Photo of the Day

February the 28th

If I said I was tired I would be lieing. I'm totally and utterly shattered. My mother arrived home from Nice last night and asked for me to pick her up from the airport. As usual, when flying with Easyjet, the flight was delayed so we didn't arrive home until gone 12.00pm. 

     I failed to go for a run today, not because I went to work, but because I spent the afternoon with Jamie in Brighton eating tasty Burritos and failing to find any decent items of clothing. Not forgetting the endless amount of time sat in the car trying to get into Brighton. Every shop we went into had their spring/summer collection in already even though outside it was 7 degrees and pouring with rain. All I wanted was a perfect knitted polo neck jumper, but none were to be found. 

     I have never had a burrito until today and God it was good! I would tell you the name of the place but I can't remember to save the life of me. 

    For now ladies and gents I'm off to bed and I shall stay there for as long as possible.

Happy blogging!

Water and running challenge

Day one

Most people in January say "New year, new me!" In my case I'm two months late, but it's better late then ever. I recently read in Cosmopolitan that Rosie Huntington- Whiteley drinks a litre of water, first thing, everyday (of course after some form of caffeine intake). I took this as some inspiration for my 'change' and decided to also start drinking one litre of water everyday. I drank my first litre yesterday morning. I felt no different apart from needing to go to the loo every five seconds!

     Today is day one of my running routine. Il be sharing with you how far I run and how long I take as well as telling you how I feel afterwards. I'm off for my first run now so il let you know how it goes when I get back...

     I'm back and I'm totally knackered. Here's the stats: I ran 3.96km in 17minutes and 11 seconds. Hopefully I can improve upon that! I found it quite hard to keep pushing on and found myself walking to allow me to gain my breath. We will see how tomorrow goes! I'm going to relax now by having a cold shower then do some French lessons, some knitting and reading!

Happy blogging!

Photo of the Day

February the 25th

It's been only two days since I stopped doing my 'Photo of the day' and yet I miss it already so guess what, I'm bringing it back! 

    Today's photo was taken on my way home this evening. I love the area in which I live, especially the sunsets and the views towards The Downs. I drove across Ashdown Forest to try and capture the outline of The Downs as the sun was setting. Enjoy..

PAY DAY!

There's nothing better then waking up and finding you've been paid a lot more than expected! My first thoughts were 'Save, save, save,' but after heading into town to get my MOT done, I popped into Superdrug to see what goodies I could get my hands on.

    I didn't go too crazy, in fact I only spent £5! The two items I bought were Miss Sporty (don't diss it until you've tried it!) Morning Baby Cream Blush and Simples Clear Skin, Oil Balancing Moisturiser. The moisturiser I used before was also Simple and worked wonders for my skin so decided to try out another one of their moisturisers and see if it has the same great effects. I've never really been a fan of applying to much colour to my face. A BB cream and foundation are all I really use, but recently someone commented on how pale my skin was! I'm not sure if I should have taken it as a complement or not. Either way I decided to try out a liquid blusher to add a bit of colour to my cheeks. Once I've had a chance to use both products I will let you know my verdict.

    Happy blogging!

Chicken, Broccoli and Homemade Pesto Pasta

Just the thought of this recipe makes me hungry. I'm such a huge fan of pesto and anything pasta related. I've tried many a time to grow my own herbs, but no matter how much care and attention I give them, they always die. I think my Mother feels bad about my constant bad luck and so at the weekend replaced them all with fresh new herbs. With the fresh basil, and mums recent obsession with buying a range of cheeses, including Parmesan, from the cheese counter in Waitrose, I decided to make some pesto in which I instantly knew I would pair with some spaghetti.

     My mother likes to cook a chicken on a Sunday for us to all pick at throughout the week so I tore some of the breast off and added some steamed broccoli. Quick, easy and extremely tasty. More vegetables such as spinach, kale and peas can be added for a healthy balanced meal. Not only does it make a tasty dinner, but it also makes a great lunch!

   If you're interested in making your own pesto then click this link or carry on reading to hear how I made mine!

Pesto ingredients:

Basil

Pine nuts

Parmesan 

Salt 

Pepper

Olive oil 

Garlic

As always I never cook by the rules. Not once have I ever taken note of the measurements or how much of an ingredient is needed, instead I cook purely by taste. 

   To start off making the pesto I used one small garlic clove and crushed it in a pestle and mortar with a drop of olive oil. I then added the basil and pine nuts. First off I added approximately one hand full of basil and two tablespoons of pine nuts. I crushed them all together before adding the parmesan. Whilst mixing I constantly taste the pesto to decide what needs to be added next. It's all about personal taste. I think unless you're making enough for about three people, 1 garlic clove is slightly too much. Next time I plan to use only half.

Gap Year Planning

Seeing my Dad always inspires me to do something productive with my gap year. I looked at my to-do list and at the top was Pilate classes. I had been looking into them for a while and after reading a fellow bloggers post I decided it was definitely time to book a class. However I do have a question for all my Pilate-class-attending- readers: How much do you pay per class? Most classes I have been too charge £5, so when I found that most Pilate classes, around East Sussex, charge £10 I wondered if that was expensive?

      Secondly I started looking at best ways to learn French, and fast. I've mentioned that I have used Duolingo before and now I've downloaded it onto my phone is definitely become my new best friend and from now on I hope to do at least three lessons a day. Once I feel my French has improved I hope to start and read books written in French.

       Third on my list was to find a suitable holiday destination for May. After about two hours of searching I finally found the perfect place so all we have to do now is book it! 

     The last thing I looked at today I stumbled across without meaning too. I was trying to find a programme I wanted to watch and found a programme called "The Great British Sewing Bee". Already 

after half an episode I feel like I have gained a handful of knowledge on how to create clothing. It's so good I might even take a few notes when watching it.

Photo of the Day

February the 22nd

Once again my favourite day of the week arrives along with the unhealthy breakfasts and the numerous hours spent infront of the television. I must say, I was slightly productive today and ventured out to Tunbridge Wells for an afternoon of shopping. All I bought was a book, but one I've been wanting to read since I finished The Rosie Project. It's called The Rosie effect and is the book following The Rosie Project. 

    For dinner my father took me and my sister out for dinner. The only half decent restaurant where we live is Pizza Express so that's always our first choice destination for dinner. We were all clearly feeling healthy as we all opted for the salad option, but that didn't last long as we all finished with a salted caramel and honeycomb cheesecake. Delicious! It's always lovely to see my father and we spent some time discussing potential travel plans. 

     I think this will be my last 'Photo of the Day' and as of tomorrow I will be starting my 'Photos From My Week' post. Here's my photo of the day- a photo of a drawing at Jamies house created by his sister.

Happy blogging!