The Year That is To Be 2011

Next year represents another 12 months of fun exciting times and so I have been thinking recently about what it means for me and mine. I don't believe in resolutions and to that effect never make any as I have no intentions of keeping them. But what I have started to do is think about some things that I would like to do in the new year.

Some of these are within my control. Others are not. So to try and work some of them out I thought it might be an idea to throw a couple up here into blogland and see what happens.

Also I might have mentioned this before- I like lists. . .

• Run a full marathon

 This is in my control and will be the peak of my running to date, possibly I can talk The Husband into doing one somewhere interesting, like Berlin or Norway. . .

• Run a half marathon

 Again within my control and will form part of my full marathon training plan.

• Move out of our flat and into a house

Hmm well. In my control?

I'll be starting a new job in January and with a little extra cash I will hopefully be able to help move us out of our small flat into a nice house. I, of course, will not be doing this alone but rather with Husband and then the plans for new additions to our family can start, like the cat (name still to be decided!) and dog (Italian Spinone called Brutus, we're far more specific about the dog details than the cat) we're really keen to have!

• Welcome my new niece to the world

Littlest Sis and her husband are having a little girl in April. This is totally out with my control but having had the joys of feeling her kick and back flip around her Mummy's tummy I can't wait to meet her in July.

• Watch my lil Sis get married

Again totally out with my control and having been married for 2 years I am still happy not to be planning or saving towards a wedding but still basking in the glow of being married to my lovely Husband.

In my control is going to be her Hen night though which is slightly scary but hopefully I'll be able to do her proud!!

• Hit the big 3.0.

Again out with my control but being exactly 6 months yonger than my Husband I will be relishing the fact he hits his 30's ahead of me. I know of a few people who freak out about hitting this particular milestone. I am not sure why.

I am not. I am relishing the opportunity to welcome another year in my life. I have had some sadder and darker years in the past and welcome the chance to force some more time in between me and them. I plan to celebrate this birthday with close family and friends- a dinner, cooked from scratch by me!!!

The "sadder and darker years" on reflection sounds deeply melodramatic. It's not but they are a topic I think I will share with you fellow blogee's and readers perhaps in the next 12 months. I am not sure about revealing this Other Side to blog land given that I am not annonymous. So there maybe some people who know me that don't know this. . . oh the conflict and the drama that blogging brings!!

• Reach my target weight

This in within my control and very easy to do.

I have just been pretty relaxed about it. In truth though I am hoping this will be a natural side effect of training for a full marathon. Ideally before Lil Sis' big wedding day!

• Plan and book our 3rd year anniversary break

Husband has planned and booked the last two - this year it's my turn and I can't wait. In fact I think I already know where I am going to book, which is pretty exciting.

I will tell you more about it nearer the time. . . but this is definitely within my control!

• Finish TBC

Again within my control. And don't forget there is £100.00 resting on my ability to complete the largest cross stitch I have ever had the guts to undertake.

• Swim a mile

Also within my control. This year I signed up to swim a mile in Strathclyde country park but it was called off due to green algae. I can swim and if floating were an Olympic sport I would excel and would easily be a gold medal winner. However I have never had the confidence to swim any kind of distance so this event actually inspired a degree of fear that I might not be able to do it.

Swimming is very different to running. If and when it gets too tough because you haven't done enough training you can always walk. Swimming doesn't have he same get out clause. You drown. Or float. . . after a time!

Anyway having swum the distance (once and in a busy swimming pool) I am no longer scared but excited by the the whole thing. In fact I plan to do it in Windemere and make a weekend away of it for Husband and me. In fact if Husband decides to do his own challenge (an Ironman style event) then he might be able to do it with me!

• Keep on Blogging

To maintain this piece of writting space and improve with practise and regular posting. To this effect I will take the bit between my teeth and attend a creative writting group and hope to be inspired and filled with confidence in what I do bare to blog about!!


