tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40989347449694971902024-03-06T20:03:13.989+00:00Alice's Bucket ListI'm 17 and I have terminal cancer. I've created a bucket list because there are so many things I still want to do in my life ... some are possible, some will remain a dream. My blog is to document this precious time with my family and friends, doing the things I want to do.
You only have one life ... live it!Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.comBlogger88125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-78054866615738135722015-10-09T22:00:00.000+01:002015-10-10T10:46:41.777+01:001,000 days<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It's a thousand days since my sister left us (and almost as long since I've updated this blog). I didn't realise it was, but Mum has this date and time app and every so often, it pops up and tells us it's been so many weeks or so many days and she doesn't like to delete it now. So it keeps popping up.<br />
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I was trying to figure out how old I'd be when it reaches 10,000 days ... 100,000 days ... dead probably. It seems an awfully long time away and yet it's strange, because it doesn't seem two minutes since Alice was here. But time is just that and nothing more; it doesn't blur the memories I have. As a ten-year-old, I can recall my disbelief at not being old enough to join Mum on a girls spa day. In the background, desperate to rescue the situation, Alice was busy creating our own spa escape, offering nails, Lush baths and massage, complete with snacks and drinks. We finished the night off snuggled together watching a movie. In all honesty, I probably had more fun than I'd have had at the real spa. Those are the kind of memories that feel as if they happened yesterday (minus the Princess strop) and those are the things I miss.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice's spa sign</td></tr>
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In my last blog post, I was just into my GCSE exams. With the exception of a couple, they weren't as bad as they could have been and I was happy with my results. I had been accepted onto a Film Production course (screen writing is something I'm really interested in) but my results also gained me a place at Lancaster Girls Grammar Sixth Form, which left me with a dilemma. Ultimately, I decided that A levels were the best route for me and I'm now studying English Language, English Literature, Art and Geography - all subjects I love! In art, we're studying Juxtaposition and I've chosen to do War and Peace which I'm enjoying developing. Lancaster is a beautiful city, the school is full of opportunities and I think I made the right choice.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrjKJJUpSdSWADpRAEle91P3vK6ug4oIqI-sk0uZynzcyuZXQDMUF8ZTgSmEJwoyPLnERrW7joqCLXF8wUaB-NxUwQVbIXHC_mgbBCWMQ2e0h-WPSlMnx4b_TuLhJOkCUv9VoG2eVBz8Y/s1600/IMG_8870.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWrjKJJUpSdSWADpRAEle91P3vK6ug4oIqI-sk0uZynzcyuZXQDMUF8ZTgSmEJwoyPLnERrW7joqCLXF8wUaB-NxUwQVbIXHC_mgbBCWMQ2e0h-WPSlMnx4b_TuLhJOkCUv9VoG2eVBz8Y/s320/IMG_8870.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of my art pieces</td></tr>
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Through the summer, we returned back to Cornwall with my friend, Callum, and the Mums even attempted to learn to surf (which was semi successful)! We enjoyed camping back at Wooda with fantastic weather and many memorable days on the beach with the fantastic team at <a href="http://www.bigbluesurfschool.co.uk/" target="_blank">Big Blue Surf School</a>. I also travelled to Italy and visited Rome, Pisa and, most importantly, Pompeii, where we scattered some of Alice's ashes according to her wishes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Callum in Cornwall</td></tr>
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I also experienced my first solo festival, Kendal Calling, which was a fantastic experience, saddened by the death of a fellow festival goer on the first evening. I didn't know the person concerned, but it certainly affected people. Life is so fragile.<br />
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I'm continuing with my volunteering. <a href="https://youtu.be/bpK-78fPozM" target="_blank">Alice's charity</a> has been really busy through the summer and we've met some amazing families. Mabel is often down at the charity office and the children love her - Lottie is kept hidden as she is full of Tigger-like bounciness! Starting at LGGS gave me an opportunity to continue volunteering at Oxfam as part of my Enrichment Program. It's really good to be able to continue to volunteer locally as these places couldn't operate without volunteers.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yay, no uniform!</td></tr>
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I've just turned seventeen and for my birthday, my Nan and Grandad bought me ten driving lessons! I had my first one on my birthday and it's going well, if a little scary. Thankfully, I've improved since lesson three when I almost drove into a wall - dual control has its benefit!<br />
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Only two weeks from now, I'll actually be in PERU trekking for Alice! I can't believe it's come around so quickly. I'm taking my GoPro with me and hope to edit a video of my trip. This will be my first big trip without Mum being a part of it which will be strange, although she was lucky enough to do the same trek a few years back as part of a fundraising team for Great Ormond Street Hospital. Anyway, sponsor link for my trek in aid of Alice's Escapes is <a href="https://www.justgiving.com/alicesbucketlist/" target="_blank">HERE</a> and if you keep an eye on Alice's Facebook page, I'll be making some Alice things to raise funds too.<br />
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I'll hopefully update when I get back ... will leave you with <a href="https://youtu.be/-TBYRHUGPC0" target="_blank">the last training video I edited</a>.<br />
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Milly x</div>
Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-20070288207451227342015-03-18T22:25:00.000+00:002015-03-18T23:41:49.805+00:00For Alice<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It's been 16 months since I climbed Kilimanjaro and I thought it was time that I planned something else for Alice :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My big news is that I'm going to be spending my October half-term <a href="https://www.justgiving.com/AlicesBucketList" target="_blank">trekking for for Alice</a>. I'll be carrying her ashes along the Inca Trail in Peru and camping rough at night, to reach the Sun Gate on the morning of Thursday 29th October, which is the second place on Alice's list of places to be - 4,200 metres is the highest point, which is 'Dead Woman's Pass'! </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMDIqC3BIHb267IOVcb6KN5zMGqA_8UyOk3yAaO6C2GPk49YpLbIclSQFm7dB9r_CEwl6q-CW0VdutrSTw_P8dQ7phjfxQiFO5zBDYMcohZ82-GJFSZiP_ZnVDLtdcWvS5emagfCh2aYbg/s1600/Unknown.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMDIqC3BIHb267IOVcb6KN5zMGqA_8UyOk3yAaO6C2GPk49YpLbIclSQFm7dB9r_CEwl6q-CW0VdutrSTw_P8dQ7phjfxQiFO5zBDYMcohZ82-GJFSZiP_ZnVDLtdcWvS5emagfCh2aYbg/s1600/Unknown.jpeg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Machu Picchu</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Some people think it's odd that Alice asked me, a then fourteen-year-old, if I'd do some pretty odd things after she'd gone - but they were normal to us! As soon as I could walk a few miles, I was dragged up mountains and now I just love being outdoors. Nine-months after we lost Alice, in October 2013, I set off on the first of my promises to her - to climb the world's highest freestanding mountain, Kilimanjaro, and scatter some of her ashes at the summit. It was incredibly hard, but I did it and I'm now on with her next request. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUTQhqv8rBu6eCO5igMjaM7fptv07QT88aIMleGiOGKwVjOweTbexYVOSOQO1Lm5lOAImEDCHFLaTmDE-ZAWYNNO-SBGwJrNL2Wtd19DJBIeWLaXG16F6pOj3blc6coKnota7lbPGLV_d/s1600/blogger-image--517912108.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqUTQhqv8rBu6eCO5igMjaM7fptv07QT88aIMleGiOGKwVjOweTbexYVOSOQO1Lm5lOAImEDCHFLaTmDE-ZAWYNNO-SBGwJrNL2Wtd19DJBIeWLaXG16F6pOj3blc6coKnota7lbPGLV_d/s1600/blogger-image--517912108.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Summer in England :)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The first place we took Alice was the Maldives where we scattered some of her ashes over a coral reef frame - it was amazing and we can go online and look at Alice's coral whenever we like. If you want to look, click <a href="http://marinesavers.com/coral-frame-collection/" target="_blank">HERE</a> and it's frame KH1118. Then, I took Alice to the summit of Kilimanjaro, which was the first wish on the list she left us and probably the hardest of them all - that was thing I'm most proud of in my life. Over Easter, we're going trekking in the Pyrenees and we're taking some of Alice with us there, so that will be the third place she gets to be, and then it will be the Inca Trail in October! There's plenty left including Hawaii and re-visiting the Orca's in Vancouver.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scattering Alice's ashes over her coral reef frame</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I've got to raise money for my trek and I'll be raising money for Alice's Escapes, my sister's charity. The charity does amazing things and it's amazing how much has been achieved in such a short time. I help out at the weekends and during school holidays (me and Mum were at the charity office on Mother's Day) and I love meeting some of the families we have staying. They are usually really lovely people and you realise how much a holiday means to them. Some of the parents are so stressed with hospital and work that it's just nice to see them relax a bit. The poorly child can just chill and I can relate to being a sibling of a sick child. It's really nice for them to get some quality family time too, it really benefits everyone. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqQFrBjX7kwig11vTtYKwL68peeVFO0kJNQm3N4MBa8G0uY2PmM4-K75hkMqIPgvi89toFQoAfFHixfzh7kkfP4GNrrONe4_O-oEEnyDUU1mRbxk7qTiY2qMpdPCNvToNGSqeH3RdJkEK/s1600/IMG_3990.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcqQFrBjX7kwig11vTtYKwL68peeVFO0kJNQm3N4MBa8G0uY2PmM4-K75hkMqIPgvi89toFQoAfFHixfzh7kkfP4GNrrONe4_O-oEEnyDUU1mRbxk7qTiY2qMpdPCNvToNGSqeH3RdJkEK/s1600/IMG_3990.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice was always smiling</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So, I'm asking you all to help me please. You can <a href="https://www.justgiving.com/AlicesBucketList" target="_blank">SPONSOR ME</a> or you could even do a fundraiser for me, to help me reach my target. I'm going to be making things to sell and I'm also offering babysitting if you are in the Ulverston area. I'm planning an fundraising event in Ulverston and hopefully doing some bag packing too. One of my plans is to film the whole thing, so I should have another video to upload, but a Peru video rather than a <a href="https://youtu.be/-TBYRHUGPC0" target="_blank">Kili video</a>. It's important to me to help families get a week away, because I know what it's like to live in a hospital and I am also determined to take Alice to everywhere she wanted - glad she didn't ask me to <a href="http://alicepyne.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/it-just-gets-better.html" target="_blank">swim with sharks</a>! </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This is for you, Alice #OneLifeLiveIt</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Other than my trekking plans, I am keeping my head down and focusing on my exams. I've managed to fit Oxfam in a bit more lately, which is good because I do enjoy it and they're all so nice in there. Oh and you remember that my mum found her necklace? Well, she thought that they'd just post it back or something, but Inside Edition actually flew her back out to New York and she got to meet the family who found her necklace. How amazing is that? You can watch the video <a href="http://bcove.me/pt6t8im9" target="_blank">HERE</a>. She got to spend a few more days out there and everyone looked after her really well - she did a couple of shows, visited the Empire State Building and spent a whole day in the 9/11 museum. On her last day, she went to find the Alice in Wonderland sculpture which is in Central Park.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbCRz5KIb0UncrtGR2LwptYSSHRbVPNHe8l_K_yqvHnt2Qp8KayGicdhAr_Wa8ocn-nNfhXHlFtuDIzKWSGay_pW71eoXalWCV398HnO1rEleGdJp-b3jnpoNrW8FUK2CnDq4sFLKpJEHE/s1600/IMG_1367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbCRz5KIb0UncrtGR2LwptYSSHRbVPNHe8l_K_yqvHnt2Qp8KayGicdhAr_Wa8ocn-nNfhXHlFtuDIzKWSGay_pW71eoXalWCV398HnO1rEleGdJp-b3jnpoNrW8FUK2CnDq4sFLKpJEHE/s1600/IMG_1367.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice in Wonderland, Central Park</td></tr>
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-39748678647666395962015-02-22T20:00:00.000+00:002015-02-23T10:54:31.438+00:00A month in the life of a Milly<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Only a month since I blogged but a lot has happened so I thought I'd update :)<br />
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I've had a few problems over this last month, which has left me not trusting a few people. Some parts are my fault, but it's made me realise that I really am ready to move on from my school. Overall, it's been good for me and I'll really, really miss a few of the teachers, but it's time to move on. I have my sixth form studies set up and am very excited about the next two years, where I can study subjects of my choice, which I'm naturally interested in. My plan is to move into film - production, screen writing or editing - or perhaps journalism. I love to study people and am constantly thinking how something could have been done differently on screen.<br />
