Weekly Weightwatchers round up #1

I thought i'd start doing a weekly round up of how i've found weightwatchers, food i've eaten and my progress on the plan. This also ties in with the second weekly challenge where we had to plan our meals for the week.

This week has been disappointing to be honest. I've been relatively good all week - i've had a few hiccups but nothing that I would class as "binge eating" and falling completely off the wagon. I may have gone over my points allowance a few days but this has only been by a point or two. Trust me i've been consuming a hell of a lot less calories than I did during the month of December. That's why I thought I was destined to either stay the same or lose a lb or two. Alas it wasn't to be and I actually put on a lb! I feel so disheartened and really don't know why this has happened. I'm bracing myself for a gain next week as well as I have my birthday, my nan's birthday and a trip to the Ivy all the content with. I really wanted to be 5lbs lighter for Berlin on 1st Feburary but this doesn't look like it's going to happen. Let's hope I can do some damage control by being extra good on the days i'm at home.

Right i've eaten a host of delicious dinners this week thanks to my mum - life's so much easier when she follows the plan too. They're all from Weightwatchers cookbooks and if you fancy a recipe just let me know and i'll put together a post!

Monday:
Sweet and Sour Pork with brown rice - 11 propoints




























Tuesday:
Spring chicken risotto with pesto bread - 14 propoints




























Wednesday:
Courgette, Pepper and Spinach pasta - 10 propoints

Thursday:
Pan Fried cod with rice - 10 Propoints




























Friday:
My phone battery died so I didn't get a picture of this!

My favourite from the week has to be the Risotto. You got such a big portion and it was very filling. I've got a soft spot for Italian dishes.  Plus chicken is my favourite meat however boring that may be!

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Blogger babes #1

I never thought for one minute that i'd make real friends from the world of blogging. So many of them have graduated from 'internet friends' to people who I geniunely count as some of my actual friends. They had been there for me when times have been tough and they never fail to make me laugh. It also helps that they put up with some of my crazy talk and totally get my quirks! Here are just a few of my favourite blogs and the people who have made blogging so worthwhile.  I'm going to sound like a totel fangirl!

I was going to do this all in one hit but when I started writing it the list started getting longer.  So i'm going to spilt it up. This is in no particular order!

Hannah
Bow Dream Nation


















Hannah never fails to make me laugh nor fails to not tell you as it is. She's the one girl who is always up for an evening out and the one I can count on to join me in that drink. Even if she does come from the south of the river... She's also a fantastic enabler and helps me spend money I don't always have! Totes a diamond!

Sarah
City Girl Fashion Box


















This girl taught that spending £20.50 is more than acceptable for a blusher. Have you seen her collection? She clearly has too many and should *ahem* pass some onto me! She has a knack of making me laugh out loud with her saucy texts and always seem to know some cracking discount codes. Certainly one to follow!

Elodie
Elle Yeah







































The token Frenchie is absolutely bonkers but this is the very reason why she's amazing. She is so funny without even realising it and I wish I was as cool as her! Here's to many more drunken gatherings in Australia aka West London!

Sarah
My Sentimental Heart




















Sarah is one of the most genuine people I know - I haven't known her long but I can't imagine she's not got a bad bone in her body. She makes me green with envy over her fantastic wardrobe. Check out her blog for stylish outfits. It makes me want to be more sensible and invest in something other than Primark!

Sarah
A Million Dresses























Sarah is honestly one of the nicest people I know - I feel like I have so much in common with her. She is always there when you want a chat and offers some great encouragement. Not to mention she's a complete baking queen. That Victoris Sponge she made for the Leamington Bloggers meet was delish!

Look out for some more bloggers coming in the next few weeks!

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Lacey Lady

Outfit:

Blue navy lace dress: Primark

Blue coat: H&M

Red slipper shoes: Primark

Navy tights: Primark

Gem statement necklace: Primark

I don't very often wear short dresses but this one reminded me of a zara dress I saw so I thought i'd treat myself. It's verging on slightly being indecent but with thick tights I can get away with it. I do feel much more at home in a midi though! I did try to attempt a mini cheat beehive using a bumpit but you can't really see in this picture. Once day i'm going to attempt a real one - it's just finding the time!

