5K

I went to the gym yesterday morning. I wanted to go Thursday, but Tescos decided that it was the day they were going to deliver my new garden furniture.

I normally meet 'M' on Thursdays and she is always there before me so in order to catch up with her my run on the treadmill needs to be shorter. So today I thought I would go for a good 30 minute run and set the countdown on the treadmill for 33 minutes to include warm up, on what the hell I thought, lets put 40 minutes in.

Well I ran the full 40 minutes and had done 4.64k at this stage so I decided to speed up the cool down for 3 minutes to get a true reading of 40 minutes. After that time I wasn't quite at 5k so did another minute of running which took me well and truly over 5k! Thats the first time I have done it non stop, I could probably have done it long ago but never tried. Anyway it was easy, so I am going to attempt it on the road tomorrow although my legs were useless last night, they were stiff beyond belief every time I tried to get out of the chair, and its not for lack of cool down and stretches, I even had a leisurely swim and a blast in the jacuzzi (its lovely to get the jets of water pummeling your achy muscles).

After my run I did some abs and arms work and of course the swim.

Grace continues to have a good spell at the moment and I do think its because she can get out in the garden and on the trampoline and able to go swimming lots at the moment.

I read a post on the forum about low sats and lung function and someone said that they thought diet attributed to better lung functions and energy levels.

The poster commented that he eats healthily and doesn't dwell too much on the high fat issue. I have always given Grace a balanced healthy diet as opposed to a high fat content. We are lucky that Grace is a good eater generally and has a good appetite, I understand that lots of CF sufferers have virtually no appetite and struggle to weight gain, but so far have never had this problem with Grace and she continues to eat well really.

There has been a period up until this week that she has been off her food but now she has regained it we have made sure she has had lots of pasta and fish and vegetables and she takes masses of fruit to school everyday and she eats it as a rule. Grace loves mashed potato but we tend not to put any extra butter in than we serve ourselves, maybe its because she just doesn't like extra fatty stuff, who knows? one thing I know is that I couldn't eat loads of extra fatty things, my Mum always puts enough butter on a sandwich to grout the bathroom tiles with and have some left over, and I've always had to inspect in before she puts the filling on and scrape it back off again (no wonder she has high blood pressure and has to take pills for her cholesterol) but at 83 I don't think she really cares.

Anyway we are making the most of this good spell whilst it lasts, its just a shame the weather has gone a bit down hill, you should the see the golf course at the rear of our home, I can't imagine they have many annual members, they would never get a full years play.

Yesterday was a gym day (well by gym day I just mean treadmill day). I had an awful day the day before and I took it out on the treadmill. I ran for a long time and did nothing else other than a shower and a coffee.

I was with my friend 'M' and we totally agreed that exercise is amazing for stress release. I had a bit of a stressful Monday and running really helps to forget about it.

On Sunday a good day at stratford racecourse gave me the opportunity to purchase a new vacuum cleaner so today I am like a kid with a new toy and have gone beserk with it. I've used every attachement on it. I just need to be as enthusiastic about the ironing now.

Grace lost her first tooth on Monday night. Its amazing how excited she got about having a hole in her smile. Infact she was so excited that she struggled to stay asleep all night and consequently found the money left by the fairies at 3am and came in with a big toothless grin to show me. I was polite and told her to go back to bad until a reasonable hour. Emilys most recent post about keepsakes of childhood memories, which is something I believe strongly in after my Mother threw away everything I ever posessed when I lived at home with my parents. Grace has files with her age or Reception, year 1 etc written on them and we have kept virtually every picture she has ever brought home. But this sparked us to start rumaging through the bin looking for her tooth! It looked awful and bloody and quite grubby inside, so we thought better of it and put it back in the bin.

What crazy parents we are. Infact if I can find it, I will photograph and post a picture of Graces umbillicol cord which we still have in a box with her hospital wrist band that says 'baby Lombard' on it. (what were we thinking?).........

Bit of a blip

I went to the gym yesterday morning. I ran for 28 minutes (that just reminded me of a song? 'I ran' by 'A flock of seagulls') and then skipped any weights or floor work and went right on to the swimming pool. I also did 28 lengths of the pool, was aiming for 30 but the pool just got ridiculously full and I decided the jacuzzi, as it was empty, was far more appealing.

Grace went to her friends for tea after school. I said that I would pick her up at 6.00pm and to 'get a move on' as she needed to get Dnase done in time to fit in physio and meds before bed.

