Time

"it's only important to use your time well well time is something nobody can buy and nobody can sell you so don't let anybody tell you they have the advantage" Ani Difranco

Apologies for the lack of action on the blog. Its been a terrible couple of months at work - when real shit hits the fan its so hard to focus on anything else. Although I like to think I have been maintaining my glamourous side - just need to find more time to write about it!

Does anyone else think that time goes by too quickly? The older I get the faster it flies by. I have spent the last too months being incredibly unhappy - a job where I am not appreciated, not wanted there....taking this home with me and being stressed. Talking too much about work at home, worrying so much, going to the doctors after letting myself get so ill...what a waste of time! I have found myself marking time on the calendar, not exactly counting down, just marking time - until what I am not sure.

Time is too precious to spend it being unhappy. I've got a real chance to reconsider how I use my time now. Of course thinking, deciding, reflecting it all takes time. I can sense the next few months are going to be ones of change for me - its scary, not something I have done for a while, but its too easy to count your life away.

This blog is accompanied by a picture of my cat who has no such worries.

T-Shirts

Its so hard to find nice, flattering T-shirts. I live in skinny jeans and vests usually - however vest tops aren't as practical and "wear-anywhere" as a short sleeved tee, so I constantly look out.

These are a total bargain. From Tesco's label Florence and Fred - these lovely spring T-shirts are really flattering (I have a podgy belly and so many tops seem to make me look pregnant!) great with jeans, skirts, trousers, smart enough for work and chilled enough for a day trip. I love them - I have bought three, one in black, one in bright coral and one in a ditsy floral print. They also have them in a chocolate brown and white. They are fairtrade cotton and cost £6. The sleeve detail is cute and makes it a bit more special than a plan Tee.

Great Spring wardrobe update from Tesco!

Madness!

All is very busy here in the SIB household - sadly not all for good reasons. But I am not here to dwell on the dperessing....but to announce a new season - SPRING!!

Its my favourite time of the year and an excellent time for shopping. I have been busy on the products, recipes and reviews and I shall be posting more over the next few days.

Nice to catch up with you all again!

Food for the Soul

I have been cooking roast lamb today: the smell currently is filling my house. I have also been busying mysef preparing lunches for the week, making a large bowl of pasta salad to add bits and bobs to during the week, making cup cakes, making scotch eggs and filling bagels. Its a Sunday ritual to prepare us for the busy week ahead (recently our weeks have been busier than usual!).

I will post a few product reviews soon, as I have been trying new things out this last couple of weeks. I have very sensitive skin so I like to see how products suit me after being used day in day out for about a month. But for now I will leave you with a recipe for something tasty!

Spring must be on the way!! Its actually autumn lamb that I am roasting - but doing it on a day wth daffs around makes it feel springy (must sort out my garden soon!)

I grew up with lamb the italian way - roasted in massive slabs smeared in aromatics until it falls apart, served with green veg or slow cooked mushrooms. I can't claim to have invented this way of roasting lamb (its a classic) but this is my take. I also personally profess quite a strong dislike to two of the main ingredients (lol) I could never eat a whole anchovy and find rosemary cloying. But these are powerful ingredients and the perfect foil for sweet lamb, lending saltiness and earthiness, not tasting strong or fishy at all. If you really hated anchovy and can't bring yourself to try it - then you could use capers or simply omit them (but add a pinch more salt to the mix).

This is also a great way to enjoy a roast lamb without the cost of buying a leg. I love leg of lamb roasted and served pink but it is fearfully expensive. Shoulder is a much cheaper cut - but not great for serving pink - it benefits from a long slow sizzle. For the two of us I use a half of shoulder (blade end today) and it will do us two meals each (and we are greedy!) for a joint of meat that cost £6.99 how can you complain?

I have been cooking this lamb today, the smell currently is filling my house. I have also been busying mysef preparing lunches for the week, making a large bowl of pasta salad to add bits and bobs to during the week, making cup cakes, making scotch eggs and filling bagels. Its a Sunday ritual to prepare us for the busy week ahead (recently our weeks have been busier than usual!).

