The 1st of 2015

Many people get swept up in the pressure that New Year brings. Trying to make sure that the perfect Hogmanay celebration is had, and the list of resolutions that will make your year wonderful. I used to be one of them. I always seemed to be under so much pressure for that last day of the year. What to wear, where to go, paying entry fees to pubs that are normally free, higher than usual taxi fares. The whole thing was always a giant pain in the backside, AND it was always a big fat let down! What a way to bring in the new year eh?

I am not sure when this all changed for me, I think it may have been in my early twenties when I had moved away from home, connections with friends were slowly weakening, alongside my desire to go out partying, and then one day I just didn’t care. 

A big part of this for me now is the fact I am so overweight. I have lost all my confidence and dread the thought of seeing a single soul that I know! But aside from that, I am unwell and in so much pain that my perfect night in is with my medication, my heated blanket, working on a wee crochet project and watching my soaps! I feel like I somehow skipped from mid twenties to being a wee old lady!

So my Hogmanay this time went along the following lines - Watched movies with Mr B all day, at around 23:30 we remembered it was the 31st and decided we better have a quick think about things. So we decided we wouldn’t set ourselves up to fail with resolutions that would last until midday on the 1st, but instead we would talk about where we’d like to be by the end of the year and pick 3 particular things we would like to be working on. The number 1 on my list is to lose weight. I need to lose a lot of weight. Not only for my health but my confidence. So I am putting this out there so there’s no hiding from it!

I won’t put a target or deadline but simply that I will make better choices, and aim to be in a better position in 365 days! Does anyone want to join me in pledging or simply attempting anything? No pressure just support! I leave it up to you. I’d love to know if you have taken a different approach than normal or whether you just don’t bother. Whatever it is, I would love to see what others are doing.

Happy New Year to all, here’s hoping we all have a wonderful year!

The Iodine charge

My Whole Foods Guru talked about the benefits of using Iodine liquid supplement. It has a lot to do with thyroid function, something I have been concerned with for as long as I can remember.

Over the years as my health has progressively declined, I have become more and more interested in this thyroid thingy. Doctors have always wanted to test my thyroid function as they think my swollen neck is a Goitre. I made sure I got the detailed results of my last few blood tests so I could research them. They have been marginally within the range that is considered normal. It is such a silly game as different countries have different margins. If I lived in USA for example, my results would have been considered abnormal and I would’ve been treated for an underactive thyroid a good while ago. Knowing how this treatment has helped a friend who has the same conditions as me, I feel like there is a good chance I would be feeling better!!

So, onto this Iodine stuff! I had a look online and ordered Nascent Iodine liquid supplement. Rather pricey for the wee bottle you get but as I heard great things about it I was happy to give it a go!!

When it arrived I was so excited. It comes in a lovely wee glass bottle with a dropper so you can measure out your 1-3 drops precisely! 

I believe there were noticeable changes in my energy levels within 1 to 2 days! Just to explain, I am a person who doesn't understand what it feels like to have energy. I cannot remember ever having any. I know I was once an energetic teenager who had two jobs, one of which was a Lifeguard and Swimming teacher, I played Percussion in Orchestras and Wind Bands and was always on the go. However, as the years have passed and my health has deteriorated, I have gradually become stripped of all energy supplies. Maybe this is why I don’t leave the house, because I have to be permanently plugged into the power supply due to battery failure! (This is sadly what happened to my MacBook, but unlike my life,  I was able to get a new battery from Apple.) Maybe this Iodine will be the charge to kick start my energy and get me one step closer to being a mobile unit again!!

So it has definitely made a difference. I still have periods of exhaustion but there have also been periods of what must be this thing they call energy!!! Now I just need to learn how to use it up without destroying myself.

The First Snow

I am like a small child when I see those first magical snowflakes falling from the skies. It signals the real start of the Christmas season to me. I know that as an adult we are programmed to hate snow, I mean it’s cold, makes the roads dangerous and causes all sorts of havoc so why wouldn’t it be hated? But I really do love being all wrapped up and cosy inside the house, watching the beautiful flakes falling and creating a gorjus winter scene.

