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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Andrew's Birthday

It's that time of year again, Andrew will soon be 11 years old and I know some of the family have been wondering what to get him by way of a present.
Well, he's asked me to publish his wish list in the hope that this is helpful in making a decision:

  1. Angry Birds Star Wars: AT-AT 
  2. Angry Birds star Wars: jenga death star game
  3. Angry Birds star Wars: early bird pack
  4. Angry Birds hammin' around
  5. Angry Birds mashems bonus pack
  6. mega blocks halo mantis
  7. mega blocks halo combat
  8. mega blocks halo warthog
  9. mega blocks halo orbital banshee bliz
  10. Lego Monster Fighters
  11. Lego Alien Conquest
  12. Mouse trap board game
  13. spy net laser tripwire
  14. Nintendo 3DS: Super Mario Bros 2
  15. Nintendo 3DS: Mario Land 3D
  16. Bejeweled gem quest board game
  17. Tech Deck triple street set
Andrew has promised not to look at this blog until after his birthday; so, to avoid duplication you could comment on this post with what, if any, you have chosen to buy.

Updated by Andrew 21/03/13 08:25


Monday, March 18, 2013

5k Success

 Over a thousand runners for the 5k alone and then there was the half marathon and 5k team attack events as well!



 In the middle of everyone was a small group of Robins :-)


 After all it was called a 'Fun Run' so we thought a little face paint might be appropriate.

 A very pleased Andrew with his finishers medal - time 26: 21. Andrew & I had great fun weaving our way through the slower runners over the length of the course. I was the only one to run in sandals (that I could see). Andrew made such a big effort at the end, sprinting to the finish line, that he ended up in a heap on the floor, but he recovered quickly as you can see :-)
 Zoe & Mum sprinting for the finish: time about 36 mins

 Zoe managed to run the whole course. A considerable achievement.

Goody bags and congratulations from Minnie Mouse


Saturday, March 16, 2013

Tomorrow should be FUN

Yep, we're all off to Inverness tomorrow to take part in a 5k fun run. Let's hope the weather holds, it was lovely today, very spring-like :-)

Monday, March 11, 2013

Snowy Edinburgh

Just arrived in Edinburgh really hoping to get out for a run after the 5+ hour journey. The wind is a bitterly cold Northerly and there's snow lying in most places. Should be interesting; sandals or shoes...hmmm?

19:00 Well, that was a bit breezy!
10 miles of slush, snow and ice; dodging the good folk of Edinburgh running through St Andrew Square and Rose Street; even got a bit of a race from Prince's Street down to Haymarket by some chap who was obviously running home after work (he was a good bit quicker than me).

Feels good to be back in the warmth of the apartment in Leith.

Never say never ;-) (wish Google would sort out the smiley thing)

You know, you can always leave a comment, see below 8-)

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Applecross Primary Sponsored Pier Jump

L to R: Daniel Walker, Alasdair Groocock, Andrew Robins, Mrs Gillies (Head teacher) Millie Holmes, Rowan Fairweather-Graham, Zoe Robins, Katrina Gillies

Today, despite bitterly cold Nor'Easterly winds and wintry sea temperatures the children of Applecross Primary School completed their chosen challenge. Namely, to jump from the pier at Toscaig, Applecross, UK. The venture Trust supported their challenge by providing the safety cover and equipment with the kind co-operation of Paul Burden at Highland Youth Service.


Getting Ready...
 The first in the water was the Headteacher (Mrs Gillies) demonstrating proper technique, she was quickly followed by Andrew Robins (pictured here).

The challenge begins with £20 from the Blythswood Trust and the challenge is to see which school (for there are many schools involved in this challenge) can raise the most money from that initial sum. Last year the school were finalists and the older ones attended a ceremony in Perth where they received a trophy for 'most entertaining presentation'. This year they did this jump as a sponsored event and will use the proceeds to stage a Ceilidh and Sale of Goods at the Village Hall on Friday 15th March. Ultimately, all proceeds will go to the Blytheswood Trust and then to Water in India.


In flight...
Splash Down...



For the less confident there was the option of making the still challenging plunge into the cold, grey waters but from a lower stance.

Zoe looks on as Katrina takes the plunge


I think they all deserve a big WELL DONE for their efforts and we're looking forward to the Applecross Ceilidh.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

World Book Day

Well...it was world book day again, and again the Andrew & Zoe got to go to school as their favourite book characters. Can you guess who they might be...here's a clue a little Dutch girl and a skeleton detective?

Sarah was up at six this morning to make sure they had time to prepare for this...great effort love!

Andrew is participating in a cross-country run for Highland Primary Schools at Alness in the East tomorrow. Unfortunately, Sarah and I won't be there but I'm sure he'll do his best. He's been training on a 5km circuit and the race is only going to be 2km so everything will be fine, I think he'll find it easy. The we're all doing a 5km fun-run in Inverness on St Patrick's day Sunday 17th March, I'm looking forward to that. Sarah and Zoe will run together and Andrew and I will run together. Let's hope the weather's kind to us. I remember standing in the sports hall waiting to be called to the start line in 2009 and seeing snow blowing horizontally outside the doors...Brrrr!

Their characters are Janneke (Jip and Janneke - Fiep Westendorp)and Skulduggery Pleasant (Derek landy) didn't think you'd guess :-)