January 2010

So it's a start to a New Year, Mark and I have been together for 9 years now! Blimey where did that time go? We bit the bullet in October and went to a professional photographer for some photos..there's one above showing my lovely family!

It's been a pretty poor end to 2009 and start to the New year with illness covering most of my family, here at home with Oli spending a few days in hospital just before Christmas and then Theo, Mum and Mark all being ill over and after Christmas. As for me, I've managed so far to keep away from any major bugs and germs although the tiredness has been wiping me out!

This year i'm hoping to organise myself so that I can cope without having to have any childcare when Mum goes in for her heart op. I have some good friends who will be helping me out but I would like to be there for the boys too.

I would like to think that the Pre-school will be in it's own brand new building before 6 months is out...still waiting on the planning application to be heard by the committee, January 18th is d-day on that score.

I would like to think that I can once again stop eating chocolate...I did it last year from September, but with Oli going into hospital and Christmas bringing a mountain of chocolate treats into the house it's been nigh on impossible to not eat any. SO without making any resolutions my aim is to stop eating it once our supplies have gone. Luckily Oli seems to be helping me get rid of my supplies more quickly than perhaps I would hope!!

The house will be a priority this year as well, we either move or we decorate and properly get sorted. I would like to make sure the garden outside is used properly which will mean knocking through either the wall or making another door into the house!!

Right i'm off now as i've got lots to do and Theo and Oli to attend to....

Let's hope i'll manage a bit more blogging as well....kind of let it slide last year again didn't I?

Oh well here's one for this year....

Happy New Year to you all and let's hope it's going to be healthy and peaceful and fun...I need fun!

xx

Buster's Rainbow

Buster's Rainbow

Today after lunch Mark , Theo, Oli and I buried Buster's ashes near to where Bramble is buried. We said a poem and said our goodbyes. I got very upset, Oli went very quiet and Theo was just more concerned about being allowed to use his spade to dig the soil back in again. As we went inside Oli said I'm going to miss Buster and Theo agreed and said we will all miss Buster.

He is at rest now and we have our lovely memories of him. While we were burying him we had a shower of hail and rain and a beautiful full rainbow...it was a very special moment. Whenever I see a rainbow now I will know that Buster and all those that we have lost and loved are watching over us and sending us love and lightness at all times and especially in our dark stormy days!

You can shed tears that he is gone
Or smile that he has lived

You can close your eyes and pray he’ll come back
Or you can open your eyes and see all that he has left

Your heart can be empty because you can’t see him
Or you can be full of the love you share

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
Or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday

You can remember him only that he has gone
Or you can cherish his memory and let it live on

You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
Or you can do what he’d want, smile, open your eyes, love and go on.

This poem was read out at my Grandad's funeral and my nan's and today I read it for Buster, I cried but I now will try and remember Buster and the happiness he gave us, the love he gave us and the mischief he got up to as a puppy.... you will always be with us Buster may you now rest in peace, but always be part of us and our lives.

Hash January 20th 2009

Tuesday night is hash night, i've not been too regular of late with illness and other things happening but I will never miss the chance to get dressed up..so even though it was cold outside Dolittle and Gurnie got dolled up for their vegetable hash....going as Has Bean's! We were going to go as Swede's but decided that blue lycra shiney trousers and blond hair weren't going to work for us that well so here we are with Dolittle adjusting her bum with a little help and me in my makeup and curlers ready to go and scare the others...sorry find the others!!

The following was written mainly for The Words that we have, each week someone is given/or volunteers to write them as a way for everyone to remember what we got up to on various hashes...for some reason they keep letting me write them even though I tend not to do the true hash and either short cut or make it up or follow Maverick and Hatrack and let them lead me astray although more recently this has been Bogof's job...so the main of this is in the words:

Hey are Ethel, I’m not sure we’re in the right place…there are lots of strange looking people standing over there with torches on their heads…It’s ok Mabel I told you we’re doing that thing that Bert and Arthur used to do that ‘ashing thing…Oh ok Ethel,so who are those three young men standing on those benches over there…Mabel they are the Grand Master…Oh yes he is very grand luv isn’t he?..Yes Mabel and the other two are hares…Hares?...Yes hares luv, they’ve laid the trail….They’ve drunk some ale? I expect they will have done wearing just those and why have they got those pinnies on?....it’s fancy dress luv....fancy dress? That’s not very fancy I think you and I are a tad overdressed Ethel. Shhh Mabel I’m trying to hear what they are saying…I heard something about a brass band playing Ethel….No that’s the Hash Bash they’re talking about…They’re having some Hash browns?...No Mabel they’re telling us there is a long/short split and no regroup….You’ve got to strip and you’ll get croup, not sure I like the sound of that our Ethel….No Mabel it’s ok just follow me we have to follow the trail…Ohh Ethel look at that dog over there, has it just done what I think it’s just done?...It’s ok Mabel Hard Stare is a responsible dog owner and carries bags around with him everywhere….what’s that Ethel Hard Stare is a ponsy hog loner and marries bags with no hair?...shhh Mabel we’re off now. Here we go luv up the steps take care…OO Ethel there’s lots of people going past….yes luv they are faster than us don’t worry we’ve got 6pak and Growbag behind looking after us…what Ethel we’ve got a six pack and a Growbag looking at our behinds, I’ll have ‘em I will…Mabel calm down luv, they are looking after us, oh well let’s let them get on and look after the others we’ll do our own thing and meet back here…Whatever you think Ethel,Ah hello young man, what’s your name, Bogof really that’s no way to talk to two elderly ladies….Mabel that’s his name, Bogof would you care to escort us this evening, you would oh that’s lovely…Ooo Ethel he’s a bit of a chip off the old block isn’t he! (ha ha) he’s a very nice man right shall we go up this hill through this very large field…I can hear some shouting Ethel what is going on…Well Mabel if you look closely you can see the rest of the pack has already gone up the hill and off to the right and disappearing out of sight…what’s that you say luv we need some Lurpak to use with the grill and then we’ll be right….Come on Mabel just keep going, Bogof which way shall we go now, you’ve seen the On Home sign and it’s this way, sounds like a plan we will never catch up with the main pack now they’ve gone to the far side of the field kitchen now and making their way around the hill…Ethel this hill is huge luv, not sure I’ll make it, I need a wee….it’s ok Mabel we’ve got our bags on haven’t we?...Oh yes thank you for reminding me….what’s that Bogof? You want us to carry on up this lane so we can hide from the rest of the pack and pretend that we have done the whole hash, oh sorry my mistake you want us to carry on following the trail and do the hash properly like everyone else in the hash apart from perhaps Maverick and Sweet Pee who we will let off because she has been proper poorly!....Ethel why have we turned our lights out, I can’t see….Shh Mabel that could be them coming now,see how far they’ve been round the hill over the other side and they’ll be coming along here any minute…..SEVERAL MINUTES PASS….Ethel I don’t think they’re coming….Shh Mabel, Bogof is convinced they will be coming…SEVERAL MORE MINUTES PASS…PHOTOS ARE TAKEN..SEVERAL MORE MINUTES PASS…Ethel…uhuh…ethel I really don’t think they are coming and that nice Mr Growbag will be cross if we don’t get back and enjoy his food…Ok Bogof I really do think that this On Home sign is a false trail for the cars and maybe we should be heading back now, come on Mabel let’s go….Ethel I like going downhill better than uphill and it’s lovely solid concrete rather than stubbly fields better for my stick you know…yes Mabel, hang on what’s that Bogof? They are coming after all ok Mabel you are going to have to run now….What Ethel you’ve got a gun?...Juuusstt RUUUNNNNN!...Do I really have to break a habit of a lifetime? Oh go on then…Arrghh I’m losing my bum….Grab it Ethel, don’t lose your bum whatever you do, um Ethel what are we doing now?....We’re just going to wait in here for a minute or two and let the others pass by….Why Ethel, we’re not hiding are we?.....Not exactly Mabel it’s more just waiting for a suitable place to join the fun we don’t want to get in anyone’s way do we?....Oh No Ethel that wouldn’t be nice at all….What’s that Bogof? You think we should go now, Ok Mabel off we go and you need to be a bit quick now….Oh Ethel me knees is bad and this cold air will go on us chests you know!....Here we are Mabel do you remember coming down this road when we drove here?....Not sure that I do Ethel see I can’t really see over the steering wheel, tend to just use the curb or the hedges for guidance, does that mean we can sit down now?...Yes Mabel come on we can go inside…Ethel why are those people staring at us?....It’s because we are so beautiful and they can’t take their eyes off us…what even that young man over there that very very young man, that very very very young man…Yes Mabel he’s called Legs 11..Ooo like Bingo…Yes Mabel and he’s with his mum Drag Act so you need to be on your best behaviour…Oh yes of course I will…it’s been a lovely evening hasn’t it Mabel we must do it again sometime soon, I really liked seeing Arfanar, Sweet Pee as sweetcorn, Guzzunder, Grom and Bogof as potatoes, Glasseye as a huge pea oh and lots of other brilliant people….it has indeed been lovely Ethel, the food was good, not quite as nice as fish ‘n’ chips and a cuppa tea but very nice, that Growbag and 6pak certainly did us proud luv….Yes oh shush a minute Mabel they are doing the down downs….you what luv?...shushh oh they’re talking about Hard Stare and his dog incident, ooo luv they’ve mentioned us, that must be our beauty again, oh now someone called conad or gonad is being given a drink for bullying….is that what they do nowadays? Award people for being bullies, I don’t think that is good Ethel…shhh mabel I can’t hear luv, oh now they are giving Shatnav one for getting lost I think and oh he’s past it onto Manpig as he’s driving…he’s always getting lost I hear that one Ethel…yes Mabel and I can’t quite hear who the third one is for oh it’s Codpiece but no didn’t quite catch why?...Ethel what are they doing now?...They’re all singing the down downs…… Ethel can I go home now please I need to empty my bag…we’ve already emptied them Mabel don’t you remember….No I don’t remember much nowadays luv, I’ve had a lovely time but I really think we should go…Ok Mabel say goodnight then and we’ll go home…Goodnight Ethel…Goodnight Mabel…..Later that night Mabel and Ethel slept well with pleasant dreams of running and laughing and eating and drinking out of catheter bags and of course the very very very nice young men they had met that evening, so till the next instalment of Mabel and Ethel do exciting things we’ll sign off and bid you all a very pleasant evening and On On xxxxx

