Hey hey hey! How is everyone? Me? Yeah I’m alright. Both of my boys have tonsillitis and refuse to sleep, but other than that I’m GREzzzzzzzzzz…..zzz…..SORRY! SORRY! I fell asleep for a second BECAUSE MY KIDS ARE UP ALL NIGHT! Let’s move on. 

Big things are happening y’all! Somehow, (I blame my lack of sleep), I have been convinced by two of my very lovely twitter friends, Amy and Leilani, to run in not 1, not 2, but 3, 10k races this summer between May and July. That’s 30k…in 3 months….I’m going to die of running. BUT all three races are for brilliant charities and, you know I love me some fundraising. I know it’s not for the MS Society (my usual) but any charity is good in my eyes! Don’t worry I’ll be fundraising again for the MS Society soon! My leg of the race, is the first one in Brighton. This isn’t your typical 10k race. This is the Hero’s Race and in this race, WE GET TO DRESS UP AS SUPER HERO’S! Capes and masks and awesomeness, AND it’s the day after my birthday. So so exciting! The charity I’m running for is Pass It On Africa. Here is a bit of info…

Pass It On Africa (formerly Passing It On) is a Brighton-based charity working tirelessly to build schools and support education in some of the poorest parts of Africa. We achieve this through our fund-raising events in the UK, including our flagship superhero-themed races, the HEROES RUN. Bring it!

Exciting stuff, right? I won’t go into the other runs, but instead leave you this link to go check out our team page. Please donate if you can! http://www.justgiving.com/teams/3Girls3Races

Moving on. My running has been going really well, although with the sudden snowy/icy weather, running outside it out. Which has left me with lots of elliptical work and tight calves. Totally my own fault for not stretching enough. See I am taking responsibility! I’ve downloaded a 10k training app, that I started using yesterday, and I really like it! I will keep you up to date with all my training progress leading up to my multiple 10ks. Yeah I’m going to die. 

Lastly, if you get a chance listen to that dope ass song up there. It is awe-some. It’s come up on my running playlist more than once this week and it is not to be missed. It’s AlunaGeorge- Your Drums, Your Love. Hot track. For realsies! 

p.s- I don’t know why my font went wacko up there, but I don’t know how to change it. Don’t you judge me! : ) xx

Friday! Yeah! Weekend! How are you anyway? You good? Me too! I just finished 30 minutes on the elliptical and I’m feeling pretty good. Sweaty. Tired. Could fall asleep right now. But good.

I decided today that I have grown tired of my music selection on my phone/ipod, and instead listened to Bobby’s iPod. It’s been good for me to listen to other music and using Bob’s means that I can’t shuffle through songs. I’m stuck with whatever comes on and that’s a good thing. My favourite today was Radiohead-The Bends. Good tune. Made me run faster. Yay, Radiohead. It also made me feel a bit nostalgic and stuff, which has been a running theme in my head the last week or so.

I’ve been having dreams (since we saw Rocky Horror last weekend) about acting and theatre. Now, I haven’t actually been on stage performing in 10 years. While I was in college and my entire life revolved around it, I had nightmares ALL the time about forgetting my lines, somehow ending up in the wrong show, and walking out on stage completely naked. Since last weekend, all of these theatre related anxiety dreams have come back. It’s really strange. Last night I had a dream that I went back to Findlay to watch The Mystery of Edwin Drood (which I was in my senior year). I got there and everyone was freaking out because the girl who was playing Princess Puffer (the part I played), didn’t show up. Doctor Anders forces me into her costume and tells me I HAVE to go on for her. I walk out for my first number and can’t remember any of the words to my song. Everyone boos, and I run off stage crying. Then, the remaining cast members backstage, take turns beating the crap out of me for ruining their show. Roll credits. Yeeeeah. I have lots of anxiety about my triumphant return to the stage. I would love to do it but, time, kids, life, and the absolute terror I feel when thinking about someone who is English asking me to do a British accent, seem to get in the way. Someday I will perform again, but until then I will continue to perform for my best audience…my boys and my sister : ) x

Hey Dudes! Before I start with the running stuff, let us just take a moment to savor that tasty tune up there. Don’t Save Me by Haim. So so good! If it doesn’t make you get up and do your best dancing, then you are dead inside. Robot. Dead. Last night Bobby, the boys, and myself made a birthday video for my sister. Said video was all of us doing some powerful dance moves to this song. Someday, if you’re lucky, I will post it on here. Just trust me when I tell you, it is a f*ckin’ masterpiece! Seriously this song is so good. Just the right amount of pop, cheesy goodness. Uhh love it so hard. Anyway.

