Life from my perspective

Tuesday, 13 May 2014

TTC Tuesday: Forums

Hey everyone. Today I want to talk about fertility forums. There are many forums out there (i'm not going to name any as i'm not sure what the rules are). There are two schools of thought on forums and infertility:

That they help give support and an outlet for thoughts and feelings
They can make you become obsessed with yours and others treatments, creating competition and anxiety.

In my experience I find it gives me hope to know what others are going through and how they are finding each treatment and stage of treatment and or pregnancy. My view could change when I actually start treatment and see other peoples success if I have failure after failure.

Are any of you going through fertility treatment? How do you feel about forums?

Take care x

Monday, 12 May 2014

Marriage Monday: Found the Church

Hey everyone, I am so happy to tell you all we have found the perfect church for our wedding. We drive past it frequently and had never been inside, it is stunning. We attended the 8.00 service and met the vicar he has no issues with marrying divorced people. He even went to the parish office and got us the forms. It is such a weight off our minds. We both feel very strongly that a church wedding is right for us, but we were finding it so difficult to find the right church that we were scared it was not going to happen.

Take care x

Saturday, 10 May 2014

Sanctuary Saturday: Limited edition bath soak

Hey everyone, so its Sanctuary Saturday and its time to relax and de-stress. I like to have a night hot bath to relax my muscles and senses. Imperial leather seem to have the most luxurious smelling and feeling bath cremes and socks on the market. My current favourite is a limited edition version. Its called betwitching and it really is that. It has blackcherry blossom and wild fig fragrance notes. It leaves your skin feeling soft, smooth and moisturised. If you want to try a new product for a very reasonable price, buy one of these with your weekly food shop.

Take care x

Fashion Friday: Simple but stylish

Hey everyone, sometimes we have limited time but don't want to compromise on style. An example of this is when going to the beach with your family. Everyone is rushing, your trying to get children ready and keep them out of mischief while collecting blankets, buckets and spades, swimming costume and a whole load of beach essentials. These are times when something has to be sacrificed so you pull the first top and trousers or dress that's in the draw, get dressed and run but it doesn't have to be that way. Firstly be organized, have a section in your draw or wardrobe where you can have a grab outfit.

Then you have a fighting chance. Choose a pair of leggings or cropped white trousers, these will keep you cool and look great in the summer. Then move on to the top, I would choose a light fabric top or tunic, with a monochrome or simple pattern. Then have a light jacket or cardigan in case it gets cold or the sea breeze is a bit chilly.

There you go a quick easy solution to your beach day blues. Take care x

Weight Loss Wednesday: The Gym

Hey everyone, Weightloss Wednesday is here again. This week Paul and I have been discussing which gym to join. There are so many around where we live so the decision is not too easy. We have a high tech gym with a swimming pool, sauna and steam room, the problem is very few people actually go there to work out. Lots of posing and pretending to be working hard. That's not for us, we have looked at some gyms with social clubs, lots of old people working out but very dated machines. Lastly we found a great gym, its out the way in a village so not crowded with ponce posers, it has all the cardio equipment, weight machines and free weights. It has a very good reputation for getting results.

They say the proof is in the pudding, although I will not be having any for a while.

Take care x

TTC Tuesday: PCOS the basics

Hey everyone, after my last TTC Tuesday I had quite a few requests to explain more about PCOS. Firstly PCOS stands for Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome. There are many symptoms that come with this condition:-

Painful cysts on the ovaries
Irregular periods and ovulation
High levels of male hormones in the body
Excessive hair growth
Weight gain and difficulty loosing weight
Thinning hair and hair loss
Oily skin and acne
Infertility linked to irregular periods and little to no ovulation.

PCOS cannot be cured but the symptoms can be helped. There are different types of medication that can be taken to reduce the hormones in the body. Laser, light and other hair removal processes can be used to tackle the hair growth. Unfortunately there is no pill or potion to help with the weight loss, just extra hard work. Again there are medications that can help slow the hair loss but nothing to grow the hairs that are lost. Oily skin can be cared for with good skin care routines and so will the acne. Finally there are many different treatments to help with infertility from IUI to ICSI, surrogacy and adoption.

Each week I will discuss more of our plans and other procedures that are available and of course answer any questions you ask.

Take care x

Marriage Monday: The Great Church Search

Hey everyone, its Marriage Monday! So anyone who is married or is getting married knows that one of your first big decisions is WHERE you will actually be married. With parks, hotels, aeroplanes, submarines and many scenic beaches and mountain tops licensed for civil ceremonies, you are no longer restricted to the traditional venues. That being said Paul and I have decided that we both want our ceremony to be held in a church.

