Gotta love a pie....

 Wednesday 24th April 2024

Another day in the bag, yes I was over my allowance, but I ended the day under what I'd burned on my fit bit, so that's success to me.  As long as my weight isn't going up, I'm good and I'm long past letting it get me down, do my best that's enough for me. 

I love food, I love a bargain and I don't like waste so yesterday when I went shopping there was a block of shortcrust pastry reduced to 80p, I rolled it out and made a pie with the leftover lamb and gravy from Sunday, I was impressed with how much was left to say they had sandwiches Sunday night as well.  

The pie worked well, lads want it again, so that's a success.  It was high on calories at 1155 calories but if I hadn't had the cupcake I was given because of Josie's birthday, I'd have been within my allowance, proving you can have pie and high calorie meals. 

  

I had some chicken thighs that needing using yesterday so I've cooked them and we'll eat today, 15-20 minutes in the air fryer, I mixed some tandoori masala and yogurt together and let them marinade all afternoon and they look good, I'm going to take them off the bone and think I'll serve them in pitta breads or wraps, we'll see what I fancy later.  I don't have much in the way of salad, but they're not a fan anyway, but I do have spinach, peppers and a bit of lettuce I think.  

He came home early again yesterday, I got back from work and shopping at 2 and he walked in at 2.15!  Seriously, I was making the pie and planning an hour chilling before Aryn got home and I had to go back to work!  Third time lucky ay, let's see if I get a full afternoon to myself today....

But first I need to go get ready for work, physio complete, the cleaning workout Monday has left me in pain but it'll ease off, my arthritis in my hands is a bitch, we can thank the damp weather for that I think.

Here's to a good day whatever comes our way! 

Go easy on yourself if you're struggling, things can be hard and like I've always said, when life's easy - weight loss is easier, when life's hard well yeah, it's harder but the secret is to go easy on yourself, do what you can and don't give up on yourself because you matter!  Talk it out too, voicing your shit helps, we prove it regularly in our huddles. 

Mwah, luv ya

Love me x

What will you choose to.... this chooseday :)

Tuesday 23rd April 2024

I had a damn good day yesterday, very productive I was, I put together the chat for the week, then I attacked the housework!  Hoovered and mopped downstairs, washed all the covers on the sofa, put everything away somewhere so there's clear worktops and tables etc in kitchen and living room.  I even emptied the fridge and cleared that out too.  I was cooking on gas when he walks in at 11, they'd sent him home because there wasn't a risk assessment for the job so he couldn't start - deep sigh!  

I was in my stride so when he said I'm going to do some sorting in the motorhome, I was chuffed I won't lie, I love him but I had stuff to do and he'd be in the way.  He was in the way anyway, within minutes, he was back, "Bev, do you know where......is?", "Can you see if you can find one of these on the internet?"  On a positive, I found a charger he lost last year and I also found another charger which means he won't have to replace one of his expensive work tools so there was an upside to the day.

Thankfully I had a nail appointment at two so I escaped for an hour, I fancied a copper colour and when I saw this, which changes colour I was all over that. 

 

It's difficult to get on photo but they can be green, or a copper colour, it has pink in - I love it!  Had them cut down too, I can't cope with long nails, who'd have believed I'd be having my nails cut when I bit them so badly for decades. 

Arn and I went to the gym, then nipped to Aldi for a few bits so that I could make this for tea.  The pork chops I'd had from Lidls, £3.60 for 4 on the bone, I cut the fat off because they wouldn't fit in my frying pan but then I put the fat in the air fryer to crisp up, that worked.  The sauce was a bit of chicken stock, soft cheese and dijon mustard (great suggestions from Bernie) and it was a huge hit in our house, the men loved it and said 'we'll have that again'.  I need to add that to my regular 'to eat' list. 

   

I did well according to my Fitbit, although my back thinks I did so much more activity!   I ended my day on 1721 calories on Nutracheck, so thankfully a deficit there, 600 calories = impressive. 

I woke up lots in the night and got up in the end because of dreams, the final one that included mom was enough to stop me going back to sleep.

