Just come back from mum’s, now she’s back from Canada my sister and I are getting back into the swing of fortnightly girls evening. So lovely catching up.
And even better, I’ve come home to an empty house, meaning…. I get the remote control! YES!
Paul has been for a cycle today round Silverstone race track with his work mates, so will now be eating all the calories he’s worked off!
I had my usual with a bit of variation today, 25ish g of nuts, with the addition of pistachio nuts, 160g fruit which included black grapes, apple and blackberries, 1 hard boiled egg. My usual salad for lunch.
Then for dinner, mum boiled carrots, her home grown spuds, steamed some broccoli and oven cooked fish cakes. I think my tummy is shrinking, there was no way I could finish it all!
I turned down a dessert of custard pot. But I’ll make up some yoghurt shortly, as that’s part of my daily dairy.
Fluid – 3 teas with 1 half spoon sugar in each. 1.2l water, 200ml lactose free milk, and I’ve been nursing a can of Pepsi max now for about an hour.
Exercise – Yes, yes and yes! All three programmes done! Pain in my side is still there but not as bad. My earphones have arrived, so I s’pose that means I have no excuse to not begin the c25k tomorrow…. GULP!!!
So Paul’s now back, I’m refusing to relinquish the remote! Apparently he and his work mates went to maccy d! Four fully grown men, and they chose MacDonalds! Paul assures me he chose a small meal, so well done him 👍
And now, I’m going to do yoghurt and relax for a couple of hours.
Such a wonderful honour to be thought of and appreciated! In addition, it’s awesome to get to know the nominators a bit better. Thank you, Matt Snyder of A Prolific Potpourri. Matt, you are an honest soul, and I absolutely LOVE your artwork, in particular your birds. I’ve also spied a recipe or two I’m liking the look of. It’s a true pleasure to follow you.
What is the Sunshine Blogger Award
The Sunshine Blogger Award is an award passed down from blogger to blogger as a way to show appreciation. The blogs that create inspirational content, shows great creativity, and positivity is selected by a previous nominee. It’s a pretty neat award system!
This helps newer blogs get discovered, grows your network, and can also help you make beautiful friendships with like-minded people. While you are encouraged to participate, you don’t have to. It’s okay if you decide not to, blogging is hard work but the nominees definitely deserve the shout out.
MY ANSWERS TO MATT’S QUESTIONS:
My 11 questions for the nominees
Who is/was the most influential person in your life and why?
I’ve thought long and hard about this, the name that keeps cropping up is Jean M Auel, a writer who’s work I started enjoying when I was about 13. The heroine was a young girl who was going through a lot of things, and yet she was a girl growing up true, strong and independent – she was a character I fully identified with. That mattered very much to my young self, and I believe that helped to keep me feeling stronger in my life. I also love anything to do with human evolution, neanderthals and the ice age because of this author.
Do you have any pets ?
Nope, my daughter convinced me to have a cat just over 11 years ago (she named him Splodge) but then when Paul and I moved to our own home last year, we left the cat and the daughter in that property. I still worry about him though, and we still buy all his food, just in case…. Is it wrong we buy the cat food, but nothing for my daughter and her fiancee? 😀
If you could go back in time in your life which year and why ?
If I had to go back in time, it would be to a couple of years ago, just so I could spend more quality time with my family, and in particular my now passed step dad.
What was your first concert?
Oh, difficult, there were plenty of gigs, but I can’t remember who they were now, first proper single artist concert was Alice Cooper at Round House, London
Have you ever flown or sailed and if so to where, if not is there a reason ?
Flown – I’ve been so lucky – Greece, Turkey, Malta, Mexico, Portugal, Majorca
Aside from blogging, what are you passionate about ?
I am a part-time passionate cook – i say part time, because I love nothing more than spending a few hours in my kitchen cooking or baking, but rarely get the chance. When I do get a weekend where I can be indulgent, by the time I go back to work my feet and back are usually killing me!
What was a milestone in your life you are particularly proud of?
Coming through depression, not that I knew it for that at the time, in hindsight I’ve spent the majority of my adult life with varying degrees of depression. Finding my inner peace and contentment. Mine and my daughter’s lives improved so much after my mental health became better.
Do you have any regrets in life ?
Plenty, but where I can, I live by knowing there’s nothing I can do about the past but learn. Then carry that forward.
What are your fears ?
