2023: That was the year that was July to December

This is the second part of my round-up of 2023. You can read what happened in January to June here.

July was a good month for us on the whole, although the weather was very wet and very cold for the time of year. My son did a number of athletics competitions and finally got a season’s best jump at the end of the month, on his last competition of the season. He didn’t reach the level of even his year 12 PB though. On 8th July, my eldest suddenly felt ill and in pain in the evening. He was offered an emergency GP appointment for the following morning. I was driving my younger son to an athletics competition in Telford, so left my husband to drive him. He had emergency surgery at just after 1pm that day, which was a shock. His recovery was slow in the first week, but he improved quickly after that and went running 16 days after his operation.

My daughter went on a school trip to Iceland, which she’d been looking forward to forever. Thanks to Covid, it’s the only residential school trip she’s had in secondary school. It didn’t disappoint for her. My husband and I took advantage and had a few days away in Amsterdam, which was lovely. It’s only the second time we’ve been away without kids! Four of us went to the London Stadium (London 2012 venue) to see the London Diamond League athletics, which was a great experience. At the end of the month, we had our annual holiday to Padstow. We stayed in a dog friendly house for the first time, which made life a lot easier.

We fitted in our final holiday of the summer in August, with a lovely long weekend in Center Parcs with my whole family (aged 8 to 78!). The weather was again pretty miserable for the month. My husband, younger son, son’s girlfriend and I went to Cheshire to see my husband’s family, especially his brother who was over from the USA. We did Trentham Gardens parkrun on the way up there. We did four consecutive weeks of parkrun tourism!

My daughter volunteered for the kids’ summer camp at their athletics club and picked up an A (the highest possible grade) in her AS art. She also went camping with her friends for a couple of nights. My boys both went on holiday. My younger son went to Budapest and Vienna with his girlfriend and they went to a session of the World Championship Athletics. Then they went straight on a UK canal boat holiday with her family. My eldest went to Albania and Kosovo.

September started with a heatwave and the hottest weather we’ve had all year. My husband, daughter, sister and I all ran Cheltenham half marathon and it was incredibly tough. My daughter went back to school for the final time and my son went back to university for his second year. He goes back earlier than everyone else because of his athletics training. I’m pleased to say that going back for year 2 was nowhere near as hard for me as when he started. My husband, eldest, brother-in-law and I all ran Worcester City half marathon and it went really well.

I turned 50 and had a lovely day. I went for a hill run with my husband and sister, then went out for lunch with them and my parents. I went out to eat again later with my husband, eldest and daughter. My younger son was at home in the morning to see me open my presents. We had a big joint 50th birthday party the next day (my husband turned 50 in June). We hired a lovely venue and had it packed with guests. We also had an amazing live band. It was every bit as good as I’d hoped it would be.

I concluded my birthday celebrations on 30th September by going to Bushy Park in London for parkrun with my husband. This is where parkrun originated in 2004 and I’ve wanted to run there for a really long time!

In October, my daughter passed her driving test with no minor faults! We were very happy for her. This meant I was then free to join a local running club, as I wouldn’t need to be my daughter’s taxi driver any more. My eldest went on holiday and was due to go to Lebanon for the last few days. With the terrible conflict just starting in the Middle East, I was very glad when he decided to change his plans at the last minute! October is the Cheltenham Literature Festival, which is like my Glastonbury. This year I went to see: Kate Atkinson talking to Richard Osman; Adrian Edmonson; JoJo Moyes and Mike Gayle; Sarah Winman; and Val McDermid talking to Nicola Sturgeon.

My husband, eldest and I ran Severn Bridge parkrun again and I got another PB. My younger son came home briefly for his 20th birthday. It was lovely to see him. In half term, my husband, daughter and I went on a last minute short break to Budapest. It is a really lovely city, with so much to see. At the very end of the month, my husband and I ran Stroud half marathon and we both got a PB!

November was an incredibly uneventful month. I joined a gym. I’ve literally never set foot in a gym before! My eldest went on another of his solo holidays – this time to Oman. A few hours after he got home, he went down with a nasty stomach bug. He stayed in his room from Sunday evening until Wednesday morning and the rest of us avoided it.

December started with my eldest on yet another holiday. This time to Madeira and he actually went with his girlfriend, which made a nice change. My daughter and I went to watch panto twice, but it’s not as good without her in it! (She was in six pantos between 2015 and 2022 and it was always the absolute highlight of her year.) My husband, younger son and I went to see Levellers in Wolverhampton. It was especially good as they were supported by Ned’s Atomic Dustbin. We know one of the members of the band and my son got an access all areas pass, which he loved! My daughter put her UCAS application in and got four offers, including for her preferred university.

My mum and dad came round for Christmas dinner, then we went round to their house for tea, along with my sister’s family. On Boxing Day, we went to London, which was lovely. We couldn’t really go in any attractions with Hetty, so we just wandered around seeing the sights.

So that was our July to December or 2023. 2024 will bring my daughter turning 18 and doing her A Levels, then almost certainly going to university…