You think its easy to get married in a church.....well your wrong! First below is the list offered by the church of England as to how you qualify to get married in a church:-

That one of you:

has at any time lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or
was baptised in the parish concerned or
was prepared for confirmation in the parish or
has at any time regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or

That one of your parents, at any time after you were born:

has lived in the parish for a period of at least 6 months or
has regularly gone to normal church services in the parish church for a period of at least 6 months or

That one of your parents or grandparents:

was married in the parish

Some of you may be thinking "that's not so bad" but there is more. If you have been divorced then this can cause a huge problem. The church can no longer discriminate against divorcees as a whole but leaves this up to the vicars discretion. It is so difficult to find a vicar that is open minded. After all divorce is not a rarity and no divorce or marriage is the same.

We have found the perfect Wedding venue but we are still searching for the right church. I have a lot of family and we have a fair few friends too, therefore a small country church just isn't big enough, we will need to travel to the church so parking is a must, we don't want our guests to have to travel too far between venues after all many of them will have been travelling for 3+ hours to get to Kent.

So we are frantically looking at churches online and calling vicars to see if it is possible to marry there. As soon as we have found one I will let you know.

Take care x

Friday, 9 May 2014

The internet is bck

Hey everyone, just to let you all know my internet is back and I will be catching up with my blog posts tomorrow.

Take care x

Wednesday, 7 May 2014

GRRR Internet Providers

Hey everyone, so again I am sitting in a library using their internet as my home does not have any! We are switching providers at the end of this month so I should be able to keep up my blog and start my vlog after.

I really want to be reliable and be a successful blogger and share my experiences and views etc.

Once I have a camera I will do several blogs a week and set a time of day everyday.

Are there any topics you would like me to blog or vlog about?

Take care x

Friday, 2 May 2014

Fashion Friday: Day to Night

With the busy lives we lead nowadays we are always trying to squeeze so much into so little time. Thats why I love clothes that can transform. For example take this animal print top:

It can be paired with a skirt and tailored jacket for day or office wear. Then change into some jeans add a pair of killer heels and your good to go for a night out.

These transformation items allow me to go from work, straight out to dinner with my fiancee or partying with my friends.

Do you have any key wardrobe pieces?

Take care x

Throw-back Thursday

Hey everyone, today is the first Throwback Thurday. This is a picture of me and all my cousens on my mums side. I am third from the right with my little sister Faith on my lap. I am about six in this picture, it was fun to all get together at my grandads house. We would all get together on Christmas Eve and spend time together watching films and playing games.

Do you have any family traditions?

Take care x

Wednesday, 30 April 2014

Weightloss Wednesday

Hey everyone,

So it's weightloss Wednesday. The first step in our program is to eat three meals a day, it sound silly but we have been eating about 700 calories a day which results in weight gain. Therefore we have to stabilise our body out of survival mode.

Take care x

Tuesday, 29 April 2014

TTC Tuesday: My story so far

Hey everyone,

For the first Trying To Concieve Tuesday, I thought I would tell you our story so far.

When I was 14 I was diagnosed with PCOS, this does notnecessarily cause fertility problems, there are other symptoms but that's a whole other blog.

When Paul and I got serious we discussed children and he told me he had a vasectomy. So we decided to visit a clinic, after much discussion we chose CRM London.

We made an appointment for a consultation, I had an internal scan of my uterus and overies. I then had 7 viles of blood taken. We discussed the different plans and processes that the clinic performs.

We then had to go home and wait for my results. After a couple of weeks my results came back, I am highly fertile and have a perfect mix of hormones.

We now have a choice to have a vasectomy reversal of go straight to ICSI.

Currently our plan is to get married first and then move on to having children,

Each week we will discuss more of our story and different ttc topics

Take care x

Easy, Cheap Oreo Cupcakes

Hey everyone I saw this great recipe on UKTV Food and wanted to try it. I wanted to make these cupcakes with the most inexpensive products possible to prove you don't have to spend a lot of money to bake. The cost to buy the ingredients £5.17 and most of the ingredients will only be part used.

Ingredients

Cupcakes

6 Oreo biscuits

115 g unsalted butter, softened

115 g caster sugar

½ tsp vanilla extract

100 g self-raising flour

20 g cocoa powder

2 large eggs, beaten

1 tsp milk

Icing

50 g butter, softened

80 g cream cheese, cold

175 g icing sugar

6 Oreo biscuits

Method

1. For the cupcakes: preheat oven to 180C/160 fan/gas 4. Line a muffin tin or baking tray with 10 paper cases. place one oreo into the bottom of each case.

