Today I will not be sad!

Wednesday 23rd March 2023

Your focus becomes your reality!

Today is going to be a good day!  I've woke up deciding I'm going to do a bit of spring cleaning when I get home so no swimming for me today as both will tire me out and I only have so many hours when the house will be empty.  I'm even gonna clean WINDOWS!  I've got to, the cats like to sit on the window sill and you can imagine the mess.  I'll start today and do some more Friday, this weeks chat in the huddles started this off, put the idea in my head.  

It'll occupy my mind too, no dwelling on the past today, I will not be sad, it's just another day, I've missed my mom for a lot longer than the two years she's been dead!  Thankfully I have others in my life who make my life a wonderful thing.

Then of course there's food, that always makes me happy and this Gousto meal last night did not disappoint, that's the 5th meal we've had from Gousto and I've enjoyed every one.  What I love even more is looking up and seeing that Aryn has completely emptied his plate, he ate all the rocket and peppers, the lot, not a thing left on that plate and they had an extra meatball sub each as it was a feed 4, no leftovers there! 

 

My photos a good one too ain't it it really was delicious, I'm loving the 25% discount I’m gonna get for 2 months. If you fancy 65% off first order followed by 2 months of 25% here’s the link - you can pause it at any time. https://cook.gousto.co.uk/raf?promo_code=BEVER43868435...

I love that once I picked the meals, I don't have to go shopping and look for all the ingredients, so with my 25% off this week, my meals have worked out at £2.37 per person.  That means last nights dinner was under a tenner, even after the discount ends it'll be £3.19.  I order 4 meals for 4 people to get the biggest discount because I can freeze leftovers, I know there wasn't any last night but sometimes there is.  

OH I gained 3lb, just in case you were wondering, I got back on tracking yesterday because I didn't track at all last week and it does make a difference, if I ain't writing it down, I ain't gotta think about how many calories in it.  Gousto is in the Nutracheck app so no excuses there!

This blog is taking longer than usual because this morning I have two cats round me wanting a fuss, there's usually one, but today the want a hand each and to sit on the laptop.  I'm not allowed to stop or I get a death stare and Coco is scary lol.

I'm going to make egg mayo sandwiches for himself for tomorrow and it's made me want them too, I need to use up some eggs, but I fancy them today, so I might just hard boil lots, they'll keep won't they.  A bit of all bran, fruit and yogurt is my go to breakfast this week, trying to get some gut goodness after last weeks chat.

I need to go shower before Aryn gets up, then I want another cuppa and that's me ready for the day, I've just scrolled through my memories on Facebook and there was a hint of a tear in my eye but NO I have no need for tears, I'm gonna focus on the happy today, moments like this...

  Let's have a great day, have a happy day for me, Monday was international happiness day, let's make today, notice the good stuff and take the odd photo of it and share, make Facebook a smiley place.

Mwah, luv ya

Love me x

Because I'm happy!

Tuesday 21st March 2023

Take care of you!

A busy Monday for me really, after dropping Aryn off at school, I went to the baths, enjoyed an hour there and I did enjoy it which was good because I didn't really want to go but once there it was good.

I did housework and put the beef in the oven to cook slowly, I won't do this again, I don't like reheated roast dinners, they're not so good.  

I also fibbed, I didn't track yesterday but I didn't go over the top with my eating, I had my dinner, there's no sprouts on it because I'd already eaten them before they made the plate!  I had some Allbran, fruit and yogurt and a slice of seeded bread with spread.  

I'll get weighed this morning and start afresh!  I have the Gousto meals for the week, will let Aryn pick which one we'll have later, then I'll work the rest of my day from there.

I'm looking forward to this weeks Huddle topic, it was International Happiness Day yesterday which gave me the idea for the topic, we can always do with a reminder of the good things in life.

