder, why am I still even here, no one cares if I am here or not... Each day you need to get up, put your boots on one foot at a time, and go out into the world and show that life does matter, as there are so many people out there fighting cancer that pray for another day...

~~ For now Take Care ~~
~~~Ride Safe~~~
<3 Angel Ride Girl <3

Take 5 To Stay Alive!

Wow it is almost 2 weeks past the ride... and we are still in amazement of the awesome turn out! 570+ people signed up for the ride, oh and not to mention the others that just came out to have fun before & afterwards! WOW
July 29th was a busy night at Amigos party to the music of Hell or High Water! 120+ signed up at our pre-registration! Many shirts & Angel Ride items were sold that night, the 50/50 ticket money pay out was $300+! Had great weather, good people... what else can anyone ask for! Good friends to help out when I was going crazy! Yup that was a big plus! Didn't know this was going to be as crazy as it was!
July 30 started at Amigos with an awesome omelet breakfast! More & more people that came to sign up! I glanced at the sign up sheets, and there was some from TX there, and a couple from FL that this is their 2nd time on the ride! Said they will be back next year!! Yippie! We had 400 sign up papers, and well had to go get more... we didn't know what to expect as there were other events going on around the area... Just never know! :) The weather was a bit warm, but awesome to ride! We even had my sister in law & brother in law there to ride, plus a couple of our friends, all of them rode from 2 hours away rode with us, then rode home that night! That is so cool that they rode all that way to do the ride for just the day!
The businesses, Marv's Grill & Bar in Gowrie were all ready for all these riders to come thru there! Smiles on their faces proved all was going well! Boxholm was a smaller bar,but Kris' Korner, was an awesome stop to make... when planning these rides, I want to get some of these places that no one would of ever thought about stopping at,in hopes that they will tell their friends, "This is a place you gotta check out..." Then down to Toby K's in Boone, they were serving up BBQ pork sandwiches, and also burgers! Could smell the grill as we were pulling up there! Then we started to head north to Rungo's in Stratford! What a friendly place to stop! Dan the owner is a super nice guy! And his staff Brenda & Josh are so much fun! I would highly recommend this place as a stop any time! There was also another ride that was going to a few of the same stops as we did... "BIKERS FOR BOOBS" they had some nice people on their run too! Bought a shirt from them when we stopped at Riverside Tap in Lehigh! Kelly was having loads of fun wearing her bra that she bought from our Bras for the Cause bras! "Naughty & Nice" Having 2 rides come thru there was keeping Kelly & her staff hopping!
We all rolled back into Ft Dodge, last stop was Community Tap! Everything was setup and ready to sell! We had silent & live auction items! Thanks to Keith for helping us out! Music being played by Rusty! Let the fun begin! There was so much going on that the whole night was a blur! Can't believe that the whole day went so well... So many shirts, bandannas, koozies, bracelets & rings sold! We had approx 20 shirts left over! Everything went so well!
IF you are waiting for a total of money that was made... lets just say... we will let everyone know in Oct when we turn over the money on Breast Cancer awareness month to Rae Anne at the oncology dept at TRMC here in Ft Dodge! But I will give you a slight hint... we beat last years total! I will also say that there is more shirt orders being placed, and more donations coming in, so the counting is far from being over! Woot Woot!!
I want to thank the Angel Ride staff, they came in and helped out when we needed them the most! Also thanks to all the extra helpers that came in to help either in the morning or afternoon or all day! We couldn't of done this without every ones help! A HUGE thank you to 3 Eagles Communications They promoted us all along! Then on Mon after the ride, Mike D sent me a note if I could be in there at 7:30am on Tues to chat on the radio, I sent him a note and said nope, I could do 6am! Well there I was at the radio station at 6am in the morning... I think my mommy was the only one that was awake to listen to me talk with Mike! lol! Loved making new friends there! They were so awesome to us!
I will leave you with this for thought, our theme this year was "Take 5 To Stay Alive" as it was our 5th year! And we want to remind everyone that it takes 5 mins to do a self exam, 5 mins to do a mammogram, and 5 mins to make a call to schedule any appointments to get a checkup! Take 5 (mins) to Stay Alive, EARLY DETECTION SAVES LIVES!

