For as long as I can remember, I’ve battled with my weight. In my 20s I finally decided that I would make peace with my weight and accept myself the way I was. I used to go to the gym regularly but I knew food was my problem. My whole family are foodies…and not just my immediate family but my extended family as well. 4 years ago however, right after I had S, I started putting on a lot of weight. I was comfort eating and truth be told, I was comfort drinking too. A glass (or three!) of wine at the end of almost every day, once S was asleep, numbed all feelings and emotions I was going through. By the time I moved back to London in June 2013, I was at my heaviest. 

Let’s just say life took its toll and it took me over 2 years to bounce back and start doing something about it. I don’t know what shifted but something in December of last year did and from the 1st of January 2016 I felt like a new person. And thats when the change began. Many people have asked me recently how I managed to lose weight or what skin care I’m using. It’s really no secret and I’m happy to share….

1. The desire to change needs to come from within. No one can make you lose weight or be happy unless you want to. We all have different motivators. Dig deep and figure out what your motivator is. It could be seeing someone you love fall ill or your own health declining. It could be to get the attention of someone you like (listen, no judgement here!) Whatever it is, use it. Use it to inspire yourself and drive yourself to be the best version of you.

2. Download “My fitness pal” – I honestly believe this app changed my life. It made me so conscious of everything I put in my mouth. It’s a free app where you enter all your daily calories. It’s really easy to use and in the UK, most supermarket/restaurant items are on the apps database. Most actions take only 21 days to become a habit…this one probably only takes 2 weeks. Before you know it, entering your meals becomes a habit. And the best thing about the app (and weight loss) is NO deprivation. As I mentioned before, I’m a foodie and partial to a glass of wine. I wanted to be able to lose the weight without a) starving myself b) depriving myself of some Galaxy Smooth Milk Chocolate (YUM!) c) giving up alcohol – with this app it’s totally doable. I can’t recommend it enough.

3. Go easy on yourself…but be honest! If you lie, you’re only lying to yourself. We all have bad days, days we scoff chocolate or chips…nights we go out and have one too many. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking “Well I’ve buggered that up so I may as well eat what I want…” NO!! Take each day as a new day. Just because you fell off the wagon for one day, that doesn’t mean you can’t get right back on it! And celebrate your losses…and the weeks you don’t lose any weight, celebrate that week as well. And even when self doubt creeps in, speak to yourself as you would a friend…be kind to yourself…be kind to your body…remember, tomorrow is another day.

4. Find some inspiration. Unlike your motivator which is your reason for wanting to be a better you, your inspiration is something that keeps you going. When I first started going to the gym, I used to listen to Brooke Castillo’s podcast. They were and still are, amazing! Every episode provided me with a huge amount of inspiration. Till date, if I’m having a bad day/week, I’ll listen to a few episodes and I feel uplifted. Funnily enough Brooke talks a lot about weight loss but I don’t actually feel like her methods would work for me. Everything else she says though just blows me away!

5. Be conscious and present, especially when exercising. To me this means my phone and the gym don’t meet. When I’m at the gym, I’m fully at the gym, my phone stays in the locker. I do watch TV, it makes the time go by quicker but I’m not really distracted by it if that makes sense. 

6. Invest in a little me time and make a change. This could be getting your hair cut differently, changing the colour, adding a fringe, etc. A new change (you like) only adds to your confidence.

7. Visualise! Think about where you want to be and talk about it. Find a friend, a parent, a sibling…Someone you can freely talk to about your goals. Make sure this person is encouraging and inspires you to keep going.

8. Last but not least, remember, it’s not about the weight. I’m not about to say it’s what’s on the inside that counts because while that’s true, the outside does play a role in how we feel on the inside. Unfortunately we, especially women, judge ourselves quite harshly AND often equate how amazing we are with how we look. A big part of this year has been to gain back my confidence and while working on the outside has most definitely helped with that, working on the inside has been equally important as well.

I turn 33 tomorrow and I have to say, I’ve never felt better!! Working on yourself…physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally is not easy…but it’s totally worth it!!

