This day I love.......: tour

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Although it was my daughters birthday yesterday I decided to treat her again tonight. Her Grandparents for her birthday have bought her a fitbit and at the moment she likes to find out how many steps she can do in a day. Imagine her delight when I told her that tonight we would be walking with dinosaurs. Only she thought we were actually going for a walk with them.

After explaining what was actually happening she got over the disappointment of not actually walking with them and began to get excited about the show itself. As we sat in the arena waiting for the show to start we could hear the roars of the dinosaurs echoing around us. Little Man heard them too and kept asking where the dinosaurs where.

Not knowing what to expect I wasn't really sure if Little Man would fully understand what was happening but he was completely captivated. He kept asking when they would come again. The girls listened as they were told many interesting dinosaur facts and watched with fascination as they were brought to life.

My youngest daughter kept asking if they were real. They were incredibly realistic, although I haven't actually met a dinosaur it is how I would imagine them to be. I was worried we might not be able to see but actually we saw so much detail even from sitting half way up the arena. Little Man was on the edge of his seat the entire night and got quite angry when the interval came on.

The show takes you on a discovery across the dinosaurs. Following evolution and how they changed and adapted through time. I found it really interesting to listen to and actually learnt quite a lot. The first half is 38 minutes followed by a 20 minute interval and a 42 minute second half. It honestly flew past and none of us wanted to leave our seats at the end.

We saw so many different types of dinosaurs. Ones I had never heard of before and of course everyone's favourite T-Rex made an appearance.

If you have chance to see the show I would highly recommend doing so. My 2 year old absolutely loved it, he was utterly captivated the entire evening. He knows nothing about dinosaurs! The girls also enjoyed the performance and I loved watching all the facts come to life. There was something for the whole family to enjoy. I also don't think I shall look at a bird the same way ever again.

We were invited to review the show and provided with tickets. All words are my own opinion.

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Well April [and almost May] seems to have just flown by so quickly! I really am trying to keep on top of these running updates.

The 1st April was a Saturday which can only mean 1 thing, parkrun! I took this one steady and recorded one of my slowest times of the year, but also at the same time it was one of the most enjoyable as me and my running buddy just simply had a laugh and giggle all the way round. Sometimes those are the best runs!

Junior parkrun follows on a Sunday and when the girls run I volunteer, usually with Little Man strapped to me. My youngest daughter was running for her half marathon band, and my eldest running for her marathon band. Unfortunately my eldest fell over and grazed her hip which meant she did not finish.

In sympathy for my daughter on Monday night club run I also fell over, well I was pushed by a certain person who later tried to shove me in front of a moving car, I continued with club run and am still plotting my revenge. [it's all in good fun!]

The rest of the week saw some steady 5Ks with the pushchair and the dog in tow, and a very clingy little man who was not too happy about running. This resulted in several runs getting aborted only a few kms into the run.

One such run resulted in a treadmill session once Little Man napped. J watches me on the treadmill and seems to have a very confused look as I run. As soon as I finish though he jumps onto the end of the treadmill! I am trying to work on both my speed and cardio fitness and one of the ways I am looking to do this is with a few more treadmill sessions.

I had set myself a target time of 30minutes at parkrun the following Saturday and fell just short with a time of 30.06. I am going to blame the rather fantastic injury to my side from the 'fall' earlier in the week.

My youngest daughter was awarded her half marathon wrist band at junior parkrun and my eldest completed her marathon ready to be awarded her marathon band next time. After volunteering again at junior parkrun we made a 45 minute journey over to York to support my club in the Vale of York 10. I think it important to show the girls the importance of a team and that supporting and encouraging your team members and friends is a very important role to undertake.

The next two weeks saw us on our holiday in Orlando Florida! We walked over 20,000 steps every day, I think our lowest step day was 18,000! I did however take my running kit with me and managed a couple of 5K runs. I had to get up very early as by 8am it was just too hot to run! It wasn't the best place for running and I would just run around the hotel and the nearby shopping outlet. Still a run is a run!

