Sunday Self Portrait, Sunday 15th May

(Yes, I know it's Tuesday)

(But I wanted to get back into my Sunday self potraits)

(And on Sunday I wanted to write about the Moonwalk)

(So I took this Sunday evening)

(But am posting now)

(Parentheses FTW!)

PS This was Sunday at 10.30, the evening after the Moonwalk. I was shattered!

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Moonwalk 2011

It's done!

26.2 miles through London in the middle of the night, and genuinely one of the most challenging things I've ever done. My entire body is rebelling....

Managed to get round, despite the pasta they gave us before setting off *really* disagreeing with me and meaning that I slowed down more and more as the hours wore on and I limped to the next set of loos.

I feel ouchy, proud, happy, and ouchy.

I feel lucky to have been a part of something special raising money for such a great cause.

I have learned that I have reserves of strength I've only peeked before. I learned that even when exhausted, sore and close to tears, I can always muster a cheery good morning. I learned that after several hours of walking alone, I talk to myself in a way that's a little bit coach, a little bit shrink, and a little bit stand up comedian.

Photos of the event can be seen here on my multitalented friend Jason's flickr. Big shout out to Jason for also bringing Buck Fizz and sausage sandwiches to the finish line.

Thank you to all of you who sponsored me, and also all those who sent messages, texts, tweets and fb messages - they spurred me on more than you know. Huge thank yous to my darling Matthew badger too, who not only came to meet me at the end, but who also looked after me all day yesterday as I prepared for the walk, stayed on alert all night while I was walking, and has spoilt me rotten today (fish & chips & champagne - definitely a new favourite!). Love you!

Huge congratulations to all the Moonwalkers, and to all at Walk the Walk!

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Eep!

The big day (or should that be night?) is here! It's time to Moonwalk!

I head to Hyde Park in an hour or so, and we start walking at midnight. All love, prayers, vibes and texts most gratefully received....

See you on the other side.

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Project Life Tuesday (February 28th - March 6th)

I'm linking up once more with Jessica's Project Life Tuesdays.

Monday 28th February

A very busy day at work, followed by my first experience of the uniqueness that is spinning! After that ironing, a heart patterned tumbler of wine and the finale of The Biggest Loser was about all I was good for!

Tuesday 1st March

Miss Eileen and I headed to Tapeo for lots of very garlicky tapas and very good chat. Our Tuesday night meetups are becoming something of a tradition, and NW London offers plenty of venues for fun!

Wednesday 2nd March

I was oh so frustrated with my classroom at this point! We had our variety show on Friday, so at this point the room was just festooned with bags of costumes and props and junk...

I'm actually looking forward to tidying this week!

Thursday 3rd March

Oh hello, trainers.

I now wear these bad boys more than anything else I own. With the Moonwalk in a couple of months, the training is really kicking in!

Friday 4th March

Fridge full of veggies and some leftover bulgur wheat. Splash of wine and a little chili, garlic and parmesan. Faux-sotto. Delish!

Saturday 5th March

A *big* workout today - 60 minutes of aerobics then 8 miles of walking. Then I treated myself to tea, toast, TV and twitter. Bliss!

Sunday 6th March

A day of planning and sorting. A post on this particular thing coming soon!

Looking forward to catching up with lots of other Project Life posts. :-)

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Weekend!

So here we are, Sunday morning of the weekend. It seems that nowadays each and every weekend is a little different. Last weekend the theme was definitely 'rest' - I barely moved from the flat, was just exhausted after an epic week. This weekend has been very lowkey too, but has involved a lot of working out - as I type I am considering rubbing ibuprofen into my legs to prevent further ouchiness... At least with two months to go the Moonwalk training* is going well - next month it will move up another notch as we are on break for most of April. Hello, gym and training!

The next two weekends will be different again....next weekend the lovely Shona is coming to stay and it will be theatre and tea at the Ritz and catching up. The weekend after that the lovely Christy arrives and it will be time for silliness and blog chats and general London fun.

It's all in the mix, right? Enjoy the rest of your weekend, lovelies!

* If you would like to sponsor me for the Moonwalk (pretty pretty please and thank you, please donate here. Huge thanks in advance!)

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Lately

Life's been busy. The start of a new term is always busy and this has been no inspection. Tie that in with my desire to work harder, see more of my friends, and work out more and you have a recipe for a tired yet happy Claire. Tomorrow Matthew and I fly up north to see my family for a day - it's a long journey but will be so worth it to see them!

So, what else have I been into lately?

I've been getting back into my walking, and actually training. It's dawning on me that this time in 4 months I will be walking a marathon! This means lots of 5, 7.5, and 10 mile walks during January and February, with a view to ramp it up again in the 10 to twelve weeks before the big day. If you would like to sponsor me (I'm raising money for breast cancer charities), please go here (huge thanks in advance!).
I am reading up a lot of food and what is and isn't good for you. A friend of mine recommended the book 'Real Food' by Nina Planck. It's an interesting read, and while I don't fully agree with everything she says (well, certainly not with further research and or cross-referencing), there is a lot of great stuff. I particularly like her stance on sustainable, small scale farming.

Fun fact: Nina Planck founded the farmer's market around the corner from my school!

Yesterday Eileen and I went to see 'The King's Speech' (after trying and failing to do so on Tuesday - it seems to be selling out everywhere!). Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush were both sublime.
Lots of baking and cooking (but not too much eating!) is keeping me sane during this busy period. On Wednesday I made a soup, and some muffins using my own made up recipes, and also made cake for my boys....they were all thrilled when the 'extra work' I gave them yesterday turned out to be eating a slice of Victoria sponge!
The UK series of 'The Biggest Loser' has just started and I'm already hooked. It's trash TV, but it's got it all - drama, pathos, staggering highs. I must admit to being a little jealous - at the current time the idea of being able to go away and workout as much as you like sounds amazing. I'm fitting classes and the gym and walks around work and it's knackering!
I'm working through '30 Rock' from the very start on DVD. It's timings here in the UK have always been a little odd, so it's been great following it through and catching all the episodes I missed first time round!

What have you been up to lately?

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Moonwalk 2011

So, every year I try to do something for charity. Be it a 5K waddle or lopping my hair short for a good cause, I love a chance to give back. Next year, I'm kicking it up a notch. Because next May I'll be taking part in the Moonwalk 2011 - walking 26.2 miles through London in the middle of the night. I am excited and terrified in equal measure. All the money raised goes to 'Walk the Walk', a breast cancer charity, and a cause that's very close to my heart.

More details can be found here. I also have a fundraising widget on the left-hand side of my blog - if you can donate, I would be so grateful.

Enjoy your weekend!

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