Growing up in the Highlands of Scotland, we always had lots of snow in the winter. I remember many power cuts, snowball fights, sledging and snowdrifts. There were times when the snowplough would block the opening to our street in order to keep the main roads clear. More than once our cul-de-sac suddenly had a mountain of snow following a visit from the plough. These things were all amazing to a child!! A power cut means schools are shut and you are free to play in the snow! What’s not to love?
The mountain of snow turned into a snow fort and all sorts of fun.

We nearly always had a White Christmas which just made it so magical and complete. So as the years pass and the sparkle slowly seeps aways from the festive season, the gradual lack of snow at Christmas just makes it glaringly obvious that I have aged. But even though we rarely get the White Christmas these days, we still get winter snow which can be just amazing!

So today as I pulled open the curtains and was greeted with giant snowflakes floating past my eyes, the excitement was there in an instant! Just like the child I once was, I was giddy and squealing. Up until that point I wasn’t really feeling Christmassy but in that split second, everything changed. The first snow of the Christmas season has arrived and I couldn’t be happier.

The Whole Foods Guru

I finally made my pilgrimage to the Whole Foods Market in Giffnock. This was something I had been looking forward to for quite some time and I must say, I really was not disappointed.

As you walk through the doors you are immediately met with a stunning rainbow of colours and so many enticing aromas. I knew immediately that this was exactly what I was looking for!
Slowly wandering (hobbling) through the sections I was in absolute awe of the place. I hadn’t been there long when I was offered assistance by the lovely Kathryn. What I thought was simply a polite offer turned into an incredible and inspiring experience.

I cannot put into words how amazing she was. She was in the Health and Beauty section of the store and had so much information and helpful guidance. She showed me the treatment room! Yes, the treatment room!!! It was a hidden gem of a sanctuary in the middle of my promised land. I could not believe that this incredible store offered treatments too! So my guru gave me help, guidance and samples!! (I love samples). She was so kind and caring and took the time to find out what I needed and this turned into the most wonderful chance meeting.

I was shown a fabulous starting point for my healing journey. My eyes were opened to an energising way of eating and living. Not only did she excel in her own area of the store but due to her own interests and passion for health she was literally bursting with facts, ideas, recipes etc. She even bowled Mr Brogan over so that's how you know how good she is!!

The amount of time and energy she put into helping us was phenomenal. Showing us products and how to use them. Offering general advice on how to handle the journey and not to put too much pressure on myself. I have been able to put my feet firmly on the correct path and can now move forward in the right direction. This is entirely down to the kindness and guidance of my Whole Foods Guru.

This place was more than just a shop, it is an experience that I will never forget. What an amazing way to keep your customers coming back for more!

The Cheese Fiend

For as long as I can remember I have been in love with cheese. I loved a mature cheddar, or a yummy brie or stinky stilton! I was given a brie for christmas by a lovely someone who knew me well on more than one occasion! (wrapped up under the tree and everything).

Skip forward a few years to May 2014 and our decision to become Vegan…NO CHEESE!!!
I am so delighted with our change to a Vegan lifestyle since our eyes were opened to some of the awful truths of Animal ‘Welfare’ and I know that there is no way that I can see us going back. But the one thing I was really missing was cheese. The versatility, the texture, the taste mmmm.
My quick biscuits and cheese, the mounds of parmesan on pasta or the hot melty toast and cheese mmmm. What do I do now? Obviously I am exaggerating the issue, it’s not major but it was something that I missed.

Mr B came home from Tesco one day with Soy spready cheese and hard cheese. I was nearly in tears with happiness, but also painfully aware that this was going to be different….It was different, a bit too different. The hard cheese was yogurty in taste but had a good texture. However, the spready cheese was amazing! They had plain stuff like Dairylea, then some with flavours too. Biscuits and cheese were back on the cards!!! Happy happy happy!!

However, recently I was browsing the web and I suddenly stumbled upon a company called Vegusto….they make Vegan cheese, they have lots to choose from, they have great reviews….too good to be true!?!
I was put off by my previous experience and the cost of postage but there was a chance it could be worth it!

The day the cheese arrived was the best day of my life!!! (another exaggeration?) It was beautiful! The texture, the richness, the smell mmmm Cheese Heaven! This lead to the arrival of their starter kit - a wonderful selection of their award winning Vegan cheese! Theres a melty one, a parmesan style one, a blue cheese style one and even cheese sauce, which I haven’t tried yet but dying to! (I see macaroni cheese in our future!)
We had our first pizza since the Vegan changeover using the melty cheese and it was just amazing! Honestly, so tasty!

