A To Do List for a Nothing is Going to get Done Day – Yoga, Meditation and Stir Fry

A To Do List for a Nothing is Going to get Done Day – Yoga, Meditation and Stir Fry

Here comes a Moon Day.

I love reading what this app tells me I am. Focussed! Alright! Yes! I’m ready! But also practical! I like that. Ambitious. Yes. Yup. I’m with you.

(I love that anyone anywhere in the world would likely read this description and think, yes this is soooooo me.)

Speaking of ambitious, are you a big list writer? I have huge lists of things I want to get done and buy and posts I would like to write. I have an embarrassingly long list of partially done drafts I need want to get through to finally post them. But as can happen wife gets in the way. That’s right, I get in my own way – I’m working on my follow through. One of my biggest stumbling blocks is those darn danging lists! They get longer and longer until I just feel totally overwhelmed. On other days I get in the “that’s it! today is the day I tackle everything I wanted done” mood and tadaaah 9.3/10 times* that is the very same day that nothing goes according to plan. Time to just breathe and go with the flow. Easier said than done when you’ve been looking forward to crossing things off a list.

As if I needed any more lists, I made a new list called My Contingency List. When it turns out nothing is going to plan I pull this out.

My Contingency List

  1. Yoga – any kind, any duration
  2. Meditation – any kind, any duration, with intention to remove obstacles and blocks

That is the list. I can add anything else to it but the only things I MUST MUST MUSTTTTTTT do is these two. Once I do the first two items I find I’m not so attached to anything else I previously thought had to be done. Life feels a whole lot easier and happier after that.

yoga reading

Even just thinking about a yoga posture can have a calming effect.

Something interesting often happens too – what I thought was stopping me from getting to whatever else I wanted to do suddenly dissolves. I end up getting more things done. For example, The Child (TC) usually has a nap around midday and I think of that time as my run around in a frenzy trying to tidy things away, shower, shave my legs, prepare lunch, prep dinner, read, relax and a million other things to be squeezed in if possible. All this requires the nap be LONGISH. But on a day like today I was out running errands and the nap was 30 minutes. Our window of time had closed for the day. Not the end of the world, I can do some things just not all the things and not to the extent I would if I were on my own. I think a lot of mums understand.

I was talking to my mum about this whole trying to let go of expectations business and THE LIST. What am I even doing? Living in the shadow of these things I need to get done or else I can’t be happy?! Again I totally think a lot of mums and just everyone in general understands this idea.

Out came the contingency list. I did some yoga for spine health with TC doing downward facing dogs that turned into roly-polys (I know, WHAT A SHOWOFF). I like this yoga set because I can do it seated haha. How quickly I go from a productive mood to lazy mood! If you have never done this set of exercises be warned, you can get a little sore afterwards!

After that I did a short meditation to clear subconscious blocks. To do this, I pick a happy song, set my intention to clear any obstacles and infuse everything with positivity, and then I sit, smiling and clapping my hands to the song. The hand clapping is partly to keep TC engaged but also it feels hard not to be cheerful when you are clapping away. I also played this track I really like for humming Om to.

sound bath meridian heart healing

After this I just felt really good about going where the day took me.

The day took me on  a walk to brunch.

And later it turned out TC wanted an afternoon nap so I even got to chop loads of veggies to stir fry when TC woke up. We make our dinner together as part of our evening routine. It is just as well because one evening I was so flat out trying to do everything that after washing the rice I was about to walk off without pushing the lever to start the rice cooker. If TC hadn’t been gesturing at the rice cooker we would have been riceless. Riceless! *shudder*

I tried out my Joseph Joseph noodle maker thingy again and again it was a just the most disappointing thing ever. Totally does not work for me. It’s just a really expensive container now.

I’ve been really into eating as many colour vegetables as possible. I keep calling my veggie stir fries “chakra stir fries”. Technically they are.

I’m pretty happy with how the day turned out.

* Not a real statistic but golly it feels that way

** Also: I did not get paid for my opinion on the Full Moon App or Joseph Joseph. I bought that noodle maker thingy with my own money and I downloaded the free version of the Full Moon App for my own use.