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I've been cutting back a bit on my hours at Oxfam, which makes me feel bad, but I really need to put more hours into my school work. On Saturday's, my art teacher has been opening up the art studio and allowing me to work on my art. I really love these sessions as it's so peaceful and the atmosphere is much more relaxed than in normal school time.<br />
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My Mum had a meeting in London with <a href="http://www.deletebloodcancer.org.uk/en" target="_blank">Delete Blood Cancer UK</a>, who she's going to be volunteering for. I'm really excited to be helping her and it's really cool that we can recruit from 17 - 55 year olds now. So if you have a work place locally to us, drop Mum an email via her charity email address and she'll let you know more.<br />
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At the end of term, I had another appointment in London and then, as a treat, Mum and I flew out to New York to meet Dad who had been working out there. He'd been away for quite a while and was working silly hours so it was a nice treat for him to have us there. I was so lucky as Mum and Dad surprised me with tickets to the <a href="http://www.nycballet.com/" target="_blank">New York City Ballet</a> where I got to watch them perform Romeo and Juliet - it was breathtaking.<br />
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We managed to see quite a few of the sights, but nothing got to me like Ground Zero. It was just so sad to read all the names and think about all the people lost, all the lives that should have been. There was one that mentioned 'and her unborn child'. That was really, really sad - that child should be turning fourteen this year, not much younger than me. It really made me think about everything Alice managed to experience and achieve, even though it was still sad to lose her. She was here.<br />
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The weather in New York was vile - it was the coldest they've had in years and years. Something like minus sixteen! We visited the Empire State Building and Brooklyn Bridge and saw the Statue of Liberty. We were having such a nice day and then it was all destroyed when my mum realised that her necklace was missing. She was so upset - it was the necklace that Alice had made for her and it had mine and Alice's fingerprints in it. She wouldn't leave the hotel as that was the only place she could get wifi and she knew that she needed to put it on Facebook and Twitter so people could start looking. Although it didn't spoil our trip completely, it was really sad to have to get on the plane home without it.<br />
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We were only in the States for a few days, but we got to see our old friends, the Marriott's. My mum and Jen are best friends and they hugged and cried for ages when they saw each other. We haven't seen them all for years and it was nice to catch up with the girls. There was loads and loads and loads of snow everywhere - fun for a few days but I'm not sure I'd want to live in it. I got some new Timberland boots which I'm very happy with and Mum got a nice new handbag.<br />
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When we got back, we couldn't believe how big the story about Alice's necklace had become. It was everywhere and so many people were trying to help find it. It was retweeted by so many celebs and lots of people went looking for it, including a New York running group! Mum went back to her office on Friday and in the afternoon, she got a call to say that a couple had found it. How amazing is that? I don't think she could believe it, she kept repeating herself and then grinning. She'd kept saying that most people are good, so I think she's right. Wouldn't it be a nice world if everyone was like that?<br />
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I'm back out training for the Keswick to Barrow walk in May - not got a chance of making the £4,000 I raised last year, but I'm going to give it a good try. I'm working on a fundraising scheme, just a few things to think about, but I think £1,000 will be ambitious for this year - you can support me <a href="https://www.keswick2barrow.co.uk/sponsor/welcome.asp?ID=500" target="_blank">HERE</a><br />
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So I'm back to school tomorrow for my last half term before I go on study leave. I'm going to try to work so hard and keep my head down because I know where I want to go in life and I know I need the results. I'm not one of those dead clever people who can remember everything, so I do find it quite difficult. Can't remember if it was Alice or my Mum that said 'your best is always good enough', but that's what I'm going to do. My best.<br />
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Will post a photo of my Mum when she gets her necklace back :)<br />
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Love Milly x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-6539282018097312372015-01-18T21:00:00.000+00:002015-01-18T22:57:48.585+00:00Two years ...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hi everyone<br />
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It's been a while since I blogged, sorry. I don't want to turn Alice's blog into a place where I write about senseless things like painting my nails and eating pizza but four months might be too long!<br />
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Today, it's been two years since we said our last goodbye to Alice. I can remember it like it was yesterday. Alice had requested a humanist funeral and the celebrant dyed her hair purple. It was a beautiful day - it snowed. Not that slushy stuff, but lovely, fluffy white snow. And where we went for drinks afterwards had a gorgeous dog and Cath Kidston curtains at the windows. It was a weird day, the sort that you wouldn't really plan, but I think Alice would have liked it because it was cosy.<br />
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I mentioned the Heart of Ulverston awards in my last blog. This was an important nomination for me as although I've won lots of awards, Ulverston is my home town and very important to me. I was very honoured to win my category which was for young citizen, especially as there was two other very worthy nominees. I just need to practise my public speaking as I'm hopeless when it gets to the speaking part. But it was a great night and once I'd accepted my award, I got to relax.<br />
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We held our first charity ball at the end of November. I know that a lot of people worked really hard to make it happen, but the whole thing was brill and I really enjoyed dressing up and having fun. The next day, on Saturday we wandered around Ulverston's Dickensian festival and on Sunday, in Alice's honour, we celebrated our Christmas in November for the fifth year. I got a GoPro camera from Mum and Dad which was top of my wish list. It was a special weekend, because our American friend, Amanda, was staying with us in the UK and got to share it with us.<br />
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Alice's birthday was next and we had a lovely time with Paul and Leigh at Emma Bridgewater in Stoke. It was one of Alice's favourite places to go and she spent a lot of time there when she was having treatment, so it felt right. We lit a candle for her, ate cake and painted pots #19InTheStars<br />
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We don't really celebrate 'real' Christmas anymore. It's not the same without Alice and it's so commercial anyway. Last year we went skiing and this year we decided that we needed to go somewhere hot, so we spent Christmas in Cape Verde, which is a collection of islands in the Atlantic ocean, off the coast of Africa. There wasn't much there, but there was a beautiful beach that you could walk miles along and the people were so lovely. I took my surfboard with me, but the ocean was a bit vicious and I didn't spend that much time out there. We spent Christmas Day on the beach and went for a long walk which was nice and relaxing.<br />
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Earlier this week was Alice's two-year anniversary and thanks to Phil, who is a friend of our charity, we were lucky to spend some time at the Coppermine Cottages which are half way up Coniston Old Man. Just like last year, we spent Alice's day on the mountain with the dogs and toasted her with champagne. I made a video of our day - it's not perfect because it was freezing and blowing a gale, but I hope you like it and it captures a bit of our day - <a href="http://youtu.be/UFhqtrRAIbY" target="_blank">MY ALICE DAY VIDEO</a><br />
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I've been studying hard for my exams which are quite soon now. I spend half of my time with a book in my hand so it won't surprise you that my favourite subject is English, closely followed by art. I'm reading Wuthering Heights at the moment - it's an intense love story but I'm saddened by Heathcliff's self destructive journey. Alongside Wuthering Heights, I have two works to study for my GCSEs - 'Of Mice and Men' and 'Romeo and Juliet'. Very different but both tragic!<br />
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I'm still at Oxfam and still doing things for Alice's Escapes, although it's fairly quiet at the moment and I'm trying to make sure my school work doesn't get behind.<br />
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I've been hooked on the documentary 'Walking the Nile'. If you haven't seen it, it's still on 4OD and it is really, really good. Basically, Lev is documenting his attempt to be the first man to walk the entire length of the Nile, along the longest possible route, which is almost 4,000 miles. WOW, I'd love to do that but doubt I'd be able to and probably wouldn't have the courage anyway! So, at the weekend, Mum surprised me and I got to go down to London and enjoy an evening out with some of the team, including Lev and Boston (so now I know that they survive)!<br />
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During the February half term, I'm excited to be flying out to stay in New York City and also visit our friends in Rhode Island. I've been to New York before but it's a big city and I've not done all of it. I've found out that Romeo and Juliet is being performed by the New York City Ballet on the week I'm there so we're going to try to get to go along. Then, at Easter, I'm off to the French Pyrenees to do some walking, so hopefully get to play with my GoPro again :)<br />
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May will be K2B time again, so I need to do some serious training (and even more serious fundraising) and, before I know it, it will be summer and I can get back to Cornwall :)<br />
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Hope you are all doing okay, will update again in a few months.<br />
Love Milly x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-10267359388212771432014-09-12T19:00:00.000+01:002014-09-28T23:16:25.192+01:00Give a Spit<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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My biggest news is that now I'm finally <span style="color: magenta;"><b>SIXTEEN</b></span>, I've be able to join the Anthony Nolan bone marrow register. I've written more about it below, but please think about whether you could join or raise awareness :)</h3>
In my last post, I was thinking about going back to school and I felt like it was almost the end of summer. But I was wrong ...<br />
On my birthday week, my Mum and Dad surprised me by hiring a <a href="http://coast2coastcamperhire.co.uk/index.html" target="_blank">VW camper van</a> for the week. It was amazing but what was really special was that the camper van was called 'Alice'. Mum and I drove SLOWLY back to Bude and I was so happy to be back down there. I thought that I'd already got my birthday present but when I turned up at <a href="http://www.bigbluesurfschool.co.uk/" target="_blank">Big Blue</a> on my actual birthday morning, I couldn't believe that Mum and Dad had bought me a new surf board from <a href="http://www.zumajay.co.uk/" target="_blank">Zuma Jay</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Sweet Sixteenth</td></tr>
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Unbelievably, I managed to catch the very first wave I went for and I had a really great day. At night time, we went out for dinner at the site we were staying at which was called <a href="http://www.wooda.co.uk/" target="_blank">Wooda Farm</a> - it's where we stayed earlier in summer too. When I wasn't surfing, me and mum spent the week driving around in 'Alice' which was so relaxing. Everywhere we drove, people beeped and waved at us. It's definitely something to add to your 'to do' list.<br />
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When I got home, I had to get all my school stuff sorted as I went back at the end of August. I'm in my final year now, year 11 and it's all work and exams. I haven't decided exactly what I want to do next year, but I'm hoping to do something in TV / film - either behind the camera, art dept or screenwriting, so I might go to college and take the BTEC route to Uni, rather than standard A levels. Other than English and Art, I'm not really good at anything and so I think I'd be wasting time trying to do 4 A levels. I was also interested in doing something with the outdoors, but although I got an A* in the physical side, I got an E in the theory and ended up with a combined 'C' for my GCSE PE. Science definitely isn't a strong point of mine. Sorry Mrs Hesford!<br />
