Silent Sunday no.75

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Silent Sunday no. 74

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 72

It's now less than three weeks until my Tough Mudder Challenge.... do I feel ready? Will I ever feel ready?

Tough Mudder is a mental and physical challenge and the high walls themselves are the purest manifestation of that. It's mental grit and teamwork that see you through such challenges both on through that course in the course of life.

But all challenges in life begin with a willingness to take them on. All walls, no matter how high can be overcome when there is will.

When there is a will, there is always a way. It really depends how much you want it?

I say...Bring it on!

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 70

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 69

It’s easy to get stuck in a rut and to play it safe when it comes to creativity and testing out ideas and experiences.  We are so focussed on following through with a plan that we become stubborn and determined to overcome any obstacles that may stand in our way...even to our detriment of seeing other opportunities that may be better suited to success.

Create dreams and goals, make plans and build strategies. Begin with plan A, it’s your starting point that set’s you on the road to achievement... BUT be open to change, to failure, to growth, to learning, to life changing experiences and most of all to the remainder of the alphabet. 

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 69

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 68

I know I can be a procrastinator, putting of the challenging tasks, hesitating over decisions and trying to constantly balance risks against outcomes. I am as bad as everyone else when it comes to playing it safe and often quite literally 'taking it's picture'. 

But that’s not life as it could be.

Immerse yourself. Body and spirit. Commit to the project in hand and go all out or not at all.

Backing off is like sitting on the fence, it’s like dipping a toe in the water...a constant ‘maybe’ and ‘one day’ Remember that one day never actually comes. Life should be lived right here, right now, full and in completeness not a glance from the safety net of the sidelines.

Life is scary, life is unknown. Life makes you smile, cry and feel deeply. And for all those who choose to let go and immerse themselves, that is what makes life worth living.

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 68

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 67

By definition a challenge is both a physical and mental disposition. It can only surface at the point at which you doubt whether you can reach the goal. Any easier and it would simply be par for the course, part of daily routine, non descript and non committal....now where is the real benefit in that?

Those who are ‘settled’ ‘and ‘comfortable’ may not feel the need for change or the need for challenge. Fine, go ahead and be that way. Just make sure you don’t regret not pushing that little bit harder in months and years to come.

Life's challenges help you discover who you really are.  Life offers you all the tools to be the very best you can in all ways imaginable, for me I simply cannot condone dismissing that opportunity. Failure is never defeat until the point at which you give up.

Challenge is a game... small things, big things, asking questions, seeking answers. Life is a journey of pathways, opportunities and experiences and rising to the ‘challenge’ enriches the ride.

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 67

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 66

I’ve done something pretty stupid...or maybe pretty awesome? It depends upon your point of view...I’m punching for the latter!

I needed a challenge.

I needed a challenge for a few reasons, as I discovered during my lent ‘6-weeek to 6-pack challenge’ that pushing myself without a real life tangible goal in mind and a real team of people to kick me into touch and keep me on track and accountable was harder than I had thought. I have questioned whether this made me weak. Possibly? But it also made me more determined to find a way through my struggles.

That determination is my strength.

This is my answer.

I have signed up for the Tough Mudder Challenge in just 8 weeks time, alongside an amazing team of people who have also signed up and I know won’t let me doubt myself or quit. It will be a huge physical and mental challenge as I am terrified of many of the obstacles, most notably the electric shocks and freezing waters.

But i’m in and there is no backing down now. The harder the challenge, the sweeter the victory. I know it will be worth it.

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 66

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 65

Today you get a double dose of reflection since you already had my 'Inspired in March' post this morning.... I hope you don't mind! It's good to reflect at such a time of year (but yes in case you were worried there will be recipes resuming tomorrow!)

I'll keep it short and sweet.

It's Easter Monday- a time for both indulgence and new beginnings, or taking time out from your busy schedule with the long bank holiday weekend and maybe sitting a while.

Appreciate the beauty that life offers. Your home, your comforts, your family, your friends, the outdoors, the sky, the birds, the plants that desperately trying to peek through the frozen ground in amidst the snow (ok I admit my daffodils don't look like this yet!).

Beauty is not rare, but in contrast our appreciation for it often is. At this time of year when new life all around us becomes so apparent, take a moment in your day to smile and give thanks.

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 64

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Mantra for Monday no. 63

I spent a few leisurely minutes Pinteresting this afternoon. I hadn't been on there in a while so it was beautifully refreshing to be inspired by so many words of wisdom, gorgeous crafts and more than a recipe or two!  If you would like to tag along you can find me here. 

These words caught my my eye, and feel so fitting to me...so much so that I had alluded to this exact sentiment on my 'about' page, way back when I first began this blog.

Sometimes the saying 'ignorance is bliss' appeals to me...appeals in its simplicity in the sometimes overwhelming chaos of life.  I admit there are some areas in my life I allow this indulgence, I know that maybe I don't take as much interest in news and worldly affairs as I maybe should, the development of my knowledge and experiences tend to track in other directions.

