Diet again.........

Having had my 40th Birthday celebrations I decided I need to get my finger out and start work on the next stone I have to lose. I hope to of lost it by Christmas. My plan is to get my head back into it but starting fresh. Pulling out my welcome pack books and reading them cover to cover. I have 2 of the last issues of the magazine to read and the new one is out too.

My books all looked out and ready to read

 I went though the books yesterday for inspiration and found some! Did my scrap booking and cut out some recipes to try. Sometimes I find it so hard and frustrating with meals. I like to cook 1 meal that we all eat and sometimes it just does not work. For example Spag Bols I adore! I could eat it daily. Marcus won't eat it at all and Mike and Kelly don't enjoy it that much. SO I am wondering if I should start to make meals for them and me? Its a pain in the ass but there is nothing worse than seeing them not enjoying the meal that I am scoffing.

Looking for inspiration

Some new recipes

 But for the time being I have found a few new recipes that we "should" all enjoy. Though I thought that last night and made a new Cheesy Pasta dish which is normally right up my street. I hated it, Kelly could not stand it, and Mike had 2nds! Trial and error I suppose

My well used pink folder that holds all my favourite recipes

Anyways, off to get weighed tonight. Expecting a gain after my birthday but will get going again tomorrow. Feeling crap today however, Achy bones, hot and cold shivers and sweats all thanks to my daughter who has had the flu/cold for a week. Also back to writing a menu. Planning is the key to this!

 Writing the menu is the Key to Success

Photos

Something I decided to do this year, and have done now a few times is GET MY PHOTOS PRINTED!!! As you may of seen I do love taking photo's. They are mostly the usual snap snap snap ones and nothing special BUT they are special to me.Each one is a memory in the making.  I had a panic a while back that if my computer failed ( as it has done a few times) I would lose all my pictures. Now I get them backed up onto a pencil disc and the ones that are most special are uploaded to Photobox and printed off. 

Empty album waiting to be filled

There is nothing I love more than sitting flicking through old photos and albums. It always brings back memories or makes you wonder when they were taken as you have no memory of them. In these days of digital camera's, mobile phones, ipads etc its so much easier to take pictures yet who will see them when they are stored on hard drives? How will my kids ever see them if my pen drive breaks SOoooooooooooo ..............

Trimming them to size and shoving them in

This year brought me to Photobox. My father is a professional photographer and uses it, which is where I discovered it. I now get them uploaded, sent out then I sit and enjoy trimming them to size and writing little captions beside each pic so in years to come we can look back at a nice book instead of purely just on-line. I also enjoy hunting to find nice albums though they are so expensive I try to start in the charity shops. I am on my 3rd album this year......

Ready for the captions

Should anyone want to try it please tell me! You will get 50 free prints if you allow me to refer you. Here is a linkhttp://www.photobox.co.uk/my/refer/new?osid=pukbs036  Please comment below, contact me on facebook http://www.facebook.com/KarenODonnell.nee.Williamson etc if you want referred x x Karen x x 

My 40th weekend away

My In-laws gave me a gift for my 40 th of a Night away to Inverness in a 4 star hotel. 

Me on a pedestrian suspension bridge which wobbled big time as you tried to walk over! Gave you that strange sea-sick feeling, like walking on a trampoline

Its a very very very rare thing that we are seen without one of the children, so to have a day and night alone was amazing. We started off by arriving in Inverness and entering a pub! 

Our 1st stop was a bar! No kids!! Was gooooood.

Had a wonderful time, in the wonderful company of my husband staying at a wonderful hotel! The room we had was fantastic. It was HUGE but the views were ace!

Evening meal at the Italian.

Our evening started with a wicked meal in an Italian called Zizzi's. Seriously delicious food. From there we had a tour of the pubs then back to the Hotel where some traditional Scottish music was being played by 2 guys. It was very good.
 From our massive window we could see Inverness Castle, the bridge and right up the centre of Inverness High Street. 

Inverness Castle at night ( which is not a castle any more  its actually the High Court these days)

This proved very good watching later on when all the drunks were about.  Getting the train there and back also heightened the enjoyment as there was no worry about parking and driving. I most certainly know now what I will be doing once the kids get older! Weekends away loads I imagine!!

Loved watching the bridge as the lights changed colour LOL how sad........ Yet mesmerizing!! 

My 40th!

40 eh!.!.!.!?

I remember turning 21 and thinking that at 40 I would be almost dead I would be that old! BUT here I am. 40. Some days I feel 20. Some days I feel 30. Some days I feel 80. BUT wow was I spoiled! Had a lovely but early start to the day, kids came in about 6.45am ( they wanted me to open everything before Mike left for work at 7.30) Got to open all my gifts in my bed which was ace! ................