Right here is a quick recap of what’s been going on.

Friday: went for Bob’s works Christmas party. We saw Rocky Horror in Brighton. It was awesome! Free wine, food, and theatre. It was really a present for me more than Bob. Obv. Seeing the show made me feel some feelings. I really miss performing and Rocky Horror is a show I’ve always wanted to do. FEELINGS!!! We got drunk and Bob’s boss accosted the women of Brighton. It was a brilliant night.

Saturday: actually I can’t remember Saturday….OH YEAH….we were hungover all day and I ate McDonalds. Let’s ignore Saturday. Saturday didn’t happen. 

Sunday: Ooo! We saw another show! It wasn’t as good as Rocky Horror and it was way weirder (if that is possible?). I took Noah to see The Wizard of Oz pantomime. I’ve never been to the panto and yeah, it was weird, but Noah loved it. Even though it was cheesy, the sound wasn’t great, the actors weren’t great, and their American accents were HORRENDOUS, it still made me feel feelings. Sigh. I misssss it! FEELINGS AGAIN!

Monday: Noah had his friend over and I had my first run on the elliptical for the new year! It was awesome. I missed my elliptical and it was nice for my knees to have a break from running outside. I ran for 30 minutes and felt great. There was one weird moment when Noah and his friend came in and watched me…yeah that was strange….but anyway, really good run.

Tuesday: Noah went back to school!! YAY!!!! I’ve never been so happy to get back into a routine. Seriously. Love the kid with all my heart, but I practically ran out the doors “HAVEAGOODDAYLOVEYOUBBBBYYYEEEEE” FREEDOM! SWEET SWEET FREEDOM! I had a little daydream where all us mom’s ran out of the school gathered in the park and did a dance routine to Celebration by Kool and the Gang. It was amazing (in my head)

Wednesday: Today! Phew. All caught up. I just finished running on the elliptical it was good. 20 minutes. 6k. Short and sweet, but enough to make me sweat and feel like I’ve done some exercise for the day. It feels like, for the moment, running every other day is the best way forward for me. Weekends are tricky, but I’m going to try and keep it up : ) Later tater tots! xx

I learned something about myself this morning and it’s only 9:00am! Look at me, learning and growing, all before lunch time. This is the wisdom that was bestowed upon me as I rain on the seafront at 8am, with the wind in my face, and the day just beginning….I. AM. NOT. A. MORNING. RUNNER. F*ck that. I see them out my window, running, with smiles on their faces. Perky types that you just want to trip as the bounce past you. You know the type. I woke up this morning and thought “right, if I want to run outside today I need to do it now. It’s way to dark when Bobby get’s home, so do it now. You can’t run when it’s dark, someone might rape or murder you, or both! (I watch WAY too much SVU) I know it’s Worthing, but you’ve got kids and a responsibility not to get yourself raped or murdered, or both. I need to buy some milk and fruit today….” (this is how my brain works.) So I donned my running apparel (magic tights included), with high hopes and skinny thighs on my mind, I began.

It was awful. I mean really awful. Awful like, after 3 strides I wanted to turn around, go back home, and lay on the sofa for the rest of the day. My legs felt like the weighed 300 pounds each. (I don’t know what that is in stones English people. But it’s freakin’ heavy!) My arms felt like I was carrying 2 Parker’s with me, and my chest felt like a rather robust person was sitting on it, and laughing in my face, at my inability to run. So what did I do? I kept going. I said, “f*ck you stupid heavy things that I call body parts! I’m running whether you like it or not! I am Wonder Woman! I am Super Mom! I AM….having trouble breathing….time to walk for a little bit…there, that’s a little better…little breaks are good…you’ve got this Manning…. now get your not so fat ass (because I’m being more kind to myself, remember?!) moving…and we’re off again…I am freaking Jessica Ennis…watch me in all my running Olympian glory….I am the running champion of the Universe!…I am going to pass out….NO YOUR NOT….KEEP MOVING NOT SO FATTY!!” 

