Wednesday 21 May 2014

Weight Loss Wednesday: First WW meeting

3.5 lbs

Hey everyone, this week was our first weight watchers meeting. It starts off with writing down your new membership number. You then move along to be weighed. When you are new your weight is always taken by the leader. She tells you your weight, praises you for your loss or helped you find out why you sts and hands or gained. Then she gives you a booklet for the week. After everyone has been weighed the discussion part starts. This is where the leader has a set topic to teach about and everyone can share advice and stories. This is also where people get mentioned if they have lost. 

This week is my first week and I lost 3.5 lbs, this is using the simple start. This is where you have a list of foods you can eat until full. I am now on Pro Points, this is where you track everything you eat and drink and have to make sure you stay within your daily points allowance. 

You also get 49 weekly points that you can use for treats or nights out etc.

I am pleased with my loss  as I was not expecting to loose any. This week on points I find I am struggling to eat them all and feel like I am eating so much food. I will keep it up and see what the scales say on Monday.

Take care x

Tuesday 20 May 2014

TTC Tuesday: BMI

Hey everyone. As we all know the ttc journey is very long and complicated. There are various things that are known to effect fertility, one of them is BMI or Body Mass Index. This is calculated using your height and weight. In order to take part in egg sharing or other fertility treatments you have to be at a 'healthy' BMI. This ranges from 20-25, my current BMI is 36. This means I need to significantly reduce my weight to fit in this category, which is why I have joined a weight loss group. It is important to have mini goals, larger goals and ultimate goals. I wasn't to reach my first stone (14lbs) loss, loose 3 dress sizes before Christmas, reach my goal by September next year for an amazing holiday to Orlandi, Florida, goal weight of 11 stone and stay at goal for wedding and life. 

Do you know your BMI? Dies it effect your fertility treatments? 

Take care x 

Marriage Monday

Hey everyone, so let's talk weddings. We  have finalised our wedding cake design and flavours. I enjoy the planning process and personally designing everything so it all matches. They lady that will be making our cake made all the top wedding cakes in Harrods. Her cakes are top quality and the icing and handmade embellishments are so refined. She has amazing attention to detail, is very passionate and is 100% perfectionist. 

Did you design your cake? What flavour or flavours?

Take care x

Saturday 17 May 2014

Sanctuary Saturday: Meet up with friends




Sanctuary comes in many forms, one of them is in the company of friends. My fiancĂ©e and I are part of a car club called South East Car Club, it is a club for car enthusiasts. We are much more than a group of people who like cars, we are a group of friends. There is a wide range of people from couples to families. We all spend time together in different places, from car shows, dinner meet-ups, days out and beach days.

The support in times of trouble is great, you all work together to help anyone in need. Friendship is such a key part of life. It is important to have people to share the highs with and forget the lows with.

Take care x

Fashion Friday: Maxi Dress


Hey everyone, so a summer fashion staple is the classic maxi dress. This is an essential piece of any wardrobe as it is smart/casual meaning it can be worn in the day or night. Many high street stores and supermarkets sell these wonderful items  but unless you have a slim, hourglass figure finding a flattering cut it not easy.

Being a bigger lady I don't like clothes that cling to the body, I like them to skim, giving the illusion of a slimmer silhouette. Many stores have gathers or drapes in the wrong places or are made of materials that cling to any lump or bump. 

The dress above from evans is perfect, it is layered which means you can have a supportive fabric underneath a floaty summer fabric. There are capped fluted sleeves to hide bingo wings and add width at the top. It also has a gather at the waist to give shape and femininity.

Do you have any Maxi dresses? What styles?

Take care x

Thursday 15 May 2014

Throwback Thursday:Brother and Sister


Hey everyone, welcome to Throwback Thursday. Todays pic is of me my brother and sister. I was 9 in this picture, we were sitting in our front garden. This house was in the village of Cradley near Malvern. We attended a small village school, with nursery attached. My mum worked at the nursery attached and my brother went with her. Our house backed onto a field and we had a quiet road where all the children played in the street together. 