I've woke up hungry this morning, I might have a leftover beef sarnie for breakfast or a toastie mmm.  Busy day ahead so don't want to leave hungry that's for sure, dinner won't be till around 7 so I need to be organised, that's where I get caught out, especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays, because of the lunchtime huddles if I've forgot to eat breakfast, it's a long time till 1pm!

Short blog today which shows I've not been on it as well as I have been for the previous month, so yes I need a kick, I've managed 7hrs 31mins sleep so that's good, I did 6k steps yesterday so not great but not dreadful for a Monday where I sit quite a bit, but it does say 72 active minutes which is fab for me, 61 swimming burning 303 calories and 11 moderate activity at 10.35 which I think must have been me sorting the washing, emptying the cat litter trays and cleaning the kitchen, I didn't do anything else yesterday.  I really want one of those days where I get a spurt on and give the house a top to toe, I love the house when I've had a good go, I just don't enjoy the doing bit ;) 

I ordered the wrong bread, I god the Hovis seed sensation but thought I'd ordered the 800g which would've been 131 calories but I got the 400g which is 92 calories, I'd rather use the few extra calories to get a big slice, I guess I could have 3 slices for 10 calories more than 2 slices of the big loaf.  Oh the dilemma and drama in my world :) 

Okay, I haven't had an on track week, I only tracked Tuesday last week so this is not good and I will sort it, but on a positive and there are so many of them in my life right now that I'm focusing on - I'm happy with my lot.  I'm blessed to be able to put a meal on our table.  I have a wonderful man in my life and I take care of a really good kid, he's one of those teenagers who doesn't cause you lots of grief.

I have two of the loveliest cats, completely different characters, they drive me made and bring me joy at the same time!

I love my work, my work wife is the best to work with, our members are amazing, yeah life is good.

Two years ago today I watched my mom get lifted into an ambulance and I knew she wouldn't be returning, I was right, she died the following morning.  It was the end of a horrible time that I struggled to get through, but I did.  Don't get me wrong I miss my mom, she was my best friend but she'd gone a long time before she took her last breathe.   She would be thrilled to see what's going on in my world now, she loved himself, they'd get on like an house on fire when he visited, she'd have got on really well with Aryn and she would be so happy that I did survive that decade and disease that is dementia.

YEAH, I'm overweight but damn I'm happy!  

On that note, let's have a good day, 

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me xx

And once again, it's Monday!

Monday 20th March 2023

Better an oops than a what if?

Well I had a lovely weekend but I forgot how to use my Nutracheck app there for a moment!  We had a Chinese takeway Saturday night but by the time it arrived two hours later, it was almost cold and I barely ate any, gutted I was, hey ho. 

Sunday dinner was healthier, another Gousto meal, it was delicious and everyone ate it, my photos aren't ever taken with care as I just want to eat my dinner :) If like me you wnt 65% off your first order & 25% for 2 months, it’s feeding us & saving us money, here’s the link if you fancy trying Gousto https://cook.gousto.co.uk/raf?promo_code=BEVER43868435...

 

So back to the weekend, after our great Huddle Saturday morning, we drove to Stratford to pick his car up from the campsite, half two before we got back, so we took the Easter Eggs we'd bought for the children's Cancer Ward at New Cross over to the Ashmore Pub which were collecting them, so as it was still apparently Paddy's Weekend we stayed for a couple. We watched the Rugby with Aryn at home, as you can imagine, the Irishness in our house was insufferable when they won lol.

Yesterday was a lazy day, very much enjoyed and I could've stayed in bed this morning I won't lie, but I have lots to do, swimming first though, the housework can wait a little longer, I'm going to cook a beef dinner too as we didn't get a roast yesterday and I had all the gear but the ravioli was use by 19th.  

I'll have a little fruit today, get back to tracking and focusing on my increasing my fibre intake, I may not lose weight this week but I can still eat healthy, we can be healthy whatever our weight!  I have another Gousto box arriving today so that's our dinner sorted all week, no thinking required.  Don't it look delicious!

