Weight Loss #7

 

 

Hello fellow slimmers,

 

I'm going to have to admit I'm not doing so well, the festive season is starting to get to me lol

 

Weigh in update: +1b

 

It could be worse but yet again I'm yo-yoing.

I suppose all you can do this time of year is try your best so if I manage to stick around the same weight give or take a pound then I suppose that's some kind of success but really I ought to keep in mind that Christmas is only one day and not a whole month and it also isn't a reason to stuff myself silly.

 

I really would like to end the year in the next stone bracket which is only 5lb away and I have 4 weigh ins left before the end of the year so I could do this if I really tried.

 

Well I'm not going to lie I don't think this is going to happen but I can give it a go.

 

Has anyone else got a goal they would like to achieve by the end of the year? Let me know :)

 

Talk soon x

Weight loss #6

Hello fellow slimmers :)

 

I've been a bit AWOL from my blog recently, things have just been a bit hectic and all I have wanted to do is sit and relax in the evening.

 

So....

 

Weigh in update: -0.5lb

 

I lost 1/2 a pound last week and maintained this week. I was really hoping for a loss this week but I did go to Manchester to the Christmas markets and ate lots of yummy food and came back with lots of yummy treats so I am actually quite happy with maintaining as it could have been worse.

 

Over the last few weeks we have cleared out our garage and made it all usable after we had the roof replaced. I now can use my cross trainer. I bought the cross trainer over a year and a half ago from eBay with the intentions that when my son was born I would be able to use it and get rid of my weight without paying for a gym membership.

 

...I haven't been on it once :S

 

So now the garage is all waterproof and we have cleaned it up there is no reason why I should not be able to fit in 1/2 an hour a day on the cross trainer. I might start off slow by just doing 10 mins a day or 30 mins but just 3 times a week but I hope to do it either during my son's nap after dinner or in the evening.

 

So fingers crossed for a good week everyone

 

Talk soon x

 

 

Weight loss #5

 

So this week I tried again to do better and I had my weekly weigh in last night

 

Weigh in update: -1/2lb

 

So at least I'm heading in the right direction although I want to do better. This week my aim is to lose 1.5lb which will get me out of my weight loss rut. If I manage to lose 1.5lb then I will be at my lowest so far on this journey and I will feel like I have turned a corner.

 

These are just two of the meals I had this last week

 

Hearty Italian style meal

This meal contains celery,carrots, onions,peppers, mushrooms, tinned tomatoes, passata, chicken, bacon, macaroni, oregano & garlic. It's a fantastic meal, the original recipe for this was called a 'soup' but every time I have made this its more like a meal. I suppose you could make it into a soup by blending the veg a bit and adding less pasta but i like it like this. It is so yummy and satisfying.



Sweet potato and prawn curry

This meal contains sweet potatoes, onions, peppers, sugar snap peas, garlic, chilli, chilli powder, curry powder, cumin, ground coriander, prawns (and I added chicken too) served with rice.

I may have forgotten some ingredients in the curry but I am writing this from memory, this recipe is actually from the extra easy cook book so if you have that you will be able to look it up in there. I added the chicken as I didn't feel I had enough prawns in it and the mix seemed to work well :)

If you would like any more details on those meals let me know but they were quite simple to make.

Wishing you all a good weigh loss week :)

Talk soon x

Monday Nights & Sugarcraft

 

Happy Monday once again :)

 

I'm a bit late with this post but I think that's OK as I don't have many readers :)

 

 

Tonight I finished off my little choir boy... well mine turned into a choir man with a tash lol When I looked at him I felt like he needed a moustache, it seemed to suit his character.

 



 

Its the first time I have made any models or characters like this and I quite like them :) They are not as difficult to do as I imagined and are very effective. I have some ideas buzzing around my head now on different ways to use this technique. I have also made him completely edible which is something I really wanted to do because as I take these techniques forward I want my models to be able to be used on children's cakes specifically my sons and I know the last cake I made he grabbed the figure off the cake! Luckily it was made out of icing and he was only one lol so you can't expect anything else :) So for his next cake I certainly want to make sure everything is edible.

 

Anyway its a short but sweet entry tonight as I'm shattered.

 

Talk soon x

Weight Loss #4

 



Motivation for myself and anyone who needs it :) - image from google

This week I didn't have my Monday night sugar craft class so I went to my regular meeting which is on a Monday night (I only changed to Wednesdays due to the course) I thought that if I could get weighed and see what the damage was I could put it behind me and start fresh.

