It's been a while since I've shared a recipe post so I thought that today I'd share a recipe for one of my favourite breakfasts right now.  I have been struggling with my self confidence again recently and one of the things I've always had a difficult relationship with, due to my anxiety, is food.  My anxiety causes a loss of appetite and my IBS to really flare up, I also struggle to eat anything that I don't particularly love, as rather than force myself to eat something I don't particularly want I'd just rather go without.  This has lead to me eating a lot of comfort food lately and has left me feeling sluggish and unhappy with my body again.  Over the years I have realised that I have an unhealthy relationship with food and eating.  I'm hoping that opening up about this and being able to share healthy recipes and keep track of my progress here may help and enable me to get the body confidence back to get back to sharing what I love to most here on the blog, outfit posts.

Yesterday I began Kayla Itsines BBG exercise program and I am determined to stick to it.  I plan to follow it as best I can, I know I'll be fine with the exercise side it's the food side I will struggle with.  Therefore I have decided not to be too strict with myself with the meal plan and just try and use it as a rough guide and make meals that are healthy but that I also love to eat so that I don't skip meals.  One of the hardest meals for me is breakfast, up until recently I very very rarely ate breakfast, it has always been one of my least favourite meals of the day.  There are very few breakfasts that I actually enjoy and would prefer to just skip it but recently I have found a couple that I'm really enjoying.  The first is protein pancakes.  Pancakes would always be my first choice for breakfast if I ever did eat it but they're not the healthiest, so to find a healthy alternative has been a huge blessing for me.  So I thought I'd share the recipe and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Ingredients

1 tsp coconut oil

1 egg

1 banana

30g chocolate whey protein

2 small handfuls of berries (fresh or frozen)

1 tbsp honey

Method

1. Place the egg, banana and protein into a blender and mix until smooth.

2. Place the berries and honey in a small pan and leave to soften on a low heat.

3. Whilst the berries are softening heat the coconut oil in a non stick frying pan on a medium-high heat.  Pour the pancake mixture into three small puddles in the frying pan (I like to make them small as they are a softer than normal pancakes and the bigger they are the harder I find them to flip) leave to cook for around 1-2 minutes and then flip and cook for 1 minute on the other side. Then pile onto a plate.  Repeat until you have used all the mixture (makes approx 9-12 small pancakes depending on the size)

4. Give the berries and honey a good stir and then pour on top of the pancakes.

These pancakes are super quick and easy to make and taste delicious.  What is your favourite thing to have for breakfast?  If you have any great healthy recipes to share please do let me know in the comments.

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I got this set of mini Sleek Matte Me lip creams just before Christmas so unfortunately it's no longer available but thought I'd still do a little review on them anyway as the full size versions are available here, which I will definitely be stocking up on once these have run out.

First of all lets talk about the packaging, why is everything just so much more appealing when it comes in miniature?!!  Am I the only one that gets sucked in by this?  The packaging is really simple and, dare I say it, sleek.  These little miniature versions are also perfect for popping in a little clutch bag on a night out and the colours are just perfect.  There's not a single one of these that I don't wear, which is not always the case when products come in a set like this, there's normally always one that finds its way to the bottom of my makeup bag never to be seen again.

L-R: Rioja Red, Birthday Suit, Velvet Slipper, Old Hollywood

For ages I have avoided matte lips as no matter what time of the year I tend to suffer with very dry lips.  I love the look of matte lips though so I was determined to give them a try.  What I have learnt though is that it is all about the prep, even if you don't suffer with dry lips I would still suggest you prep your lips first as I find these lip creams last a lot longer when you prep your lips properly.  Firstly I brush my lips with a toothbrush to scrub away all the dry skin and then I exfoliate them even further with my trusty Lush Lip Scrub.  Then I like to generously apply plenty of lip balm (my favourite being Burt's Bees) and leaving that to work it's magic whilst I apply the rest of my makeup. This to me is one of the most important steps, letting your lips fully absorb the balm before applying the lip cream, as I have once not done this when I was in a rush and lets just say it was a big slippery mess and bleeding lip stains.  Not pretty!!  

Onto the actual formula itself, when first applied the product has quite a creamy texture and glides on nicely but I feel like you have to work quite quickly as it doesn't take long to dry and get that tacky feeling before it dries fully.  Once dry though that lip cream is not budging, especially the two darker shades.  I have both eaten and drank with these lip creams on and it has not budged and has only required minimal top ups.  The Old Hollywood shade especially needs a good old scrub to be removed.

