Ever since I was 18, I always had the idea at the back of my mind that I wanted to run the London Marathon for charity and finish it in under 4 hours. I've never run anywhere near that distance, and it's going to make the 11km Tough Mudder course which I did a few years ago seem like a short hike.

I am running the marathon for Derian House Children's Hospice, in memory of my cousin's daughter, Ella Louise Mather, who sadly died on the 29th Dec 2009 aged 3 years and 9 Months. Ella was diagnoised with a very rare terminal condtion called GM1 - GANGLIOSIDOSIS at the tender age of 20 Months - it is a disease with no cure.

Derian House provides specialist care and support for children with a terminal or life threatening illness. The hospice is open 365 days a year offering support to children and their families, yet as a charity only receives statutory funding for just 5 weeks. With more than £2.85 million needed each year it remains almost totally reliant on voluntary funding.

Unlike alot of the larger charities, Derian House aren't allocated free charity places, so to run for them, you need to get a place yourself.

I've entered the ballot for a place every year for the last 6 years, and after getting a place in the 2017 London Marathon last year for the first time, I was gutted to have to postpone my entry to this year due to a knee injury preventing me from progressing my training onto longer runs.

This year, the knee seems to be holding together much better - but so as to not make things too easy, my first child is due in the middle of January, which could make for an interesting training regime to say the least!

I'll be posting training updates and photos as the months progress, and if any of you want to join me on any of the training runs, then you'd be most welcome.

Derian House is a fantastic cause, so please dig deep and give as generously as you can... I can confidently say that that me and my knees definitely won't hold out for another year, so this is your one off chance!

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.