Take care x

Wednesday 14 May 2014

Weight Loss Wednesday: Joined Weight Watchers



Hey everyone, its Wednesday again and so its time to discuss weight loss. Paul and I have decided we are taking our weight loss seriously, this time we are going to give everything we have for three months before we expect to see any results. I know many people loose weight very quickly for the first few weeks with weight watchers but we are trying not to build ourselves up for a fall. 

We decided to try weight watchers as neither of us have attended any weight loss group meetings before. For me I think it will be additional strength in hard times, knowing that I have to face the scales every week in front of someone else. 

A major advantage of meetings is having a group of people to share experiences with and to celebrate when you find success and feel support when you stay the same or gain.

We are on the simple start plan. This is where you eat foods from a list provided to help get used to the good foods and portion sizes. This week we are not really starting but eating the foods in our cupboards, as get paid on Friday. I will always weigh on a Monday but I will update you on our Weight loss Wednesday Post.

I am going to be taking some pictures that will become my before pictures. I am also going to be taking measurements as some weeks weight is not reflected on the scale but may be in cm. 

It is important to make goals some small and some big, I would like to share some of these with you:-

To reach my silver seven ( this is the first half stone weight loss).
To be at least one clothes size smaller by Christmas.
To be able to wear shorts and go on any ride on our holiday to Orlando next year. There is a story behind this goal that I will share with you, if you want to hear it let me know in the comments.

Take care x

Tuesday 13 May 2014

TTC Tuesday: Forums



Hey everyone. Today I want to talk about fertility forums. There are many forums out there (i'm not going to name any as i'm not sure what the rules are). There are two schools of thought on forums and infertility:

  • That they help give support and an outlet for thoughts and feelings
  • They can make you become obsessed with yours and others treatments, creating competition and anxiety. 
In my experience I find it gives me hope to know what others are going through and how they are finding each treatment and stage of treatment and or pregnancy. My view could change when I actually start treatment and see other peoples success if I have failure after failure.

Are any of you going through fertility treatment? How do you feel about forums?

Take care x



Monday 12 May 2014

Marriage Monday: Found the Church



Hey everyone, I am so happy to tell you all we have found the perfect church for our wedding. We drive past it frequently and had never been inside, it is stunning. We attended the 8.00 service and met the vicar he has no issues with marrying divorced people. He even went to the parish office and got us the forms. It is such a weight off our minds. We both feel very strongly that a church wedding is right for us, but we were finding it so difficult to find the right church that we were scared it was not going to happen. 


Take care x 

Saturday 10 May 2014

Sanctuary Saturday: Limited edition bath soak



Hey everyone, so its Sanctuary Saturday and its time to relax and de-stress. I like to have a night hot bath to relax my muscles and senses. Imperial leather seem to have the most luxurious smelling and feeling bath cremes and socks on the market. My current favourite is a limited edition version.  Its called betwitching and it really is that. It has blackcherry blossom and wild fig fragrance notes. It leaves your skin feeling soft, smooth and moisturised. If you want to try a new product for a very reasonable price, buy one of these with your weekly food shop.

Take care x

Fashion Friday: Simple but stylish



Hey everyone, sometimes we have limited time but don't want to compromise on style. An example of this is when going to the beach with your family. Everyone is rushing, your trying to get children ready and keep them out of mischief while collecting blankets, buckets and spades, swimming costume and a whole load of beach essentials. These are times when something has to be sacrificed so you pull the first top and trousers or dress that's in the draw, get dressed and run but it doesn't have to be that way. Firstly be organized, have a section in your draw or wardrobe where you can have a grab outfit. 

Then you have a fighting chance. Choose a pair of leggings or cropped white trousers, these will keep you cool and look great in the summer. Then move on to the top, I would choose a light fabric top or tunic, with a monochrome or simple pattern. Then have a light jacket or cardigan in case it gets cold or the sea breeze is a bit chilly. 

There you go a quick easy solution to your beach day blues. Take care x

Weight Loss Wednesday: The Gym





Hey everyone, Weightloss Wednesday is here again. This week Paul and I have been discussing which gym to join. There are so many around where we live so the decision is not too easy. We have a high tech gym with a swimming pool, sauna and steam room, the problem is very few people actually go there to work out. Lots of posing and pretending to be working hard. That's not for us, we have looked at some gyms with social clubs, lots of old people working out but very dated machines. Lastly we found a great gym, its out the way in a village so not crowded with ponce posers, it has all the cardio equipment, weight machines and free weights. It has a very good reputation for getting results. 

