Friday 9th October

Friday 9th October

As I have never been up a mountain before and, as you all know, I'm walking up Ben Nevis, Andy and I decided to walk up Snowdon to get a taste of what I have let myself in for.

On Friday the 9th Andy dropped me off at work at 7 in the morning and came back at 2.30 to pick me up and we were off. Andy was very quiet all the way up there but, hey, it was a long day so we were both tired.

We got to the hotel at 10.30 pm and went straight to sleep. When we got up we both decided that we were going to take our time and not rush. We just wanted to see how much work we both have to do.

We had breakfast and started walking at about 11. When we started walking it was raining and foggy but kind of nice and cool. When we had been walking for about an hour the weather started to clear and the sun came out.

We walked for about 2½ hours and I started to get tired so we decided to stop for lunch. Andy gave me my drink and was fiddling around with his bag.

Andy then came up next to me got down on one knee with a little box. He told me he loved me, that he loves spending time with me, that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me and will I marry him. Of course I said yes, so you guessed it we're engaged.

I phoned my mum and dad, and my sister was there, so told her as well. Then called my brother and his wife, who I have to say didn’t answer, I then called my best friend Dani who again didn’t answer (but I knew she wouldn't as she was away for the weekend as well) I then called my other best friend who was there and everyone was so excited for us. While I was making all my phone calls Andy sent his family a text just saying she said, “Yes”. I know that’s what he said because he sent it to me as well.

Well, back to Snowdon. It took us 2½ hours to get up as far as we did, but it took us 2 hours to get back, and I only fell over once. When we got back to the bottom again I was feeling tired but I wasn’t in pain, which I think was very good considering it was the first mountain I have ever climbed.

We came back on Sunday and all in all it was a very good weekend, a weekend I think Andy and I will never forget. So when you read this Andy - Thank you so much and I love you.

I will keep everyone informed with anything else exciting going on in my life.

Tuesday 22nd September

Tuesday 22nd September

Before we went on holiday Andy and I had decided to join a gym. We went around lots of gyms and we both decided the best gym for me was Virgin Active, which happens to be where Rob works.

We felt this was the right one because I feel they will give me the right support to help me reach my goals. It helps because Rob worked there, as he knows what I want, what I need to work on and, as I said, just gives me the right support.

So I joined the gym on Tuesday the 22nd September but I couldn’t do anything until Rob had shown me what I could use and how to use it. So as I was waiting to finish work on Tuesday the 29th I had a phone call from Rob saying he had someone cancel on him and would I like to come in. So of course I said yes.

I went home, got changed and headed straight to the gym. I was really nervous about going because I really wasn’t sure what I was going to do.

When I arrived Rob was waiting so we went straight in. It was going well but then Rob gets me on a big ball. He told me to sit on it and then lift my right let up and turn my ankle around, so I give it a go and nearly fall off backwards. It got to the point where Rob has to hold me for me to be able to do it.

Well I did it and I thought I had finished with the ball until Rob took me over to one of the machines with the ball. Rob gave me lots of weight-type things to do sitting on the ball. This meant I sounded like a monkey the whole time, trying to stay on the ball and Rob spent the whole time trying to keep me on the ball. It was very funny and I felt very, very stupid.

I’m sure it's going to do me a lot of good, but its going to take time seeing all that without seeing how stupid I looked at first.

I have been to the gym a couple of times since that night, and to be honest I have chickened out of doing anything thing in the gym and have just gone swimming.

I know I need to do it, but I just need to get a bit more confidence. I am going to get in touch with Rob to see if he can help me, and I will let you know how I get on.

Friday 18th September

Friday 18th September

Well Friday came and I was still feeling good, so we decided to go for another walk. We walked back down to Talland Bay.

When we got down there, we saw a sign saying, Looe 3 miles or Polperro 1½ , so we talked about it and of course we started to walk to Polperro.

When we had been walking for about a mile there was another sign to Polperro saying another 2 miles, which we didn’t think was very fair but we kept on walking down the coast road.

Again, when we had been walking for about 2 miles, there was another sign saying 1 mile, all Andy and I could do was laugh. What we didn’t know was once you get into Polperro you still have to walk another mile to get into town.

By the time we got into Polperro I was dead, but still not in pain. I was so tired, we stopped for lunch, which I was happy about. After we had eaten I still didn’t have any energy so Andy decided to go back to Talland Bay to pick up the car.

