wagwaan?

Is it the weekend already?

Well, time flies, but I finally found the time to upload the obligatory photo-with-the-famous-teacher, i.e. me and Donna Downey LOL.   Gah - I wish I'd actually SMILED instead of making that weird face. Anyway, I had a whale of a time and I will finish my double layout this weekend, hopefully.  What was really great was that there were just two of us in this particular class, so plenty of time to chat with her and hear all about her trip to Europe. She's great fun and down-to-earth lovely, and I'm glad I got to meet her.

The most exciting thing about this week is that DD finished her National Diploma in Photography, with a Merit and two Passes (equal to 3 A-Levels), so she's a happy bunny!  She now needs to find a job to keep money coming in while she builds up a portfolio of pictures and finds some clients for her photography. The other exciting thing that happened is that we ordered our ferry tickets and the train tickets down to Dover, so we're nearly all set for our little week's holiday at the end of the month. I just wish it could be more, but for various reasons that's the only holiday we're getting this summer. I can't wait to see my mum and to sit on the beach in Normandy!
So, I'd better get off here and go and tidy up my bedroom, which is a tip, and get myself sorted so I am ready for tomorrow's photo session at friend Lyzzy's anniversary party. Toodle pip! 

Another award!

Just a quickie to say I got my 2 1/2 stone award yesterday, as I lost 2lbs, thereby cancelling out the 1lb weight gain from last week!  I am so happy it's going so well, and even ventured into the changing rooms at M&S today to try on some clothes, which didn't leave me feeling fat and ugly for once. What a change!  Can't wait to get down a few more dress sizes though.   DD is just a bit off her 1st stone award, and is feeling happier for it too.
Otherwise, it's very hot here, and sunny, although we're told it won't last. Work is manic, and there is a lot going on outside of work too, so no time to post in detail. It's all good though, don't worry! 
Will post later in the week with my news of Sunday's Donna Downey class, and the obligatory photo opportunity LOL.

All better

It was my turn to be unwell on Tuesday. After I'd tucked DD up in bed I went to bed too, but I woke up Tuesday with a stonking headache and feeling sick. I called the office to say I couldn't come (that is hard for me to do, I usually drag myself in regardless), and went back to bed until lunchtime. I dragged myself downstairs to make something to eat (no breakfast) and then fell asleep again until 6pm when I went downstairs to watch Wimbledon. 

I'm glad I'm getting a great response from the photoblog, and I look forward to building up my portfolio and contacts. Nevertheless, I may have yet another announcement up my sleeve soon; maybe even a complete turnaround, but hey, never say never (or il "n'y a que les imbéciles qui ne changent pas d'avis"). 

I'm looking forward to my weekend - well, not the lip biopsy on Saturday, but hanging out with friends and scrapping with Donna Downey are both things that I can't wait to do. Toodle pip!

Uh oh!

Just a quickie - we got weighed tonight and both had a slight gain *eek!*.  All my fault - a lack of organisation and forward planning, leading to cravings and...er... giving in to those cravings a few times too many!  DD got really upset about it, but then said she felt unwell, so we didn't stay to group. When we got home we put on a DVD and then unfortunately DD was rather violently sick, and well, let's just say she didn't want any dinner after that! I put her to bed looking all pale and poorly, and I hope she gets a good  night's sleep.
Back on track first thing tomorrow - let's turn this around and get a good loss next week. Life's too short to whine about it!
Nite nite all.

The weekend's over already.

Grrr time flies when you're having fun.  Yesterday I slept ALL MORNING (naughty!) and didn't do much else at all. But today, the weather was beautiful albeit rather windy, so I went out and chatted up the young 'uns at the skate park so I could take their pictures. Actually, I didn't need to do any chatting up, they were only too happy to show off their prowess.  I have put the pics on the photoblog, so I won't copy them here, but if you are interested you can click here to have a looksie. I taught myself a java script entry so that you can't right-click and download my pictures straight from the blog, and then DD taught me how to link the small pictures to larger pictures hosted somewhere else with a massive watermark on them. Hopefully, that way no one will steal my photos. It's a shame that one has to think like that, but it's a necessary evil: whatever you put out on the net is out in the public domain unless you protect yourself.
When I got home, I rustled up a delicious berry crumble and sat in the garden with it and a cup of tea, and read my book. I have since spent most of the evening resizing pictures so I'm ready for my bed now. Hope youre weekend was happy and peaceful.

TGIF

I do love my Fridays, do you?  Today was the culmination of another busy week, and I was dead beat again by the time I got home, but I perked up once I'd had a little sit down and was ready for dinner-making duty at about 8.30pm. OK, so it's not as exciting as going out dancing or on a date, but I like being at home!  Tonight I made pork meatballs; I had the pork mince in the freezer to do a recipe from one of the Slimming World mags, but I ignored that and just threw some spring onion, spices and seasoning in the mince, mixed it all up, shaped it into balls and browned them in a frying pan with some Olive oil Fry Light.  We had green beans with them so it was a "red" or "Original" meal with no carbs, and we finished with fresh pineapple. Both DD and I are crazy about fresh pineapple and always down the whole thing in one sitting - half each.  I think it's possibly my favourite fruit of the moment, although I still love bananas, raspberries, strawberries, pears... oh alright then, I love ALL fruit!
Talking of food, last night I couldn't be bothered to make the Slimming World quiche, and this morning I was running late and couldn't think what to take to work for lunch, so I took the ingredients (minus the eggs) and gave them to our chef and asked her to make it. She loves cooking and had tasted my quiche before, despite swearing it couldn't possibly taste good. Well, she "ate her words" instead and since then had said she would make it herself, so today she got the chance, ha ha.  It was ready at about 12, so I had it warm followed by a Muller Light blueberry yogurt.  It's really great having an in-house chef. She makes the most wonderful food for our luncheons and meetings. Especially her puddings, oh my!  her chocolate brownies are TO DIE FOR.  I only let her give me one on Tuesdays though, because then it's still nearly a week till weigh-in hee hee.    Actually, this week our binge night on Monday has kind of carried over and I've had excessive syns, I know it. DD is always so good, she shows me up, but then again, I say that and then  usually I have a good weight loss.  All will be revealed on Monday, and we'll see if I've blown it or not. 
Which leads me nicely to tonight's tv programme, Gok Wan and How to look good naked.  We love that man, he is so cute and really relates to the women well. I keep meaning to buy his book...

