Alison Angier Diary

We have had a very sad time this last few weeks. My mum inlaw passed away very suddenly and we are all finding it very hard to accept at the moment. My dad inlaw has written a wonderful eulogy to her which you can read on her blog. Just click on the outlaws to the right of my page about half way down to read it.

Valerie Angier, a wonderful, fun loving person who was always smiling. She loved life and loved her family. A very talented person who could turn her hand to anything creative. A business woman, a person you could always go to for good advice, and who always beat me at scrabble, but not back gammon. We were pretty well matched and she taught me how to play it.

Mum created the most amazing cards and would plan how she would make them so personal for each person. She got me hooked on card making and taught me lots of things. She showed me how to emboss, quill, stamp, tea bag fold and much more. I could sit and watch her for hours, she was so so clever in lots of ways. She hand painted our Christmas card last year and it was stunning. I have kept all of the cards she has made for us. I am still looking for a frame for the Christmas card. We would each buy things and split them down the middle. We could spend hours in the craft shops and know we would be told off for buying yet more materials.

She was a fantastic cook and all of the grandchildren loved her Sunday roast. James loved Grandmas sausages and her hugs and kisses. He had a special game which they played and was able to play that game for the last time with granddads help.

She welcomed people into her home with open arms and a cup of tea. She welcomed Tiffany and I into the family and we feel like we have always been there. A wonderful grandmother, mother, wife and mum inlaw. You couldn’t ask for more in a person.

A big void has been left and we all miss her so much. Nothing can ever change that feeling, not even time. In time we will learn to cope, but she will be with us always in our hearts and our memories. Her time was too soon and no one could prepare for that.

Mum, Thank you for being you. I miss you and it’s hard to say good bye, so I will just say goodnight. xxxx

We celebrated out 10th wedding anniversary in September and treated ourselves to a meal out in London at Jamie Oliver’s 15. We went last year and thought we would go back again. Dave and Sonia our friends also came with us as their anniversary was the week before ours. We often go out for meals together and always have a lovely time.

We always walk back to the train station so that we can walk off all of the fantastic food that gets served. ALl good intentions go out of the window when you see the menu. It’s always so hard to decide what to have as it’s all so lovely.

The conversation on the way home was hilarious. I’m sure people thought we were totally mad!! All I will say is, Tugs and Tankers and leave the rest up to you .

A good time was had by all and that was the aim of the day..

I was 40 this August much to my disgust (kidding), and was treated to a very special holiday to Australia. FANTASTIC!! That’s all I can say!!

No really, it was fabulous!! The flight was very long and very exhausting, but I was determined not to get too affected by jet lag. Luckily for me, I was ok both going and coming back. I decided to stay up and go to bed when it was a normal bed time and it seemed to work both ways. Trust me, it was very difficult to do but it really did help.

We went to lots of really beautiful places and had lovely weather. Spot the tourist!! They are the ones in shorts and tee-shirts while the locals wear jeans and jumpers and the odd person wore a coat in temperatures of 25 degrees +!! Well that’s cold to the Aussies and it was their winter after all….

Australia Zoo, the home of the crocodile hunter, excellent!! The animals are all so well cared for and their environment is as close to the wild as possible. We stroked the kangaroos and wallabies and the koalas. They smell of eucalyptus and sleep for around 20 hours a day. When they are awake they are eating. Their fur is so thick and soft. They have a wonderful memorial to Steve Irwin underneath the crocoseum. He truly was a remarkable man.

Roma Parklands in Brisbane is absolutely stunning. So clean and tidy and lots of water dragons popping out from drains. I caught one on camera and I will upload some of the photos to this page once I have sorted them out.

I loved the Brisbane river and James loved going on the city cats, which are like busses on water. They are quick and easy to get from the South to the North suburbs. On one of the days on the cat, the air was so warm it felt like a hairdryer was being blown in my face.

I also couldn’t resist taking part in the Brisbane 10k. It was a fantastic experience and everyone was so friendly. I am so glad that I took part. David snapped away with his camera so I have some very good memories to keep. The best part was getting into the swimming pool fully clothed just after the race. The swimming pool is free and is on the south bank next to a man made beach, which I look at every day as I have it as my backdrop on my desktop. Its stunning!!