They say the proof is in the pudding, although I will not be having any for a while.

Take care x

TTC Tuesday: PCOS the basics

Hey everyone, after my last  TTC Tuesday I had quite a few requests to explain more about PCOS. Firstly PCOS stands for Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. There are many symptoms that come with this condition:-

  • Painful cysts on the ovaries
  • Irregular periods and ovulation
  • High levels of male hormones in the body
  • Excessive hair growth
  • Weight gain and difficulty loosing weight
  • Thinning hair and hair loss
  • Oily skin and acne
  • Infertility linked to irregular periods and little to no ovulation.
PCOS cannot be cured but the symptoms can be helped. There are different types of medication that can be taken to reduce the hormones in the body. Laser, light and other hair removal processes can be used to tackle the hair growth. Unfortunately there is no pill or potion to help with the weight loss, just extra hard work. Again there are medications that can help slow the hair loss but nothing to grow the hairs that are lost. Oily skin can be cared for with good skin care routines and so will the acne. Finally there are many different treatments to help with infertility from IUI to ICSI, surrogacy and adoption.

Each week I will discuss more of our plans and other procedures that are available and of course answer any questions you ask.

Take care x

Marriage Monday: The Great Church Search



Hey everyone, its Marriage Monday! So anyone who is married or is getting married knows that one of your first big decisions is WHERE you will actually be married. With parks, hotels, aeroplanes, submarines and many scenic beaches and mountain tops licensed for civil ceremonies, you are no longer restricted to the traditional venues. That being said Paul and I have decided that we both want our ceremony to be held in a church.

You think its easy to get married in a church.....well your wrong! First below is the list offered by the church of England as to how you qualify to get married in a church:-

That one of you: 
  • has at any time lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or
  • was baptised in the parish concerned or
  • was prepared for confirmation in the parish or
  • has at any time regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or
That one of your parents, at any time after you were born:
  • has lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or
  • has regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or
That one of your parents or grandparents:
  • was married in the parish

Some of you may be thinking "that's not so bad" but there is more. If you have been divorced then this can cause a huge problem. The church can no longer discriminate against divorcees as a whole but leaves this up to the vicars discretion. It is so difficult to find a vicar that is open minded. After all divorce is not a rarity and no divorce or marriage is the same. 

We have found the perfect Wedding venue but we are still searching for the right church. I have a lot of family and we have a fair few friends too, therefore a small country church just isn't big enough, we will need to travel to the church so parking is a must, we don't want our guests to have to travel too far between venues after all many of them will have been travelling for 3+ hours to get to Kent. 

So we are frantically looking at churches online and calling vicars to see if it is possible to marry there. As soon as we have found one I will let you know.

Take care x

Friday 9 May 2014

The internet is bck

Hey everyone, just to let you all know my internet is back and I will be catching up with my blog posts tomorrow.

Take care x

Wednesday 7 May 2014

GRRR Internet Providers

Hey everyone, so again I am sitting in a library using their internet as my home does not have any! We are switching providers at the end of this month so I should be able to keep up my blog and start my vlog after.

I really want to be reliable and be a successful blogger and share my experiences and views etc.

Once I have a camera I will do several blogs a week and set a time of day everyday.

Are there any topics you would like me to blog or vlog about?

Take care x

Friday 2 May 2014

Fashion Friday: Day to Night



With the busy lives we lead nowadays we are always trying to squeeze so much into so little time. Thats why I love clothes that can transform. For example take this animal print top:



It can be paired with a skirt and tailored jacket for day or office wear. Then change into some jeans add a pair of killer heels and your good to go for a night out.

These transformation items allow me to go from work, straight out to dinner with my fiancee or partying with my friends.

Do you have any key wardrobe pieces?

Take care x

Throw-back Thursday



Hey everyone, today is the first Throwback Thurday. This is a picture of me and all my cousens on my mums side. I am third from the right with my little sister Faith on my lap. I am about six in this picture, it was fun to all get together at my grandads house. We would all get together on Christmas Eve and spend time together watching films and playing games.

Do you have any family traditions?

Take care x