. nearly spring .

this time last week i was looking forward to running my first hAlf mArathon & to enjoying a wonderful weekend in brightOn . this week i'm looking forward to travelling a little further afield . i feel so lucky that next week i'll be flying out to hOng kOng & then this time next week will be arriving in brisbane to enjoy some time in australia . i'm not sure that excited quite covers it . although i'll be working in hong kong i'll also be catching up with friends & taking a little bit of time out . & then australia will be the first holiday i've had in a very very long time . meeting family . travelling around . seeing the sights . enjoying the sea, sand & sunshine .

but before i go i'll leave you with another little freebie dOwnload . say hello to mArch & next months calendar for you to download & use & abuse as you wish !

. mArch 2015 .

although i'll be enjoying the end of summer when i'm down under it's so lovely to think that when i come back home spring will be here . & . easter won't be too far away . lots to look forward to .

. have a fAbulous last day of february .

. brighton rOcks . partTwo .

i've been really lucky to travel a lot with the job that i do . & i've been lucky enough to stay in some gorgeous hotels around the world . unfortunately this has left me a little bit fussy when it comes to choosing places to stay for my own trips . brighton seemed full of chic little boutique b&b's but i know from grim experience that not everyone's idea of ' boutique ' is my idea of ' boutique ' so it was with finger's crossed that i booked ' the white house ' for our stay in brighton . 

on-line it looks like everything i'd ideally want in a b&b . modern . clean . simple but stylish . cole&son & marimekko wallpapers . orla kiely bath & body products . a lovely sounding breakfast menu . 

and

it didn't disappoint . sean is a lovely host . unassuming & accommodating . friendly & attentive . all in just the right way . 

and

neither did brighton itself disappoint . part of my reasons for choosing to run my first hAlf mArathon in brighton was due to me wanting an excuse / reason to visit the town . whilst i may not have had quite as much time as i'd have liked to look around, it was enough to know that i would love to go back again in the summer to see more . i popped by the pAvillion & the museum . & then, i should confess, i got waylaid for a little while in the royal pavillion tearooms . coffee & the loveliest slice of caramel cake . well, come on, i had just run 13.1miles !

a stroll back along the front by the pier & the wheel & then a cheeky afternoon tea at the wonderfully retro metro-deco cafe . a delicious end to a fabulous weekend .

. brighton .

. can't wait to see you again .

. have a lovely day .

. brighton rOcks . partOne .

hEllo all . sO brighton is now behind me but i wanted to share some of the lovely things i spotted whilst i was down there . on the way down we stopped at lewes a gorgeous little town just outside brighton . first stop was lunch at the needlemakers, which has been wonderfully converted into a little haven of independent shops & a cafe whose menu left me completely spoilt for choice & cakes which left me drooling !

of all the shops there my favourite has to be mary's . a tiny little shop crammed full of old fashioned sweeties, hand made pottery, cute screen prints, cards & all sorts of things that make you want to hand over your purse on the way in . 

downstairs was the aladdin's cave that is revive-all . an amazing collection of books from my childhood, shelves of enid blyton's, shelves of teacups & crockery, rails of vintage clothes, purses & jewellery, the kind of shop you could get lost in for the whole day & still not have seen everything .

a wander into the town via the famous lewes flea market & a last cup of tea in lewesiana before heading off into brighton just in time to catch the sun setting over the pier . . .

. lOvely lewEs .

. have a rOcking good day .

. the rOad to brightOn .

today i run my first half marathon . if you are reading this between 9am & 11:30ish then i will be running & counting down those 13.1miles to the finish line . it's not quite yet a year since i first put on my trainers & dared to step outside the front door to take that first run & i can't quite believe how far i've come in such a short space of time .

running has become a real passion for me . i know it's good for me . i know it's made me into a healthier person . it makes me a happy person . in a lot of ways it fulfils the part of me that is very goal oriented . with running you can always aim to go further . or faster . or both !

running has led me to meet some amazingly supportive people on the rUnning bUg & make new friends that understand that passion for running . it's also made me realise what amazing friends i have already . they have patiently allowed me to ramble on about how many miles i've run . where i've run . what i wore when i ran . what i ate when i ran . and on . and on . & have had nothing but amazing words of encouragement & support . 

