Funny Ladies, Funny Lives

There are two women on the telly box that I have always admired so it was great to sit down and have a read up on them in their own words.

It only took me days to read Clare Balding's My Animals and Other Family and it really did have me laughing out loud.  It tells where her love of animals comes from, how most of the animals in her life were put before her and how hard she worked to become a jockey before she became the sports presenter we know today.  I've been lucky enough to meet Clare and she is a hell of a lot more petite that she appears on TV!  This book was a real page turner.

Another woman I've loved since I was a little girl is Pam Ayres, there's just something about her voice,that gorgeous accent and her fantastic sense of humour.  Pam has led a really interesting life, trying out so many jobs that she just didn't have the "The Necessary Aptitude" for.  This is another book that tells of the hard work and determination it takes to make dreams come true.  I went to see Pam's show at the theatre a couple of years ago and she's still just as funny as she was when I first saw her in the 70's!

If it's chilly outside and you fancy curling up indoors with a book this weekend then I really can recommend either or both of these.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Week Five, The Social One

Week five was another good one, here are the highlights:

I had the day off work on Monday so I was up and out early walking with a naked face!

Then I popped in to see this cheeky monkey :)

Before heading to the pool for a quick 50 lengths :)

I dusted off my soup making for a delicious lunch!

Then spent the evening at bingo with the girls where Sarah showed us all up by calling a lulu! :)

Tuesday night was zumba night with Jo :)

On Wednesday I went for lunch with my old boss and good friend Lauren, it was lovely to catch up with her :)

Wednesday night was walking night and I managed 5 miles!

I had a small gain at slimming but I wasn't too disappointed after all the naughty things I'd eaten at Paul's at the weekend :)

And I still enjoyed dirty pudding :)

Saturday was crop day and I spent so long chatting to everyone that I didn't end up getting that much done!

It was the crop's birthday so we all had a delicious lunch together :)

On Sunday I was up early and out walking the golf course :)

Before spending the rest of the day working on my Project Life album :)

And then it was time to settle down on the sofa with my crochet and my boy and watch Call The Midwife :)

Now it's Monday again and time to make another great week.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Super Speed....y

I know just how hard it is to find an eating plan that fits in with a hectic life.  I work full time and I do some form of exercise every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday then on Thursday evenings I'm at my Slimming World group.  Add to that a daughter who's a fussy eater and it's almost like I'm fighting a losing battle and thoughts of shoving a pizza in the oven seem an easier option.

I never go for the easy option though so I've found meals that are quick, simple and tasty.  On Tuesday I go to Zumba, as I head out of the door I shove a jacket potato in the oven for fussy daughter and it's almost done when I get home.  When I get home I quickly slice some mushrooms and tomatoes and fry them in a pan, using Fry Light of course!  I add to that some of a frozen stir mix from Tesco that has zero SYNs and all speed food.

I add to that some fish, this week is was Sea Bass.

And 10 minutes later it's on the plate, that really is fast food!  I get to enjoy a meal packed with speed foods while fussy daughter enjoys her jacket potato.

After dinner I like to have a dessert and these soya yoghurts are amazing!  They come in three flavours and range from 1 to 1.5 SYNs, they're thick and creamy and I really feel like I'm having something naughty at the end of my meal.

Even Alfie loves them :)

Nowadays there are so many different, pre prepared foods available that it's really  not hard to make your eating plan work for you.

I hope this helps someone.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

So Much In Common!

I have just finished listening to a really great book and I can't believe I had so much in common with the lead character!

Christie Chapman is a single mum, like me, she works in an office, like me, she loves to craft, just like me!  Even her best friend is called Sarah, like me!  Christie dreams of giving up her job in the city to start her craft business, like me!

Something happens in Christie's life that knocks her for six and I'm not sure I'd be able to cope as well as she did.  Does she come through it the other side and get to live her dreams?

You'll just have to read the new book, Paper Hearts and Summer Kisses by Carole Matthews (another crafter), to find out.