After the hash we decided that we had enjoyed being old ladies so much we wanted to have some more fun so we went into our local garage which is for local people and bought some mints and bread and paid for it with pennies....the man behind the counter just smiled and said...I'm not going to ask? We did explain why we were dressed like old ladies and hopefully we managed to bring a bit of light and happiness into his life too!

Here are the pictures we took of us in the shop in the garage with our purchases...I've never laughed so much for ages and it felt good to be doing that again. So thank goodness for little old ladies Mabel and Ethel and who knows we might not be seeing the last of those two!! On On till next time xx

Wobbly Wednesday

I was doing ok today, up very early with Oli who decided that 5am was a good time to get up! Theo went to school and Oli and I played and I did some more knitting while we chilled. Off to get Theo back from school then in the afternoon it was Fizz Fit Fun with the 5's and ups running round pretending to be an octopus and a cat amongst other things.

Oli has been in a very very grumpy mood today so i'm not sure if he's sickening for something else again but I had to resort to three minutes in his room with him crying saying it's such a long time...he lasted about 4 seconds before I let him out...it's very very hard work when you have two children whinging and winding each other up and they know that the worst that is going to happen is a few minutes in their rooms! Oh well I'd rather have the stress than live with being any harder with them.

Mark arrived home with the mail and that was it.....BIG WOBBLE...I had a card from the vet who was with Buster when he went to sleep and it was just so lovely I burst out crying. That is a vet and a half to do that, he shows that not only did he care for Buster but he also cared about us as a family and recognised that Buster was a very big part of our family. Thank you xx

I had a committee meeting this evening which went well although I would rather have been sitting at home doing something else it does feel right to be helping and doing what I can, although sometimes I do feel a tad out of my depth. But they are a good bunch and it is worthwhile doing it...i'm sure!

This is Buster after his stitch up after he was bitten by a naughty dog on Ideford Common.

Tearful Tuesday

I awoke this morning knowing that something wasn't quite right, then remembered that we had lost Buster yesterday. I went to the stairs to let Jazz out and she came up to meet me. She planted herself on the stairs and wouldn't let me past until she'd had a cuddle. As I cuddled her I felt tears flowing down my cheeks...is it possible to cry without physically crying? I did this morning and it was just very weird, Jazz had let me know that she knew about Buster and needed some reassurance. I'm not sure what dogs know but I do know that they feel things just as we do and probably are more connected to things than we will ever be able to be.


The day started and although I felt myself sighing when it came to doing things that I would have done with Buster or around Buster I didn't cry much more.


Theo went off to school and was a little big clingier going into school but was fine once he'd found F and was playing with the lego...he had yet another sticker today for sitting nicely at the table...I asked if other children didn't sit nicely and he said they don't on the banana table!! Hmm intriguing. Oli enjoyed himself at Socatots today and got quite excited a few times and on the way home he said Mummy I really enjoyed myself this morning! Ahh it's nice to know that sometimes I do something right!


We went for a play with some new friends this afternoon which is always nice and then after viewing Chugginton it was off to beddybydoes for the boys and catch up on committee stuff and socatots stuff and now i'm heading towards eating the biggest bowl of icecream i've had for a long time!





Losing Buster is the end of an era.....with him gone i've not got many people left who knew my Dad, who were there with Bramble and that to me is such an important thing. Theo and Oli have been working out what has happened to Buster...Oli wanted me to dig up Bramble to put Buster with her and I had to explain that we can't do that because Bramble will probably have turned into earth. We talked about the hedgehog that we had watched being eaten by maggots over a course of about a week and how the maggots turned into flies so the hedgehog had become something else. Theo said that Buster would probably have turned into a butterfly and in the summer if we see a spotted butterfly then that would be Buster and if he saw his ladybird then he would call it Jazz so Buster would have some friends to fly round with.

This is Buster with Jazz the first day she came home, the look was a 'WHAT ON EARTH IS THIS THING!!' They soon became good friends...once he'd put her in her place a few times! Jazz is just too busy enjoying the new toys and plant pots!

It has actually helped so much being near the boys because they show that you can care for an animal or person, and if they go you work out where they are and although you can't replace the animal you can then see it in a different light or in a different form.



