La Dolce Vita - 2024

helensbiggestfan

Wednesday.  I currently live on the  south side of the city, most of my family live on the north side or in the country to the north so I'm aIming to move closer to them. Not having to cross the city will make a big difference, especially when I eventually give up driving.   

Sounds like you have got lots of nice things planned.  

Well I went to Lidl.  Got a huge shock.  Bought some bog standard common or garden light olive oil, not the special virgin oil.  £5.99. How on earth can one bag of a few bits and bobs come to £30.  😱

Christianne1957

The price hike for Olive Oil is staggering - ditto Sunflower Oil that has doubled in price.
I decant mine from the original bottle into a spray bottle as I tend to be a big heavy handed & overly generous - it's really handy to cut calories as roast potatoes/veg cook crisp & brown with a light spray of oil  rather than sitting in oil and it makes the bottle last longer 

helensbiggestfan

Christianne You were up with the larks this morning.  Lol.  

What a brilliant idea.  I have just ordered a spray bottle.  👍

Slept for a staggering 8.5 hrs. It's Day 14 since quitting caffeine and I do feel like I'm still detoxing.  It's all good though.  Onwards and upwards.  

helensbiggestfan

good Morning Lovely Ladies.  

Filthy Morning here.  Snow forecast later so I nipped to Lidl early before it arrives. Bought some lovely tulips and daffs, cheap as chips and they brighten up the god awful dull colours in this house.   I don't know if I've mentioned it, but the landlord has chosen shades of grey everywhere.  As if grey skies weren't bad enough.  Lol. 

Currently sat sipping my (caffeine free) coffee.  Expensive but delicious,  Day 19 caffeine free 💃.   Starting to feel the benefits now.  

Had a lovely weekend, stayed over at my sons house to babysit the little ones whilst son and DIL had a night out.  I was spoilt rotten, my son is a great cook and the meals were delicious. DIL bought me a magazine as a thank you.  A rare treat. I don't buy glossy mags anymore.  I read them for free with Amazon prime but it's not the same.  

Call me old fashioned but I still prefer real books and magazines. 😂.   

Minor setback with dental implants.  4 are fully healed and embedded and are ready to take their crowns but one hasn't quite integrated yet.  Bit disappointing but can't be helped.  I will get the four done in the next couple of weeks and then just have to wait for the final one to settle.  If it doesn't then I will need a bone graft.  The dentist is hopeful that that won't be necessary. 🤞.  

Treated my car to a set of alloy wheels.  Pimping my ride. Ha ha.  The mot advised I needed a new set of tyres. That would have been £50 each. My mechanic found a new set of alloys with almost new tyres for £120.  Very MSE. 

Hope you are all well.  So glad that January is over.  

helensbiggestfan

Good Morning my Lovely Friends.  

How are we all. Hope you are all well and enjoying La Dolce Vita.  I have had rather a lot of chest and nasal congestion recently (apparently it's all part of the body detoxing from caffeine) so I've had a gloriously lazy weekend.  Watching some great films, reading, giving myself some home beauty treatments and just generally taking life nice and easy.   

La Dolce Far Niente  - The sweetness of doing nothing.  Sheer indulgence and relaxation, no guilt just pleasure.  

So this morning I have made amends and been very productive.   Had a zoom meeting with my financial advisor to discuss my impending house purchase. I wanted to make sure I have all my ducks in a row before I start viewings to try and make for a swift and trouble free buying process.  I have put clean linens on my bed.  I adore the smell and feel of fresh bed linen.

  I'm just about to nip out to Lidl, it's glorious sunshine out there so it should be a bit more pleasurable excursion than my last shopping trip when I got soaked, I  might have a turn round one of the local chazza shops.  

I am on Day 23 of my caffeine free journey and I think I'm over the worst of the withdrawal symptoms so I'm starting to fill up my diary, although I do still have a few more dental appts to go yet so need to work round those.   

I'm getting there....onwards and upwards.   

Christianne1957

Please send me some of that sunshine Helensbiggestfan! Its been rain every day here for weeks - hoping for an early Spring as it's so dreary & wet

Received a Valentine Card yesterday that cheered me up - it was from my lovely Dogs Trust sponsor dog! 

Looking after my 3 old/rescue horses is pretty full on at the moment as the clay ground has turned to slurry so they are stabled overnight. I'm completely DIY & off grid in a rented field, it takes 4-5 hours daily to muck out, do feeds etc so pretty labour intensive at this time of year but its a labour of love . . . .  it keeps me fit & away from the temptation of browsing the shops & spending money on "pretty tat"!

