Nutrition the road back to good health

Earlier in the year i promised myself i would re visit a nutritionalist again as this really helped my recovery from pnd and pneumonia back when little E was very small and definatley brought back my smile.

I have however been really silly and cancelled the appointment a few times as i just could not seem to find time to fit it in.

Finally last week my health forced me to attend my appointment as i had once again managed to run myself down so badly i was useless to anyone. Suffering with a virus of the inner ear and sinus that is so blocked that i can barely move my neck i at last went for my appointment. I really should of listened to my body sooner instead of waiting till i felt like the bottom of the barrel as thats a steep climb back up!

My appointment lasted about an hour and a half and just being there spending time with someone admitting how run down and unwell i was feeling was a relief.  I could clearly see I'm not looking after myself very well and just discussing my eating habits was quite shocking. Its all to easy to eat a quick unhealthy thing on the run here and miss a meal completely there. The thing that shocked me the most was the amount of wheat related products i eat that have little nutritional value in them and the other surprise the amount of tea i drink.

I then had a series of muscle tests and some parts of my body are not functioning properly  no wonder i feel so shocking. I was then matched with supplements to help the weakened areas and help me back to good health.

A diet was then put together that suits my lifestyle and is therefore easy for me to stick to, wheat has been completely removed from my diet and tea has been cut right down no surprise for me there.
Its still early days at the moment my body is currently going through a bit of a healing crisis and detoxing and the blocked sinus areas have now been replaced by the mother of all colds but at least there no longer blocked.
I know in a few weeks time i will feel better than i have in a very long time as the benefits i had when i visited the nutritionalist with pnd and pneumonia the first time were tremendous and really got me back on my feet.

What we eat and put into our body really effects our mood and energy level and lets face it as mums we need energy in abundance. When we feel worn out through lack of sleep and running round after the family we are no good to anyone and not feeling able really effects our mood. Its no surprise then really that eating the right things and taking supplements to re  build a run down body can really help with mind body and spirit.

  I also had other benefits that were very welcome and totally unexpected my skin looked really clear and healthy and i lost one and a half stone of  baby weight without even trying.

I can already see the benefit to my skin this time round starting to show, it has already lost the grey look and fine lines seem less noticeable I'm sure this is a result of the water.

So for now i will keep going with the plan and really recommend to anyone that if anything i have mentioned sounds familiar a trip to a nutritionalist could be just what you need. The nutritionalist i visited was Lissanne Davidson at higher health and healing who i think is truly amazing. I have not been paid or compensated in anyway to add the link but here it is as i genuinely recommend
Higher health and healing 


Hopefully i am on the mend again now i will keep you posted on my progress. This week my making a small change to add up to a big benefit would be invest some time in your health and if nothing else drink 8 glasses of water a day.

Thought of the day..................... Health is a gift take good care of it.

Making it home...............

 

This week we have taken a step back from the chaos of renovating to re asses what we are doing and why as sometimes you can get so wrapped up in little details that you can lose sight of the bigger picture.

We originally moved into the house to release some equity from our existing home to reduce our mortgage and make life financially a bit easier. The whole objective of the move was to buy a property in need of renovation and add as much value to it as we could to enable us to move again.

It is so easy to lose focus on budget once you get started, money spent really needs to go into the areas that add the most value which are generally kitchens and bathrooms. Our dilemma at the moment is if we should still convert the garage to enlarge the kitchen as the cost of doing this is greater than originally anticipated due to issues with drainage adding additional work costs.

Much as we are eager to get on as the mess is driving us nuts and we just want to get straight and enjoy family life again. We have taken the sensible view and stopped mid work to get some valuations to see where we currently are and asses the next step with more clarity.

This has definitely been a good move as what we have already done in replacing the kitchen and  bathroom and updating the bedrooms has added a really healthy profit. Converting the garage will add the same amount in value to the house as it will cost us to do the work. This is a really useful thing to know at this stage. If we were going to stay long term it would be worth doing as the new space would really suit our preferances but not necessarily cost effective if we are moving on as we break even coverting garage.

We have the planning permission in place now so this would give someone in the future the choice to increase the space if they wish to or the option to keep garage if they prefer a garage. Planning permission in place is always a really good selling point and adds value in itself.

This does leave us a dilemma though we can not without going into the garage add a downstairs loo which means my mum who i care for can not visit which adds pressure to caring for her and stops her getting out which she needs.