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So, I'm back at school and have loads of work that I need to get sorted. I'm enjoying Geography which is one of my new one year courses and off on a field trip next week, to gather data from a river. I've also agreed to play netball for school, which is really as a fill in, but without a few extra people volunteering, we won't have a team and so I'll just do the best I can! I'm back to working out a few times a week as I've let that slide over summer - I have a few events to attend in the next few months, so I don't want bumpy bits in my dresses! Plus it will give me a head start for the next K2B in May.<br />
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The first event I'm going to is really special because it's in my home town of Ulverston. In the summer, I was nominated for a "Heart of Ulverston Award" for my charity fundraising and voluntary work. Anyway, last week, I found out that I've been short listed against two other young people and the winner is chosen by public vote. So, if you would like to support me, I'd appreciate your vote ... Text<b> "EM HEART 5" </b>to<b> 84555</b> ... it should send you a "thank you for your vote". I think :)<br />
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After the awards, our charity is holding a 'Christmas in November Ball' on 28th November. All the details are going to be on the website soon but it's going to be Black Tie and I think there'll be a lot of purple dresses :) Alice would love to know that we are keeping her Christmas in November going - for anyone who doesn't get it, you'll have to look back through Alice's posts, but we'll be putting her <a href="http://www.festive-lights.com/?gclid=CjwKEAjwtIShBRD08fKD1OWSik4SJAAuKLov9MqKx_C4nPhItu6-h5KFKE8gKJLy95xnwVlreN26lxoClFnw_wcB" target="_blank">Festive Lights</a> purple tree up again. It's also followed by the Dickensian Festival in Ulverston, so it will get everyone in the mood for Christmas.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alice - Christmas in November 2012</td></tr>
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A couple of weeks ago, I joined the Anthony Nolan register which was a big thing for me. I promised Alice I would do it as soon as I could and I just hope that one day, I'm a match for someone. There can't be anything better than saving a life. Mum is starting up a voluntary group to visit and educate college students in the area and so I went along to one of the training events and it was really nice to see so many others turn up to join our team. Having a team of people will mean that we can cover all 16-18 year olds in the local area. If you want to know more about the Anthony Nolan register (16-30) click <a href="http://www.anthonynolan.org/8-ways-you-could-save-life/donate-your-stem-cells/apply-join-our-register" target="_blank">HERE</a> ... if you are older but would like to help, details on Delete Blood Cancer (18-55) is <a href="http://www.deletebloodcancer.org.uk/en" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My very own spit kit! </td></tr>
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Just over a week ago, Team Alice made lanterns and joined in the Ulverston Lantern Festival again. We didn't do it last year because it just felt wrong without Alice but this year, we thought she'd want us to and we had a great evening. I made Team Alice t-shirt lantern, and Mum carried the Mabel lantern that Alice made three years ago and it got lots of attention. The weather was brilliant and the fireworks at the end were like been at Disney, they were amazing!<br />
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I've just been down to London to see my new team to plan the next stage of my treatment. I'm slowly having to move on from Great Ormond Street which is really sad and I was at the Eastman Hospital in London to look at moving my teeth and my jaw forward. I was a bit unsure about the hospital initially, but the team were really nice and I still have some of my old team too, so that made it better. I think it's just because I've gone to GOSH for 16 years and everything feels familiar there.<br />
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This week in school we had a lady who'd had cancer come in and talk to us about a charity she is involved with and she talked a lot about cancer and kept saying how rare it is for a child to get it. I get uncomfortable when people talk about cancer in a simplistic way, because as well as me losing Alice, there's other people in our school who have lost people very close to them. It's nothing to do with been a fighter - there wouldn't be any cancer left in the world if fight had anything to do with it. It's luck of the cancer, luck of where you live and luck of the treatment you do (or don't) receive. After accidents, cancer is the leading cause of death in children. It kills more children than the things that most Mums and Dads worry about most.<br />
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Well, I started this on the 12th and it's the 28th now, but at least it's here - I have loads of work to catch up on and I've to get my outdoor gear ready for a geography field trip tomorrow, so I better go!<br />
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Milly x</div>
Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-32211706275912197392014-08-12T21:44:00.000+01:002014-08-15T00:50:04.926+01:00SORRY :( <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hey Everyone,</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sorry I haven't written a blog in a very long time and i wish i had an excuse but i don't. I am so sorry for not keeping all you guys up to date and from now on i will get back in to the habit of writing a blog every month. When i came on to write this blog, i didn't realise how long it had been since i had posted something. It made me recognise how quick time goes by. I just hope that you can forgive me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So, a lot has happened since February. Unfortunately i have the memory of a goldfish and can't remember much of last week let alone 6 months ago but i will try and work my brain for you guys.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Callum</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I guess the first thing to tell you all about is the Keswick to Barrow / Coniston to Barrow walk back in May. This year i did the Coniston to Barrow again and i walked it with my friend, Callum. The weather from what i remember was actually good for a change and we didn't get drenched :) However my knee started playing up this year which wasn't great because it kept doing spasms but everything was fine thanks to the support we had from the fabulous TEAM ALICE. It was an amazing team yet again and although its late, I can't thank you enough. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As me and Callum were doing the last mile on the walk, my uncle gary caught us up (he was doing the K2B and is the fastest walker I've ever known :D ). We all finished together which was really cool because a got to finish it with my uncle and one of my best friends. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I would also like to thank every person who sponsored me, I have raised <span style="line-height: 17px;">£4019 for Alice's charity because of your hel</span><span style="line-height: 17px;">p</span><span style="line-height: 17px;">.</span> I have such incredible support from you all and i am so so grateful for that. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing Scafell Pike for COPS</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">A couple of weeks after that i climbed Scafell Pike in the dark for COPS a charity looking after police survivors. Everyone of Wainwrights peaks had a team climbing it and at 3am we all lit our beacons. It felt funny to have my head torch on again but at least I got to have Mabel and Lottie keep me warm :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I had my biology and PE GCSEs in May and they were much harder then i thought. Its the first exams i have done that are actually serious and i know looking back now i could have revised more. The thing is I get distracted so easily and when i'm meant to be revising, i just want to be outside by the lake or on the mountains or with my friends. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In less than 2 weeks i will be going back to school to be in Year 11 which is top of the school and i know how hard i have to work. Its ridiculous that i'm in year 11, i still feel and look like a year 7. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trip to Paris with Mum</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Anyway enough talking about school. At the beginning of my summer holidays me and my mum went to Paris. My mum surprised me with a Segway tour so that we could see all the sites. It was so much fun ( a little scary ). I didn't realise how hard a Segway was to control and ride. Me and mum giggled for most of it. It was a good trip except most people we met were completely miserable and rude, which in a way made it a bad trip. It would of been much more enjoyable without the people being arrogant. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I didn't realise how expensive Paris was and i just want to thank my mum so much for taking me there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Me, mum and dad also went camping in 'amazing' Cornwall. I loved this holiday so much, i actually learnt to surf with Big blue surf school .... properly. I spent everyday on the beach with my surfboard and i think i have the surfing bug now. I just always want to be improving my surfing, its a shame Cornwall's so far away because i'd be out on the waves everyday :(</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Mabel and Lottie were also with us, so by the end off the week they were also in love with the beach and the ocean (swimming). </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mabel & Lottie had a lovely time</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yummy food in Cornwall</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We visited a place called Lanhydrock House, it's part of the national trust and we looked around the house, it was massive and so interesting to look at all the paintings. We went to Watergate Bay for a day, the beach was so clean and big. My dad actually lost his phone in the ocean there whilst "paddling" with the dogs :) To be honest it was quite amusing to watch him looking for it :) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I didn't want to leave at all and i could quite happily move there now but i'd miss the mountains.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Recently it was the North Lonsdale Show where Alice's dog show was held and it was fantastic. I didn't think it would be so popular but it was. Mabel actually won the 'best trick' which was to pick up a balloon and return it to my mum without popping it. It was so funny to watch and i was very proud of her :D </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The charity is doing well and we still have great support from everyone around us. The caravans are busy and the families are enjoying there time here in the Lake District. I sometimes get to say 'Hi' to the people / families who come and it's so nice to meet them. Just to see the impact the holiday has on them and how they are having such a wonderful time really does show that spending time with the people you love, is more important than anything. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">It was Mabel's birthday today, she turned 4 and yes, she did get lots of toys and biscuits from us. It is also my birthday next week and im turning 16. Which is so crazy to think that next year i can start to learn to drive (which i cannot wait for). I am hoping to run a special bone marrow clinic, as i'm turning 16 i can officially go on the register and i am so happy about it. If you are 16-30 and aren't on the Bone Marrow Register yet, you really do need to get on it because you could potentially be saving a life <a href="https://www.anthonynolan.org/node/774" target="_blank">JOIN HERE</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">So again i want to apologise about not posting for such a long time, and i feel bad now that i haven't.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I love all you guys for supporting me and the charity. </span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Thank you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Promise to post next month,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Milly xx </span><br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-22101370697357396122014-02-12T21:41:00.000+00:002014-02-26T22:33:07.470+00:00February<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hey Everyone !!<br />
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Hope you are all good and you haven't come down with a cold. The weather is awful here and i really have decided that i am moving to a hot country when I'm older :)</div>
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It's official, the K2B training has all started and everyone is really determined this year to improve on their time. Let's hope the weather is better than last year, it was horrendous and i remember being wrapped in a tin foil blanket as i was walking over kirby moor, everyone was shivering. </div>
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Some eager people started training after we got back from Kilimanjaro, back in October. I wish i could do that again, even though it was the hardest thing i have ever done, i did manage to enjoy it. Except summit day :)) but it still felt amazing that I'd ticked off such a huge thing.<br />
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There are lots of things that i was never expected to do because of my syndrome.<br />
Crouzon Syndrome is a genetic disorder characterised by the premature fusion of certain skull bones. This prevents the skull from growing normally and affects the shape of the head and face. Anyway, my parents were told that I would never be totally normal, that I would always look a little bit different and that I probably wouldn't achieve half the things that I have. I always looked different to my friends and everyone else. It didn't really affect me. I have had many surgeries in my life to help my eyes, face and skull. The life changing one was when i had the red frame surgery. It is basically a frame that is screwed to your face and they broke my bones and then stretched them a bit every day.</div>
