Update Mon 16th Oct.  Did it ! 4 hrs 45 min not spectacular but fine for a chunky monkey - I ran 26.2 miles. Amazing experience.  Had a bug the week before, and it was touch-and-go whether I started or not. Started well and gently, but felt terrible in the middle third.  Then saw family and friends at 20 miles and picked up.  Must have been very annoying to those I passed as I was on cloud nine.  Even sprinted to finish - in a certain fashion.  Great to finish in the Millennium Stadium - rugby heaven - even with a pansyball pitch marked out.

Now raised over £ 2600 - brilliant. Thankyou so much for generosity and support.

May CCS continue to be well supported - they do a fantastic job.  Thanks to friend Jane,  my monkeys and their grandma and grandpa on the day. And to Esther, who did as much of a "marathon" as I did by getting me there. Next ..?

Update Fri 13th Oct: Nearly £ 2500 in total - thanks so much to all.  I feel I owe quite a few people drinks and favours - everyone has been so generous and supportive.  Not superstitious, oh no, but being very careful today... My back is a little sore, and I'm hoping I've fought off the last of a bug by tomorrow.  Feeling sluggish and bloated as I'm not allowed to exercise much before Sunday, and I have to drink gallons of water.  I heard that the incredible Paula Radcliffe, now approx 6 months pregnant, is "just doing some jogging and cross-training each day" but still manages to run 10 km in 40 min, and normally runs about twice as fast as me.  Very humbling....  Will try to update this page asap when back from Cardiff. TTFN

Update Tues 3rd Oct: Wow ! around £ 1400 (incl Gift Aid and offline donations) so far - thanks.  Let's push this figure up as far as poss for those littlun's who deserve our help.  Training is going well and I'm managing to eat enough food :) .  The back is on the mend thanks to some good treatment.  Thanks for the great comments below - plasters are at the ready, as is a frightening quantity of vaseline.  Can't wait for a curry and a Kingfisher afterwards.

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Main Text:Thank you for visiting my fundraising page. Please, please dig deep and sponsor me online.

Many children in the U.K. are placed in care and waiting for adoption. Whilst the recognised best option is for these children to stay with their family of origin, this is not always possible, and so new, adoptive parents are sought.  Until these children are placed for adoption, their lives are in limbo.  These children will not have had the things in life that most of us take for granted.  Through no fault of their own, their early years may have been very difficult and uncertain. They surely deserve the chances that we have in life, in a stable family background.

The aim of CCS Adoption (www.ccsadoption.org) is to offer the opportunity of family life through adoption and to support parents, adopters and children throughout the process, recognising the lifelong impact of adoption.  They help prospective adopters through the training and assessment that is necessary to become a “new mummy or daddy”.  They support the new families in every way possible.  They also help raise awareness about adoption and encourage people to think about  adoptive parenthood.  These people are the best – CCS help children live happier, more stable lives than they might have hoped.  Our support can really help them help others as much as possible.

At the beginning of this year I had the silly idea of running a Marathon.  I looked around at events, and on finding that you actually get to finish this one by doing a lap inside the Millennium Stadium, I was hooked.  Having trained hard and even lost a couple of stone, the event looms.  This won’t be the fastest of times – I am not built for speed ! My aim is to complete the course having run 26.2 miles.

Things have been made more “interesting” as my back has decided to play up, which has had an effect on my running.  This has made the marathon even more challenging than I had planned.  However I am determined to conquer Cardiff to help this cause. This means so much to me, and I want to raise as much as possible.

Please help me raise money for CCS.  Donating through this site is simple, fast and totally secure. It is also the most efficient way to sponsor me: CCS will receive your money faster and, if you are a UK taxpayer, an extra 28% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.  If you’d like to give “offline”, you can call JustGiving on 0845 021 2110 (local rate), or please get in touch with me direct – see details below.

So please sponsor me now! Many thanks for your support.

Andy.

P.S. If you’d like to know more about CCS, adoption, or the marathon,  I’d be really pleased to hear from you.  My e-mail address is andywhite@pickledparsnip.co.uk , and my mobile number is 07971 544709.