The Universe has a funny way of working for you: Story of my (mom) life and a sort of Gratitude Practice

The Universe has a funny way of working for you: Story of my (mom) life and a sort of Gratitude Practice

I had been trying to pack for our annual trip back to Sydney for Christmas for the past three days. Every single day came with its own obstacle course of reasons why I could not get everything done. Our flight was at 7 o’clock in the evening and as at noon I had:

sweated through one set of clothes;

got a sink full of things to wash up;

one toddler alternating between chasing me around the apartment and wrapping themself around my neck/leg;

suitcases open with the contents flung far and wide (thanks for the assistance UNPACKING, o child of mine).

My heart was pounding with adrenaline or angst. If you would only nap, I kept muttering to myself as I grimly dragged myself around the apartment trying to replace items back in the suitcase, child firmly wrapped around my left calf like a barnacle. IF ONLY.

Another hour went by and finally, finally, naptime. I retreated to the bedroom to lie down and regroup as well. I felt like I had ALREADY been on a redeye flight with a baby. Still needed to make lunch because feeding children is what we do. WOOSA.

In the back of my mind a soundtrack kept playing on a loop, “How the heck is this going to happen?”

I shook my head and thought well let’s just do our best and if anything gets let behind, as long as it’s not the baby that’s fine. As I walked to the kitchen to start making lunch, B said to me, “Hey, your flight has been delayed. By 3 hours.”

THANK YOU UNIVERSE. I bet no one ever appreciates a flight delay but this time I really needed it.

The child slept terribly on the flight as in not at all but was very happy just shimmying around our seats so it all came together.

Our jetlag lasted a week. But I’m still going to call it a win and I am GRATEFUL.

Mom Jeans v Mom Life

Mom Jeans v Mom Life

Heh, funny story. Remember how I got those mules? Well…… I also got a pair of ‘mom jeans’ to go with them or with other things. I could wear them everywhere.

Great idea right?

RIGHT.

Although…. I can’t fit into them. I, a MOM, cannot fit into my MOM JEANS.

mom jeans

From the side, they don’t look that bad, right? A bit of a squeeze but totally fine.

Wait.

 

mom jeans motivation 2

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Can you get back into your jeans yet?

Sure. Just can’t do them up yet.

I’m only posting this to share the humour and also to show that I am not a bounce right back after baby girl. It’s been three months. There is no bouncing. I lost weight after the birth and also from breastfeeding but I’m really, really soft in the middle, and even softer after a meal haha. But I’m not that worried because I know that with a little exercise, a decent amount of Pilates, continuing to eat healthfully and I’ll be in my jeans soon.

So here are the goals I have for myself:

  1. 30 min walk everyday
  2. 15-20 min Pilates everyday
  3. Yoga
  4. Drinking 3 litres of water a day
  5. Incidental exercise like squatting whilst carrying the baby (who finds the up down motion extremely amusing)

Mostly these goals are just to make myself feel good. It feels amazing to move and any toning is a bonus! It’s important to me not to make the goal getting into a certain size otherwise I can get disappointed by how long things take whereas if my goal is just exercise for the pleasure of it, I find the process so much more enjoyable.

Oh, and the jeans are from Mink Pink, the material is super thick which I love and I got them for 15% off.

If you had a baby, tell me, did you fit back in your jeans right away? Or are you taking a while like me? What goals have you set for yourself? Let me know down below! xx

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Outfit Love [Selena Gomez]: Mom Jeans x Velvet Mules

Outfit Love [Selena Gomez]: Mom Jeans x Velvet Mules

It’s been a while! I take it you know I recently had a baby? So we’re pretty much all caught up! I spend most of my time breastfeeding, then shoehorning into what remains of my time my yoga practice and trying to solve the mystery of why nappies leak sometimes – is it at all related to the phase the moon is in? Mercury? No?

