Thursday 31 May 2012

The whole truth?





Coffee and baby cuddles, does it get better? We're about to head out for a walk, I'm going to buy some silken tofu as I've read you can make nice and healthy desserts with it. I know I sounds like a health freak at the moment, but that's only because I am failing to mention (hmm, wonder why?) all the bad stuff I eat. Yesterday when I woke up from a nap, feeling rubbish, I ate a packet of crisps and a bowl of crunchy nut cornflakes but somehow that didn't make it on to the blog! But every day is a new day and I consider it a clean slate and a fresh start. I don't do guilt, I think it's nothing but counterproductive.

They're good for you!


Una is napping and I am eating some delicious coconut and almond pancakes. Really yummy as well as healthy and wheat free! I didn't have any cream at home so I am having them with creme fraiche flavored with cinnamon. I'll post the recipe later!





I will survive

I woke up this morning with a sore throat, that sort of explains my funny mood yesterday afternoon. Hopefully I can combat the oncoming cold with good food and rest.


Berries for breakfast is a good start. I love summer!


And coffee of course. A weak one unfortunately, as we were nearly out of coffee.

Wednesday 30 May 2012

Boo!

Ugh! I am on a downer tonight! The day started out great but went downhill in the afternoon. I'm in an awful mood, feel tired in spite of (or because of?) a nap on the couch with Una and I've eaten lots of rubbish to make myself feel better, which of course never works. James is putting Una to bed, we've just had a beetroot and goats cheese salad for dinner. I'm going to have a few strawberries and blueberries for dessert, have a nice shower and an early night. Hopefully I'll feel better in the morning!

Morning sunshine!

We've had a remarkably good night. Una fed at 11pm, 3.45 am and woke up 6.30. Amazing! Now we are in the park waiting for Aga and her charge Kai. Holland Park is so beautiful and the sun in strong and hot. Una is snoozing in the pushchair.











I hope your morning is as chilled as mine!

Tuesday 29 May 2012

Too right!

Una is sleeping, I've been to the gym, had a shower and am chilling in my pyjamas. About to indulge in some pizza and a small glass of wine. I'm going to try and get to bed early tonight. Una woke up at 5 in the morning and didn't want to go back to sleep, even though she was clearly tired. After an hour and a half of rocking and soothing she finally settled. I made a silly mistake at the gym, we were doing leg lifts and I didn't register that we were meant to switch legs, so kept going on the same leg. I only noticed my mistake when we switched to sit-ups. Wonder if I will have a limp tomorrow??

A day in the sun

Saturday afternoon we had a BBQ in the garden. The first real one of the summer, which is surprising since James is obsessed with them! Good food, good weather and good company made for a perfect afternoon.















Saturday 26 May 2012

TGI Friday

Me and my shorts are out for the night.


A couple of bottles of wine in the Mitre in Holland Park with my friend Aga.


Now home and bed.

Friday 25 May 2012

Run like the wind

After a poor nights sleep I still put my trainers on first thing this morning and went for a run. I have to admit, I hate running. It's boring. I much prefer doing exercise classes with music, partly because I find it much more motivating to try and keep up with a group, but also because I love dancing.



After showering and putting Una down for a nap, I could finally sit down and eat breakfast, my favourite meal of the day. I love Finn crisp topped with a mix of feta cheese and creme fraiche. Some chopped red pepper or spring onion sprinkled on top and a latte, yum.



Una is snoozing on the couch, this heat is too much for her.



Sensible city shorts suitable for a mum!

Thursday 24 May 2012

Who you callin' chicken?

Another boiling day today, I've barely been able to leave house in this heat. All I managed was a quick trip to high street ken to buy some shorts. I tried on a few pairs of super short shorts and was tempted, but then I thought better of it and bought some sensible city shorts instead. I got back to a very tired and hot baby. She definitely is more Irish than African, she is not a fan of the heat!


I cooked a roast chicken for the very first time this evening! Apart from thinking it had its head up it's bum (clearly anatomy is not my strong point) it all went very well and the chicken turned out moist and delicious.


I made potato salad for James and courgette salad for me. A great low carb substitute!


It's still so hot I am drinking my wine with ice. I couldn't resist popping an ice cube in my mouth like old times, I ate ice like mad when I was pregnant. It wasn't as nice as I remembered!

Wednesday 23 May 2012

Then again, who doesn't?

Love summer. Love scorching 27 degree days. Love eating a chorizo and cannellini bean salad in the garden at 8 pm and it's still hot outside.





Little napper






I'm pretty lucky to have a park a stones throw away from our flat. I popped to the shop and Una fell asleep in the pushchair so we just strolled down to the park and I chilled while Una napped.

who's who?




Anna Wintour?




Una?

Good to the Morning

Good morning to one and all! Una slept in her cot ALL NIGHT! She did wake up quite a few times but settled back in her cot ever time. At 5.30 she seemed to think it was morning and time to get up. No chance I'm getting up that early, I'm afraid. She got the message in the end and went back to sleep until 7. All in all a great night, thank you very much. Unfortunately I didn't get to bed until midnight so I'm pretty knackered.