Not much is happening this week - i'm aiming to squeeze in a cinema trip. I've got an unlimited Cineworld card and seem to have turned into a film geek. I can't wait to see Gangster Squad. I'm quite happy to watch a few hours of Ryan Gosling! Homeland will also hopefully feature heavily this week if I have my way! I'm loving the fact that not much has been going on these last few weeks in term of a social life.  Sometimes it's nice to just plod around. December was such a hectic month and my bank account is slightly weeping. So I can't really do anything even if I wanted!

Hope you all have a good week :)

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Feeling blue

Outfit:
Blue jersey midi dress: Topshop
Shaggy faux fur jacket: Primark
Statement diamond collar necklace: Primark
Black tights: Primark
Black leather healed boots: Topshop

This isn't the most exciting of outfits but the chances are if you see me in real life, you'll see this gracing my body. This is the outfit I pull out when I  can't be bothered to rummage through my wardrobe and I know it looks presentable. I wear it at least twice a week - who says bloggers don't have any imagination? My boyfriend likes to refer to this jacket as my Silver Back gorilla coat and to be honest I can't argue with that! It's so cosy and I feel it's the perfect jacket for this time of the year.

This weekend had been one of doing absolutely nothing apart from visiting family and eagerly watching Homeland. I brought Connor it for Christmas and I think i'm enjoying it more than him! I'm absolutely obsessed and could easily watch it all day long. Damien Lewis? Sigh... I say no more. LOVE HIM!

I also recently created facebook page for my blog and it would great if you could like it please :)

Hope you've all had a great weekend!

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Weightwatchers Challenge #1 - Sort your fridge

As you know I was very excitedly asked to become a Weightwatchers ambassador and as part of my role i'll be taking on weekly challenges. The first challenge asked us to sort out our fridges and remove the temptation of left over food by putting it out of sight. We were also asked to create a recipe using the leftovers. I must say I was very proud of this one as it was so tasty! On New Years Day we had roasted gammon and my mum rather overestimated how much we needed so we were left with over half a joint. With this in mind I decided to rustle up a tortilla.

This will feed around four for lunch or light dinner. You can have half each for a more filling dinner with some salad on the side. It's around 22 propoints for the whole dish. The sheer amount of vegetables help to make it very filling! I used these vegetables as they were in the fridge. It only takes around 20 minutes or so to cook so you don't  have to spend the whole night cooking! Ideal for a mid week dinner.

You'll need:
1 onion
1 leek
100g of gammon
4 eggs
Pepper to season
4 tablespoons of milk
1 Courgette
3 sprays of Fry Lite

001. Spray the Fry Lite into a large frying pan and saute the onion for around 3 minutes or until it starts to go golden brown.

002. Crack the eggs into a jug along with the milk and as much pepper as you want. Give it a good whisk and leave it to one side.

003. Add the leeks and cook them for around 3-4 minutes.

004. I cut the courgettes into smaller slices so they cooked quicker but it's up to you. Add them to the frying pan and cook for about 3-4 minutes again.

005. Add the sliced gammon and warm through. Remember to keep stirring so it's even.

006. Place the egg mixture into the frying pan. Leave until the bottom feels a bit solid. It's doesn't matter if the mixture isn't cooked on top.

007. Put the frying pan under the grill. Just keep it under there until the mixture cooks on top and it starts to go brown. Make sure you keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn!

008: Ta da! Look how yummy it looks! I put a teaspoon of low fat cream cheese on mine to make it a bit more exciting. Jut remember to add the extra propoint value.

Let me know  if you make it! You'll be able to see how I sorted my fridge on Instagram later on in the week.

If you're thinking of giving Weightwatchers a whirl you can look into joining here. It's well worth the investment! You can't put a price on being healthy.

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December empties

001. Original Batiste Dry Shampoo
I've been having a love affair with this product since I was 14. I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread when I discovered I no longer had to wash my hair everyday - anyone else find hair washing a chore? It's a complete god send for girls with fringes as I find this is the first part of my hair to go greasy. All you need is to rigerously massage the product in and voila perfectly style hair. It's also a winner to help add more volume.

