Blessing 94 – Getting to be a kid again. April 3, 2012

Grr WordPress is driving m crazy with its sudden postings. Anyway, where was I? Oh right, today my friend Louise and her little boy Casper came round. I’ve known Louise for about 12 years as we both have ME and I’ve watched Casper grow up, from the cutest baby to a gorgeous little boy. We don’t get to see each other much because of being ill; but we always pick up from where we left off.

I had so much fun with Casper today, it was like being a child again. We played with a box of Playmobile figures that my Mum has hung on to. Every time Casper found something he didn’t recognise, he asked what it was, he was so inquisitive it was lovely and he kept up a running commentary the whole time. We had a picnic lunch where we discussed the merits of the different colour Smarties, Casper’s favourite are red, mine are orange because of the flavoured chocolate and I think I might have converted him too!

We then played with the rubber ducks in the bathroom, making them swim in the sink. My colour changing ducks were a particular favourite!

Later he showed me the toys he brought in his Ben 10 backpack and I even got to try on his army hat. Casper told me very seriously that I looked like a Lady Soldier, I was very honoured.

He’s full of energy and it was quite tiring; but the most fun I’ve had in ages!

Blessing 93 – Meditation magic, listening to your intuition. April 2, 2012

I love meditating,  it’s something I first started when I was fifteen during my GCSEs. My whole family learnt Transcendental Meditation; but I really began to enjoy and appreciate it once I started having reiki. My reiki healer used to do guided meditations with me. She would get me to relax with my eyes closed and then describe me going somewhere. My very first meditation was swimming with dolphins, because I had dolphins on my duvet cover. I still remember how incredibly freeing it was. I wasn’t actually going anywhere; but I felt like I could do anything I wanted: swim, walk, run. My body had no limits and I loved that feeling. It was very different from how I felt the rest of the time, barely able to move, unable to walk and in a lot of pain.

Meditation, like anything, is a skill you have to practise. You have to keep doing it; but  with guided meditation it can be a lot of fun. I’ve done all sorts of things during my meditations: climbed mountains, soared through the sky, sat in temples, strolled through forests, even flown through space, among the stars.

I know there is debate about where you “go” during meditation, if you’re connecting with some higher power, meeting guides or if it’s just your ‘imagination. I don’t claim to be an expert, the scientist in me says that it’s just my imagination; but all I do know is that I have had some major emotional break throughs while I’ve been meditating. Realisations about situations and people, that I can’t imagine having during my normal daily life. I think the benefit of meditation is that it strips away the clutter of thoughts and stimulation that we receive every second of the day. It makes space to allow your intuition to speak to you and if you’re open and willing to listen, it can be the greatest guide and teacher you have.

I like using audio CD meditations because they provide a focus, a voice to keep me on track and it stops my mind from wandering, which it has a tendency to do. I love the sense of calm that descends when you really relax and you lose track of time and place.  I think it takes a certain willingness to go with the flow and let things happen; but it’s also a bit like watching a movie, you don’t know what’s going to happen, you just enjoy the show. The best part of a meditation is that you are the star!

If you’ve never meditated before I’d really recommend giving it a go. There are sites where you can get free downloads as well as some on iTunes. Or check out your local library for some great CDs. I’m not saying it will change your life; but you might be surprised just how much you get out of sitting still with your eyes shut!

Blessing 92 – Good family, good food, good times. April 1, 2012

Today I had a birthday meal at a local Chinese buffet – my favourite food ever! It’s a really great restaurant with a good atmosphere and even better food, although why is it you can have a Chinese meal and be hungry by the time you get home?

The meal was meant to be with family and friends; but unfortunately all my friends cancelled because of illness, so it was just me, Mum, my brother Simon and his girlfriend Fee. We had a really lovely time. I don’t get to see them very much, so it was great to be able to relax, chat and eat!

