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Overwhelmed

This title is all encompassing. As I mentioned before, I’m meant to be in full on house renovation mode but now it appears Chris (my beloved) has flu, full on shivering retching flu, not the man kind (apologies men but…,in this overly PC world how soon before that expression becomes obsolete too? Seriously gender neutral Santa, give me strength!)

I’m literally dreaming of the house and its contents. I should say I do feel sorry for the previous occupant. While they only lived there a couple of years with their 2 children, 1 fully grown with partner in tow, She was still expected to do all the house work, while trying to hold down a job and ferrying said children to whatever theatre workshop pub, club or restaurant they chose (door mat Mama, much like me to be fair.) Anyhoo she brought them up so their attitude to and aptitude for cleaning and throwing away things that may be useful 1 day was the same as hers, fast forward 2 years and… Add to that time constraints from the previous house move (working, Mum’s taxi service etc) the vast majority of things that should really have been thrown out from the previous house moved right along with them in to a 1930s house that had belonged to an old person who hadn’t decorated since the 60s.

So here I am writing a blog no-one will read in the hope of getting the rising sense of panic to subside. Also overwhelming, the feeling of dread when I catch a glimpse in the mirror when I get out of the shower. We have a half height mirror above the basin in, it only show the top half, being a pear shaped woman hides a multitude of sins but clambering over the side of the bath past the shower curtain while desperately trying to stop it touching me, my peripheral vision sees the rest. Christmas has been unkind. In the same way small changes to improve your health, physique, diet (urgh that word again) add up to a big difference over time, so do small changes in the other direction. Since September when I had my wonderful grandchildren for a few weeks while their beautiful bi-polar Mama rested her weary mind in hospital. My eating and training habits have changed dramatically. The steps toward those changes were so small or the situation was so large they were almost imperceptible the difference dare I say damage to my physique not so much. But hey it gives me a goal and I am very much the kind of person who performs better with a goal.

I am an emotional eater, I eat anger, upset and every flipping thing in between. I also reward myself with food! Done well in the gym, have a brownie, it’s Saturday have a vanilla cappuccino, made Jenson eat something that wasn’t a nutella sandwich, eat the crusts of the damn marmite sandwich and so on. That said I’m not huge, unless you’re an American size 0 fitspo then I’m morbidly obese. Many people would be delighted to be nudging 50 (47 on new years) having carried 6 kids to look like me, genetics weren’t bad but that carries its own guilt. Why aren’t I grateful so I’ll have a donut.

To be fair life isn’t bad, I’m happy with my lot, a lottery win and a team of cleaners or a nanny for a few days would be better. The control freak in me would need to see what the team of cleaners were up to and show them a better way haha. I’ve never written a diary, I was alway too busy moaning when I was younger and living as I got older to have any desire to but I have a better understanding just from writing these last 2 days why people document stuff, #therapywriting #overwhelmed #life

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Change of plans

Well I went to change the beds and various other things at work but sadly the hubster is a bit under the weather so I can’t start my daughter’s new home today..I went there though just to get a firm grasp of what I’m dealing with, I’m in 2 minds about it to be perfectly honest 1 corner of my mind is curled in the foetal position jibbering at the magnitude of the task..picture 1 of those houses belonging to horders you see on telly only they were abducted by aliens weeks ago but people only just noticed! the other bit is briming with optimism! it will get done if only I can think of something to do with all the furniture and get rid of the smell of cat pee 🤔😂.. watch this space…the sing along version of Greatest Showman,Connect 4 and Jenga await my attention with Jenson (9) and Lewis (6) and playdoh with Daizy (4) x

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Day 2, busy busy

My little family is fast asleep, I got up and threw some kettle bells around in the vague hope of compensating for the huge amount of junk I’ve consumed over the Christmas period (other holidays are available!) To be fair I think I’d need to run an ultra marathon between now and new year to negate the chocolate alone but hey ho, it’s all about the mind set!

I have to work today, I look after people’s holiday homes. Pembrokeshire, Wales, UK is a beautiful palace and as such is a tourist influx in the Summer months (yes the UK has a summer!) it’s been my home for the past 20 years but I hail from a little village called Bladon in Oxfordshire, claim to fame, Winston Churchill prime minister during WW2 is buried there.