Other than spiders :D. I found love late (we we’re both 33), the type of love I had never witnessed when growing up. What I am blessed with is no fairy tale, but it is kind, compassionate, friendly, respectful and equal. I do fear losing this, that fear sometimes manifests in my dreams when my mental health is a little off kilter
What issue in today’s world gets you riled up the most?
Oh my, there is a LOT! Idiot and lying politicians. Peoples’ inability to treat others as they wish to be treated themselves.
How do you like your pizza (Toppings, style, Hot or cold) ?
Stuffed crust, bbq base, ham, sweetcorn, pineapple, mushroom – hot at night, room temperature in the morning
I’ve found it really difficult to select just 11 to nominate, I love following all the people I follow. I nearly didn’t follow through with the nomination because of how hard this is! (I’m also an idiot with tech, so had to have some very basic help :D)
Obviously, what everyone enjoys is subjective, we don’t all like the same things but this is a way to “pay it forward”, so to speak, and to showcase what these writers feel they need to share. I hope you decide to take a look!
Okay, so Paul went shopping, and picked me up some exercise clothes, top at size 22 fits fine, bottoms at uk size 20, ummmm, I can get them on, I just can’t move in them 🤣 hopefully they’ll fit in a few weeks 😊
Sainsbury’s active wear!
That, believe it or not, is the best of a bad bunch of photos Paul decided to take, and instead of sending them to me via our wassap, he sent them to a group wassap! I mean…. who really wants to see the rolls of fat! Luckily, the group he sent them to was the group which includes us, our daughter and her fiancee, and not the wider family! HE’S STILL GRINNING!!! 😬
Ear phones and phone holder on order. Almost ready to start my impulsive decision to do c25k. Still dreading it!
Dinner was a freezer (planned) day, salmon.. the tiniest portion you’ve ever seen, that explains why they’ve stayed in the freezer! Along with my usual oven cooked spuds, frozen sweetcorn and sprouts.
I’m now tucking into 120g Greek yoghurt with seeds and a drizzle of honey.
I’m sorry, already started eating it 😋
Fluid – about 1.5l water. 2 cups of tea with halfspoon sugar and 200ml lactose free milk.
Exercise – walked round to mums rather than drive, was a bit puffed which is what I wanted, that was 2000 steps, then proper exercises after dinner. Again I did them in the new order, 7 min cardio, 15 min strength, 10 min step. Still got that weird ache in my side.
And that’s me for the day.
Paul is still sticking with salad and mirroring my food, he’s saying he’s a bit hungry. He’s going to stick to what he’s been having for now, it could be that he just needs a brown roll to keep him topped up. I’m sure in a week or two his stomach will shrink a bit anyway.
I have had the pleasure of visiting Portugal, in fact, this was the last family holiday my family and I had with my wonderful Step Dad before he was unexpectedly taken from us. As such, I will always love Portugal no matter what!
So, without further ado – Let’s discover just a little bit about this beautiful and historic country….
Portugal is the oldest country in Europe, having had the same borders since 1139!
Ever wondered about the cork in your bottle of wine? Portugal produces 50%-70% of the worlds cork
Portugal has the longest bridge in Europe, measuring in at 17km! It’s called Vasco da Gama Bridge
Portugal and England have the oldest diplomatic alliance in the world, since 1373!
Portugal is a surfers paradise – with nearly 500 miles of coast line, and 364 days of surf. The biggest wave every surfed was 80 feet high in February 2011!
Portugal’s capital, Lisbon, is home to the worlds oldest bookshop. Bertrand Bookstore was established in 1732!
Portugal has a genre of music called Fado (meaning fate or destiny), which can be traced back to the 1820s but is probably much older. It’s a melancholy style of music and topics are about lost love, sadness, longing and the sea
The Portuguese are masters of handicrafts – lace, tapestries, glass, tiles to name but a few.
And then there’s the jewellery! Think of filigree, well the Portuguese have examples going back to 2000BC!
Cristiano Ronaldo, know the name? Even if you’re not a footy fan, you will probably know he’s considered one of the best all time players – he’s Portuguese
Portuguese cuisine is global! They are the originators of piri piri sauce, and they’re culinary influence doesn’t stop there! Portuguese missionaries invented Japenese Tempura, and introduced chilli, pepper, tomatoes and potatoes to India and Thailand!
Portugal understood people are people and slavery was a cruelty that must be stopped, and was abolished, half a century before the likes of Britain, France, Spain and the US
These are just a few facts I’ve picked from the web. Links are below if you fancy having a look for many, many more wonderful snippets!