Anyway, the other thing I do alot is look at what everybody is wearing. I’ve always loved people watching. One night I came across an image of Selena Gomez (she seems nice! I only know one song but man it is soooooo catchy!) in a pair of orange mules and mom jeans. And I was so taken by the look. I’ve always thought of mules as tricky because they can kind of look a bit ageing but she looked great IMHO.

Selena-Gomez-Wears-Alexa-Chung-Rainbow-TopImage Source: Backgrid

I love that the heel is still low enough that you don’t end up wobbling around whenever the wind changes direction but you still get a little lift. And that colour is so vibrant.

Do you know how much those shoes are? $600. Ish.

I have $600 shoes. I love them. But I also have super cheapie shoes which I love too. It’s fun to mix and match things, instead of being head to toe designer. I had a browse around that bordered on obsessive and finally settled on some vegan suede ones from Therapy. I got two pairs for way, way less than a fraction so I could (in theory) pick up a pair of jeans if I wanted. I wanted! (I have a funny story about that)

mansur gavriel suede red mule sandals

These are the $600 ones from Mansur Gavriel. Mmmm, gorgeous aren’t they?

Here is what I ended up getting:

therapy-red mules

The black ones are a little higher than the red so I’ll wear those when I feel like I’d like a boost haha. They feel really comfy and I’m looking forward to getting out of this cold so I can put these babies to good use. Loving the sweater weather but I’m ready to emerge for some sunshine!

A few days after I got these I tried on a pair of boots I got last winter aaaaaaand they’re too small! Because pregnancy, oh my goodness. So I feel really justified about getting my new shoes.

What do you think of mules? Love ’em or leave ’em?

If you see any other cute ones, let me know!

P.S. Ohhhhhh the Mansur Gavriel ones come in the sweetest blush pink too. Soooooo pretty!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Makeup Look for Early Morning Brunch – Yay or Nay?

Makeup Look for Early Morning Brunch – Yay or Nay?

Don’t you kinda wish you had somewhere to go so you could walk around with this kind of magicalness on your face? People might initially stare but then they’d say, “Oh yeah, she’s half unicorn,” and then everyone else would nod like, “I get it.”

makeup-look-for-brunchvia sconsey cider, one more 🙂 ig: thrashmakeup
Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Valentine’s Blah Blah Let’s Order A Pizza Day [Moodboard]

Valentine’s Blah Blah Let’s Order A Pizza Day [Moodboard]

What is Valentine’s Day to you? Chocolates? Roses? Candle lit dinner?

I’m thinking pizza (haven’t had any in a year, can you believe???), sarcasm and The Simpsons. And some chocolates would be nice, actually. 

I hope you’re having a lovely day, whether you spend it with someone special, someone silly, all the above or just by yourself (also nice!). 

💋🍕

Mmmmmm pizza! 

Homer Marge Simpson You Love MePizza ValentineHomer Simpson ValentineLove Goggles Puppy Love Free KissesI heart pancakesCheap Monday Buy me pizzaBio Chemistry RomanceFlashing lights romance kissNeon red sign lightTen things I hate about you want you to want meCouple GoalsHey I love youBe my idiot valentineIf he loves you Nikkita GillTimberland true loveNutella solves everythingTrue love right here in my pizzaAttention pleaseI love your crazyYour love is safeWhen you're sad I'm hereKiss NeonLove me neon pinkPlease be naked neon pink lightsTacos Not Romance ActionsPeter Pan Wendy KissCuddly Marshal HIMYM(All images from weheartit.com)

🍧🍉 Easy Watermelon Dessert for Summer Part 2 [Recipe]

🍧🍉 Easy Watermelon Dessert for Summer Part 2 [Recipe]

Easy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet for Summer Dessert RecipeEasy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet for Summer Dessert Recipe

Remember when I said I thought I could come up with my own version of a watermelon dessert? I did! I figured out how to make a watermelon sorbet. And it was really quite easy, just a bit of scooping, freezing and then blending with just 3 ingredients. And you don’t have to use an ice cream churner or put it in the freezer, take it out of the freezer, scrape, put it back in the freezer, scrape etc etc. ARGH. No, none of that. You blitz it once in a blender and you’re DONE.