I walked up to the main road and found a good spot to stop for Andy to pick me up. I was expecting to wait for over an hour, so I got comfortable and started to read my book. I had only been waiting for 1/2 hour when Andy turned up, 1/2 of me was happy he had got there so quick but the other 1/2 was gutted that it had taken me 2 or 3 hours to get to Polperro and it had taken him 1/2 hour to get back to the car and be in Polperro to pick me up.

That made me reaslise that I had a lot of work to do, maybe too much work. But, hey, I didn’t think this was going to be easy, and I can't say I'm up for anything and not mean it. This is my time to show me and everyone around me what I can do.

Thursday 17th September.

Thursday 17th September.

Well, as you may be able to tell I'm a bit behind in writing my blog, but just to keep you up to date:

On Saturday the 12th September Andy and I went away with Andy's family to Looe for a week. There was 7 of us.

The place we stayed in was lovely. We were in an old converted stables called Wayland Farms, which is in between Looe and Polperro. Andy and I had planned to do a lot of walking, but it didn’t really work out that way. We spent the first part of the week seeing friends and family in that area, which was really nice, but we didn't get much training in.

Well finally, on Thursday, we decided to go for a 12 mile bike ride, from Wakebridge to Padstow. It was all a long a trailway, which was lovely. We followed the river all the way to Padstow, which was great because it was flat all the way.

On the way back, I did start to get tired and Andy had to push some of the way. But in my defence it was the first time I had been cycling with my knee brace on. But apart from that, I think we both really enjoyed it. Don’t worry I do have some photos of it for you all to enjoy with me.

When we got back to the cottage we both had a little rest and then got ready to go for a walk and get dinner out. When we started to walk we did talk about walking to Looe or Polperro but because I was still a bit achey from my bike ride we decided to walk to Talland Bay.

Talland Bay was only a mile or so down the road.. When we got down there, there was a little café doing a BBQ which we thought was nice but we wanted to see what else there was, so we carried on walking.

We walked another mile down the road to the other café that was there. When we arrived it was closed but there was a sign saying there was a Talland Bay Hotel about another mile up the road. So we decided to walk to it, as I walked up there I was feeling fine, my body ached, but I was fine. When we got up to the hotel we realised it was very, very expensive and we both weren’t dressed for it, so guess what - we had to walk back to the first café we passed.

When we got to the café we both had a really nice dinner sat by the bay watching the sun set. Then we realised that, although it was lovely to watch the sun set, it meant we had to walk back in the dark. We did think about calling someone to see if they could come and pick us up, but after a lot of talking we decided to walk back.

Half way home I thought my back was going to give out but I kept on walking. By the time we got back I felt really good. I was so proud of my self for everything I had done with my bike ride as well as going for a walk, and I was so happy I wasn't in pain.

So I went to bed that night feeling great and excited to see what else I can do.

Sunday 16th August

Now I just have to say before I said I was going to walk up Ben Nevis Andy and I went for a walk from Lychett to Morden to go to the Cock and Bottle and back again.

Well that was the plan anyway!

The further we got away from Lychett the harder I found the walk. At one point Andy and I didn’t think I was going to make it. I had to stop every 5 minutes and my back was causing me a lot of pain, but I did make it and Andy didn't have to carry me. Although we did have to get Kevin and Lou to come and pick us up and take us back to my car.

So back to Sunday the 16th August. As I have been doing a lot of walking I wanted to give this walk another go. I promised myself I would be able to finish this time.

So we were off and this time I really enjoyed the walk, I was feeling a lot better this time around than last time. We even had time to have a photo taken which, of course, you can already see at the top of the page.

The closer we got to the Cock and Bottle the more Andy and I could see how much better I had got and I was so pleased with myself. As we walked around the corner and saw the pub I was so pleased that I was still walking and not in pain.

We had a really nice lunch, talked to some people we knew in the pub, and then started to make our way back to Lychett.

Now this is where it didn’t really go according to plan. As we started walking, my back started to hurt. We didn't even get half way back and we had to turn around and get a lift back to the car again.

I was really upset that once again I didn't make it back, but, as Andy said, I can't expect to just be able to walk as far as I want straight away, if I could I would be doing Ben Nevis straight away and not giving myself a year to train.

So, yes, I didn't make it back and I had to get Allison to take us back to our car. I will be trying that walk again soon and I will make it back next time.

When I give it a go again you will be the first to know how I do, but all I can say is wish me luck.