So far I've fed Una, cleaned the bathroom, got dressed and had breakfast. Amazing how much you can get done when you get up at such an ungodly hour! Now I just need to get myself and Una ready before we head out to Holland park to meet my friend Aga and her charge.

Tuesday 22 May 2012

Death becomes me

I spent my afternoon in the garden with Una after my baking experience failed miserably. Don't ask.... James had to bake a new cake and mine went straight in the bin. Moving on! I joined a friend at her gym tonight for a Legs, Bums and Tums class. Man, oh man! It was so hard... Weights! Squats! Crunches! All these alien things! It was pretty gruesome. However I must say I really enjoyed it and probably, maybe, I'll go back. I fear my body will be rather sore tomorrow. I also very nearly fell down the stairs at the gym as my legs had turned to jelly. But now I feel great and very proud of myself!


I came back to a yummy prawn, smoked salmon, avocado and grapefruit salad.


Now shower and bed I think. And so the battle of Una and The Cot continues, will anyone sleep tonight I wonder? Having said that she is currently asleep IN HER COT! I just hope she doesn't wake up to feed every 2 hours, like she did last night. My little Uni Macarooni, bless her little heart.



Rasberry ripple





A delicious but healthy breakfast treat to start the day today! Frozen raspberries defrosted in the microwave, rippled through greek yoghurt and topped with my home made "musli" consisting of nuts and seeds. Today I am going to attempt to bake a hummingbird red velvet cake for a friend who is turning 27 today, wish me luck!

Monday 21 May 2012

You are what you eat

I know I am posting a lot about food, only because I really LOVE food! Unfortunately I've been loving food a bit too much. When I was pregnant I was unable to resist eating whatever I wanted, my appetite was HUGE! I didn't feel right about denying myself anything when I was ravenous all the time. Pregnancy is not a time for watching your weight! The morning sickness/tiredness and heaviness made even walking a huge effort so needless to say I wasn't taking much exercise. Now, 3 months after Una was born, I weigh about a stone more than my normal weight (I think, I don't own scales!). It doesn't bother me massively, but I'd be lying if I said I'm not hoping to get back to somewhere in the region of my pre-preg weight. Thus I have adopted a healthier way of eating. Cutting out sugar and starchy foods. Focusing on protein, fat and vegetables.


Because of this change in diet I seem to be eating nicer food than ever before, which is why I want to share it with you! I will post some recipes as soon as I get round to it, I have a couple of cookie recipes (yes, cookies! Healthy cookies!) you need to try.

Breakfast fit for a champion

Una is having a nap and I am having breakfast, watching Real Housewives of Orange County. I can't help but love that show.




Coffee, eggs, bacon and Finn crisp, everything I need to fight off the tiredness after Una using me as a dummy all night, bless her little heart.

Saturday 19 May 2012

Woke up on the wrong side of town....




I am not in a good mood today! We didn't get a very good nights sleep. Now my hair looks like shit, I can't reach my cup of coffee (which is going cold as we speak) and I have a ton of boring chores to do today, as always.

On the bright side my sister is coming over today! Sniffing baby scent to cheer myself up before she gets here....

Friday 18 May 2012

It is Friday after all...

Is it wrong to eat feta cheese with a fork straight from the packet? I think not.



Wednesday 16 May 2012

Wednesday morning

After our second playgroup experience this morning we've headed to Holland park with my friend and her little charge. While they play on the slide Una and I are enjoying the sunshine. Could summer finally be on its way?




Tuesday 15 May 2012

The elusive self-esteem

Now that I am a mother I am always thinking about how my actions and decisions will affect my daughter and her life. It's no longer all about me, there is a new focus. There are a lot of practicalities to consider, I think about where we will live, what kind of school she will go to. I think about how I can incorporate the swedish language and culture in her life. I think about how I should best enable her to have close relationships with her grandmother and uncles in sweden. I also think about how my actions and decisions will affect the way she feels herself. If I am worrying about my weight and displaying negative feelings towards my body, what signals am I sending to her? If I take drastic actions to change my appearance (dieting, cosmetic procedures such as botox or even surgery) am I showing her that if she isn't "pretty" or young looking, she isn't good enough? The big one for me is how to instil high self-esteem in her. It is, as we all know, key to happiness and is the foundation of self confidence and other positive emotional characteristics. All parents want their children to have high self esteem, but HOW do we go about insuring our children get it? Self-esteem is known to be massively affected by experience in childhood, such as abuse or bereavement. But I wouldn't say it's as simple as that. I had a good childhood with loving parents. They separated when I was very young, but I never experienced negative emotions towards this (that I can remember) and my father continued to be a part of and take an interest in my life. I was always told I was loved, my mother always had time for me, listened to me and took me seriously. I had a good relationship with my siblings, was never bullied in school (on the contrary, I was always liked and had many friends) and I never went through any major traumatic events. In spite of all this I would say I have fairly low self-esteem. I worry a lot about what people think if me, if I am good enough. For example, before posting something on my blog I will consider how it may be received and what it could infer to the reader about me as a person. I don't assume that people like me or that what I have to say is interesting. Because of this I am quite jokey, in an attempt to get people to like me. I'm scared of embarrassing myself to the extent of not wanting to do things I am not very good at (like bowling!), or attempt things I might be bad at, for fear of what people will think of me (because of this I loathed P.E and stopped going all together at the age of 13). None of this is particularly extreme or uncommon, but I would say it points towards low self-esteem. I'd like to improve this because I believe it has held me back in work and affects my relationships with other people. But mainly I'd like to improve my self-esteem so that I can in turn teach my daughter to have high self-esteem. All I have to do is figure out how to do this... Easier said than done! Hopefully as I read up on the subject I can post about my findings here, stay tuned! (I was just about to add a disclaimer about any mistakes or repetitions in this text (typing with a baby on my lap!) but realise this is another example of second guessing myself!)