One thing the Americans do know how to do is organise a race! I took part in Lake Nona Pig run whilst there and it was one of the best organised races I have every done! A 5km race which at 3.5km you enter a 'pig pen'. Here you have to enter an assigned number of donuts before completing the race. Some people had 12 donuts assigned to them!

I absolutely loved this race. Everything from the atmosphere, to the organisation to the course itself and I will be writing it more in detail soon. Even the medal is fantastic!

Both girls had a fantastic time too, free popcorn, free candy floss and they even completed a fun run which my eldest won! At the end of their race they were awarded with donuts and a medal, I think possibly one of their favourite races to date too!

I had tried desperately and failed to get a place in the runDisney Star wars event. It is on my bucket list of races and I really would have loved to have taken part. As the week progressed the set up for the race began to take place and it began to really hit home that I wasn't running it. One year I will.

Our holiday finished with a Disney cruise. On board the cruise ship is a running track and I loved waking up early to watch the sunrise as I ran around the ship. It was hard work. Passing the engine room at one end with a strong smell of fuel, one side of the ship had such strong headwinds that crew members were stationed on deck to make sure no one went over board but it was just beautiful. The sunrises in the Bahamas over the ocean are like no other. The boat fast asleep, slowly becoming more and more alive as the morning progressed. I felt so lucky to witness the sunrise each morning

Our final day on board and once again an early start. This time however on shore and a very wet 5km. Castaway 5km is a 5km run around Disney very own private island. The weather was not kind. The heavens opened up and there was a very heavy downpour. There were people running in plastic Dinsey Ponchos, and there was me in my t shirt thinking it felt just like home. I actually found it harder to run on the flat in the heat and the rain, than I do running at home with the hills. At least an up hill has a downhill! I simply went out and had fun and although struggled at first to get a pace, I found it easy to pick out certain parts of the course which broke down the route. Whatever I did worked because I ran my first Sub 30 5km!

Monday and Tuesday that week involved Jet lag and travelling so my first run was a 5 mile road race for the road league. I would love to write about what happened but in all honesty I cannot remember the race. I was unbelievably jet lagged. I have no idea what the course was. I have no idea of the weather. I was just so tired. All I can remember is wanting to sleep, and my legs just moving!

The next morning I went for a run with my best mate but even that had to be abandoned as Little Man decided he did not want to be in his pushchair! The weeks running just went out the window!

Friday was another day travelling this time to conference in London. I had located a parkrun close to the hotel for Saturday. I had a nice 2 mile warm up run to parkrun and ran my first tourist parkrun. I had wanted to get my first 50 parkrun at my home run, but I could not go without my parkrun fix. I think 1 tour is allowed right?

It was a lovely flat course with views of the Olympic stadium and I even got a PB! I was super happy and a great way to start a Saturday. Realising just how close the Olympic stadium actually was was an opportunity I could not turn down. Sunday morning I got up early and ran to the Olympic stadium and around the grounds. I liked the view better on this side of the rings before anyone comments!

I ended April on a huge high with a 5k PB, my first sub 30 5K and ready for the marathon training to begin!

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My girls can name all the Marvel super heroes. They love to dress up as Iron Man and play Super Heroes. Their love comes from their Dad and his love of Marvel, and having given the nursery a super hero theme, it is clear we are a Marvel family.

Imagine my excitement when I receive an email informing me of Marvel Universe Live! For the first time ever, iconic Marvel Super Heroes and villains will be brought to life in a spectacular live action family arena show, when Marvel Universe LIVE! Super Heroes Assemble touches down in the UK this September.

This show is taking the live entertainment experience to a whole new level, with an epic show unlike anything seen before. Bringing together the largest assembly of Marvel characters in a live production, audiences will be able to watch some of their favourite Marvel Super Heroes step out of the silver screen and onto the stage - bringing the action to life right before their eyes.

Everyone will be able to cheer for their favourite Marvel Super Heroes, including Spider-Man, Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, Black Widow and more, as they battle Loki and Marvel’s most sinister villains in a live, action-packed arena performance for the whole family. It’s being hailed as the most technically advanced live show ever, with cutting-edge special effects, pyrotechnics, aerial stunts, martial arts, motorcycles and more.