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It was red nose day, so we attached red ears to my frame :)<br />
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After i had it, it gave me a load of confidence, I'm not going to lie and it made me feel normal but over the years i have thought that it shouldn't matter how you look, or the way you talk, or the way you smile or if you are disabled. You can achieve anything if you put your mind to it and i know this because like i said, the doctors never thought i would be totally independent. I never let it bother me but it feels good to have summited Kilimanjaro and be the youngest EVER to be included in the Queen's Birthday Honours, who would have thought that when i was 3 years old. Even now, after my surgeries, i know my face isn't perfect. The red frame made my nose go wonky and i know my eyes will always be a bit bigger and i notice it everyday, but i try to not let it bother me and just live my life to the fullest because you only live once. I guess what I'm trying to say (after all this mumbling) is don't let anything stand in your way of living your life the way you want to and never give up on yourself. </div>
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Anyway school is really hard at the moment and the work is so difficult because we have our exams coming up, more and more pressure is building up. I'm looking forward to easter because i think we are looking at going away some where hot (TANNNNN) for a short break!! i am also really excited for summer because i am going to look for some work experience and hopefully august will be hot like last summer. I love (hot) summers because you can just chill with your friends and family and have BBQs. I love going down to windermere and going swimming or sailing with my friends. As much as i love snuggling in front of a fire with hot chocolate, i am definitely a summer girl (i would wear shorts all year round if i could hah). </div>
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I know this blog has been quite a serious and probably boring one but i just really wanted to share my thoughts with you about having a disorder. I hope you all have a great Valentines Day and a pleasant month :) </div>
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Milly x</div>
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-55394338102891005112014-01-12T22:26:00.000+00:002014-01-23T00:12:32.534+00:00A year without Alice <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So it's 2014. I can't believe that we're in a different year and that everything about Alice is last year. I wrote this for Alice's one year anniversary but after I sent it to the local newspaper for a special piece they were doing, I didn't want to publish it straight away and so it's late and I'm sorry.<br />
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"A Year without Alice"<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Some days, it feels like yesterday that I last spoke to her - if I close my eyes and concentrate, I can hear her voice as if she was stood next to me. Other days, it feels a long, long time ago.<br />And sometimes I miss her so badly that I feel my heart will break.<br />When I was little, Alice was very protective of me. If anyone upset me, they'd have Alice to deal with. If I threw a fit at something, she'd slide a little note under my door, desperate for me to be happy again. She hated people to be unhappy, she wanted to make the world smile. She'd transform our bathroom into "Alice's Spa" and invite me for bubble baths and massages and nails. And when it was stormy and I was frightened, she'd come into my room and climb into bed with me and watch movies to hide the noise. And then she got ill.<br />As she became sicker, I watched as she faced everything with a smile on her face. Every time it seemed like there was no more treatment, her and mum would go off and find a way. I never thought that she wouldn't get better. I grew taller than Alice and I sat on her bed watching movies with her. I painted her nails and rubbed her back and she told me how much she loved me and me her. And she asked me to make a difference and make my life count. So I'm trying.</i></blockquote>
We went skiing over Christmas and I think I did really well and by the middle of the week, I could ski back to the village with Mum. We stayed in a really nice hotel and me and Mum kept sneaking back from the slopes to go in the spa which was awesome. The only thing I regret is not trying snowboarding because I think I'd have enjoyed that even more.<br />
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For Alice's anniversary we stayed at the <a href="http://www.coppermines.co.uk/coniston/5-the-coppermines-mountain-cottages---the-carpenters-cottage-(sleeps-2-7)---en-suite-facilities---hot-tub/58075/" target="_blank">Coppermines Cottages in Coniston</a>. They already support Alice's charity but when we were looking for somewhere to stay for her anniversary, Phil invited us to go and stay for the week and it was stunning. We had log fires every night and the dogs walked were exhausted from all the walking mum did with them. On the 12th we went walking up Coniston Old Man and along to Wetherlam. It was snowy and really cold on the top but the view was beautiful and we opened a bottle of champagne (Mum loved this part of the walk) and we all had a drink for Alice. I wanted to be snowed in so that I could go walking every day and didn't have to go to school. But the school drivers picked me up from Coniston and they were really friendly (sometimes we have miserable drivers from Ulverston), so I got there every day!<br />
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This week I had my mock exams which were awful. I've done Biology theory and PE theory which are probably my worst subjects, but I have PE practical on Friday which is normally one of my favourites, except I have to do hockey which I don't play - doh! I also had a disastrous Spanish test - perhaps I shouldn't be doing two languages!<br />
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"<i>Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid</i>" - Albert Einstein </blockquote>
I'm still going to Oxfam on Saturdays and there's some really nice people volunteering with me. My job is usually sorting the clothes into piles and pricing them up, standing by a window looking out into the market square. I love fashion, so when I find any designer stuff it takes me even longer to sort them!<br />
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It's only 15 weeks until the K2B and I'm trying to keep my fitness going. As well as my mountain walking, I've been running and going to Zumba. I'm really nervous about keeping hold of Alice's Trophy. Last year I thought it was important to win it for Alice, but now that it is next year, it would really upset me to hand it back. So I need to fundraise and make sure we keep it! If you'd like to support me, any amount is REALLY appreciated and we cover all our own costs so the charity gets all of the money you donate - <a href="https://www.keswick2barrow.co.uk/sponsor/welcome.asp?ID=500" target="_blank">SPONSOR ME HERE</a><br />
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We haven't got any plans for summer. I'd love to go back to Vancouver and it's on Alice's list, but I'd like to visit Thailand too. Mum and Dad are so indecisive that usually things are booked up when we eventually agree on something. I think that me and Mum will go camping in Cornwall again which was one of my best holidays last year and we can take the dogs too. When I'm older, I'd love a VW camper van in duck egg blue and I'd travel around doing festivals and go surfing in Cornwall with my friends.<br />
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I've been thinking a lot about my future. My best subjects are probably English and Art and I'm really interested in film, especially screenwriting. I find it super interesting how you turn a book into a movie and I feel that it would be something I'd enjoy. I have already been looking at colleges and have seen a few that look amazing. Mum will have to get more Labradors if I move out!<br />
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I hope everyone has a good month.<br />
Lots of love,<br />
Milly x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-17674017475169656812013-12-12T20:00:00.000+00:002013-12-12T22:59:29.589+00:00Last 12th of 2013 <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hey Everyone,<br />
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Today is 11 months since Alice died and it is the last 12th in this year which in a way i find really sad. I miss her so so much. It feels as if time hasn't moved on, but the people and world around me has. Some people have been sending christmas cards saying stuff like " Have the best christmas ever" or "May this christmas be jolly", and i find it quite offensive that people are sending cards like that to me, mum and dad. They aren't thinking at all and i know they don't mean to be be offensive or sound disrespectful but it feels like that to me. I know this christmas is going to be the hardest christmas i've ever had and i'm not really looking forward to it. We are going skiing this year over Christmas, so on christmas day i will be on the slopes skiing, which is one of my favourite things to do, but Alice absolutely hated it with a passion, which makes us feel less guilty, as she wouldn't have wanted to come skiing. For our christmas dinner we are going to have pizza or something really un-Christmassy and the dogs will be happy cos Nan and Grandad are moving in to look after them while we're away :)<br />
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It's my sister's birthday this Sunday and me, mum, dad and the pups are going away somewhere we can walk with the dogs. I am going to take my running stuff and if i have the energy, go for runs with Mabel. Alice would have been 18 and we thought some of you might like to give a present to Alice and leave a message. What we have done is set up a just giving page where you can<a href="http://www.justgiving.com/Alices18th" target="_blank"> donate </a>as much or as little money as you want to go to Rainbow Trust Charity, who have really being there for us.<br />
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I am now volunteering at Oxfam every Saturday and its been good so far and i have met some other people around my age that also volunteer there. I mainly help sort and tag the clothes but sometimes i go on the till. I'm not the biggest fan of the till, there are so many buttons to press for different things, it does confuse me most of the time.<br />
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This term at school has been so full on work wise, we have literally been working ridiculously hard and i have learnt so much. I have my 3 mocks after Christmas, PE Theory, PE practical and Biology. Out off all the subjects i do these 2 i find the hardest, except from the practical side of PE - i love that.<br />
I am so scared about the actual exams though because i'm defiantly not the most academic kid in the school, i'm much more outdoorsy. In most lessons i look out the window and see the mountains on the other side of the lake and every time I look at them i think to myself 'I wish i was up there today, instead of being stuck inside'. I have so much homework, essays and revision to do for after Christmas, i really to remember to make time, which I always seem to forget.<br />
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My mum warned me before i went to Kili that you get addicted and i completely ignored this because i thought what a silly thing to say but now that i am back from Kili, I couldn't agree more. I can't wait for my next challenge and i'm excited to just climb a mountain again. I didn't think i would make it to the summit of Kilimanjaro at all but I did and i felt so amazing and on top of the world. One of Alices Escapes fundraisers, Steve who is very into climbing and trekking, bought me a book about all the mountains above 8000m and it is such an an incredible book with awesome pictures. It made me think a lot about what i want to achieve and believe it or not i have seriously been thinking about climbing Everest when i'm older, i think the feeling you would have if you reached the summit would be the most amazing and mind blowing feeling you could ever have - you are literally at the top of the world. But thats in the future i am not going to attempt climbing it now :) haha. Last week Steve got me an epic poster which was a picture of everest, K2 and all the massive mountains in Nepal and it is signed by some of the most amazing mountaineers. <br />
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I hope everyone has a merry christmas and a happy new year.<br />
Bye For Now,<br />
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Milly x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-18414284782363873992013-11-12T21:38:00.000+00:002013-11-14T01:16:48.804+00:00I made it!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hi, such a lot has happened since I last blogged, but most of it was on a mountain!<br />
It's ten months since Alice went and I miss her so much. I am desperate to tell her about my African trip and I can't, so I just hope that somehow she is watching me. This post is all about my Kili climb.<br />
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THURSDAY 17th October, I flew out to Africa to attempt to climb Kilimanjaro.<br />
We flew from Heathrow to Doha and onto Dar es Salaam and finally into Kilimanjaro airport. We were shattered as the planes were a bit cramped, but excited too.<br />
We had the FRIDAY afternoon to get our gear sorted and on the Saturday morning we were off.<br />