Easy Watermelon Dessert for Summer with 3 Ingredient Sorbet

SO EASY! And it was so tasty! Really great for hot hot hot days like today. I ended up scrolling through the 4 month weather forecast to count how many more hot days like today I have to get through, hahaha. Apparently next week will be the last week with crazy hot temperatures and then things will be normal-ish. Phew. I can handle that. Especially now I have my watermelon dessert bowl that I didn’t fork out $20 for!

Are you ready?

Easy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet

Ingredients:

Juice of 1 Lemon

Half a watermelon (sliced or chopped into chunks), frozen

Honey

Ingredients for Watermelon SorbetIngredients for Watermelon Sorbet

Method: 

Put the watermelon chunks into a blender with the lemon juice and one table spoon of honey. You can have more or less honey to taste (or none!) if you like. I didn’t use any water to make this so that the sorbet can be as watermelon-y as possible. The lemon juice does a good job of helping the blender blades move through the watermelon and as the watermelon gets blitzed you get some more liquid that way anyway.

In the beginning you might need to blitz, then stop to scrape the contents around to help the blades but after a while it gets really easy and it won’t be long until you get your sorbet. 

Processed with VSCO with s3 preset

This is probably even easier with a food processor but use what you have!

To make it into a fancy looking Watermelon Dessert, just keep the halves of the melon after you have scooped out all the flesh. Freeze half the flesh to make sorbet and make watermelon balls with the other half. I froze my halves but that isn’t necessary. 

Frozen Watermelon Bowl

Scoop the sorbet into the watermelon bowl.

Easy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet Recipe

Easy 3 Ingredient Watermelon SorbetEasy 3 Ingredient Watermelon SorbetEasy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet

If you made a lot of sorbet you could probably fill the entire half up with sorbet but I wanted a mix of fresh watermelon and sorbet.

That’s all there is to it!

Watermelon Dessert with Sorbet for Summer

I think this is easily enough for at least 4 people. If you have a lot of sorbet hanging around you can pack it up and keep it in the freezer (but you’ll have to re-blend it again when you want to have it). Or it makes for a good addition to making frappes or smoothies.

Easy 3 Ingredient Watermelon Sorbet

I hope you enjoyed that! It’s SO SOOOOOO good and really worth trying out! Let me know if you gave it a go! x

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Watermelon Dessert for Summer with Easy 3 Ingredient Sorbet (Recipe)

🍧🍉 Watermelon Desserts for Summer Part 1

🍧🍉 Watermelon Desserts for Summer Part 1

watermelon love

We were walking past a cute dessert joint one night and noticed a huge poster of a watermelon desert looking thingy stuck outside. Basically it looked like half a watermelon with a few melon balls on top, a scoop of ice cream and a flag. Ours for the taking for just $20.

It looked really good, especially for summer time. When I got home though, I started thinking about that price tag. Maybe I could just make it myself? It’s not like I never have a few watermelons at home. I can’t even really have that much dairy or added sugar because they trigger me so that just leaves me with a $20 watermelon? I could save the money for something else, like a class or put it towards a pair of shoes or even better, just save it.

I looked it up online for some further inspiration after my meditation this morning. Honestly though, it entered my thoughts a lot during my meditation too. I hope I told you this before that it’s ok to have thoughts during meditation? It’s just a symptom of being alive! Just do your best to let them keep going as you get back to focusing on meditating. Sometimes these thoughts come out of nowhere and are even inspiring or creative!

Anyway I looked it up online and it didn’t even look like the melon bowl had been scooped so you’d have to work away at scraping the flesh out if you wanted to eat the whole thing. At least that’s what it looked like.

And the rest of it was just some watermelon balls, watermelon flavoured ice and ice cream.

watermelon all summerwatermelon for summer

I figured I could try making watermelon sorbet? I’ll see how I go. I was already quite happy with my watermelon bowl this morning. I have some watermelon freezing to experiment on later so I’ll let you know how that goes!

