Summer Solstice Sensation

lessonlearned

Hi Evryone

Hi Angelface

Welcome to SSS and nice to "meet" you. Yes please do feel free to join us - you'll find a warm welcome here.

You must be very busy what with working and having a little one. Be patient stick to it and you'll soon be less "slummy" and more "yummy".

I had my first child aged 33 and it took me over a year to get back in shape and reach something approaching yumminess - then I fell pregnant with DS2 and it was back to square 1.:rotfl:

Well I'm exhausted - managed to fit the two little parties in and it was really hard work with all the wheelchair transfers - it's always difficult visiting other people's houses because obviously they are not geared up the way we are.

Anyway had a lovely day - didn't over indulge and tonight fancy something plain, simple and easy so egg and chips it is.

Thought Kate looked lovely and her sister too, her mum was also very elegant and understated. Fergies poor girls could perhaps do with a helping hand though, bless 'em.

Although I sometimes feel a little ambivalent about Royalty etc I wish them well. I only hope the palace establishment and the royals themselves take better care of Kate than they did of poor Diana. She was like a lamb to the slaughter, poor girl. At least Wills seems protective of her, the media pressure must be unbearable.

Anyway dinner and then a nice easy evening.

PS Happy Anniversay Mrs W. Hope you enjoyed your Lebanese meal - I love middle eastern food. (I love food full stop).

lessonlearned

Hello Everyone

Day 140, oo'er. Has it really been 20 weeks already. I have to confess I am a little disappointed with my lack of progress but hey ho - just keep going.

Despite a good night's sleep woke up feeling like I'd gone 10 rounds with Mike Tyson. House a tip, a pile of washing the size of Everest. OH's condition and DS2's mucky job means endless laundry. Felt weepy, overwhelmed, angry and resentful (I know that's awful) - found myself snapping and impatient with OH. Caught sight of myself in the mirror. OMG:eek: Hair in greasy rat-tails, horrible unflattering housecoat and a huge angry spot had appeared overnight on my face.

So .......have just had a long soak in the bath, mini pedi, eyebrow tidy and my facelift facemask. Made up some body oil using grapeseed oil as a base and sandalwood for a spot of luxury.

Feel almost human now.:o

Off to feed the washing machine it's third load, have some lunch with OH, then a bit of tidying up. Going to have a quiet couple of days just trying to catch up with myself and have a bit of a think about how to make life a bit easier.

I am so behind with everything, and I desperately want to do a bit more decorating and tart up some furniture, picture frames etc. OH's care takes up so much time and energy - even with the carers, I really need another pair of hands.

My sister's friend has just started her own cleaning company - she cleans once a week for my elderly parents. I think I might see if she would be prepared to give my place a little blitz say once a month and then hopefully I could keep on top of things a bit.

Still not managed the bike or mini-gym - today.:rotfl:

Have a great weekend.

maman

Glad to hear your little session did you a bit of good LL, well done for turning yourself around. I'm so sorry you are feeling down and snappy. Life can be so hard.

Please don't think you haven't achieved much. I think starting this thread was a great thing in itself and I certainly appreciate my new virtual friends, thanks to you.

Welcome angelfacecuti75, great to have you on board. I well remember when I had DD1. I felt so frumpy that I used to be ashamed at how good my mother looked compared with me.:rotfl:When you have time, tell us what you'd like to acheive. LL is a whiz with mse beauty treatments and the rest of us woud willingly throw in out two penneth!

Went to have my nails done this morning (usual £5 job) and bought myself two new tops. Fortunately they were CS finds. £1 for a bright pink, long sleeved one from Laura Ashley. It's one of those jersey ones with a sort of knot under the bust. It'll look good with black. The other is White Stuff a sort of wrap-around in a pale green and white print with a cap sleeve. That was £6, as it's 'designer', but at £7 for two I'm happy.

I did as planned and watched the wedding while doing my ironing. The basket was overflowing and now it's empty:D I did enjoy it but I'm also wondering how it will work out in the long term. They say they want to settle on Anglesey for a while as William's in the RAF. My nephew was posted to RAF Valley a few years back and his wife just about went mad with boredom! I wonder how Kate will feel about that.

Had a nice roast chicken dinner yesterday (celebrating;)) Then I made a big pot of curry to use the LO chicken. That's one sorted for tonight's dinner and 3 in the freezer. I'm going to listen to my football team on the radio now. If all goes well we might be promoted today. Fingers crossed, champagne's in the fridge just in case!

