And so the new year begins

I know we are only three days in but how is 2020 going for you so far?  

I've saved myself heaps of money since Christmas - mainly because I haven't been tempted by the sales emails that arrive in my inbox on an almost hourly basis!  How easy it would be to be tempted by all the 'bargains' that 'you can't afford to miss'.  There was one thing that I knew I wanted to buy in the sales and that was a new winter coat.  I have a lovely black puffer coat from Joules with a big fur edged hood which I bought a couple of years ago and whilst it keeps you so warm and toasty (it is the equivalent of going out wearing a duvet) it isn't exactly smart if you are going out.  I wanted something that was a little more classic in style, not bulky, and not black.  So you can imagine how pleased I was to find a lovely Burgundy coloured coat in the Mint Velvet sale.  It's a colour that I love and which seems to suit my colouring and just to make it perfect - it was reduced by £100!  Happy days!

It felt like we were hit by one virus after another since mid November (I blame the grandchildren!) but yesterday I felt like we may both have turned a corner.  I had a long overdue appointment at the hairdressers this morning and a new hairstyle is just what I needed, it feels so nice to have the highlights back in and the natural grey ones hidden again.  In a moment of madness I said the words 'shorter and layered' and before I could change my mind I saw about 3" of hair disappearing from the ends - boy does it feel better!  

I feel like I always wear the same dress when I have my hair cut but the truth is that my hairdressing salon is quite often very cold in winter.  It's on the first floor of a building that dates back to the 1700s and let's just say that in those days insulation isn't what it is now! So I often wear a thick denim dress with a long sleeve t shirt beneath and hope that I'm not sitting next to one of the draughty windows.  

I signed up for a one week 5 Minute a Day Abs challenge on a WhatsApp group that my Zumba teacher has.  I'm a day behind and finding a couple of the exercises she has chosen to be, shall we say challenging? Burpees are not for me at my advanced age and energy levels.  But I'm sticking with it and by the time I've caught up tomorrow I should have the same washboard stomach that the teacher has - shouldn't I?  😉 What do you mean, I may need to do it for more than one week?

The intention to try different recipes from my monthly Delicious magazine is going well.  We are trying to have less red meat and are incorporating one vegetarian day a week and more fish into our diet.  Last night's meal was sliced sweet potatoes and cauliflower florets coated in olive oil and roasted in the oven for 10 mins, then you mix together garlic and maple syrup.  Put 2 pork chops on top of veg, pour over garlic/maple syrup mix, add an apple that has been cut into quarters and roast for 20 mins more.  Then crumble stilton cheese on top of chops and return to oven for 5 more minutes. Yum!  Plus also the bonus of using up the last of the leftover Christmas cheese.  

Doesn't it seem like one day creeps into the next at the between Christmas/New Year period?  It certainly doesn't seem like a Friday today - but it is and we have friends coming over tonight for drinks to make up for not seeing them on NYE so I probably ought to be giving the lounge carpet a hoover instead of typing up a blog post but isn't it funny how easy it is to procrastinate when housework is involved?

How have you spent the first week of the new year?