I've become a whole new person over these last couple of years, or maybe more accurately I have become the person I already truly was but just didn't know it.

I am still in the process of 'becoming' still learning and still stretching... I never plan on stopping and I hope you don't either...so let's just hope our minds are made of elastic!

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Mantra for Monday no. 62

Attitude affects everything, it's outlook is all encompassing. It follows the same theme of seeing the glass 'half full' or 'half empty', a positive mindset and a thoughtful existence. We are all susceptible at times for taking things for granted, for walking through life looking but not seeing. I know that I can be notoriously bad at rushing around with little appreciation for my surroundings, yet on the flip side sometimes the clouds in the sky or the rain on the window can captivate me and leave me spellbound and speechless. I know how to experience gratitude I just need to work on summoning and maintaining that mindset in moments of stress and rush. Maybe the start point is within those words....'stress and rush' when stress and rush are present gratitude falls by the wayside.

These last couple of months have felt increasingly stressful and chaotic, constantly 'doing' but with a sense of not getting things 'done', always feeling as though I'm chasing my tail and should be two steps ahead of where I am. It was only when I took some time out to go for a walk with a friend last week that it hit me. His exact words to me were 'what's the rush?' and I had no answer. The stress and the rushing through life at such speed is entirely self inflicted, and the sense of relief from that realisation was immense. 

This last week things have been a little different, i'm still a work on progress but i've been careful to stop myself when I feel the bubble of self inflicted panic and urgency arise within me. I've completed tasks because i've wanted to do them at that time and have enjoyed the process and felt grateful for the opportunity, without a sense of obligation and resentment. I got no less done but I also gained a whole lot more.

It was also Mother's Day last Sunday here in the UK, and so the sense of gratitude took to the forefront of my mind. I am eternally grateful for the love and support of those around me, and the opportunities open to me. It's about time I truly acknowledged these gifts in my life.

Gratitude costs nothing, requires no effort, takes up no space, needs no tools, and acts on no previous experience. We all have a choice...a choice to be grateful.

What is a Mantra for Monday?

Silent Sunday no. 62

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Silent Sunday no. 61

What is my Silent Sunday ?

Inspired in February!

Gosh this year is flying by…it's March already and so that means Spring is round the corner. As much as I enjoy a cold crisp Winter day I am much more a fan of the warmth and more importantly longer days, lighter mornings and better photography conditions! Bring on the sunshine!!

So, this month…another eventful one. Much still to be revealed but it's all moving in the right direction. I've begun teaming up with a few different people on a more formal basis who believe and support me in what I do, I hope this will really help give me the push and the confidence I need to make 'everything' happen. 

I have teamed up with these guys over at Real Food Source in a business venture in developing allergy free chocolate bars and paleo energy bars (to be on sale soon!), all the photography in their shop has also been taken by me. I also continue to write recipe blog posts for them and I have been doing for a number of months now....have a little browse.

I have teamed up with these guys at the Spine and Wellness Centre to offer nutritional and wellness options to their clients…still early days on this as yet!

I have begun working with a couple of the gyms I am involved with to develop and sell and range of "healthy' fitness bars using natural whole foods and cutting out the crap found in the usual commercial bars….for those who have been following my '6-weeks to 6-pack challenge' will have seen the comments that said 'sample testing' in my food diary…these are what the samples were for. I won't go into detail quite yet, but I promise you I will soon.

So all in all busy bus busy, and most importantly for a girl who quit her job at the end of last year, things seem to beginning to come together nicely. Just need to keep the overwhelm under control….small steps!

This month in pictures. You can follow my Instagram here! (i'd love to see you.)

My Valentine's hot chocolate cream cups went down a treat!

a few recipes testing photos...combinations labelled up.

Dinner and cards at a country pub with friends

A walk in Derbyshire at early dusk

Holiday with friends...we got a little jigsaw obssessed!

quinoa addition to my usual oatmeal

sugar free chocolate crackles- on the blog soon!

Recipe tests for Real Food Source 

Spring is coming...snowdrops!

Dare sugar....my new favourite thing.

Friends recenlty engaged taken on holiday in Derbyshire

Cooking with lots of quinoa

The Real Food Source 'free- from' chocolate to test

Pallette of whole food goodies delivered

Buckwheat has a been a favourite for me this month.

Homemade almond milk for my oatmeal

Mantra for Monday no. 60

Without experiencing life’s troubled and frustrations could you ever experience happiness? Or to put it another way, could you ever truly appreciate happiness... even if it shoved itself in front of your face?

Happiness spends most of its time around appreciation, which is an area I know I need to work harder on and to allow quality time for day to day. Even my daily gratitude diary has fallen a little by the wayside.

In the rush of everyday living, am I actually limiting my potential for happiness simply by not allowing time for it?  Sounds crazy but I think it’s true and I would hazard a guess that it’s not just me that’s missing this pivotal point of existence in this way.

So go ahead and create your own music, but also take the time to listen to its tune.

What is a Mantra for Monday?