Runners United - Conwy Cockwatch, a live birth and Alex "Rhet" Ferguson in one thread. What more could we ask for?

I was feeling a bit left out so have gone and created my own thread next door.... Actually I wanted to do the next one, hope that is OK!

Apologies for not reading back. Will try to tonight. DH leaves for SF today. Eek.

Well done jez. I'll have to have a go at the 10 k next year.
Glad to hear your hip held up.
It must be nice to have your dcs cheering you on. Ds1 has no interest in my running, but he's a typical teenager. Ds2 was going to watch my 5 k races but the first one was very wet and he didn't want to stand around in the rain, and the second one he was at his dads door the weekend.

Well done bumply, great start to the week!

Jez, oh how I loved your race report, very emotional! Bless you DD's kissing you at 8k!! (sob!) great time and great achievement, can't believe you have only run 4 miles before. Result!

Orange, really hope you get some good news next week, but if not glad that at least things can start get moving with tests etc. Will keep everything crossed for you

fanny, glad you have recovered from your burns! Feeding going well I think. I need to keep on top of it during the day, waking her up etc but I do encourage longer feeds if I can. Cluster feeding overnight is hopefully helping too. Am sure it is fine, just worry a bit that I need to establish supply during these early weeks. Midwife is coming to weigh her tomorrow so hopefully she is at least back to birth weight. Loving it so much this time, which is nice as it was a bit of a struggle, physically, with DD1 for the first few weeks.

Thanks all! sfx, dd's fine now. She was actually fine by the Sunday, just a bit tired and off her food. Right as rain today. My legs are really achy today, but my hip injury actually feels fine. I'm going to take a few weeks off now. I have a lot going on in my life at the moment. Need just to do the bare minimum. Hope to book something in run wise in Spring. I'll keep you guys informed!

orange have a horrible feeling that it may come to pass - we have yet another stringent budget (the 5th one in 3 years) coming up and I am classed as a high earner so am likely to be clobbered (this takes no account of the fact that I am the sole earner in a soon-to-be-household of 4). This is on top of losing DP's income (most of) and almost a 1/3 of mine already. There are many people much closer to the edge than us (and things like 2% VAT increase hits them proportionately harder, or motor tax), but nonetheless, it's hard to take when it's all to ensure that some bondholder somewhere doesn't lose any money rather than to pay for things that people need - good healthcare, free healthcare for chidlren, proper education, childcare, roads without huge craters in them etc etc. Proper cross I am.

I saw a couple with a child (maybe 4/5) walking down the road, and they looked very thin, and hungry. This is in a first world country in the 21st century . I know I don't the story of their lives, but I was a bit

jez, great report, well done. Did the woman who cut the corner finish the race? Someone was caught cheating at our parkrun on Saturday, what is the point of that??

monkey, did your dh go to the school today? Your son sounds adorable, you must be very proud.

peach, lucky you for having a lovely, generous mil.

Speaking of food for new mums I was a wee bit annoyed today. We've had 2 members of our department go on maternity leave recently and I asked everyone if they thought it would be a nice idea to povide some meals for them after they'd had their babies. I got a positive reponse so organised it after the 1st one had her daughter back in June. I think she got about 6 meals.
Today I went in (on my day off) to collect meals for the other new family (this is my friend who was 17 days over, a very good friend of a lot of our dept and was hod). There are 14 people in our dept, 12 of whom are women. Including me only 4 people brought anything in for me to deliver. She was very grateful but I felt bad that I'd told her I was bringing all these meals and in the end all I took was 3 main courses and a cake. Everyone was so positive about the idea but then didn't actually make anything.

Sorry whinge over.

Was going to go for a run tonight but ran out of time so did Shred instead. Was going to do level 2 but am doing circuits tomorrow so stuck with 1 plus a few extra bits from Woman's Running mag.

Thanks all. Glad things worked out for you wheely
Rhet I like your plan batering turnips.

Rhet we have been on the list for am allotment for ages, it is gold dust around here, we might get a share n a community one, we shall see

running after drop off, only really in warm weather but I only live 10mins walk from school, I get the gear on add then on way back drop coat and head out

Jez well done - particularly impressive when the training hadn't gone as you'd wished it! Lovely report. I sympathise with the Reynauds - I freak people out with my blue fingers! I think the running's good for it tho, getting the blood going round and so on.

orange best of luck with the doctor's appt.

sfx it sounds like you're taking it all in your stride, but sorry to hear that you have this added stress just before Christmas.

jez great race report ..seems like you've got the bug

I often run after DD drop-off too - usually take her on bike, but extremities get v. chilly and the nursery staff all think I am crazy crazy - think I will just leave a small bag of woollies on bike - I doubt if they'll get nicked. I don't much like having to run with hoodies etc tied around my waist. It's a conundrum - was easier when I took the car could just leave kit in it...