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SATURDAY<br />
Today we spent most of the morning driving to and hanging around waiting to get our permits to climb Kili. We had a really horrible lunch of squashed banana and something unidentifiable and then set off trekking. Today we trekked up to 2,780 metres and it was really steep in parts but it felt quite good to be going. We reached camp about an hour before the sun set and got our tents sorted and then went for dinner. We were all really tired after dinner and after a team briefing, which we had to have outside in the cold, we went straight to bed. I slept as snug as a bug in my new Mountain Equipment sleeping bag :)<br />
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SUNDAY<br />
Today we were trekking up to Shira Camp at 3,505 metres. It didn't sound that far but every time we gained a few hundred metres, there was always a big drop that we had to climb up again. Today was really hard work on my legs and we were stopping and starting right along the trail. We didn't get into camp until the sun was just about to set which made it really difficult to get the tent sorted. It was also really cold and everyone got their down jackets out!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Day 3 - Me and my Mum</td></tr>
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MONDAY<br />
It was freezing when we got up this morning but once the sun came up, it got warm quickly. We were trekking up to 4,000 metres today and other than the summit day and night, this was the longest day trekking. It was just up and up and up from the minute we set off and we didn't reach Lava Tower until about four in the afternoon. This was because my mum had to turn back down the mountain with Alice's friend, Sammi, who was sick and we all were sat around for quite a bit while they thought about what to do. In the end, another boy was going down with his dad so we felt a bit better that they weren't going to be alone. After they went, the rest of us were really sad and it wasn't a good day really. From the Lava Tower, it took us over two hours to get down to camp at Barranco which meant we arrived just as it was dark. So we had to sort our camping gear in the dark again and we were all miserable at tea and quite a few were feeling ill. Because my tent mate and my mum had gone down, I shared a tent with my Dad, which was good because he looked after me and got me a hot water bottle for in my sleeping bag :)<br />
We went to bed just after eight and we all thought that my mum and Sammi would be in a hotel somewhere when in fact they were STILL on their way because the trekking company was useless.<br />
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TUESDAY<br />
Climbing up the Barranco wall was awesome. This was the most enjoyable part of the climb and when we reached the top I felt pretty good and positive about the whole thing. We arrived at the next camp mid afternoon and there was another walk to help you with the altitude but I felt too sick to do it and so I went to my tent and had a rest. I dry shampooed my hair which is as good as it gets on Kili and then listened to my dad snoring LOL. Everyone was going downhill at dinner and we were all on various tablets to help with the altitude.<br />
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WEDNESDAY<br />
Was really nervous when I woke up today because as well as the walk to the base camp, we were starting our summit attempt this evening. From the camp it was pretty much up hill all the way but the views were amazing. The actual mountain was a bit ugly at this point and there wasn't much to see. We were climbing up to 4,600 metres this morning and it wasn't as far as some of the other days but we were all feeling quite ill. I was really sick today and it made me nervous. We arrived at the base camp just before lunch and there was another walk that was about 2 hours and really steep just to help with the altitude again. They did lunch when we got back from the extra walk and then we went to rest but I don't think anyone got much sleep because everyone was nervous. Dad and me didn't go to dinner because the food was disgusting anyway and we had lots of Mars Bars and shortbread with us although I hadn't eaten all day anyway.<br />
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SUMMIT<br />
We were woken 10 minutes before we were meant to leave at 11 o'clock which put us in a panic. It was so cold that even with all my layers on, I was still freezing. I had my down jacket on and my dad gave me his down jacket as well. I felt really sorry for him but he said he was fine. We were climbing 1,300 metres tonight up to 5,895 metres and it was the hardest thing I have ever done. I felt so nervous because it was so steep that after just an hour of it, I was a bit worried if I could do it. All of our group were sick in some way by now and even though I'd not eaten anything, my body still wanted me to be sick. The injections definitely helped but they didn't take it away and I had to really make my mind think about why I was doing this. I thought about Alice a lot while I was climbing and I thought about how proud my Mum would be of me too.<br />
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STILL CLIMBING INTO THURSDAY<br />
After we'd been climbing for about six hours, we were going between normal conversation and mumbling silly things that didn't make sense. We stayed together all the way, sticking together as a little purple team. The air was getting thinner and it was getting harder and harder to lift my legs up and put my feet one in front of the other. If you've even been on one of those cross trainer things and tried to do so much that your legs are wobbly and you just can't control them, it was a bit like that. It was so cold that I just can't explain it. I had every inch of skin covered, thick layers and two down jackets, but I was still cold. With the windchill, it was minus 20. I've never experienced that before and definitely never walked through the night, up a mountain in it! We had amazing guides in our group. Hudson stayed with me and dad all the way up and he kept telling me that I could do it and giving me little pieces to achieve. The sun started to come up and we were still climbing on a really steep bit and I have to be honest, my eyes were losing focus and I was desperate to go to sleep at that point. But then someone said it was really close and a doctor from another group had a look at me and asked if I felt I could continue and I said yes and he said well get yourself up there young lady, you've almost done it. And I don't know why but that gave me energy and helped me push that final bit. We laughed afterwards, because another of our group lost vision in one eye and it was only when it came back that she said, I just thought it was foggy on the mountain!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The glaciers seemed to be sliding down the mountain</td></tr>
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When we saw the Stella point point sign come into view, I felt like I was running (I wasn't) and full of energy. My Dad said that Stella point was like one of the top points and I said that no, there's only one top and I was going there! So we carried on again, but I was moving so slowly at this point that if there was a particular bit of rock or something that stood out, it stayed next to me for about 5 minutes while I passed it LOL. After what felt like hours, but was probably only another one and a bit hours, there in front of us, was the TOP OF AFRICA, the Uhuru peak. I honestly couldn't believe that we'd made it, I felt amazing. There was quite a few other trekkers at the top, probably because we'd taken so long to get there, but we had photos and got the Alice's Escapes banner out for a photo with the rest of the team. Now that I'm home, I look at my photo and think why didn't I take the head torch off and do something with my hair. I look like a miner!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSDDIrbsCf-d7Q4TAeWFkcm-lGN63q3V8qFGG2n5HwwVO6oAiRUIoPPgkuwohBK5sF2BWAfbTXhr9pxJAZ4iyQF_ReHor4zAQ3DTet8AjHu6hb_9aPNXL5iIEp5qM5za7wjSKh9bxhCeW/s1600/1450689_539613382789420_150923162_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYSDDIrbsCf-d7Q4TAeWFkcm-lGN63q3V8qFGG2n5HwwVO6oAiRUIoPPgkuwohBK5sF2BWAfbTXhr9pxJAZ4iyQF_ReHor4zAQ3DTet8AjHu6hb_9aPNXL5iIEp5qM5za7wjSKh9bxhCeW/s320/1450689_539613382789420_150923162_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Steven, my Dad, me, Haley, Alex and Kathy reach the summit</td></tr>
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Dad and I went and had a minute on our own and then left some of Alice on the mountain top like she wanted us to. That was quite hard to do, especially without mum been with us, but it was nice to be with the others and we all had a minute together, hugging and thinking about Alice. <br />
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I sent my mum a text message to tell her we'd made it and I didn't get her response straight away, but now I've looked at Alice's facebook pages I can see that she was just a bit pleased.<br />
After 9 hours of climbing, you only get to spend a really short time at the summit because they make you start going back down again. It was really hard going back down and so steep that Hudson had hold of me to stop me falling. My legs were so tired but I just didn't care, I felt so happy that I'd done it. The summit night was the first night that I realised that all those months of training - climbing mountains, gym and running had made so much of a difference.<br />
Breakfast was back at the base camp but no one really ate anything because we all felt so ill and then we had to walk for another few hours to get down to 4,000 metres and Millennium camp just after lunch time. We'd been climbing for 17 hours at that point! The porters were so happy that night, i think because they get there tips :) some of them were amazing dancers!<br />
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FRIDAY<br />
We had to say goodbye to all the porters which was sad because you know they just have to do it again and again to stay alive. They don't have a choice really but they are such happy people. Everyone was really tired today and that was made worse by a long, long trek back down through a few different areas. It was just open to start with and then through lots of steep forest paths and finally down a track. My legs were killing me and I thought it was really tough walking down, especially after what we'd done. I expected my mum and Sammi at the gate but the trekking company hadn't collected them and so they didn't get there! Everyone just wanted to get back and wash and change, but we had to go for lunch and then back to the hotel. My mum was waiting for me and I had the nicest shower of my life! At night time, there was a celebratory dinner thing but one of Alice's old teachers who is a friend of ours was coming for dinner at the hotel and so Mum ate dinner with her and I joined them a bit later.<br />
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Mum and Sammi had an okay week too, even though they were disappointed. After we left them, they waited for SIX HOURS on the mountain for a truck to meet them and then it sounded like it was a bit frightening as the driver was fighting with someone and didn't want to drive them down. So the journey wasn't good and mum said they were glad that they got down alive! But, there was no hotel sorted for that night even thought they'd had all day and so she tweeted and put a message out on Facebook and one of Alice's fans was a friend of a friend who owns the Honey Badger Lodge in Moshi. Anyway, Mum sorted rooms there and they stayed there for the week and said it was a fantastic place. They managed to visit the school next door and they also went on a safari so at least they got to do something. So Alice kind of saved the day for them :)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4ZLHd-2wVMHSOXEw51lljG6xaIdqaFeXEp1ajXnxi49mKFYGH99a-ixGg-MwLffuIRmSN25aSA_VLw6WvSABNfcFl9HVR26D26BD6PY5VfHgSkyUjGpzRr7f1KWzxIydUSeyz-Fzudfk/s1600/1457459_10201770350113360_1076889000_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb4ZLHd-2wVMHSOXEw51lljG6xaIdqaFeXEp1ajXnxi49mKFYGH99a-ixGg-MwLffuIRmSN25aSA_VLw6WvSABNfcFl9HVR26D26BD6PY5VfHgSkyUjGpzRr7f1KWzxIydUSeyz-Fzudfk/s320/1457459_10201770350113360_1076889000_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sammi and my mum with dolly on a purple safari LOL</td></tr>
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The journey back was okay but very long and it was made worse when we got back to Heathrow and Purple Parking had actually managed to lose our car and Kathy's car. We still can't figure out how you lose two cars, but they weren't very helpful and our meet and greet service ended up being well over an hour. So we think they should change their name to Invisible parking or something because they make cars vanish and everything else that is purple is brilliant.<br />
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You would think that I would arrive home and watch all the stuff I'd recorded while we were away. But I didn't. All I have watched is documentaries of Everest and K2 and climbing things. I never thought I would say this, but I really enjoyed the challenge and am looking for my next challenge. It was strange to do something that needed me to be mentally strong as well as fit and I believe in myself a bit more now. It was good to visit Africa because it made me realise how much I have and how little they have and yet they are some of the happiest people I've ever met. I miss Africa so much already. One of our charity supporters sent me the best mountain book ever and I'm spending every spare minute with it. Maybe one day I'll visit some of the places in it!<br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">This is all a bit long now and I still have to tell you about the K2B awards, Love Barrow awards, Park Cliffe, Alan Hinkes and my new volunteering at Oxfam, so I'll do another blog post in a week or so. I need to go to bed now as it's a school night.</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">THANK YOU goes to everyone who sponsored me - I raised almost £11,000 and am very pleased with that, and to my mum and dad for encouraging me to do something amazing.</span><br />
