Self Archives - ENGLISH MUM

Five reasons why you should start the positive life plan, plus win a personalised TOAD notebook! closed

August 3, 2017/70 Comments/in BLOG, Competitions/giveaways, LIFE & STYLE, Self, The positive life plan /by English Mum

Did you keep a diary when you were younger? I kept one for a few years when I was in my early teens, and me and my best friend also wrote to each other all the time (this was before the internet, people!) and I kept those letters for years and years too. I’d love to read them again now and get to know my teenage self again. I wonder what happened to them? Think of the positive life plan as the grown up equivalent of those teenage ramblings: a constructive and uplifting way to keep track of all aspects of your life and maybe even make a few changes along the way too. Here, we’ve listed five reasons why you should start the positive life plan. Plus, a chance to win a gorgeous personalised TOAD notebook to do it in!

The positive life plan: fitness, and my couch to 5k journey so far

July 27, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, LIFE & STYLE, Self, The positive life plan /by English Mum

If you’re new to the positive life plan, let me recap: it’s basically just a lovely way to keep track of all the different areas of your life: health, fitness, money, beauty/personal style, relationships, work, quality time, aspirations, self, and really there are no rules (apart from one: everything has to be positive, so no being hard on yourself for anything). It’s a great opportunity to spend a bit of time on you and perform a positive life edit that you can continue to work on and update. It’s also a good excuse to buy a new notebook, and you know how happy that makes us. I’m now trying to devote a whole post to each category. So last time was self, and this time the focus is on one of the toughest categories in the positive life plan: fitness.

The positive life plan: self

July 20, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, LIFE & STYLE, Self, The positive life plan /by English Mum

About the positive life plan

Regular readers will know that my friend: writer, blogger, and life coach, Erica Douglas, and I originally came up with the positive life plan when we were on holiday together. We were just chatting about life and the germ of an idea started to form: we split the main topics of our thoughts into different categories: health, fitness, money, beauty/personal style, relationships, work/personal brand, quality time, aspirations, self, and added the rule that everything had to be positive, no being hard on ourselves. We thought it would give us the opportunity to perform a positive life edit that we could continue to work on and refer back to now and again to keep ourselves on track. Basically the plan is as simple or as complicated as you make it. Many people have said that they have a notebook split into sections, and just keep track of their thoughts and feelings on each topic, updating and editing every so often, but do whatever suits you. This month, we’re focusing on the first category of the positive life plan: self.

Post 40 beauty: a Botox update and microneedling

July 6, 2017/2 Comments/in BLOG, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

So it’s now been a couple of weeks since I’ve had my Botox treatment at One Stop Doctors, and as promised, I’m coming back to you to let you know how I got on. I’ve also been back to have a microneedling treatment, which, as you’ll read below is quite strange, but wow, the results are really amazing. So let’s crack on, then. Here’s a Botox update and microneedling report – with pictures!

Singing holidays in Barbados: our Caribbean choir experience

July 4, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Holidays, Hotels I love, The positive life plan, TRAVEL /by English Mum

A couple of weeks ago, I received a pretty fabulous invitation to Barbados. Flying out with Virgin Holidays for a week at The Club Barbados, right next to Sandy Lane on the gorgeous, calm west coast of Barbados – a no brainer right? Well, almost. The bit of the invitation that had me hesitating was this: ‘come and be part of an exclusive expert led “Caribbean Choir” singing workshop’. Singing? Me?! I mean, yes, I sing in the shower, but a choir? I was nervous, but in my positive life plan notes, I’ve definitely written ‘be brave’ and ‘do something that scares you’, so I decided to embrace the challenge and replied with a firm yes!