If you're a Carole Matthews fan, like me, then I think you'll really enjoy this book and love the characters in it.  There are highs, lows and some laugh out loud moments :)

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Week Four With A Road Trip!

Week four was amazing, here are the highlights:

Alfie played a bit too hard in the garden and cracked a claw!

I had a lovely swim, I've settled in to doing the same amount of lengths each week (50) but I'm trying to do them in a quicker time :)

Zumba with Jo was lots of fun as usual :)

It was so cold in the office I didn't want to take my hat and coat off!

We had a quiz night, it was really hard but we came FORTH, the best we've ever done :)

I lost a pound at slimming and won the raffle :)

Dirty pudding was amazing!

I went down to see Paul and unfortunately my windscreen washer ran out of water so only Evian would do :)

I saw pretty Pippy :)

Paul got me these amazing presents for my birthday :)

We saw the celebrations for the Chinese New Year and had Chinese for dinner :)

I had a really lovely late birthday treat :)

I worked on my Moorland CAL :)

Sutton United were playing Leeds in the 4th round of the FA Cup, Paul wound me up by wearing his Leeds shirt but Sutton were victorious!

And before I knew it the weekend was over and I was back home with my boy :)

I'm hoping that the next seven days will be just as good.

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Beware The Imposter!!!

Slimming Worlders are great at taking a recipe and making it Slimming World friendly.  If there is anything you fancy trying then just Googling a recipe and adding the words 'Slimming World' will result in a huge array of recipes.  It really is amazing.  However, I personally think that some of these recipes actually hinder your weight loss because they make you eat more!

Take for instance the 'fake' pancake.  You take egg whites and maybe a bit of baking power and whisk it in to a froth, then you have to try and fry the froth!  When they're done they are indeed an eggie pancake BUT I don't and never have had pancakes on a regular basis.  As soon as I got home from group after we'd been talking about this recipe I made them.  Why?  I'd ended up eating an extra thing and it was a thing that I'd only ever had on Pancake Day!  What I'm trying to say is, if you don't eat something regularly then just SYN the real thing and if you go over your SYNs just that once then it won't really matter.

Another 'fake' that I had a go at making just ONCE was the roulade.  Now until that point I'd never even had roulade so all I was doing was adding something extra to my diet when I should have been looking at the things I need to cut out of my diet!  Getting hyped up about this recipe had just made me eat something extra that I didn't really need.  I think little things like this can be more of a sabotage than a help if it's something that you don't eat on a regular basis.

Now there are many hundreds thousands of great Slimming World alternatives out there for every day recipes and I will be sharing some of those soon.  What I'm trying to say now though is always ask yourself "do I really want/need this or am I just making it for the sake of it?" Fake foods don't always assist your weight loss.

I hope this helps someone question when to spend the time and effort creating a great dish and when to use some SYNs on a real, occasional, treat.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

That Led To This

Me and Maddie love to watch a thriller, crime drama or mystery.  As soon as we hear the theme tune to Jonathan Creek we both say it makes us feel cosy but ready for a murder or mystery all at the same time :)

Last year we watched an amazing show, every week it kept us gripped and on the edge of our seats!  It was Harlan Coben's The Five:

Now although I love watching this type of show I've never, ever read any crime, thriller or mystery books but this program changed all that.  As soon as the show was finished I went to the library to find some Harlan Coben books.  After all, I'd watched one of his dramatisations and really enjoyed it so I thought it was a safe bet.

I wasn't disappointed with my choice:

This was a real page turner, I didn't want to put it down.  In the story we meet Dr. David Beck whose wife, Elizabeth, the love of his life had been abducted and murdered.  Eight years after her body was found he get a mysterious email with a specific phrase known only to him.....and Elizabeth!

This book took me out of  my comfort zone and on to a genre I had never read and I can''t recommend it highly enough.  I've since picked up a few more Harlan Coben books and can't wait to read them.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx