Ireland Day 2... BEST DAY EVER!

Tuesday we were meant to be heading sea fishing with the rest of Ben's family. However we woke to Ben having a bad tummy. I blamed the baileys cheesecake from the night before as I told him it was the worst idea ever with his lactose intolerance. He said there was no way he could spend the day on the boat so I obviously offered to stay with him even being disappointed I'd miss my first fishing trip.

Shortly after everyone left Ben perked up and asked whether I wanted to go for a walk. There were plenty of walks around the hotel all in beautiful places. I had mentioned the first day that I would like to do the seal walk as I would love to see some wild seals!

So we headed off and I was surprised at how quick Ben got over his tummy ache. I thought maybe he didn't want to go fishing and lied to get out of it. Little did I know what he was planning.

Around the hotel where loads of private little coves and Ben lead in into one, we were watching the water waiting and hoping for a seal to pop up out of the sea. When all of a sudden Ben got down on one knee!!! So silly me didn't realised what was happening at first so I told him to get up cos he'd get his jeans dirty! haha! THEN it dawned on me when he pulled out this little black box! I couldn't tell you half of the lovely things he said purely because it became an emotional blur. It was perfect and I'll be honest I welded up with tears. The photo above was taken seconds before this happened.

I of course said YES!

Afterwards we sat on a rock in the cove just chatting and watching the world go by. We headed back to the hotel where they called a taxi for us to head into the nearby town, Sneem. Ben had planned a lovely lunch for us at a restaurant and we did a little bit of gift shopping for the boys while we were out.

Sneem's waterfall.

We got back to the hotel then headed to the dock as Ben had also planned for us to go kayaking. Just as we got there Ben's family all arrived back from the fishing trip and it turns out they all knew!

Kayaking was amazing though, we saw even more seals, loads of jelly fish and salmon jumping out of the water! I think I could have done it the whole holiday. It was even easier as it was a motorised kayak!

We were brave and took some photos. We were scared we were going to drop the phone overboard!

It was the perfect day and I can't believe I'm going to get married! Eeeek!!!

Ireland day 1

Sorry I've been quiet on the blog the last few days I'm currently in Ireland on a lovely holiday. Silly me decided now to schedule posts as I thought I would get down time in the evening to update and let you all know what I've been doing. I've had plenty of down time that would be prefect to update about my day however the level of wine that is in my body at that time normally means I fall asleep rather than typing!

Sunday evening we headed down to East Midlands Airport to our hotel for the night. It was strange leaving the children but the boys couldn't wait to kick us out! They had their popcorn ready and wanted us to leave so they could start their movie night. It was so lovely how happy and content they were with Nanny.

We arrived at our hotel after a two hour drive. We stayed sat the Thistle which was just a five minute walk from the airport which made it every easy for us the next day. Its a great hotel and we enjoyed the free gym and pool. Well just the pool..

We ordered room service and enjoy a delicious pizza and garlic bread while watching Dragon Den in bed. This whole night felt really strange for us as we were always waiting for a baby monitor to go off. Its so hard to switch out of parent mode. (Though a few glasses of disarono and cokes helped!)

We set the alarm for 5am to get to the airport for 5.30. I must have woke more than when Abby's having a bad night, I was just so worried that we wouldn't hear the alarm and miss our flight.

We had booked in online the week before so we managed to miss the massive queue at check in. We also only had hand luggage so again it was nice and simple. Before we knew it we were through security and browsing the duty free.

I was so excited to get on the airplane as I hadn't been on one since 2006. Excitement turned to nerves though but once we were on and lining up on the run way the excitement returned.

We were picked up at the airport and had a fun day lined up. First we headed into Kenmare and enjoyed lunch, we then did a spot of shopping and I bought the boys some sweeties from a cute little shop.

We were then going to spend the afternoon clay pigeon shooting. I had never done this before but I was quite excited to try. We were meeting the man in Kenmare and we were going to follow his car into the woods to the shooting range. We had joked how this was the making of a horror movie and we were heading into the woods and going to bumped off! Turned out the man was lovely and we had a great lesson. Yay for not getting shot!

I was quite surprised how well I did with the gun, granted I was silly last in the shooting competition but it was good. My shoulder and arm is so achy today from the kick back of the gun.

We then came back to the villa and Ben and I headed to the pool for a swim before dinner. We didn't end up doing much swimming as we headed out onto the balcony to spend our time in the hot tub! It was amazing and the view was stunning. It's was overcast all day yesterday but the view of the clouds rolling in over the mountains was simple gorgeous.

That night we got dressed up and headed for a meal at the hotel. The food was fantastic and the whole evening was perfect.

I'll have to leave it their as Ben and I are heading out soon!



My Sunday photo

Sunny days

We've been loving the weather lately. It seemed for a long time that our little part of the country kept missing the sunshine. The grey clouds were definitely favouring Louth, till this past week when the clouds finally moved on to reveal blue sky.

To make the most of the gorgeous heat we headed in the shed and found out the paddling pool. I bought this way back in April had we've only had one use out of it so the boys were pretty excited.

Abby hadn't really been in it at all, as last time we had filled it to the top for the boys to get the most out of it. So this time I didn't even inflate the bottom ring and we filled it only a little so Abby could paddle too. The boys didn't mind as we were doing this at Nanny's house and she has sprinklers! 

It was so nice being out in the sun even if I did use up a whole bottle of sun cream over the week! The kids have very sensitive skin so I tend to let them keep their clothes on to get wet. They did have UV swimsuits but they've already out grown them.