OMG – I’ve decided I’m gonna do it. I can’t even WALK fast. Gonna see if there are earphones and joggers at shops tomorrow. If not, online order tomorrow night. crapping myself.
I am pleased to report I didn’t need to pin down the nephew and give him a scrub down 🤣 for anyone confused, and wanting to know more please do see post dated 14th Sept.
Getting the kids to wash and clean teeth was uneventful with the exception of the littleun, who decided to roll all over my bed in an effort to evade the socks 🤣😂🤣😂. Obviously, I won the battle…. just!
We had 50% reduced fat sausage sarnie for breakfast, (Well… One and half actually) with white bread, a scraping of real butter and bbq sauce.
Then the kids watched as I made pizza dough. They love pizza, and they love being involved in the kitchen. Their mum isnt a kitchen lover, so they don’t do much stuff in the kitchen. They don’t love doughy hands. So the kneading was left to me! They had great fun popping on the toppings and loved eating every mouthful of their handmade pizza, I do love seeing their faces when they try stuff they’ve made 😊
But of course pizza isn’t healthy.
There has also been some full fat coke involved today. It’s nearly gone now.
We took the kids home about 2.30pm, and then drove back to town to weigh ourselves, stopping at a supermarket on the way to pick up our salad stuff.
So, hmmm, a fab weekend, but at the expense of my healthy lifestyle! All my own fault of course, but in my defence the kids are very fussy, and I refuse to cook different foods! Doesn’t explain the coke… or the mini choc cake… let’s end me trying to make useless excuses and just accept I’ve cheated myself 😁
So, salads for the week now prepped, more fluid and exercise next week. GAME ON!
Hello! Here’s the weekly result. I’ll do my usual daily update later.
12lb loss in 8 weeks, recommended healthy weight loss is about 1.5lb per week, so actually that’s spot on.
So, I could look at my 3lb weight gain this week as a moody failure, however…
Print out also shows approx 1lb of fat loss – WOOHOO!!!
So, what’s been different this week?
Firstly, it’s that week of the month.
Secondly, we weighed in a day later, later in the day, and after we had eaten breakfast, and non healthy dinner.
Thirdly, going through my posts, and comparing in general to week before found a few interesting things;
had a couple of full fat coke, wine, and not as much water as before,
had more bread and it was white,
had more fatty food and oil in form of kleftiko,
had pasta for a lunch,
there wasn’t as much exercise,
And not preparing lunches on Sunday threw me out of kilter
Thank goodness I’ve got it recorded 🤣
So based on all this, I’ll look to concentrate on water and exercise with more determination this coming week 😊.
We’ve bought all our salad stuff, so I’ll prep that for the week once Paul’s finished with his beer making!
This and the fact my monthly is almost finished, should leave me free and more motivated to do my exercises. Plan: all three routines on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. No commitments next weekend, so a nice walk, British weather permitting of course!
I’ve also noticed that when I tense my thighs I have more muscle, I mean I can actually feel more muscle! It’s fascinating, I keep doing it when I’m lying in bed 😁, I sometimes run up the stairs for no good reason, whereas I used to cling to the banister for dear life and haul myself up. I get up from sitting without struggling now. I can see cheek bones emerging- YES! And my jeans are loser and belt is having to be tightened up more. Did I mention …CHEEK BONES 🤣
Anyway, that’s it for now, I’ll post my usual daily update later.
Having some kids round was agreed during the week, and being fools neither Paul nor I thought about food!
So after fighting the kids into the bathroom, not too bad for the girls, especially as the older one knows she can only have a spray of my perfumes if she’s clean, but the boy… WELL… I ended up pinning him down and washing behind his ears, with the threat that I’ll wash him myself tomorrow if he doesn’t wash properly 🤣😂🤣😂 I’m a nice aunty really 😉
Then we went out for breakfast and got shopping for picnic and spag bol today, pizza tomorrow.
I was as sensible as I could be, beans on toast.
I’m going to confess now to a few things, 6 Pringles, 1 Dorito, ice cream. That’s it. Oh no, small choc cake. Oh dear, should have weighed in today!
I then prepped sarnies, fruits, salads, squash, and packed some Pringles and little choc rolls. And off we went!
We went to a great local zoo that has a petting zoo along with animals in paddocks, a great indoor soft play area, huge bouncy tractor (only saw bouncy castles in my day) and lots of out door fun things like go karts, climbing frames, swings and slides.