                                              

                          Birthday Suit and Velvet Slipper   

Have you tried the Sleek Matte Me lip creams before?  Which is your favourite?

                          

Jacket // Backpack // Phone Case // Shorts // Shoes // Travel Bag // Earrings // Purse // Sweatshirt

If you read my birthday post you will have already seen that my main present was a trip to Disneyland.  I'm not going until December but the excitement is just too much that I have already been planning my wardrobe, which has left me with a wishlist the length of my arm.  I have already managed to get my hands on THAT Lazy Oaf hoodie, which will be coming with me and I can't wait to wear, but here are some of my other favourites that are at the top of my wishlist.

I am completely in love with the Alice in Wonderland bomber, they also have several other bombers including a lovely mint green Little Mermaid one but I think I would get more wear out of this one.  I included the shorts because I just love them and would be more practical if your planning a trip to Disney this summer.  The travel bag is pretty self explanatory... could there be a more perfect piece of hand luggage for a trip to Disneyland.  Then there's the Kate Spade purse, soooo cute but a tad pricey, the backpack however is just as cute but a lot more affordable.  The shoes and earrings are just to add a bit of sparkle and to bring a more subtle hint of Disney to outfits.  I have also fallen in love with these watercolour Disney phone cases, so much so that I'm even contemplating something similar for my next tattoo.  Yes, after only just finding the nerve to get my first tattoo, I am already planning the next one!

Seeing as I've got until December until I go I can see myself adding a few more of these to my wardrobe by then.  Even if you don't have a trip to Disneyland planned who doesn't love a bit of Disney in their life right?!!

If you follow me on instagram you may have seen that yesterday I took a trip to Brighton.  Not only was this a feat in itself, being the furthest I've travelled with my anxiety in nearly two years, but I also went to get my first tattoo!  I've always wanted a tattoo but have been to indecisive and afraid to actually get it done.  Last year when I started to step out of my comfort zone and face my fears I made the decision that I wanted to get the tattoo and made it one of my goals for this year.  So when I  came across the wonderful Gee on instagram I just knew she had to be the one to do it.

The night before I barely slept due to a whole mix of emotions, I was nervous about travelling, nervous about getting it done... What if I had a panic attack and she couldn't finish it?...  All mixed with the excitement of finally finding the courage to be brave enough to do it.  This time last year it wouldn't have been something that I could even consider doing as my anxiety was way too bad.  The three and a half hour drive to Brighton gave myself plenty of time to work my nerves into a frenzy but luckily Gee was amazing.  She was so lovely, made me feel so comfortable and I don't think I could have found a more perfect person to tattoo me.  Not only was I able to get my first tattoo but my second one too!

I knew I wanted my first tattoo to be a quote that I could look down at and be reminded that no matter how tough it gets I can get through it and have before.  I have always loved this quote and although I tried to find something else that was a bit shorter, I just kept coming back to this quote so I knew it had to be the one.  When Gee showed me the design I knew I'd made the right decision as the font was perfect and exactly the type of thing I had described to her.  I really didn't know what to expect when she started to tattoo me, but surprisingly it didn't hurt at all and I now understand what people mean when they say it's hard to describe what it feels like.  The only way I can think to describe what it feels like is a slight scratching and vibrating feeling.  When I was trying to decide on my tattoo there were two different ideas that I just couldn't decide between so I decided that I would get both if the first one went well.  Thankfully it did because I loved the second design Gee came up with for me just as much.

I had toyed with the idea of having the word strength written on my wrist to remind me that I am stronger than I think and can get through the anxieties that life throw at me.  When looking at tattoos I saw lots of different of images of people with that tattoo and I just wanted something that felt more unique to me.  I also liked the idea of having an arrow tattooed on me to represent the struggle of being pulled back by my anxiety and moving forward to face and hopefully beat these anxieties.  I knew I still wanted it to represent strength too so looked for ideas for symbols of strength, and as soon as I saw this celtic one I knew that had to be the one with my Dad's side of the family being irish.  I asked if she could incorporate these things into one whole design and this is what she came up with.  I absolutely love it!!

