To start off with, I cannot believe it’s December already. Seriously where has the year even gone? There’s something about December that’s really comforting.

Of course I love Christmas, if you hadn’t guessed already. The decorating, shopping, food and most importantly spending time with family. This year, I have the best advent calendar that I won in khrissieloves giveaway! I’m going to try and paint my nails each day with the new colour I get but there’s no promising anything. Follow me on instagram to keep up with the different colours I get!

I’m also making a lot of my Christmas gifts this year but I won’t be able to share many with you because my amazing family read my blog! All I can say is that I can’t wait to get started over the next few weeks.

What can you expect from me this month? Lots of Christmas themed posts of course! Plus my standard A to Z posts which I’m now over half way through, plus so much more. I would also love to be able to get to do a Christmas giveaway if I get to 115 bloglovin’ followers. Tell all your friends!

I’ve got my work cut out for me but I’ve got a good feeling about December!

November

It’s almost the end of the year which obviously means Christmas but also the beginning of the New Year.

I do enjoy the build up to Christmas, as the lights get switched on and it gets dark really early. The shop windows are decorated really festive and the light pours out on the street, I love it!

I plan my presents out so well for Christmas, I like to put a lot of thought and love into them. I way prefer buying for other people than myself; I’m super kind like that.

Seeing as it’s coming to the end of the year, I thought that now would be a great time to declutter and get rid of lots of things that I don’t need as by the time it’s December I will be getting into the swing of Christmas and getting ready for the festivities. This also means that when it comes to January I’ll already have a clean slate and I won’t need to start the year by doing that!

This month also brings 6 months of blogging, how crazy is that! But I’m going to do a whole other blog post about that in the middle of the month!

I’ve got so many exciting things to share with you this month!

J… is for Jobs

I can remember the summer after I turned 16 being driven around my hometown and me handing in my CV’s to anywhere I could. From this moment on I have always had a job, except during term time at university.

You probably think that this is a really strange thing about me but I know that if I hadn’t been in the jobs I have then I wouldn’t have had any experience or the passion for customer service that I do.

As you may or may not know, I had a number of interviews a few weeks ago and until then I didn’t realise how much I loved having a job and the sense of pride I get from earning my own money.

The absolute relief I had when I got the phone call saying that I got the job is a feeling that I cannot begin to describe.

After only a couple of days I have seen a complete lift in my mood and I am so determined not to let anyone ruin that. You hear that? No one will ruin my mood.

This is just a part of my living in the moment and that my life is happening right now!

My New Blog!

I have some good and some bad news. Obviously it will be best to start with the good news. 

Here it is! My brand new blog layout which is better than anything I could have ever imagined, all thanks to Zoe (Sweet Electric - http://sweetelectricblog.com)!

It's way easier to navigate so if you just want to read my recipes it is all under that tab. It means you don't have to scroll through my entire blog to find the one you want. 

Now for the bad news. As you may or may not have noticed I have stopped posting as often. There's a lot I have to focus on right now so I have to get my priorities straight. Unfortunately (or luckily?) this means I won't be posting as often for a couple of weeks. I have so many ideas of things to write about but I want to be able to put a lot of thought and effort into them so thru don't seem half hearted. 

In the meantime, look around the new blog layout as there are a few extras on here. For my new readers, you probably have a bit of reading to do! :) 

And while I actually remember (I keep forgetting something so great), I have a few exciting things coming in the next few weeks! So stay tuned!!

Take care! X

Weekly Update

It’s now been a week since I got back from being on holiday and I feel so much healthier already. Before I went on holiday and when I first got back from Greece, my work trousers were slightly (or actually a lot) tighter than when I first bought them a couple of months ago. It was one of those things that I tried to ignore but my mum commented on it so it was clear I wasn’t maintaining my weight and evidently gained some of it back.

However, even in just a week I almost need a belt to hold my trousers up and my work top isn’t as tight around my stomach now. I already feel like I’m making better decisions on the food imp buying and when I’m eating out, basically a lot of salad. I also can’t get enough of nandos spicy rice! Plus I’m still trying new food; I tried no-carb spaghetti few days ago, which was surprisingly filling and tasty. I’ve also been working quite a lot which does distract me from thinking about eating food, even though we mainly sell food and drink there!

I’m just so proud that in a week I can see that much of a difference in my work clothes! It really helps with motivation and keeping me going when sometimes I honestly want to pack it in and give up. However, I then think about my health and all the confidence issues that come with it and realize that it actually is very important to carry on for myself.

This is quite a “bits and bobs” post today, really an update of the goings on of the past week.

When I was at work on Tuesday, a lady came in while it was quiet so there’s often time for a little chat, normally about the weather or the news. Although this one took a turn towards weight loss. At the time there were a load of “lads” across the road from the shop and she said that she was often self-conscious about her weight and her looks, I was shocked she would be so open with a stranger!

It’s nice though that some people can be comfortable enough to trust me with something so personal. She then told me about how after she had her children, she gained several stone and tried every diet out there to try and shift the weight but nothing seemed to work until she got proper advice from an exercise class she started going to at Salisbury hospital.

I must say she looked good for her age considering she had had children and it was clear her confidence had boosted.

The one thing that really struck me during our conversation was that she had a similar view that I did, that some people cant help but be nasty about the ay you look. So I told her about the time that I got up the courage to go for a run but as I was running, some “lads” shouted out the window at me, not the most encouraging experience vie had. Once id finished, she was very shocked at what happened.

I think it really goes to show what the community can sometimes be like and it really is a shame that people feel like they have to stoop so low and make comments to people. I feel quite sorry for them to be honest (!) but whatever makes them feel better!

This "weekly update" has turned into a complete essay and if you've made it this far, well you're an absolute star! ⭐️ I promise there's only a little bit left to go. 

So my diet is going well as I said before, I've been eating less and drinking more water and it is starting to really show! I've also noticed that I'm not as hungry as I normally am, I haven't figured out whether it's down to stress or drinking more water to suppress my appetite or what but something is going right!

I'll leave it there till my next recipe (yes, there's another one coming soon!) or my next weekly update. 

You're all so great, much love! X

Athens - part 1

Now where to start? At the beginning of course. At the time of writing this it was actually only 5 hours after we left the house (at a ridiculous 4am). Luckily we made it through security relatively quickly so by 6 am my parents and I were drinking strong vodka and orange juices (thanks dad!) in the BA club lounge. Possibly one of the strangest experiences of my life! But hey, it's never too early to start drinking so on the plane we washed down our breakfast with mini bottles of champagne, and yes I am certain that regardless of which class you fly in,  the food will always be awful! I enjoyed the fruit though...all 5 pieces of it.

So we arrived at the hotel and headed straight to the rooftop pool which had the most amazing views and had "frozen" cocktails, which in 32 degree heat melted straight away and were more like normal cocktails.

So it would seem I am going to live off of Greek salads for the whole week which is absolutely fine by me. For the first time in a few years, I wore shorts to dinner and I must say I felt pretty great and comfortable in what I was wearing, it was a miracle! And the views from the rooftop looked even more incredible at night, all lit up!

The Acropolis.

While I am here, I am planning to write out a meal plan and a shopping list, and also a gym regime to stick to as I finally feel like I am ready to get back to it and I have the motivation I had lost.