I'm ready for the day ahead, physio done, washing up bowl empty - I love that, it makes me happy.  I'm easily pleased.  3 huddles today and I need to nip to Sainsbury's for the stuff Aldi didn't have, I have to have Birds Eye petit pois, sorry if that makes me fussy but a girls gotta have what a girls gotta have and my freezer is without!

Here's to not having peas in the freezer being the biggest drama I have to deal with today :) 

Hope you have a great day too

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me 

Ready for the week - are you?

 Monday 22nd April 2024

A lovely weekend had in this house, nice and relaxed, pottered about in the garden, had a diesel heater fitted to the motorhome which will save us money in no time.  We have struggled to get a gas bottle a few times now and the last time was because it was coming up to Easter and everyone had decided to get one at the same time, we ended up paying £59 for something we usually pay £40 odd for and they've gone up since we started with it only a couple of years ago.  The cost of electricity when on a camp site has gone up too, so 10 days cost him £100 in total for gas/elec (he feels the cold bless him!) This diesel heater can also use kerosene so he's a happy boy now and it's been plumbed into our existing heating system so we can use either / or.  If you have a camper or motorhome and are interested, here's the chaps details who did ours vanlifefix.com | diesel heater | cosford shropshire England, UK or facebook (1) vanlifefix | Facebook.  He got in touch with us after he'd seen me post a question about them on Facebook, I like initiative like that!

That took up a bit of time going to take it and pick it up, the traffic on the M54 caught us out on Saturday as they'd closed the lanes between J3 and 4 for roadworks so we were stuck there for half hour!  

I found some fillet steak in the freezer that I'd had from Taylors butchers (1) Facebook when it was on offer, we ate outside for the first time this year and it was delicious!  

We ended up spending Saturday night with next door in the garden drinking, I would've been okay with just my wine calorie wise but Cheryl came out with a Mint Bailey's to try and it wasn't a small glass!  It's like drinking after eight mints, nice but I can live without it in my life at 156 calories per 50ml - ouch! 

Sunday was a lazy day, it's not very often I feel I should be doing something, yesterday was one of them, I soon talked myself out if it and we watched tele, the second series of Blue Lights is brilliant!  We ate outside again and had a lamb dinner, that was the frozen one I'd had from Farm Foods for £15, I like that price compared to the £36 it would cost you today in Sainsburys!  Trying to get our portions a little more under control, normally I'd do two types of spud, and too much food full stop!

Weirdly I fancied the Christmas pudding I hadn't eaten at Christmas and it was delicious! 

These sausages from Lidl's are delicious if a little high in calories 347 for two, had a sandwich for breakfast Sunday with those - so good.  

Now it's Monday and I have so much to do, I don't like being a grown up and I don't want to adult at all today!  I've just done my physio, loaded the washing machine, managed to dry yesterdays on the line outside.  I've got a huddle chat to plan, a house that looks like it's been hit by a bomb and food shopping to get done.  What I want to do is get my jigsaw out and waste a few hours but I won't, I need to wash the covers on the sofa, mop the floors all that boring stuff.  It'll look lovely when it's done though and at least I've got the house to myself to do it.  

The sooner I start, the sooner I finish I guess, so here's to getting stuff done!  Hope your day goes well.

Mwah, luv ya

Love me  

Eating out twice - oops!

Saturday 20th April 2024

Well I didn't track yesterday , I ate out twice, I know I said I would but I chose not too because I got to enjoy time with my family.  It started with breakfast at the Toby carvery - very good and out of curiosity I have just tracked it using the Nutracheck app and it was 1345 calories!  It was delicious I have to say and honestly I could've gone all day and not eaten again because I had so much!  I wasn't taken with the Yorkshire pudding, it was a bit thin and dry - now I'm a yorkie lover so was curious to try with breakfast, it says it has roasted onion and bacon bits - I missed that, mine was just boring and I only ate two mouthfuls.  I did eat 3 sausages though, they were lush but 651 calories for 3 servings is a serving 1 sausage - it must be - oops!