 

...MIRACLES DO HAPPEN

 

Weigh in update -1/2lb

 

WOO HOO!!!!!!

 

I know its not much but considering the rubbish I have eaten since last weigh in this is a miracle. I did honestly expect a gain.

 

So this 'week' I have 9 days until weigh in (well 7 from today)

My plan is to try to stick to the basics, I've done my shopping and bought in pink n' white wafers to combat my sweet tooth. I've got my 1st week meal diary out and plan to use that as a guide.

 

once again I will try and keep a diary of what I have had I may take some photo's and share my meals that way. Maybe they can be some food inspiration for you, please feel free to share your meal ideas as I really get stuck in a rut.

 

Anyway onwards to a good week :)

 

Talk soon x

 



Monday Nights & Sugarcraft

 

Hello and happy Monday to you :)

 

Well tonight I am not at my class as they take a break over half term so I thought I'd share my latest cake with you.

 

 

I am really happy with this baby bump cake. It has been a new challenge for me as all the other cakes I have ever done have been round/square cakes as they come from the tin. So to bake this in different shaped tins then add the icing as smooth as possible has been challenging and a new skill I can add to my portfolio. I was worried that the cake had been over baked and turned out dry but the feed back I received was positive.

 

I'm so happy with the way this turned out and I'm so please the lady trusted me to do this as it is the 1st one I have ever done.

 

I'll just leave you with a question...

Do you think this looks OK and what would you pay for it?

 

As mentioned above I did get positive feed back but it would be nice to know if I pitched the price right so any replies would be lovely. Thanks

 

Talk soon x



Weight loss #3

 

So this week started off well then went down hill, I last posted about half of my weeks efforts which were OK but not great this then quickly turned into bad, really really bad.

 

Weigh in update: +1lb

 

 

This does not seem like a lot but its really not how I wanted things to go and I only have myself to blame.

 

Since the weigh in my eating has become even worse I haven't been keeping track of a single thing I have eaten. Some of the stuff has been SW friendly but then other really bad stuff has crept in. I fell victim to a box of pop tarts (which has been one of the worst culprits) I haven't had them in years and as I was walking around Tesco picking up a few bits I seemed unable to resist :(

 

 Also this week...well last night I went on a night out. One of the girls from work is leaving and moving away so we all went out for a few drinks. Now I really regret this one. I didn't even drink that much and didn't really have a great time and this morning I am suffering. Not too badly but I've got a headache and am very tired. I kind of wish I hadn't drank.

 

So that's my pitiful effort this week which will surely result in another gain. It will take a miracle for the scales to even stay the same I think.

 

Anyway onward to a new day.

 

Talk soon x

Monday Nights & Sugarcraft

Happy Monday everyone :)

 

Well this week wasn't that interesting really. We decorated an angel biscuit.

 

However I really like the effect :) I think they look really nice but a lot of effort just for a biscuit especially if you were to decorate a whole batch but again I suppose once you get the hang of things you get quicker. We were given the biscuit to decorate but the week before we were also given the recipe so I made some Christmas trees to try the recipe out. Its is so easy to make and a really tasty biscuit.

 

It consists of plain flour, icing sugar, butter and vanilla essence. You rub the lot together, once its rubbed together like bread crumbs you squash it all together, roll out and cut shapes then cook on lowish heat for 20 mins, done.

 

This has give me some ideas for my homemade Christmas gift baskets I am making and will make them a little more special I think.

 

Next week I think I am going to be making some models to go on cakes but we'll see how it progresses.

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Talk soon x

 

Weekly SW review



Thursday:

(B) Weetabix & milk so therefore I have used up my A & B choices

(L) Home made vegetable soup, Muller light & grapes

(D) Diet coke chicken with rice

 

I have strayed a bit from the plan today and not counted the syns I had a small square of cake at toddler group this morning (it was small as well), some milky way stars left by my little boy and a small piece of banana bread I made.

 

I don't think that seems too bad but then again I haven't counted the syns. However I have done some exercise today for the first time in ages. I have started one of the body magic challenges you can find on the slimming world website and have walked just over a mile today towards that. I have also returned to Zumba with a friend. So other than my slip ups I feel that today has been a good start. 