I will post a few product reviews soon, as I have been trying new things out this last couple of weeks. I have very sensitive skin so I like to see how products suit me after being used day in day out for about a month. But for now I will leave you with a recipe for something tasty!


For the paste:
6 cloves of garlic
2 anchovy fillets (I get the ones in oil rather than salt)
10 peppercorns
handful of rosemary leaves
zest and juice of one lemon
handful of parsley

Lamb shouder
rosemary sprigs to stud the lamb with
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees

I use a pestle and mortar to bash the paste ingredients together but a food processor would do fine. You want a gloopy, smearble paste.

Poke holes about 1 cm deep about an inch apart all over both surfaces of the lamb (I do the bottomfirst then flip it)

Smear the paste all over the surafce of the lamb, getting into the holes you have poked, and any natural folds or creases in the meat.

On the skin side push in some extra paste with the rosemary sprigs so the surfaces of the lamb has rosemary sticking out of it (these springs will go brown when cooked - do not worry when rosemary crisps up it tastes delicious and sweet!)

Drizzle over some olive oil (I do about a tablespoon)

Then sizzle in the oven for 30 mins, then turn down the oven to about 130 and cook for up to 4 hours until the meat is tender and falling off the bone.

Yum Yum!!

Friends

I am truly very excited. Next weekend I am going to stay with a friend. It means rushing out of work as early as possible and battling with the motorway traffic (the M40 will be horrific on a Friday evening!). But when I have made my way through seven counties the drive will be worth it!

This is a very special friend, one of those friends who you can share pink wine and giggles with but also rely on for honest advice, sympathy and chats. Someone who doesn't make nasty, sabotaging comments like many girls do.

I expect we will drink a fair amount of wine(I love red wine but it does make a change from sharing with my husband to have white or bubbly), eat lots of lovely food and no doubt do a fair amount of shopping. But I know we will have a fabulous time.

What would we do without our friends?

Weight Loss Battle

Its so typical isn't it? January and turning to weight loss. But for me this isn't just a January battle, it needs to be year round. I am not severely overweight at all, I am 9 stone 12 pounds and 5 foot 1 inch which gives me a BMI of 26.1 - not far from the ideal range really.

But I feel fatter than I'd like to, I have a roll of fat around my tummy that hangs very attractively over my jeans, my tops are a squeeze and my thighs wobble. I would not wear a bikini at the moment. I would like to change this and I would like to lose a stone and drop a dress size. I have a small frame and weight shows easily on me.

I am not going to do anything drastic, just eat less and move around more. I need to resist unhealthy snacks while working (a bacon and egg sandwich here, a handful of chocolates there) and try to exercise three times a week. Its tough as I am busy, I rarely get home from work before 7pm and if I want to get 8 hours sleep a night I need to be in bed by 9pm. But I have to try to adjust my habits.

This month I am going to focus on snacking. Must resist the chocolate biccies!!

Will update in a month and hope something will have shifted.

The search for a perfect foundation

This may be ongoing. I dream of a foundation that is light but with good coverage, that smells nice, is easy to apply, suits my skin tone and doesn't cause me an allergic reaction. Seems like the Holy Grail of foundation. In the last six months I have used: Gosh matte mousse (too dry and too orange), L'oreal Perfect Match (coverage good but didn't last the day), Bobbi Brown Moisturizing Luminizing (nice but allergic), Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua (I adore this but only have a sample pot and its £££s) and Bourjois Detox Foundation (weirdly dry when applying and sort of flakes off, good colour though).

I struggle with finding a good shade as I am very pale but with yellow toned skin - the shades described as "golden" are closest in tone, but always too dark. Colours that are pale enough tend to be too pinkish and make me look ill. I have eczema and so react to lots of foundations - but need one to cover occasional flare-ups, and my skin is not clear enough to be baseless!

I haven't yet found the dream foundation...if you have any recommendations please let me know.