Bucket List.

For a while now I've been thinking of all the things I want to do, so I thought, why not post it. Maybe you guys could help make some of this happen!

So here it goes;

1. Road Trip Route 66,
2. Learn to surf,
3. Surf Bondi Beach,
4. Have a first-class degree,
5. Be happy with my body,
6. Write an article for a newspaper or magazine,
7. Go to Glastonbury Festival,
8. Have a ride in a hot air balloon,
9. Learn a second language,
10. Have a bonfire and camp out on the beach,
11. Pay for the car behinds petrol,
12. See the Northern Lights,
13. Write, and publish my own book, 
14. Learn how to change a flat tyre,
15. Travel abroad alone,
16. Do a photo a day challenge, 
17. Head to Africa and volunteer, 
18. Travel First-Class,
19. Make the most of every day,
20. Enjoy the sunshine,
21. Own a boat,
22. Make someone smile everyday,
23. Raise £5,000 for charity, 
24. Head to the airport and fly,
25. See a drive-in movie,
26. Be an amazing nurse, 
27. Love more,
28. Visit every continent,
29. Dance in the rain,
30. Never give up my dreams, 
31. Send a message in a bottle,
32. Meet someone with the same name as me,
33. Be remembered for the work I do,
34. Say 'I Do'
35. Watch the sunrise, 
36. Step out of my comfort zone every week, 
37. Laugh everyday,
38. Plant a tree,
39. Thank everyone who's influenced me,
40. Spend quality time with my loved ones.

 Even though this list is full of adventures and other exciting stuff, I genuinely just want to be happy in life. 

Let me know what you have on your bucket lists below!

Lydia

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DIY Camera Bag

Ever Since I bought my nifty Canon 1100D, I knew I wanted a pretty bag. I got a free bag with the camera which sorted me out for a couple of months, but with Summer here, and lots of day trips happening, I did not want to be a thief's perfect target, or a typical tourist! 

I set out on Pinterest for pretty camera bags, with one's costing upwards of £100, I decided it was time to make one. I think I should let you know I always believed myself not to be creative, at all. So this would be interesting. 

All I bought was;

The Bag. Mine's from TK Maxx with a long shoulder strap, two shorter straps, and lots of space! It was for sale for a bargain of £24.99.

Wadding,

Fabric I got 1 metre and have lots left over,

Glue Gun,

Velcro.

First up, I roughly measured out the wadding to line the bag, and an extra piece or 2 for lens separators. I doubled the thickness of the wadding just to make it that bit more soft.

I then measured out and cut the fabric accordingly to the wadding. Fold the edges of the fabric inside to make a slight hem together and glue and stick.

Carry this on with all of your wadding. Warning: This took me about an hour, maybe because I was a little OCD over it? It's worth it though.

So after the fabric's glued over the wadding, you need to place the Velcro on. Just be sure to test the wadding in the bag and know where you want everything.  

If it's all good, go ahead and velcro that baby up! 

I left my small piece (lens separator thing) without velcro so I can move it around in the bag for different lenses. 

Once the velcro's on I suggest placing it in the bag for a couple of hours to secure it. 

Then you can pop in your camera and admire your beautiful bag. Don't forget you can take the inside pieces out of the bag and put them in other bags for different outfits/occasions.

I love that my camera has a very stylish home, and I can also fit my keys, purse etc. in the bag too.

I'd love to see your camera bags. Post a picture below!

Lydia

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Guess Who's Back...

That's right, it's me! 

It has literally been a month since my last post went live. I feel a mixture of good/bad just because I love blogging, but I also love having time away!

I'm back now and am excited, I've got a bunch of new posts, a hopeful new redesign coming up in the next couple of months, and life is looking bright. I've recently had a burst of utter determination to do things, working hard, being more creative, live more freely, enjoy life, lose weight, explore new things.

I guess what this random-put what I want in post is trying to say is; I'm Back! And Very Happy!

Lydia

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Exercise Is Better With Friends. Training Week 2 And 3.

So, I missed last week's training update... that doesn't surprise me does it?!

So I've joined together week 2 & 3.

Week 2 saw me get back into the 9-5 life. Oh hello Dolly Parton...

This also means the commute and less time for cycling, or so I thought.

I made a deliberate effort to go out for a couple of rides. I fought 2 hills each ride. Well they were bridges, but quite steep!

I was, and still struggling with the diet side of training, but with some unexpected encouragement from a friend yesterday, I'm going to give it a go next week.

At the end of week 2 one of my good friends came over and we went out for a 5.5 mile ride, we went steady, my choice, and did it in about 45 minutes riding time, not too bad I guess.

What I did learn in week 2 was that exercise can be dull and boring, but only if you make it that way, and having a friend to exercise with makes it so much more enjoyable and bearable.

