Meet Team Little Legs: Focus on Becky

Meet Team Little Legs Speed Freak

In the second of our Meet Team Little Legs series, this week we invite you to learn a little more about Rebecca A.K.A Becky, the pocket rocket of Team Little Legs. Who is Becky? What motivates her? And when her little sister finally fulfils her destiny and takes over the world, which country will Becks want as her own? Find out here.

Name: Rebecca Margaret Amy Marsden, but most people call me Becky. My mum was adamant when I was born that I would be Rebecca, not Becky, but even she was calling me Becky within a day.

Star Sign: Aries. A fire sign, Aries traits are adventurous, energetic, pioneering, courageous, enthusiastic, confident, dynamic and quick-witted. (I do not believe in star signs as a rule, but I feel you could not get a better description of my eldest daughter)

Favourite Colour: Purple, because it is bright, I like bright colours.

Favourite Animal: Dolphins, because they are cute and intelligent.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A vet. Why? I like animals (sound familiar????)

If you were to win an Olympic medal, what sport would it be in? Running

If you were a cartoon character, who would you be? Not a Pickachu because mum thinks they should all be rounded up and shot. I would be Walle, because he is funny and I think it would be cool to be a robot.

If you had a million pounds how would you spend it? I would go on holiday abroad and lots of toys and games

As you know Rebecca, Evie is one day destined to rule the world from a hollowed out volcano. When this happens, which country would you like as your own? I would like Cyprus, because its hot and sunny and I could go on lots of holidays there.

If you could meet anyone, alive or dead, who would it be? I would like to meet Henry VIII so I could see how much he could eat in one go!

What superhero powers would you most like to have? Flying and turning invisible.

What do you enjoy most about the runs? I like training on the treadmill at home, that's cool. I also like to see how fast I can do the courses in and I love looking at the results to see where I came. I am glad you have entered us in another 5K, I bet I can do it really fast next time, maybe under 30 mins!!!

Why do you think its important that we do our runs and raise money for Tommy's? Because its not nice when babies die and I hope that Tommy's will help stop that from happening.

Rebecca will be taking part in the Great Yorkshire Junior Run on Sunday 2nd September. Please support her and the rest of Team Little Legs in our quest to raise much needed funds for Tommy's. You can do this at all the usual places, and Becky, your racing solo so you can do this one as fast as you like. Go Becky!!!

www.facebook.com/TeamLittleLegs

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/RachelMarsden1

Meet Team Little Legs: Focus on Evie

Meet Team Little Legs Littlest Legs!!

As a bit of fun in the run up to the next challenge we thought we would run a bit of a special set of blogs to enable you to find out a little more about Team Little Legs, who we are, what makes us tick, if we were a cartoon character who would we be???? Enjoy (It is worth noting that these are Evie's actual responses, other than the star sign stuff. I am reminded what a remarkable little girl I have)

Name: Eve Mary Ann Marsden. My family have called me Evie since I was born but my proper name is Eve. I went through a stage of wanting to be called Eve, because when I was learning to write my name I realised Eve is shorter than Evie, however, now I have got the hang of writing I have gone back to Evie.

Star Sign: Gemini. Gemini traits are outwardly expressive, extrovert,flirtatious,confident,fun-loving,strong,independent,freedom-loving.

Favourite Colour: White. Why? Because I like it

Favourite Food: Pizza

Favourite Animal: Dogs and Ponies, its a tie. I once told my mummy that the reason I was so desperate for a dog was that the garden was too small for a pony (those were her exact words, she was four at the time)

What do you want to be when you grow up? A vet Why? Because I like animals.

If you were to win an Olympic medal, what event would it be? Swimming.

What would you do on your best day out? I would like to go swimming, then Ice Skating, then to the movies, then to Jordan and Shannon's (cousins) house to play and then to Alice's house (cousin and one of her best friends) for a sleepover.

If you had a million pounds how would you spend it? I would buy some holidays and sponsor a child.

If you were a cartoon character, who would you be?? I'm not sure, but mummy did an on line quiz and it says I am like Elmo, so I'm Elmo and I know it (check out the you tube video). Mummy and Daddy think I would make a good Elmo.

