[ Every woman needs one of these ]

Its just one of those rights to adult hood i guess. Every little girl loves her first pair of heels - she always feels like a beautiful princess in them - and i guess that feeling doesn't change as we get older.

I haven't had a pair of heels for years and i honestly do mean years. Last weekend i rectified this and now i am sitting at home with these lovely little ladies. I went for the safe option for now - a black pair with a cute little bow on the side but my next pair are most definitely going to be red!

If your like me and for some bizarre reason you are sitting at home with absolutely no heels in your closet then do yourself and your inner little girl a favour and go and buy yourself a pair....right now!

[ A quote to live by ]

"It's tough to do, but you've got to work at living, you know? Most people work at dying, but anybody can die; the easiest thing on this earth is to die. But to live takes guts; it takes energy, vitality, it takes thought. . . . We have so many negative influences out there that are pulling us down. . . . You've got to be strong to overcome these adversities . . . that's why I never stop." - Jack LaLane

I came across this quote while sorting through my inbox this past weekend and it really hit home with me. Living, really living is hard work - especially as an adult.

Its so much more difficult to make friends, to try new things. There seems to be so many barriers and things that get in the way that sometimes you forget that you have the option to do these things. To try new things and to put yourself out there.

I had to be honest with myself and i realised that i haven't been living these past few years. Not in the real world anyway. I only have a handful of people who even knew that i exist at the moment and a lot of those friends are not even in the same country as me. Its difficult to realise that while everyone else has been living their lives and moving forward I have been .... I'm not sure really. Sitting here, waiting for life to come to me i guess. That's not how it works and i have realised that now.

I have decided that i want to live my life. I don't want to be sitting in the background watching my life go by - i want to be living my life. I want to be enjoying it with everything that i have, i want to be doing exciting things, meeting interesting people and doing things that scare me silly.

So i have taken action. "Strike while the iron is hot" as they say! I have booked myself in to a painting class Monday night, body jam on Tuesday, Body Combat on Wednesday, a Study group on Thursday and a Body Balance group on Saturday morning. I have to be out there in the real world to meet people, to make friends and to scare myself silly, right?

This weekend i also got to watch 27 Dresses, twice! And who wouldn't with this cutey, hunky, yummy man...hehe

It is such a feel good, funny chick flick so if you have been sitting on the fence about watching this movie i would say GO FOR IT!

Applesauce Oatmeal Muffins

Sunday afternoon i decided to do some baking...healthy baking of course!

I found this recipe on SparkPeople and read all the great reviews - It realy is as good as they all say it is so i thought i would share the recipe.

Ingredients
1 cup old fashion rolled oats (not instant)

1 cup non-fat milk

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 egg whites

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. sugar

raisins or nuts (optional)

Nutritional Info
Fat: 0.5g
Carbohydrates: 20.5g
Calories:93.5
Protein: 2.9g

Directions

Soak the oats in milk for about one hour. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray muffin pan with cooking spray. Combine the oat mixture with the applesauce and egg whites, and mix until combined. In a separate bowl measure and whisk the dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix until just combined. Add nuts or raisins if desired. Do not over mix the batter or the muffins will be tough. Spoon muffin mixture into muffin pan. Combine the cinnamon and sugar and top each muffin with some of the mixture. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until done. Remove from pan, cool and enjoy.

These can be frozen and reheated in the microwave for a quick breakfast.

Number of Servings: 12

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user JOJOMKE.

[ A night out at the Ballet ]

Last night we got all dressed up and headed out to see the Russian Ballet perform!

Oh My Gosh - it was such a nice evening out. A little culture goes a long way some times..hehe

As we couldn't take our cameras in i thought i would find some images on Google to share with everyone. If you ever get the chance please go and see them!

[ A sneak into my new flat - Pre wall art ]

My weekend has been so great. The weather has been sunshine all the way and i have had plenty of fresh air and fun.

I had a BBQ with family and friends on Saturday.

Got up early Sunday morning and spent the morning in a field doing a car boot sale.Ended up making £50 from my junk - so cool.

Did some cleaning and sorting in my flat.

Got my computer back up and running.

Took some photos of my new flat and so thought i would share - Its not finished by any means but i love it!

First off we have my nice kitchen. Its so big and spacious!
And then we move on to the hallway. I have these lovely little pockets above each of the doors and they are ideal to put little bits of art works in and little trinkets like my teddies and photos.

