Tick tick tick!

Well, I am very pleased that I am already able to tick a few things off my list!  Of course I have already told you about the gorgeous Rahayu, our adopted animal (number 18) - TICK!  I have also enrolled with a local dance academy and am so very excited to be starting both tap and hip hop classes in two weeks.  I haven't danced in over 10 years and I am REALLY looking forward to it!  Even more so now that a couple of girlfriends have joined in so we can have fun together :)  Join a dance class (number 8) - TICK!

Number 23 on my list was to go to Fraser Island.  I grew up in Hervey Bay so of course was lucky enough to go to Fraser a lot in my younger days.  It is one of the most beautiful places on earth and I just adore it.  A mixture of magical beaches, rainforest, swimming spots and wildlife.  If you haven't been, I highly recommend it!  For quite a while now I've been saying that I wanted to go back for a visit as I hadn't been in about 7 years.  Well last weekend we went, just for the day.  We walked from Kingfisher Bay to Lake Mackenzie (below) and back.  And nearly died... :/

 

 

Well, that may be a little dramatic I guess.  But there was certainly times throughout the day that we were there when I wish I wasn't!  We decided to join a group of other women and head over to Fraser on Saturday 21 Jan to do a 22km walk - purely for fitness and 'fun'.   The longest I have walked previously is 20km (from Bargara to Burnett Heads and back) with one of my girlfriends.  It was a lovely walk that we really enjoyed.  The thought of doing the same over at Fraser, in one of the most beautiful settings I could think of, and only an extra 2km, was quite exciting.  When I heard about it I decided straight away that I wanted to go.  I ended up talking my bestie into coming and headed down to Hervey Bay to catch the barge with a car full of ladies.  This is us all ready to rock 'n' roll.  We had plenty of water, high energy snacks and sunscreen on board!

 

 

In total there were 38 people that met up to do the walk.  And when I say walk, I really should say trek!  It was tough!  Unlike our previous 20km walk at home on flat, concrete paths along the esplanade in the breeze, THIS walk was in sand.  It was up and down hills.  It was in the middle of summer, through the middle of an island with very little breeze!  It was THE HARDEST physical thing I have ever done.  But I did it!  We all did it!  And although we were completely buggered when we finished (that is an understatement), we were glad that we completed it :)

 

 

It ended up taking us almost 6 hours (including a stop at Lake Mackenzie to cool off and attend to our aching feet and muscles).  We left Kingfisher at 8am and got back just before 2pm. In hindsight, probably not the best idea in the middle of the day in the middle of January!  Apart from blisters, minor cuts and grazes from sticks/trees, stiff knees and hips, aching feet and calves and sore shoulders, I am very happy that no one was injured!  Haha :)  In the end we finished our 'walk' and indulged in a yummy feed and a beautiful long dip in the resort pool before catching the barge back to Hervey Bay and driving home to Bundy.  I'm not sure that I can say I 'enjoyed' our adventure at Fraser, but I certainly enjoyed spending the day with some of my favourite people and relaxing afterwards!  Go to Fraser Island (number 23) - TICK!

Clean cook up

Over the weekend my best friend and I decided to do a 'clean' cook up.  As some of you may know, I am on a bit of a health and fitness journey.  Basically I have decided, as lots of people do, to make some valuable healthy changes in my life.  Towards the end of last year I decided I want to feel comfortable, fit, healthy and happy in my own skin.

 

I have been overweight my whole life.  That isn't an excuse or a reason as to why I still am, it simply means that I have never made the right changes to 'fix' it.  Over the last 10 years I have 'tried' just about every diet under the sun.  I use the word 'tried' loosely, as in all honesty I never tried very hard or for very long.  Sure I lost 5kg here, 10kg there, but I have almost always put it back it on.  Why?  Because I stopped the 'diet' and went back to my previous ways.  Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Michelle Bridges 12WBT, soup diets, blood type diets, Atkins, shake replacements - I've done them all.  Now, don't get me wrong, I am not saying these programs don't work.  In fact they ALL work - whilst you are doing them.  Unfortunately, for me, none of them were sustainable to do for the rest of my life.  And I clearly need a long term solution.  Some programs are definitely better than others, and some are a fabulous way to kick start a healthier lifestyle.  I have learnt some great things by trying these 'diets' but I know that none of them are the answer for me.  