It was lovely just spending all day out in the garden. We ate lunch and dinner outside and it was just so much fun.

I'm hoping we get a lot more sunny days as we have so much planned for them! These type are days are the best kind.

Slimming World, Week 2

Its that time of week again, weigh in day. This week I'm a little disappointed. I've been doing everything the same however I've only lost one pound this week! Everyone on the slimming world forum said its most likely because I lost a lot last week.

I know next weeks weigh in won't be good at all. Ben and I are off on holiday Sunday. We don't want to restrict what we eat to much as other wise it isn't going to feel much like a holiday. Its the first time in 7 years that I'll be going on an aeroplane and I'm so excited. I just wished I had lost a little more before we were going.

This week I've loved lunches. I found that Batchelors Pasta 'n' Sauce are free on EE and Green days which make lunch so easy. Just pop them in the microwave and tada! Its been so hot lately that the last thing I've wanted to do is slave over a hot stove so they've just been perfect Abby loves them too. She turned her nose up at her lunch and comes to share mine!

Careful though! Some do have syn values! (Chicken and mushroom is my favourite!!!)

My favourite recipe this week is.. Mexican Chicken Fajitas

You will need

• 1 red pepper, halved, deseeded and finely sliced
• 1 green pepper, halved, deseeded and finely sliced
• 2 medium red onions, halved and finely sliced
• 2-3 skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
• Juice of 1 lime
• Low calorie cooking spray
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the salsa

• ½-1 fresh red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
• 15 ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
• Small handful of finely chopped coriander
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Juice of 1 lime

Method

1. Spray a non-stick pan with low calorie cooking spray and place over a medium-high heat. Add the peppers, onions, chillies, lime juice and spices and stir-fry for 4-5 minutes. Add the chicken, then stir-fry over a high heat for 5 mins until the chicken is cooked.
2. Meanwhile, tip the salsa ingredients into a food processor, along with the lime juice and a little seasoning and pulse until finely chopped.
3. Lay out the ingredients on a table and serve

My Starting weight = 14 stone 2 pounds.
Weight lost this week = 1 pound
Total weight lost = 5 pounds 
My Target weight = 10 stone 7 pounds
Still to lose 39 pounds

Graduation!

Just 3 hours left!

That's all Ewan and Rhys have left at nursery. Then it'll be the summer holiday and THEN it'll be big boy school!

I honestly can't believe they are old enough to be going to primary school.

Yesterday Ewan and Rhys' nursery had a little Graduation Day for all its children going to primary school. I'll be honest when I first got the invite I thought it was a little silly, but today it was so lovely and simply adorable. It was great celebrating and also saying bye to their key workers.

They each came out of the room one by one and was handed a little diploma, they then had to shake their workers hand and they would predict what job they would have when they were older.

Ewan came out first and I was surprised how confident he was in front of all the parents. He was talking and looking around. Natalie his worker predicted that because Ewan loves making things and building he's going to be an Architect. 

Rhys came out afterwards and was quite shy. He still spoke and gave me a little wave. Natalie is also Rhys' worker and she says, because Rhys loves learning how things work and taking them apart he's going to be a mechanic!

They gave everyone lunch and we all got time to talk to other parents. It was lovely and I honestly think they are the nicest nursery ever. Natalie said she's going to cry Friday when they leave as she's going to miss them so much. It made me a little teary how they told her they were going to miss her.

My babies are definitely not babies anymore!

Review: Box Upon A Time

Saturday the postman popped a lovely package through my door. Subscription boxes have become quite popular so I was excited to see what goodies my box had.

The box was from Box Upon A Time which specialises in designer baby clothes. With big name brands like Diesel, Mini a ture and other brands it's exciting to see what the stylist had picked for your box.

The website is very simple to use and you pop in your baby's weight and height. You also select which patterns you like. 

I was a little dubious because I guess I'm a little picky when it comes to clothes. I do like shopping for ourselves and I was worried about what might come. 

In my box there were two items. One I completely loved, and another that I wasn't that fussed about.

The first item I pulled out of the box was a lovely spotty romper, I don't really buy rompers for Abby any more, mainly because I think they are a little babyish and I like her in other clothes more. BUT I adore this romper. I forgot how great they are on hot days and how easy they are for little ones to move about in. The design is so cute and colourful and it felt like a lovely summery outfit.

Spotty Pink Short Sleeve Playsuit - Piccalilly £18

The second item was a little green top with palm trees on. It's isn't awful but it isnt something I would probably buy myself. Abby will still wear it though as it is cute and the qualty of the material is great. 

Kira Miami Palms Print - Eva & Oli £37

The total for both items is £55 and the price of the Silver box price is £29 so that's a saving of £26. But it's a saving on something I wouldn't buy myself so therefore not really a saving...

In the box you get a note telling you who picked your clothes and another note telling you a bit about the item and how much it would cost.

Personally I'm not one that spends huge amounts on single items of clothing. When they are in the clothes for 6 months at a max I just can't justify spending £40 on a top. 

Like most subscriptions, Box Upon a Time only post out once a month, and it would be something to look forward if you bought more than just the first month. I think it would make a nice gift for a friend who's having a baby as gifts are normally a surprise but I can't see myself ordering for a few months. I personally think the whole concept of subscription boxes seem a little gimmicky to me, I know some people love them but I think at best they make good gifts and would probably keep to shopping for myself.