To top things off we discovered a local stockist!! Woohoo! Filled our fridge with a Vegusto selection. This company make other things too like sausages, roasts and sandwich meat and Vegusto uses only 100% natural ingredients that are sustainable and healthy!!

This is one contented Vegan cheese fiend!!!

The Crafty Cats

Since the day we took our furbabies home from ‘the hospital’, our lives have changed forever. These beautiful babies have become our everything. I finally get to be someone’s mother after all these years of unsuccessful cycles and health issues. It may not be the conventional way, but I feel there is a good chance that my boys are going to be my first and only babies!

I may come off a bit like a crazy cat lady, but I don’t care because they mean the world to my husband and me. They offer so much company, entertainment and affection that I just do not know where I would be without them!

They have such strong personalities. I just can’t get over some of the things that they do. They are both so different to each other too, despite being the only two in their litter and being brought up together.
Oscar is the greedy, cheeky monkey who has some very weird little quirks! Then we have Harvey. We talk about him having a split personality as during the day he is quite clear that you are not welcome to touch him, then at night he turns into a needy wee kitten who demands attention and doesn’t want to leave our sides. He is definitely not such a greedy boy, but he is a devil for packets of treats. If we ever forget to put them away, he will find them and have the packet ripped open and eaten before you’ve even realised there’s an issue!

These boys love each other so much. They love to chase each other and it always ends in a silent wrestle. It is so funny to watch as they ‘drop and roll’ like something out of an action movie, then one slaps the other ever so gently. This leads to head locks and all sorts until the winner gets to clean the other!! That’s right!! These two ‘fight' to lick each other! So odd!! It is so clear when you watch them that it is all playing, never real fights.

They both chat with us. They ask for food and it seriously sounds like real words. Their meow request inflects upwards as though they are truly asking a question. Whereas when we are trying to get Oscar to leave a room there is a total whine to his refusal, reminiscent of a toddler tantrum. We end up in genuine back and forth arguments with our cat! (seriously!!) It is just so funny. During these events, should you attempt to just physically remove him, he goes limp and becomes totally uncooperative!
Harvey isn’t usually the one leading the quest for dry food, but when it comes to their evening meal of wet food you could set your watch by him. No day goes by without him appearing in front of me at dinner time and staring me out until I cave in. In his kitten half of the day he does drop some serious hints that food is required. He will sit in front of his empty bowl and stare, or he will lick the empty bowl loudly, giving a pathetic look every now and then and there is no way you can ignore this! There is so much I haven’t covered but safe to say both boys are heavy duty manipulators.
These antics have had us in tears with laughter.

The messy house

How do you all do it? I am talking about keeping a clean, tidy and clutter free house?

I just cannot get into a good routine at all. I do try but pain, exhaustion or simple laziness just get in the way! I very much want to have a permanent show house but it just isn’t possible.

We have the house we live in and then the one we let people see - the fake house! The fake house involves blind panic, sweeping contents of surfaces into bags for life and barricading the door to the room it landed in!! Unfortunately it is always the same room and I never seem to be able to conquer Mount Crap. (we are still to arrange the official measuring ceremony but strongly believe it to be the largest Crap Mountain in Scotland!)

I am not quite at the stage of appearing on an episode of Hoarders, but I do seriously struggle with getting rid of things. Almost everything I own has an emotional attachment. This is a big problem when you have far too much stuff. I know that one day the stuff will be gone, but for now I can’t even keep on top of the standard cleaning required in a home, never mind the additional stuff. 

So, I am hitting the search engines for tips and help with making cleaning as simple and stress free as possible. I am currently running down the supply of chemical cleaning products in the house with the aim of switching to natural products. So any tips that help with that too are perfect!
I am hugely tempted to get one of those robot hoovers so I can at least have clean looking floors. (extra fluffy cats lead to extra fluffy floors!)

What I have found and loved is a site called Clean My Space. This has loads of videos on how to clean absolutely everything. Hopefully I will eventually have a spotless home, and keep it that way. Have a look at the site as it is absolutely brilliant!!

I am looking for any help I can get to try and be better at this! Any helpful suggestions will be gratefully accepted!!