 

Friday:

(B) Weetabix & milk so therefore I have used up my A & B choice
(L) Ham & mushroom omelet with salad
(D) Home made Spaghetti Bolognese

I managed to stay within syns today, I can't remember what they are as i write this as I tracked them on my app and don't have it to hand at the moment.

Saturday:

(B) Weetabix & milk so therefore I have used up my A & B choices
(L) Burrito (filled with pork, peppers, rice & salsa)
(D) Chicken in nandos sauce (2 syns), salad, & sweet potato wedges

Today was a bust when it comes to food & syns as my hubby decided it would be nice to go out to Meadowhall as he wanted to buy some stuff. This also meant food out, so my innocent looking burrito is from the food court and as you can imagine it will be loaded with syns. I tried to control it once we got home with a decent tea but then we ended the day with some wine & chocolate. Hmph
 

Sunday:

(B) Weetabix & milk so therefore I have used up my A & B choices
(L) Home made vegetable soup
(D) Gammon, veg, gravy & 1 roast potato (2 syns)

Again today I have been doing so well then I have ruined it with a Belgium bun from Gregg's which I have just checked is 21 syns!!!  I think looking at what I've had so far i really struggle when it comes to sweet treats. I really feel I need something within the day. I certainly don't feel I have been excessive but its not part of the plan.

 

I feel like this little piece of motivation suits the way I feel about this week so far. I am trying to stick to the plan and each day I try again. I am really trying to not let what happened the day before effect my choices for the day that I am in. Therefore I will finish today without any further syns and try again tomorrow :)

 

Good Luck everyone

 

Talk soon x

 

 



Our Family Schedule

So as I mentioned a few days ago I want to get organised and one of the tasks on my list was to work out a schedule.

 

My little boy is 16 months old and really starting to be inquisitive, you can clearly see that he is taking all the information in like a sponge. I have started to feel that I don't do enough with him to help him develop, he seems to have gone over night from a little baby to a developing toddler (where does the time go!) and the days just seem to slip by or get eaten up by housework and chores.

 

I don't want to be the reason he isn't reaching his full potential so I have made a schedule. Now I don't intend to stick to this hard and fast, I hope to use it more as guidance to make sure he is getting the variety of interaction he needs.

 

Now I haven't quite finished it but then again I think that's OK because as I said it just a tool to help guide me. I have created this using inspiration from my Pinterest boards. (feel free to have a look around, I am obsessed with pinterest so there is lots to look at)

 

I have also created a sort of eating plan to help me make sure he is getting enough of the right stuff. This may all seem a little excessive but I feel I need to put all these plans to paper as a sort of step by step 'How To' manual that I can refer to.

 

Its my way of organising the chaos of life lol I'm sure I can't be the only one.

I hope this maybe of help to you if feel the need to organise thing too.

 s

Thanks for reading.

Talk soon x

Weight Loss #2

So this week has been 50/50 with following the plan. I thought I was doing really well then I went off the rails. As you can see from some of my other posts I enjoy cake making and decorating, these things do not go hand in hand with dieting.

 

On Monday night I had my sugarcraft class then came home and ate some of the things that I had made and of course they had umpteen syns in them. I just hope they don't show up too badly on the scales. :(

 

Also I need to admit it to myself on here...... I am not following the plan properly, that is why I am not getting the results I want!!!!!!!!!

 

For the first time in ages I counted up the syns I had in a day but the time I had got through dinner I had had 9.5 syns!!! So on all those days/weeks I haven't been counting I must have been going over by loads I am amazed I have even been able to keep the weight off.

 

So my plan is that during the course of this next week I am going to write a blog post containing my meals and syns. I may make this into one long post for next week or I may upload a few posts during the week, I'll see how long it turns out.

 

Weigh in was tonight...

 

Weigh in update:  -1/2lb

Onwards and downwards...

To do lists...

 

Good morning :) I've decided it time to get organised...

My mind gets a bit muddled with all the things I'd like to achieve and I end up half doing things or over thinking them and never actually doing anything so I thought I'd write some things down.

 

So I've been thinking there are a few projects I want to achieve over the upcoming months. Some are achievable and some will spill over into next year but its good to have something to work towards plus with having this blog now it will be good to see it in writing and refer back to.

