*Review* TAJ Aloe Vera Drinks

Recently I was sent some bottles of TAJ Foods Aloe Vera juice to try out. As you all know I am trying (mainly failing) on my quest to find way of losing weight that works for me.Aloe Vera Juice  has many health benefits. As well as an aid to detox it can help boost immunity and leave you feeling more energised.
There is a wide range of different flavours available. Original, Mango, Lychee, Strawberry, Passion Fruit and Pomegranate and Cranberry.
I have a thing for Mango juice so iwould of liked to have tried this flavour but I was sent original and strawberry to try out.

TAJ Foods only use real Aloe Vera pulp and juice in their drinks with real fruit and natural flavours and does not contain any E-numbers or aloe powder.

Having never tried anything like this before I decided I would wait until today to try them out as I had a boot camp class booked and thought they would be a perfect after workout drink to help me recover.
First impressions I was put off buy the pulp in the drinks as I’m usually a not a fan of drinks like this, think smooth orange juice and to be honest I’ve only really used aloe Vera in creams so an Aloe Vera Drink seemed a bit, well I don’t know how explain it, kind of not really something I would try so I excited to actually try it out.

It was so nice and really refreshing! I tried the original first thinking I would be put off by the pulp but I wasn’t, I know I making a big deal about this pulp thing sorry, but it didn’t bother me and I was really surprised in a good way at how nice it was. Full of flavour and cold straight from the fridge I found it really quenched my thirst. I enjoyed it so much I immediately opened the strawberry and that tasted just as good!
I would definitely try to incorporate this drink into my diet especially after a good workout as it is designed to aid detox I feel the health benefits from this drink would be best put to use then and as it only had natural sugars it gave me that little pick me up I needed straight after.
This product is not suitable for children under 3 or if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
You can more about the benefits on YouTube.
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*Disclaimer* I was sent 2 bottles of aloe Vera juice for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own and I was in no other way compensated for this review.

 

Holidays in School Holidays

So today me and Olivia took a trip to our local travel agents to enquire about going away during my 2 weeks holiday from work at the end of august.

For the past few years we have taken our holiday in Great Yarmouth so I thought it would be nice to look into going abroad this year just the 2 of us.

We looked into a few options but unfortunately like so many other families were are completely priced out the holiday market.
With the introduction of these new ‘fines’ for parents who take their children out of school, it is now not a viable option to have olivia out of school during term time.

Whilst I totally agree with children not missing school, olivia is rarely off and treasures her attendance record (slightly down from her usual 100% due to the stomach bug we all caught). The problem remains that for far too many families it is just too expensive to book a holiday abroad.

So for a 4 day 3 night trip to Disneyland Paris staying at the Cheyenne on a half board basis including flights and transfers it came to a grand total of £1619.67.
Deposit of £162 with remaining balance to be paid 12 weeks before departure date.
This left me with £1557.67 to be paid by approx end of may.
I get paid weekly so I tend to work all my money out that way so I’m looking at having to put away over £100 a week to make that balance. I work 20 hours a week at just over minimum wage so it goes without saying that there is NO WAY I could ever afford to put away that kind of money!
Olivia is desperately trying to come up with some money making ideas.
The main one involves basically fleecing her dad! The other one is to basically sell everything we own.

I understand that holidays are sold on a demand basis so as there is more demand over the summer months for foreign holiday the prices increase accordingly but where does that leave us who can’t afford the over inflated prices? How do we take a foreign holiday at these prices? Yes we can always start saving a year ahead be super organised but who knows 12 months in advance where exactly they want to spend their next year’s summer holiday?
There are so many offers free child places, early booking discounts but are actually what they seem?
Just try booking a holiday for 2 adults then the same again with the ‘free’ child place. It’s is usually more expensive. We had this problem booking for 6 adults and 3 children a few years ago. And even recently when looking for a holiday for 2 adults it was considerably cheaper than 2 adults with a free child place. This is before the considerable increase due to it being school holidays.
When looking for a week in Egypt with Olivia being out of school for the last day of term we could go for £690 each all inclusive. Fast forward to today for the last week of August and it was over £800 each completely unaffordable for me.
So what are my options? Well really all it leaves me with are booking the year before, not going away at all or again taking a cheap holiday park holiday with other members of my family to keep costs down. The last option didn’t exactly work out so well for us last year if I’m honest.
Have you successfully found a cheap summer holiday or do you have any tips for me in securing a reasonable priced holiday?

 

Boot Camp

So on the spur of the moment, bored on the bus I might add, I seen a post for a free boot camp trial close to me for a week. 

 

I signed up. 

 

It starts tomorrow.  

 

I am so scared. 

There has been a distinct lack of exercise going on since I finished my 10 week challenge and I’m sad to say that, no I didn’t do my porridge on tuesday diet and no I haven’t kept to my aqua classes or anything remotely healthy. 

I completely live up to my blog name (I polished off one of those quality street toffee finger boxes in 1 sitting!). All I’ve done is eat and eat and when I can’t eat any more I have some chocolate! 

