Eggs, wine & working bees

1. Friday night magazine & wine while Nick put Lulu down to sleep
2. Sunday morning Mum & Daughter cooked breakfast
3. Daycare working bee

Somehow I didn't take end up taking any photos on Saturday. I had a work related workshop Saturday morning, a friend dropped by in the afternoon for chats and champagne, then Nick & I finally watched Skyfall in the evening. Most evenings we're too tired to watch anything more than a half hour TV show, but we managed to stay the distance! Do you have this problem?

Exercise Stats

My early morning Super Saturday workout set up. Excuse the dirty glass.

I eased back into things this week:

Monday - Up early to do the 12WBT set 'outdoor' workout indoors because it was too cold and dark to go outdoors

Tuesday - Rest day

Wednesday - Afternoon workout - Week 1 of Gillian Michaels 30 Day Shred

Thursday - Up early to do Michelle Bridges Project Extreme Cardio workout before heading to work. I hadn't done this workout in a while & when I finished my back started spasming, so I don't think I'll be doing it again. I think it is just too jarring for me. Luckily I had a scheduled physio appointment that day & could get it looked at straight away.

Friday - Supposed to do stretching while Lulu napped but I got frocked up for our trip into town instead.

Saturday - 12WBT set Super Saturday Workout. I'm a little ashamed to say that this is only the second time in two rounds of 12WBT that I have done the Super Saturday set workout. It nearly killed me.

Sunday - Rest day

Did you manage to fit in any workouts this week? I need to up my game next week with a few more workouts & less rest days. 

Link Love

Then came the rain. This week has been everything you would want winter to be. Grey, cool and rainy. Perfect for cozy knits, cuddling on the couch and winter warmer meals. My mother-in-law cooked us a lamb shank stew Wednesday night, it was so delicious.

This weeks links include:

6 tips for photographing your child on A Cup of Jo

I love the beautiful home photos on Hanna's Room Blog

The girls from A Beautiful Mess have released A Beautiful Mess Photo App. Great for adding cute sayings and doodles to your photo, just like the one above. This is an extremely cheap alternative to buying photoshop & then only using it for little things like adding text to photos. And to be honest, I am just blown away by someone who can create their own app - what cleaver chops those gals are.

And from the Girl in the Pjs archives, my recipe for Easy Chicken Soup - perfect for these grey, chilly days.

Hope you have a delightful weekend x

Frockin' up - Saturday night

Last Saturday night we had a farewell for friends of ours who are heading to Germany for a few months before their wedding, which will be over there. This is what I wore:
Dress - Sportsgirl
Necklace - Sportsgirl
Footless tights - Bonds
Shoes - Seed
I often end up wearing thongs (flipflops) all the time, so it was nice to crack out the fancy Seed slip on shoes.

Essentials for camping with a baby

The weekend before last we went camping with Lulu and friends of ours who also had small children. We'd never been camping before with Lulu but with a little preparation on Nick's behalf, we managed to be quite well set up. Here is our list of essentials:

- Our friends brought a kids camping chair (1.). Lulu could not fathom how to get out of it and stayed sitting in it for a really long time. Bring one. Kids like having something especially for them that looks exactly like what the adults are using.
- A tent (2. ). No longer can just a swag (3.) do for camping. Kids need to be contained at nighttime. Nick bought one that not only fit a double & single swag but also Lulu's pram!
- A camping light (4.). The number of times we have gone camping without one cannot be counted. A light is a must for late night feedings inside that tent.
- Extra sheets for when the baby vomits in her swag (5.). I did not bring any extra sheets so she ended up sleeping in our swag & then the pram for most of the night.

Do you have anything to add to the list?

Exhibitions, Climbing & Champagne

1. Lulu's first time at an exhibition opening Friday night. The exhibition was Wendy Sharpe 'Truth or Dare'. Very colourful paintings of voluptuous women.
2. Hiking Mt Gillen for my friends hens 'party' Saturday morning. This post has a photo of the whole mountain.
3. We made it!
4. Our picnic breakfast, with champagne, at the top of the mountain - The thought of this breakfast helped us get to the top.
5. Lulu & I on Mother's Day - I was spoiled with Aesop products and a cute vase. Lulu's personal shopper sure knows what I like. My mother-in-law & sister-in-law also spoiled me with a new clutch & my mum make me a beautiful card. Not to mention a lovely brunch & Nick cooking dinner.
6. Nick and Lulu working in the garden Sunday afternoon while it drizzled rain.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and a lovely Mother's Day x

And a big congratulations to Clare Bizley, winner of the postcard giveaway!!

Link Love

Some days you just have to take it easy. I woke up yesterday with good intentions to exercise in the park with the other mums, but Lulu went down for her nap at 8:30am and I didn't want to wake her by taking her over to the park. I exercised at home (for the first time this week) while she snoozed. Then the cat curled up next to me while I surfed the net. It was delightful.

Catching my interest on the interwebs this week:
Briana from Bionic Briana has a recipe for homemade liquid soap.
Tips on straightening your hair from Zoe at fruity beauty - I straightened my hair for the first time in years the other night, it didn't take anywhere near as long as I thought it would, so I just may keep it up.
A cool Sydney home with a great kitchen on The Design Files

And thanks for all the lovely comments on the new look blog! I'm really enjoying having a new space within which to create posts. There is still time to enter the giveaway.

x

Finishing my 2nd Round of 12WBT

This past week I finished round two of the 12 Week Body Transformation. This round I learnt so much more than last round. 

I focused on eating healthy, within the 1200 calorie limit. I made sure I snacked healthily between each major meal, giving me enough energy to exercise in the afternoon. 

I upped the exercise, exercising 6 days a week, but probably not as hard as I should have. I sprained my ankle in week 5 and then hurt my back in week 7, so I've had a few major hurdles that have slowed down my exercise program. 

I'm within 500g (1 pound) of my goal weight, which I am pretty happy about, but I am going to sign up again for this next round. I love the food program (having someone else tell me what to cook makes it much easier) and I really want to start following the set exercise program more carefully. Strong and lean here I come. I'll be posting more this coming round about my exercise, so stay tuned. 

Photo: Mt Gillen on the left, as seen from ANZAC Hill at sunset. I've started doing the ANZAC Hill climb a few times a week & this coming Saturday morning I'll be tackling Mt Gillen, wish me luck!