Till tomorrow ....xxxxx

RIP Buster xx

xx BUSTER AND BRAMBLE xx

What a sad, sad day it's been....Buster and I went to the vet this morning for him to have an xray to find out why he's been so poorly and at eleven fourty-five I had a phonecall from the vet that I had been dreading. Buster has cancer...it is in most of his organs and he is still under the anaesthetic. I ask the vet what is the prognosis and he tells me it is very very poor and after hearing me crying and trying to talk he tells me that it would be kinder for me to let him go to sleep. I didn't want to have to make the decision, after Bramble and the guilt feelings that stay with you...but I know that keeping him alive would only be cruel and probably only for my benefit. Buster has been going downhill quite rapidly over the last 6 weeks, with a cough and problems breathing, weight loss and then not wanting to walk or feed much. The vets have been very kind and I cannot fault them in their care, they needed to do xrays to know for sure what was going on and today they found out. I really do hope that now Bramble and Buster are reunited as they were so close when they were alive. I couldn't be with Buster when he passed over as i was picking Theo and Oli up from school and preschool and trying to be brave, although it didn't work. Theo and Oli told me I was going to be alright and Theo even offered to make me a hot chocolate to make me feel better....he has learnt empathy and he cares and that moment made me so proud..Oli wanted to know exactly where Buster had gone so I told him the best I could. They want their Mummy to be happy again and I told them I would be soon. Jazz is coping well, she knows, I think she knew when we got back....she'll miss him dreadfully, but then dogs are more adapt at being in tune with spirits and souls and she'll know where he is at anytime. Mum said when they went for a walk today they kept looking at where Buster used to walk with me the last few weeks and kept looking for him...maybe he was there already...who knows...

I went to see Buster for one last time at the vets and said my goodbyes and said I was sorry I couldn't be with him but I hadn't wanted to get him out of the anaesthetic just to put him under again. The vet nurse said he'd had pain killers to ease any pain and the anaesthetic would have probably meant he was lying on pink clouds and watching pink rabbits when he left us, she was there and she said he had been calm. My initial feeling that I got when I saw him was that he was now free. Free from pain and free from not being able to eat and free from not having to cough all the time. He is with Bramble and he is free....but he will never be forgotten.....May you rest in peace Buster or in your own way may you be free to chase those deer that you never managed to catch up with and free to roam Dartmoor, free to run through every gorse bush you can find without it catching on your fur, free to never have to worry about me attacking you with the clippers when your hair got too long and free from having to take tablets or have that medicine that you never liked....I know you will be around us, I feel you already in the living room, curled up on the sofa...but I can't go in there tonight because I can't cry anymore today.....I will shed my tears bit by bit for you as I remember the happy times, the fun times, the cuddles and the licks....I love you Buster....xxxxxxxxxxxx

This has got to be one of my favourite photos of Buster...smiling for the camera!!

For our very special Busteroonyloonytunes!!

windy weekend

So I didn't get round to posting yesterday either but I think i'm just going to say I'll post as often as I can.

Buster had to go back to the vets on Saturday as he was going downhill with his breathing again, the vet has booked him in for Monday to have an xray and some other tests to try and find out what is going on. I got really upset as we were talking about the xray etc as I really don't want anything to happen to him while he's under anaesthetic and he's away from home. I'm sure he will be fine but I love him so much, he's been with me for nearly 12 years now through thick and thin and it's hard to think of life without him. He's not been eating properly this weekend either which is always worrying because he's never one to miss food. Here is a picture of him waiting very patiently for everyone to look the other way so he can have the biscuit that has been left on the table! Isn't he handsome?

Oli was still breathing noisily on Saturday but Sunday he picked up and we decided to go onto Dartmoor to try and fly a kite, the plan was that Oli and I would stay in the car and watch Daddy and Theo and what a laugh we had to. Theo was standing on a small rock leaning into the wind watching Daddy trying to get the kite into the air....and I had Oli in the car saying what is Daddy trying to do Mummy? it was so funny! After half an hour or so they gave into the cold and we headed home.

Wall-e was on the menu for the boys and I while Daddy took the dogs for a walk, Buster having a little one before getting back into the car, I carried on with knitting the flying reptiles!

It's been a busy weekend and I have suspicions that next week will be even busier with Socatots starting on Monday so I may or may not have time to come on but i'll try my very best to update you with what is going on and how life is going....

till next time

xx

TGI Friday......

Well what a week it's been, lost our heating, got it back, Oli's poorly now as a result of that (I think) Theo's started school and has become a pro at it...he's gone no problem every morning and is bringing his bookbag home with a big smile on his face. Buster is still coughing and we have to decide for further tests to be carried out, Jazz is still Jazz! Mark is back at work and we only see him briefly now during the day...it's the weekend tomorrow so we should see some more of him.

I've seen more of K this week at picking up and dropping off time which has been lovely and starting to say hello to some of the other mums which is nice.

I'm trying to get some paperwork done ready for Socatots starting on Monday but failing badly with interruptions from the children, dogs and my bladder!

The picture above is Oli trying to use his digger to break through the very thick ice we had the day we lost our heating!

Well at least i've done my blog for the day...till tomorrow.

The picture on the right is of Theo and Oli listening to Daddy's music which he puts on downstairs in the kitchen...Theo informs me it makes his tummy move fast when he hears it!

Shall I just add that you don't have to get down on the floor and listen for the music it is loud enough to hear just standing up!!

Thinking about lots of family members today for various reasons....if you need a hug then you can have one from me to keep you going xxxxxx

Poorly!

Ok so I could be forgiven for not adding an entry for today which I know i've already done but that was for yesterday really....


Oli hasn't been well today, it's his chest, he stayed at home with Mum while I took Theo to school. He was fine and wanted to go and play with F first thing when I left him which is nice because it means he is finding new friends all on his very own.


Oli and I had a quiet morning and I managed to get a little bit more done on the flying reptiles! They do look a little like squashed shrews at the moment but i'm sure they'll look great with wings.


Theo was picked up and we were chased home by a herd or two of elephants....stand on a crack or a leaf and an elephant chases you.....try it...it's good fun especially when the trunk of the elephant taps you on the shoulder and blows it's trumpet! I've not seen Theo run as fast before all the way home...which meant I had to as well.


Oli ended the day at the doctor's having a nebuliser as his breathing went rapidly downhill. I felt so sorry for Theo as it was my turn to read him stories tonight but I did explain to him and promised I would read him some tomorrow. I hate letting them down but sometimes Mummies have to do these things. Oli needed to be helped and he's now had his help and is sleeping calmly. We've brought the nebuliser home with various other medications so i'll spend most of my morning sorting tablets and medecine for Buster and Oli now....they are on seperate sides of the kitchen so they don't get mixed up...although they are for similar things!


Anyway i've now got a headache, got 15 minutes to do my Wii Fit body test and then i'm going to go to sleep or at least try to before Oli needs something....

This is a random picture of Theo taken a few months ago when he was playing with his building blocks..This is a picture of Mummy's smiley face with Theo's smiley face at the bottom, not sure why I appear to have a moustache...maybe he is trying to tell me something!!



So onwards to tomorrow....


xxx

MIssed a day!

Ok...so I missed Wednesday so if i'm quick and update you on Wednesday you won't even notice that Thursdays is on the same day...

Theo went to school again this morning, Oli and I went home and I finally started knitting two flying dinosaurs, i'm knitting them on two sets of needles so that I will finish them both at the same time so Theo and Oli don't feel left out if one gets one without the other, Oli informed me he would prefer Superman...so think i've found my next knitting project before i'm even halfway through this one...although little toys are great because they move along quicker than jumpers for big people! Below is a picture courtesy of Jean Greenhow who's book the pattern is taken from of the flying dinosaur in pink....Theo is having a greenyblue one and Oli is having a blue one...i'll endeavour to take a piccie of the work in progress or wip as i'm reliably informed by a knitting friend it is called....

Theo was picked up from school complete with bookbag and little book that I have to fill in to tell teacher what he's been up to at home....do we write in all the nitty gritty details or just keep to basics!!

Then I was off to Fizzfit, jumping around with 5 years up.....with Tanya in charge I can take a back seat in having to use my brain which is good. Then off home and yeyyyyy! when I got home the heating had just been fixed so the house felt a bit warmer...sadly for Oli the cold had already affected his chest so he was wheezing and rattling all night long.