So I would like to achieve:

• A daily schedule for me and my little boy

• Home made Christmas baskets for presents

• Decorating various rooms in the house

• Reorganising rooms

• Get organised for Christmas

• Make more cakes for my portfolio

• Do my food hygiene course

• Get to my goal weight

• Sort out a 30 things by 30 list

• Do some autumn activities with my little boy

 

 These might not be anything mind blowing but they are things on my agenda. I may add more to it yet :)

If anyone is reading this do you have lists like this? And do you have any things you would like to accomplish before the end of the year or even the end of the week :) Please share with me as it may inspire other things for me to do, maybe something more adventurous...

Talk soon x

Monday Nights & Sugarcraft

Hello and happy Monday once again :)

So tonight has been my fourth night on my 10 week course. I wasn't really feeling up to it to be honest as I had been up a lot the night before with my little boy who is not feeling very well. So very tired and bleary eyed come this evening.

Luckily it was a nice gentle class and I didn't do much really, the tutor helped me put it all together :) So I now have a finished rose arrangement ready to be put on top of a cake. I must say for a first attempt I am pretty pleased with it.

 

So yay me :) I have the basic skills on this one to take into other projects. To produce this one arrangement though it has taken a long time and I know I'm new at this but I still think that even with practise these will take a while to produce and I now understand why they are so expensive to buy.

 

Next task is biscuit decoration which is quite a good one for me as I am planning to do home made gift baskets for Christmas and biscuits is one of the things I was going to make.

 

Anyway talk soon x

 

PS. For anyone who does read these I will try and write more content as I get more familiar with blogging :)

The Autumn Tag

 

The Autumn Tag

  

Favourite thing about Autumn?

 

I can't pick just one thing that is my absolute favourite thing about autumn. I think what makes Autumn so special is a collection of things. I love Autumn as I love the clothes, I love a warm jumper and lots of layers. I love boots, cold noses then coming into the warmth, I love putting the fire on a cozying up watching a film, I love love love the colours of Autumn on the leaves and on the clothes.

 

Favourite drink?

I drink Pepsi Max all the time but when it turns colder I do like a red bush tea in the evening or a Options mint hot chocolate.

 

 

Favourite scent?   My two go to perfumes are Amour Indian Holi & Lady Gaga Fame. I found the Amour one in an airport shop (possibly the duty free but its been so long now I don't remember) The perfume was a limited edition one and I don't think you can get it in the shops which is why I went on a hunt for a new one. Surprisingly I decided on Lady Gaga, I love this perfume so much.

 

Best lipstick?

 

I don't really wear lipstick but when I do I tend to go for the sheer lipsticks. I have tried a few brands but I tend to love No.7 for their sheer lippies. 

 

Go to moisturiser? Once again I don't moisturise on regular basis... naughty me :( I have sensitive skin and I am still looking for one that suits me. I want to get into a good skincare routine as I'm getting older and need to take care of my tired skin.   Go to colour for eyes? I love my naked pallet. it has everything I need in it. I tend to use Virgin, Sin & Toasted going from inner eye to outer eye in that order then I use Hustle in the crease. This is my go to look on a daily basis.... I think I need to branch out :S   Favourite band/singer to listen to?   Now I don't know if anyone will know who this is but I love Darren Hayes (Former lead singer of Savage Garden) I have followed him since Savage Garden and his songs can be a bit unusual but I think that is what I love about his music its not main stream.   Favourite outfit to wear?   I currently have two fave outfits. I have a black dress with large colourful Pansies on I feel this flatters my figure well and a new outfit which again is a simple one of black jeggings, a blush jumper with sequins on the shoulders and some flat biker boots from Dorothy Perkins.   Autumn treat?   Ooooh my best friend makes amazing bonfire toffee. I really hope she makes it again this year.    Favourite place to be?   I love being at home. I love being curled up on the sofa with my hubby and little boy. Gone are the days of wild parties (mostly lol) and here come the home comforts :)     As I'm new to blogging I've been scouting the blogging world to find ones I like. I have tagged your blogs as I liked your posts and thought you might like to join this lonely newbie blogger :) (Although I know that some of you are not currently in the autumn season)   +Ohsoamelia  +Holly TouchOfCrimson  +Grace AfterTheVows       

Weight loss #1

 

 

There are certain areas of my own life that I want to focus on just for myself and this is one of them.

 

I want to lose weight!

 

I want to lose weight for many reasons, most of them are the same for anyone who wishes to lose weight but here they are in black and white for all to see.

 

1. To be slimmer
2. Feel sexier
3. To buy a capsule wardrobe or key pieces and not have to keep buying different sizes
4. To be healthier
5. To be fitter
6. To be able to do much more with my little boy without being out of puff as he gets older
 
 

I know some of those reasons fall within each other but never mind.