We therefore may have to move on faster than originally thought and hope we have increased the value enough to purchase a multi generational house so that we can all finally afford to live together.

The other option would be to stay and make the house to suit us but no mater what we do to it there would not be anyway to provide a downstairs bedroom which should my mums health get worse she would need to move in permanently.

It is a really good idea mid renovations to take stock have a bit of a breather and re asses where you are and make sure your still on track for what you need to achieve.

Its also good to look back on what you have achieved so far as this can help to spur you on to complete.

Here is a little recap on my making it home journey so far...................

Before bathroom

                                                     

                                                         

After bathroom

Little E's before bedroom

After bedroom

Our before bedroom

 

Our after bedroom

Before kitchen

 

                                                                             

The after kitchen is just waiting for the finishing touches but is a really practical space and provides plenty of room to work and i think when finished it will be a lovely family kitchen without the need to convert the garage.

It would be lovely to know if anyone has any thoughts or advice for us its always lovely to hear from you.

Now its over to you to link up your posts on how you are making your house home xx

Thought of the day....................Always good to pause for thought

Ready steady link ...................

Reasons to be cheerful.... No such thing as bad weather!

Making a change................

I am on a mission at the moment to turn many areas of my life around and change one or two little things a week to overall add up to make a big difference!

The first change on my list is thinking about things differently things happen but its how we react to them that can have a positive or negative effect on our lives. So holding that thought this week I'm joining in with reasons to be cheerful and totally changing my mind on the weather!!

This weekend little E looked out the window and excitedly announced its not raining hurray we can go to the park. I however being an adult was not so convinced as i could hear the wind howling through the trees and our fence looking like it was going to take off. I then looked over at his happy little face and decided i had to find the positive in the weather and agreed with little E.

 Its a perfect day.............. for flying a kite.

 We enjoyed a lovely afternoon  in the park as a family thanks to the lovely windy weather. The wind was so strong little E kept getting pulled along and falling over which made us all laugh.

He also kept letting go of the strings and all three of us had to chase the kite on several occasions which made us all roll around laughing even more.

My husband trying to launch the kite was hilarious it seemed to spend more time on the ground than in the air but this did not spoil our enjoyment at all.

Although we did not get much flight out of our fish kite

 we had a fantastic time and laughed enjoying the lovely weather!

 Just before we left a more traditional kite did make flight

 we really enjoyed watching it for a short time until the rain returned......................

The rain however did not dampen our spirits as there are plenty of  reasons to be cheerful about the rain, like popping on a pair of wellies and jumping around in muddy puddles or snuggling up in the dry and watching a family movie.

That's my reasons to be cheerful just from making a small change to how i think about the weather.
If you would like to try this little change link up with mummy from the heart and add your reasons to be cheerful.

Its always lovely to hear from you so please don't be shy feel free to leave a comment and and say hi.

Thought of the day............ There is no such thing as bad weather ..........just bad clothes!

Making it home.......... Kitchen renovations continue

I'm not sure about calling this post making it home it should really be called making more mess, or please can we get something finished.

The kitchen renovations continue in our house if you would like to find out more here is the link to planning a  small kitchen.
It has been a stressful couple of weeks to say the least we seem to be hitting a problem at every turn i sometimes wonder if the house does not want to be fixed. It seems to want to hold on to its 80's grey kitchen and garage you can't fit a car in.

I thought the original grey kitchen above was scary but then things looked alot worse when everything got ripped out and thrown in the skip and the items to go back into the kitchen got moved into the lounge for what was intended to be a temporary stay !

 A month later the lounge is still chaos as it still has dining table and other kitchen things strewn all around it as sadly we had a couple of weeks where are builder was very unwell and work stopped in the kitchen leaving us in a right mess. Things moved forward a bit more last week and we could finally see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel although we still had along way to go.

Then this week things really started taking shape and we managed to sneak a few essential items back in and finally had a sink again ...... no more washing up in the bathroom hurrah.

Its really getting there now and a million miles away from the grey impractical space we started with. I can not wait to start doing the finishing touches but i think that's a way off yet as still electrics to be done and a wall to come down and a garage to be converted to give us the link through rooms. I am really pleased though with what we have achieved so far and I am really looking forward to getting each room back to its proper use and being able to use it as a real family home.

That's it from me this week what have you been up to around your house to make it home, i would love you to link up and share your home and its always lovely to hear from you so feel free to leave a comment.