So I have put just under half a stone on and a few inches and for this reason I am going to boot camp! 

 

But if any of you nice people want to write me a note to excuse me……….

 

Wish me luck and cross your fingers and pray im in better shape than I feel right now

 

To blog or not to blog

So as you have probably noticed I have kind of been neglecting my blog a little bit lately. Partly due to manic work hours, a bit of a lack of inspiration for new posts and a bit of self doubt. 

I only have a small group of readers so far but I’m not really worried about that. The more I grow into my blog, the more people it will reach im sure. The thing is tho I currently blog from phone which is not ideal as I have no home Internet. It also means pictures and link can be a bit hit and miss really too. The main problem is im not good with computers. I never learnt the basics at school, how I hear you ask, we used them in partners and I managed to just not do as much as my partner! A lot of things confuse me as I just don’t know the basics or the lingo or just anything much really. I know I should learn but it’s kind of a bit like teaching and old dog new tricks. Don’t get me wrong I want to learn I just never get round to it. 

So you see im kind of lacking a bit in blog confidence and due to a recent post I read from an established blogger, I’ve come to learn that if a lot of people think the same as her my blog is seen to be boring. Apparently pictures are a make or break thing, possibly more than the quality of the posts. This is something I will work on along with everything else. 

 

So if you like my blog thanks for reading, if your of the ‘ I want more pictures’ group I apologise please bear with me or better still help me grow. Leave me some tips and hopefully I can turn this little blog into something I’m proud of. 

 

My New Sports Bra

So today was back to the gym day. It’s been a little while since I’ve been, 7 weeks I think, but I needed to do it. I’ve missed it and I feel so much better when I’ve been.
Just before xmas I was lucky enough to win a new Shock Absorber sports bra. I have an old one I got off ebay but I was desperate for a new one.
They have a handy little bounce-o-meter to help you choose the most appropriate bra for activities you do. I chose the ultimate gym bra. I do a lot of classes and time in the gym so I thought this would be the best one for me.
Mine came in black and pink looking super cute and the attention to detail was amazing. There is a panel behind the cups to help keep you secure when doing more vigorous activities, a wide adjustable strap so there’s no little bits rubbing you and no chance of any loosening. Across the back there are two separate fasteners giving greater support all over thus reducing any unwanted bounce! They also have a handy clip on the front for your headphones to keep the wires out of the way. These guys have thought of everything!
I love this bra! I felt so comfy and secure. There was no messing no fidgeting and no chaffing at all. After a 20 HIIT session on the cross trainer I felt cool and comfortable this bra really does do what it’s supposed to do!
It really is a must for the more busty ladies. Having tried many others I can honestly say I’ve now found the best so go ahead pop over to Shock Absorber and find your perfect sports bra.

Disclaimer:
I won this product and wasn’t asked or paid to do this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I have in no way been reimbursed for writing this post.

 

Just the two of us

Well this week I have had the busiest week. I spent my day off on monday cleaning my sisters carpets then my own on Tuesday before my working week started. My shift pattern went late,early,late,early then a late shift again on Saturday evening. 

This meant Olivia had to stay out quite a lot resulting in dramatics at school on friday as she wanted to come home with me and not go with her nan to stay at her dads. 

She came home! And again Saturday night when she had arranged to stay at my sisters. I don’t blame her, she’s a home bird who doesn’t really like to be away from me much I know this and fully expected it. 

Today I woke up so exhausted I decided we should have a lazy day. A day off from the rules, from everything and just do whatever we wanted. 

We had chocolate for breakfast, stayed in our pj’s and forgot about everything. We got monopoly out and played on and off all day. We watched Aladdin, Annie, Starstruck and many episodes of Disney channel favourites. We sat side by side reading our separate books, we acted silly and just had the most lazy indulgent time. 

It was what Sundays where made for, and exactly what I needed today ahead of a super busy week again ahead of the all dreaded stocktake! 

Honestly I forgot how good it is to just stop, take a time out from life and just enjoy what I have. 

Hope you all had a super sunday too. 

 

Getting back to the diet!

After all my hard work on my 10 week challenge with DesirableBody I have completely fell off the wagon!

I have struggled with what to eat and how to plan my meals, and xmas didn’t help!, and old habits have crept back in all of them. I put it down to my lack of preparation and being completely undecided as to what diet plan I should follow.

I really struggle with the whole eating/snacking part exercise not really an issue I will do that no problem, so I have been looking around at different things but nothing as extreme as before. For me it’s not really a realistic diet plan to follow every day and I really wanted to able to lose weight without the help of slimming aids.

I found one! I found this one again on facebook and immediately knew this would be the one!

Porridge On Tuesday is doing the 100 project. It’s a diet/healthy eating programme for normal women to help teach us about how to successfully lose and keep the weight off. Eating normal foods that we buy prepared and cooked healthily with help and support along the way.

There are 3 different time plans to choose from depending on how quick you want to lose the weight, ii opted for the quickest one 16 weeks for a bargain price of £2,50 a week half the cost of slimming world! For this you get
* a full menu plan
*recipies for all meals
*a personal shopping list
*a suggested exercise plan
*support from a private facebook page.