With the highs of Week 2 I hoped I was onto a winner, but then Week 3 came and everything went out of the window. I just lost ALL motivation and became a lazy slob for the week. I felt pretty low and I know those lovely little endorphins from exercise would have helped a lot.

I knew all week that I wouldn't be able to do the ride in September without training, but something in me just screamed NO! I'm not exercising, and I won't eat healthily!

I never realised how tough having this much a lifestyle change would be, but I'm determined to make small changes and get there.

As always I would love for you to donate to the ride. You can do this here.

Lydia
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Family Selfies At The Pomeroy Inn

Yes, you did read that title right, my family took a selfie, and it was in a mirror, we are such 21st century people. Just kidding!

A few weeks ago my darling brother came home, and as this was the last time we'll be together for a least 3 months, we decided to go out. I have to apologise, I forgot to take my camera, so these are all iPhone photos, but the food's just too good not to share!

We went to the Pomeroy Inn which is just outside of Amersham, Buckinghamshire.

The pub/restaurant was full of people having lots of wine and delicious food, excited was an understatement.

With our tummies rumbling to the max we were shown to our table and looked at the menu.

There was such a wide range of pub classics.

We ordered and were drawn to the mirrors lining the wall.

The first selfie of my family. And probably the last.

 

When the food was brought out, I had to snap up some photos, but unfortunately, my family are not the best people to blog with. They just want to eat! So impatient..

My mum and I had the Hunter's Chicken, an absolute favourite of ours. I was most impressed with the amount of barbeque sauce there was as I usually have to ask for more. The Pomeroy earns itself an extra point for this!

Naomi had the Bacon Cheese burger, and it looked amazing.

Another burger was on the cards for my brother, but he is known to have eaten pretty much all meat than can be put into a burger. He settled for the Wild Boar & Chorizo Burger. Again, this looked so good and apparently it tasted good too!

While we all gulfed down our dinners, we caught up with each other, discussing unviersities, holidays and future plans.

The lovely waitress brought out the dessert menu.

 

Oh isn't it just so rustic!

Once again, my family quickly dug into their desserts so not many pictures!

My dad and brother each had a chocolate éclair. I think they were about a foot long and absolutely delicious.

I had the Pimm's Eton Mess. I am addicted to 2 drinks in the summer; Cider and Pimm's, so this was heaven!

 

Overall, we had a lovely evening, and with the pub just 30 miles out of Central London, it makes the perfect afternoon summer's escape.

Lydia

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Training Week 1.

This is the start of a new feature/update thing I'm going to be doing on the blog for the next couple of months. 

If you read this post last week you'd know that I'm doing the London to Brighton Cycle in September, and I NEED to train.

So, I thought I'd share with you all how it's going.

This week, week 1, was a bit slow for me, I was busy with work so only got 2 half hour rides in. Each time doing about 2 miles. 

The thing that has stuck out for me this week is how difficult this training will be, I have not done exercise recently and, having broken my right leg last year, lost a lot of the muscle. This means that my leg is burning, and really hurting after about 10 minutes on a bike. I'm dreading spending 6 HOURS on one. 

I just hope that I get a bit less lazy. Not just cycling, but anything, I can do easy things like taking the stairs instead of the lift in my block of flats and I think I will.

I want to do this, not just for the charity, but for myself, to prove to everyone that just because you're fat, doesn't mean you have to be unfit. I guess I also want to have a deadline to lose weight for. I'm not saying you'll see my being a skinny size 10, but what I am at the moment is not healthy. 

A positive thing I'll say about the training is that; I'm loving the countryside any scenery that I get to go through, check this out; not bad for an afternoon ride heh?

I would love for you to sponsor my sister and I as we complete the challenge, all donations with go directly to Child Bereavement UK. 

Sponsor us HERE.

Lydia

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Cycling London To Brighton.

So. This is happening.

I signed up to cycle 54 miles, in one go, from London to Brighton, with my baby sister, Beth. 

You may remember the post about last year's event here. Beth completed it in an amazing time, and I decided I wanted to join the challenge.

So on the 7th September 2014 I will be cycling from London to Brighton.

All 20+ Stone of unfit me.

 

As much as I'm excited for the challenge. I would not be doing this if it wasn't for the amazing work that Child Bereavement UK do.

Such as;

-Direct support for parents after the loss of a child

-Support for children suffering from bereavement

-Providing training for teachers, nurses & other professionals

-Providing media resources for families

Overall, a really well-deserving cause.

In the profession I am learning and heading into, I will experience death. Such an awful thing sometimes. And I cannot imagine how horrific it is to lose a child. So any help for families experiencing this are a blessing.

The organiser, doitforcharity, have so many helpful resources, and other challenges if cycling isn't you cup of tea.

 In the meantime, I am hoping to keep you all updated on the training I am doing going to start.

You can sponsor Beth and I here.

https://www.justgiving.com/LydiaBethCycling

Learn more about Child Bereavement UK here.

And contact me here.

Lydia

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