not just a pretty face

The Gwen Lattimer Prize 2011 for Attitude and Sevice was awarded to Polly this morning. As well as bringing home a book token she also has a certificate with a citation extolling her virtues. If you don't mind, I will share it with you.

"for the positive attitude she adopts to all aspects of school life, earning her the respect of her peers and staff alike; for her contribution to charity, completing a bike ride to raise money for Japan, as well as helping wheelchair users at the hospital; for her constant determination to succeed academically at school, never giving less than her best; for her frequent involvement in extra-curricular activities, including being a school librarian."


Mr Hamilton, Head of Year, also praised her maturity and said what an exceptional person she is and a real asset to the year group.  Big smiles all round, and many congratulations to Polly.

edinburgh great run

Next Sunday I will be running 10 km (6.25 miles) through the streets of Edinburgh! The race is the Edinburgh Great Run and the course goes through the ancient (and hilly!) heart of the city as well as Holyrood Park. From what I can see there will be bands playing in another park (The Meadows) and between 7K and 8K we will be running past Edinburgh Castle.

I have received my race number: 9362 if you happen to be tuned in to Channel 5 where the whole event will be covered from 9.30 am!

Cumbria Wheelchair Sports Club does a great deal to promote sports for disabled people, including basketball, tennis, athletics and rugby. The costs of providing sports chairs for athletes to use is high so if you could sponsor me, the money would be put to really good use and I know a lot of people who would be happy to have better, faster chairs!

welcome, gabriel!

Living in the far north of England whilst much of my extended family are much further south means that we have got used to driving long distances for short breaks. Last weekend I think we set a record even for ourselves, going to London and back (660 miles) in about 32 hours! We left home on Saturday afternoon and were treated to a slap-up meal in Amersham the same evening. Chris made us most welcome and we spent a really comfortable night at his house. The little red Fiat proved its mettle by continuing on Sunday morning through central London and over the Vauxhall Bridge to Brixton. The beautifully lit Corpus Christi church saw Gabriel christened before we all made our way to Sarah and Simon's home for a very relaxed and nourishing late lunch in excellent company! It was really lovely to see everyone and to catch up with the ever expanding family.

digging the dirt

The dirt I mean is actually premium quality topsoil from our garden. This has been tipped and skipped and carried away today, leaving a gaping hole outside the back door. And it gives us a much better idea of the size of the space our extension will take. Mouser was quite spooked by the change in her preferred hunting ground and was unimpressed when the digger knocked down the old conservatory walls in more or less one piece.

Another couple of skips arrived this evening and all the remaining soil and rubble will go into them. The weather was good enough today - despite some heavy showers this morning - and we hope it will be tomorrow too.