002. Nivea Firming Body Oil
This was first brought on a whim as it was on special offer. I liked it so much that this is the third bottle. I'm going to put this out there and say I suffer from stretch marks on my legs thanks to an unwanted growth spurt at the age of 11. Oh woe is me! Therefore i'm always after a wonder product to help make them fade. This along with Palmers Cocoa Butter does them a world of good. It will probably work better if I used it twice a day - i'm just too lazy!

003. Boots Essentials Cucumber Cleansing Wipes
After being warned against using facewipes to remove make up - such a novice - i've switched over to make up remover. But these come in very handy for when i've had a few too many drinks and can't be bothered to go through the motions. They are nearly always on offer and if you keep them upside down they stay very moist. Nothing worse than a dry facewipe!

004.Nivea Visage Daily Essentials Refeshing Cleansing Lotion
My all time favourite cleanser is Caudalie but at £15 it's not always affordable so i'm always on the look out for other alternatives. This cleanser glides effortless on the skin and doesn't leave the area looking greasy. A little goes a long way so the bottles lasts for a very long time - making it great value for money.

005.Caudalie Fleur De Vigne
I went along to a Caudalie evening hosted by Glossybox and because I spent an absolute fortune - easily swayed - I was given this perfume as a free gift. It has a lovely fresh smell and is perfect for everyday when you don't want a overpowering scent.

006. GreenPeople Fruitful Nights night cream for younger looking skin
I recieved this in a Glossybox a little while ago. You can never tell how well a product works - in my opinon - from just using a sample. I can't tell you if it's a wonder product but I can tell you that it feels lovely on your skin! It does have a very clinical smell though which I wasn't over keen on.

Have you tried any of these products?

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When the clock strikes 12

Outfit:
Black dipped hem vest top: Topshop
Black skinny jeans: Primark
Faux fur leopard print collarless coat: Next
Red woolly scarf: New Look
Black diamond slipper shoes : Topshop

I can't believe that Christmas is over for yet another year - it seems to have gone in the blink of an eye. I had an amazing few days and was very spoilt by my nearest and dearest. Lots of new things to use! This faux fur coat is a firm favourite and was brought for a bargain price of £25 in the Next sale a good few years ago. It always makes me feel very glam! I'm so glad I brought this cosy scarf - it had to be snapped up at only £4. Red and leopard print is one of my favourite combos to put togther.

2012 has been a year of many highs and lows. It was the year where I finally got my first proper job in the media industry after three long years at Uni, saved up enough cash to buy my dream bag of a Mulberry Bayswater and lost over a stone on Weightwatchers - let's forget i've nearly put it all back on... Sadly it was also the year where my nan passed away. Watching my nan slowly waste away was one of the hardest things i've ever had to see in my life. I wouldn't even wish it upon my worst enemy in the world. But that period proved that when the going really does get tough there's no one else you can rely on apart from your family and my family are made of solid gold. It's made me even more grateful to the family members who are still here.

I'm very much looking forward to 2013 and fingers crossed it's going to be a good one. I'm aiming to see much more of the UK with the boyfriend - nothing beats an impromptu road trip at the weekend - , save up for a red KitchenAid to embrace my inner baking goddess, lose a stone and half so I look smoking hot and plough much more of my time into blogging. I really do enjoying blogging but real life has a sneaky way of taking over sometimes.

I'm looking forward to seeing friends and having a dance tonight. I'm off to a Disney-themed fancy dress party and am going as Sally from the Nightmare Before Christmas. Still not entirely sure with my outft but it's a bit too late to change my mind. My boyfriend is going as Jack Skellington so hopefully we'll look good together!

What are your plans for NYE?

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All I want for Christmas



Here are just a few snapshots of Christmas consisting of mainly food and very generous gifts!



This year we spent Christmas at my aunts house and it summed up exactly what Christmas is about. Family, lots of food, many laughs, endless glasses of alcohol and more food. I was seriously considering making myself sick to get rid of the full feeling, I felt in agony! I really do have one of the best families in the world - roll on next year!

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2012 outfits

Well 2012 has been an amazing year for my blog. I've somehow  managed to gain 429 followers - you're all mad but I'm very honoured -, gatecrashed many brilliant events with some fab opportunities and made some absolutely amazing friends (Dream Team forevs). Here's hoping 2013 will bring bigger and better things.