 

 

The fruit bowl on the coffee table worked for himself anyway, I watched him eat at least 6 pieces of fruit this weekend, although he also ate trifle, chocolate, popcorn so what can I say lol.  I did resist all those things but indulged in a slice of lemon drizzle cake from the campsite when we fetched the car.

Here's to a great week, let's make it a good one all round.

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me x

I'm ready for the weekend....

Saturday 18th March 2023

Your vibe attracts your tribe

I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend - I HOPE!  We enjoyed St Patricks Night a lot, turns out Guinness is delicious on it's own I already knew that, but it also makes a delicious drink mixed with Prosecco, we also enjoyed food, we didn't go mad though, me, himself and my bro shared a large mixed grill with keema naan, they were thin naans so wouldn't have been as high in calories at the usual ones hopefully but well, I'm not tracking last night, I don't know how many glasses I had but I did have a good night and I've no hangover which is a bonus of getting home earlier than he would've liked but I was thinking about getting up this morning. 

I did have Allbran, yogurt and fruit for breakfast and a chicken on wholemeal sandwich for lunch so there was some healthy in there!

Today England and Ireland are playing each other at Rugby and Aryn suggested we watch it so that we shall do, I know nothing about Rugby and I've never watched a game in my life, but I do like firsts.  

I really have a fancying for Egg Fried Rice from the Chinese Takeaway but I have one Gousto dish left to use, it's a pasta dish so we could have that for lunch and a Chinese later maybe, or I'll hold onto that craving for another day. 

That is another bonus of Gousto, because I have the meals in, I don't get tempted by other things!  

The cats are now both microchipped, I was so relieved Coco already was and it was Minnie that had to be done because she's a calmer cat, we'd have struggled to do him!  She sat on my lap lovely, I had to look away the needle thing is huge, but she never even flinched bless her.  Once they'd gone she came and sat on my lap for a cuddle and we watched a bit of tv.  I did a little housework yesterday but not much, my body wanted to rest and it does feel better today thankfully.

I'm looking forward to this morning's huddle, it's always a great way to start the stay, 2 years now Elle & I have been doing Be Happy Owls and we have a lot of giggles doing it, we've had a radio at Bloxwich the last few weeks thanks to the workman, I think we need one everywhere because there is nothing more entertaining than seeing Elle's face light up and her face her finger in the air as she say, 'Oh I love this one, who is it?' then she starts dancing and it makes me smile every time.  I'm sure there's a radio in my shed, I'll go have a mooch.

Here's to a very, good day, Mothers Day tomorrow, so hopefully lots of you will get spoilt. 

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me x

Happy St Patricks Day

Friday 17th March 2023
Take care of you - you're important too!

Good sleep followed by a lovely chat with himself this morning on the phone, he's started St Patricks Day early, sounds like he had a good night last night, the park owners wanted him to stay tonight for the celebrations but he needs to come back to celebrate with us!  He did sound like he'd had a good night and that makes me happy.  Thankfully he doesn't start till 8 and he's only got to do a few hours today.

I'm still in a bit of pain, not as bad as yesterday so I think I'm going to have a quiet day, I've got the cat people coming to check the cats are microchipped, when she dropped them initially her machine wasn't charged, then it got pinched, but we've got there eventually, I don't know how she plans to catch Coco, but I'll try and shut as many doors as possible to narrow down his escape routes.  

Once she's been I'm going to do a bit of tidying, Aryn hoovered for me yesterday and even washed up, it was lovely to come home to find he had done it.  I'm then gonna have a bath to ease my muscles and get myself ready for tonight, I'm looking forward to a night out.  I won't hold out much hope for the scales again this week, as I've not been great this week but I have eaten good food, but for some reason I've had chocolate which I don't normally bother with, that last tub of celebrations needs moving out the kitchen!  

