Reasons to be Cheerful

It's Linky time! I'm excited to share this week's reasons to be cheerful... I just have to think of them first!!


1. I'm still getting that hopeful and happy autumn feeling, which is fabulous. This is no doubt helped by the fact we have had a fair bit of sunshine, despite a bit of a chill in the air so I have been out and about with the Bob and the Bear, manfully still having picnics in the park (even in the rain yesterday!) I kept getting reminded of an autumn holiday I took with my husband (then fiance) to the East coast of America the year I was pregnant with the Bob and feeling all nostalgic and wistful about the beautiful trees and the lovely time we had, so we have decided to embrace Hallow'een the American way and host a little get together for some of Bob's buds :-D

2. I realise he doesn't get featured much at the moment, but I just wanted to share what a little ray of sunshine the Bear is. This week he had his second jabs and didn't even cry, despite 2 days later featuring a bruise that covers nearly all of one of his (rather substantial I must admit) thighs. Poor little sausage. I love to have baby chats, baby snuggles and baby kisses. In all the excitement of toddlerhood I think I some times to forget to mention just how squishable and adorable he is.

3. And finally - this week's cold - the first of the season (oh, how I wish it would also be the last!) is just beginning to dissipate. I'm hoping to go out for  run when I gets in from work and also hope we will all be feeling normal again by the weekend when we have a cake photo shoot planned for a good friend who is starting a business as well as a bat walk on Friday. If feeling better isn't a reason to be cheerful, I don't know what is!

C25k - Week 5

I did it! I wrote about my Couch to 5k journey before - the programme builds you up very slowly to start with - but now things are getting serious (am I the only one who always sings that phrase? ...are you thinking about you - or us? probably showing my age there ;-) ).

 I've never been a runner in my life - the only time I've been fit in the past is when working towards a cheerleading competition - and, to be honest, I used to watch runners and comment on how boring it looked, and wonder why on earth they would choose to do something so horrible. Then my 30th birthday was looming, and a holiday was coming and I realised I didn't want to just resort to saying 'Oh, I'm getting older' any more. I wanted to be up and running around with my boys, enjoying life. I know full well I will look back at photos of this time of my life and think Look, I was so young! I don't want to waste it! So I looked around for exercise that was free, easy to start and wouldn't take me away from my baby for too long. C25k was the winner!

Last night I ran (very slowly... well, jogged) for a full 20 minutes. Now, I'm not sure if any of you have tried running recently (aside from those people who are already super-fit reading), but I haven't done much for my fitness in years - since I was cheerleading at university. The first day of couch to 5k nearly killed me, I came home muscles aching and completely puffed out. I was also engergised from the exercise, but also a little demoralised - I'd only run for 8 minutes a minute at a time. I began to doubt that I would ever manage the programme. I know exactly what day that was - it was super Saturday of the olympics, and Jessica Ennis was just bringing home the heptathlon gold - what an inspiration our British athletes are to us all. I wasn't about to give up at the first hurdle.

Anyway, now the programme is really cranking up. the last run was two 8 minute jogs, and now I've done 2 minutes. From now I just have to run more and more each time until I am running the full 30 minutes. Then it will just be working on my speed and fitness and it will be time to keep it up through the weekend by particpating in my local Park Run. And you know what, I'm looking forward to it! To hark back to my cheerleading days - Bring It On!