Now (2016).                    Then (2013). 

There’s no doubt that all the mums I know absolutely love their children to bits…however by the first week of September, every mum I know is ready for their child to go back to school. S had 2 months off for the summer and although he did a few days at camp, we went to Butlins, he had lots of playdates and we went to Tenerife, by the end of August I was counting down the days for school to start and ready for some me time.

With the long summer days and my hair being battered by both the sun and chlorine, I was desperate for a hair cut. I’d seen Live True London everytime I drove by the O2 centre but had never been. I was booked in for a hair cut at 9am on a Saturday morning. S had back to back birthday parties that Saturday and I needed a little pampering before I faced 20+ children high on sugar! Seraphine was my stylist. We went through what I wanted and then she took me over for a wash. I love the rustic feel of Live True London with their exposed pipes and yet they’ve accentuated it beautifully with gorgeous mirrors at each station.

My hair felt light and bouncy as I walked out. Unfortunately the blow dry didn’t last too long, the curls fell out quite quickly but I’ve had at least 4 people ask where I got my hair cut since!

As many of you know, I’m going back to work next week and even with phones and digital organisers, I’m a fan of good ol’ fashioned paper. So post hair cut I wandered into Tiger to see if I could get myself some back to work bits.

Tiger had a vast range of stationary to suit everyone’s needs. Funky highlighters, cool erasers and note books galore. I wasn’t a huge fan of the humour on some of their notebooks but I picked up some post it notes and a map of the world for S. We travel quite frequently and he takes a real interest in where we’re going and the different continents/countries.

I then popped into a stationary lovers dream store…paperchase where I found a gorgeous ethereal like list/note book.

For those who know me, you’d know how much I love London so when I came across Paperchase’s London themed section, I was spoilt for choice. I finally settled on a notebook of the skyline and a fluffy pen with a red bus at the top (who can resist a fluffy pen?! It’ll brighten up those upcoming winter months). 

Lastly, I saw a mug I had to have. I love mugs and I think starting your day as you mean it to go on is a positive way to start. You can’t see it all but it says “Today will be amazing.”

Last but not least I popped in to Sainsburys to get some back to school bits for S. Unfortunately I’d left it too late and they didn’t have what I needed in his size. Nevertheless Sainsburys is our weekly shop supermarket and I’m always finding bits and peices S loves…especially their Avengers stuff (and their Captain America’s shield lunch bag).

The O2 centre is a great one stop shop for mums and kids alike. It’s got a Vue cinema, restaurants, a huge Waterstones book store, cafés, Tiger, Paperchase and lots of other quirky stores.

Disclaimer : I was invited by the O2 for a cut and blow dry and to pick out a few bits and peices for back to work / school. All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

I don’t know how I heard about it but I started getting emails from The Applause Store. I’m a huge comedy fan so back in June I signed up for tickets for Michael McIntyre’s Big Show. I even tweeted asking when I’d hear back and about a month ago I got an email saying I’d got two tickets. Given that it’s a raffle draw, I was thrilled when I got the email! My friend Louise is in town from Istanbul and I knew she’d love this sort of thing so I invited her to come with me.

I’m on my way home from the show and amazing is the only word to describe it. As I mentioned, I love comedy and of course Michael McIntyre was brilliant. But it was all the extras that made it hilarious. He took Alexander Armstrong’s (presenter on Pointless) phone and sent a random rude text out. He had 12 year old Brooke come out as a secret star and do an amazing rendition of Whitney Houston. He had Ross Howard the comedian (amazing) and to end the show it was none other than Rick Astley (blast from the past!). 

They even had an old lady play “soap or nope”, only to meet her life long pen pal from Australia (they’ve been pen pal for 71 years!!!) I mean if that doesn’t bring you to tears, I don’t know what will!!?!

This is just one more reason why I love London. So if you fancy being in the audience at an amazing London show, head over to the applause store. You won’t always get tickets (I applied to my favourite Britain’s got talent and didn’t get it) but I got this and it made for a great night out!