Personally I can’t wait to get started and I will keep you all updated with my progress!

 

Review: Rug Doctor

After a week of stomach bugs and all kinds of nasties that spread through the whole family my sister and I decided we needed to hire a carpet cleaner to get rids of all the lingering nasty odours.
So hired ourselves a Rug Doctor from our local morrisons supermarket.
I have been using Rug Doctor carpet cleaners for many years now and I love the results. They are easy to use with all directions on the machine itself and produce fantastic results.
I have laminate flooring in my living room so I only had my corner suite, hall/stairs/landing and 2 bedrooms to do.
You start by filling the machine with 150ml solution, which can be purchased when you hire out your machine, to 9 litres of hot not boiling water. This is done by removing the white tank and pouring the water into the red tank underneath simple!
There are 2 buttons on the machine, one for using it for carpets and and one for using the hand tools provided for stairs and upholstery. The second to switch it on when you are ready to start. The handle has a lever on to adjust to a comfortable height for yourself and the water button. You control this yourself to avoid oversoaking the carpets. 
Walking backwards and slowly pulling the rug doctor you see instant results on the carpet and also in white compartment which collects all water as it comes back into the machine.
I love this part! I know it’s kind of disgusting but the amount of dirt that it cleans from your carpets, especially if like me it’s been a while since you cleaned your carpets!

I recommend going over your carpets at least twice to get a really good clean especially if you have stubborn stains. I even manged to lift some of the hair dye stains off my bedroom carpet! Now that was an unexpected surprise!

As I used the on the most high traffic area in my home I wasn’t really building my hopes for an amazing result but my carpets are almost like new again looking and smelling so clean and fresh!

One thing I would tell you to do is to make sure that you go over your carpets and without using the water this will ensure you remove any excess water helping your carpets to dry a lot quicker.
So if your in need of fresher carpets head over to Rug Doctor to find your nearest stockist.
I rented mine from Morrisons but you can also find them at bandq and tesco to name a few.
It cost us £20 for 24 hours and £15 for a bottle of solution to do up to 8 average size rooms. There is also 48 hour rental available too.

Disclaimer: I hired this rug doctor myself. I was not asked to do this review nor was supplied any equipment or reimbursed for doing this review. All opinions are my own honest thoughts.

 

Heartbreaking

Today in work I came across an elderly lady in need of some assistance. She was feeling unwell and unsteady so I helped her to our staff canteen for some water and a seat. 

She was very apologetic and feeling a little foolish she said. Glad of a sit down and a little time off the shop floor I had a little chat with her. 

She informed me of her age, 90! Wow, and told me a little of her life. No children and her sisters all passed away many years ago she was the last of her family remaining and just recovering from an illness. 

“I’m not supposed to come out on my own” she told me “I get a little breathless but I needed to come out and I didn’t have anyone to come with me”

She then apologised to me? “You don’t have to apologise for anything” I told her. She looked so lonely and vulnerable I just wanted to help her get home to make sure she was ok and see if she actually did have anyone to help her. This lady is 90 years old and just cast aside, a forgotten statistic, someone who deserves attention and help so she can carry on living her life and not to be afraid of leaving home as she is too frail, her words not mine. 

I called her a taxi and waited till I was sure she was safely on her way home but I wondered. I wondered how long again before she speaks to another person face to face. How long till she gets someone to come with her so she can leave her home again. 

I see so many elderly people come through our shop without giving them a second glance but for some of them it may be the only human interaction they have and this thought today made me sad. 

 

 

Who’s there for you?

This week our family has been struck down with a winter stomach bug. My 8 month old niece was the first to come down with it early hours of monday morning and has today spent the day in hospital as she still can’t keep anything down. Today her older sister got it and also my 4 month old nephew has come down with it too. 

It’s such a horrible thing to be helpless knowing that you just have to let it pass and all you can do is comfort them and hold them and hope it passes soon. 

But what happens when the adults get it? Being a single parent I always worry about what will happen with Olivia if I can’t look after her, fortunately I very rarely get stomach bugs so I wasn’t worried too much. 

I got it. I was in work. I thought it was heartburn. No. It wasn’t. 

I wasn’t due into work till 4 on the late shift so after the school run I took myself to asda for more new school uniform and was home by half 10. I fell asleep on the sofa for over 2 hours which is very unlike me but I didn’t think anything of it and got a bath and went to work as normal. 

Luckily Olivia was at my sisters, her sick baby not an issue as we had been there over the weekend and she get stomach bugs far less than me, as I was due back into work at 7am. 

My boss was in work with me and heard my very un ladylike noises in the bathroom and told me to stay off and he would cover my shift the next day. I felt so bad. 

I rushed home and made sure I had all Olivias stuff ready for school as I didn’t know how bad it would be or how long it would last. I’m lucky I have my sister to take her for me when I’m not well and her dad so I could re cooperate whilst she was in school but I do wonder how do others cope in a single parent household? Especially if there’s more than one child because I really don’t know what I would of done had Olivia been home with me .