jezabelle well done - that's a great achievement
orange good luck with appointment, but hope it's good news.
sfxmum sorry about DH's job, but you sound upbeat (I spent a good bit of my run today contemplating imminent financial catastrophe: concluded that at least we have an allotment and we could barter turnips )

don't think dd will be born in this thread, but pretty sure she'll turn up on the next one :o (would like a few nights' good sleep first...ain't gonna happen)

Well done jezabelle great race report. Sniff sniff ! A great achievement .

orange good luck with the docs. I too had got pg easily twice (1 MC) before infertility struck. I was lucky and got pg after only fairly basic tests and treatment.

fantastic Jazabelle onwards you go how is dd2?

orange I find that my advancing years brought with it raging PMT I feel I might explode I keep a diary to give me warning, plan snacks, take supplements and try to keep calm as much as possible

about job, it is a relief to let it out, we are not overly concerned apart from the usual, it is not a surprise as dh is a self employed contractor and no contracts last longer than 3 months. he works in data migration and what not

Well done jez you have jut set me off crying when reading about you finishing, so nice.

I have the same problem wheely as often run from boys school but it a good 10-15 walk to the school which will be difficult when very cold.
Both ds's were not even planned. I had previously had 3 mcs before ds1 which were planned and took a few months each time. I was so depressed after the mcs we stopped trying then got pregnant accidentally. Then 7 months after he born found out I was accidentally pregnant again. Come to think of it I had pnd then, maybe thats it I need to get depressed to get pregnant . I already know I have scar tissue from cs, I asked gp about it a few months ago and he said if scar tissue has gone in the tubes can affect things but he said he can't refer me till been trying for 12 months even if already know I have scar tissue.

Right, here goes. My first race report:

Night before: DD2 (3 years) threw up in bed at 10.30. No warning. So, by the time I sorted her out and changed her bedding etc I got to bed at 11.20. Was woken up several more times in the night with poorliness.

DH gave me a lie in. Was woken at 8.20 with a friend's "good luck" text!

At the venue: Was surprised to see men there. Know this sounds wierd, but I've only ever run the Race For Life before! Was freezing and had to sit in car until just before race. I have renauds (circulatory problem which basically means I get really cold quite easily!)

The run: Very soon after I began it became obvious that almost everyone was planning to run faster than me. Having had previous warning of this I didn't try to keep up, just kept at my own slowish pace. I was definitely in the last quarter if not the last 5th. After about 1km I decided I needed to pinpoint a pacemaker. I kept behind a woman with bright red hair. It soon became apparent that she usually marshalled at the race. All the marshalls knew her and kept wishing her well and cheering her on then ignoring me! I was feeling a bit neglected and could have done with the encouragement. I was already finding the run really hard work and worried about how I was going to manage it!

I wanted to overtake and lose the red head, but just didn't have the energy. Eventually at 4km we went downhill and I managed to take her, only to be overtaken again on the flat! As she did take me she gave me some advice, "there's a big hill coming up, don't bend over when you go up", (which I do). Then she proceded to take a short cut through the park and cut off the corner herself! Didn't see much more of her after that. I took her advice and did the hill upright, (good advice I'm assuming?)

I actually thought I might be physically sick when I reached the top of the hill, but I wasn't.

I actually found the last half of the race easier than the first. I think psychologically it was easier because I knew I could do it by then, if that makes any sense! At 8km DH was stood at a corner with my 2 beautiful dds. It certainly was a sight for sore eyes! I stopped for 2 seconds to give the girls kisses, then carried on.

the last 400m was round a race track. I felt like there was no one behind me; like I was the last person to finish. (I wasn't btw!) I felt proud though. Proud of myself for running all the way and even for my time, although I know I didn't brake and records!

I crossed the line in 1hour 9minutes and 13seconds. I cried when I hugged my dds and dh, (emotional wreck if you hadn't already realised!)

I've never run 6.2 miles. The most I managed in training was 4 miles. So, I said I broke no records, but I guess it was my PB!

I think I might have caught the running bug!

Sorry to Hear about dh's job sfx. Hope it doesn't take long to find something else.

orange - hope the knee is ok. I too struggled with what to wear this morning. I opted for a short sleeve top under a long
Sleeve so I could take off the long sleeve as I usually get v hot. Added issue is that I like to start my long runs from dd2s nursery so have to do school drop off then nursery
Drop off without a big coat (I wore a thick zip up Sweatshirt which I left in a bag Hanging From dd's scooter but that's not
Going to work when it's even colder). Sorry if you're appointment is for the latter - I remember it well. I hope they take you seriously and get you in the system. Did you conceive your other Dcs ok ?

