2020 what a year

Well we are at the end of 2020 and it has been a hell of a year. Whilst it has been tough and we have had to fundamentally change how we go about our daily lives, we have overcome every challenge. I want to finish the year off by reflecting on what I was able to do during 2020 rather than what I couldn't do.... it's all about perspective 

January 

I was lucky enough to be the parkrun run director on the 1st Jan, which was the day that Hanley parkrun achieved a new finishers record of 507, with our tail walker finishing in 54:16, we have just enough time to pack everything away and shoot off to Newcastle "the Wammy parkrun", also reported their highest number of finishers at 674 (it is very flat you know).  Finally got my new turbo trainer set up in the dining room and started pedalling.  We
celebrated my birthday at the Manchester Beer and Wine Festival and with a night out in Manchester to boot. 

February 

Was about running and working, I had started a new contract with Staffordshire and Stoke CCGs, it was lovely catching up with old colleagues and meeting my new colleagues. We had a baby shower for Emily, it was lovely to see the girls again and we managed to keep it a secret and Emily was truly surprised. The planets aligned and parkrun day also fell on the 29th February, so I proposed to Sean... we take this opportunity to run on this momentous day.

March 

I made a last minute decision to run Stafford half, as there was a couple of running buddies already signed up and I thought why not, its not a bad course and there was no pressure on time. I'm still not a fan of the race finishers t-shirts but do love a good medal! I dug out my sewing machine and started to make my own masks and we moved the trainer from the dining room into the garage, which meant we could have our first ladies lunch. We celebrated Sean's birthday and welcome baby Mia to our group.

April - May

My role changed slightly to support the local COVID response, which was both really challenging but very rewarding to feel I was making a small difference. The weather was lovely warm sunny and blue-skied days, which meant a lot of the jobs in the garden could get done and running in the Sun is always fun. Sean found a novel way to stop his bike and in the process also required a trip to the walk-in centre and now needs a new bike 🤦🏻‍♀️ 

The sun was still shining, the skies still blue and we celebrated VE Day with our neighbours in a socially distance fashion, which was lovely. parkrun bingo was a thing and I did it! I took advantage of the lovely weather, our new sail and moved to outside working briefly... It was too hot and the laptop couldn't take. 

June - July - August 

These were a bit of blur, but the weather was still fantastic and we were getting plenty of use out of our lovely new back garden and enjoyed soaking up the sun. Trying out new recipes and finally getting a hair cut!! I got to meet Mia and Emily, Jen and Liz in the park, which was lovely to see their faces in person.  We also took a long walk around Bakewell!!

Sept-Oct- Nov

We brought a campervan and managed to get a week away touring around the Lakes, Carlisle and Scarborough and getting to know the latest member of our family, Vincent!  We also got another week away in October down to Devizes, the weather had finally turned and October was rather damp and a little chilly.  We brought a fantastic awing for Vincent, which was nice and roomy and although larger it was much easier to put up and they're no more disagreements.  We visited Bournemouth, Bristol and Bath, out of the three I much preferred Bath. In November we took Vincent out for another trip this time it was only 

Dec

Well December and the holiday season has been quiet, but I have managed to smash my 2020 running and cycling goal. I'm not going to lie training has not been fun this last could of months, my mojo has taken a bit of nose dive. This year I decided to run up to Christmas Day and I even got to run a couple of these with Sean when he let me.  Christmas was quiet, with two zoom calls with both families, which was nice and might be the future!  

Anyway I have had a blast, it might not have been the year I would have chosen, but it is the year we got dealt and I played my part, not only as part of the local COVID efforts but also by keeping my distance and washing my hands at every opportunity!  

Here's looking to a much improved 2021