We had another Gousto meal, mmmm very, very nice, (recipe below)

 

Lamb burger was lush, I really liked the herby feta and carrot with sultana works really well, I ate the lot, left some of the chips, but yes definitely enjoyed.  I’m impressed with my discounted stuff this week, if you wanna try, here’s the code 65% off first box & 25% for 2 months! https://cook.gousto.co.uk/raf?promo_code=BEVER43868435&utm_source=iosapp

The discounts are fab, I've worked out that even when they're full price, if I have 4 meals for 4 people, it works out at £3 per person per meal, so I know there aren't 4 of us, but we either have the rest the day after or I freeze it, I like to get my money's worth!  Plus it stops me going shopping where I'll spend more! 

Fruit and Allbran or an omelette for breakfast today I think, I'll probably skip lunch as we are going out later and if I do eat, I'm not hungry for dinner, oh I do love food, don't you? 

Happy St Patricks day to any Irish out there, if you're English, you're allowed to pretend to be Irish today apparently!  One St Patricks days I'd like to be in Chicago to see them turn the river green, how amazing is this; 

I would like to see that in person, they also have a parade, they know how to do it.  

Today however, we'll spend it in a pub in Wolves with my brother and we'll enjoy it just as much because we're together.

Let's enjoy the day shall we? 

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me 

Persian-Style Lamb Burger With Herby Feta And Harissa Mayo

6439 reviews

To add a Middle Eastern twist to these burgers, you'll top cumin-spiced British lamb patties with herb-infused feta. Serve with chips and a zingy carrot and sultana slaw. Sensational!

Ingredients

For 2 people [double for 4]

• 
  

1 tsp ground cumin

• 
  

2 ciabattas †

• 
  

30g feta †

• 
  

15ml red wine vinegar †

• 
  

30ml mayonnaise †

• 
  

3 white potatoes

• 
  

20g harissa paste

• 
  

2 carrots

• 
  

250g British lamb mince

• 
  

5g coriander

• 
  

1 garlic clove

• 
  

30g sultanas

You’ll also need

Olive oil, pepper, salt, vegetable oil

 

 

Cooking instructions

For 2 people [double for 4]

1. 
   

1. 

Preheat the oven to 220°C/ 200°C (fan)/ gas 7

Cut the potatoes (skins on) into chips

Add the chips to a baking tray with a drizzle of vegetable oil and a pinch of salt and pepper

Give everything a good mix up and put the tray in the oven for 20-25 min or until golden and crisp

2. 
   

2. 

Whilst the chips are in the oven, peel and finely chop (or grate) the garlic

Add the chopped garlic to a bowl with the lamb mince and ground cumin and a generous pinch of salt and pepper

Massage the meat with clean hands for 1 min (this helps the patties hold their shape whilst cooking) then shape into 2 [4] equal-sized patties

Add to a tin foil-lined baking tray and put into the oven for 15-20 min or until cooked through

3. 
   

3. 

Chop the coriander roughly, including the stalks

4. 
   

4. 

Add the chopped coriander to a bowl and crumble in the feta

Add a drizzle of olive oil and a generous pinch of pepper and stir it all together – this is your herby feta

5. 
   

5. 

Chop the sultanas roughly

Top, tail, peel and grate the carrots

Add the chopped sultanas and grated carrot to a separate bowl with the red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt

Give everything a good mix up – this is your zingy carrot & sultana slaw

6. 
   

6. 

Meanwhile, slice the ciabattas in half

Heat a large, dry, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) over a medium heat

Once hot, add the ciabatta halves, cut side down, and cook for 2-3 min or until warmed through

7. 
   

7. 

Combine the harissa paste (can't handle the heat? Go easy!), mayo, a drizzle of olive oil and 1 tsp [2 tsp] water in a small bowl – this is your harissa mayo

Spread a spoonful of harissa mayo onto the warmed ciabatta halves, then top with the lamb patties and the herby feta – this is your Persian-style lamb burger

Serve with the chips, zingy carrot & sultana slaw and any remaining harissa mayo to the side

Enjoy!

