Sunday thoughts

As I am writing this I am watching the amazing 'Fringe' series on Netflix. I discovered it just before Christmas and I've been hooked ever since! If you're into your sci-fi gory futuristic genres then it might be worth a watch :)

I'm actually doing everything I can in order to tame my excitement. Even as I type I feel so excited and have butterflies. Why? This week is a very big week, as it is for a fair few 3 year olds across the country. It's my first day at school!

It's funny because you'd normally only have to start school once or twice in your lifetime, at primary and then secondary, but as a teacher it happens a few times more!

Starting a new job is a big thing for anyone. No one likes being the newbie. Getting lost. Repeatedly asking people's names that you can't seem to remember. Feeling a bit awkward. Overwhelmed...But the good news is you only have that one first day. And chances are you weren't as hopeless and you'd imagined. 

Today hasn't been a bad day. It's been rather lazy, granted. Yes I'm still in my pjs, my hair needs watching and I've been considering the treadmill since waking up...but it has been rather productive in other senses. 

I sent my business messages and chatted to a team member. I then found a new contact that wanted a call (via my website. www.ellie.flp.com if you care to look). I stepped out of my comfort zone and decided to call this complete stranger. This is not something I'm used to doing. In fact I've found Facebook to be so amazing for me getting contacts and arranging to show people the business that I can count one one hand how many times I've had to pick up the phone and actually speak to someone. 

But I felt confident in my abilities. I'd been advised on how to go about it by my fantastic team and you know what, I thought what is the worst that could happen? They say no thanks and hang up? My New Year mentality isn't about making excuses, but getting stuck in and doing something!

Anyway...how did it go? Better than I could have hoped for. After asking her if she was able to chat for 5 minutes, our conversation ran away with itself and after 29 minutes I ended the call with an appointment with her booked in for next week. I felt pretty happy and continued to organise myself for the week ahead. 

I think Christmas and New Year, whilst good, felt very strange. To not have anything in particular to do. No messages to send. No meetings to attend. No real tasks. I felt a bit lost. Prior to Christmas I was so stupidly busy that I had got so used to the fast-paced, coffee to go lifestyle. It was normal to not have a minute where my phone wasn't buzzing, and finding time to watch Hollyoaks on catchup a real mission! 

But then it just stopped. Stood still. Hence my 'Fringe' discovery. 

I suppose it is nice to have some downtime sometimes but I think perhaps a day or two for me would have sufficed. My Dad hit the nail on the head when he called it 'Crimbo limbo'. The days between Christmas and New Year did very much feel like I was in limbo. I hated not having any real purpose! 

Thankfully New Year did eventually happen and I could resume some activity within my business. I'm now pleased that is tomorrow isn't far away and I can get back on track with everything. Sure the alarm is going to kill me. I've become somewhat nocturnal lately and it's highly unlikely I'll be able to get to sleep quickly tonight. But my bodyclock will adjust. Thankfully it doesn't take long to switch back. 

Another important change next week is that my weekend begins on Thursday evening. Working a 4-day week rather than the standard 5 is going be such a help! My theory in teaching is that full-time actually means life and part-time actually equates to full-time. But aside from that it has been tough juggling a new business around such a full-on job. I did it and managed but long-term it just might have killed me! 

Having Friday's to do with as I wish will be magical. It hasn't actually sunk in properly yet. How amazing it is going to be knowing I've nearly finished my week on Wednesday. TGIF can go swivel it's all about TGIT lol...not quite the same ring to it ey?

But Fridays are still going to be productive. Sure on occasion I might treat myself to a lie-in, but mostly I'll be starting my day with a good Spin class at 9:30am. In fact I've already booked myself on for this up and coming Friday :) Then I can start my day positively with a great workout and have the rest of the day to do business things, any school work that needs sorting and just spend the time wisely! If by chance I take a nap, well why not! Haha. 

I suppose I better run my bath...my hair is a disgusting mess! First day, first impressions as they say! Wish me luck! :)

X

Happy Monday!

Many people are truly depressed by the fact it's Monday...the weekend seems so far! However I say, smile! It's only another day.

If you aren't smiling you're doing something wrong. Maybe time for a change?

This business makes me smile.

And the fact I only have 4 more Monday's like today...

If you don't like what you do, only you can do something about it and change it!

Have a great day!!!

And

SMILE!

x

A good busy week

Hey. So I guess I'll start from the top, with Monday.