And that, my friends, is how it went from my house, to Splash Point, and back. So what I’ve learned, dear readers, (all 5 of you) is that I am…..a Night Runner. That sounds like a bad 80’s action film doesn’t it? *movie voice…Megan Manning is: The Night Runner. By day Frances was a mild mannered house wife, with a heart of gold. But when the sun went down, she became…..THE NIGHT RUNNNER! Dun Dun Duuuuuuuuun! 


Sorry got a little side tracked there. Where was I? Oh yes, learning and growing. Night runner, that’s me. I guess that’s not really right either is it? Because of the whole getting raped and murdered thing…so I’m the?? DUSK RUNNER!! Dun Dun Duuuuun! Role credits!

P.S- I keep forgetting to mention the videos that I’m posting up there. This one, The First Song by The Format, is one of my all time favorite songs EVER! It reminds me of living in Cleveland and of my lovely Christini, whom I miss so very very muchly. COME TO ENGLAND!!…..also it is great to run to : ) xxx

The Brunette’s Guide To Home Hair Dying

I cannot afford to go to the salon to have my hair dyed. It is ridiculously expensive. So I do like any other 30 something, with 2 kids, an ever increasing amount of grey hairs, a limited budget, and low expectations does. I go to the store, buy some kind of “brown” hair dye. I’ve been doing this for years. I inherited my mother’s grey hair (thanks mom!). She started going grey at 25 (when she had me). I started going grey at 27 (that’s when I had Noah…seeing a pattern here? Children=grey hair). IN YOUR FACE MOM, I BEAT YOU BY TWO YEARS! WOO! WINNER! This is when the hair dying began. If you’re a brunette and haven’t ever dyed your own locks, you may be saying to your screen “but Megan, how do I know what color I should choose? I’m clueless. Shower me with your infinite wisdom!!” Of course I will help you. That is what I am here for after all. So here it is. 

The Brunette’s Guide To Home Hair Dying:

The colors on the box, and the color your hair will turn out.

  • Medium Natural Brown= GOTH BLACK
  • Dark Brown= GOTH BLACK
  • Golden Brown Beautifulness= GOTH BLACK
  • Hazelnut Suprise= (no surpise here!) GOTH BLACK
  • Mocha Latte Frapachino Bullshits= GOTH BLACK
  • Rich Mahogany Mantel Piece Browness= GOTH BLACK
  • Midnight Vampire Sexcapade Brown= GOTH BLACK

Basically every color will turn out black….at least until you’ve washed it 3 times minimum. No matter what food/coffee based name they give it, the results will be the same. Brown is brown and actually it’s black. Here is my testimonial.

I woke this morning and thought to myself, “its’ a new year and one of my goals is to take more time to make myself feel good about me. Let’s tell these grey hairs to f*ck off, and dye the brown smoke that I call hair!” “Medium Natural Brown” it says on the box. “Let’s do this”, I think to myself. 25 minutes later, “Medium Natural Brown” has turned my hair to “Robert Smith Black”. Good thing I LOVE The Cure, otherwise I would be dishing out a New Year’s ass beating to John Frieda. Megan Manning, Worthing UK


I hope that all my fellow brunettes have found this post both enlightening and educational. Remember brown=black. Happy hair dying!

Happy New Year bitches! Yeah 2013! The year of Megan…or something! I decided tonight as I was running that this post would not be about resolutions, but more of a to do list. I’m more of a “list person”. I like having things to cross off a list. It gives me a sense of accomplishment. I feel like resolutions just set oneself up for failure. So here goes! All the things I want to do in 2013:

-Be kind to myself. I am a bully when it comes to me. But no more!! F*ck you mean ol’, overly critical, a-hole Megan. Be gone!

-Read more books.

-Keep writing even when I  think I have nothing to say.

-Go on dates once a week with Bobby.

-Spend more time doing things with just Noah and I.

-Run as much as I can physically stand.

-Spend more time making myself look pretty.

-Spend a weekend away with Bobby, somewhere we’ve never been (not in England)

-Continue eating super healthy.

-Go to an exercise class AT LEAST once a week.

