Well this is it!  Two more sleeps to the Virgin London Marathon.  I never thought that I'd ever be saying that, this is because I've never been a runner.  Fit people run marathons but not me!  But after months of training here I am coming together with thousands of other runners all doing their bit for charity.

My journey hasn't been an easy one, staying injury free has been a challenge in itself.  I sustained a calf tear on my left leg during the Robin Hood Half which took me 4 months to recover from.  Then just as my left leg got better my right side misbehaved.  Tight piriformis resulting in a tight sciatic nerve pain down my right side.

But the moral and practical support I have received has been amazing. Wendy Mallas (@wendywitwoo) on Twitter painted Jonny Wilkinson for me which raised an awesome £255.20 towards my target. At the time of this blog the fund stands at £1775.62 Woooohooo! So pleased for Barnardo's. 

Steve Bailey (@steve_jb) has been my training guru and has given me so much support and encouragement.  Well to be honest he whooped my ass and made me believe that I could do it and not to be scared.  He's given me some really sound advice, which I'll be eternally grateful for.  So thanks Steve, you're a star!

I'm travelling down to London tomorrow morning and will be making my way to the Expo early afternoon to register.  Very excited about this and filled with trepidation also.  This is my very first marathon!

As you know I'm running for Barnardos in memory of my son Joshua and I want to do him proud.  Every step will be for him.  No doubt finishing will be very emotional and exhausting, luckily I have my Dad and lovely Twitter friends meeting me at the end.  The weather reports have been mixed, some say 18 deg no rain and some say 22 deg with heavy rain.  Not sure what's going to happen!  I'm worried that my iPhone will get wet and that my sodden kit will rub my skin raw.  But I'll put those fears to one side and try to remain focused because it has to be done regardless.  I took some advice from my Twitter friends and bought some suncream.  So off I go, will let you know how I get on! Argh!  It's at times like this, when I say to myself  "why do you do such things, you crazy woman?!" 

See you after the big day!

Donna xx