Sorry about random caps .... Still trying to work this iPad out

Oh monkey thats awful your poor ds. It so horrible you just want to protect them. Agree wth everyone you should be very proud of him he sounds very mature and he is a credit to you. Hope your dh gets things sorted.
Well done wheely with the hill
peach regarding warm up I did the route of the run again so a bit of a drive but did a bit of a warm up in the toilets at the park where it starts. Thankfully no one walked in. I seemed to be ok temperature wise, got a bit hot at one point but when I took my head band off felt better. Your mil sounds a star btw.
sfx pmt not good I'm being a total bitch . I'm usually more down and hungry with pmt but every now and then have an angry month like this one . Gosh sorry about dh job. Must be worrying. What does he do?
fanny sorry you having a bad day.
Set out to do 10 miles this morning, gotto mile 8 and my knee started hurting. I was unsure whether to carry on or not. I managed another mile but then it started hurting more so I walked for a couple of mins to which it felt fine so I tried slow running but it hurt again so I finished. It not too bad now but still sore and a bit swollen also all down the inside of my shin on the same leg sore. I put a support bandage on my knee and that seems to help and going to ice it in a bit. Hopefully it just a little blip and be ok in a few days and won't interfere with my training or race.
I have also made a docs appointment for next tuesday to either say I'm pregnant (unlikely with the bad pmt) or say I have been trying for a year

After a lazy week fitness wise ( due to craziness at work and overtime) I've made a start to the week the way I mean to carry on.
Did a 3 mile run before breakfast.
11:25
11:38
14:00 walked last section as cool down

And went swimming after work with a good few lengths now that ds2 doesn't require constant attention.

Well done to all the weekend racers.
It's all inspiring stuff.

03/12/11 - Jingle Bells 5k Phoenix Park - rhetorician
11/12/11 - Stockport 10 (mealworm one) -orangehead
01/01/11 - Morpeth 11k Road Race - AngeChica
07/01/12 - Bupa Great Winter Run 5k Holyrood park - bumply
08/01/12 - Southwest Road Runners First Chance 10k - RunningAllDay
22/01/12 - Four Villages Half Marathon (Helsby) - Fannybanjo
19/02/12 - Brighton Half marathon - Wheely
04/03/12 - Milton Keynes Half Marathon - pawsnclaws
04/03/12 - Duchy Marathon - RunningAllDay
10/03/12 - Blackpool Half Marathon - DrNortherner, Fannybanjo
11/03/12 - Cambridge Half Marathon - Futurity, Runnerstipple, Cherry (what have I done??), Bonkers20
25/03/12 - Edale Skyline - (21 miles. 4,500 ft climb) Hatwoman
25/03/12 - Fleet Half Marathon- DebitheScot
25/03/11 - Run Northumberland HM - AngeChica
31/03/12 - Olympic Park Run - wiifitmama, runerstipple
01/04/12 - Reading Half-Marathon - RunningAllDay, Tulip27
15/04/12 - Cambourne 10K - Futurity
22/04/12 - VLM: ibbydibby, AngeChica
28&29/04/12 - Wye Forest 50 (miles!) - RunningAllDay
29/04/12 - Shakespeare Half Marathon - FairyBasslet
27/05/12 - London Bupa 10K - Futurity
09/06/12 - Blenheim Sprint Triathlon - Cherry
29/06/12 - San Francisco Marathon - MoshiMoshi

Thanks for comments re race, and well done indeed to Sonic - sounds like you did the opposite to me: fast, flat and paced! Added in my 2012 commitments above. Not many left for this year, I see.

Yes, peach - already have the tree up, and fairy lights festooning the conservatory. We even have presents under the tree, which is making the DDs hyper.

sfx - so sorry to hear about your DH. Hope it didn't come as too much of a shock.

rhet ran my first 'recovery run' (toe still purple but hurting less so thought I would risk it!) at HR < 70%. I barely broke a sweat, yet only took 2 mins longer than normal, over 3 miles, where normally I'd be panting, thanks to the hills. How does that work?!! Hope you manage to get out for some long ones - could you do pre-waking? or post-sleeping? When my DH is away in December, I may have to resort to this to get my long ones in somehow.

monkey I hope tomorrow brings a better day. Made my heart break to read your post.

I'm not a superwoman, or very hardcore. Just disorganised, arranging friends and races on the same day! But with DH away so much, we have to fit our family social life (and my races) into 6 months of the year which makes it all rather packed. Then I get a month off, just me and the kids. But just because life isn't quite interesting enough, we've decided to put our house on the market. Daily hoovering, here I come - need some fanny lessons on housewifery... :)

monkey, I had actually made a few extra portions of things, but not many, so can have these after the goodies run out. We are also drowning in chocolate which lefts face it, is no bad thing!!!

Anyone else getting their Xmas tree this weekend? I am very excited . just had my first mince pie. It were lush!

Where, for example, is that fanny??

peach that sounds lovely! But you mean you didnt spend the pregnancy cooking and freezing lasagne? (I didn't either, far more to life than a frozen lasagne!)

sfx sorry to hear about your DH's job, but you're right to be sanguine about it. Hopefully things will pick up in the new year. DH feels he's going nowwhere in his job at the moment, but it's as secure as it can be and so he's going to stick with it for now and hopoefully make the move when things get better.