If you could meet anyone alive or dead, who would it be? Katy Perry, I like Katy Perry, I like her songs (on a cute note, her first answer was Caroline with the White Hair, because she's really nice and she lets me play with Lego, Caroline with the White Hair, you know who you are!)

What superhero powers would you most like to have? Flying

Why to you want to raise money by doing your runs? To buy Quinn's Mummy some flowers. We have tried explaining to her what we are raising money for, but she is adamant that some of the money should go to buying Quinn's mummy some flowers, because "flowers are nice when you are sad"

We hope you enjoyed getting to know Evie a little better. On Sunday Evie will be running the Great Yorkshire Mini Run in Sheffield City Centre. Please support her and Tommy's at the usual places, and we would be delighted if you were to come down and cheer her on. And Evie, you will be delighted to know that at 1.5k, this time, you only have to do one lap! Thank you.

www.facebook.com/TeamLittleLegs

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/RachelMarsden1

Goodbye London 2012: It's Been Emotional

Go GB, GO GB

Well what a fortnight, and what a time to be British. To say that Team Little Legs has enjoyed the Olympics would probably be the understatement of the century. From the touching moment that British sporting legends gave the task of lighting the torch to seven young sporting hopefuls, to the heartbreaking sight of Gary Barlow singing Rule the World at the closing ceremony, Team Little Legs has joined the rest of the nation in being utterly transfixed. After seven years of planning London 2012 got underway and Team GB did us all proud. An astounding 64 medals, 29 of them Gold, and third place in the medal table was the reward for all the hard work and dedication of the whole GB team, from the awe inspiring athletes, the coaches, the scores of workers who built the impressive venues, the gamemaker volunteers and also, though I hate to say it, the politicians, without whose support during the bid process, London 2012 would never have happened. And we needed it to happen. Its been a gloomy few months, well years, and we really needed something to distract us and bring us together. Everywhere I went over the last fortnight (on those rare occasions I could bring myself to leave the TV, why oh why do children need sunlight) people were discussing the games, talking about the Olympic success, and enjoying being part of Team GB. We really did feel part of the team, and that for me was the success of the games. When athletes stood/sat at the starting lines I shook with nerves (how they held it together I will never know), when they reached the closing stretches I shouted myself hoarse, when they crossed the line I cheered and shouted as if I had won the medal myself. When we feel part of a team, we feel as if we are not in this alone. Margaret Cartey once wrote "the nice thing about teamwork is that you always have others on your side", and when you feel that you can face anything.

For me, one of my favourite moments of the games was Mo Farah becoming the first British long distance runner to win gold in the 5000m and 10000m. He was awesome, and his words after he won his second gold inspired me. He said you can do anything, its just hard work and graft. I must admit to a large amount of self doubt creeping in over the last few weeks about whether I can complete both the marathon and my fund raising, but seeing the GB athletes pull epic performance after epic performance out of the bag has inspired me. They trained hard for four years, I can do it for seven more months, they train for hours every day, I can manage one or two a day.

So thank you team GB, and i cant wait until the paralympic games, GO GB, GO GB

www.facebook.com/TeamLittleLegs

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/RachelMarsden1

A Very Public Tradegy

A tragic reminder of the importance of Tommy's

This week saw a public tragedy that reinforced why we are supporting Tommy's. As the rest of Great Britain celebrated Super Saturday, with six golds in one day for team GB, Gary Barlow and his wife Dawn were mourning the loss of their fourth child, who was still born. In a statement Gary said that they were devastated at the loss of their little girl Poppy, and were focusing on giving her a beautiful funeral and loving their remaining children as much as possible. Although I don't know personally the pain they are feeling, thanks to the bravery and honesty of Quinn's parents, I have been given a glimpse of the anguish felt after the loss of a baby. I do however know only too well how Gary and Dawns friends will be feeling. The complete sense of shock, not knowing what to do or say, feeling cowardly and useless as their friend cries whilst on the phone and they have absolutely no words, the overwhelming desire to turn back time and do something, anything, that will allow their friend to keep their baby, the disbelief and anger that the world goes on regardless. I personally had my own brand of survivor guilt, something that Mark Owen, who happily became a father for the third time recently, may be able to empathise with. I couldn't understand why I had been allowed to keep my baby, and my friend had lost hers. I felt guilty every time I looked at Emily, every time she smiled at me I felt wrong for taking joy in the moment, knowing that Quinn was gone. I also felt scared that my friend would be lost to me, unable to cope with seeing my family, however this was unfounded, my dear friend showed bravery that I am certain I would not be capable of, and soon embraced Emily once again and continues to be a large part of my children's life.