After a quick go on the Wii Fit and being told that I was still obese and had put another 1lb on it was off to bed and a restless night with Oli.....will catch up later xx

Minus 5 and the heating has broken!

Tuesday 6th January 2009

Theo's first day at school today, he put on his school uniform and we wandered up to school. He went in like he was a pro, using the loo on the way past and Oli and I felt a little bit lost as we walked home. I was so proud of this boy who has found the potential to be confident in situations that must be quite stressful for little people.

This photo was taken of us walking up to school in the sunshine! Look at our long shadows!

Oli and I took Buster to see the vet as he's still coughing and not well. We saw another vet again and he didn't seem overly concerned that he was going to keel over, but did want to do some tests as he's aware that we are spending quite a lot of money on tablets and medecine that doesn't seem to be improving the condition. Good vet! So Buster came home with some more tablets and the promise that I will get him booked in for xray and endoscopy type things! Here Oli is sitting patiently waiting at the vets...what a cutie!

After a quick visit to the house and returning to Jazz who had been left home alone for the very first time (she hadn't trashed the place thankfully!) we went to pick Theo back up. All smiles and not much chatter for about two minutes then it was whinge, whine, moan all the way home as his lack of food took over his good humour. He felt much better after his lunch and was a bit more chatty telling us he'd had a good time at school and had played with the big boys and girls in the big playground!

Then I was off to swap Rosetti Spaghetti the Lacetti for the new Doblo.....I shed a few tears as Rosetti has been a good car but I was strong and managed to get home in one piece. I put in the protective covers and mats to try and keep the Doblo clean which i'm sure will last for about two days!

Then the heating broke! The house went cold and I did try to resuscitate the old girl but she wasn't having any of it...after chatting to a nice plumber on the phone he told me he thought it was the thermo something or other and would come round in the morning. So it's double duvets, socks, jumpers and scarves tonight. The gas fire in the lounge has been put on for the first time in about a year and doors closed to rooms that we don't use. BBBRRRRR!

I was going hashing tonight but the thought of freezing outside then coming home to a freezing house was just too much for me to think about....

So busy day, lots to do, new day at school, new car, heating broken, Buster ok.....till tomorrow then....chatter chatter, brbbbrrrr brbbrrrr! xx

where's the snow?

The forecast said snow, there was snow today in most parts of the country...but alas no snow for us in Devon. Oli went back to pre-school this morning and he was fine...went and sidled up to A when he arrived and didn't bat an eye when we turned to go so I wasn't worried as Theo and I went back home. Theo I think was on a mission as we ran nearly all the way back, dodging the two piles of sick that were on our way...it looked like dog sick so I think maybe one dog was sick another dog came along and ate the sick, as they sometimes do and then was promptly sick himself!

Theo when we were home played on the laptop, I endeavoured to tidy the office whilst wandering backwards and forwards to Theo to read bits he couldn't read or help him find the h for Theo on the keyboard which just happens to be in uppercase so isn't much help to Theo who only recognises a lower case h at the moment. Then he did some very impressive painting with wax crayons...this was his idea..picked up from either Mister Maker or Doodle Do! Then it was back to pick Oli up after lunch, with a little walk for Buster, fishing nets in tow we went over the road, waving to Nanny on the other side of the river with Jazz and Teasel. I thought for one moment that Jazz was going to try to swim across to us but she decided it was too fast and deep for her.

Theo's first day at school tomorrow so his PE kit is ready and his uniform is suitably labelled ready for the big day...when I say suitably labelled I mean that i've got a permanent marker and written his name on the labels!! I'm excited about him starting as it's the start of a new era for him and he told me he is excited. I think he's concerned about how long he is going to be at school for and I keep reassuring him that he will be picked up at lunchtime for the first couple of weeks. He will be fine and i'm sure it will be no time at all that we won't even think about the going to school bit and it will just become part of our routine...

till tomorrow then...On On xx

Answers on a postcard please.....

I spent the morning while I was dressing and washing trying to work out exactly what it was Oli was trying to get me to make him out of paper....he kept asking for a gippon.....so after several attempts at various monkeys thinking it might have been gibbon, and after several hand signals from Oli and sighs I finally discovered he wanted me to make him an origami PIGEON!! Or dove to be exact....I didn't realise he knew that a pigeon was like a dove but there you go...
I made a paper airplane for Theo and then did exactly the same for Oli and when he picked his up he ran round the house shouting YEY I've got a gippon!!
I went to a friend's childrens dedication today at Chudleigh School with the Baptists and was impressed to find that they weren't wanting to throw 'God' down my throat as so many churches do when you visit. The visitors were welcomed and told that if we didn't want to stand and sing or join in then we were perfectly welcome to remain seated and noone would think any differently about us. The atmosphere was one of a big friendly family, with children toddling about and people moving round while it was all going on. I did stand up to sing although with a 6ft something chap in front of me it was quite difficult to see the words. I managed when he turned but was then stopped by the person in front of him so was able to sing half the songs and hum the rest! I gave R a break and held S for a while who took great delight in trying to work out what the hair was that was dangling down my shoulder and even greater delight when it magically disappeared from her hand when she pulled it....simple things!
I shed a few tears while watching a film about a little one trying to walk and after a play in the creche and a nice chat to R we came home. Mum had come with me and she stayed for the 'lesson' bit. It was nice to go and I would like to go back again, but not on a regular basis as i'm still not 100% sure about the 'God' bit. I know there is something out there bigger than all of us but not sure I want to label it just at the moment.

I came home, cleared my car out as we are changing it on Tuesday...what a lot of mess and stuff was in there too.....I filled several carrier bags full and that was just the rubbish...then there was bits of toy that had been missing for months...a sock...a few squashed raisins....several thousand crumbs...and a glass that found it's way into my car after a visit to the pub one hashing night!

Then it was time for the dogs to be walked...(Theo and Oli were being entertained by a poorly Daddy while all this was going on...with big towers of lego in the living room)...I had a chat to B and tried to seperate Buster (who is poorly) from trying to calm an overenthusiastic 5 month labrador...once i'd got him on his lead he calmed down then Jazz joined in. Now Jazz I must explain is quite a big dog...a german pointer but not known for her aggression so she was running up to the labrador with her hackles up and her teeth in snarl mode and when she got close she'd start wimpering and back off.....if it wasn't for the chap who owned the dog getting stressed that his dog was going to get it I wouldn't have stopped her as it was quite amusing. I don't think she could be aggressive if she tried but she obviously thought she should take over from Buster.
This is Buster and Jazz when Jazz first came home...Buster wasn't too impressed to be invaded and Jazz thought it was wonderful....Jazz is now a lot bigger and it's hard to remember her being this small..but she's still cute and Buster is just lovely. (Hugs for Buster as he's not too well at the moment xxxx)
That is nearly my day over apart from tea which turned out to be a bit of a fight with Theo and Oli who really weren't wanting to eat much...Theo said he wanted to marry me and promptly put a hula hoop on his finger to say we were married...I don't think going into the whys and wherefores with a 4 year old is such a good idea so I carried on with the tidying.

The washing is sorted, the boys are bathed and it's time for their stories and bed.
It's been a busy day, my back is aching, but it's been good as well, therapeutic to clean and to visit with friends and meet up with R unexpectedly and have a phonecall from K who has found some shorts for the children for PE!

Hopefully those in the family who are in need of an extra hug or two will get these that I'm sending and hope to post again soon....
On On xxx

Party time

I took Theo and Oli to K's 3rd Party today, Mark was poorly tummy in bed. They had a lot of fun and Theo won the pin the tail on the donkey, it wasn't rigged honest! Oli didn't want to go home but was persuaded to when he realised that he wouldn't get his party bag unless he did go home! It was a lovely party thanks J.