 

 

Nutritional information

Typical values	per 100g	per serving
Energy	659 kJ	3445 kJ
	156 kcal	819 kcal
Fat	6.8 g	35.6 g
of which saturates	2.5 g	12.9 g
Carbohydrate	16.9 g	88.4 g
of which sugars	4.0 g	20.6 g
Fibre	1.5 g	8.0 g
Protein	7.2 g	37.7 g
Salt	0.33 g	1.75 g

*Gousto’s nutritional information only applies to ingredients supplied by Gousto. The cooking process and additional ingredients added at home (listed under “You’ll also need”) will affect total values.

 

Another day, another go!

Thursday 16th March 2023

Take back control.

Went to bed in pain, I had a bath beforehand which helped but I was still achy, a combination of being middle aged, having a bad back and doing more walking than usual round shops.  It'll settle soon I'm sure, I'm gonna take painkillers in a bit, not done that in a few weeks.

On a positive, I enjoyed my breakfast yesterday, Allbran, banana, pear and natural yogurt.

I saved money stocking up on my wine, it was already reduced from £8 to £6.50 then Sainsbury's has it's 25% off 6, so £4.87 a bottle - bonus!  

I only managed half hour in the swimming baths, it was heaving with kids!  I'm assuming the half that weren't swimming lessons were kids at home because of the strike, Aryn's home today but he's gonna be doing online learning.

This was the Gousto meal he choose for us last night, I know my photo doesn't look good but the food was tasty, Aryn really liked the potato cakes and they were so simple, .lus an easy way to get greens into him.  The sauce was a bit too much for me, but the rest was very tasty, I do love greens.  Recipe at bottom of blog.

  

I was out the house from half 8 till 3, so didn't get my usual lazy Wednesday afternoon, no sooner was I home than Aryn walked in, I also had an appointment at 4, so got back just after 5 to make dinner.

I did finish my book though and it was so good, JoJo Moyes, Someone Else's shoes, such a different story, she really has a knack of doing that, coming up with original ideas and keeping you focussed until the very last page, I need to check out ones she's written that I've missed, but not now because I'm running a little late!

I still haven't finished the book I had for holiday, mostly because it's paper and I listen to audio because I can multitask then, it's great in the car and it helps me do housework! 

I didn't make all great meal choices, because I hadn't planned to be out for so long, I hadn't thought about lunch, then I walked in Sainsbury's in Cannock and spotted the rotisserie chicken and I bought one!  I was shocked at how small it was though I have to say, they have definitely shrunk in size!  Now I went to 3 Sainsbury's yesterday for wine (don't judge me lol) and I bought diesel too, it was 12p cheaper in Wolverhampton town centre than Cannock and 10p cheaper than Bentley Bridge!  They price it based on whether they believe the area to be affluent - that stinks!  I saved about £8 filling up, it all makes a difference, I actually saved £282 on wine, yes I bought a lot of it but I won't drink it any quicker than I usually do and a bottle cost me what a pint of Guinness costs him in some pubs!   Then I get 3% on my UW cashback card shopping in Sainsbury's and their petrol when I spend £50 in store so I saved about another £16, it all adds up doesn't it.  

Anyway, this lush needs to get ready for work, I'm feeling a bit better than I did when I got out of bed, a couple of cups of tea, I was gonna switch completely to decaf tea until I looked yesterday at Yorkshire tea, twice the price for decaf - nah I ain't doing that.

We've got Persian-style lamb burger with herby feta and harissa mayo for tea tonight, it comes served with fries, but we may have it with leftover colcannon cakes, or I'll freeze them.   I had the 4 meals for 4 people with that discount!  If you want to give it a go, here's the link cook.gousto.co.uk/raf/?promo_code=BEVER43868435&utm_source=weblink

Have a good day, I plan too!  