I even got a present! They got me a fab Yankee candle and holder, it’s really me and I totally love it. It was the perfect end to my birthday weekend and I know it must have been a good one because I’m sad it’s over and not looking forward to the week starting. I feel hugely blessed and just want this weekend to last forever!

Blessing 91 – Cupcakes Rock! March 31, 2012

Today I went on a cupcake decorating course with Sally from Decorate Your Cake. It’s something that I have been interested in for years; but have never learnt how to do proper decorating. I thought cupcakes would be a gentle introduction to sugar craft and it was a lot of fun. The course was Easter themed and we made sheep, chicks and ducks. Each one had its own personality, my first sheep looked a bit psychotic; but the second was cuter. My favourite was the chick bursting out of its shell.

I learnt how to do the proper fancy buttercream swirls on top of cupcakes and my favourite thing was making fondant roses, they were amazing! I learnt lots of new skills and I plan on doing more at home. It’s great to do different things and I had a brilliant time.

 

Duck and Chick, not from Friends!

Blessing 90 – The perfect birthday. March 30, 2012

I wasn’t sure what to expect from my birthday this year – I’m a huge fan of birthdays in general, normally getting excited about mine as soon as Christmas is over. I’ve been known to count down the days from 1st January; but normally from the beginning of March. This year I’ve been so busy that I got distracted and it sorted of snuck up on me.

I had planned two different things to do on my birthday; but both fell through, so I decided not to make any set plans, just to go with the flow and see what happens. I can say whole heartedly and very happily that the day has been perfect!

Mum made me pancakes with ice cream for my breakfast – it’s a tradition! I had some of the new Ben + Jerry’s core ice creams – if you haven’t tried them then you have to! They do two flavours of ice cream with a core down the centre, like caramel or chocolate ganache, they are so yummy!

I’m going on a cupcake decorating course tomorrow, so we had to go to a cake shop to buy all the bits – that was a scarily expensive shopping spree; but at least I’ll be able to use most of the bits again as they were mainly sugar craft tools. I’m really excited as I’ve always wanted to learn sugar craft.

Then we had lunch at one of my favourite places – Taste of Oz, an Australian themed restaurant who do amazing food! I did knock over the vinegar bottle which shattered on their tiled floor. I felt embarrassed; but not as mortified as I would have once.

We then came back via Waitrose to get a birthday cake (Butterscotch) and some bits for tea. I got lots of cupcake china and themed presents from Mum, so we had decided to have a tea party. We bought some salad, a tomato and garlic pizza bread and some other picnic style bits. It was so good!

I got lots of lovely messages on Facebook – 57 people!!! – some texts and I talked to my brother, aunt and friend Grace, who sang to me on my answer machine. It was fabulous! We then watched Letters to Juliet which was a classic RomCom; but was really sweet.

I feel very luck and very spoilt and I don’t mind too much that I’m now a year older! I am truly blessed.

Blessing 89 – Snow in March, in a theatre no less! March 29, 2012

Tonight I went to see Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker, not the typical ballet to watch in March, it’s normally a festive affair; but beggars can’t be chooser’s with touring theatre/ballet companies. I don’t really like the Nutcracker in general, I think if I’d seen it as a child I might have really liked it; but as an adult it seemed vaguely threatening and creepy seeing the toys come to life, actually I used to be a bit paranoid that my toys did that as a child, so maybe it’s a good thing I waited until I was an adult.

I only got tickets to this one because it was Matthew Bourne who I love – if you’ve never seen any of his work then you really must, even if you’re not really in to ballet. His staging is beautiful, the productions are stylish and lavish. He manages to inject so much personality and humour into the choreography and the people act as much as they dance. There was so much going on stage that I wanted to be able to freeze sections so that I could watch each individual element and take it all in.

The best part was when there was actual snow – well fake, foamy stuff; but it looked like real snow, which totally made my night. It was magical! They even had a cake, which looked a bit like a birthday cake – my birthday is tomorrow, so it was doubly special.  All in all it was a  really great show and one that I’d happily go back to see again and again.