We also did a sky walk in the rainforest. That was amazing! It was so cool underneath the canopy and when you went into the sun, it was really hot and you started sweating straight away. James and David also enjoyed it very much. It was a very memorable day.

There is so much I could write about our holiday in Australia, but I’m sure once you see the photos, you will be wishing you had gone too. Tiff didn’t come with us as she went to Amsterdam with some of her friends. It would have been fantastic if she could have been with us, but she had already booked to go with her friends.

Well so much has happened I don’t really know where to start. February was the last time I even looked at my page let alone write on it. I don’t really know where to start, so I will give it a go….

I will have to write different entries as it will be far too much for just the one.

I have still been running on a regular basis with my buddies Peter and Jeni. Lots of hard efforts and hills and some long slogs too. I have completed a few half marathons this year too in some very pleasing times. NO injuries so far, so fingers crossed I stay that way. Last weekend Jeni and I did 6.25 miles of hills and crossing fields. It was a really good work out and we both enjoyed it much better than the weekend before where we were daft enough to run nearly 8 miles in the pouring rain. Drowned rats springs to mind..

David has got back in to running this year and has done very well. He too completed his first half marathon in the Great Eastern in October. He has also done 2 10k’s during the summer months, the Brentwood and the Southend. I also took part in those races and am now planning to enter the Witham Boxing Day 5 miler.

The kids are both fine and have had good years at school and college. James did really well in his end of year tests and Tiff gained 4 A levels in Drama, English Literature, Psychology and General Studies. Big pats on the back to both of them…

Yes it has been a while I know….. Well so much has been and gone since I last wrote. Too much to mention really..

I got into a new hobby with the help of my mum in law. She is so good at craft and making cards that I found it very interesting and decided to give it a go myself. I’m nowhere near as talented as she is but I am pleased with the results that I get.

I have made a few over the summer and into Christmas. The usual anniversary and Birthday cards along with a mountain of Christmas cards kept me busy at weekends and on boring evenings.

Here’s a few I made ….
      

You should see mum in laws. Some of hers are fantastic and she does quilling too which is with thin paper. She has done some lovely cards.

What else has happened…. mmmm let me think. Oh yes we had the kids birthdays over Christmas. James was 8 and Tiff was 18. I took her to London and we went to the theatre to see Phantom of the Opera. It was fantastic!! We both thoroughly enjoyed it and would love to see it again. We had a lovely day out shopping and spending some quality time together.

My friends partner is a chef and while we were out they delivered a beautiful cake to our house where David and James waited to receive it. It was a lovely surprise for Tiff.

Normal life resumed after Christmas and we went back to our usual routine, school, college and work for David and myself. That’s where we are today.

I must say though, I’m enjoying a week of with the kids for half term holidays. I will try to write more often on this blog of mine. It’s about time I got it more active.

I still enjoy my running and was so proud of myself for completing London’s first Run to the Beat Half marathon last October. It was hard work but I finished in 2 hours 16 minutes and 40 seconds. Not keen on partaking in another one just yet though. I was exhausted for a week afterwards. I’m not sure if I’m going to be entering many races this year as I am concentrating on getting time on my feet and distance rather than speed. I continue to enjoy running with Pete and Jeni my running buddies on a regular basis every week.

I want to wish Jeni all the best in the Grizzly in a couple of weeks time. All the hard training she has put in will pay off as she will complete the gruelling 20 mile multi terrain run.

James and I enjoyed a day out together at Signals in Colchester making clay models for a short video. We had to come up with ideas of a storyline and then build models from plasticine and also make a film set with paper and pens and chalks. It was actually very time consuming but James thoroughly enjoyed it. Here is our handy work, but be warned, some blood was shed during the making of this film!

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I just helped James build the models, the story was his own ideas. Feel free to leave a comment as I’m sure James will be excited to read them.

I have finally got round to giving you photos of this years event. I hope you enjoy looking at them ….

Today was the Race For Life in Castle Park. It dawned a bright sunny and very hot day!! The morning was already heating up by 9 am, so I knew the race would be extremely hot with all of the trees around the park sheltering wind. We set off along with hundreds of others making our way to the park. This year they had opened up the grassed area outside the park for parking. This made much more sense as there was plenty of room for everyone.

