a little planning ......

February has certainly felt a little like a hibernation month for me. With a cold blast freezing most of the country for the first 10 days it only now 3 weeks in does it feel like there are signs of spring and that winter is very slowly falling back to sleep. This has given me lots of time in between working and walking to think about what I would like from 2017 and also some small things that I can give back.

I have definitely found that I do like to have one lovely thing to look forward to each month and that kind of makes up for the weekend working and juggling of calendars with friends and loved ones to see everyone and fit things in. I now have planners for planners and also a lovely countdown app which helps me countdown that days to the lovely things booked, which currently include trips to the rugby, opera, holiday and concerts.

2016 was a huge year of change for me with a new job, weight loss and lifestyle and  I hope to continue with those during 2017, although not planning any big changes, I'm still on a path of discovering and lots of new things in my life.  One of the things that I am continuing is my fitness, it has been an instrumental part of the weight loss (especially the last 3 stone) and I know that to maintain the loss that I need to keep active. I have finally invested in a Fit Bit and have spent an hour last night setting it up and I am already having little competions with myself J

I am hoping that it will also aid my last stone of weight loss that I have set myself along with track my training and activity for some challenges that I have set myself for this year.

As some of you know actively took part on the 10,000 steps a day challenge in September for Cancer Research and will be taking up the challenge again for March. Here are some of my memories from last year. I am looking forward to this again and I hope that I have as much fun with it as last time.

I have also signed up to a 10k walk and a 10k run (although I am having serious doubts about my capability to run 10k – still struggling to run 10 minutes) and then later in the year I’m  planning a big walk with a friend of mine. Here's to a fitter February and 2017. I will keep you updated on my progress.

Good Bye January..... Hello February!

So January passed in a whirl of winter weather, tube strikes and little downtime, but what I did manage to grab I spent catching up with friends and loved ones. January also gave me a little time to update the blog with festive activities and also my Slimming world journey in 2016. I have received some lovely comments and messages from blogging and social media friends – thank you for all you encouraging words. I am now on my final stone, which will probably be my hardest to loose and have spent time with my new food planner and slimming world magazine looking for inspiration and motivation.

It was definitely a month of catching up with friends that I haven’t seen for a while, my lovely friend Penny popped up from Cornwall to spend some time with family and we caught up for a long chat over lunch and then coffee with our friend Chris, we had lots to talk about and I hope that one day she will move back nearer. Another friend that came up to London was my lovely friend Caroline, we caught up for drinks when she made her annual post-Christmas trip to the city with her Mum from Devon for a few days. As always it felt like yesterday since I had seen her and it was great catching up over a glass or two, for a friendship that was born out of blog-land I have definitely made a friend for life.

January also saw me say goodbye to a very special friend who passed away quite suddenly. I met her on my first day at work at the tender age of 16 and she took me into her heart and her home and made me feel like one of her own, I have grown up with her boys and although we didn’t see each other lots, I knew that she would be always be by my side if I needed her. I will miss her dreadfully and cherish the time that we shared.

With changing weather conditions (-4’ some mornings) to mornings with beautiful sunrises, January also saw me dust off my trainers and get back to a little running in the park, I was surprised how well I did and will actively step-up the couch to 5k in February. The Zumba classes are definitely paying off with fitness. J

January was definitely a bit of a hibernation month, but I did venture out for an evening at the Theatre to see the fantastic Beverley Knight in The Bodyguard and look forward to seeing her in concert later this year.

So with January over, what does February have instore…….As with every month it’s time for a little blog make-over and also time for some goals and plans for the month:

 With friends celebrating birthdays, it will give me a great opportunity to catch-up post-christmas and just generally have some time chatting and chilling. Also have a special little ladies 14^th birthday in the diary which I am sure will involve cake!

The lighter mornings hopefully will kick start my butt into a little more running and walking, this hopefully will help me to hit my 5 ½ stone target award.