Anyway, I did a little bit of gardening with himself, we removed another huge shrub from the front garden, we took the motorhome to have a diesel heater fitted to it, I sat waiting for him in my car for an hour whilst he talked about 'stuff' with the bloke, borinhell, but he loves it, I was happy in my car with my audiobook and a bit of candy crush.  

By the time we'd been to the tip with the garden waste, I just didn't fancy cooking for them especially as I wasn't that hungry, well he suggested we go eat out to save me the hassle and have curry.  Who am I to disagree, we were seated at six, I was really impressed too.

  

I had tandoori lamb - lush, followed by chicken tikka masala not very imaginative I know but I fancied it, I did have it with Arabian rice which was sweet & fruity and had almonds in too.  It was nice, but I'd stick to pilau next time, Aryn had a really nice rice think it was the keema pilau, we'd all eat that one again.

  

Himself had a lamb madras and Aryn had a duck dish, the madras was delicious, I got a taste and the flavour and depth of the curry before the kick at the end was delicious.  I like to try everyone's dinner to make sure it's not been poisoned, seriously though its a way of finding out if you'd like it yourself isn't it ;-)  We all had poppadoms and he had onion bhaji starter which looked tasty, I didn't try that one.  

  

Now there's not loads of meat in the masala, but it meant I didn't eat all the sauce, I have bought it home with me though, I can add some chicken to it today and I've got another meal.  I only ate a bit of the rice too, the rice is in a tub in the kitchen, I reckon it would be nice cold as a rice salad.  Aryn's a machine, he'll snack on that!   My meal was easily 1137, that was without eating it all of course, it would've been more  At least I've tracked after all, see it's not that difficult even if it's not pretty at over 3,000 calories!

Yeah it was nice to have a meal together where I've woken up this morning and there's not washing up, of course that wasn't the highlight of it, eating together and chatting without a tele on was.  

I've remembered to take meat out of the freezer so we have food for today, think I'm going to take the last leg of lamb out too, that was my bargain £15 one, there's a Sunday dinner in that and possibly a curry with the leftovers or maybe a lamb stew if I cut the meat off before I cook the leg?! I've never made a lamb stew!  We shall see...

First I've got a huddle to get too, looking forward to my day, no clue what we're doing if anything, I like doing nothing!

I had a chat on the phone with my brother too, he was upset over the loss of a friend but by the end of the call, I think we'd helped him feel better.  Life can change in a heartbeat which is why we shouldn't put things off or ignore things.  We honestly shouldn't be eating out at the minute but meh, that's what savings are for, we've not had a holiday so the odd meal out when we get the chance to be together is a necessary luxury - eating good food is one thing that brings the three of us together. 

Here's to a lovely weekend, be nice if it didn't rain wouldn't it! 

Mwah, luv ya

Love me 

  

I love not rushing on a Friday

Friday 19th April 2024

Yay I stayed the same on the scales - no shame in a maintain!  I'm chuffed with that result to be honest because we've eaten out a few times and I've not tracked properly, had big breakfasts I wouldn't usually eat too because he's been home.  I did track yesterday though was over my allowance and now I've just sat and added the extra bits I've remembered as I've been blogging the dinner I'm actually 490 calories over!  At least it's tracked.

I skipped breakfast but then had a little packet of biscuits at huddle 162 calories, they just made me want more sweet stuff and because I'd been craving fruit and nut bar all week, I got one when I filled up with diesel, it wasn't all that but it was tracked, it's out of my system now.

For lunch I had a big beef sandwich to use up the beef slices that were use by the day before, I'm alive so they were okay!  Dinner was delicious thought, a spag bol type meal made using this sauce and a bit of added chorizo, I also added a diced pepper, onion and a grated carrot. 

 

I liked the sauce but wouldn't pay £2.65 for it, it's only a small jar too, I'd rather buy a cheap jar of pasta sauce (65p) and add my own olives (89p a jar), anyway it went down well, I'd cut the garlic bread down the middle and added cheese, they liked that - I just had 1 small slice of it to try and then I ate the asparagus.