From the creative team that brings you such arena spectaculars as Disney On Ice, Feld Entertainment Inc, the world’s leading producer of touring live entertainment is excited to announce the UK tour of Marvel Universe LIVE! This arena stunt spectacular will be swinging into six major UK cities - Nottingham, London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Sheffield and Manchester – for an electrifying run of over 40 shows that have already entertained almost 2 million families in over 65 US cities to date in its first tour.

Featuring over 50 cast members and taking over two years to research and develop, Marvel Universe LIVE! utilises some of the latest innovations in arena set design and aerial pyrotechnics, with stunts developed by the team from Hollywood blockbuster, Thor, and the recent The Amazing Spider-Man films. The set includes innovative lighting design, transformative 3D projection, 21 projectors, the largest flying system ever used for a live arena tour and the debut of a new Spotlight Tracking System.

Marvel Universe LIVE! begins its quest across the UK on Thursday 8th September 2016 at Motorpoint Arena Nottingham, before visiting The 02 in London; Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham; the SSE Hydro Arena in Glasgow; Sheffield Arena and Manchester Arena.

The website features the complete list of UK tour dates and fans can check the latest news and announcements via social media:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MarvelOnTour

Twitter: @MarvelOnTour

Instagram (@MarvelOnTour)

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We are very lucky that when we found out we were expecting Thing3 that we had enough bedrooms. It did mean that I had to give up my office, but this has now been relocated. My office walls were decorated recently in Graham and Brown wallpaper and it was decided that rather than removing the paper we would instead paint over the top to brighten up the room.

I wanted to keep the nursery neutral as we do not know if Thing3 is male or female and I settled on Ammonite and Dimpse, from Farrow and Ball, for the walls. These colours both have soft natural hints to them and as this is a little room I thought it would be perfect for adding in light. Dimpse has a subtle grey tone to it and Ammonite has more a natural fossil colour. I felt the two would compliment each other really well.

I was really pleased that the paint covered the walls well and only needed one coat. Farrow and Ball paint has a real luxurious touch to it, which you can see when you paint. I wanted to ensure a good coverage over the wallpaper and therefore Farrow and Ball was the paint of choice. In certain lights the walls change colour slightly, with the feature wall becoming darker and the other walls becoming closer to white and then sometimes grey. I think it depends on the light from the window and if in natural light or artificial light. I love these subtle changes to the room. The room feels really warm and welcoming, and the natural tones on the walls add a calming effect to the room.

The carpet in the room was the original black carpet from when we moved in. This has been in need of replacing for some time and converting the space into a nursery seemed the optimum moment to do so. I settled for a hardwood floor, as it is much easier to keep clean, plus it is then in keeping with the rest of the house. Once the flooring had been laid it was a case of adding in the furniture.

The room has a fitted wardrobe, so all that was needed was a cot and chest of drawers. The drawers I already had, and the cot we painted from a second had cot which I bought online. I made sure it met all current safety standards and had the required stamps before purchasing. It looks brand new and I am so pleased with it.

There was originally a sofa in my office and I decided to keep this in the nursery for night feeds. We all love superheroes in our house and I thought this, along with Dr Seuss would be perfect for the theme for the nursery. I came across a batman cushion online and knew the second I saw it that it had to be in the nursery.

I had had a canvas shopping bag which the handles broke from Cosatto and by sticking velcro in the top I converted it to a cushion cover. Perfect for the nursery. The sofa has been used to create a reading corner. We have a real love for books and reading in our house and we are hoping Thing3 develops this same love. As this is only a small room I purchased a tidy books book case in white to help display all the wonderful books for Thing3. The girls both have tidy book cases which I have also purchased for them and they take up very little floor space, along with giving easy access to the books.

The girls have their scan pictures displayed on the walls in their bedrooms, and I found the hanging frame in Asda in the sale. It is the perfect size for adding scan pictures to.