Rowan9

hello again. I am always so inspired by you Lessonlearned. Sorry that you have been feeling overwhelmed. I hope you can have a few quieter days.
Thanks to you all, I have been slapping creams and body butters on and am enjoying the smells and am actually using up cream I have had for ages. My eyebrows are still in shape and my nails are filed and in shape. I've also jumped back on the scales (or wii board!) and found I've put on 2lbs which I suspected , so will be able to get a grip of this before it gets out of hand. I lost 1 stone last summer and I don't want it to sneak back on. Today I walked quickly (uphill in the sun) instead of taking the bus. Thanks for the motivation.
Look forward to keeping in touch with you all.
W

lessonlearned

Hi Everyone

Maman, Mrs W Thanks for your moral support and kind words. I too feel that I've made some good friends on this thread and really appreciate the positive vibes you send me.

Good hunting with the tops Maman, £7 for two:D You must be getting near your goal weight now - how much further do you have to go.

Don't worry about about a couple of lbs Mrs W, if you get a grip straight away they should come off quite quickly. When I reached my target weight (after DS1) I used to weigh myself on a Monday, if I'd put any weight back on because of a heavy weekend I'd take care for a few days and by Friday it would be gone.

A good day today, cleaned bedrooms, washing and ironing. Lunch al fresco with OH and we did puzzles and quizzes whilst sitting in the sun. Made a banana cake to use up some over-ripe bananas- very MSE;)

I'm back in the groove.

Well as you know I have been a bit remiss with my exercise regime of late so today made the effort and got back on track. Has to be baby steps though because it's been so long.

Bike - 1km, Multi-gym 4 exercises - 10 reps, 60 tummy crunches (3 x 20), some simple stretches for back.

Beauty treatment - manicure

Monthly Mission - May

To help keep me motivated and on track I've come up with a new goal setting system. Each month I will set myself a specific goal or task. This will be in addition to my normal daily routine.

Please feel free to join in. My goals will vary - some will be "work" and some will be fun. All will be achievable and measurable so that I can actually see the result. So nothing too vague.

If it's a large project that is not possible to finish in one month then I will break it down into easy stages. Remembering that elephant.:rotfl:

For May there are actually three small goals

Deep clean and declutter the kitchen
Order artwork for living room and paint frames to put it in
Have lunch with a friend

Off to bed, G'night all, x

lessonlearned

Hi Everyone

Started on the kitchen - two cupboards, three drawers sorted - three bags for charity shop and a small collection for the next trip to the recycling plant. This time I'm being ruthless with the clutter, after all how many zesters do you actually need All those useless gadgets, broken crockery, chipped glassware etc - gone.

Good feng shui - Apparently the idea is if you get rid of the old useless unwanted tat and clutter you allow room for better things into your life.
If not, then at least I'll be able to find things.:rotfl:

Exercise - yoga stretches, 60 tummy crunches
Treatment - leg wax

Staying on Track

I've come to the conclusion that, for me, losing weight is a bit like sticking to a budget. If I record everything I eat I focus on eating healthily and the weight comes off. If I record everything I spend I keep to my budget.

Well last month (April) didn't keep up with my spending diary, with predictable results:eek:

Need to get a grip again - so.... I'll be "shopping" from my freezer and cupboards, and avoiding supermarkets like the plague. Good job I have a slight siege mentality sometimes and keep a good store cupboard.;)

G'night all - hope you're all staying on track.

maman

:wave:

I was reading somewhere that Feng Shui is just a posh word for tidying up!:rotfl:

I've been feeling very guilty since you commented on my deep cleaning a room on a regular basis LL. I did brilliantly at the beginning of the year but have lapsed badly since I had the procedure on my ankle.:o I've started to redress the balance though in a very small way. Yesterday I cleaned a pair of brass candlesticks that my aunt gave me (family heirloom that she passed on when downsizing) plus a few other bits that need similar cleaning. Today I've washed down all the units and paintwork in the kitchen plus washed some armcovers from the sitting room sofas. I was going to wash all the cushions too but I know I don't have time to iron them today and I prefer to turn them round in a day. I'll do that later in the week, weather permitting.

I think a spending/food diary is excellent. I don't do it regularly any more but just use it as a tool when I need to rein myself in. I always 'shop' from the freezer and storecupboards when I'm doing my shopping lis/meal plan. The problem is I have to stop myself buying 'bargains' sometimes. It's a bit of a dilemma because if I don't ten I'm forced to buy full price meat etc which really hurts. Need to strike a balance. I am pleased to say that my storecupboard is looking emptier than usual but that's probably because my favourite brand baked beans haven't been on offer for ages.:rotfl:

Weightloss is having a few hiccups again this week. How's yours wmf? I had hoped to get back on plan with a vengeance but I forgot a few social occasions involving meals out. Still, I'm doing well at breakfast and lunch so it shouldn't be toooo bad.