Coming home to Mr Grumpy wasn't quite so good, Mr Origami wanted to complete his koala, dove and airplane on his own but then realised he didn't know what the instructions meant...he can take a computer to bits and put it back together again and he couldn't work out which piece of paper to fold where....but with the tinsiest bit of help he did manage and the whole year's supply of origami will be folding it's way to facebook at some stage. So until it makes it's way there here's my version of his photo.....

It's been a funny day today, I managed to tidy the huge box of wrapping paper cardboard and rubbish from Christmas day and put it in the correct recycling places to be taken away which now means I can get to the shoes and coats without too much stretching.

Ok so i'm not doing too badly this year so far have managed to mutter something on this blog but then it is only 3rd January so there's time to fail yet.....

Have a nice Sunday because I think most of us are back to pre-school or school as from Monday!

Something fishy going on here!

Today - January 2nd we took Theo and Oli to Plymouth Aquarium, after buying our tickets online we went to the fasttrack desk and went in. We were advised to go straight to the coral reef as they were doing a dive in there. I've been to the Aquarium a few times and had always come away feeling sorry for the turtle who seemed to spend all it's time swimming in an odd fashion round and round in circles....well i'm glad we went to see 'the dive' because a very nice lady explained that the turtle had been washed up and they had rescued it as a baby, it had got eyesight problems and balance problems and that was the main reason for it's funny swimming with it's bum in the air. So I was relieved. The divers removed the turtle and cleaned the tank side with sponges and then went on to feed some of the sharks and fish within the tank. There is obviously a Mighty Boosh fan at the Aquarium as one of the fish was called Naboo and one was called Boosh! The Boosh fish apparently likes to lie on the bottom of the tank to clean itself in the grit and changes colour....hmmm. Onwards we went and saw Dory and Nemo well similar fish but Theo and Oli aren't to know then a very odd looking frog fish who changed position so I could get a better shot of it!

Here he is in all his glory..at least I'm saying he's male, she may be a she in which case I apologise for the error but i'm not sure how to tell the sex of a frog fish!

We continued to the biggest tank at the aquarium and I impressed the boys with my knowledge of fish names, little did they know I was using the nice electronic gadget behind us on the wall which was displaying the names to tell them what they were. We had some nice encounters with the fish who I swear were posing for the camera!

Here is the Ray and erm I think it's a sulky cod!

This one kept coming back for more although it may have been a different one!

We went on round to the sharks next and had a picture taken with them right by us, Theo and Oli were very brave to say the least as last year they didn't want to get up close and personal with them.

Then it was up to the top for a mess about in the technical side of things which Theo and Oli weren't too enthralled with, although the mini film about the sinking of the Scylla was very interesting and Oli and Theo were quite amused about it being sunk not only once but twice! That was because we stayed reading the information on the walls so the film went round twice. We then decided to go for a drink and sit down and were pleasantly surprised to find a soft play area which Theo and Oli played in while Daddy and I had a nice drink...well it would have been nice had their drinks machine been working. They could make a tea or coffee but no hot chocolate...had they not heard about pouring hot water into some hot chocolate before? bah on you!!

Theo was very brave and went down the curly wurly slide all on his own and over the rope bridge bit. Oli was a little more timid when it came to the climbing but a bigger boy hit his lip (by accident I think) he came out to us and told us about it and said to me that he didn't say he was sorry and I said well he should have done really even if it was an accident. Oli went pottering back into the play area and went up to the bigger boy and told him that he should say sorry as he'd hurt his lip...then he came trooping back out to us to inform us that the boy had now said he was sorry!! :o)

Finally when Oli plucked up the courage to join Theo on the uppper deck of the play area he spotted a tall man who had just arrived and shouted down to me in a big voice...Mummy he's a a very large man!!

After half an hour play we led the way to the shop, with a little resistance from Oli who didn't see why we should be taking them home when they were having so much fun. He did cheer up though when Daddy showed him the squidgy octopus that he was allowed to buy, Theo bought a puffa fish and back home we went.

It was a lovely day out and although I was a tad miffed about the lack of hot chocolate about the place I was glad to know that there was no cruelty to turtles taking place! And I was even brave enough to go near the sharks as well!!

THE END

New Years list.....

Ok so normally I can't keep resolutions and end up breaking them in the first five minutes of the day so I'm going to do a list of things that i would like to achieve instead.

1. To be calmer

2. To get fitter

3. To get to my school reunion in August

4. To finish my certificate in fitness training for children 5 - 11 yr olds

5. To restart my OU degree

6. To go skiing or go somewhere with snow at the end of the year so Theo and Oli can experience snow!!

7. To get to the bottom of my paperwork pile.

8. To start knitting again

9. To go hashing on a regular basis and not use tiredness or headaches as an excuse to not go.

10. To blog once a day this year!

and finally ....... TO HAVE A MORE POSITIVE YEAR THAN LAST YEAR!!!

I might add to this list as time goes by but I think that is enough to keep me going for now!!

Happy New Year to all of you and to those who need extra special love consider it sent to you xxxxxxx

Paignton Zoo

Today we took the boys to Paignton Zoo for a day out. We had a lovely time and kept moving as it was so cold. Theo and Oli were so well dressed up they were fine and didn't complain of the cold once. We saw all the animals they wanted to see and more....Oli was quite taken with the orang utan's and the other monkeys. The Macaque's came to say hello at the window and Oli was leaving kisses for them. Theo liked the crocodiles. Daddy I think liked the elephants and I liked the monkeys too.

It was nice going in the winter, not too many people trawling around so the restaurant queues were quiet and i'm sure the animals were more active and more wandering around than in the summer. We did the wobbly bridge several times which was fun....

Whenever I go to the zoo I wonder what the animals really think about it all, I know some of them are born in zoos and probably won't know any different and I know that animals live to eat and reproduce...but even so some of the animals just look like they shouldn't be there. Hmm it is a hard one that really as I do love to see the animals but should we really be putting animals in pens/cages/zoos. I expect helping them and saving animals because their environment is being destroyed would be one argument for.

I will keep on pondering that one but leave you with a photo of me wrestling with the crocodile in the foyer....No animal was injured in the process of this photo shoot!!!

Back to the blog....

Ok so a New Year is around the corner and it's about time i got back to blogging....so hopefully i'll be putting some more things up on here than I have been of late.

It's been a hard year to say the least, with two miscarriages, several planned outings having to be cancelled or postponed due to illnesses or Mark working or other such things happening. BUT there have been some good times too.

Socatots is going really well, Theo and Oli are growing up with only the odd moment when I could swap them for new versions!! Theo starts school in January so it's all change there as Oli will be doing the pre-school bit on his own and we will miss having Theo at home. We had a lovely canal boat holiday in the Summer and had Nanny, Nanna, Grandad and Sam along to help and join in the fun! SO as 2008 disappears into a distant memory we hope that 2009 will be a much happier and more positive year...for everyone in the family and for all our friends...

Here Daddy, Mummy, Oli and Theo pull faces for a family portrait on the canal boat!!

Moved again!!