 

Blessing 88 – Life Changing People March 28, 2012

Have you ever met someone and thought this person has changed my life forever? I met someone like that today, a designer I met through my Networking Group. We barely spoke at the meeting; but I’d sent out to the Universe that I needed help with the design of my virtual holidays and then up popped Sara. I just knew I had to give her my card.

She came round for a meeting this evening and not only solved the problem of how to design my holidays, something I have been struggling with for years; but she is also going to help me learn to do it. I feel like I’ve been given the keys to the kingdom and it’s amazing! I’m so grateful that we were destined to meet and feel hugely relieved that I’ve got some answers to my questions. Now I just want to make it all a reality!

Blessing 87 – Having the courage to share my writing March 27, 2012

For the first time I have actually let somebody read some of my stories. Admittedly it was only my Mum; but it was a huge step! I hadn’t realised quite how big until I was sitting nervously waiting for her to read the first chapter of the novel I’m working on. I felt sick with nerves.It was silly really, she’s read my other work, like my blog and my virtual holidays; but I’ve never shown anyone my fiction work.

Of course she was lovely and positive; but it really boosted my confidence. She’s a teacher, so I know she’d have had to say something if she didn’t like it. I also know it will be much scarier showing it to strangers; but this was a really important first step!

I’m having so much fun writing again, I can’t really believe that I stopped after NaNoWriMo. I definitely won’t be stopping again.

Blessing 86 – Creative Community March 26, 2012

I’ve just joined a group on Facebook for people with chronic illnesses who enjoy creative activities, like arts and crafts, cake making/decorating, photography and writing.  A friend set it up and I wasn’t sure what to expect; but it’s really cool. Everybody is sharing things that they have made and done and it’s inspiring to see what incredible things people can create despite being really ill.

I always feel in awe of people who can make things, especially artistic/graphic design people. I can take things and put them together, like patchwork or even scrapbooking; but people who can start with a blank canvas (real or digital) and then turn it into a piece of art is amazing! I guess writing is the literary version of that and I would rather be a writer than an artist; but it would be lovely to be both!

I’m enjoying doing my quilt, which is nearly finished and of course all the writing I’m doing at the moment. It feels so good to be back into writing properly, not just the virtual holiday; but I’m working on a novel and planning my script too – no writing until Script Frenzy in April though.

I’m looking forward to getting more inspiration from the group and the chance to share some of my own work with them.

Blessing 85 – Script Fenzy – I must be slightly mad! March 25, 2012

http://scriptfrenzy.org/

Yes that’s right I have signed up to do Script Frenzy! Eeek! For those of you that don’t know, it’s an off-shoot of National Novel Writing Month  (NaNoWriMo) with the aim to write 100 pages in 30 days. Doesn’t sound too bad, that’s four pages a day; but I don’t think it will be that easy.

I’ve been umming and ahhing about it for a while; but going on the script writing course yesterday has inspired me. I think it’s a little mad, as I’ve got lots to do for Holidays From Home with the virtual London holiday, that has to be done by the end of July. I’d also love to do a virtual Diamond Jubilee party and I’m doing a virtual party for a friend; but I really want to give this a go and I’m hoping that I can manage it on evenings and weekends. We’ll have to wait and see.

I’m not as determined as I was for NaNoWriMo; but I would really like to complete it. I think I’m going to use the idea I came up with at the course; but I also have a back up story that I had been planning on writing. I’m going to do my best to keep up with my regular blog posts; but I’ll have to see how I go. I’ll probably end up doing a few short status posts about how I’m getting on. Is anyone else doing Script Frenzy? I don’t think there’s anybody near me doing it, which is a shame as I really enjoyed the support and companionship of NaNoWriMo. Let me know if you are and we’ll have to do a bit of online support.

I’m excited and now want April to begin, so that I can!