I can't even begin to describe I how pleased I felt with myself after this experience.  Gee was absolutely amazing and I trusted her completely.  I think a big part of the experience was ensuring I had the right person doing it and I felt completely comfortable with her.  I couldn't have asked for it to go any more smoothly than it did.  This whole experience of travelling and getting these tattoos done has given me the massive boost of confidence I needed to face my anxieties head on and I will have a permanent reminder of this now and know that I can do it!!

Top - Primark

Dress - River Island

Boots - River Island

I got these gold boots before Christmas and I am obsessed with them, they are great for adding a touch of luxe to simpler outfits, especially jeans and t-shirts.  I love them so much that I got an almost identical pair in silver after Christmas too.  I think it's safe to say that I have a slight obsession with metallic shoes at the moment!

If you read my last post you will have seen that I recently turned 30 and I really realised that I'm getting old as it is the first Easter that I woke up to not one single Easter Egg :(  The only day it's acceptable to eat chocolate for breakfast and I didn't have any to eat.  My mum later surprised us with a Lindt one for me and my boyfriend to share, which cheered me up.  We also placed a cheeky little Hotel Chocolat order in their Easter sale and got a couple of their amazing Easter eggs half price.  I cannot wait for those to arrive!!  I will then be spending the rest of the month trying to work off all my birthday cake and that chocolate!  Hope you all had a fun and chocolate filled Easter.

I have also just booked to go and have my daith pierced.  It's something that I've been wanting to do for a while and I've finally plucked up the courage to go and get it done.  Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly and without a panic attack.  Would love to hear your experiences if any of you have had it done?

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I've been dreading this birthday for a while now and I have to admit I was getting a little depressed about it last week, but last weekend I turned 30.  I know age is only a number but I just feel like 30 is one of those milestone ages where you start to reflect on the things you've done, or in my case haven't done.  When you're a teenager 30 seems so far away and you have all these visions of what you will have achieved and where you will be in life.  So feeling like I haven't really achieved any of these things started to get me down.  I feel like I wasted most of my 20's letting my anxiety and depression take over my life, turning down opportunities, shutting myself away and letting life just pass me by.  Now I have come to terms with being more accepting of my anxiety I know that dwelling on this is not helpful, so I pulled myself together and decided that I would have a weekend of celebrations.  My 30's will be my decade and I will grab onto any opportunity possible no matter how much my anxiety tells me not to.

I started my weekend off with a trip to Twycross Zoo, one of my favourite places.  I always used to go to the zoo on my birthday and I've been dying to go since my anxiety started to improve.  As you can see the weather was definitely on our side and it was a beautiful sunny day.  So sunny in fact that I came home to find my shoulders sunburnt!  I didn't even realise it was that warm.  The zoo is one of my happy places, I love animals so much and I feel like when I walk around places like this I do so with a permanent smile on my face.  Me and my boyfriend then went to a pub that had the biggest and most incredible cakes, I really could not get over the size of the slices.  I was a complete failure as a blogger though and forgot to take a picture, I will definitely be going back though so I'm sure I'll be able to share that with you another time.  If I can hold myself back long enough to take a picture, ha ha.

Sunday was my actual birthday, and as I mentioned the cake from the night before was huge so I decided to finish it off for breakfast.  Well, if you can't have cake for breakfast on your birthday when can you?!  I then opened my cards and presents from my family but a special shout out has to go to my boyfriend who surprised me with a trip to Disneyland!!  It has filled me with a mixture of anxiety and excitement but I'm hoping as time goes on the excitement will overtake my anxiety.  I have been wanting to go for so long and I may have just turned 30 but who isn't a big kid at heart when it comes to Disney?  

As it was another nice sunny day we took the dogs for a nice relaxing walk around Rufford Park in the sunshine before coming home to get ready for dinner.  I went with some family and friends to a Teppanyaki restaurant that I'd been wanting to try for a while and it was amazing.  Having someone stood cooking your food fresh in front of you is more entertaining than it sounds, as they do put on a little bit of a show with a few tricks and fire, and everything tasted delicious.  We were there over two hours and the time just flew by.  We then all came back to my house for champagne and cake.

It really makes me feel accomplished sitting and writing this post and looking at how much I've done for my birthday.  To some it may not seem that great, but considering my last birthday was spent at home with a takeaway barely able to leave the house, it's amazing to see how far I've come in a year by being able to eat out, go to the zoo and even book a trip to Disneyland.  Something that not long ago I would've never even thought I'd be able to say.

Hope you all had a great weekend.