THE HARDEST PART - FOR ME ANYWAY

Training plan well and truly underway, injuries being remedied, cross training set. You would think that would be it, just work your way through those miles Lara, keep injuries to the minimum and continue the cross training with a day or 2 of rest. No, the hardest part was still to get underway, asking people for money!

I would take the training over fund raising any day of the week, I find it very hard to get out there and basically put out a sign that says SPONSOR ME.
That's why I chose a charity which I felt seemed right and I would feel comfortable asking people to part with their hard earned cash for. The Blurt Foundation http://blurtitout.org/ is in it's infancy, although they have set so much in place already, they are working on setting up some inspiring initiatives when looking at stamping out the stigma of depression. I especially feel that their school programme is a much needed resource within our educational systems. We have all read in the last year or two the heartbreaking "headline" stories of young adults taking their own lives, for one reason or another. Many of these young adults felt that there was nowhere to turn and the understanding of others was not there. The stigma of depression.

My choice of charity was reinforced whilst reading the Saturday Guardian, the article detailed how a woman had thrown herself in front of a tube train in order to end her life. It moved me to the core as being a mother I can not imagine taking myself to that place knowing I wouldn't see my boys again. The sentence that struck me the most is that she still feels the shame of suffering with depression when talking about the incident. This is where the Blurt Foundation are making inroads.
To read the full article, the link is below:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/jan/27/i-threw-myself-under-a-train

Right then the next part of my marathon training is set in motion. The Blurt Foundation use LocalGiving to ensure people can donate securely and with ease. This makes this part of the marathon that much easier for me, as I can offer this out to all you lovely people. You don't need to have me shoving a sponsor form in your face or getting you to come to N Dorset to watch but if you would be so kind as to visit the link below and make a donation I would be so very grateful.

http://localgiving.com/charity/theblurtfoundation

To all those who run with me at RATS then I am hoping to do a few fundraising Cake Bakes on a Tuesday evening at the Hut, so please look out for advance warnings of sugary delights being offered, with all donations and proceeds going towards The Blurt Foundation. As you may know already, I run purely to eat more cake :)))

TRELAWNY TREATS

This past week I have indulged in a long lunch and afternoon tea at Trelawny tearooms, both I hasten to add on different days. Vicky and Steve have converted their home to incorporate this wonderfully positioned oasis of cake heaven. It sits right opposite the beach at Widemouth Bay and is perfect for a light lunch or tea and cake whilst making the most of the proximity to the beach, no more sandy sandwiches yipppeeee!!!!

Avril and myself visited on Thursday for lunch which was just lovely, no children, just a chance to catch up on all the news. Avril did all the branding  for Steve and Vicky and it looks gorgeous. They serve tea in china cups and saucers, have a very beautiful cake trolley with the most divine glass cake stands on and to top it all they are filled with some delicious homemade cakes which only leaves one problem.....which cake to choose!!

For lunch I went for the French platter, the first thing that struck me was the price £4.95 for a platter – hang on a minute, shouldn’t that read £7.95? Avril went for the Lady Tea ( a cream tea) and I have to say I was surprised at the prices. After speaking to Steve and Vicky about the prices, they had already had comments along the lines of “these are 1979 prices!”  Their aim is to ensure that they get many repeat visits from locals and tourists alike, with these prices I will be shutting my kitchen and spending lunches and afternoons with them!!! Not sure how the waistline would cope with that but I could try couldn’t I??

The second visit was with my sister and her little ones and my two so a very different visit, all the same a big thumbs up from all of us. The children went home with chocolate covered mouths (and clothes!) after having had a wonderful run on the beach. They even offer blankets for you to make use of, which we did. The children had a picnic within the garden and I was able to enjoy a Lady tea as I had salivated over Avril’s on the Thursday!!!

A very food inspired week, what better way to fill a week I say! That just leaves me wondering how many extra miles I will need to run to run off that Lady tea but hey I don’t do this every week, or will I??!!