 

I have done a LOT of research on healthy eating and weight loss, more so in the last few months than ever before.  During this time I have met some amazingly inspirational people that 'know their shit' and have been more than happy to pass on some very valuable information.  I'm also very lucky to have some great friends that lead active healthy lifestyles who are very motivational. Although I have been researching my butt off (if only that burnt calories! lol) I'm certainly not an expert by any means!  However, I do now feel like I am armed with enough knowledge to make better choices when it comes to  nutrition without having to join a program or go on a 'diet'.  I don't think the same thing works for everyone, particularly as everyone has different goals, tastes, lifestyles, and ideals.  I certainly don't believe there is a quick miracle to losing weight or getting fit and if I could suggest one thing to anyone wanting to change their lifestyle without joining a weight loss program, it would be to research research research.

 

So, my research (and guidance) has basically lead me to clean eating. It is really VERY simple!  The following definition of clean eating has been taken from the Clean Eating magazine website:  The soul of clean eating is consuming food in its most natural state, or as close to it as possible. It is not a diet; it’s a lifestyle approach to food and its preparation, leading to an improved life – one meal at a time.  This basically means avoiding processed and refined foods and instead eating lots of fresh, whole foods.  If something includes an ingredient you can't pronounce, that is a good indication that you should probably put it back on the shelf!  Mix the clean eating philosophy with drinking lots of water, eating regularly throughout the day, reducing sugar (I have a terrible sweet tooth), reducing portion sizes, making sure protein is included in most meals and moving regularly.  Sounds like a pretty decent foundation to me anyway! :)

 

Changing the way you eat most definitely means you need to change the way you cook, or at least change some of the ingredients you use to cook!  Ingredients like quinoa, kale, almond meal and lentils have never been used in my house until recently - I had never even eaten some of them!  But, as new recipes are discovered, it seems new tastes are also forming and it is a great feeling to know that I am finally starting to do the right thing by this amazingly made machine I cruise around in ;) 

If you are interested in trying some of the recipes Deb and I cooked up yesterday take a look at my new 'Recipes' page.  I've added my Not Fried-Rice, Zucchini Slice and Lemon and Coconut Yoghurt Muffins.  We also made Turkey Meatballs and Tuna Patties.  Despite a couple of fails along the way with some 'clean' recipes I have tried so far, we are happy to report that all of these recipes turned out well (yay!) and tasted delicious (double yay!).  Here are a few of the ingredients we used to whip up our new creations!

 

Fried Not-Rice

Ingredients:
5 cups cooked quinoa
1 egg + 3 egg whites                                                   
1/2 Red capsicum
1/2 cup frozen peas                                          
1/2 cup frozen corn
6 shallots                                                            
100g sliced chicken/turkey/ham
2 tsp. fish sauce
4 tsp. soy

Method:
1. Prepare quinoa as per instructions (very similar to rice) and put to side.
2. Whisk eggs and pour into pan making sure it is nice and thinly spread out.  Flip when almost cooked through so you have a large looking flat omelette.  Remove from pan and chop into small squares.
3. Finely slice shallots and dice capsicum.
3. Cut sliced meat into small squares.
5. Add all ingredients including sauces to electric frypan (you may want to lightly spray base with olive oil spray) and toss through for approx 10 minutes.

Zucchini Slice

Ingredients:
6 eggs                                                                  
2 zucchinis                                                          
2 tsp. chicken stock powder
1 carrot                                                               
1 onion
100g sliced chicken/turkey/ham                                         
1 cup almond meal
3/4 cup cottage cheese                                   
Small tin sweet corn
Sundried tomatoes (dry packed, no oil)

Method:
1. Grate zucchini and press between paper towel to remove moisture.
2. Grate carrot, finely dice onion, sundried tomatoes and sliced meat.
3. Whisk eggs in large bowl with cottage cheese.
4. Add all other ingredients and mix well with wooden spoon.
5. Pour into a shallow baking dish lined with baking paper and cook in 180 degree oven for approx 30min or until golden brown and skewer comes out clean when poked in centre.