-Go to Friday I’m In Love as many times as I possibly can, sing, get drunk, and dance my ass off.

-Listen to more vinyl.

-Call my Grandma’s more.

-Run a half marathon (bahahahaha..this is not going to happen)

-Teach Noah to ride a bike.

-Get my sister to England for AT LEAST 3 weeks!

-Wear more dresses

-Learn to make my Gran’s pie crust.

-Get my drivers license. 

-Spend more time in London.

-Spend more time with Lolly!

-Go to more gigs.

-Get Bobby into yoga.

-Just be happy being me.

That should keep me going for awhile anyway. I hope you all have and amazing 2013. 2012 was an interesting one. It was great and awful and funny and sad. In 2012 we moved to the beach. Parker became a baby model. Bobby and I ran our 1st 5k together. Noah started school. I suffered with depression and came out the other side. We had the best time in Ohio with friends and family. My Dad and father in law both beat their cancer. I had the best 33rd birthday, and introduced my friends to Bon Jovi ballet. I made new friends, and started volunteering for the MS Society. Bob stopped taking his injections. My best Swedish one baked me a little niece! I lost and gained weight. I missed my sister everyday, and kissed my boys more time than I could ever count. So sayonara 2012 you were a good old year. Hopefully 2013 will be all the more exciting! 

P.S- Every New Year’s Day since 2003, I have listened to The New Year by Death Cab For Cutie. It is my anthem for a new beginning. Enjoy. It’s freakin’ marvelous! 

Before I start, quick disclaimer. This post is not about running it is about breastfeeding. If you don’t want read about it, now is the time to bugger off. You have been warned.


I am a breastfeeding momma and proud of it. I breastfed Noah until he was 14 months old. He completely weened himself without any encouragement from me. Noah took to breastfeeding right away and we never had one problem. I loved every minute (well not every minute. He fed so much when he was first born I was begging him to take a dummy or a bottle or anything!). Noah never had a bottle. I couldn’t express milk at all so he only source of food was from me for the first months of his life. That is a massive responsibility, but it was one that I took on 100%, no questions asked. From the second I looked at those little blue eyes for the first time I knew I would spend my life protecting him and giving him the best life that he can have. Fast forward to May 2011 and Parker was born. He has been a breastfeeding champion from the second he was laid on my chest. I have loved looking down at his little face and knowing that I have been the one that helped him to grow. Parker is 18 months old now. He cut way down with feeds from me when he was about 12 months, really only having a feed before he went to bed or to get him back to sleep in the night. I started thinking about stopping when one afternoon when my friend was over and Parker wouldn’t nap. I brought him out of his room and sat on the sofa with him. He sat facing me on my lap, pulled the neck of my shirt down and yelled “JUICE” at me. Hmm. Yeah. : )

I’ve always made jokes that Parker would breastfeed until he was 10 if I let him. I knew that if we were going to stop, it would have to me to put an end to it. This is where things get complicated for me mentally. Bob and I have always said that we only wanted to have two children, and after my pregnancy with Parker that idea has been set in stone. I love babies and I love being a mom but having two is hard. Having two and having a husband who has MS, is even harder. Bob and I both know that he wouldn’t be able to cope with another 9 months of me not at 100%, then let’s face it nearly two years of broken nights sleep, screaming, and nappies…let’s just say it’s not in the cards for us to have another one. I am completely happy with that. Seriously, I am.

Parker has started showing signs that he doesn’t really need me to feed him anymore. He started having milk in a sippy cup in bed with him at night, and when I was feeding him, it was only for about 10 minutes max. So on Saturday night, I decided that the time had come for me to stop breastfeeding. It just came out of nowhere and I said to Bob, “I think I’m done now”, and that was it. That night when I put Parker to bed we did our normal routine. I gave him his cup of milk, and said “nigh night”. Then proceeded to go in our bedroom and bawl my head off for the next 45 minutes. Even as I sit here now I am crying. That is it. I will never breastfeed again and that means I will never have another baby. Even though that is what I want, it still hurts. Being a mom has been the best thing I’ve ever done in my life. Knowing that I baked those little babies in my tummy and they came out prefect, strong, and beautiful, is my biggest achievement in life. They mean everything to me and I would do anything for my boys. Breastfeeding gave me a bond with them that no one will ever have. I made them grow. It was me, just me. I know that breastfeeding isn’t for everyone, but it was for me. It breaks my heart that I won’t feed Parker again, but it makes me proud that I did it for so long. He’s growing up and that in itself is a hard thing to deal with. But, I am so excited to see what life brings to my little boy who isn’t a baby anymore, but will always be a baby to me. 