He is also a contributor to the Dorothy Perkins website, which I love. Check it out here.
Right, that's enough plugging other people. I'm going to go to bed in a minute, and this weekend I shall be sorting out pictures so that I know what to take to my class next weekend with the delightful Donna Downey!  Nite nite. (PS Please bear with me - the new Typepad is being very naughty when it comes to resizing and choosing fonts, I'm aiming for Arial 11, but I get Times New Roman or size 13... and I'm a perfectionist so it bugs me. Time to complain to Typepad I feel.)

I'll regret it in the morning...

I hate starting something and not finishing it, so tonight I'm up LATE because I've been working on a new photoblog that I can actually use to market my "skillz".  I am not sure if I can link to it here, as it's hosted by a competitor to Typepad, but I didn't like the Typepad layouts that I tried to set up.

Here goes....Click here

We're on a roll!

Just a very quick update, as it's weigh-in day today: I lost a brilliant 3 1/2 lbs this week! Can't believe it - especially as I've been so tired and disorganised and confused... It just goes to show that I must be making the right food choices most of the time, so the odd slip-up doesn't show up on the scales. Well, let's HOPE that's the reason!!  I made Slimmer of the Week again, and I'm 1/2 lb away from my 2 1/2 stone award. That makes 34 1/2 lbs off since January, or 16kgs. Not bad going.  DD was happy because she lost a further 2lbs, taking her total to 11 1/2 lbs, and she is aiming for her first stone award next week, or maybe the week after that.
To celebrate, we had movie night. We had (shop bought) pizza and some chocolate, but I must admit I feel uncomfortably full now.  A lot of people do this on weigh-in night, and we haven't always, but sometimes it's nice to know that you can have something you really crave on a Monday night.  I think the novelty will wear off very soon actually, as I don't crave rubbish as much as I used to!  Anyway, we watched Enchanted on cable and it was so sweet - we had been meaning to watch it for ages and ages, but just hadn't got round to it. Gotta love a Disney "happy ever after" film. 

Quick update

Thank you for sweet comments (and Boo, darling, don't worry about me, I've got this under control!). I've had a couple of good nights' sleep and relaxed over the weekend, so although I'm still tired I'm not too bad.  It's just scary when it happens.  I'll tell you what the doctors say, ok?
We've had beautiful weather, so although yesterday I didn't go out (I stayed in and tidied up and rested), today I sat and read in the sun, and it was lovely.
We're planning our very short holiday to France at the end of July, and Claire's best friend is coming with us, which will be nice. My mum said she was welcome, and I will make sure we do everything and don't let mummy lift a finger! 
Oh, and today I got my first Avon delivery. I got a pretty shell-like nail polish, some dry oil spray which smells SO summery, a "body sculpt" cream, a really nice under eye cream and brow gel combo, and a pretty bracelet which raises money for charity. Actually the bracelet is more of a lovely lavender colour rather then the blue it looks in the picture. I got one for DD too. I'm loving the catalogue - their stuff is so cheap and if the products I got then they are great value for money. I have high hopes for the body sculpt cream LOL!
Anyway, it's time to tidy up the dinner things and have a nice bath before an early night.

I hit a wall...

Oh my goodness, I feel so D.R.A.I.N.E.D. !  On Tuesday we went to DD's photo exhibition (my mind is so addled I can't even remember if I blogged that), and by the time we came home I was dead on my feet. Then I had another busy day Weds and Thurs - after kind of doing two jobs for the past 10 days trying to get the  new temp up to speed. Well, by last night I was having trouble keeping my eyes open on the long walk from the station, and as soon as I got in the door, the other half (from the other end of the house) exclaimed "oh my God what is wrong?". Nice. He could only half see me over DD's shoulder as she let me in, but he could see something wasn't right. I flaked out on the sofa and he asked if I wanted a hot drink, and made sure I was ok. I coached DD on what I had planned for dinner then went to bed as soon as "House" was over.
Unfortunately, this morning I felt absolutely the same! It's quite scary when a good night's sleep doesn't make you feel refreshed at all. I made it into work, and my boss called from the road (he's driving across France today) and asked how I was. I told him I was really tired from the busy two weeks we've had and said I didn't know how he coped!  Well, he made a kind of wry laughing sound, and asked if I was leaving early today. When I said I hoped to leave at 4 he said "no, you should leave at lunchtime". What a sweet man!  I managed to get my work done, stopping for a lunchtime wander round Borough Market with a couple of friends as we'd already cancelled twice before, and at 2pm I did a final telephone run-through with my boss of the "pending list" before he told me to go and have a "nice relaxing weekend". I did not wait to be told twice.
I have felt drained like this before, but I think this is the first time I've not felt refreshed after a good long sleep. The hospital told me that one of the symptoms of my psoriatic arthritis is fatigue, and that I had to take care to "pace myself".  I have another appointment for a blood test in about 10 days' time and I shall talk to the specialist nurse then, but if I still feel like this after the weekend, I'll take myself off to my GP because I really don't think being this tired can be normal!
Hopefully, normal service will be resumed very shortly. Nite all :)