I have a date night with M planned to the theatre to see Dreamgirls which I hope he will enjoy, along with some movie nights and lazy Sundays and rugby fuelled Saturdays (love the 6 nations tournament)

Curry night with the Curry club ladies and a Dinner Date for Valentine’s day are on the agenda along with friends for Sunday Lunch. It’s definitely shaping up to be a friends filled February.

I hope everyone’s February plans are equally as lovely and look forward to reading all about them …….💖

A treat of an evening.....

Wow January has passed in a flash, but before we fall into February I am sharing one more post from my activities over the festive season. An annual tradition for me for many years is to see The Nutcracker Ballet, whether in New York of London, I always try to get to see a performance. This year I managed to get tickets for the English National Ballets performance at the London Coliseum, where I booked to take a friend for their 50^th birthday. (they had never been to the ballet and I was able to put a big tick against a wish on their bucket list)

To make the evening even more special I surprised them with starting the evening in The Savoy for drinks before moving onto The Ivy Grill Marketplace in Covent Garden for dinner. This was my first time at this restaurant and I loved it, ambience is gorgeous and the food was delicious. It was the perfect prequel to a delightful evening at the ballet.

The Savoy this year was a decorated opulently in pinks and silver and was just beautiful. The tree in the foyer was sponsored by the jewellers Boodles and was very pink but oh so pretty.💗

The interior of The Savoy was as equally as beautiful in greens and silver with a real art deco style and just quite magical.






The Ivy Marketplace was equally as gorgeous in a colourful cacophony of baubles, wreaths and a stunning tree outside in the courtyard which complemented the large baubles and mistletoe decor of Covent Garden.
This did nothing to distract how delicious the food was, a perfect venue for pre-theatre or a special dinner.

After a very lovely supper it was a short stroll to The Coliseum, where we were swept up in the magic and sparkle of a Christmas Ballet.
No matter how many times I have seen The Nutcracker I never grow old of it and it is a delightful treat to watch and see the delight on my friends face. 
The Nutcracker featured lots in my Christmas 2016 - from the fabulous Nutcracker Soldiers outside Liberty's that I walked past most days, to Candles burning on the fireside and tags on the tree I have lots of lovely memories to add to 2016's Christmas album and look back on in future years.

Movie Moments ....

Movie moments were few and far between for me in 2016, for someone who usually has a list of movie musts at the beginning of each year to see, 2016 was definitely a little lack lustre in the cinema world. Two favourites for the year were Bridget Jones Baby which I saw a couple of times at the cinema with the girls and again snuggled on the sofa on New Year’s Day and MeBefore You which I just loved. Two other movies that I saw over the festive season also joined the favourite list was the much anticipated JK Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and where to find them and Sully. 

I saw Fantastic Beasts in 3D at the Imax in London and loved the whole experience. It was my first trip to the Imax and I was super impressed with the service, ambience and space of the cinema. The movie was also in 3D, something I’ve not done in a long time, probably since those early years of 3D when it was all a little bit hit and miss with the visuals, however how much has time changed.

For those not familiar with the synopsis the movie is set in New York in 1926 and in the Harry Potter universe Gellert Grindelward is terrorising the magical community. Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) travels from London to New York with a briefcase full of magical creatures. Unfortunately not all the fantastic beasts want to stay hidden in Newt’s case and escape into the streets of New York. JK’s imagination astounds me and her creation of these magical creatures from her head to paper is just amazing. Set in the early 20’s transports this film back into an era where people lived in fear of satanic influences (references to Salem and its witchcraft’s) creating an underworld within the subways and back streets of New York. Newt meets some loveable witches along with a muggle that joins his adventures. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie and it may not have captured my heart as much as Harry but one  little creature sure did!.... the loveable thief of shiny belongings, a Niffler – so cute and very naughty he made me laugh throughout the movie. JK’s genius has done it again and look forward to the next adventure along with seeing her private investigator Comoron Strike come to life on the TV later this year.