~~Live life to the fullest, as you never know what tomorrow will bring us~~
~LIVE~LOVE~LAUGH~
~~Ride Safe~ Angel Ride Girl~~

ps: the jar full of pennies (picture at the top) was donated to the cause by our friends Tim & Julie, with the challenge that people needed to guess the amount of pennies in the jar! Well we had some great guessers, and some that didn't know... there was over $300.00 in there! Thanks Tim & Julie for the donation!

Donations are coming in! WOW!

You know when doing a benefit of any kind it is so hard to go asking for donations, as with the world the way it is, many can't afford to give donations... We have been so blessed to have people to give us so many beautiful donations! When you step back and look at them it almost brings tears to your eyes!
This year we have had a great turn out for homemade donations! You know that these people worked hard at making whatever they have donated to us! The quilts take so many hours of work (one day I hope to make one!) The quilt at the top of this page is going to be a memory quilt as the lady that donated it, her sister died of breast cancer at the age of 26 yr (Im thinking)



This rocking motorcycle was donated by a friend of ours! He had made these for his grand kids, and when he was asked to make one for us, hey no problem! It is a heavy duty one and will make a little ones day to be able to ride a cycle just like everyone else!




This barn quilt is a 4x4 wooden quilt to go on the side of a barn, garage,fence! This to was made by a friend of ours! Her husband made the rocking cycle! She had made a barn quilt for someone else, and called me to see if I wanted her to make one for our benefit! And of coarse it turned out way awesome!






This wooden wall clock was donated by a guy that we met in Boxholm! :) He called me when we were at the lakes a couple weeks ago, asking if I remember him... he told me that he wasn't able to ride his motor cycle on the ride as he is having back problems, but he would be there in his truck! Then he said "I made something for your event, and hope that you will like it! It's a tree clock!" This is the 1st one he ever made, and at that call, said that he had made 3-4 more as people wanted them! He said he had hoped that it would bring some money for the event!






This quilt is beautiful done! I know each design has a meaning... not being a quilter, I don't know what they are, the cross pattern is so eye catching! I am sure it will make someone feel all warm and comfortable this winter!

There are so many other donations that are truly amazing, these are just a few! I hope that it sparks an interest to have people come to the Angel Ride this weekend to bid on items that we have!
Oh and for those that like Longaberger baskets, yes there are some of those in the auction items too! Not sure of how many, but these baskets have beautiful gifts in them!!

We will have some silent auctions on Friday night at Amigos! 50/50 drawings with the money paid out that night! Pre-registration! The band HELL OR HIGH WATER is playing! Come on down for much fun & activities! To get this event rolling!

Then on Saturday come back down to Amigo's for sign up 9-11am! They will be serving a $5 breakfast! Take off on the ride, then head back to Community Tap at 5pm. We want everyone back by 5pm so that we can get everyone checked in and start the live auction, along with getting the silent auctions finished up! Providing the weather being good, the silent auction will be out for display most of the day at Community! If you can't make it on the ride, stop down there to check out our auction items!

Thanks so much for your past support, present support and hopefully your future support! With out you we can't make this a big success!

Take Care~ Ride Safe~~ Angel Ride Girl

PS: If you get to the Angel Ride event this weekend... stop by to say HI to me!

Angels Helping others!

Good Morning... Even with a busy planning time ahead of us, our group put together 7 book bags full of supplies plus bags of extra supplies for the local radio stations! They are doing a drive on getting school supplies for those kids that can't afford them, making sure that all kids go back to school with new school supplies! It is an awesome way to make a kid smile! The cost wasn't much as long as we all helped out a little!
Just proving that if everyone helps a little it doesn't take much to help others!
Take Care~ Ride Safe~Angel Ride Girl

Pinking out the USA map!

A week from today will start the Angel Ride in motion for the weekend of fun! I am not sure where the time has gone to! We have lots to do this coming week! Keep us all in your thoughts and prayers that we have a good week & an awesome weekend for the ride!
It all starts out at Amigo's July 29th 5:30-10:30pm with a Pre-Angel Ride party! You will also be able to sign up that night for the ride for the next day! We will be selling 50/50 tickets with funds being paid out that night! Also will have a couple baskets to auction off! So many fun things going on & HELL OR HIGH WATER band will be playing to get the party started!
The morning of July 30th will start off with a bang, come on down to Amigo's for sign up! There will be a breakfast served at $5/plate! Sign up will be from 9-11am!