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Thought of the day.................. Renovations and children don't mix !

Silent Sunday

Making it home .......... Best of British

Welcome to making it home..............

 This weekend we have been celebrating the Queens Diamond Jubilee so with that in mind i thought it would be lovely to give making it home  a best of British theme this week.  This can be linking up how you decorated your home or garden for the jubilee or like me celebrating the best British home products

There are so many lovely British made quality products on sale and some fantastic statement pieces that can really add wow factor to a room.  My post this week is all about celebrating and showcasing a few of my favourite things items i have found and handpicked as best of British.

I adore the light shade pictured above it really gives the wow factor to a very simple white dining area and adds a great focal point to the room. I have had these on my wish list for awhile now for my lounge a room i know we will get to revamp one day!! I found these at very nice things who indeed do very nice British made things.

 Next on my list are these lovely inspired by nature limited edition prints by Eloise Renouf'  once i get to the finishing touches stage in the kitchen i will definitely be inspired by these prints. I wish there was a  fabric too as i could really see a lovely kitchen blind in this sort of print.

I am a really big fan of good quality oak furniture and i think when making over a room its good to invest in furniture as well chosen good quality pieces will fit in with any scheme and will therefore last you well.  I love oak and this dining set i think is a modern classic and would definitely stand the test of time. I found this set at topfurniture when i was looking for a bench to update my own dining table as my budget won't quite stretch to replacing a whole set.

Wallpaper on the other hand is a great way to update a room without breaking the bank by adding a feature wall you can really change the look of a room. My favourite wallpaper at the moment is this gorgeous retro feel bird print by Rachel Powell i hope i can find a small space somewhere to add this as a feature wall.



My final celebration of British is a fantastic company i have found called new life paints who
bring new life to old paint and help the landfill problem at the same time. Paint is simply saved from landfill sorted into type then blended and treated filtered and tested to produce a high quality paint in a very good choice of colours. What a fantastic idea helping the environment and giving us stylish homes at the same time.

                                                                             

 That's it from me for this week now  its over to you to link up your posts on how your making it home. Feel free to continue the Best of British theme maybe you have decorated your home or garden for the jubilee or you have made something for the home or like me you may want to tell us the products on your wish list.

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Jubilee treats......oops i mean cheats

I have a little confession to make a bit like the chapter in the book I don't know how she doe's it i too have committed the awful sin of motherhood that is cheating at the nursery cake request.

Oh yes you heard it hear first faking it as mum is my new slogan i hold my hands up and bow my head in the shame. We have all been there the over looked request from school or nursery that is found at the last moment written on a crumpled bit of paper filed neatly at the bottom of the school bag.

I find my request just after dinner last night for some homemade cakes for the cake sale today to raise funds for the nursery garden. I vaguely remember looking at the note last week and buying some jubilee cup cake cases ready for a lovely afternoon of baking (honest)!!

However at 7pm at the end of a lovely sunny day the thought of cooking in a kitchen mid renovations where a hard hat is required just to make a cup of tea did not exactly fill me with joy.


I thought about it for oh all of five seconds and decided there was nothing else for it than...... to grab my purse and nip to Tesco. Once there i battled with my self  as i linger in the baking isle looking at a bag of flour willing myself to do the right thing. Another glance at my watch and my alter ego takes over and i grab some white ready roll icing and then find myself in the ready made cake isle. I quickly grab some ready made cupcakes and rush to the till before i have time to change my mind.

Once home i add a few drops of blue colouring to a small piece of the ready roll icing and leave the rest white.

 Little E is having so much fun in the garden and i know I'm going to struggle getting him in so i fib and say do you want to come in i have some play doh. He runs in and using play doh cutters makes circles out of the white icing and hearts out of the blue. These are simply put on top of each other on top the cakes and finished off with a cherry to give us the red white and blue for the jubilee.

I think to my self oh well we have come this far may as well completely cheat and make them look home made so the final sin of motherhood is committed by removing the cake cases and replacing them with the jubilee ones i purchased with my good intentions. To finish off we pop them onto a union jack plate that we had in the cupboard from our palace picnic at the weekend.

So there you have it jubilee fakes a good make for a mum in a hurry. I do hope i can redeem myself later in the week as i still have a king costume to russel up for a disco and a royal teddy bears picnic to prepare.

I hope I'm not alone in my sinning let me know if you have ever been caught out or have any ideas for making a costume fit for a king.

Faking it as mum xx