Eventually..... my postponed Xmas Eve Run, 🎄🏃🏻‍♀️ Now for a cosy Christmas Eve with a few of my favourite things 🎄🎶🎄📚❄️🥂

[RacingintheStreet]

With my early morning run turning into a beach walk with the dog ( previous post) , I ‘hummed and hawed’ Into the late afternoon as to whether I was going out or not 🏃🏻‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️

The temperature had lifted from the mornings -3c and the ice had gone so I set off at 4:30 to do my run . What the run was going to be I wasn’t sure 🤷🏼‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️😂

I needed my ‘newish’ chest torch , finding it really great for these dark runs although I appear to be running less at night . It does give me confidence that I’m being seen .

I had a notion to do another 60 minute run , maybe a little further 🤷🏼‍♀️ And was determined to get off to a nice slow steady start and keep it that way in an attempt to have a longish and enjoyable Xmas Eve run amongst all the lights in the villages .

For a longish run I have to run a bit of my village and then run along to the next village and back .

The run was more comfortable than my graduation 60 minutes and I think it was due to running it slower . It ended up almost negative splits except between the 5th and 6th kilometre. Although I think it was around about there that I began thinking I might just do a 5K but then changed my mind and decided I should try for another 60 minute run to consolidate . I kept changing my mind , when I felt tired I was deciding to shorten the run , then As I was closer to the 60 I decided to keep going 😂🤷🏼‍♀️

No big issues with this run which was nice , lots of festive lights and a good few runners out in the dark too 🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️

So in the end I kept going and did my 60 mins , 7.5K again but pleased to say at a more comfortable and enjoyable pace .

Got home , put a pot of soup on and then took the dog out . Wandered around the village and took a few photos ( some better than others 😂😂) .

Starting to feel a bit better about Christmas ( the Highlands and Islands have been Tier 1 for ages so it came as a shock that we were to go to tier 4 on Boxing Day . Totally in agreement that we need to prevent spread but totally miserable that my grandsons would not now be coming to visit 😔)

Anyway on my dog walk I saw some lovely trees , I wanted to take a photo of a light up Deer in a house down the road but it wasn’t on 🙄😂

It looks exactly like Harry Potters ‘Patronus’ 🦌🦌 if you’re familiar with HP 😂😂

Highlight of the walk was hearing someone playing ‘O Come All Ye Faithful’ and ‘Jingle Bells’ on the bagpipes . This is a Saturday night thing in our village for Christmas as we can’t all gather for the usual Community Carol Concert . It’s a chilly , lovely open air affair in the old cathedral ruins .

I felt quite ‘teary’ as I listened and sang along to the pipes , then continued home singing ‘jingle bells’😂😂

Then I caught up with ‘Carols from Kings’ ,( always the official start of feeling ‘Christmassy’ for me , poured a very nice glass of Sauvignon and read ‘The Gritterman’ . (and listened at same time to Orlando Weeks original score and Paul Hardcastles narration ) . A new Christmas Eve tradition for me , it’s utterly beautiful and nostalgic and takes me back to simpler times . ☺️✨ (Think Charlie Mackesy crossed with ‘The Snowman’ ☺️ )

So that was my day, not quite as planned but it was a good day

........ and Christmas will be too 🎄🎁🦌✨🎅🏻🎄🎁❄️🥂

Wishing everyone a happy , peaceful Christmas ✨🌟

[GailXrunning]

Very best Xmas wishes! That was a lovely post to read and the collage too. I loved hearing your reflections on Christmases past and present. Well done on your run. Sounds like you expended as much energy in changing your mind as you did running! 😂 Seriously, though, I think that ‘take each step as it comes’ approach was just the right tack for the situation: playing things by ear, seeing how the body feels.

[LottieMW Ambassador]

Aaah...sounded like a lovely run 🥰

Merry Xmas 🎄