Anyway yep, I look after holiday homes, arrange repairs, make sure it’s ready for guests, sort linen, (sorry I’m messing with the colour bit of a fiddler) I like to think I’m in property management, in fact I’m a glorified cleaner, but the world needs us, I’m not ashamed and it feeds the family. In truth I’m only going to make some beds and turn the water on for relatives of the owner to come for new year, should new year have capitals? I’m thinking no because it’s my birthday I’ll spell it however I want.

After work I have a bigger job though. My eldest daughter (26 + partner, kids & cats) is moving home, I touched on that yesterday, a relative has very kindly agreed to rent her a house because it’s sitting empty, no bond or the usual cr*p that prevents people from moving, however when I say empty I mean no people live there. It still contains everything from the previous occupants. When I say everything I mean, food, clothing, paperwork,furniture, you name it, it’s there. Full to the rafters, not a problem you’d think, several runs to the tip and Bob’s your uncle but I know them and as such will need to bag everything for the individual people who now live in 3 seperate places and get it to them or at the very least offer them the chance to collect.

I like a challenge and think I’m a pretty positive soul, although my husband and children may tell you something to the contrary. The only draw backs are, Ce’Nedra my daughter doesn’t drive and is 250 miles away in Oxford so can’t help and will need collecting at some point with the grandkids, my children are off school for the holidays so Chris aforementioned long suffering husband is going to have to have the kids while I sort it and Ce’Nedra is moving ready or not on 12 Jan because she has to hand the keys back to her house by 14th and the kids start school in Wales then too. Despite this, I know it will get done, a bit of faith and a positive mind set goes a long way, will keep you posted x

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Too much choice

Just reading my emails this close to New Year and there’s a plethora or different options in the diet and fitness arena, last years big thing imo was keto and intermittent fasting, the year before was full of Joe Wicks 90 day plans and High Intensity interval training, this year we’ve added low intensity steady state to the mix and non exercise activity thermogenesis which as I understand it is everything you do that raises your heart rate or breaks a sweat that isn’t traditional exercise (or even the new trends) I should stress I’m not a fitness blogger, in truth I’m not really sure what kind of blogger I’m going to be given this is my second post; but I’ve found in my 46+ years on the planet the best fitness advice is consistency, whatever you will want to keep doing time after time is your best option and if you don’t enjoy it you won’t keep it up, the same goes for “diet” I despise that word because the connotations are to weight loss where in reality it just means what you eat and has been hijacked for the bad, you won’t keep up a paleo keto lifestyle if you hate everything about it, do you. Do what you enjoy and control the amount you eat, tweak and make changes, even small steps lead to great places x

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The Journey Begins

So I had this whole blog post written out and I was pretty pleased with myself, but I looked up and poof, it was gone. This pretty much sums up 2018, never what I intended but always got there in the end ha! 

Ok so this blog encompasses life me, my 6 kids, my grand kids, our struggles with everything from health and fitness, parenting to mental health money  and everything else in between. 2 things are bugging me most today

Getting older, I’m 47 on 31 Dec 2018 and a new years eve birthday, the narcissist in me always hated my birthday. I didn’t want to share it, everyone else has new years eve woop woop, and a birthday but in a way I have neither.

This year I decided to stop being such a petulant child, I’m 47 all year from Jan 1 to Dec 31, that’s pretty damn cool, all tidy and neat, no fraying edges of days and dates here and there and as such I decided to blog it.

2018 was interesting, I dabbled in keto and intermittent fasting in the diet department, and added more weight training in the training department. I should stress I’m pretty in to fitness but I’m by means a cross fitter or ultra marathon runner, I’m more of a functional fitness enthusiast. For me exercise is like an antidepressant and as such I get it in. I have an ancient sports science degree so I like to keep abreast of things but it is by no means my whole existence, so don’t let it put you off.

My grand children came to live for a few weeks because my daughter was hospitalised and they’re moving down permanently with their mother and step dad in a few weeks, exciting times ahead.

I’m doing veganuary in January and sugar free February, how that goes remains to be seen, I hope you all had a great Christmas

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