Yesterday my sister came down from Edinburgh for the day and so I had the whole family over for dinner at my new place, which was really nice!
I love cooking for people and so I had great fun making a three course vegan meal for my family.
For starters I made an avocado dip which we ate with a yummy toasted organic white loaf, topped with tomatoes.
Mains was a kinda curry using all my leftover veg such as carrots and bean sprouts. The curry wasn’t spicy as my mum can’t eat spice, however my sister, dad and myself sprinkled it with some chilli flakes which gave it a nice bite of heat.
And for dessert we had a scoop of Alpro hazelnut and chocolate ice cream with warm berries – mmm!
I love having my own place and I’ve really settled in now. It was so nice having the family over! Catching up together and playing a game with dessert. Codenames by the way is an absolutely brilliant game and I urge you all to get your hands on it!
Oh and I know it’s random but I spotted my first ladybird today! It put a smile on my face so I thought I’d share hence the seemingly irrelevant cover photo!
What a fabulous weekend! Everyone had a brilliant time! It was packed with activities but also very relaxed and full of fun and quality time with Emily’s best Ladies!
Friday:
Emily’s mum Debbie, Kim and myself arrived earlier at the house to set up. It was such a beautiful house – very lux! Set in Coldingham just across the border into Scotland with sea views and 5 mins away from the beach!
When we got there we sorted out rooms, made some cocktails and then waited for our online shopping to arrive before tidying it all away and setting up a yummy buffet and drinks reception.
At about 8pm the rest of the hens and Emily the bride to be arrived and we toasted with prosecco and enjoyed some scrumptious fajitas! After food we played a reveal game where Emily got to find out what was happening throughout the weekend and we reminisced over some of our memories of us with Emily through a slideshow (here some of my memories)
Those of us who weren’t too tired then also made use of the hot tube for a nice soak before heading to bed.
Saturday:
Rise and shine at 8.30am for a yoga session led by me and a yummy smoothie bowl breakfast made by me!
At 10.30am we left for Potadoodledo, a pottery painting studio where Emily and I have been before, so I knew it was an activity she’d enjoy. Everyone had a great time getting their crafty fingers out!
We painted for about 2hs and then headed back for lunch before relaxing a little and painting our nails. In the afternoon we went for a short walk along the coast to St.Abbs which was nice although short as we had to hurry back to get ready to go out. When we were ready we got a taxi to Berwick where we had booked a table at a Lebanese restaurant and enjoyed some food before heading out for some drinks and a bit of a dance. I was unlucky however (probably due to a salad overdose) and was super bloated meaning I ended up having a peppermint tea whilst everyone else was sipping on cocktails haha.
Of course when we got back a couple of us made use of the hot tub again – bliss – sitting in the pitch black at 1am in warm colour changing water with a pint in one hand!
Sunday:
We had planned another yoga session but it did not occur as some were hiding in bed aha and some of us tried to make breakfast (pancakes) but failed as the pans there were terrible and just stuck, so it ended up being muesli with fresh fruit!
So it was a relaxed morning and we were so happy as the sun came out, the weather couldn’t have panned out better as we had beach games planned for this morning. Our first game was to split into two teams and we had 10mins to gather things from the beach such as driftwood and shells to then create and decorate and Emily out of sand in 20 mins. I was a really funny task and everyone had such fun. Afterwards Emily had to complete some tasks to receive her award – a picnic on the beach. We had rhymed together some pirate style verse telling her what to do, it included running up a hill and declaring her Love to Andy to the sea, being buried in sand and lastly having to run fully into the sea, all of which she laughed at and did without any qualms aha, so she earned a glass of prosecco on the beach and a tasty picnic.
Although it was windy it was soo beautiful and we had a lovely time next to the sea! The next activity on the list was a spa afternoon, so we returned to the house and started off with Pimms and a dip in the hot tub! Next we put on some face masks painted more nails and then played a game, Codenames to be exact, a really fun game I’d urge you all to try! We’d made it even more special though by creating personalised cards related to Emily, although that did make the game so much more difficult!
In the evening Debbie cooked a three course vegan meal (the whole weekend was vegan) and we all got ready for our last night which was bod girl themed, so we dressed up in our fancy evening attire and had a blast. The meal was scrumptious, the cocktails tasty and and the laughter hilarious as we played more games late into the night!
Monday:
So sadly Monday meant home day! We packed up and only had a brief stop to pick up our glazed and fired pottery before driving back to Durham!
What an amazing weekend it was though!!! Wish I was still there!
As you already know I failed the smoothie cleanse challenge I set myself. The thing which really caused me irritation was not being able to eat anything, like physically being able to chew something. So in the end I resulted to having a breakfast smoothie, a lunch smoothie and a meal in the evening.
Sadly also apart from yoga I can’t remember going to the gym last week so I only lost 1lbs this week but onward and upwards! It’s a new week now! And I started it with a healthy day and 1 1/2hs at the gym yesterday! Today I had a yummy smoothie bowl for breakfast too – so the health game is back on!