Still dry and bright here but windy. Can't believe how long the good weather's lasted.

MrsWoolfe

Hello Ladies!

And welcome AngelFace!

Just a quick one to catch up, am off work this week and trying to get as much done around the tip/house this week as poss.

Thanks for all the well wishes, we had a lovely anniversary, the food was Yummy- sort of a mix between greek/turkish/morrocan not too unhealthy either as the meats are mostly grilled over charcoal, and some lovely salads and enough left to bring home for another two meals:D the owner was so nice I didn't even have to ask- he just looked at my plate smiled and offered to wrap everything...OH commented that he felt like we were back in Stoupa again, lovely!

Also managed to get through the beer festival without too much overindulgence...well it IS a festival after all! paced myself through the day made sure I ate properly- although next year I am taking a cool box now that they allow you to bring your own food...lots of fun and a friend's band played in the eve- a country/folk band everyone was dancing and dosey-doing lots of fun!

hope you are all having a lovely week and I'll try and pop back soon, busy sketching out ideas for the garden today- I went and bought a sketch pad and colouring pencils today...not that I'm much good at sketching but at least OH can get an idea of what I'm wittering on about!

Hugs and Sparkles to all!

MrsWoolfe

lessonlearned

Hello Ladies

Not achieved much today, went for my physio and that really knocks me back, always exhausted afterwards for some reason, so took it fairly easy this afternoon - kept trying to have a little snooze but OH kept needing me, so missed my power nap today.

You sound busy Maman, good drying weather for big items - did my heavy curtains that hang at the front door, all packed away now for summer - so that should make it turn cold and rainy.;)

I think that provided your breakfasts and lunches are light and healthy you shouldn't do too much damage with your eating out. You could avoid puddings - maybe.:rotfl:

Agree about snaffling up the "bargains" - especially meat - like you say we need to strike a balance.

Have been watching a couple of "Make Do & Mend" programmes - Channel 4. The chappie who does the cooking and shows them how to reduce their food bill is dreadful. The food looks absolutely awful (and not particularly cheap either). What is it with professional cooks and belly pork and pig's cheeks - ugh. (sorry to offend anyone) It seems to be a bit of a trend at the moment - all the telly chefs are into it. Frankly, I'd rather have egg and chips.:rotfl:

Our "Old Style" boards could teach them a thing or two. You don't have to eat c**p to save money.

Enjoy your week off work Mrs W. Your Lebanese meal sounds wonderful. I really like Middle Eastern/Turkish type food - it's generally very healthy too. A friend married an Iranian and she learned to cook the real deal from her MIL - meals were a feast at her house.

We have a lovely Greek restaurant - I always go for the Meze - little bowls of everything. We've just had an Egyptian place opened - tried a take-a-way and it was gorgeous - very good price too. He cooked it in front of me whilst I waited and chatted about the situation in Egypt - it was at the time of the recent upheaval there. It was very interesting to get an "insider's" viewpoint. He said what we all quietly think - it's all about oil.

Oh dear - just realised how much of this post is devoted to talking about food. I told you - mention the d word and I become obsessed with food.:o

Exercise - just a little because of physio - 1km bike, stretches, 60 crunches - firming up the midriff - no muffin tops here;)
Treatment - just a good slathering

Time for bed

lessonlearned

Hi Everyone

Sorry wmf - just realised I got you confused with Mrs W the other day. (It's my age) Glad to hear from you anyway and glad that the pampering is going well - the little things do make a difference don't they.

Had a lovely day - my sister and I took OH to a garden centre, looking for a nice shrub for my mum's birthday. She lost her Camelia to the frost so looking for something nice to replace it. OH had his favourite coffee and walnut cake, sis and I were very good and shared a slice of cake between two.

Booked a special back massage and facial for the week after next. It was a groupon voucher that my friend treated me to. Wasn't that a lovely thing to do?

Had part one of my over 40"s "MOT" today - go back next week for results and no doubt a pep talk.;) At least I can truthfully say that I'm tackling the weight now - hopefully the cholestrol should be improving as my diet is better now. It wasn't dangerously high - just starting to creep a little - family thing so it does need watching.

Other than that not much happening - off to plant my new climbers, exercise and cook dinner - home-made curries from the freezer.

Shopping from stocks is going well - not spent much this week so far.

Hope you are all well and happy.