2. Cream together the softened butter and caster sugar, along with the vanilla extract, until pale and fluffy.

3. Sift in the flour and cocoa powder. Add the two beaten eggs and mix well, taking care to stop once all of the dry ingredients are incorporated. Add the milk and beat briefly to combine.

4. Divide the mixture evenly between the cupcake cases. Bake for 22-25 minutes.

*TIP: Do not open the door until ready to take out or the cupcakes will collapse.

5. For the icing: place the six Oreos into a food processor and whizz into crumbs or place the cookies into a plastic food bag and smash with a rolling pin. Set aside.

6. Rub the softened butter into the icing sugar using the back of a wooden spoon. Do the same with the cream cheese.

7. Once the icing sugar has been incorporated, whisk with an electric mixer until light and fluffy or with wooden spoon.

8. Gently fold the Oreo crumbs into the icing. Place in the fridge to chill for 15 minutes.

9. To decorate: cover each cupcake with the icing.

*Tip: Double the icing recipe as I found there was not enough icing for all the cupcakes and the icing was on the stingy side.

Hope you enjoyed this, take care x

Monday, 28 April 2014

Marriage Monday

Hey everyone, welcome to the first Marriage Monday post!

As you all know Paul and I have been planning our wedding for years but for reasons that don't deserve the time of day, we have not booked anything.

In this post I want to introduce you all to our wedding reception and evening venue. Oakwood House.

Oakwood house is a grand Victorian mansion, it has been owned and lived in by a wealthy family for many years until their was only one owner left with no heirs. He left the mansion to the local council.

This picture is of the front of Oakwood House. As you can see it is built of redbrick, it has a long drive way too. If you turn right off of this picture you come to the car park, which leads on to an overflow car park.

This is the back of Oakwood House and it opens up into a large enclosed garden. The reception room or Suite is just to the left of this picture it has double french doors that open onto a large terrace, also leading into this enclosed garden.

This is a picture of the Suit as you can see it is light and airy, you can see one set of double doors to the left of the picture.

This picture shows the magnificent ceiling of the suit, it also has a skylight at the far end, to dance beneath the stars.

Thats a teaser of our wedding venue. Did you have your wedding here or know someone who has? What are your thoughts on our venue?

Take care x

Saturday, 26 April 2014

Sanctuary Saturday: Relaxation

Hey everyone, today is the first Sanctuary Saturday blog. Sanctuary means many things, safety, relaxation, bliss, serenity and much more. In this post I am going to talk about the relaxation.

We live in such a busy stressful world with more and more people suffering from mental breakdowns, depression and other stress related illnesses. We need to make time to relax and destress.

We live such busy lives that we are always rushing and don't have time to our selves for rest and relaxation. Here is a quick tip I use to relax and stay sane:-

Sit in a comfortable chair or lie down on your bed. Either place our hands by your sides or rested on your stomach. Close your eyes. Breath in for 5 seconds, hold your breath for 5 seconds then breath out for 5 seconds. Repeat the cycle for 3 minutes or until you feel the relaxing effects of controlled breathing.

I know it sounds silly but it works!

Take care x

Friday, 25 April 2014

Fashion Friday: Aeropostale

Hey everyone, today is my first Fashion Friday blog so I thought I would share one of me USA loves. When we visited Orlando, Florida last year we obviously did some shopping. One of my new favorite brands is Aeropostale. I was first attracted to the brand because it was created in 1987 the year I was born! Then I was blown away by their designs. I love the casual/ sporty look they pull off so effortlessly.

I will now share some of my favorite items:-

This t-shirt is breathable and kind to the skin. I have worn these tops when I had sunburn as it was the only thing that could cover me up but not hurt me. The style is sporty and a good option for a casual day.

Aeropostale hoodies have the right balance of temperature. They are warm enough to keep out the cold but breathable so you don't feel stuffy. Again the sporty design gives you casual style.

I wore this lace top over a cami, sometimes in Orlando you get freak rain storms, this lace top gave me a little more protection without sweating for the rest of the day. This top is smart enough to wear with jeans and heels if you're eating out after.

There are so many reasons why I love these slippers. They are animal print which is currently in fashion, although I always love animal print. They are colourful, which is different from the usual beige, brown or black slippers. Most importantly they were super comfy.

Lastly this cute bag. It is feminine yet practical. I love that it has an air of beach chic and all those pockets come in handy too.

Have you got any favorite brands

Take care x

Daily Themes

Hey everyone,

Just a quick post to say, I have been thinking a lot about what I want from my blogs and vlog. With these thoughts in place I think a rejig is in order. Please see below my new blog themes for each day:

Marriage Monday

TTC Tuesday

Weight loss Wednesday

Throwback Thursday

FashionFriday

Sanctuary Saturday.

Take care xx