That was my day, no clue what today's plans are, part of me fancies a day out in Shrewsbury, part of me can't be bothered and he can get some of the jobs done that need doing why he's here, painting shed and pulling shrubs out.  I could always have a day out in Shrewsbury on my own Monday, walking round shops at my own leisure, enjoying the market no rushing - mmm that sounds good.

Right, let's get on with the day, it started with me being knocked repeatedly - apparently I was snoring badly!  Next he come down and said, "I heard you farting as you walked down the stairs".  Well at least I left the room first!  I blamed Coco for the noise ;-)

Here's to a good day whatever way it goes, hope you have a good one too. 

Mwah, luv u

Love me xx

A frost - brrr!

 Thursday 18th April 2024

It's weigh day again and I've not been the best this week but I have enjoyed it!  I've eaten out 3 times since last weigh day, two lunches and one breakfast and yes I could do that on track within my calories but I haven't tracked 100% so I know I've gone over but no clue by how much.  I have had a lovely week though, we don't get to spend week day lunchtimes together that often so I wasn't turning it down. 

Yesterdays lunch was this pate of delicous lambness!  So good and the pubs really cosy too, The Oaken Arms, I've been once before with Aryn and both times lovely food, polite staff, good atmosphere.  Will go back, I've been told their Sunday lunch is very good.

Just the two meals yesterday we had this for tea, I had trout the lads had salmon, I won't buy the fillets again, they don't taste as good as a whole trout but it was still nice.  Could be how I cooked it, did it in the air fryer. I'm not a big new potato fan either unless they're covered in butter!  The lads enjoyed their salmon and spuds and I'm a fan of samphire, Aryn said it was okay.

That was my day really, work on morning, a trip to a couple of caravan places, dinner and a bit of tele.  We're watching the second series of Blue Lights on BBC app.  I did get to watch Jamie Olivers first episode of his air fryer cooking show on C4, it was okay, the scones looked lush and so did the bellydraft.  Oh we went to the gym too, almost forgot!

I'm doing mince in this sauce with spaghetti so not a spag bol as such but it's on 84 calories in a thirds of the jar and it was on half price offer when I bought it plus I love black olives. 

Something that's quick to know up and tasty hopefully, but first to get through 3 huddles, we're in the snooker room at the back of the mem today, so unloading cars easier as the workmen have been taking the spaces at the front of the building for months so I have to carry stuff further! 

A frost this morning, what's this weather all about, I'm freezing cold and got to go and scrape the car - crazy world, two years ago we were on a beach in our t-shirts in Cumbria having a lovely time. 

Here's to a great day, I will track, I promise....

Mwah, luv u

love me xx

Happy Anniversary!

Wednesday 17th April 2024

Can you believe it's been 3 years since Elle and I started Be Happy Owls, we'd chatted about long before before deciding to do it, we weren't sure how it would work, if it would work, the only thing we knew for sure was the name.  IT WORKED!  3 years on and no regrets at all - I have the perfect work/life balance and for that I'm truly grateful.

Back to today, food yesterday wasn't all that, hence no photos, I skipped breakfast, had leftover egg fried rice and a bag of doritos for lunch then for dinner, it was a bit of this and that thrown together!  I'd bought Charlie Bigham's chicken kyiv's to try because they were on a slash sale of £5, usually £9.50, I'm sorry but they're not worth that kind of money, I actually wouldn't buy them again at all.  Aryn said for that price you can buy a whole ready cooked chicken - fair point!

We also tried the M&S bubble and squeak and we weren't impressed with them either!  

We were impressed with the chips that went on the plate with them though and they cost pennies.  

That was my day on a plate!  

Today we're having fish, the lads will have salmon, I'm having trout and I'm having both pieces because I can!   I think we'll have it with rice but that might change and that's the only thing I know for sure today, other than going to work. 

I managed to stand to do two of our huddle chats yesterday, that's a first, I managed to do one the other Saturday, so progress for sure, it was painful but obviously not as painful as it has been because I wouldn't have been able to do it before. 

Anyway, I need to get ready for work and nothing is going on in my life that's bloggable so here's to having a great day.

Mwah, luv u

Love me x