These were a few of the things that I know and hope will be realised in the new year in the meantime all the best to you all for your next 12 months of fun and excitment.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

It's cold, it's white, IT'S BLLOOOMMING MARVELOUS.

There are sNoW many things to be excited about when it comes to winter!

SKI-ING
I am fairly new to the art of ski-ing and having been on 2 ski trips in my life I am hooked. We are already booked for 2011 and I have my helmet, gloves and salapets all out of The Grandparents loft already.

A bit pre-emptive you might say however this year has seen the worst/best levels of snow that I can ever remember. And I've lived in Aberdeenshire- we know about the cold! So having already had 2 days snowed in last week and a half day this week to make sure we got home alright I have had to wear the aforementioned ski gear.

The more it snows the closer to my ski holiday I feel. I am out of annual leave and have been for some months now. . . ROLL ON JANUARY. This is one annual leave deprived lady! I am also desperate to see how much I can improve on 2010's mad skills. The following may be some what intimidating for the lesser skier . . . my speed and agility are very impressive:

  http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=272898517826

I am not sure if this link will work but you should see a video of a fantastic skier- this would be me!

DRIVING
We have also recently become a Volvo owning and driving family. Ideal weather you might think- Volvo, Sweden, Snow perfectly safe driving conditions. Perfect conditions (or not depending on your confidence at snow driving) I am not going to be driving Viego (the Volvo, yes we name our cars- or rather I do The Husband has vito rights). Although he (the car not The Husband) comes packed with numerous safety features but I'd rather walk to the train station to attempt to get to work, than feel Vieg's slip sliding away under neath us. Something he only does when the traction control is disengaged. . . Yes we are still learning how to work our new toy.

Apparently in heavy snow it needs to be disengaged otherwise its like car skating on tarmac. Something Husband can vouch for. He is definitely far braver than I - happy(ish) to drive. Well happier now we know about the traction control thing.

SNOW ANGELS/MEN/SLEDGING
I met up with an old friend at a pub the night the snow started.* And have to say had a lot much to drink. So when Husband picked me up, having already slid the car around the roundabout (this was before we knew about the traction control thing), he was not a happy bunny.

So to appease his drunken and excitable wife he came out for a walk with me in the snow. I was keen that we were the first ones out in the snow and that we were. I think its the sound of our boots creaking in the fresh snow and seeing these perfect foot prints on a blank canvas. Making snow angels, building a snow man and generally behaving like children in the snow at 1am in the morning. I think this is the only reason I survived the hangover that nearly hit on the Saturday morning.

*If ever there was an opening to a novel that is probably mine!!

 Geoff

 Angelic

Drunken Culprit

PHOTOGRAPHY

I don't think I need to say anything more that check out my pictures:

All available for a fee :o)

 

Cupcake'tastic

I've decided that this years Christmas presents are going to be of the home made variety. Specifically the cupcake variety.

This has come about as a result of getting the best possible recipe book for cupcakes. Usually my baking suffers from a bit of dryness, however the end result of these have been light and moist and delicious "bites of heaven"* The plan is to make 4 per family: 1 chocolate, 1 red velvet, 1 lemon and 1 vanilla.

This process hasn't been without its teething troubles. On my first batch of Red Velvet cupcakes I had in my enthusiasm burst in on them while they were trying to rise in the oven. I clearly caught them unawares and they reacted with a severe bout of shyness and promptly collapsed. The icing sugar wasn't any better- like white soup. I've never experienced cupcake collapse before and I've been quite traumatised by it so have been testing and practising like you wouldn't believe to make sure its avoided at all costs.

So according to my calculations I have about 100 cakes to make- there is room to keep some as moral boosters for the guys who are having to work the Christmas/New Year shift. . . fingers crossed I am up to the test of mass baking!!

I have persisted and tested each of the 4 flavours and hopefully I'll be as successful with the mass baking as I was with this little batch

* a direct quote from one of my work colleagues.