& lastly, through entering the brightOn half marathon running has allowed me to raise an lOvely amount of money for mAcmillan cAncer .

so if you are reading this between 9am & 11:30ish give me a little thought . i'll be looking to that road ahead . putting one foot in front of the other . knowing that i've trained for this . prepared for this . shushing that little voice in my head that's telling me it's hard & my legs hurt . & listening to the great big voice in my head that reminding me of how far i've come & isn't this just the most incredible feeling .

. 13point1 .

. have a happy & healthy day .

. update .

where do i start . what an incredible experience . i feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to do this . to have been able to have the time to train for this . to stay free from injury . & to make the most of my first hAlf mArathon . i was so nervous up until the run started . i started running with a huge smile on my face & enjoyed every single minute . even those minutes when my legs were begging me to stop ! i'd had a time in mind that i wanted to achieve . if i could have ran a time of 2:10:00 i would have been thrilled . so to run my first hAlf in a time of 2:00:59 { yaAaaaaaay } was just the icing on top of the cake & i don't think i've stopped smiling since .

the biggest thankyOu to the amazing crowds in brighton who came out & cheered all the runners on . a thankyOu to the amazing organisation of the whole event, all the volunteers, & from me a big thankyOu to the girls in the Macmillan marquee who were just so incredibly lovely & generous to all the team Macmillan runners .

. i run for bling .

. so now onwards to birmingham .

. yEllow . & . grEy .

a quick post today . i'm busy getting ready for a weekend away as i'm running my first ever half marathon in brIghton on sunday . eeeek ! what have i let myself in for !  anyhow, more of that to come next week .

i've been eagerly keeping an eye on the forecast, hoping & praying for some sunshine . well, ok, maybe that's a bit much to hope for in england in february . but lets at least hope for a dry day . at the moment it's looking like sunshine { yay ! } with a chance of showers { boo ! } . so with that as inspiration for some looks for spring for your little ones i'll leave you with some lovely picks in yellow & grey .

. 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7 . 8 . 9 . 10 .

. yellow . & . grey .

. hope your day is more sunshine than showers .

. counting shEep .

tomorrow is chinese new year . so a very happy new year to any peeps popping in that are celebrating & welcoming in 2015 . the year of the sheep . or is it the year of the goat . sheep . goat . sheep . or . goat . i think i'm going to stick with sheep . a little bit cuter & far easier to write a blOg post about fluffy white sheep don't you think ?

so here are a few of my favourite pinterest picks sharing the love for those shEep . 

. 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7 . 8 . 9 . 10 . 11 .

. white . fluffy . woolly .

or

. are you the blAck sheep ?

. see more on my pinterest board .

. happy chinese new year .

&

. happy year of the sheep .

. be random { ly } kind .

well after a week full of lOve are we all lOved out ?  i hope not . surely you can never have enough lOve ? so lets keep spreading the love shall we . last week was random acts of kindness week & tomorrow is random acts of kindness day . take a look here to find out how you can become a #RAKtivist & lets keep spreading lots more love & kindness about . & why not start tomorrow as it's random acts of kindness day ? bake a cake for someone . smile at people . pay someone an unexpected compliment . send a surprise gift to friends . or be a little bit more secretive in your kindness & print out these little notes of kindness to pin around your workplace . your town . cut out the notecards & leave in random places . pop them into books in the library . leave them in coffee shops . or just pop one in the post to someone to make them smile .

. lOve .

. smile .

. random words of kindness .

. lovely . happy . smiley .

. have a very kind day .

. lOve . heArt .

friday already . vAlentine's dAy tomorrow . & . if you're still looking for inspiration for that perfect present you could do worse than bake up a batch of these vAlentine's sugar cookies .

. sweet . & . sugary . & . pink . & . pretty rainbow sprinkles .

. bAke them .

. & .

. give them to someone you lOve .

. have a sprinkle filled day .