Hello,
If anyone out there is reading this blog, you might want to come on over to Facebook and join me there where i have set up a continuation of this blog. It's much more fun as I can chat to you and put in loads of pictures etc.
www.facebook.com - find me under Gurnie
hope to see you soon
Gurnie
On On

Hash #35

Date: 25th September 2007
Location: Haytor upper car park
Weather: BRRRR
I remembered my shoes, I remembered my head torch. I forgot my thermal underwear, scarves, hat and gloves and I forgot to keep my hand down when Grasshopper asked for a volunteer to do the words. I think it must have been down to the freezing wind blowing through my ears and affecting my brain. Who knows anyway that's what happened before we'd even started running and i'd just sorted with Maverick and Hatrack that I was going to be sticking with them tonight in my apprenticeship of the Shortcut masters.
We had arrived in the car park and sat inside waiting until Leaking Boots decided to get out and leave all the doors open to let us freeze inside. I ventured out to sign out and then we were called to order by Rick O'Shea. We stood about shivering and quivering like flies that had landed on one of those sunflowers that you can stick to your windows to kill them. I prefer the long sticky things that hang down and get caught up in people's hair and faces but that's a completely different story all together.
Where was I , oh yes we all stood there shivering and hopping up and down, all that is except Starsky who was well equipped for the cold and had even brought his brolly in case it rained! Several virgins were introduced very quickly as they were starting to turn blue at this point I think. Grasshopper told us about the two long/short splits and the regroup in shelter. We set off heading towards Haytor Rock and Vindaloo passed me saying Haytor Heller. I had to grin as i'd been thinking the same thing myself, only this time running up the hill didn't seem half as arduous. Am I really getting fitter or is it just that I've been tucking into my go faster juice too much. I did have to give in and walk as we got closer to the top and although i'd not seen any flour I was informed that indeed we were on the right track. No Rush rushed downhill in hot pursuit of Callum shouting that they were supposed to be going uphill not down. I watched as most of the hash started to disappear over the top out of sight then Grasshopper bellowed from down below and to the left that it was On On over there. Dolittle and I shouted and hollered but nobody could hear with the driving wind so we gave up and headed after the hare, safer that way. We set off downhill with Sweep being knocked over by the Doberman which was careering about. She was alright though thankfully. It was at this point that I realised that there were several little groups forming in different directions all shouting On On, I headed towards the bigger of the groups and had to cut through some gorse and heather. There were shouts of "Are You?" "on on" and "where's the hare?", suddenly Grasshopper appeared and we all got back on track again. It was very pretty though seeing so many twinkly lights, put me in mind of Christmas....how many more shopping days are there now? The long/short split sent two trails of light off in different directions and for a while the shorts soldiered on, heading back towards well where we'd just come from. Wandering aimlessly looking for some inspiration we finally found some in Grasshopper as he shouted back to check, oops we missed that one, I seemed to get to the front, not sure how well maybe it was the little voice telling me to go that way...definitely not any hints from any hares i'm sure. Then round we ran and up into a gully, a rest from the wind, a jelly baby or two, a dog fight and a good regroup. Then it was on up to the second long/short split. Again surprisingly I found myself at the front of the pack, note to self go and buy more of that go faster juice from BIKUS! Talking of which they are now my favourite most friendly bike shop around...when I can find their details i'll get them on my links.
Right where was I? Oh yes on Haytor chewing jelly babies. Windy was up ahead and Dolittle as we headed towards Haytor rock, I thought it would soon be over, how wrong could I be, the trail went off to the left towards Haytor Down and down we went. We kept running until we came to a cross and back up the hill we went only to find that a cheeky cow had been hiding the check from us. The trail sent us round the back of the quarry then through it, Doris telling me she'd been in there swimming. It was a lovely sight with the moonlight falling on the water. Through the quarry out of the gate and back to where the cross had been, cheeky Grasshopper. I luckily spotted a blob of flour off to the right and we were soon heading back to the cars. A quick change in the cold and it was off to Ashburton and The Exeter Inn for the On Down. Alice was the RA and he awarded down downs to Sweep for her altercation with the doberman, I think the down down should have gone to the man with the dog, or the dog myself. Then Foxy Dog got one for falling last week and for it being his last hash for a while as he's off to University. Other down downs could have been awarded to Brassic for running in his trousers as he'd forgotten to bring his shorts and to Misshap for losing a shoe.
It was a great hash, very nice to see the moon and to actually see haytor this time round even though it was dark.
Till next week, On On xx

Need a new washing machine or fridge?

Then look no further than https://www.whitebox.co.uk/Main/Home.aspx. My washing machine recently packed up, it was 15 years old bless it and had done me good service. I had a browse on the internet as I don't like shops and came across several reviews for a particular washing machine which was a Hotpoint like my old one. I also noticed someone had recommended whitebox.co.uk as a place to get it so off I typed to whitebox.co.uk and placed an order, I had an email straight back saying my delivery times etc would be confirmed in the morning.
I had a very pleasant email back from someone called George telling me that there would be a delay on that particular model, he also gave me two suggestions for washing machine with the same or very similar specifications. I browsed the net again and chose which one and hey presto half an hour later I have a washing machine on order and to be delivered on Friday. What a pleasant way to do business. The last time I purchased white goods I had to deal with someone in a shop who really didn't have the time to be standing there discussing the pros and cons of fridge freezers versus fridges on their own. I have added whitebox to my favourites and am recommending them here. So if you need any appliances then give them a go. Such friendly, professional people and a pretty good looking bunch by the pictures on their website too!!
Thanks to whitebox and to you George and looking forward to getting my new washing machine now.......:)

Hypnotherapy

A few months ago I went to see a hypnotherapist, and cutting a very long story very short he has done wonders with how I am feeling today. I lost my Dad 5 days after giving birth to my first son and when my second son was born, I ended up with depression. I had several months of counselling to help me through some very low times and thought I was out the other end. I still had my low times and with sleep being a big issue I started getting quite low again. A friend recommended Chris Fleet to me and I would like to thank Chris for all his help by putting his name on my blog and letting everyone else know about him and his brilliant work.

http://www.fleethypnosis.com/

He is a very kind, caring and professional man and I feel completely safe and secure with him even though at times I am discussing very private and personal issues. I cannot recommend him highly enough. If you are thinking about having hypnotherapy then visit his website and contact him.
Thanks Chris for all your help!

Newton Abbot Gymnastics Club in their bid to secure new premises

Newton Abbot Gymnastics Club in their bid to secure new premises

Newton Abbot Gymnastics Club (Somersaults) have been trying for the past year to get the premises which were formerly the Indoor Bowling Club in Kingsteignton. The bowling club got into financial difficulty and they originally said they would take on half of the property to help the Bowling Club continue. As I understand the situation at the moment, Teignbridge District Council have put this building on the market either to sell or lease. The land itself belongs to the Race Course and Teignbridge District Council bought the lease and used public money to build the premises which were to be used for the community in a sport capacity.
Newton Abbot Gymnastics Club is used by children from the age of approximately 18months upwards. There are 450 members of the club and 500 more children on the waiting list. If they are successful in securing the new premises then those 500 children would be able to become members and join in.
I am a parent of two children who use the gym, they are aged nearly 2 and 3. We go every week and they love the activities which range from climbing, swinging and jumping. There is also an educational aspect brought into the gym session with children being taught numbers and colours. The gym has a very positive feel about it and both my children love going there. At the moment the car parking isn't particularly good and the new premises would also mean that the car parking problems would be resolved.
Please go to the petition and sign it to help them in their bid, it won't take long and you are under no obligation to buy anything or give any money, they just need signatures to take to the Teignbridge District Council to show that the community want the premises to stay as community premises and not to be sold to someone to build offices, or to be opened up as a bingo hall or even worse a casino?
Children tend to get a raw deal in this world with not being able to play outside as it's not safe. There is lots of publicity about the increase in obesity and facilities like Newton Abbot Gymnastics allow children the chance to exercise, learn about their bodies, socialise with other children and who knows they may even go on to win in the Olympics.
I know which use I'd rather have the building go to and i've already signed the petition. PLEASE
do your bit and help too.
many thanks for taking the time to read this, all the opinions expressed here are my own and are not the opinions of anyone else.