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Love Milly x</div>
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com22tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-76267446546318215942013-10-25T07:07:00.001+01:002013-11-03T08:23:29.096+00:00My Amazing Girls ...<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Yesterday morning, after six days of climbing, my amazing Milly mops summited the world's tallest freestanding mountain for her sister.</div><div>She battled on despite severe sickness and pain and managed to fulfil Alice's wish to have some of her ashes scattered on the top of Kilimanjaro, which is almost 6,000 metres high.</div><div>This is definitely a proud mummy moment - I was blessed with two extraordinary girls <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir5cw_minZM3PZavX_1id-iQepCrbS9_DmeDF49lpPlN1eyCG8Ux6m3oN6PYYPpkLfJBTizxW3kgjq_bWexrpvvdW9wmM8V333qt6BWy6EVFyM72JraPALYHyiLbK8LJDj_laUPRIVjLZN/s640/blogger-image--552007585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir5cw_minZM3PZavX_1id-iQepCrbS9_DmeDF49lpPlN1eyCG8Ux6m3oN6PYYPpkLfJBTizxW3kgjq_bWexrpvvdW9wmM8V333qt6BWy6EVFyM72JraPALYHyiLbK8LJDj_laUPRIVjLZN/s640/blogger-image--552007585.jpg"></a></div><br></div></div>Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-52915067022817318042013-10-12T22:30:00.000+01:002013-11-13T21:36:36.827+00:00My Kili video <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This is a video I've made about my training for Kili and in two weeks time I'll actually be there! If you like it, please <a href="http://www.justgiving.com/millypyne" target="_blank">sponsor me a little bit</a>. Thank you, Milly<br />
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Click here - <a href="http://youtu.be/-TBYRHUGPC0" target="_blank">My Kili Video</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePHTh1-7U79bBpjJvfNmGUQl_hn59xcrT4uR0Zp4DC4A2tBNKFAaWJQ8qPTM3cEZneg8cmtsIFN-XKSjI-pjQxrkr8Bb3-Dj2YXVQIQSg6dDWuM9PVZD4XHZ6y9WJgTWqCgXl2Y8Y_S1n/s1600/KILI023.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgePHTh1-7U79bBpjJvfNmGUQl_hn59xcrT4uR0Zp4DC4A2tBNKFAaWJQ8qPTM3cEZneg8cmtsIFN-XKSjI-pjQxrkr8Bb3-Dj2YXVQIQSg6dDWuM9PVZD4XHZ6y9WJgTWqCgXl2Y8Y_S1n/s320/KILI023.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo from last year's trek - can't believe<br />
I'm going to be sleeping above the clouds!</td></tr>
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-27839778504183248202013-10-01T02:30:00.000+01:002013-10-01T10:11:54.508+01:00Pinch, punch … <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">First of the month …</span></h2>
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<b>I would hate</b> to intrude on the 12th of the month thing that Milly has going on, but just now, I was passing Alice's room and I automatically whispered, "<i>pinch, punch</i>" to her … sadly, she can't reply "<i>first of the month</i>", but you get the drift. Anyway, it got me thinking that maybe I should do an update.<br />
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<b>Quite how we have survived</b> for almost nine long months, I can't answer.<br />
All I know is that our strength and endurance has been pushed and tested to the extreme.<br />
In exchange for our precious daughter, we have been handed a lifetime of obstacles.<br />
At times, I wonder if we will ever feel truly happy again?<br />
And by 'truly happy', I don't mean a fleeting, six-hour stint of happiness.<br />
Is it strong to wear a mask and continue, pretending things are as normal?<br />
Or is real strength removing that mask and allowing everyone to see what's within?<br />
And how does one move forward when, in doing so, we must leave Alice behind?<br />
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<span style="color: purple;"><b>Forever 17</b></span><br />
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<b>Alice was rather proud</b> of herself for making it to 17. Sadly, as was all too frequent in Alice's short life, she spent the entire day in bed after yet another seizure. As friends and family gathered downstairs, the birthday girl was bedridden and mumbling, incoherently about "yappy dogs" to three friends who, despite the lure of cupcakes, remained in Alice's darkened room, arranged around the hard, wooden floor. Exactly four weeks later, she was gone.<br />
Is it strong to celebrate the milestones and achievements of Alice's friends?<br />
Or is it strong to admit that it breaks my heart to watch them experience things she never will?<br />
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<b>Of course</b>, there are no answers. No wrong and no right. Just what we feel. The death of a child is such an overwhelming event that you can't begin to understand it unless you've experienced it. No amount of professional training will get you close to the reality.<br />
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<b>There are triggers</b> everywhere. We watch each of her friends reach the 'next' birthday, learn to drive, buy a car, get a boyfriend. Each time we drive our cars (which we also have an attachment to), Alice's seat is empty. We go to the beach and there's the ice cream hut with her favourite strawberry ice cream. We open random computer files to discover long discarded video clips and then we have to replay them several times, just to listen to her voice. We scan restaurant menus, automatically looking for something suitable for Alice. We book four seats on a plane, forgetting we only need three. We go through the motions and cling to each other in the hope that strength really does come in numbers.<br />
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<b>There is little</b> we can do to remove the pain. We're coming to realise that grief takes its own course and we are but pawns in the game; powerless to dictate direction. But, we have some amazing friends who are still standing beside us and they will forever have a place, deep in our hearts. The friends who aren't afraid to speak Alice's name; the ones who can laugh with us and also cry with us. The ones who know that even though time has passed, the pain hasn't. Our true friends.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i>Don't pity the man with one true friend. Envy him. </i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><i>Pity the man with a thousand acquaintances.</i></span></div>
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<b>My most hated greeting</b> (and the reason I still haven't completed a full supermarket shop since losing Alice), is "<i>How are you</i>"? Do people <i>really</i> want to know (have they got ALL day?), or are they hoping we'll say "<i>fine</i>"? At which point they'll feel better because we're obviously 'over it'. I've responded truthfully just twice in almost nine months. It was a catastrophic mistake. There was huge embarrassment on both sides, followed by an awkward silence. Clearly, the reply should always be "fine" … but those of us in this club already know what that stands for!<br />
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<b>Life is equally at odds</b> for Milly and she too has had much to contend with. In just the space of a week, she has had to expand an English storyline about a parent, desperately battling to save their child's life; write and deliver a piece about herself for French; give a newspaper interview about scattering her sister's ashes and deal with the fact that her father is 6,000 miles away on a forced, extended business trip to Japan (I now have strong views that his company are also of the ilk that we should be 'over it' and unaffected by such absences). Each situation is not a deliberate one, but nonetheless, one we have to face.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi09Ccr_VYemZRwbTwpGKfLW0iY54UsinykOrT0Z7F4wSGZwY6ifeqlU7-VTc8w1MjupFm49X4o_SXUVL3qFPjByT8MY1Eckp0HIkTOgtHyhKkLSQrzYSpQ5Tycihp8pmRmNRPx1ylJY47e/s1600/DSCF8611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi09Ccr_VYemZRwbTwpGKfLW0iY54UsinykOrT0Z7F4wSGZwY6ifeqlU7-VTc8w1MjupFm49X4o_SXUVL3qFPjByT8MY1Eckp0HIkTOgtHyhKkLSQrzYSpQ5Tycihp8pmRmNRPx1ylJY47e/s320/DSCF8611.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me & Milly, Great Gable - Sunday 29th Sept<br />
(photo taken by a very happy climber we met up there)</td></tr>
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<b>Of course</b>, we still have lots to be thankful for; it just means less without Alice being here to share it. Her bone marrow campaigning continues and in the not too far future, I hope to be up and running, visiting everything from the smaller work place to the larger colleges and enrolling in her name. Her charity remains busy helping families in need of an escape and we are on track to buy our second holiday home very soon. We spend a great deal of time outdoors with Alice's beloved puppy dogs … the mountains feel good and we feel free and close to Alice when we're wandering on top of the (Cumbrian) world. Of course, walkers are a happy bunch and smiling is infectious, so it's great therapy too. On Sunday's walk up Great Gable, Milly and I spoke to over a dozen people, one of who we walked a fair distance with … "hello" to Stuart! In just over two weeks time, we fly off to climb Kilimanjaro in Africa and, hopefully, we'll tick another of Alice's wishes off. <br />
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Sadly, we'll only be filling three seats, but they'll most definitely be four of us onboard.<br />
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Vicky x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-36487655475551508712013-09-12T21:01:00.000+01:002013-09-16T00:52:09.799+01:00Winter's Arriving :)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hey Guys !<br />
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Hope everyone had a great summer and just chilled out !!<br />
Everyone's back at school, I missed my friends so much and it's great to be with them again. I'm in year 10 now and starting my GCSE's, which is so scary and much harder than year 9.<br />
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The charity caravan was really busy over summer and I hope that all of the families enjoyed themselves and had a relaxing time.<br />
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We picked our service choices the other day at school. For those who don't know, service is like helping your community in some way and I'm really excited. My first choice was helping out at a primary school with little kids. I love kids so I thought that would be a super choice for me. My second choice was to help out at an Old People's home, I thought that would be a really nice thing to do because I love hearing stories from when my granddad was my age and I know older people love telling you them :)<br />
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It's Kilimanjaro soon :/ it's nerve-racking how fast it's come, but we have been trying to get up a mountain each weekend and just getting that little bit more prepared as each week comes, whether that's working or not i have no idea :) I would really appreciate it if you would <a href="http://www.justgiving.com/millypyne" target="_blank">sponsor me</a> just a little bit towards it, I'm just £2000 off my target, so like Tesco's say "Every little helps"!<br />
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I have just come back from my DoE practice expedition today and I have to say it was so much fun. Yesterday it was really sunny so it was good walking weather. Last night we all put our tents up and cooked pasta with sauce and afterwards, we just chilled with everyone. It was such a clear night and at one point me and my friend just lay on the grass and looked at the stars. I never do that and it was so amazing. However today was raining pretty heavy in Cumbria and it was also extremely windy, but we still walked and then mum and dad picked me up. As soon as i got back i fell asleep for 4 hours :)<br />
Got school tomorrow, I'm going to be like a walking zombie :)<br />
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Hope everyone has a great September month and it doesn't get too cold for you all :)<br />
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Milly x<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-32354136164453068142013-08-12T22:08:00.000+01:002013-08-14T08:38:45.088+01:00Summer is nearly over :(<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hey Guys !<br />
<br />
Firstly i want to say how sorry i am for not doing a blog post last month. I feel so bad about it but we were in the Maldives and the wifi was the worst I've ever experienced. I think me and mum went through 10 wifi slips to just get 5 minutes.<br />
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Last month, as most of you know, we went on a holiday to the Maldives. I'm not the most confident flyer and it was a 12hour flight, so that was an experience for me :) but we did have a TV each and i watched films the whole way there and back :D. When we arrived the white beaches and the clear ocean was truly amazing and the holiday was great. I don't want to sound ungrateful, but it did get quite boring and i think as a family we have decided that we like to be doing things instead of, well.. nothing. Don't get me wrong i loved the sunbathing but i found myself in the shade a lot as it was baking hot.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieCPeDGYKqmpslFs8298_antliIrHoRp_Nxk77v7xxgUE7svP6Oe6PQ9qjBZIeUaE4IM5vDOt7n_IUcdj45pCKGOTAOeU6b4Wr8Me32vKsYKSxAN635qHrzyLfuZfHXOwPeX5mURjuRYR2/s640/blogger-image-2046685266.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieCPeDGYKqmpslFs8298_antliIrHoRp_Nxk77v7xxgUE7svP6Oe6PQ9qjBZIeUaE4IM5vDOt7n_IUcdj45pCKGOTAOeU6b4Wr8Me32vKsYKSxAN635qHrzyLfuZfHXOwPeX5mURjuRYR2/s320/blogger-image-2046685266.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
