Weight

I have been hearing a lot about weight over the past few weeks. After having Jack I know I put nearly 4 stone on and  I became very self conscious of my appearance and body. I knew of a way out and that was to diet. I have a very close relationship with food and having to cut back seemed like a living nightmare! I tried it for a few weeks; trying to cut out all the best bits and started to eat healthily. But it didn't last and it wasn't giving me the weight loss I wanted.
In my mind I wanted a fast, quick and effective weight loss programme. I remembered how hard it was when I did the Cambridge Diet nearly 4 years ago; but it worked. I remember loosing 3 stone and feeling like a new person.

I plucked up the courage to ring a local councillor who was really welcoming and friendly. After starting the diet nearly 6 weeks ago I am proud to say I have lost 19lbs and kept it off. I am still on the diet and having just 3 packs a day which is only 415 calories and I must admit it is hard fighting the temptation with food but I am getting there they way I wanted.

I will keep you updated weekly on my progress and I would love to hear of ways you battled with your baby bulge.

A trip to Legoland

The welcome gate at Legoland Windsor

The day started by waking up at 6am (that's early for Jack and me!) After rushing around like a fly making sure I hadn't forgotten anything; I was eventually ready by 7:15am and went to collect my friend and her little one. The trip down wasn't that bad with two toddlers as they slept most of the way! We arrive at Legoland for 9:45am. Considering we left when all the business people would be travelling to work; we didn't hit any traffic. When we arrived we parked in the corporate hospitality car park! I felt like a VIP when walking up to the gates which gained us access to the Windsor Suite (sounds posh, right!?)

Playing with the Lego

When we got to the suite we were told where the childcare was. I enjoyed spending a good two hours with Jack. We played games and ate loads of free Nutella. Jack really enjoyed watching the clowns; which shocked me. A lot of children don't usually like clowns!

Q-bot from Legoland

Once my friend had finished in the conference with Nutella, we were aloud to spend the rest of the day in Legoland. We were also given a free Q-bot to use for the day. I wasn't quite sure how this worked until it was explained to us. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G technology. It really did cut the queue times. Once you had booked your place on the ride you wanted; you simply made your way to the ride by the time stated on the Q-bot and gained entry to the ride via the Q-bot entrance. I only did this for a few rides as there wasn't many on the Q-bot which allowed us to take the young children on.
I would defiantly go back once Jack was around 3 or 4 as I think there would be a lot more for us to do together and he would understand where we were going! I would like to thank Nutella and Legoland for giving us a lovely day out.

Shaking Mr.Lego's hand.

Jack wanted to bring Mr.Lego home!

Lady Gaga!

When I heard Lady Gaga had added another tour date for Birmingham I felt I HAD to go!! I went to bed early last night to ensure I was up in time to buy tickets to see Lady Gaga in May; I started up the computer and it did some silly updates, I was not impressed. By the time it has finished doing the updates it was 9.18am (The tickets went on sale at 9am!)

I was worried I may not be able to get any!! I quickly loaded up the internet only to find the web page was slow as there was properly many people trying to access it. I eventually got onto the booking page and it teased me with some really good seats; I then proceeded to checkout and the page crashed! I couldn't believe it!! How dare it crash! I continued to go through the process again only for the web page to load slow and then I couldn't get the same seats again!! After trying for nearly 2 hours to get good seats; my wish was granted!! Seats right by the stage!!

I really can't wait for May to come now!!

The English Provender Co. Very Lazy Ginger Review

Advantages: No peeling or grating required (quick and easy way to add flavor)

Disadvantages: Difficult to gauge how much to use!

If you like to cook curries from scratch, enjoy the odd stir fry or Middle Eastern cuisine, this is definitely a product you will find invaluable. If it's good enough for Delia Smith; then it must be good enough for every cook!! The product is also suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

EPC or the English Provender Company, also produce Very Lazy Garlic and caramelised red onions both are very good addition to the store-cupboard.





I have used Very Lazy Ginger for the first time tonight to liven up my korma. It has added a lovely taste; I will always have a jar in my fridge. I'm not sure whether that will make me a very lazy cook but it certainly means that I will always be prepared for recipes which call for root ginger as an ingredient!

Being a busy single mum, I was looking for a product which could allow me to add great taste to my home cooking without the hassle of peeling and grating. This sounded like the perfect product!

The ginger is quite coarsely grated and is preserved in a white wine vinegar and I find it hard to tell the difference between the taste of freshly grated ginger and this product. Don't be put off by the word vinegar, as this evaporates when it starts cooking. In fact, the only drawback I have found is that where a recipe calls for a certain length of ginger, it's necessary to guess the quantity in strands. However, this isn't too difficult if you keep tasting as you go along. You'll soon know if you've added too much!

Summary: A great product which cuts out all the hassle and will last up to 12 weeks in the fridge.

The Photo Lottery - A Meme

I have been tagged by Mellow Mummy in the latest photo meme.

The instructions are:
1. Open the first (oldest) photo folder in your computer library
2. Scoll to the 10th photo
3. Post the photo and the story behind it
4. Tag 5 or mote people to continue the thread




After Christmas 2009, I found this amazing gingerbread Christmas tree kit. It was something fun to do and involved lots of icing and sweets! I got my younger sister, Anna, to help me as it was a difficult task!
Upon completing the tree we wanted to photograph it before we jumped in to eat it! I must say it was so much fun! I will definitely be getting another one for Christmas 2010.

Notes from inside my head
Practically Perfect Mummy
Mellow Mummy