My week didn't begin too well as I woke up absolutely shattered with the onset of a migraine. I returned back to bed and called in sick at work. Was definitely for the best. Children and bad heads are never a good combo!

After dinner I came round a bit and later managed to do my standard core class followed by body pump. Smashing sess!

Tuesday. Back to school. Highlight of the day was being reunited with my bed and napping! :)

Wednesday (like most days to be fair) was all about the evening. I hosted a Christmas gift party for my best customers. Was a nice night and I even got to dress up! So did my sister bless her. Check out my Christmas gift page.

Thursday...I got through the school day, as long as it seemed, and headed to a team member's house to do her a launch party for the business. Again a lovely evening!

Friday! It always makes me smile. After school I got to see my little pidge...

Also known as Brooke my niece. I love her to absolute pieces. After cuddles and as tired as I was I didn't stop and instead made the most of the evening and showed the business to someone interested in earning an extra income like myself. It went really well and she is going to be in my team! :P

Saturday. I slept in until 8am! Wow :) Caught up on Hollyoaks and cried my eyes out! I went Christmas shopping. Then did a party for another team member over Skype! Love technology. Was really fun! Then I got dolled up for a night of clubbing...

Was a great night and I'm sure I'll be finding glitter for the foreseeable hehe! :P

And today, Sunday. Supposedly the day of rest...but been quite busy! After getting in at 3am I didn't wake up until around 9am. However I felt pretty fresh. I headed straight for a Mcdonald's breakfast and then went to visit my Grandma! I then returned some products I'd borrowed to my team. About 1pm I decided to take a nap. I LOVE a good nap! Woke up, had lunch and then went with my family to see the new hunger games film. I really enjoyed it! Worth a watch I say :)

I hope next week turns out to be as good as this one! I sometimes feel like a rest but I genuinely enjoy being busy and being busy in my business always leads to good things! I just watched some fantastic training online tonight. Truly inspirational. Feeling very positive and ready for the week ahead.

Have a good one everyone!
x

Last Sunday was AWESOME!!!

Hello! So I've been wanting to do this post ALL week but I simply haven't had chance until now. So last Sunday, after the exciting few days I'd already had (see here), I woke up early to head down to Warwick for my business training day. I was excited to hear from the special guest speakers and also mingle with people in the business. Once the room filled, (@ the Hilton Hotel) there was approx. 250 guests.

I had absolutely no idea that the presenters planned to do a little celebratory recognition for people who had reached certain positions in the business. As I have recently become Supervisor I had to go to the front along with others like myself. Pretty daunting with a room full of people.

The opportunity arose for two of us to share our story. My heart pounding I decided to volunteer. I promised myself a few months back that I would say YES to more things and take any good opportunities that come my way. It's not everyday that you talk in front of a bunch of strangers!

Over the course of the day I gained so much knowledge and fantastic tips to help expand my business. The speakers were all so brilliant! ...

Then came the prize draw...

One of the many things that this business does well is: RECOGNITION. Already many of us had been applauded and praised for doing well in our businesses, but it didn't stop there. As an extra incentive for the month of October, some of the top people in the business had arranged a raffle type prize draw. There were so many brilliant prizes up for grabs, with the top prize being an iPad Mini.

Around 500+ tickets were in the hat, of which I had 14 of them. After a few announced winners...my name came out and I won a lovely Forever Aroma Spa Kit (which I would certainly recommend). Very happy, I went up and collected my prize!

Never did I expect what was to come...

I only went and won the main prize!!! Completely overwhelmed and shaking like a leaf I went up and collected my Brand NEW iPad Mini! Chris (a very successful lady in the business) asked me if she could ask me a question. She said 'has anybody ever given you a free iPad?!' To which I replied 'NO!!' Again, it was quite daunting in front of all those people but completely amazing at the same time!

It's safe to say I went away from the event absolutely chuffed to bits! I still cannot believe the day I had!

I love this business! :)

Take a peek at it here.

x

Day Nine #Clean9detox

Last day! Last day! Incredibly happy with the results!!! :)

I woke up early (7ish) and had Breakfast as normal: 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the aloe). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk.

I then went to the sunbed place (yes I know it's not good for me!) before heading off to show rehearsals again. I snacked at 12:00- 2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. Again quite possibly did not drink enough!

At around 1pm I had lunch:

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the shake). 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra + 300ml of soya milk. 

2x Forever Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

For my exercise today (recommended 20 mins), like yesterday, I used my rehearsing- lots of dancing and being active.

I then went to have my nails done. This made me later back than usual and I was quite hungry by the time I arrived home. At about 6:30pm I had dinner:

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water.

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the meal).  

My 600 calorie meal was pretty simple- chicken portions, beans and potato.

2 x Bee Pollen tablets.

Later in the evening I resisted my families leftover chinese takeaway! I'm very proud :)

I shall post my results tomorrow in a separate post!! ;)

x

Day Eight #Clean9detox

  

Right so Day Eight! I'll hold my hands up and say I messed up a bit this evening but I'll explain shortly why that was.

Breakfast was as normal (a bit later today though around 10am): 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the aloe). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk.

And off I went to show rehearsals. I snacked at 12:30- 2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. Did I drink this much water? Probaby not. I was mega busy in rehearsals (my bad).

At around 1:30 I had lunch:

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the shake). 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra + 300ml of soya milk. 

2x Forever Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. Again I'm not sure I drank enough!

For my exercise today (recommended 20 mins) I used my rehearsing- lots of dancing and being active.

I later took my little cousins to a Frozen party...yes a evening dedicated to the ever popular Disney film!The kids loved it but it meant I didn't arrive home until 8:30pm. I took a Forever Bee Pollen tablet during the party as I started to feel hungry, which helped, but I was really hungry when I got back. 

Consequently in my rush I forgot to consult my Clean9 diary and missed the 120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water and 2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the meal). 

Instead I tucked into my dinner of jacket potatoes and beans. I weighed it out and calculated the calories but during eating it I lost my appetite and had to leave a lot of the beans. I then realised I'd forgotten the first part of the plan and had to take the Garcinia Plus capsules 20 minutes before the Aloe Vera Gel!

So yes, not so successful! I've since had a banana to make up the calories and I'm going to eat a nectarine in a minute! But it's now 10:40pm! Today has flown!!

Last day of the plan tomorrow! I think I'll miss it!

x

Day Seven #Clean9detox

Another busy day for me rehearsing for my show and taking part in my regular gym classes! I have only literally just sat down at now (10:38pm!) but I did have a fab day! :)

So Day Seven follows the same format as days 3-9 but I shall give you a proper outline of what this means, unlike on yesterday's blog post when I was lazy! :P

I had breakfast (around 9am):

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the aloe). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk.

I then left for rehearsals and at around 12ish I had my snack of 2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. Not because I was hungry made I add, but because it recommends you take these.

I came home for lunch (1:30ish) and decided to have my 600-cal meal, again at this point in the day. You can choose to have this either at lunch time or dinner time, whichever suits you best. So I had:

2x Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the meal)

600 calorie meal. For this I opted for chicken, baked beans and a small jacket potato. Again I weighed this out and used the MyFitnessPal app to check calories. I purposely ensured the meal was 80ish calories short to make way for my banana which I'll get to later! 

2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

Back to rehearsals I went. I finished that around 4pm and the car journey home made me sleepy. This always happens after a busy day which isn't great considering I'm behind the wheel! So I opted for a 20 min power nap. 

I felt fresh as a daisy when I woke up and had my dinner around 5pm:

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the shake).

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk.

2x Bee Pollen tablets.

I then swiftly headed off to my exercise classes. First up an hour of Boot Camp, followed by an hour of Megamix which involves a variety of different exercises. I felt really quite good during these despite them being quite difficult tonight. As I've stressed before, the plan recommends about 20 mins of exercise a day so don't think you have to do as much as me! Fitness is just my passion so I've continued with my life as normal :)

After my workout I had a banana just to ensure I was putting something back into my body after all those lost calories. However I must say I wasn't particularly hungry!

All in all I'm really enjoying the plan. It has just become normal for me now and I still really like the vanilla shake so I look forward to having them. As for the gel, my holding the nose method seems to be working perfectly well and I have no issues taking it!

Nearly there now! 

x

Day Six #Clean9detox

Hey so I'll keep this post ready short because it's pretty late and I'm off to bed!

Today I weighed and measured myself again as recommended in the plan and was chuffed with the results. In total so far I've lost 7lbs and a big 3.5 inches around my waist! I've also lost in other areas such as arms, thighs and hips! So pleased with how the plan is achieving great results and really feeling healthy and good!

If you want to know what the plan states for breakfast, lunch and dinner please see yesterday's for a full account of what you have. (In fact days 3-9 of the plan is the same diet). 

However today I had my 600 calorie meal for lunch instead of dinner as it fitted in better with my busy schedule. The plan does say you can switch this around so I wasn't breaking any rules or anything! I had a fairly large amount of brown pasta with tuna, cucumber and tomato. I finished my meal with a banana for pudding. 

Felt very full today and not at all hungry. The plan seems to be getting easier every day! :)

X

Day Five #Clean9detox

Ok so I've had the busiest day ever today but I've managed the plan fine. In fact I think the set meals actually helped me time-wise, so in a weird way I was glad to be on Clean9! :)

I started my day at an earlier time of 7:30am and let me tell you it was a shock to the system! God help me when my work alarm returns next week! I got ready and had my breakfast:

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the aloe). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk (again definitely prefer soya over skimmed). 

I then set off for school. Although it's still the holidays, today I backed 9 of my classroom walls (you wouldn't believe the effort and sweat that goes into making a 5-year olds classroom look like one!) I did have the help of my lovely TA though thank god! Around 11ish I took my snack of 2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

After spending 4 hours sorting out my classroom I left to have lunch (1:30pm) before setting off for show rehearsals for the musical I'm in in September! I had:

2x Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the shake). 

1 scoop or Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk. I actually had this in my car at a petrol station on my way to rehearsals as my fuel light was on red and I was in a rush!

2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

I did a bit of dancing, singing and acting before heading home for dinner:

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the meal)

600 calorie meal. 

2x Bee Pollen tablets 

However as Tuesdays are always particulary energetic for me ( I do back-to-back exercise classes in the evening) I decided I would partially split my 600 calorie meal. Therefore I had the chicken, veg and potatoes around 5ish before I did spin class and Zumba. Later when I got home I had the mini fruit salad made up of banana, strawberries and apricot. 

Now, strictly speaking I don't suppose you're meant to split up the meal into two. And strictly speaking you're only supposed to do about 20 minutes of exercise a day also. However being the gym junkie I am, this was never going to happen. I love exercise and I wanted to stick to my routine as best as possible (to be fair I have done less workouts this week due to bank holiday anyway!) So nevertheless, I decided to do Day 5 this way as I wanted to ensure I wasn't being unsafe and making myself poorly. I burnt a hell of a lot of calories tonight and I'm aware probably more than my meals worth!

It's about 10:15pm and I'm very full and content. Bring on Day 6 and also the next weigh-in/results! 

X

Day Four #Clean9detox

What a positive day Day Four has been for me. Today I have found the plan easy peasy! 

I gave myself a nice lie-in today and woke up around 10am (it is bank holiday Monday afterall!). I wasn't at all hungry and so I allowed myself to wake up a bit before having breakfast. So around 11ish I had:

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the aloe). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra + 300ml of either skimmed or soya milk. I combined the two today. 

After breakfast I was full- not that I had been particularly hungry in the first place! Due to a later start and my lack of appetite I forgot to take 2x Forever Bee Pollen tablets for a snack before lunch. (I had the tablets in the evening instead). 

For lunch I had: 2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the shake). 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra + 300ml of soya milk. (Definitely prefer the shake with soya milk rather than skimmed, it's less sweet). 

2x Forever Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

I counted shopping as my exercise today as I did a fair amount of walking. Also if you're into clothes shopping you'll know it can be more energetic and tiring than a workout sometimes. Blog post to come on my purchases later!

Finally dinner. By which point I was quite hungry (around 5:30pm). 

120ml of Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20mins before the meal). 

A 600 calorie meal (processed food nor recommended). 

2x Forever Bee Pollen tablets

As you can guess from the picture, I again had pork. Not because I didn't know what else to eat, but simply for the fact that it was a spare chop leftover from yesterday and it's quite possibly my favourite meat. I only had the one this time though, and instead had two small baked potatoes, 1 tomato and a chopped cucumber. I also added a teaspoon of butter and halved it onto my potatoes. This gave my meal more flavour and I really enjoyed every mouthful. For pudding I made myself a mini fruit salad containing an apple, strawberries and an apricot. Yum yum!

( Like yesterday, I used food scales to weigh out my food and the MyFitnessPal app to calculate the calories). 

Around 8pm I took my earlier forgotten Bee Pollen tablets. 

It's now just gone 11pm and I'm about to get into bed. Feeling really good about today and I'm very confident I will complete the Clean9 plan :)

X

Day Three #Clean9detox

Hello! Today was Day Three in my nine day detox and I can tell you it has been so much easier than yesterday! AND I was very impressed with my results so far. 