Oh and the best bit? During the interval we were asked if we’d like to come up front and we moved from the Royal Circle (Row K) to the very first row in the theatre. Talk about up close and personal….score!!🙂

The summer holidays started for us last Friday and S has a whole two months off!! I was hoping to make the most of the glorious sunshine (yeah right!) but unfortunately (perhaps as expected), it’s been raining  a lot.

Nevertheless, a little rain never hurt anyone so last Monday a few nursery mums and I decided to take the kids to Sea Life, The London Aquarium. The school had given us some coupons allowing the kids to go free so we just paid £24.50 for each adult.

My friends nanny called in sick on the day and she had to work so I offered to take her daughter with us. Although A is such a sweetheart, it did make me wonder how I ever thought I wanted twins! *cray cray*

We just visited Dubai for half term and I’m not even going to begin to compare the London Aquarium with the Aquarium in Dubai Mall (because Dubai would win hands down) but you can see the whole Aquarium in Dubai in 5 minutes. What the London one lacked in grandeur, it made up for it in variety (and information!) 3 adults and 5 kids, we spent just over 2 hours in there!

The kids loved watching all the different fish, finding nemo, spotting giant turtles, admiring the beautiful “glitter fish” and getting up close and personal with the penguins. The penguin enclosure is the last bit and was probably my favourite. They had a really cool screen that acted as a mirror (so we could see ourselves) and it looked like we were standing right beside a pool with polar bears and orcas. The picture doesn’t do it justice, you had to be there.

The kids also got to touch star fish which they were thrilled about and check out a giant whale tooth!

If you’re looking for something to keep the kids busy this summer, check out The Aquarium. It’s down on the Southbank which also hosts some fabulous child friendly restaurants (like Giraffe) so you can make a whole day of it. Make sure to look out for discount coupons on boxes of cereals.

A few months ago I spotted a Groupon voucher  for a cut, condition and blow dry at Rush West Hampstead. I’d walked/driven by it a few times and it looked good so I thought I’d give it a go. When I got there I was seated and immediately offered a drink. Although I opted for a coffee, they also serve wine! My stylist Veronica came over, pulled up a chair and sat down to go over what I wanted. While cutting my hair she chatted to me about ways to look after my hair and my colour. I left there promising I’d come back when I was ready to re-do my highlights.

Fast forward to June and I was ready for some summer hair. I went on the website to get their number and noticed they had something called “Colour Tuesdays” which is 50% off all colour treatments on a Tuesday. I booked myself in last week while S is still at school and I actually have some time to myself. Again I was seated and offered a drink (and offered a few more times over the next 3 hours). Given the length of my hair now, it took longer than anticipated and I didn’t have time for a cut. I made an appointment to go back on Saturday with S in tow and headed to pick him up from school.

By sheer coincidence, I got an email the following day asking if I’d like to go in to Rush West Hampstead for a treatment. They agreed for me to come in as planned for my hair cut and blow dry on the Saturday.

When I got there, both S and I were seated and offered drinks and biscuits. He was thrilled with his massive glass of apple juice and I settled in with my coffee. Although we were taken care of, I did have to wait 30 minutes before I was seen. I understand things can get delayed on a Saturday morning but it would have been nice if I was taken in for a hair wash by someone else in the mean time. Nevertheless S was occupied and the 30 minutes went by quite quickly. Veronica came over and took me in for a wash while S was being entertained (spoilt) by the lovely ladies outside. I’d taken his IPad but they also gave him lots of paper and some highlighters to entertain himself.

Veronica took time with my hair, asking what I’d like and offering advice on looking after my newly highlighted hair. Having had a few bad experiences with hairdressers who take too much off because they think my hair needs it, she respected my choice to keep it long and worked around what I wanted.

What I loved about Rush was my experience as a paying customer and a blogger. It was the same. I felt taken care of everytime I went there. And the fact that they were so good with S was an added bonus.

I’ll definitely be going back in 8 weeks for a trim. I left there with some very glamorous looking hair!

*Disclaimer: My Saturday cut and blow dry was complimentary, I paid for all other services. All opinions are honest and my own.