Because I'm worth it...




Everybody needs cream cakes in their lives, right?

Pigs do fly

Yesterday was a very special day. It was the day I put on that hard earned sports bra and braved the rain as I went for my first ever run since getting pregnant. Also my first ever proper exercise since giving birth (all I've done so far is walk with the push chair). I ran for 15 minutes at a pensioners pace, but it felt good and I can feel it in my legs today. That to me equals success. Look how pleased I look!




For lunch I had a protein rich fry up, just what I needed.





Monday 14 May 2012

And a good morning to you!




At 7.30 this morning Una decided it was time to get up, I think my glory days as a lazy mum are well and truly behind me. But I don't mind so much when it's nice and bright outside, it'll be a lot worse in winter. With my yoghurt, nuts, seeds and berries combo I'm treating myself to a coffee this morning instead of my usual tea, it feels like that kind of day.

Sunday 13 May 2012

The morning after the night before...

I'm sporting the hungover look and no amount of make up can hide it. An early dinner with two lovely ladies yesterday turned in to tapas and 3 bottles of wine! In bed by 11.30 but still felt a little rough this morning.



Friday 11 May 2012

Must haves

I was in Holland Park this morning meeting a friend for coffee when I popped in to Baby Gap to check out the sale. They had some great bargains and I had to pick up a couple of things for Una. I got a cute little vest from the DVF collection and an adorable playsuit.




Yesterday we went to high street Kensington to find me a sports bra. It was a rather stressful experience as Una woke up hungry and started fussing and I had picked up all the wrong sizes as usual. After a very sweaty 20 minutes I found one that fitted and did a good job stopping my boobs from jiggling as I jumped up and down in the fitting room. I also found myself a nice cardigan in h&m. Excuse the rubbish fitting room photo, I am crap at mirror posing.





Sunday 6 May 2012

Success!

Una slept in her cot from 8 pm last night until 5 am, when I brought her in to my bed. She woke up a few times to eat obviously, but settled back in her cot without a problem! She then slept in my arms until 9.30 this morning when she reluctantly woke up, this girl could sleep all day... After an hour and a half awake she is now back in her cot for a nap. I can smell success!




Saturday 5 May 2012

We are family

Una is fast asleep in her cot (!) and I am in bed. James is in Durham for the weekend, so it's just my and kiddo. My friend Heather came over for lunch today and stayed all afternoon, we just hung out and chilled, so nice. Love these two chicks.


Yesterday was a big day, I took Una on a trip across London to visit Heather in Stoke Newington. She is moving back to Australia in less than two months so I am really trying to make the most of the time we have left together in London. It was a fun day, but a pretty long one for Una and she was quite unsettled last night, probably overstimulated from all the excitement. She ended up sleeping on her side next to me, as close as she could get, with her little hands on my chest and her feet touching my belly. She would wake up once an hour and cry, quickly settling once I pulled her closer and she had a few seconds on the breast. I hate seeing her upset but it was lovely sleeping so closely and feeling her little body in my arms all night.
Tonight we are making a new attempt with the cot we got a few days ago. She had a short nap in it today and is sleeping in it right now, we shall see how we get on the rest of the night.



Wednesday 2 May 2012

Trickery and lies

When Una falls asleep in my arms and I need to put her down for some reason, for example to eat my dinner, I trick her by propping cushions around her so she feels like she's being held. Sucker!



But I am nice enough to leave the remote nearby so she can put on cbeebies if she wakes up...

Snoozy




Today Una and I have been to her first ever play group. She slept through most of it, but I enjoyed it so we will be going back next week! I was up at 7.30 to get myself ready, get Una ready, feed her etc and walk there for 10 am (40 min brisk walk, well needed exercise!)
This might not sound very early to other parents of young babies, but I like to sleep in and so does Una. We never get up before 9 and Una can sometimes happily sleep in until 11, as long as she has access to plenty of boob.

We spent the afternoon chilling at home, I've finished writing thank you cards for all the gifts we've received since Una was born, very late I know! After that we had a 2 hour long nap on the couch. Love napping on the couch with Una attached to my boob like a little monkey baby. I realise this breaks all the rules, but I don't care. Love this little girl so much. She also likes napping in her baby gym, as you do!




Now James is cooking monkfish and chorizo stew and it smells amazing.