Before I tell you about how my day went, I'll tell you how the plan has worked for me so far and reveal my results. 

Drum roll....

Surprisingly I have in fact lost 2kg in weight and even more shockingly a whole 2 inches around my waist! I was stunned at these readings because being pretty thin and toned already I wasn't really expecting to see any physical results- more just a energy boost and feeling less sluggish I guess! So yes, very happy so far!

So, what did I eat today?

I woke up at around 9am feeling very hungry. The type of hunger where you feel a bit sick! So I quickly opted for breakfast. Today this consisted of: 

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the aloe). 

120ml of the Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water. 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk (or you can do skimmed milk). 

Let me tell you I was super pleased about the addition of the vanilla shake for breakfast as I do really enjoy them. In fact I aim to continue having them after a hard gym session post finishing the clean9 plan. 

As the shake tends to do, my hunger was relieved shortly after having it and I felt fine. I did a little bit of this and that before taking my snack of 2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water around 11ish. 

At 12 noon I decided to go for a swim. The plan recommends 20 minutes of daily light exercise such as a walk, run, cycle or swim. It is also recommended that you don't do too much exercise as this could possibly affect your results with building muscle etc. However, considering I'm referred to as a fitness freak or gym junkie...I could go on...I figured I may aswell live as I normally do and do the same exercise routine. Based on the fact I always do similar amounts of exercise each week I'm guessing aswell that I won't be shocking my body and building muscle fast, in fact I reckon I've pretty much built all the muscle I can for now! 

So, I swam for around 40 minutes. A nice leisurely lane swim and I really enjoyed it. I don't know if this is just me but whenever I go swimming I always feel starving shortly after leaving the pool. Indeed I started to get hungry and I headed home for my lunch (around 2ish), which was:

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before the shake). 

1 scoop of Forever Lite Ultra with 300ml of soya milk. 

2x Bee Pollen tablets + min 240ml of water. 

Again I really enjoyed the shake and I was pleased that there was no Aloe Vera Gel in this meal because, whilst it's good for you and a key part to the plan, it's not pleasant tasting and I have to hold my nose and shot it quickly. 

After that I was busy doing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge and that entertained me for a while :) Then at around 6pm it was dinner time! I was so excited! Actual FOOD! However before I could eat a proper meal I had to have:

120ml of the Aloe Vera Gel + min 240ml of water, followed by

2x Forever Garcinia Plus capsules (20 mins before a meal). 

Then I could have a meal equivalent to 600 calories. *Please note that this meal should not contain processed foods. 

2x Bee Pollen tablets. 

As you probably saw above in the photo, I decided to have 2 small pork loin chops, a small baked potato, boiled carrots and boiled mushrooms. I added in a slice of honey dew melon for dessert. I calculated the calories by weighing the food and using the MyFitnessPal app on my iPhone to roughly work out what was what. 

Technically I could have been a little bit naughty and put on a couple of spoons of instant gravy, however I decided I wasn't that desperate and would prefer to try and follow the plan strictly. Regardless, I fully enjoyed every mouthful! It's funny how when you haven't eaten for so long it makes you appreciate food so much more. Delicious! 

Since then I've been drinking water like the plan suggests and I have to say I've remained full. It's just gone 9:25pm now and I'm getting ready to relax and catch-up on last nights' Dr Who! <3

Feeling much more positive after having had some real food today and getting some great results already! 

Day Three, done!

X

Day two #Clean9detox

Day two and alive and well! :)

*Please note that the plan for Day Two is the same as Day One's so if I speak about breakfast, lunch and dinner and you're interested in what this entails then please read Day One. 

I woke up a little hungry this morning at around 8:45am. I proceeded with breakfast and this helped to relieve the hunger, however I did have a ever so slight headache at this point. Nothing to warrant pills or anything but there was definitely a niggle there. 

I snacked on the Foever Bee Pollen tablets (x2) around 10:30am, at which point the headache seemed to go away. At 12:15pm I felt quite hungry but just drank water for a little while before helping myself to lunch. However rather than the skimmed milk I opted for unsweetened soya milk in my vanilla shake today. I really enjoyed this and liked it more than the skimmed milk as it was less sweet and not sickly at all (which I know some people complain about). 