 

I was a UK size 12 before I had my little boy (June '12) and that was fine with me, I've never been any smaller and I would have to do some serious dieting/exercise all of the time to get any lower.

(I say this because when I was 16 I exercised every night and ate really well but still wasn't any smaller than a UK12)

Now I'm a UK size 16 and struggling to reduce that but to be honest I've been playing at it. I started at Slimming World in February this year and have lost 1st 3lb. Now I could have lost more than this during this time but at least I have kept it off and still enjoyed myself that's the way that I look at it anyway but now I feel I need to push on further as I'm not happy staying at this size. Personally I have my own cut off weight and once I reach this weight I know its seriously time to do something about it but due to pregnancy and taking the 'eating for two' thing way too far I went over my cut off weight by 3 stone.

 

I'm only 10.5lb away from my pre-preg weight now but due to body changes I think its going to take more than that to get back into my pre-preg clothes.

 

So here starts my new journey, I get weighed in on a Wednesday at the moment so I shall give you an update next week.

I'm going to try and make this a regular feature on my blog to keep me on track so if anyone wants to to join me and kick my ass that would be great.

 

I want that 10.5lb gone by the end of the year at the very least :)

 

Talk soon x

 

 



A few cheeky purchases

I recently made a few purchases from Dorothy Perkins. I really love this shop, I seem to find load of things in that I like.

I needed to seriously update my wardrobe. Since having my little boy I have gone from a size 12 pre-pregnancy to a size 16. I'm slowly coming back down again but I'm finding it hard and for the last year I have really resisted buying much as I didn't want to fill my wardrobe with larger clothes (not that there is anything wrong with being a size 16 or larger but for me I don't pull it off well being 5ft2in)

So I felt it was time and winter is coming so why not get a few bits.

 



Port skater ponte

Eden dusky pink ultra soft jeggings

Nude sequin sweat

Black strap biker boots

 

 

So my wardrobe is starting to build up, I did buy a coat as well but when it arrived it was far to big so I sent it back. Its probably a good thing really as I'd already made a dent in my bank balance :( but I do need a coat so that is still on my list of things to get.

If you know any flattering coats for a size14/16 then please let me know :)



All of this was bought with my own money and is not a sponsored post after all this is only my second post :)

Monday Nights & Sugarcraft

Hello, I hope you are all having a lovely Monday (Yes I know Mondays suck but its 6pm lets chill now)

I have recently begun a course on sugar craft which takes place on a Monday night (so as you can imagine as you are reading this I am at the course learning something new) as I'm trying to start up a cake business so wanted to expand my skills. This makes my Mondays super hectic, I leave the house at 8am for work then straight from work go to the course and don't get home till 9pm. So I don't get to see my little boy that day or my husband but its only one day a week and its only a 10 week course so for the sake of progress I have to do these things.

The course so far is OK, I've learnt how to make roses but these kind of decorations are inedible. They are nice but a little bit dated I feel.

Some of my equipment needed for sugar craft

Some of the roses coloured red waiting to be steamed

 

As the course progresses I'm hoping to do more modern even edible things so that I can use them on my cakes which will make them more desirable.

 

 

For a bit of background info - I started making cakes over a year ago but my progress has been very slow due to several reasons, I was never sure if I wanted to make this into a business, I then had my little boy and it took a while to get back on my feet due to postnatal depression (I may touch on that in another post) Now I'm back at work part time and over the PND I have got back into baking and am really trying to make this into a business which I love. If I can make this happen then I may even be able to quit my job fully but I think I'm a long way off that yet lol

 

My portfolio is getting bigger which is good and I have three wedding cakes under my belt now. My next upcoming challenges other than the sugar craft is a baby bump cake and a tank cake which I will share the results with you.

 

If you have any tips or suggestions please leave a comment

 

Talk soon x



The begining

This first blog is going to be short and sweet to ease myself gently into this.

For anyone who reads this I'm not sure exactly what direction this blog is going to take. I have started this to document my thoughts, ideas and life.

I am not a great writer so there may be spelling mistakes, bad grammar and I will probably not use paragraphs correctly so please if your reading this don't pull me up on it. (Thanks)

So I will be blogging away in the near future and if you would like to come along for the journey then please feel free to follow me.

Ok, thats enough for now :)