Catching up with crochet, running/asthma, gardening, life,..........

Where on earth do I begin? The days and weeks fly by don't they and then I realise that I haven't written anything for a couple of weeks! Shameful.

Crochet & other crafting (no knitting to show as I'm now well into secret Christmas knitting projects).

I started and finished the cuddle cocoon for Ann's new grand-daughter last week and it is so cute.  It's from this sweet book in the Annie's Attic series (I love the sweet little turquoise one with the tassle).  Ann chose the one with the teddybear ears on the top right on the back page.

I gave her 2 options for the tummy and outline bits - either a pale pink or a caramel, more bear-like colour which she chose.  The yarn is dmc Scachenmayr 'Molly' and it's all boucle and teddy bearish so I thought it would be perfect.  However, it was a bit of a stinker to crochet with as I couldn't see the stitches at all and it was a case of stick the hook in and hope for the best.

The first one I made to the pattern dimensions seemed too small so I re-did it with a bit more ease to make it a more comfy experience for baby as it's a very dense fabric.

This is what it looked like before the top trim and tummy were added.

Then I added the top edging and made the matching hat and ears.  Time to sew them all together.  The yarn band said to sew the ends in place and that was very wise as it's one of the yarns that unravels.

So here are all the bits waiting to be sewn together. 

Christmas, Christmas, so much to do. I've agreed to decorate another Christmas tree for the church to support their Xmas tree festival.  You may remember last year when I produced my crochet memories tree which was very well received. 

But what to do this year?  More crochet? Do I stick with the same theme or go for something new? Oh, I just can't make my mind up at the moment but I'm sure the solution will come to me eventually.

Running & Asthma

I've no more marathons this year now but I am training for a pb at the Brighton 10k in November.  I've been spurred on by my success on my birthday back in June when I ran a 10k in 53:41and I'd like to get closer to 50 minutes.

GULP!

In order to achieve this I am training really hard and doing lots of faster running.  Here's what I did this last week:

Monday:

Cross-training in the gym on the rower, exercise bike and mini trampoline with core strengthening exercises and some weights.

Tuesday:

Running on the treadmill. 2 miles warm-up then 10 x (.2 miles @ 8 minute miling with .1mile recoveries inbetween) then a cool-down. Total 6.5 miles.

Wednesday:

A very pleasant cross-country run of 7 miles.  No pressure on the pace.

Thursday:

A tempo run (which is like a speed sandwich with a couple of miles at a gentle pace then a faster section in the middle before another slower section to finish off) on the treadmill. I do most of my speedwork on the treadmill as it's rather undulating/hilly round our home and I can't maintain my chosen pace. 2 miles warm-up then 2.5 miles @ 8.5 minute milling then cool-down. Total 5.5 miles.

Friday:

As Monday.

Saturday:

A hilly 4.5 mile route.

Sunday:

9 miles at a slower pace.

Total mileage for the week 32.5.  My base mileage is around 25 - 30 miles a week and then when I'm doing my marathon training I increase it up to around 50 miles a week.

I've also been playing around with my asthma medication as I'm not happy taking such a high level and have found no difference in how I feel with the lower level.  I still struggle on the uphills sometimes and I still get gunky when I do faster running although I've found it isn't as bad if I do a longer warm-up section.

Gardening etc

I have so many wonderful photos to upload but I've run out for time and will have to put them into another post. For now, here are a few images that I love.

Giant spike of yukka flowers

Rain-drops on the leaves of Melianthus Major

Beautiful red tufts of Pennisetum setaceum

The ghostly white stems of Rubus Cockburnianus Goldenvale

Must dash!