The Pink Peril takes on the Elements

Hello all.

As I write today's blog I'm a very tired lady, having just run from the office to Windsor Great Park and back with Ron. It was so nice to have some company and support although he did make me do sprints all the way down the Long Walk!!! I'm sure I'll thank him for it on race day :-). For anyone who's not visited Windsor (and you should, its very nice) have a look at the link below and you'll see the long walk is a seemingly never-ending straight path with lots of hills, thanks George II.

http://www.windsor-berkshire.co.uk/the-long-walk/

Now there's only seven weeks to go until the London Marathon training is getting super tough! There really were no excuses for braving the horrible wind and rain on Sunday to complete a 14 mile run. Lots of puddles meant soggy feet all the way and it was so tempting to give up and go home but I persevered as the nerves about actually achieving the marathon distance are really setting in now. One of the things that kept me going was meeting the staff of Arbour Vale school last week, a Special Educational Needs school in Slough which directly benefits from the support AkzoNobel provide to send pupils to experience Outward Bound Trust courses.

For the children that are able to attend these courses, the experience really has a huge impact on their confidence and approach to life. We were told how the experience, in this case at the Aberdovey centre in beautiful Pembrokeshire, has such a positive impact on the pupils that they keep a photo of themselves at the centre on their desks as a reminder when they're struggling with challenges (whether physical or learning obstacles) in the school day they have a reminder of just how much they are capable of when they put their minds to it. Where pupils have behavioural issues taking part in teamwork challenges and helping their friends succeed has a hugely beneficial effect in helping them understand how to apply their energies positively, for some pupils the programme is so successful that just the possibility of being able to attend massively improves behaviour all year!

It was great to meet the staff and really understand how we're making a difference to people in the local community.

Of course without the support of charitable donations the Outward Bound Trust would not be able to run the centres at all, never mind have the highly trained and motivating staff that help schools like Arbour Vale be a part of it. Thanks so much to all of you who have supported me so far - your donations really will make a difference.

For any of my lovely colleagues, I hope you're looking forward to the bake sale this Friday. I'm planning lemon drizzle cake, fairy cakes and chocolate brownies, and due to popular demand Guy Cunningham's (wife's) homemade cookies will be back!


On another note, there looks to be another pink peril out there! Do you rekon she's been taking style tips from my blog? ;-)

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4139823/Jordan-news-Katie-Price-struggles-to-finish-Brighton-Half-Marathon.html