Post 40 beauty: what it’s really like to have Botox

June 15, 2017/in BLOG, Fashion and beauty, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

So if you’ve been following along with my post 40 beauty diary, you’ll know that I’ve been trying hard to take better care of my skin, and trying out a few different treatments with the lovely people at One Stop Doctors, a brand new medical facility in Hemel Hempstead. After my consultation with GP and Aesthetic Doctor, Dr Heidi Miller, I was really excited to take the next step and book in for some Botox. If you’ve been considering having any aesthetic treatments, I thought it might be helpful to give you a completely honest account of what it’s really like to have Botox.

Rosemary rye bread toasties with avocado, pesto and mozzarella

Easy home made rosemary rye bread

June 8, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Breads, RECIPES, Self /by English Mum

Last week, I mentioned my need for a few little calming rituals, like my coconut chai tea. My brain is particularly whizzy at the moment (hence, I went to my first yoga class this week – and loved it), and if I’m up really early, I quite like to go downstairs, say hi to the dog and have a little potter in the kitchen. At the moment I’m a bit obsessed with baking bread – I tend to bake two loaves at a time, using my standard, lazy recipe (which doesn’t involve any kneading at all). I’ve mentioned before that rye is really good for you – I don’t make 100% rye bread, which we find too strong, but when mixed with white flour, this is our absolute favourite. Another bonus of home made bread is that it lasts ages when compared to shop bought, which seems to go mouldy very quickly. This particular recipe has rosemary added, which is surprisingly delicious. Here’s how to do it:

The positive life plan update

June 1, 2017/8 Comments/in BLOG, Home, LIFE & STYLE, Self, The positive life plan /by English Mum

So remember a while ago (actually about a year ago) I talked about the positive life plan? It stemmed from a lovely conversation with my friend Erica, and was a bit of a life-affirming exercise in which we discussed aspects of our life and added our thoughts about them (adding the rule that everything had to be positive). I now have a notebook especially for the plan, and update and add bits to it all the time (I’m pretty much a notebook nut – my whole life revolves around notes and to do lists and little snippets of things I’ve copied down).

Morning rituals: coconut chai tea

May 25, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Cocktails, drinks and liqueurs, LIFE & STYLE, RECIPES, Self /by English Mum

Where’s your head at? I feel like mine’s usually like the scene in the Wizard of Oz (it’s a twister!’) where Dorothy bangs her head and then everything starts lifting off the ground and whooshing past the window. If, like me, you feel your thoughts and tasks and mental to do lists all start to become too much, I’d like to recommend a little ritual. Something that I find comforting and grounding, especially when I’m really busy. I’ve started to replace my morning cuppa with a coconut chai tea. I take my time, stirring the ingredients together and really trying to clear my head, then take it back to bed and sip it slowly.

How Mickey Mouse changed my life #BAHolidayMoments

May 24, 2017/9 Comments/in BLOG, Disney holidays, Holidays, Self, TRAVEL /by English Mum

This post is sponsored by British Airways Holidays.

It’s 2009. I’m with a small group of fellow mums and we’re walking through the gates of Walt Disney World, Florida for the first time ever. Even though we’ve only just met, our excitement has brought us together and we’re firm friends already. Spotting beautiful Cinderella Castle for the first time, pretty, pastel and huge at the end of bustling Main Street USA, we’re already grabbing each other’s hands, laughing and breathless with disbelief.

New hair with The Hair Secret, Berkhamsted

Post 40 beauty: a hair revamp with The Hair Secret, Berkhamsted

May 18, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Fashion and beauty, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

So if you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that I’ve been on a bit of mission recently to take better care of myself. I’ve committed to taking really good care of my skin with the help of the experts, and for a while, I’ve been wondering if my hair couldn’t do with a bit of a revamp as well. You may remember that a while ago I visited Karine Jackson’s salon in London and I absolutely loved the Organic Colour Systems ethos and products. I was even more delighted to find out that there’s a salon even closer to me, The Hair Secret, Berkhamsted, that also uses the Organic Colour Systems range. Owner and Organic Colour Systems Mentor (one of only three in the country), Natalie Lupton invited me to come along and have a really in-depth hair consultation and a bit of a revamp – she also invited me to do it all live on her Insta-stories, which turned out to be the best fun. Here’s how I got on.