When we arrived, there was already quite a few people milling around and SGR Colchester were there with the black thunders and the breakfast show. I saw a few people I knew so had a quick chat in between visits to the loo. For some reason, I have to pay about 20 visits to the loo and I have no real idea why!

We had 1 minutes silence to think about all those who have suffered from cancer at some point and for those who lost their lives to it. It is always so eerie to see all those people and total silence. It is a very emotional time too as everyone who is there is there for reasons personal to themselves.

We did our warm up which was lots of fun as usual. It really gets you geared up ready to go, whether you walk or run. I was really nervous this year, but I know it’s because I was worried about the heat and I had more personal reasons to be there and I wanted to do my best.

As previously written, my own mum has suffered cancer recently and has just finished treatment, but is still under the consultant. We do not know if she is clear yet as she had a cancer which is hard to detect as it is called Clear Cell. I found it really hard standing there feeling on my own even though there was over 2000 women taking part. My emotions were all over the place and I refused to let tears fall. I just wanted to run……

My aunties mum has also been diagnosed with cancer, so she was another family member I was running for. It made things much harder when you know the people who are on your back plaque, as the emotions are so mixed and high.

I had a third person I was running for, and he is my friends dad who is also undergoing treatment.

So all these people who suffer need our help in raising vital funds for research into cures for cancer. Not just breast cancer, but all cancers……

I finished with a good time considering the heat, and 18th place I was told. I can’t be more proud than that can I ? My parents were pleased as were my in-laws, so I couldn’t be more pleased. It’s the hardest 5k I have run, not for distance or effort, but for emotions……

I want to say a special THANK YOU to all those people who sponsored me and helped me to raise £320 this year, bringing my total for Cancer Research £1000!!!

In October I am taking part in the Run To The Beat Half Marathon in London. I am running for Leukaemia Research so look out I will be asking you to sponsor me again.

MANY THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE xxxxx

Hi I know it has been quite some time since I last blogged. I don’t know where the time goes! With work and stuff and running and kids, the time just flies!!

Yes it’s only two weeks to go now for the Race for Life in Castle park. I don’t know why I get so nervous about it, but it’s the same every year. This year is different though as I am running for family mainly.

I am running for my mum and my aunts mum, both of whom have undergone cancer treatment this year. Fingers crossed all will be well with the end result.

As you can imagine, every year the atmosphere is amazing and many women take part for some reason or another. Some try to get personal bests as well as raise money, and others just walk. I always feel emotional as I approach the finish line, but this year I think it will be very emotional for me. I am trying to beat last years time of 25:55, and have managed to shave a few seconds off in training runs. With the adrenalin on race day I hope to do well. Last year I was 18th, but have no idea what will happen this year. We will just have to wait and see.

I want to thank everyone who has sponsored me so far. THANK YOU!! Each year your generosity means a lot to me and to those who receive the treatment that the money pays for.

Watch this space for the result………….

Can you believe that we are in February already!! Where did January go?? I have no idea! They say as you get older the years go quicker, and they sure do!

It’s half term next week so we have a break from school. I will use the time to catch up on things that really need doing, like cleaning the insides of the windows and maybe giving the grass a quick trim. That is providing the rain stays away, but as you are well aware, the weather does it’s own thing.

I have been getting a few good runs in and feel good about it. I still have a long way to go to get back to my pre-injury fitness though. I have consistently run 5-6 miles each run, so distance is getting good.

I really need some speed sessions as I want to improve on my time in the Race For Life which is in May. As soon as I got the email, I registered, and this year my number is 223. Last year was 95. I guess it’s filling up really fast. I have a web site for people to sponsor me Alison’s sponsor page

The more money I collect, the more help those people who need it will get. So please feel free to check it out and sponsor me.

This is the third year that I have entered and it is a really worthy cause. I have really enjoyed the atmosphere at these races and it can be very emotional for some people. The last two years have been mainly for friends, but this year it is for someone in my family. This family member is still undergoing treatment at the moment, so for me this year will be quite emotional, so the more money I raise, the better.

Some people have been generous enough to sponsor me already, so I would like to thank those people for their generosity, so Thank You.