New Forest Half Marathon 2007

Date: Sunday 16th September 2007
Location: New Milton
weather: sunny, cool breeze thankfully....
So the day has arrived, after another sleepless night in the spider's haven of Acres Down Bunkhouse I woke to the sun shining in under the curtain and C's patter patter next door. I felt nervous and yet excited that the day had finally arrived. I pulled out my running gear from my bag and spent a few minutes deciding whether to wear the bra under my vest top or whether to risk my boobs falling out halfway round...I decided on the bra...safer that way and less embarrassing too. Then it was the big decision of how much drink to make, how many gels to carry and what to eat for breakfast. With getting Theo and Oli dressed I was running out of time so bread and butter and a banana had to suffice. I was soon ready and needing to sit on the loo for a long wee and other! Unfortunately the toilet had blocked again so we had to cross our legs until we got to New Milton. Luckily for us Four Sips was driving so we got there fairly quickly. We bade farewell to our husbands and children who looked vaguely amused and wondering. (that was just the husbands..but with TomToms, Satnavs and PDA's at the ready they were ready to find their spots to cheer us on.)
We arrived in New Milton and saw the Start and then were directed to the car park for runners which seemed like miles away from the Start. Corrr!tina was getting a tad desperate for the loo so she headed off to the portaloos while we got organised with our bags, then Four Sips forgot her water carrier so Dolittle and I were left together. I grabbed her arm and warned her not to leave me as well!! It was getting scarier. We queued in the portaloo queue and then decided to get closer to the start. Corr!Tina and Four Sips at the risk of disqualification used a hedge...TUT TUT. Dolittle and I did the decent thing and found the toilet queue in the leisure centre. Three toilets in such a huge place.....madness. Anyway we finally got there and then the tanoy announced that the half marathon was going to set off in ten minutes and we were fifteen minutes from the Start and no sign of Corr!Tina who had decided to visit the loo once more.
We jogged towards the start and lined up with lots of other people. The tension was building and we all gave each other hugs and wished each other good luck, we heard a noise and I thought it was the start and starting clapping only to find that it was the elite going off....then we were off. I watched as the others disappeared out of sight and off I went. I tried to take in the atmosphere and clapped at the steel band on the street. I was determined to run for at least the first mile without stopping and joined a couple of other women who seemed to be running at a similar pace. Then I started to go a little faster as we headed out of New Milton and towards Bashley. There were still people hanging round outside houses cheering us on and a little girl was giving out jelly babies. That was worth a detour over the road for. I made 1 mile so I decided to run for at least 3 miles.
I started running with a girl called Catherine who also had a little girl and was slightly amused that here I was running the longest run i've ever run in my life and I was having a full blown conversation with a stranger about all sorts of things. We came towards the pub the Rising Sun and I saw the fire engine and said this would be a good time to faint, you'd be rescued by the firemen, but Catherine was wise and said see what they look like first and when I decided that they weren't that good looking and i'd continue, I looked up and saw Mark, Theo and Oli and his parents and auntie and uncle over the other side of the road. As i was feeling quite fit and happy I went over and gave the boys a kiss en route. I heard Theo starting to cry as he obviously thought I should have finished the race, but I had to continue and did hear that he'd stopped. We had a few hills not too steep and we were out on moorland. Is it moorland in the New Forest? No idea well whatever it was it was looking more inviting as a toilet than anything else. I needed to have a poo, i'm sorry but this is no time to be polite about it, i needed one and I started to panic. I was wearing lycra shorts and there was no way I could do a poo on the go and get away with it, I wasn't going to do a Paula Radcliffe so I put mind over matter and told my poo that it wasn't allowed to come out for at least another 9miles, I'd reached 5 miles at this point. I tried to sing songs to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling below and starting running in a most peculiar fashion...but note I was still running!! I wanted now to run to the 6 mile mark as I was feeling ok. The poo issue seemed to get worse then at the top of the hill, across the road I saw the First Aid point, I shouted to the lady "have you got a toilet?" She hollered to the St Johns ambulance people to point me in the right direction and there were about 6 of them come rushing out of a tent just to point me to the portaloos past the caravans, past the 4x4 car and onwards. I sat on the loo and felt relief (no more information required on that score!) then I felt my legs just tingling and burning and thought i'm never going to able to get going now....I pulled my big pants up and my shorts which were all soggy with sweat by now and after taking the other half of one of my gels I set off. With St Johns people cheering me on, bless them I take back everything i've said about you and your mints!! I set off down towards the next village, don't ask me to remember what they were called. I saw flashing lights out of the corner of my eye and thought oh no it's the sweeper lorry but it wasn't it was the time keeping car for the marathon....1hr 58 minutes it said. I couldn't believe it I've taken 2 hours to do 6 miles!!! Then I remembered that the marathon had set off before us and actually I'd managed to do 6 miles faster than i'd ever done it before. With this good news under my belt and feeling much lighter I trotted merrily on my way with a nice smile for the cameraman as I went past. There were some more supporters by the pub and I gave them my cup to put in a bin, thank you kind sir whoever you were. Then it was on and upwards out of that village and then a right turn down a country lane, at least it was quieter with traffic but it was a darn sight warmer. There were more marathon runners passing me and although I had two half marathon runners in sight I wasn't gaining on them, mainly because they were walking faster than I could run! Gutted.
Up to the top then left with some lady on a horse trotting along completely ignoring everyone else. I came into Tiptoe and for some strange reason starting to run on my toes....what was that all about? I saw my family and the others up ahead and Lucy and Jack came running towards me and telling me how the others were doing. That gave me another boost but no energy left to give the boys a kiss, which Theo missed. Then it was left out of Tiptoe and onwards. I started to feel a bit low at this point and was trying all sorts of distraction techniques to keep me going, my legs weren't really hurting and my feet felt fine but I did feel that I didn't have much control over them and that they were just automatically going without my brain having any control. I spotted some conkers on the floor and thought i'd pick a couple up for the boys as a memento of my run, I put them down my shorts first but they started sliding downwards which would have been as embarrassing as not getting to the loo on time so I removed them and had a ponder about what to do with them, I was just going to throw them away when I thought about putting them down my bra, which I did then forgot all about them.
I continued on my way and came to a roundabout which was signposted to New Milton and Tina's mum and Dad were there shouting me on so that gave me another spurt of energy. Only 3 miles to go now and I hadn't stopped, well only for the loo break but apart from that i'd been running the whole way even up the hills. I started to feel quite tired at this point and thought i'll get to 11 miles then i'll have my last bit of energy gel. Then two ambulances came past with lights flashing and sirens on and my heart sank, but I thought at least i'm feeling ok in that respect, I did have a bit of a stitch but it might have just been bouncy boob pain from having to keep them squashed up in my top for so long. I was thinking about having my last gel pack when I felt something move on my waist band and just watched in desperation as the gel pack fell to the floor....NNNOOOOOO I shouted inwardly, I was too tired to turn round and get it so I tried to get my head round the fact I was running on water now. I started the run towards the industrial estates which was on a path and not on the road and thought hopefully soon i'm going to see the 12 mile mark and some more people.
Lots of marathon runners were passing me at this point and I tried to pick up my pace but my feet felt very heavy and when I had to come out onto the road and get into the coned area I was feeling very tired. I had a slug of water and started concentrating on getting to the finish line without walking. People were cheering me on and telling me it wasn't far but I couldn't see the finish and didn't want to run faster in case it was miles away....well figuratively speaking as I was down to the last mile so it couldn't be miles away really.
I heard to my left people cheering for Ruth but I had to stay focussed on the finish or I felt like my legs wouldn't have gone on. I heard my name mentioned on the tanoy and thought i'd finished, I asked the marshall if I could stop running and he said no the finish is round the corner....GOOOD GRIEF...HOW MUCH FURTHER COULD IT BE....At last I turned the corner and saw the big blue blow up FINISH. I ran across and was told by someone to go over to the benches and put my foot up and they would take my chip off.....excuse me did you say lift my leg up to the bench? Do you realise I have just run the furthest I've ever run in my life in one go and now you are asking me to lift my leg onto a bench???? I did manage to get my leg up and a kind lady took my chip off, said well done and told me what the time was. 1.30pm oh well I was quite chuffed with that. I thought i'd heard the others cheering but I wandered off to retrieve my bag first and came back outside to the cool air. Dolittle was first to find me and in a somewhat dazed state I talked to her, I can't really remember what I said or who I saw next, I remember seeing mark and giving him a hug and kiss and the boys being asleep. I borrowed a towel and shower gel of Corr!Tina as i'd forgotten to bring mine....DOH! I thought a shower might help bring my brain back to life.
Dolittle had gone on ahead and was in the shower when I got there I put my things down and just took all my kit off, there were a few bemused faces when I took my bra off....remember....9 miles...ah yes...the conkers had nestled themselves nicely in my bra and i'd completely forgotten about them until they came boinging out and bounced all over the floor. I gathered them and put them in the bag and muttered something like "it's a long story" I had a nice refreshing cold shower and started to feel a little more human. I rubbed some oil on my legs to help my aching limbs and went off to find everyone else. My feet were hurting but not too badly, I just really needed something to eat.
We all drove to the pub and had a lovely meal to celebrate our achievements.
What can I say...would i do it all again? Yes I would, I felt very proud of myself going that far, I felt quite special for people to come out of their homes and stand there cheering even though they didn't have a clue who I was and believe me that cheering went a very long way to give me the impetus to carry on, especially that last few miles. But I did it and good fun it was.
Thank you to Dolittle, Four Sips and Corr!tina for being patient with me and waiting for me at the end....to all my family for the support and to Dolittle's family and Corr!Tina's family for their support and thanks to My Mum who looked after the dogs so we could go away. I had a lovely weekend, spent in top class accomodation (ahem) spent with top class people and well done to you all and your fab times.... pictures to follow...hopefully...
Till the next one...On On xxx