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me x

Colcannon-Style Potato Cakes With Creamy Mustard Basa

318 reviews

This is one hot potato you won’t want to put down. You’ll shape cheesy spring green mash into Irish-style potato cakes. Bake them til golden and serve with crispy basa, buttery greens, and creamy mustard sauce.

30 mins

British

Ingredients

For 2 people [double for 4]

• 
  50g soft cheese †
• 
  21g wholegrain mustard †
• 
  40g cheddar cheese †
• 
  2 x 100g basa fillets †
• 
  3 white potatoes
• 
  120g shredded spring greens †
• 
  2 garlic cloves
• 
  8ml soy sauce †
• 
  1 shallot

You’ll also need

Butter, flour, milk, pepper, salt, vegetable oil

Cooking instructions

For 2 people [double for 4]

1. 
   1. 

   Preheat the oven to 220°C/ 200°C (fan)/ gas 7 and boil a kettle

   Chop the potatoes (skins on) into bite-sized pieces

   Add the chopped potatoes to a pot with plenty of boiled water and a pinch of salt and bring to the boil over a high heat

   Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 12-15 min or until fork-tender

2. 
   2. 

   Meanwhile, wash the shredded spring greens then pat dry with kitchen paper

   Grate the cheddar cheese

   Peel and slice the shallot[s] finely

   Peel and finely chop (or grate) the garlic

3. 
   3. 

   Once the potatoes are fork-tender, drain and add to a large bowl, reserving the pot

   Mash until smooth

   Add half the shredded spring greens (you'll use the rest later!) and 1 tbsp [2 tbsp] flour to the bowl with a splash of milk and the grated cheddar

   Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and give everything a good mix up until fully combined – this is your potato mix

4. 
   4. 

   Line 1[2] baking tray[s] with non-stick baking paper

   Shape the potato mix into 8 [16] patties and add them to the tray[s]

   Add a drizzle of vegetable oil, then put the tray in the oven for 20 min or until golden – these are your colcannon-style potato cakes

5. 
   5. 

   Add the remaining shredded spring greens to a large piece of tin foil with a pinch of salt, 1 tbsp [2 tbsp] cold water and a knob of butter

   Scrunch the edges of the foil to form a sealed parcel and add to a baking tray

   Tip: Cooking for 4? Make 2 separate parcels!

   Put the tray[s] in the oven for 10-12 min or until the spring greens are tender – these are your buttery spring greens

6. 
   6. 

   Add 2 tbsp [4 tbsp] flour to a plate with a pinch of salt, then add the basa fillets to the plate and press them into the flour until evenly coated

   Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) with a generous drizzle of vegetable oil over a medium-high heat

   Once hot, add the coated basa fillets and cook for 3-4 min on each side or until cooked through – this is your crispy basa

   Tip: Your fish is cooked once it turns opaque and flakes easily

7. 
   7. 

   Return the reserved pot to a medium-high heat with a knob of butter

   Once hot, add the sliced shallot and chopped garlic and cook for 2-3 min or until softened

   Once softened, add 1 tsp [2 tsp] flour and soft cheese to the pot with the wholegrain mustard, soy sauce and 100ml [200ml] cold water

   Bring to a boil and cook for a further 3-4 min or until the sauce begins to thickens – this is your creamy mustard sauce

   Serve the crispy basa with the creamy mustard sauce and the colcannon-style potato cakes and buttery spring greens to the side

   Enjoy!

Typical values	per 100g	per serving
Energy	433 kJ	1673 kJ
	103 kcal	399 kcal
Fat	4.5 g	17.3 g
of which saturates	2.6 g	10.0 g
Carbohydrate	8.5 g	32.8 g
of which sugars	0.9 g	3.5 g
Fibre	1.3 g	5.2 g
Protein	7.6 g	29.2 g
Salt	0.46 g	1.76 g

*Gousto’s nutritional information only applies to ingredients supplied by Gousto. The cooking process and additional ingredients added at home (listed under “You’ll also need”) will affect total values.