Anyway I did say I’d share my favourite smoothie recipes with you, so here’s two for you – I hope you enjoy, let me know what you think if you try them!
Peanut Butter Blaster:
1 banana – 1 heaped tbsp of cocoa powder – 1 heaped tbsp of smooth peanut butter – small squeeze of honey – almond milk (however much you like depending on how runny or thick you like your smoothie)
Green Machine:
40g of fresh ginger – a good handful of mint – 1 squeezed lime – 3 squeezed oranges – 1 large handful of kale – 1 pear – 1tsp of greenboost powder – 1tsp of matcha powder – 1/2 mango (depending on how juicy your oranges are you can also add some cold green tea)
After another week of not loosing anything – oops – I have decided to do a 4 day smoothie cleanse this week. Four days of only drinking smoothies – woo aha! Lots of vitamins, not many carbs and hardly and sugars! I need to get into the swing of not allowing myself treats again aha!
I always wonder why I allow myself treats occasionally when I know they are not good for me in the first place, for three reasons. One, the obvious being weight wise. Two, they create a risk of me falling off the wagon. Three, I think I might be lactose intolerant (I will write a post on this sometime) so chocolate and the likes give me a bad stomach!
I am starting today and I will be drinking three smoothies today. I am excited to see how it will make me feel, if I will feel satiated enough and also how my stomach will react.
I will write down all the smoothies I make and will share my favourites with you at the end of the four days!
Last year my family and I spent an idyllic weekend in the Yorkshire Dales. It was a time of having no phone signal and no internet and let me tell you it was sooo relaxing.
For once I wasn’t reaching for my phone every two minutes to check Facebook, post a picture on Instagram and keep checking how many likes I was getting. It made me realise how addicted I was to modern technology and the need of likes from others – I hated it! Instead of wasting time and energy online which often leaves me full of negative energy as I am a fiend for comparing myself to others, I was able to spend quality time with my family, whether puzzling together, going on walks and appreciating the pastoral beauty around us, playing games, cooking together or just all relaxing with a book in front the wood burning stove. It was a completely different atmosphere and I felt so happy and relaxed throughout our long weekend.
The countryside is so beautiful! We went walking, saw waterfalls and castles, tasted some delicious Wensleydale cheese and just enjoyed the most breathtaking views. I really need more weekends away like this, time to unwind, connect with nature and spend quality time with family!
Just a short post to share my absolute favourite fresh juice at the moment. Sadly juicing is just a bit expensive so I don’t always treat myself to this, however we do have a good market fruit and veg shop in Durham and sometimes they have some amazing deals on, so when I had a look the other day I stocked up! They had Jaffa Oranges (usually £1.85 in Tesco) on sale for only 60p!! Bargain!!!!!
Anyhow, to the drink – it’s nothing special, just freshly squeezed oranges and grapefruits, but the combination is kinda amazing!
I would usually squeeze 3 oranges to 1 grapefruit (although here I used 4 and a sprig of mint and squeeze of lime too). Just remember to pop in the fridge to chill or add and ice cube or two – it is the most tasty and refreshing when cool! Let me know if you try this and enjoy it too!
So I thought I’d start a What I Eat In A Day post every Wednesday, hope you enjoy!
Breakfast: Smoothie Bowl (frozen mixed berries, 1 banana 1/3 of a mango – topped with oats, cacao nibs, chia seeds, coconut, blueberries and pomegranate) 900ml of mint and lime water
Snack/Lunch: Decaf filter coffee, 1 pear and some more water
Post Gym Snack: Fresh orange and grapefruit juice (4 oranges, 1 grapefruit, half a lime and a sprig of mint)
Dinner: Tuna Mayo Salad (mixed leaf salad, 1/2 tin of tuna mixed with red onion and mayonnaise, cucumber, green olives and 2 slices of organic white bloomer bread with sunflower spread)
I got up at about 9.30 am and made my breakfast – yummy and very filling! At about 12.20 I made my coffee and cut up a pear, but I actually struggled to eat the pear, having had nearly a whole 1l of water throughout the morning which filled my stomach and left me rather full. I had the gym at 2pm though so felt I should at least eat the pear to give me a bit more energy. So at 1.30pm I left for the gym for the second part of my programming session, adding some leg and ab work to my gym routine. After my session was over a stayed a little longer and did some more arm work. When I got home at about 4.30pm I made myself some freshly pressed juice and ran a bath, again haha, I do love my baths! At 6pm I popped to the shop to get some salad and cucumber and then came home to make this yummy salad. I am nicely full now and the only thing else I might have tonight is a cup of tea and maybe if I’m feeling peckish when I settle down to watch the Vikings (which btw if you haven’t seen yet you really should!) I might have a small portion of low sugar Tyrrells sea salt & cider vinegar crisps.
but onward and upwards! It’s a new week now! And I started it with a healthy day and 1 1/2hs at the gym yesterday! Today I had a yummy smoothie bowl for breakfast too – so the health game is back on!
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