Then we have my bedroom with my new bedding, newly painted furniture and brand new lamp shade! I love this room as well.
and

Then onto my "spare room" which is really just a long cupboard but is great for all those odd little things.....
And finally my lounge....
I am off to watch the Russian Ballet tonight with my mom and my friend so i will have something nice and simple to share tomorrow!

[ My Patchwork Heart ]

I know its just a set back
Give it time and this feeling will pass
I have had a feeling for many years that he messed around on me
I just hadn’t thought he went as far as he had.

Today I got some proof – unintentionally stumbled across it
Part of me wishes I hadn’t.
I always thought the best of him despite the rumours
Isn't that what rumours are? Just gossip…..
I decided not to listen, I decided to follow my heart
But now my heart has cracked…and when I finally thought it was almost mended.

Through the break up we managed to stay friends,
How I am not sure
But now I don’t even want to see him
After all this time he manages to look me in the eye and lie about it.

Are there any men out there who can be trusted?
Who don’t cheat on you or break your heart.

[ What a difference a year makes ]

Wow, what a difference a year really can make!

This year has been such an incredible journey for me. A year with a lot of tears, a lot of difficult decisions and a lot of growing.

But here i sit, on my birthday, and my heart is filled with hope and pride. Im 27 today and yes i might not have a significant other in my life, i dont own my own place or have children yet but you know what....i am happy.

A year ago today this was not the case. I was turning 26 and as bad as this sounds all that I wanted to do was to stop exisisting. I didn’t want to carry on with things the way that they were. Yes I had a man in my life and yes I was engaged to be married but I had been for over six years. We rented a house together, we both worked but there was no sign of actually getting married, of buying our own place or have ever having children together. I felt like all my dreams had faded away, all my hopes and ideas for my future had been erased and worst of all – I felt nothing inside of me except disappointment, sadness and dread.

To those of you who are reading this and thinking – wow that is harsh, to some extent you are right, but it is also true. The thing is, is that this whole journey and this post is not about him and what he did or didn’t do – he is a wonderful guy and we have somehow managed to stay pretty good friends even through all of this. This post is about me and my journey. It is about the steps and choices that I have made this year that have lead me to where I am today.

Today I sit here and I am happy! I have just moved into a beautiful flat and started a lovely job. I am making friends and I am starting to follow some of my new dreams. I still have days where I worry about all those things that I am expected to have at my age, but for the most part I look forward to what my future has to hold for me. I am so proud of myself for taking that step and for doing all of those difficult things that have brought me to this place where I am at right now.

I love who I am becoming once again. I look ahead to a new year, a year that has got so much in store for me. So many good things. I am looking forward to growing even more into who I was created to be!

Happy birthday to Me!

[ A weight update ]

I guess I'm about due for an update on the whole weight lose journey. To be very honest I haven’t stepped on the scales for the last 5 weeks or so and in between then and now I have been away on holiday, moved my folks to a new place, packed and moved myself to a new flat, had a leaving due for my old job, celebrated my brothers birthday all while trying to be careful and only treating myself every now and again.

The results…… This morning I stepped on the scale and it read 259.2 lbs. Last time I was on the scale is said 266.1 lbs. That is a lose of 6.9lbs! I could not believe my eyes.

It looks like I have finally gotten over those pesky few pounds that just wouldn’t move. 250’s here I come!

[ Scotland ]

I cant believe that our holiday was already 3 weeks ago! So much has happened since we got back which is why it has taken me so long to show you guys just a few, and i mean VERY few, of my photos.

Hope you enjoy them!

These are some of the garden pic's that i took. All the castles had such lovely grounds.

You just cant go to Scotland without visiting Nessie!
Some fun beach shots!

Just two of the beautiful castles and stately homes that visited.

The local wildlife park.

This is a shot of the ocean as we got ready to sail across from the north tip of Scotland to the Orkney Islands. This photo is complete Photoshop free! The ocean really was that blue!

A miniature version of Stone Hedge

And lastly a gorgeous photo of a little Italian Chapel that was built by Italian soldiers of War during one of the wars...world war ll if i remember correctly.

[ My Whirlwind ]

My life is a whirlwind at the moment which is why i havent been updating. So much has been going on and i have so much to share but at the moment i have some more winds to get through.

Ill be back soon - hopefully by next weekend.