Skincare over 40: should you be seeing an expert?

April 4, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Fashion and beauty, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

How much money do you spend on your skin. Cleanser? Moisturiser? Serum? Maybe the odd facial here and there? I’m about the same. I’m very lucky because I do occasionally get gifted lovely items of skincare too. When it comes to tackling skincare over 40, though, I’m starting to wonder if my beauty regime is enough. I’m noticing fine lines (especially in pictures when I smile), and although I slather on the SPF, I’m worried I’m not taking proper care of my skin. I’m also confused things like Botox, fillers and other aesthetic treatments. Are they worth the money?

The Mother’s Day/birthday weekend

March 28, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Cakes & biscuits, Home, Self /by English Mum

I’ve had a think about it, and I’ve decided that having Mother’s Day and my birthday on the same day is the way to go. I appreciate it’s not something I can dictate, but it made for such a wonderful weekend – full of my favourite people, some delicious food, and many laughs – that I think I’m going to try and swing it from now on. We started the Mother’s Day/birthday weekend (or should that be the Motherbirthday weekend?) with a trip to the cinema to see Beauty and the Beast. Oh, I loved it – I adore Emma Watson anyway and Beauty and the Beast has long been my favourite Disney movie, so the combination of the two of them, along with my three favourite men plus being able to sip a glass of wine (the Odeon MK has a gallery area where you can order a drink before your film) while I was watching was possibly the best thing ever.

A smoothie a day…

March 9, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Breakfasts, Cocktails, drinks and liqueurs, LIFE & STYLE, RECIPES, Self /by English Mum

I’m just not really a breakfast person. I’ve tried hard to change this, but the most I generally eat before about 11am are copious cups of tea and maybe a biscuit or a banana. So when Breville came along with their Blend Active Diary Challenge, bandying about phrases like ‘a smoothie a day’, and phrases like ‘lesser used vegetables’ and ‘superfoods’, I was a bit worried I wouldn’t enjoy my challenge week. Still, I’m always up for a bit of experimentation, and let’s face it, an entire healthy meal in a glass sounds like a lazy person’s dream come true. Here’s how I got on:

Revive and relax: a new night time beauty outlook for 2017

January 5, 2017/0 Comments/in BLOG, Fashion and beauty, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

Do you have a proper night time ritual? As part of my new 2017 promise to myself to live a more thoughtful life, I’ve decided that stumbling into bed after too many glasses of wine is just not going to cut it. The lovely chaps at John Lewis have launched a brand new wellbeing campaign for 2017, to encourage us all to be a little kinder to ourselves: to exercise, recharge, and nourish our bodies, and it’s inspired me to take a look at my night time beauty routine. January is a great time to try new skin and hair care as there are often loads of lovely gift sets in the sale too – the perfect way to try out something new and discover some new favourites before buying the larger sizes.

2017: my year of living thoughtfully

January 1, 2017/12 Comments/in BLOG, Home, LIFE & STYLE, Self /by English Mum

2016 has been wonderful and awful all at once. For us as a family, the beginning of 2016 was really just spent thanking our lucky stars that Mr E finally got a job after quite a few months of being unemployed, and was also the year we finally started to get things finished around the house. We’ve had the usual teenage ups and downs: a (minor) car accident, drunken evenings, arguments and girl troubles… but nothing too terrible, thank goodness. In the big wide world, however, and outside of my lovely family, 2016 has been a year of tragedy, sadness and some shocking moments, culminating in the death of the voice of my teenage years, George Michael, and the fabulous Carrie Fisher, making us all pretty keen to wave it goodbye. It has, though, as this fabulous article in The Pool recently pointed out, had the strange side effect of making us all care a little more; it made us a bit more aware of the suffering of others and increased our capacity for empathy. And for that, I guess, we have to be grateful.