..........................I was given an iPad2! So so so thrilled with it. Its even got my name on the back, which gives me the right to claim it back at any time from anyone who is on it!  "ITS MY iPAD IT SAYS SO ON THE BACK" is that I shall shout. The camera thing is funny, we have had major giggles playing on it.

After that came the beads. I have been on about learning to make Jewellery since last year. It was something I thought I would enjoy sitting making. My problem with Jewellery is I am so dam fussy (about pretty much everything mind you) and when I see something I like I always only "kinda" like it. Its too long, too short, no earnings  don't like the style of the earnings etc etc SO my cunning plan was to learn how to make it all so I can then alter stuff to suit my taste.  Now I need to sit with the books and figure out where to begin.......

...............Another gift fulfilled a passion I have in life. A passion I never thought I had till someone said about my boots! I do love them. The newest ones I have got were a gift for my birthday. Always need MORE boots and also................................

.........DIAMONDS!
I never ever in a million years ( or 40) thought I would be the kinda girl that likes Diamonds. The song never made sense to me, Diamonds are a girls best friend. That is until the last few years. There is a range called "Hot Diamonds" that I adore! They seem to make everything that I like, there is not much in there range I would not wear..........which is amazing cause I am known for my complete over the top fuzzy nature. I got a beautiful necklace and earring set and a ring from my parents. I decided to change a few years back. I used to "keep things for good". For special occasions etc. NOW I don't do that. Life is too short. So many items I have adored that I kept for good and by the time you go to wear them you can't. Things are either too old, too small, too big so now I live in the now and wear it all the time............... 

...........My Meal at night was a huge treat. It was at Chapter One in Forres and WOW it was good. One of that meals that you will remember as a treat for a long time. I had Fillet steak which was about 2 inches thick, topped with Pate and served on toast with veg and chips and a wonderful Madeira sauce! ..........




.....................This weekend I am heading for a night away in Inverness. Having never been there for the pubs and night-life I am looking forward to it. We are staying in a posh hotel with NO KIDS which is a first and going out to sample being young again.Inverness is the Capital of the Highlands of Scotland and is of course famous for its Loch with the monster in it. But we ain't there Nessie hunting. The pubs there have live music which is something we love. There is no where in Elgin that has that any more. I am sure I will blog about it.




Update on Slimming---------- not good! Exercise and slimming as stopped over the 40th celebrations. Gained a pound and a half which is nothing! I need to eat more to make the gain worthy of my 40th!! LOL Back on to it on Monday 17th! Until then I have chocolate cake I need to finish and an iPad that needs to be played!

Time to light up....

The thing I love most about this time of year is Candles! So today I went hunting for them, gave them a clean and a dust and set them up. I love nothing better than to sit in my Living room on a dark cold night with them flickering. 

Love the Iron ones at the top. I got them years ago and today I was painstakingly trying to clean in all the curly bits and though Oh F**k this and shoved them through the dishwasher! They came out a treat too!

The smaller one you can see in the background I got a year or two ago at a Party Lite party. There is an Elephant one ( pictured) and a matching Giraffe one. They are wonderful when they are lit as the candle gives the animals the effect of movement.

Muffins!

For years and years and years I worked as a Baker. Though my baking skills never came to much at home. Infact I have always been terrible at home, always ended up temper tantrums and major Tourettes. HOWEVER I decided I needed to find a decent use for the fruit that was heading past its best. Being on a Diet I always have fruit about and alot does head into the bin. I detest waste so........... I sat this morning and trawled through a load of American Style Muffin recipes to find one that suited my needs.I wanted one that I could control the wetness off depending on what fruit I would add. Tonight I had a go. 1st batch was Raspberry and White Chocolate, the 2nd was Curly Wurly and Chocolate chip. Both worked ok. Need a better Muffin tin but I am sure my Mum has spares in her shed lol. 

 Everything laid out ready to go

The Raspberry and White Chocolate

                                       Curly Wurly and Chocolate Chip


Next thing I need to try is to replace the sugar with granulated sweetener and see how that goes, need to get them slightly slimmer!

Sharons 40th!

What can I say! What a night!!! What a blast!! all I can say is Thank you for the invite! Ace time.
got my hair done in the Hairdressers, got my LBD on and headed to Sharons at 7pm for Cocktails. At 8.30pm the Limo arrived and we drove all over for an hour then hit the pubs. Can't remember how I got home so thats the proof it was a good night. I did however lose my daughters Radley purse with £40 in it! Gutted!!!

My in my little Black number! Makes the Slimming Club worth every penny.

Our Limo

The Birthday girl in her Limo