The loss of Poppy Barlow highlights the tragic mystery that is stillbirth. We very rarely know why a baby is lost at birth. The Barlows will have been able to afford the best in health care and nutrition, and have had three healthy children before this pregnancy, but they still lost their little one. The loss of a child is I am sure the most awful thing that can happen, the loss of all that could have been, the heavy feeling of empty arms as you leave hospital, but what surely must make it worse is not knowing why.  Human beings are intelligent apes and we need answers. As a doctor I have seen that people can face terrifying situations with unbelievable bravery if they know what they are up against, why it happened and what they and medical staff can do about it. Parents of a still born baby are nearly always denied answers to these questions and that is where Tommy's come in. They help fund research into the causes of stillbirth and provide midwife led helplines to try and lead people through what must be the darkest hours they will ever experience. The pain felt by the Barlows is acute and overwhelming, but it is no less painful than the emotions felt by Quinn's mummy and daddy, the only difference is that they have now found the strength to incorporate the pain into their every day life, and will carry it with them forever.

If you do nothing else today, spare a thought for Poppy, Quinn and the countless other babies that have been lost either at or before birth. Think of their parents and follow the Barlows in loving your children as much as possible, I know I will. Please support Tommy's. You can as always do this by sponsoring us, however, I would be equally delighted with a direct donation, every penny counts.

 If you have been affected by anything I have talked about today and feel you need some support, please contact Tommy's, thier website link is below. Thank you.

www.tommys.org

http://uk.virginmoneygiving/RachelMarsden1

Hurry up Mum!!

Rebecca and Rachel Complete Team Little Legs Second Challenge

So once again Team Little Legs tied on their trainers and got going for Tommy's. This time it was at the Clumber Park 5k. Evie was taking part in the role of chief cheerleader and the running was down to Rachel and Rebecca.  A gorgeous hot day awaited us, however this added a whole new dimension, we just weren't used to running in the heat. With the race starting 40 mins late we had almost run out of water and had to go on a desperate hunt for extra. But we soon off and as the photos show it was all smiles at the start.

 So we were off and as usual clumber park did not disappoint as a running venue. I have done the Worksop half marathon twice previously and love running through the park. I however knew how hilly the park is in places, and was a little worried when I found us headed toward the biggest hill in the park. My watch had broken and as we reached the bottom of the hill I felt that our target time of 35 minutes was looking doubtful. Becky was an absolute trooper though, and despite the heat and hills never looked tired. Eventually the top of the hill arrived and a new challenge arose, the muddy forest track was wet and churned up and it soon became obvious that Team Little Legs new challenge was to get down the steep hill with intact ankles!

 The 4K marker arrived and Rebecca wanted to sprint away! I was shocked, very little training, a huge hill, heat and she was still wanting to sprint. I knew I was not going to have enough in me for a full kilometre sprint and held her back until the the last 400m. As we got to the finish line I was stunned, the time was less than 32mins! At a guess we think our time was 31mins 50 seconds, it was defiantly less than 32 minutes and to say we are chuffed as we crossed the line hand in hand is an understatement. I was so proud of Rebecca and who knows what she is capable of if she trains full pelt.

Thoughts now turn to our next challenge on 2nd September. I have a 10K and the girls are also running, Rebecca 3K and Evie 1.5k. I will keep you informed!

As ever you can follow us on facebook www.facebook.com/TeamLittleLegs and please visit our fundraiser page on http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/RachelMarsden1

NOTE: The Clumber Park 5K was a Race For Life. Although Becky and I were raising funds for Tommy's we gave a large donation to Cancer Research UK and if anyone feels they would rather support that equally worthy cause please do so. Thank You for your support.