We want everyone back to Community Tap & Pizza by 5pm so that we can get the auction going & there will be silent auctions going on too! Door prizes, food & lots of fun!
The Angel Ride has helped so many people in the past, raising $30,000 in funds last year, with all money going to help local breast cancer patience within a 75 mile radius of Ft Dodge with uninsured expenses such as wigs, scarfs, travel expenses! This has been a totally amazing journey planning this out this year! Hope everyone can make it to the main event! The girls have worked allot to make this a good event! And we have met so many wonderful people along the way!

Ok as to help us pink out the USA with Angel Ride shirts!
This is what I still need for states!!! OR, NV, WY, ND, MI, OH, PA, WV, MA, ME, NJ, DE, CT, RI, NH, HI, AL, LA, MS, AK, SC! If someone knows anyone that lives in one of those states, they just need to buy a Angel Ride shirt and mail or give it to who ever lives in that state!
(can't figure out why the map went sideways! The picture was straight on)

Follow our Facebook page too! Angel Ride to Save the Ta - Ta's 2011

Thanks to my Angel Girls~ Cathy, Dawn P, Dawn W, Deb, Jeanna, Karen, Lana, Laura,Lavonne, Marilyn, Sharon, Tammy, Teresa. And a big thanks to Sally Hart of Community Tap & Pizza. She has been with us with awesome ideas and helping out in every way possible! Also a huge thank you to my sister Shirley Hottman for starting up this event 5 years ago! It started out small and has gotten bigger over the last 4+ years! Many people have benefited from these funds that come from this event! Her vision has blossomed into a big thing!

Thanks to all that keep up with my blog! I really appreciate you all that follow my updates! Hope to see you all at the ride next weekend!
Ride Safe, Be Well & Happy~
~~Angel Ride Girl~~ <3

Less than a month away!

Greetings Angel Ride followers!

Yesterday marked the one month until the Angel Ride to Save the TaTas! As I sit here typing this I wonder where has the last few months gone to? :)
The night of the pre-party at Amigo's here in Ft Dodge, HELL OR HIGH WATER will be the band playing! We will also have pre-registration that night too! That is July 29th 6:30-10:30pm!
The donations will be posted soon on the facebook sight! If you are on facebook, please join the group! ANGEL RIDE TO SAVE THE TA-TAS 2011!
This year we have so many new things! And they seem to be going over really well!
We have "Angel Ride to Save the TaTa's" & "I <3 Boobies" rubber bracelets, also a "HOPE" rubber ring! I had someone buy one last night at bike night for a toe ring!
We have a few bike night in plan yet! Amigo's July 6th, Grid Iron July 7th!! Those night we are going to try to sell 50/50 tickets! With the money being paid out that night! Some of you have bought them on different poker rides, well we are trying to sell them on bike nights too! We have paid out a total of $333.50!
As it draws closer to the 4th of July, please ride safe, and enjoy!
~Angel Ride Girl

Garage Sale/Bake Sale at Community Tap!

Greetings to you all!
Just a BIG thanks to all that came out to the garage sale/bake sale that Sally at Community Tap & Pizza put on for us! And for those that donated items to be sold! The word WOW isn't enough to cover the night and its turn out! I dropped off some items in the morning of Friday June 17th and they were just getting things set up, with not too much going on! Well by the time I went back there to drop off more items, there was allot of items dropped off & already sold! The sale was to start at 4pm, but people kept stopping and buying! Can't turn away early sales! And the sales were going until dark! :)
The Angel Shirts were being sold too, along with 50/50 tickets! The 50/50 tickets sold $463.00 with 1/2 of that going to the winning ticket $231.50! That was an awesome total! The girls worked hard at getting that money collected & people were still wanting to buy tickets after it was all said & done with! There will be more chances at buying 50/50 tickets & don't have to be present to win!
It is so heart filling to know that so many people are willing to help out in events like this! The items that they brought out to sell, baked goods were plentiful, and many came out to enjoy the band Salty View that was playing! The sun was shining and it turned out to be an awesome day!
We now are selling those rubber bracelets that say "Angel Ride to Save the TaTas" and "Hope" rubber rings, and soon we will have the "I <3 Boobies" rubber bracelets! I have had allot of people wanting to get those already!
Thanks again to Sally at Community Tap & Pizza & to the public for their support in helping us out too!! Also thanks to the radio guys for showing up to show their support to us too! You guys are awesome!!

Ride Safe~