However on the 12th (6 month anniversary) we went to Kuda Hurraa - the four seasons resort and it was so beautiful, the island, the people and the food :) and we had the best day ever. We made a coral reef planter in memory of Alice and we went out onto the reef and planted it under water. Me and mum were a bit nervous, as we weren't great with the fish and sharks :) I remember mum saying "The things you get us into Alice" as we jumped in off the boat. We actually scattered some of Alice's ashes out there with her coral frame, it was really special and we plan on going back in a few years and seeing it.<br />
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I have just started training for Kilimanjaro which is only 9 weeks away ( oh god ), well by training i mean going up Coniston Old Man :) but I'm planning on going every week, especially now i realise how close we are to it. Need to get back in the gym as well, haven't been in for ages. We had a Kili meet up the other day, it was great getting to meet everyone and they are awesome people to be going up with. If anyone would like to <a href="http://www.justgiving.com/millypyne" target="_blank">sponsor me</a> i would be so grateful, just a pound makes a difference.<br />
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Cant believe how close it is to school though, it has gone so so fast. We go back on the 29th August, so have 2 weeks to do my homework in :/. Super excited to see all my friends again, i have met up with some off them but quite a lot of them are away on holiday. We also have 15 new people coming into our year so that should be fun !!!! It is my birthday on the 19th, so i will be 15, quite excited for it. Can't believe summer is so close to being over, I'm sorry to say but i can feel it getting colder as well :(<br />
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We had such a lovely surprise from Alan Titchmarsh last month when he came to give our garden a makeover and it's now done and i love it, especially my pod. I spend hours and hours in there, i take my book and music out and I'm sorted. Just want to say a massive Thank You to the whole team at "Love Your Garden" for doing it and we all practically live in it now :)<br />
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I hope everyone is having a great summer. Will post again next month - promise.<br />
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Milly xxx<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-33600194257860953832013-06-12T17:40:00.001+01:002013-06-12T17:41:49.031+01:00It's Sunny !<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hey Everyone !<br />
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At the moment me and mum are having a few days away and it's the first time we have been away from dad on the 12th, I am missing him loads but me and mum are enjoying time together.<br />
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The weather has finally turned nice even although I don't think it's going to last very long, but it's nice to be siting in the garden and wearing shorts for a change. Mabel and Lottie are absolutely loving the weather as they can just chill in the garden all day and go swimming in the beck, so I think we have two very happy labs at the moment.<br />
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My exams are finally over (phew) and school's not too serious right now because we are getting close to the end of the school year, which feels so good because I know that I have 8weeks to chill, well a lot of work but I will definitely make time to relax. I love the summer holidays because I can just hang out with my friends and family. And me and mum are hoping to go camping in Cornwall as well, with Callum, Catriona and their mum.<br />
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I have started running with the Walney Wind cheetahs and its really good. I am trying to improve my fitness and hopefully this is helping me out. It's such a great group because everyone is so laid back and no one's too serious or competitive.<br />
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Mum and dad have booked a holiday to the AMAZING Maldives for us all this summer and I am so over the moon about this because if I could visit any where in the world, I have always said I would go there. I have been very busy buying ALOT of clothes ( mainly bikinis) for it and can't wait to wear them all. We will be in the Maldives on the 12th of July which is 6 months since Alice died and we have arranged a coral frame planting on that day. It is where you dive down to the ocean floor and plant a coral which is then there forever and in years to come we can go and look for it and it will still be there and it will grow and give new life. Alice would like that.<br />
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I hope everyone is having a good month so far and continues to. I will post again next month when I will be in the sunny Maldives if I can, but I am not sure there will be wifi out there.<br />
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Milly xxx<br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-5317043606878570672013-05-12T16:12:00.001+01:002013-05-12T16:12:32.378+01:00Isn't it meant to be Summer ?<br />
Hey Everyone ! It's Milly again ;)<br />
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After April and the start of may, i have officially decided that i am moving to some where hot like America when I'm older. I don't think its normal to have a cold this time in the year :) i guess thats the UK for you.<br />
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I am going to tell you a bit about the K2B and C2B which took place yesterday and i don't think i have ever walked in such bad weather, it's so hard to even describe how horrendous it was. Me and my friend Callum were doing the C2B and luckily he stayed over the night before, if not i honestly don't think i would have got up, i felt sorry for all the people doing the K2B because they had to get up 3 hours before us. Well, we got on the bus up to Coniston and after an hour of waiting we set of into the hail and the crazy winds. The Coniston Lake bit wasn't to bad for me and i was making quite good time but then it was a stretch of up and down hills called Kirby Moor and this is where i struggled a bit (not going to lie). I was walking by myself on Kirby Moor and well i was really fed up, it felt like i was in Antarctica and i was only wearing a very thin waterproof, it was so so cold and the wind didn't help at all, i was wrapped in tin foil (apparently it was meant to keep you warm) and i looked like a complete mess, the thing that kept me positive was thinking about alice and how she would be proud of everyone on TEAM ALICE. Typically as i just finished, the sun came out, however it was still beyond freezing. I was so happy when i finished it and went home to get a shower, clean clothes with UGGs and a baggy jumper. I came back to cheer in my mum and dad and all of team alice. Our K2B ladies team won the trophy for the fastest ladies team back and that was a great achievement, so a huge well done to them. I want to just say a massive thanks to all the team alice support stops, i really don't know what i would have done without them, but also thanks to the K2B/C2B support, specially to all the marshals that had to stand in that awful weather and finally to the K2B organisers, you did a great job. If anyone would like to <a href="https://www.keswick2barrow.co.uk/sponsor/welcome.asp?ID=500" target="_blank">sponsor me</a> please do, we have very little time until our sponsorship needs to be in and we are still in the running for the Alice Memorial Trophy, i am so grateful to everyone who has sponsored me, massive THANK YOU to you guys.<br />
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We had exams at school all of last week, i don't think it went to bad (fingers crossed) they were super hard this year. I have my citizenship and ICT GCSEs this week coming, better get revising (yikes). I am a bit upset about my GCSE options because we handed what everyone thought was our original options in before December but we have just got an email saying heres the new option sheet and i can't do 3 of the subjects that i wanted to do. Just looking forward to summer although by the looks of things its not going to be a hot one, looking forward to just being of school for a bit.<br />
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I will post agin in a month and i hope everyones had a great April and start of May.<br />
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Milly x<br />
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<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-77636935771739374202013-04-12T22:30:00.000+01:002013-04-13T00:08:59.007+01:00Hey guys ! Its me again.<br />
3 months already! I can't believe how fast the time is going.<br />
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I have just come back from a few days at Knowsley safari park, which Alice won for me in a competition. I had the job of a junior keeper. It was actually really good and i learnt loads about animals, although it did include a lot of mucking out of the animals, including the lions, elephants, Rhinos and Meerkats. We did things such as making a zebra out of cardboard and filling it with food and then putting it in with the lions, which was very funny to watch. Then we filled a log with fruit and meal worms (i had to get someone else to do the meal worms, bit of a wimp when it comes to insects) and we went in the cage with the Meerkats and watched them search for it.<br />
We have also had some families come and stay in the caravan and from the feedback that we got back it sounded like they had a good and fun time in the lakes, which i was so happy to hear. There are lots of local businesses supporting us and it's nice that they are letting our families go to their attraction.<br />
I went on a 20 mile walk around Coniston Water last week and well, I was a bit stiff the next day. At lunch time i got an email through saying that theres only 30 days left until the big walk and i have to say, there's going to be a lot of last minute training walks because i haven't done that much. Going to make an effort now though, going to try and get on a walk or the treadmill every other day.<br />
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I have been shopping quite a lot recently and can't wait for summer (if we have one). There is some really nice things in river island at the moment i found and got some tops and a bikini (YAY) from there.<br />
In my last blog i posted about going to see one direction with my friend and i can now say it was amazing, one of the best nights and i swear Niall waved at me :/ I had a lot of fun. Thank you Emily for choosing to take me.<br />
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I hope everyone had a good Easter !<br />
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Milly xAlice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-10825157696969995692013-03-12T21:48:00.000+00:002013-03-12T22:22:53.362+00:00Hello again<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello, it is me again! </span><div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's the 2 month anniversary since Alice passed away and it feels like the months have gone by so fast, yet i don't think i will ever get use to just Me, mum and dad sitting down at the dinner table !</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The opening of the Alice's Escapes caravan was last weekend and it was amazing to see the amount of people that turned up and looked around it and i just want to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who has supported us, it is truly wonderful to know that there will be family's staying in there very soon. I went on a sports tour with school recently and it was actually really fun. We had a netball match the first day and a hockey match the second day and I'm happy to say we won the netball 30-5 and the (very vicious) hockey match 1-1. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am starting to get training for the C2B by going for runs up the field with Mabel, it is in May and if you would like to <a href="http://www.keswick2barrow.co.uk/sponsor/welcome.asp?ID=500" target="_blank">sponsor me</a> it would be great (even a pound is awesome). I have just found out that the biggest fund raising team will win the Alice Pyne memorial trophy, so i am making that a priority to get as much money as i can. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I am very excited to say me and my friend, Emily, are off to see One Direction this Sunday in Liverpool, which i am very hyped up about. We have made a poster already saying how much she loves Louis and I love Niall :) I have already stocked the lemsips up, ready for my sore throat when i get back.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">School is going well at the moment ! Getting ready for all the end of year exams :/, so a lot of work. I was on the front of the terrace at my school last week and it was a hot day for us cumbrians and i looked out on to the lake and thought i live in such a beautiful place, i haven't really thought about it before, as my mums always saying "We are so lucky to live where we are", but we really do live in such a stunning place. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So i hope that our families will think that too !</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love Milly x</span></div>
Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-77863333689443422602013-02-12T19:30:00.000+00:002013-02-12T23:50:46.640+00:00hello<span style="color: magenta;">Hello</span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;">I don't really know what to say. I'm Milly and I'm 14. Today is</span><span style="color: magenta;"> a whole month since my sister had to go and although sometimes it seems a long time it is also like it happened yesterday. </span><span style="color: magenta;">Alice left me a special silver necklace with her fingerprint pushed into it so I can put my finger in the shape and it's like we're touching each other again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;">I promised Alice that I would climb Kilimanjaro and take some of her ashes up there and I'm going to try to do that in October. Another thing I promised was to keep doing her blog, but not as much as she did. Just little bits so that you know what we're doing. I think I'm meant to tell you about charity stuff. </span><span style="color: magenta;">Her caravan is really nice and she would of liked it loads. I think she might of moved into it. Soon we will have families using it and we will help them. She also told me that I have to do something with my life. I like writing and media stuff and travelling and fashion but I don't know exactly what I want to do. </span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;">Lots of people have sent really good things for in the </span><span style="color: magenta;">caravan and for the children and I am writing all the thank you cards, but only if we got the address on the paper with the present. I'm trying to think of something good to say about a toilet brush but there isn't anything apart from we needed one :)</span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;">We are having a open day at the caravan in March so I will ask Mum when it is and I'll put it on here and then you can come and see the caravan and meet us all if you live close enough.</span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;">Love Milly x</span><br />
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<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com71tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-57660147889631057812013-01-12T22:30:00.000+00:002013-01-12T23:32:41.001+00:00Sad news <span style="color: #741b47;">Our darling girl, Alice, gained her angel wings today. She passed away peacefully with Simon, Milly and myself by her side. We are devastated and know that our lives will never again be the same. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #741b47;">Vicky </span></div>
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<span style="color: #741b47;">12 January 2013</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #4c1130;">#NightNightAlice </span><br />
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Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com639tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-34485234891904591122013-01-01T21:30:00.000+00:002013-03-24T00:57:52.259+00:00Happy New Year Can't believe that I'm really saying 'Happy New Year' to you all. I don't think that there is a single doctor that would have expected me to be here when they sent me home over two years ago (although i have had a fair bit of help in keeping going LOL). Anyway, I did promise that I'd do an update …<br />
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I've only really managed one really good day in the last month and that was Christmas Day, so I don't know if that says it's in my head or if it was just luck, but it was the right day to have a good day LOL.<br />
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I'm on my mums laptop (which is a mac thing and really difficult to use) so I can't put the photo on here, but if you follow me on facebook, there's a photo of me on Christmas Day with all my dotty stuff. I was so pleased and have a whole dotty bedroom now and even a dotty iPod player / radio. Not on everyones list but I do practically live in my bedroom!<br />
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I'm not eating as much as I should so mum and dad keep making silly things with my food … yesterday, for lunch I got a bagel with Babybel eyes on top and french fries sticking out the sides of the bagel … that was their idea of a spider. I am beginning to think that we are like care in the community and that they need looking after too LOL.<br />
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Thank you to everyone who has being leaving me messages on my facebook wall. I do read them all but sometimes I'm just too tired to start replying to everyone. Someone wrote that I can get my iPad battery looked at and make it last longer so thank you for that. My laptop is too heavy in bed but my iPad battery has been losing charge really quickly so we're going to get that sorted.<br />
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This month (that sounds good) my charity caravan will be arriving and I hope that I'm going to be well enough to go and spend the first night in it and pretend that I'm on an Alice's Escape LOL. Mum and Cathy are planning all the bits for inside and figuring out the games system and TVs for it. I'm so excited about this happening because every time I plan something, I always think that I won't be here to see it happen and then I am! So I'll try really hard not to pop off in the next few weeks and then I can be at the open day we're planning! Mum is busy planning another trip up Kili - she didn't quite make it last time and so she said she won't be beaten and she's going back again in October. She's also hoping to do her training for Anthony Nolan and start running information sessions in work places and schools and colleges around here and then doing a clinic to join people up after she's told them all about it. It would be really good if I could just get a bit better and go to some of them with her. It seems to make people really think about it when they see me there, and realise that they might get the chance to save another me.<br />
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I'm back down to hospital tomorrow and Mum has told me that I've GOT to have another NG tube in, to see if she can fatten me up a bit. I know that it will help, so I'm okay with it, but I just don't like them and they make people stare at you even more. Other than the fact that I'm really tired and funny lights still bother me, I feel a whole lot better and the lumps in my neck have actually gone down again. So, my New Year mission is to get a bit fatter which will hopefully give me more energy! <br />
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Oh and I want to say a special hello and Happy New Year to everyone back at Alder Hey because although I'm down at the Royal Marsden, I don't want them to think that I've forgotten them all.<br />
<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com65tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-70430316750884599722012-12-22T19:44:00.000+00:002012-12-22T23:44:55.514+00:00Happy ChristmasHello everyone. This is a really quick blog because the computer isn't good for my eyes!<br />
I must be the Royal Marsden's patient from hell, because every time I appear, something has happened on the way there and then they have my original problems plus a whole load more to sort out. I've become really sensitive to light and I have hardly left my bedroom for the last few weeks. It's easy to avoid at home as I just turn the light off, but at hospital or in service stations, I can't cope with them and it's hard to get away. Today, for the first time in ages, I've been out of bed for a couple of hours so that's the right way :)<br />
It was my birthday a week ago today and I spent it in bed because I really wasn't feeling good. My best friends came around and I can't really remember them being here but my Mum said that they all came and sat with me in the dark in my bedroom (I couldn't stand having the light on). So it wasn't a brilliant birthday, but at least I'm here!<br />
I did get to Center Parcs this week, but I only got a day there because we had to drive down to Surrey to the hospital. We had booked Center Parcs a long time ago and tried to change it but couldn't, so we didn't want to completely waste it. I wasn't really up to going out, but it was nice to look out of the window at all of the trees and the weather was miserable which was good for my eyes!<br />
I've got to go now but hopefully I'll feel better next week and I'll post some photos and do a proper blog.<br />
HAPPY CHRISTMAS everyone and thank you for all the baubles you've sent me and the Lush bubbles and the crafting stuff!<br />
Lots of love, Alice x<br />
<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com46tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-64406984385157911192012-12-11T16:04:00.004+00:002012-12-11T16:04:57.526+00:00December AGAINI'm not quite too sure how I've made it here, but here I am and it's definitely December. Life just gets busier and busier. I'm now down at the Royal Marsden every week and every little bit of it is wonderful because they are just brilliant (well, it's as wonderful as hospitals can be if you get what I mean). The only thing that is getting us down is all the driving and on Friday, it took us 7 1/2 hours to get home which makes me feel so uncomfortable sitting still for that long. But mum said she doesn't mind as long as she's got some caffeine in the car, choccy and a good CD! She was singing all the way home which would be fine if she could sing, but she can't!<br />
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Last week, let's just say that something happened on my journey down to Surrey and lots of people bothered to help us out. I don't know everyones name so I'll just say thank you to the lovely teacher from Keswick School, the staff at the M6 toll services, the ambulance men and Mr Peet and everyone at Birmingham Children's Hospital. And I'm fine now!<br />
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My #OneLifeLiveIt hashtag reached over 9 million people on Twitter which was amazing and i must say thank you to Glen for that. I hope that Olli was watching. Every time I think of him, I remember the story teller - it wasn't meant to be funny, but it was one of our funniest days in hospital and his mum will know exactly what I mean. Quite a few tweeted to say they were joining up to the register after my tweetathon and a few emailed my website for more information about it, so that was good. I still think it would be great if every 16th and 18th and 21st card had a message about bone marrow and organ donation on it. It's such a perfect way to get the message across!<br />
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Last week, I got to order the holiday home for our charity. It's called a Willerby Winchester and it's really nice and the best news is that it will be here before the end of January. So we have time to think about what we need to put in it and then it will be ready for the first family in March. It's incredible that in less than a year, we've set up a charity and fundraised enough to buy one caravan and get part way towards another one. It's really important to be able to buy the caravan because although our accommodation providers are really good, they don't really have any availability in the holidays and that's when we have lots of people wanting to come away. So now we can offer a cosy cottage in the winter, a bit of hotel luxury in the autumn and a holiday caravan in the summer!<br />
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I can't believe that it's a year since my sweet 16 when my friend Tracy from New York sent me to the Lakeside for a night - I never thought that I'd get to be here for my 17th, it's just amazing that I am. It's my birthday this coming Saturday and then next week, we're going to Center Parcs for a break. When we booked it, we didn't really know if I'd be here but we've gone there for years at this time, so we didn't want to change. But because it's us, nothing is simple and in the middle of it, I've got to go down to Surrey LOL. We're trying to work out if it's possible to do it from Penrith on the train with a wheelchair ... without anything major going wrong. Probably not! Otherwise I'll only get a day at Center Parcs before I have to go to hospital. If I do only get a day there, mum said she'll look for a last minute one in January and I guess it's more important to stay alive right now!<br />
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Right, I've got to go because I'm leaving for Surrey right now. Feeling okay today but still quite sick so I'm hoping that mum doesn't sing and I can get some sleep in the car LOL.<br />
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Love Alice x<br />
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<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4098934744969497190.post-25599539535024036612012-11-28T16:25:00.000+00:002012-11-28T16:25:04.893+00:00#OneLifeLiveItPLEASE HELP ME! Mum and me have been driving around looking for an unlocked wifi signal cos my phone internet isn't strong enough to update my blog!<br />
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<b>Today from 5pm until 7pm</b> PLEASE PLEASE tweet the following with the hashtag #OneLifeLiveIt (be careful not to do One Live - Life it cos that doesn't make sense!<br />
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So, what you need to tweet is :<br />
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<i><b><span style="color: purple;">PLEASE help @Alice_Pyne save lives by tweeting #OneLifeLiveIt with a link to her bucket list & blog www.alicepyne.blogspot.com </span></b></i><br />
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I'm trying to get everyone to tweet it to raise awareness of my blog and my number one wish of getting everyone to join bone marrow registers AROUND THE WORLD.<br />
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I came up with the #OneLifeLiveIt quite a bit ago, cos of my best friend at hospital, Oliver Parr. Olli lost his fight last year but we used to have so much fun and when I was thinking of a motto for living life to the full, I thought of all the giggles we used to have together.<br />
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So if this trends today, it's for Olli and I hope that we get loads more people onto the bone marrow registers and save others from dying.<br />
O.L.L.I.<br />
Alice x<br />
<br />Alice xhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13027223823260960348noreply@blogger.com15