Something very strange has happened. The last two times I’ve been out running (on the seafront. Outside! I know right?!) I have run better than I ever have in my life. No stitches in my side, no being out of breath to the point that people are ready to call an ambulance, and no shin splints after? I’m so confused. The weather has been moderately warmish, but crazy windy. My last run was at about 4:30, it was pitch black, raining, and horrendously windy. I ran all the way to Splash Point and back without stopping once. I had my headphones in my ears (listening to that killer jam above) and as I ran past one of those shelter things a homeless man said something to me. I couldn’t hear him obviously so I just kind of smiled, waved, and ran a little faster (I was by myself, it was dark, don’t judge me). I kept going with the wind at my back, feeling like a champion. I turned around, started to run back and got blasted in the face with crazy wind that nearly knocked me over. But I kept going, dammit. I ran past the shelter and the homeless man, whom I very kindly smiled and waved at before, then proceeded to stand up, mock my running, whilst cupping his “boobs” and did a lovely mime, of his said “breasts”, bouncing up and down in a slow motion fashion…..thanks. YOU STAY CLASSY WORTHING! Nice right? I gave him a little salute and was on my merry way. Good day to you sir. Make fun of my running and my boobs all you like but who’s the one sleeping in the rain with a Sainsbury’s bag on their head? Ooo…that was mean. Sorry. But…yeah…sorry. Inappropriate. But true! Anyway. I made my way back home in the rain and insane wind, and did not stop running until I hit the front steps of my building. GO ME! When I got upstairs I was soaking wet, out of breath, and wind burned. I felt great…and then I laid on the floor and Parker jumped on my stomach. Then I felt like I was going to barf. Thanks Parks.

So there you have it. I am a changed runner. I am stronger and better and for the first time hitting my stride. I think I know what it is that has changed me. It’s my new running tights. The obviously contain some sort of magical powers. When I saw them in TK MAXX (TJ MAXX American readers. I have no idea why its tk and not tj. Maybe tk is tj’s English cousin? Who knows?) I thought they were something special. Clearly these running tights will carry me all the way to the Olympics because I am now THE RUNNING CHAMPION!!!

Hi. Long time no see. I know I’ve been gone for ages, you’ve been neglected, and I have the love handles to prove it. But I’m going to be better and I’m sorry. We cool? Yeah? Good! SO….here are the things that we’ve missed since my last entry;

-Bobby and I ran a 5k for the MS Society and raise over £500! Yay!

-Thanksgiving. Was really good, I ate too much. 

-I dealt with depression and anxiety issues and I’m much better, thanks.

-Noah AND Bob got glasses and they look awesome!

-Parker is talking loads now and his favourite word is “no!”

-Our Elf on the Shelf, “Buddy” came back to us on the 1st of December and Bob and I spent the next 24 nights coming up with things for him to do and we…NAILED IT!  Best parents ever! Boom! 

-All the Christmassy stuff. For Bob’s present I took him to stay at the 1st hotel we ever stayed at in Brighton and we got very very drunk. Then we went to see Slow Club and it was Christmassy and awesome.

-Christmas Eve. Bob and I spent 3 hours hanging 46 handmade (apart from 4 store bought ones) paper snowflakes in our living room. Noah made a wish that it would snow, so we made it snow. What baby wants, baby gets ; ) Buddy got all the credit but it was ME DAMMIT!! Christmas Day was lovely and once again I ate too much food. So yesterday I went out and bought some running tights (brilliant product placement TK Maxx). Can I just say there is nothing like standing in a dressing room, under florescent lighting after 2 months of non-stop gluttony to make you want to go out for a run. So that is what I did. And I am going to continue. I know, I know, I’ve said it all before but this time I’m doing it. I need the stress release, I need to get in shape again, and frankly my ass is at maximum capacity and I refuse to let it get any bigger!

So stay tuned. I will do my best and continue to run