The kids were great!
After a fun few hours we came home and I started on spag bol with wholewheat spaghetti and 5% fat mince.
Now, luckily the kids had been too busy having fun to play with the outside toys when we were out, so wanted to play when we got back, which meant Paul could get them out from under my feet as I started prep that included hiding veggies the kids swear they hate… onions, mushrooms and peppers!
As far as the kids are concerned, I’ve no idea what the stuff is as it came out of a jar, but cos I’m a nice aunty I checked there’s no mushrooms and onions in the sauce 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂
Guess what… all three kids loved dinner, and two of them had seconds!
And then we finished with fruit and ice cream…oops!
So now it’s 7.45pm, the kids are watching Paddington bear, then bed for the youngest and a couple of card games with the older two before bed for us all.
I didn’t get a chance to exercise, or weigh in. I’m DREADING the scales tomorrow, even though I wasn’t hugely off track today.
So that’s my day…. Oh, I forgot, I lost my phone earlier, and the first thing I panicked about was not being able to get on to WordPress… definitely addicted 🤣 luckily someone had handed my phone in, thank goodness for honest people. Can’t wait to sit down (probably tomorrow pm now) and read through the posts of those I follow… getting withdrawal symptoms…. seriously!
Then for dinner, healthier fish and chips, with my sweetcorn and peas.
Dinner
Well… it should have been fish and chips! Again apparently there was none of our usual lightly dusted fish, so these are goujons. Pleased with Paul though, because he looked at the traffic lights and labels to make a good choice.
Now, if you follow me, you’ll know Friday is always ‘healthier’ fish and chips, as far as my journey is concerned it’s about making good choices now and in the future, so although this isn’t the healthier if meals, it’s a whole load better than any one of the take aways we would have had in the past 😊.
To give some idea, a chippy fish and chips would be about 1000 calories when I add in slice of bread and butter, where as this was about 550 cals with salad cream (don’t judge the salad cream, I love it 🤣)
Fluid – mmm, not so good, 3 teas, 2 Pepsi max, 200ml milk, 1 glass of water. Will get back on that tomorrow.
Exercises – Yep! All done! I know I had a rest day yesterday, but actually I found the exercises good today… sweaty, but good. I don’t know if it’s because of the rest day or because I swapped the routine around.
Today I did the standing cardio, then the strength programme, and finished with step.
I do have a pain in my side, like a bruised feeling, I know it sounds stupid, but it feels as though my fat hurts!!!! I know, I know, fat has no nerves, it can’t hurt, but, well, that’s what it feels like. It certainly doesn’t feel as though it’s deeper inside me where organs are. I’ll keep an eye on it, I’ve had this pain for a few days now, I suspect it’s muscle.
Anyway, that’s it from me for now, I have our nephew and two of our nieces round now until Sunday. So far…. No fighting between the older two 😂
I’ll update again tomorrow, hopefully with weigh in results.
My guilty pleasure with this blog has been to click ‘year’ in my stats, and then scroll down to countries! So many people from so many different countries have visited my tiny little blog.
So I thought, how great would it be to do a quick internet delve and find a few cool facts about each place.
Starting at the bottom, a place which I always imagined as a supercool and vibrant place to be – JAMAICA!!!
Jamaica is the THIRD happiest place to in the world to live
Jamaica has the most churches per square mile AND the most rum bars per square mile – no wonder they’re a very happy nation!
Beautiful, sunny Jamaica has a bob-sleigh team!
Jamaica’s ladies have claimed Miss World three times
Jamaica exports corn, yams, sugar banana and coffee, including Blue Mountain Coffee
Need some cool music? Ska music is Jamaican born and bred, and from that comes reggae
Speaking of music – BOB MARLEY!
Jamaica has some rather fast runners! Shelley-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Usain Bolt to name just two!
Blooming Jamaica! there are over 200 species of orchids growing there, 73 or which are native!
Need a bit of a healing soak? Jamaica has mineral baths and hot springs – lovely 🙂
Jamaican parents produce more twins and triplets than anywhere else in the world!
A fantastic childbirth Jamaican tradition – families of new-borns bury the placenta then plant a tree on top – that tree then officially belongs to the babe!
Jamaica – A supporter of Equal Rights for Humanity!!!!
GO JAMAICA – I may not be able to afford to see you but it’s nice to know a bit more about you. You sound INCREDIBLE!
Want to add to these snippets? please do comment 🙂
Trying to lose! 