My second movie of choice is Sully – Tom Hanks taking the lead and telling the story of the pilot that landed an aeroplane on the Hudson River on the 15^th January 2009, saving 155 lives and avoiding an aviation disaster. Most of us can remember the Miracle on the Hudson story and probably think that with 24 hour news coverage and social media that there isn’t much of a story to tell, what Sully does is show the impact that this has on his life and the investigation behind the scenes. It’s a fascinating and thrilling film, where you see a national hero come under immense scrutiny from the aviation companies and insurance corporations for saving 155 lives. Set in New York, this film has definitely ignited the flame to return to this fabulous city later this year.

A great film that will keep you entertained throughout, Tom Hanks is effortless throughout showcasing everything he does well being fantastically directed by Clint Eastwood.

Two great family entertaining films to finish the year off both set in New York but couldn't be any more different in genre and style ….. now off to compile my list for 2017!

Theatre Nights ......

So I was lucky enough to get to the theatre 3 times over the festive season – twice in the West End and then again at my local theatre and loved every minute.

My first theatre night was early December where I was fortunate enough to have bagged a preview ticket for the much anticipated Dreamgirls staging. Those familiar with the movie (Beyoncé , Jennifer Hudson & Jamie Foxx ) will know that it follows a trio of girls who in the early 60’s embark on a journey which sees them taken from backing vocals to being the star act across the globe, based loosely on the story of Diana Ross and The Supremes, it is not without its back stabbing and jealousy’s and a fantastic soundtrack.

 Taking the lead role of Effie is the extremely talented Amber Riley (formerly Mercedes from Glee and currently part of the judging panel on Let it Shine) who was made for this part. With a ‘Full House’ board displayed outside The Savoy theatre there was much anticipation and excitement in the air before a note was sung on stage.  Staged a little different to the film it is the role of Effie that takes the lead and Amber Riley is just fabulous, having loved her voice in Glee I was interested to see how much of that was ‘real’ or just edited for TV. I can honestly say that this girl has the most amazing voice and belts out the soundtrack – it is the first time that I have been to the theatre and an actress has received a standing ovation as the curtain closed at half time.

With a great supporting cast, this is a fantastic feel good trip to the theatre and as good as the movie. Highly recommend seeing this before the cast move on to other things, I enjoyed it so much I came home and booked tickets for February to take a friend.

My second trip to the bright lights of the West End was to take a friend (M) to see The Bodyguard, and I bagged tickets for it penultimate night before it heads to Toronto. This also happened to fall on 12^th night after Christmas and felt like the final festive treat before saying goodbye to Christmas 2016.

 I saw The Bodyguard a couple of years ago when Beverley Knight was playing the lead and was thrilled that she had returned for its final run. Those familiar with the movie will know that the two lead characters played by Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner take on the role of famous singer / movie star and a bodyguard. Ben Lister (Casualty, The Bill / Footballers wives fame) takes up the role as The Bodyguard and plays it brilliantly. Again with a full house, this was a fun packed evening filled with lots of trips down memory lane and a soundtrack that you could sing and dance along to until the final curtain. Beverley Knight is fabulous and really doesn’t get the accolades that she deserves as a female British singer. Sadly The Bodyguard has now finished its run in The West End and I am glad that we caught it before it closed.

My final trip to the theatre was a little closer to home where New Year’s eve eve saw us take in the local pantomime of Cinderella. I haven’t been to the pantomime since I was a little girl, when my nan and gramps used to take all the grandchildren and I had forgotten how much cheesy fun it could be. Annual trip to the pantomime is a tradition of M’s and I am sure that it will become mine now as we laughed lots and got involved in all the banter of “booing” and  “he’s behind you”, I must hasten to say I was a little more reluctant than M! Obviously the Ugly Sisters stole the show with their double entendres which were wasted on the kids but loved by the adults.

For a local show the cast was great and super talented as they all at some point during the show played musical instruments on stage – it’s the first time I’ve ever seen Cinderella playing a trombone! I had a fun filled evening and now look forward to this Christmas delights.