Retirement is proving to be very active as I have restarted running with my local club and am on week 7 of C25K so hope to ready for a few races this summer

Have a good day all

helensbiggestfan

Hello Everyone. 

Well it's been a week of two halves as they say.  Part good, part no so good.

First the good stuff .....

 Day 27 caffeine free and I'm feeling good.  I don't think I will go back. I will continue to remain caffeine free at home and probably allow myself a regular coffee if I go somewhere that doesn't serve decaf.  

Yesterday I went to chiro. Have booked a course of 6 treatments, at two week intervals.  I feel like I need a few kinks straightened out again,  lol.  I had a little mooch round a local chazzer and bought three beautiful vintage blouses,  

The bad news......my lovely hairdresser has died.  We go way back, I had known him for over 45 years, he was not just my hairdresser, he became a friend.  His funeral was packed  to the rafters. , A lovely man who was beloved by many, he will be sorely missed.  He was just two years older than me and it really brings home just how short our time on this earth really is. I really need to get a move on and start living my Dolce Vita before my time runs out too.  

Christianne.  Wow well done on the running.  Good luck with the races.  I shall be rooting for you.  Not nearly in your league but last week I went to watch my grandsons at their football training. At the end of the session the Coach announced a race between the parents -v- the kids. The parents were mainly in their late 20s/30s. I was the only grandparent. I really surprised myself because I actually didn't come last!!!   😂

One thing that struck me.  Most of the parents had their noses stuck in their mobile phones. They weren't really watching their children much (so we're missing half the fun) and they weren't engaging with other parents.  They don't know what they are missing,  I met so many lovely people at school functions, after school sports etc, other mums who became lifelong friends but who I never would have met had it not been for our children.  Of course me being me I did chat to some parents who were standing near me and there was a lot of laughing and joking when I realised with horror that my grandsons wanted me to run.  And many of the parents did cheer me on. Lol. 

It's the same wherever you go isn't it. I've even see couples do it in restaurants.  Instead of talking they are glued to their phones........🤷‍♀️

Hey ho.......nowt so queer as folk.  

OpalGirl

Had a lovely day out yesterday to celebrate my 60th birthday. A friend took me on a mystery day trip with a lovely lunch followed by a look around some art/craft galleries and shops and back home along the coast with coffee and cake on the way. Catching up with other friends next weekend for dinner. Now have a week off work so looking forward to doing some decluttering around home and spending some time planning for (I hope) retirement later in the year.

helensbiggestfan

Happy Birthday. 🎂💐🍾.  Sounds like you had a lovely time.  

helensbiggestfan

Good Morning My Lovely Friends.  

How are we all.  Are you enjoying your own personal Dolce Vitas or are you just slugging out the tail end of the winter.  I know it's not been a particularly harsh winter but it does seem to have been rather a long slog.  I don't think the grey decor in this house has helped. Lol. My next home will have to have plenty of light and some pops of colour.  Colour therapy is definitely a thing.  And next year I shall be sure to beat the winter blues by having a little winter holiday. A nice winter sunshine cruise. 🌞🛳️. 

Had a lovely weekend.  Family here yesterday. They came bearing gifts, 💐& 🥂. A late Valentines celebration.  Lol.  I had already treated myself to some roses so now I have flowers everywhere.  I love them. I can't remember who said it, but there's a quote that says "Flowers are natures Chanel".   

And, as you know, I love things Italian and there's an Italian saying which goes "A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine". So the wine was also a very welcome gift. Ha ha.  And .....the sun is shining today. It feels quite springlike again so I'm off for a walk in a bit.  And a big plus, the days are getting longer with each passing day.  So the good stuff is on its way.  

I have successfully completed my 30 day caffeine free challenge and the improvements it has made to my sleep, health and well being are amazing. I wont be going back, the benefits are well worth the effort.  So, on to my next challenge, tackle my weight and get fitter.  

Had a dental appt last week.  Final scan and deep clean.  4 implants have successfully integrated so hopefully will get my crowns fitted on 4th March. 1 implant is not quite there yet, so we need to give it another 3 months.  No biggie. I've got this far, the 4 implants will make a huge difference so I am content.  It's been a long haul, 18 months, another 3 months for the final one isn't so bad.  

Anyway Operation Weight Loss begins today.........can I lose 1/2 stone by Easter.  😉.