Follow my blog with Bloglovin
watermelon for summertime

Gallery

Monday Morning Ritual: Getting Organised for Another Week

I plan my day in a way that flows.

This affirmation is perfect to start the week with! Here is a snippet of what my Monday morning ritual looks like.

Firstly I meditate. I do this immediately when I wake up and have had half a glass of water to drink. I keep a bottle of water next to my bed to refill my glass from so I don’t even need to move! I prefer to not leave my bedroom (my sanctuary!) until I have meditated so I can set my vibes for the day.

I write a little in my journal about anything interesting that popped up in my dreams and in my meditation. I always keep a few crystals nearby. They’re beautiful and uplifting to look at.

purple and rainbow crystal and diary planner

I keep my favourite affirmation cards in my diary so I can pull them out to look over in the morning after meditating. These small square cards are the Empower Yourself Affirmation Cards by Miranda Kerr. I have other affirmations that I note down in my journal too. I keep this particular card in my diary because it seems so appropriate!

affirmations for a well organised day over morning tea

It’s so hot at the moment here in Sydney that I have to have a cool shower to refresh. This might sound a bit odd but it’s also a great way for me to fit in a little exercise every single day without fail. Right after my shower, I do 30 push ups against the wall. Just like that, I’ve done some exercise! A word of warning: do not do your wall push ups in the shower where the floor might be wet – you wouldn’t want to slip and hurt yourself.

monday morning day diary entry

A new habit I have now is to moisturise my whole body after showering. I use either coconut oil or an oil blend that I make myself. At the moment I’m also using this lotion from Garnier, it smells quite fresh but isn’t too overpowering. I’m trying to get through it so I don’t have a whole row of bottles on my bedside counter like some kind of crazy lotion obsessed person but it’s taking me a while! Usually this would have been finished in a week if B was around because he prefers moisturisers to oils and he always loves using what I get for skin care since he knows how fussy I am about products I didn’t make. But I’m here and he’s still overseas so here I am with oodles of lotion to myself.

This jade bangle is from my mum. I need the moisturiser to help with getting it on. It’s a bit of a struggle but nothing like the kind I went through in Delhi when a very sweet bracelet maker rammed a handful of tiny bangles up my palm. I swear I felt my bones crack that time haha. They were SO beautiful but I nearly cried when I took them off.

Moisturiser and Crystal Jade Bracelet Bangle

After that, one of my favourite parts of the morning: TEA AND BREAKFAST! I like all the morning but that first cup of tea is lovely. I put ice in my tea because it is so hot, is that weird for you? I don’t know how normal that is in a lot of countries but in South East Asia this is extremely common. If Sydney insists on having tropical weather than I have no choice but to crack out the ice cubes.

Although you can get bubble milk tea all over town so I guess you’re probably used to the idea of ice in tea by now.

Mum and I bought these delicious date and walnut scones at the markets yesterday so as an extra special treat I’m having one for breakfast with organic butter. When scones are so fresh I don’t feel like I need jam or cream. That and a big tumbler of water makes the perfect meal to nibble on as I get on with business.

delish scone with morning tea

If it isn’t too crazy hot yet then I’ll duck out for a quick walk otherwise I’ll stay in the shade and head out later on in the day when things cool down. I used to be fine in the heat but now that I’m pregnant I just feel the effects so quickly and worse I know that however hot I feel the baby feels even warmer so it’s important that I don’t get dehydrated and stay cool. Another reason to avoid getting too much sun when you’re pregnant is you can get dark patches of skin because of pregnancy hormones. It’s called ‘the mask of pregnancy’ and usually fades after you give birth but personally it’s best to just avoid getting to that point. It’s important to get some sun every day but not too much. Moderation is the key, as usual!

2017 diary planner from Kmart
Watermelon tumbler (comes with lid and straw) from Kmart

I hope you have a lovely week ahead filled with little things that make you happy!

Let me know what your getting Monday morning ritual looks like! x

Follow my blog with Bloglovin