I then went for a steady 1.5 hour walk with a friend. I felt good and it took my mind off of food. However around 4:30pm I got really hungry and had to try really hard to fight the urge to eat something. I just drank some more water and tried to distract myself. 

At about 6:30pm I had my dinner/tea and surprisingly felt quite full after having this. A few hours later I took my final dose of the Aloe Gel along with more water. 

Now at 11:20pm I feel quite good. I'm quite tired but I'm glad I didn't feel the need to nap today. Maybe if I'd have been at home then I might have had a little sleep but because I stayed busy it wasn't a problem. 

I would guess at this point that Day Two is quite possibly the hardest of all the nine days because on

Day One you had eaten real food the day before and it's new and exciting and in Day Three you get to eat a 600cal meal of real food again. So Day Two is hard because you're hungry from Day One and you're missing the concept of eating food, chewing and tasting etc. 

Bring on Day Three! :D

X

A spa afternoon at the Nottingham Belfry hotel

Yesterday me and my friend Lucy decided to check out the Nottingham Belfry spa. Having not long since returned from Center Parcs I love a good relaxing spa day, so when my mum's friend said she had a voucher she wasn't going to use I jumped at the chance! 

As this was a free gift to me, I'm unsure on pricing but I'm pretty certain a few web searches or a telephone call would provide you with this info. 

Upon ringing up to book my spa slot and day (we went for the 2-7 time rather than the 9-2 one) the guy on the phone informed me that we'd get a towel on arrival. Sure enough we did and lockers were the usual set up whereby you put in a £1 coin and receive it back at the end. 

Spoilt by Center Parcs and the Bannatyne spa, I did rather expect there to be an option of buying some spa type slippers, you know the white cloth spongey ones?! At Center Parcs they charged £1 for some. However we weren't told about any so assumed this wasn't an option. 

As for treatments, I was told on the phone when I booked the spa day that it was best to book them prior to arriving as they do go fast. Us being us we never got around to ringing up to book any, so when we arrived and asked if any were available they were all gone! To be honest I didn't think it would be that busy on a Monday but serves me right really for chancing it! I would have liked a massage but hey ho. 

We were kindly pointed in the right direction and headed for the changing rooms. These were really nice. Very clean and modern and had a station with a couple of hair dryers, which I later used. 

We had a quick look around and headed for the pool first. It was a fairly nice size and they had designed it so you could chat on one side or choose to swim on the longer side of the pool. I thought this was a nice touch because there's nothing worse than going to do some serious swimming to find people are messing around and in your way (this happened to me at my local pool last week and gosh was I annoyed).

Along with the pool there were two small rooms. On the left was a steam room and on the right a sauna. Next to these rooms were a shower, which my friend Lucy enjoyed using after being in the rooms to cool off. 

The steam room had a nice smell about it and was funnily enough very steamy! Haha. Funny that?! The seats were comfortable but I found it best to sit in the corners because I kept sliding off the middle seats. 

The sauna was possibly my favourite of the two. I like that dry heat smell and sort of taste, if you follow what I mean by that. Inside there was a sand timer which I thought was pretty cool so you could turn it to see how long you had been in there for. We generally couldn't hack anymore than 10 minutes. I was incredibly thirsty! Luckily there was a water fountain just outside. 

I was pleased to see that there was a jacuzzi. I'm not sure why but I just find them to be quite a novelty! The temperature was lovely and warm- they always remind me of baths :) In places the bubbles were quite vicious to say the least but in the right spot it could be relaxing. 

After spending a couple of hours enjoying chilling and relaxing we decided to get dry and go and get some food. We were starving! 

I ordered a mango and caramelised onion chicken wrap which was really delicious and the pot of coleslaw it came with was lovely. Lucy had a goats cheese and beetroot wrap which looked great and she too said it was really nice. We ordered a side of cheesy chips to share and this was a great choice. They were so tasty...could eat them right now actually :)

The prices weren't too bad, with our wraps and fizzy drinks coming to around £10 and the side was something like £4. So not extortionate at all and it was quality food too. 

Upon arrival we received a complimentary voucher enabling use to get a hot drink/cordial and a Danish pastry free (part of my mum's friend's voucher's deal I think). They had Costa drinks on site so I had a cappuccino and Lucy had a latte. These again were very nice and the pastries went down a treat too.

I should mention that they also had a gym however on this occasion I didn't check it out. I figured that because I essentially spend the majority of my time in one and had only just done a LBT class that morning, that I'd give my body a rest and go for a relaxing time instead!