On a side note I never realised how much weight I lost until I went back to the beginning of the year! Hopefully this will give me the motivation to keep it up (plus lose what i've put back on) in the New Year.

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Camo

Outfit:
Camo jacket - Topshop
White (very) oversized t-shirt: Asos
Black skinny jeans: Primark
Black heeled leather boots: Topshop
Black gem statement necklace: New Look
Red plastic watch: Toywatch
Black Bayswater bag: Mulberry
Black scarf: Stolen from my mum

Sorry the pictures are a little dark - I did use a flash but they looked awful! Darn the rainy weather.

Finally got round to wearing this camo jacket around three months after buying it. Maybe that's a sign I should shop less? I brought it with some Topshop vouchers I was given when I left Next - they're a very kind lot! This necklace hardly seems to ever leave my neck even prompting my friend to ask me if I only owned one necklace! It seems to jazz up every outfit so is a firm favourite. I really liked this outfit today even though my dad asked me why I was dressed "urban" when I went in to speak to him. Maybe someone has been watching a little too much Tulisa on the X Factor haha! It was the ideal outfit to spend trying to navigate town to get some last minute Christmas bits and of course treat myself to a few things!

I'm off out for a pub crawl - i'm already about 2 hours late - today and then for an Indian to finish off the night which should be fun. I haven't had an Indian in quite a while so looking forward to some keema naan! I really cannot believe it's Christmas on Tuesday. This month really seems to have flown and I feel like I haven't done anything I wanted to. Always the way eh?

I'm aiming to have a post up on Christmas Eve but if I don't I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and Father Christmas brings you everything you want!

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Weightwatcher Ambassador

Long time readers of my blog will know that i've been on Weightwatchers since Feburary. I've always struggling with my weight - and I honestly think I always will - simply because I like my food. There's no two ways about it. I really enjoy eating and often stuff my face until I can't move. As you can imagine this does nothing to help my waistline.

I was doing so well - I'd lost 16 pounds - until around May and then my nan became ill and sadly died. It really threw me off track for about two months. We were nursing her at home and my eating pattern was all over the place and then we'd regularly visit my grandad after she passed away. You can't feed a 70 year old man 'rabbit food'! I've been desperate to get back on track but my mojo has been long gone. I've been in a constant battle of gaining 2lbs and then losing 2lbs, stuck in a stalemate.

This is why I was so estatic when I was contacted by Weightwatchers and asked if i'd like to become one of their blogger ambassadors. It's safe to say I jumped at the chance and think this is just the motivation I need to stop making excuses and become the skinny minnie I long to be.

I'll be very lucky to recieve hampers of food to help keep me on track and will gain access to the valuable e-source. Along the way i'll be instagramming my food diary and posting yummy recipes on my blog to prove being healthy doesn't have to be boring. I'll also be introducing the new approach. You don't have to deprive yourself of anything, just eat in moderation. Cliche but true! I'll be tracking my progress along the way as well as being honest about when I fall off the wagon. Let's be honest - that glass of wine can sometimes be hard to say no too.

Wish me luck! I'm getting back in the game!

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Christmas party glad rags

I don't know about you but I put a lot of thought into buying a Christmas party dress. To be honest I don't actually need any excuse to buy a new dress but it makes me feel less guilty. I've put together a little wishlist of what i'd love to swish about during the festive period.

001. This is a bit of a cheat as I actually brought this asos peplum yesterday and it turned out to be quite the bargain. It was already reduced to £38.50 and I had a Yourvine voucher to use up too. I think this will be earmarked for the boys Christmas party as long as it doesn't make me look like an elephant!

002. I love the gothic feel of this Topshop dress and the midi length has my name written all over it. The sheer back helps to adds a little sexiness.

003. This Zara beauty will be mine come payday. I'm not quite confident to wear it just yet but come the end of next month when i've lost some weight i'll be rocking it with a huge statement necklace. It just looks so elegant but I don't think it'll be very forgiving!

004. The price point of this dress is slightly painful but then Topshop has never been kind on the purse. It looks so elegant and perfect for those special occasions.

005. Much to my boyfriends disgust I have an unhealthy obsession with leather. I've got a pair of trousers, two skirts and a dress so far. And counting. This is my ideal shape dress and the colour of this Asos beauty is gorgeous. Please be mine under the Christmas tree.

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