So we skipped dnase last night, because it was 6.55 before I actually got her out of there. They were covered in make up and had to wash that off and tidy up before we left. They have both been invited to a fancy dress party on 6 July and the plan is to go as Goths!! So I managed to get Grace out of there with the bribe that she could choose her outfit when we got home.

So the outfit is a sort of black netted skirt with lacey tights, she has some black Diesel studded boots and a black rock 'n' roll t'shirt and Faye is going to help her with the makeup and I am in charge of looking for some lacey black gloves, but the girls have decided that they also want a hint of pink so Grace has a studded pink sweatband for her wrist and a studded pink belt. I really will have to blog photos on the day.

Anyway physio got done and meds on time and she was in bed for 8.30 and very excited about the party. She is very well presently, no coughing and very dry whilst doing physio. She is about to come to the end of her tobi nebs for the month and will go back to promixen for a month. It will be interesting to see what sort of difference it will make, but hopefully this is the start of the good spell we were waiting for. She had her first swimming lesson on Tuesday (well her first lesson this year) and she really enjoyed it. She also blow dried her own hair and put cream on and generally pampered herself etc, but we will have to speed things up a bit next week otherwise swimming lessons will take up a whole evening.

I am off to Towcester this evening for an evening race meeting so I am looking forward to that and hopefully it won't rain.

The blip I was referring to in the title was because Wanadoo seemed to have crashed and this is the first time I have been able to access the Internet since Tuesday evening.... I did try to phone them but the 24 hour help line had no reply on any occasion that I rang, but luckily today its back, I don't know what I would have done if I couldn't have blogged this rubbish?

Weirdo

I have been to the gym this morning, but never had a swim today, infact it was too busy to get in the pool. It must be all this nice weather bringing everyone to the gym so they look good when they strip off on the beach maybe.

I did around 28 minutes on the treadmill and 3 minutes either side warm up and cool down. I worked on upper arms and abs, I hadn't planned on doing much more because I was going to have a swim. Instead 'M' and I had a coffee and a chat and then I enrolled Grace for swimming lessons. In order to do that she had to become a member at the gym (aaahhh!) she's now a member (£12 per month) she can use all of the facilities (well not the big stuff) but she can use the play area and she can go to tennis and badminton classes if she wants to and she is able to attend any of the many childrens functions and term end discos and stuff, but for now we will concentrate on swimming. She starts this evening at 4.30 and I haven't told her yet so that will be a nice surprise on a hot day, and I will get to have another coffee whilst waiting for her.

Yesterday and the day before I was a bit 'weird' I had to take an antihystamine on Sunday morning after my run, I hate taking them as every single one I have tried doesn't really agree with me, they upset my tummy and make me feel a bit 'foggy'. I completely conked out for about 2 hours on Sunday evening and I spent most of Monday forgetting peoples names and generally very lethargic. I have now gone back to my beconase and eye drops and hope that will now keep it under control. The most weird thing was that I kept bursting into tears at the drop of a hat. I was watching a Harrison Ford film called FireWall last night (full of action and chases and twists and turns) but you would have thought I was watching a romantic love story the amount of times I burst into tears. What a strange hormonal person I am lately and apparently it will last for atleast another 5 years yet..... What a weirdo!

Early Bird not Classy bird though

I could not sleep last night. I woke at 4.39 and went to the toilet, I had already been awake on two other occasions. It was so hot that I opened the window, well that was fatal, I then started to sneeze and sneeze and woke Mark up also which wasn't good because he had to leave to play golf at six.

I'm useless in the summer, my hayfever dictates that the windows stay shut during the night and then I am too hot and Mark gets too hot. I lye awake and then think about my knee and for some reason it seems to hurt more when I think about it. Well anyway Mark decided to get up and check out how the golf was doing (baring in mind this all before 5.am) he made me a cup of tea and told me to try and get back to sleep.

We didn't go to bed until well after midnight either. I tossed and turned for another half an hour and Mark had a shower and got ready for golf so I read for a while.

After he left I decided that if I couldn't sleep I may aswell go for a run. I ran my usual circuit taking in a bit of 'off road', I like off road its a bit more of a challenge and in the morning there is lots of dew on the grass and it makes my feet wet right through my trainers. I managed 23 minutes straight run before my hayfever got the better of me, I did a 2 minute walk and then did another 5 minutes followed by a cool down walk. Back at home I did some abs work and arms work and lots of stretches. I had a shower and some breakfast, the breakfast was mainly so that I could take an anti hystamine as the pollen seemed to have pelted at my eyes whilst running. I put some washing on and sat on the bed having a cup of tea and reading again by 7.35.

I was told last night that I didn't sound like a classy bird,but atleast I'm an early bird.

We are going to out for the day today and taking a picnic. Grace is really excited so I am off to do her physio now so that we can get out nice and early.

Went to the gym this morning at 8.00, I had done a 33 minute run, some abs and arms work and 8 lengths of the pool by 9.40. I had changed and had a shower and was home for just after 10 oclock. I love going early and having a workout so that I still have the rest of the day to myself. Sadly I can only do that during half term. I was trying to get home in time for 10 because Mark was leaving to play golf, but luckily Faye was home to look after Grace until I got home.

It was a wonderful feeling swimming early in the morning and having the whole pool to myself. It gives you time to relax and think, and it is very relaxing after you have just done a 30 minute run. I thought that I would book some swimming lessons for Grace now that she has finished her IV's, she may get through the summer months now without having to have swimming lessons interrupted because of treatments. This came about because Mark and I were having a discussion the other day with regard to the fact that Grace seems to be on so many treatments already at such a young age, and all of the things that she has already picked up makes me wonder if she is going to have worse problems at a young age (for example being put on the transplant list in her teens. I am not being pesamistic, just realistic and looking at the worst possible scenario.

Therefore we decided that we were going to help her the best possible way we could think of and go for the fitness aspect in a big way. She is already very influenced by the fact that I exercise and run regulary and Mark has always played a lot of sport and presently has started going back to the gym and plays golf atleast twice a week now, (there was a lull for a couple of years after surgery on his knees). With that in mind we have also decided that as soon as she is old enough we will pay for a full gym membership so that she can use whenever she wants to.

Grace gets up in the morning and does stretches and sit ups and jogs on the spot, she also does a run round the school field every evening after school and other class mates now do it with her (weather permitting). We also have two trampolines in the garden now, and let me tell you if you haven't done it for a few years, it really takes some getting used to. My friend 'M' and I jumped on it and laughed ourselves stupid! which isn't good when you are forty something and your bladder isn't what it was! 'M' was even in the winning British trampoline squad in 1978 (when they won in America) and still she ached everywhere for the next few days.

We have had a hectic week and today is a day to ourselves, so we are going into town for a browse and then to Starbucks for a coffee. Yesterday Graces friend came for the day and they played in (well trashed the loft) and it took a while to tidy up. They also made cookies and shelled peas.

She is going to another friends tomorrow to play so hopefully I can catch up on some much needed hoovering whilst she is there ( although I will probably take the opportunity to read and slob around)........and finish the cookies!

Rotten weather good weekend

After collecting Grace from school on Friday we decided to go to Stratford Racecourse for the night meeting. We took the deckchairs and some Pimms (buy one get one free at Morrisons). In the first race and the last race there were horses running with 'Harry' in their name. I always back a 'Harry' because thats my Dads name.

I chose the first one as my main horse because it was a good price but then ended up as favourite, well it won, but I didn't have much on it. The next four races I chose 2nd but because they were all short odds I had to have them to win except for a 5-2 which I had each way but only got my money back.

On the last race I chose Mikado as my main horse (Tony McCoy was the jockey) - my Mother-in-law calls him sh*t McCoy because he always lets you down when you don't want him to. I also thought I would stick a fiver each way on 'Champagne Harry' at 20-1 and guess who won? I won a few quid back and gave some to my Dad when I saw him on Saturday because it was his fault that I won it, he was very chuffed.

On Saturday we did the usual tap and ballet class in the morning. Generally I read the paper and drink coffee and chat to the other Mums whilst Grace does her classes and then we went home for lunch. I cut the grass which was a good job because I think it has rained solidly since, paid a visit to my parents and then on to Marks parents.

Sunday we did nothing, we stayed in and I dusted off the cooker and made Sunday lunch (still recovering from the shock) and the children just played draughts and ps2 games all day. Our friends texted to say they had bought a new kitten called 'Lilly' and she came from Handsworth. I thought she was really cute and they told me that she had a brother and two sisters that also needed homes, but Mark was having none of it, he hates pets. Today Grace and Faye are home, and I am dedicating today to tidying up and ironing.

Tomorrow I will hit the gym very early so that hopefully if the weather is a little better we can go to Warwick Castle for the day.

Grace has been well since coming off IV's, she has complained about a pain in her breast. I think its because of the plaster that goes over her port, but I can't help but think about port infections. I keep touching it and she curls away from me, so it must be quite painful, she says its better today than the last two days but still very guarded. She doesn't mind if I touch the actual port area, just above it. Hopefully its nothing and things will go back to normal.