All in all I had a great afternoon and would definitely recommend visiting here if you're looking for a nice chilled time at a place with clean facilities and nice food. 

#NottsBBMeet Daytime Shopping & Kiehls Visit

Wow. What a day!

This was my first blogger's meetup so I wasn't sure what to expect but I assumed it would be fun to meet people with similar interests. Safe to say it far exceeded any expectations and I had one of the best days in ages! :)

I thought the name badge idea was brill and super cute!

Everyone was so friendly and it was great to meet so many of you!! For once it wasn't weird to obsess over beauty items in shops...very refreshing from the usual blank looks or raised eyebrows!! :P

I enjoyed having a browse through New Look, H&M and grabbing a Greggs with these lovely girls:

(Left to right: Sammy @ Bellini Beauty, Gemma @ Gemma Means Jewel, Me, Sally @ Rainy Day Faces & Joanna @ Minty  Essence)

Thanks for the photo Joanna! Not going to lie, very envious of your fab camera!! :D

I enjoyed speaking to everyone I met! It's impossible to remember everyone, so sorry if I miss you, but it was lovely to meet Katy @ Sirens and Bells, Natalie @ Floral Republic, Megan @ Megan's Beauty Blog, Charlotte @ Lil Miss Chickas and of course the lovely Sophia @ Tattooed Tea Lady. A massive thank you to her and the other organizers for arranging this brill day!!! Some serious kudos to you!

The shopping continued with visits to Mac, L'Occitane and Space NK. I was seriously eye-ing up one of the Archie's girl's eye shadow quads but was able to self-restrain and save the approx £40. It was so pretty though...

Photo from makeupandbeautyblog.com :)

I was looking forward to checking out Space NK and despite not buying anything I was able to closely admire the Nars products! I've decided that I prefer the Orgasm blush to the Super Orgasm...I've corrected my wishlist! :)

Also popped into Ark...I found I really liked a lot of the clothing in here so may have to head back in soon!

Group 4! :)

And then for the Kiehls' Visit. Despite being a Notts girl, I hadn't actually been to the store before and so I was excited to hear more about their products and see what they would personally recommend for me.

Safe to say my oily skin was noted and I was interested in their products geared towards this! I really liked the Powerful Strength Serum. It was like velvet on the skin and the science behind the product made me sure it would help my troubled skin. However with a hefty £49 price tag I've added it to my wishlist!

Another product to catch my eye was Kielhs' BB Cream. I like the idea of swapping my heavy duty liquid foundation for something a little lighter every now and again and although I find bareMinerals works well for this I've always wanted to try a BB cream. Luckily I found the Kiehls' BB Cream tucked away in my huge goody bag when I got home, so stay tuned for my thoughts on the product in a little while! (I will do a separate post about the evening part of the meetup shortly!)

I thought this was such a lovely little piece of motivation!

I found the whole Kiehls' experience really lovely. The staff were friendly and having a glass of Bucks Fizz along with a cupcake made it even more welcoming, not to mention refreshing after a hectic morning of shopping! :) I enjoyed getting to know all of you Group 4 bloggers and it was great to meet Rhiannon @ The Barbelle who like me, shares her interest in fitness in her blog too!

One of the last stops had to be Boots. Gosh I love this shop and I love it even more when it has 3 for 2 deals on! As always it's a shame not to take advantage of their offers...

This is everything I bought during the meetup. I'm very happy to finally have the Origins Super Spot Remover...it seems to be well worth the £13 already!

As for the Lush stuff, I got a bit excited that I now have a bath (now I'm home and not at my Uni house) so I had to grab a few bubble bars! I'm giving The Comforter to my mum though.

As I said, it was great to be able to get excited about something in a shop and this to be totally acceptable because everyone shared your enthusiasm! A fab day...and evening...post soon to follow!

Ellie
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Sunday Chat #2: Interview Jitters

Hello. Hope you are all having a nice chilled Sunday! I thought I've have a little type to get out some of my nervous energy, cause quite frankly this is me...

Just to clarify this isn't me but ya know what I mean! 

So tomorrow I have a job interview and not just any job interview, but in fact my first! Yep, in all my 23 years I've never really had a proper interview. I was a waitress for a pub across the street but it was more of an informal  chat with it being my local. Then I worked in a Co-op store, during my year out, but my Dad was the area manager so again...no pressure, only for the store's manager I guess haha! I think he was nervous bless him!