http://www.nfma.org.uk/ If you go here to the website and look up the results you can see all our times and maybe in the future there may be piccies on there too....

Hash #34

Date: Tuesday 11th September 2007
Location: Torbryan
Weather: sunny but cool
It was full complement tonight as we headed towards Torbryan. We arrived early, keen to get our food ordered before we set off as we were having our last supper before the half marathon on Sunday! After ordering the food and giggling our way through we went outside to rejoin the rest of the group and find out what was what. Hatrack had left as he had a prior engagement but we had Maverick to let us know there were two long/short splits and no regroup. Off we went, I felt slightly more enthusiastic than i did last week and with my go faster juice courtesy of Almost Lightening and "Bikus" I was in the mood for moving.
We headed off out of Torbryan on the road and soon came onto farm fields and cows a plenty. I was relieved to see queues at the stiles as it gave me time to sort my breathing out and I couldn't walk away when No Rush was having trouble getting Callum to climb a stile, it wasn't all his fault, whoever had built it had put the steps in the wrong way. Maverick returned and eventually Callum relented to being manhandled over the stile and on we went. I do hope he is ok as he did land with a bit of a thump.
I must be honest, with everything going on I forget where we went then, up a road I think and then into some more farm fields, I do remember thinking that it was starting to feel chillier and that autumn was on it's way. Head torch on I continued with Maverick, a little disappointed not to have been given an adventure trail to follow but hungry now I needed to get my food.
Corrr!Tina passed me, then Leaking Boots and I was wondering where Dolittle was when she appeared behind me relieved to have found someone with a torch. We had a chat and I slowed her down with a bit of a walk (sorry) then it was On Home and back to the pub. We went past some lovely scenery and quaint houses and buildings.
After getting changed, and it always makes me wonder what the locals think of it all, people just getting their kit off in the pub car park and then singing strange songs in the pub afterwards. The meal was ok, a little bit burnt round the edges but edible nonetheless. The down downs went to, now who did they go to, Stinkhorn for sending Puffball the wrong way, someone whose name I can't remember a visitor for putting her top on inside out and was it Maverick? Sneezy nearly got one for losing his car key which Head Down found but he was driving so missed out on that one.
It was a lovely hash with just a tinge of anxiety lapping in that it was the last training/running we would be doing before Sunday. So till next week when I may well be hobbling round...take care, and On On xx

Hash #33

Date: Tuesday 4th September 2007
Location: Venford Reservoir, Dartmoor
Weather: Sunny, bit cold

We eventually arrived at Venford Reservoir after a death defying drive by myself, Dolittle, Corrr!Tina, Jo were hiding in the seats as we raced the scenic way to Venford Reservoir cutting up Sixpack and Cinderfella in the process. I'm not sure why they think my driving is that bad, I am normally safe and slow maybe it's just the excitement of going hashing and being released for the night...who knows?
We listened to instructions from Doris, basically no long/short splits and no regroup. I must admit after running 11 1/2 miles on Sunday I didn't feel up to doing much running so I lagged very quickly to the back of the pack. I was introduced to Growbag's new friend en route and managed a quick handshake and then they were gone.
I spotted Maverick ahead and thought i'd stick close by as I was sure that he wouldn't be going too far. Sure enough Hatrack was soon in view as well and as we headed past the reservior (how do you spell reservoir that's it...) and up my legs started getting heavier and slower and I was soon shortcutting with a few others. We joined up with some of the group and then it was clear that the front runners had gone miles ahead and we could hear them hollering in the distance and when we saw their tiny bodies disappearing Maverick called a meeting with Hatrack and decided on the next plan of action. We said our farewells to Doris and set off back towards the reservoir.
'I'm looking for a gate' Hatrack said, 'it's this way' Off we set downwards (phew) through a herd of bemused cows and on towards the rusty fence that encompasses the reservoir. 'Here's the gate' Hatrack says gleefully pointing towards an even rustier gate that doesn't look as though it's been moved in decades. He struggles to open it and says the path is down here somewhere. I start giggling more with fear I think....and struggle to close the gate behind me. Hatrack has already disappeared into the 5ft high bracken and Maverick is nearly out of sight so I quickly follow the trampled down bracken and keep close. Down we go, we hear water and then eeuurrghhh wet muddy feet as we nearly disappear into a bog. 'Let's go to higher ground' says Hatrack.
We eventually find the path we need and find the gate we should have taken and set off anti clockwise round the reservoir. I need a wee so finally manage to stop and have one with comments from Hatrack about a mini tsunami in the reservoir. We finally emerge onto the road and meet up with some of the other hashers who were sensible enough to follow the trail laid by the hare. I finished with a bit of jogging up the road and back to the car to discuss big pants with Jo.
We arrive safely at the pub, The Tradesmans in Scorriton for a change! The down downs went to Jo, at last she has been named, Leaking Boots.....I like that one, to Doris for the trail and to Dancing Queen for some reason or other. Thankfully noone seemed to remember my driving but I won't hold my breath i'll probably get one next month for that one!
Maybe next week i'll have my go faster juice and feel less tired and do the full trail, or maybe Maverick and Hatrack who are the hares next week will lay a trail all of my very own complete with brambles, no pathway and bogs....only time will tell, till next week, take care and happy hashing....On On xxx