As you may know or have heard...this weekend's been absolutely full of snow for the Nottingham area (and many other places I'm sure). I reckon someone forgot to pass on the message to Mother Nature that it is indeed Spring?!

Anyway...getting snowed in wasn't part of my plan. No, instead I was going to buy a nice smart interview jacket.

This didn't happen. So instead I'm left feeling rather ill prepared in terms of clothing and I'm quite possibly going to be the worst dressed there...in a long-sleeved cream blouse, black trousers and dolly shoes. Oh well. 

As far as everything else goes I guess I'm as sorted as I can be...I have my brief lesson plan, an idea of the types of interview questions I might be asked and oh yeah...calming tablets!

I am my own worst enemy when it comes to nerves. I already have butterflies circling around my belly. Of course they are quite normal and I know they are needed to some extent to perform with adrenalin blah blah...but I get the bad kind.

They've always been a big issue for me. I used to be in a lot of shows, whilst at stage school etc, but nerves got in the way of many performances. I could sing a song perfectly in my bedroom but put me in front of an audience and I'd struggle with my breathing and the notes just wouldn't come out quite right. I'd shake with nervous energy. I could barely control them.

One time I entered a singing competition. I was so nervous all day that I only managed to eat half of a tomato. When it came to performing I was riddled with nerves and they took over my voice in parts...I sounded like a sheep! Sadly the performance was recorded so I had to endure it all over again! Needless to say, I didn't win. The judges said I would have if I hadn't of been so nervous. I was gutted and disappointed in myself.

I did get better with the nerves for some time though and the more practice I got in front of others the better I learned to control them.

I'm hoping that tomorrow, if nothing else, will be good practice! :) Just wish I didn't feel this sick...already haha!

Mother's Day

Hello. Hope you are all well!

So, Sunday is the day when Mums or Mothers are recognized for the super job they do! For being there when nobody else is. For always having your best interests at heart. For being truly selfless and giving you all the love in the world.

Me and my Mum- Christmas 2012

That is my understanding of Mums. I know I'm lucky to have a great one! And I know not everyone still has one... which upsets me, a lot! I mean personally I feel like my Mum is always going to be there and I guess sometimes I take that for granted.

Recently a friend of mine lost their Mum to cancer...the most awful of diseases! And I cannot imagine how hard Mothering Sunday with be for them. Likewise to anyone else who has lost their Mum or perhaps have never known what having a Mum is like. I cannot even begin to imagine how this must feel and I'm praying I won't have to know this for a very long time.

I am a mummy's girl...well a parent's girl I guess. I love being at home, even at the age of 23, and after 4 years at uni I still often get homesick and I ring home on a daily basis, sometimes a few times a day! If this makes me sad or immature or whatever then so be it...I wouldn't change it! :)

Anyway, being a Uni student, with the majority of my upkeep coming from my parents (student loans are not what everyone thinks they're cracked up to be!) I often get told not to bother with the likes of Mother's Day and Birthdays etc. "Save your money, I don't want anything" are the types of things my Mum will say. In the past I've listened, but I don't like not being able to treat the people I love.

So this year I decided I would surprise my Mum with a couple of gifts from two of my favourite shops.

Sadly I won't see my Mum on Sunday as I'm back at my Uni house, but I've already planted the gifts at home! I've been travelling back there quite a bit over the past couple of weeks for various visits around schools (job hunting has begun!) and I had the brainwave at the end of Feb.

My Mum is possibly lipstick obsessed. It's very rare you'll see her without her pink lippy on! However she's only ever had high street products and although I am a big fan of the likes of Rimmel and Max Factor etc, I believe everyone should have a least one Mac lipstick. They are just lovely! The smell, the texture, the finish...just FAB! So, I headed into my local Mac store and carefully selected one, after much deliberation!

Finally, I popped into the Lush store. My Mum is the queen of baths...she never takes showers but will have a daily soak. For Christmas I got her a selection of bubble bars which she really enjoyed, so I had to pick her one of these up! Couldn't resist!

So...hidden away in my drawers at home are my Mum's surprise gifts! She literally has no idea! :D She works nights so as soon as I know she's awake on Sunday, I'm going to direct her to her presents over the phone. I'm quite excited ha!

Want to know what I selected? Ok...here's a sneak peak... :)


...

Mac's Frost in Bombshell & Lush's Creamy Candy Bubble Bar

What did you get your Mum? :)

x