Lemon & Coconut Yoghurt Muffins

Ingredients:
2 eggs                                                                  
¼ cup honey
250g natural yoghurt                                     
Juice from one whole lemon               
2 tsp. vanilla                                                      
1 tsp. baking powder
3 cups almond meal
1/4 cup shredded coconut
Coconut oil (to grease tray)

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees and grease muffin tray with coconut oil (we used mini muffin trays)
2. Add all ingredients together in large bowl and mix well with wooden spoon.
3. Spoon into muffin tray.  You can add blueberries, as pictured, or other fruit/nuts to top of mini muffins if you wish.
4. Bake until golden brown.  This will depend on size of muffins.

 

Our new adoptee!

I am so happy to introduce our new adoptee Rahayu ♥



Number 18 on my list of things to do this year was to adopt an animal.  For those of you that know me well, know I am a huge animal lover. Domestic, wild, big, small - I love just about all of them!  Years ago I came across the The Orangutan Project online when I was doing some research into palm oil (that's a whole new blog post right there!).  They are a wonderful organisation doing great things for Orangutan conservation.  Among their numerous projects, they support four rescue and rehab centres in Sumatra and Borneo.  They currently have over 1000 orangutans in care with the ultimate goal of them being returned to the wild where possible.  I was so pleased to find out that you could adopt an orangutan!  Obviously you can't literally adopt them, make them your own and bring them home, but you can make a monthly donation (like a sponsorship) with funds going directly to helping these gorgeous little orphans. From just $55 per year you can help make a difference.

 

So, I didn't waste any time.  I immediately adopted a cute little guy called Lear.  He was so tiny and gorgeous.  As time went on I received updates about him and his progress and am pleased that he is now a very healthy and cheeky young man!

 

 

He is now no longer available for adoption.  Nearly a year has gone by without me having anything to do with the project but seeing as I decided to 'adopt' an animal again this year, I knew I would be contacting The Orangutan Project once again.  This week I jumped on their website and browsed through the gorgeous orangutans on their adoption page.  I very much encourage everyone to go and take a look.  This time round I chose the beautiful Rahayu as I loved her story, and her eyes!

 

Rahayu arrived at the Orangutan Emergency Centre in April 2011 as a baby in a very critical condition.  She had Cerebral Malaria and they were uncertain if she would survive.  If she did, they thought she may have long term problems.  She didn't show any signs of visual reflex and was having convulsions. 

 

 

Slowly, thanks to 24 hour care, she got better and stronger and recovered from the disease.  Another life saved thanks to The Orangutan Project.  Rahayu is now about two and half years old.  She weighs about 10kg is doing great!  Although her eyesight was effected by Malaria, she doesn't let it stop her. She loves to eat and playfully tease the younger babies, but doesn't stray too far from her babysitters.  They are transitioning her to a new, bigger care centre later this year where her human contact will be more limited and she can start bulding nests high in the trees.  Hopefully one day she will find a mate and become a mummy, and maybe even be released back into the wild ♥

 

 

So, number 18 can be ticked off my list!  I also have a few other items in progress which I will tell you about next time :)

 

My 'bucket list'

2013 is here!  And what will it bring?  For me, hopefully plenty of smiles.  And consistent entries in this blog!  You may have read my first (and only) post back in March last year after I lost my Daddy.  I have wanted to write a blog for a long time and thought it was a great time to start, but looking back, it wasn't a great time for anything.  However, I think 2013 is a great time for everything :) 

So, what about you, what are you hoping for?  What are you resolutions, goals, dreams?  This year instead of thinking of my normal 3 outrageous unacheievable resolutions and not sticking to them, I decided to make a list of do-able things.  A 'bucket list' of sorts - but just for this year!  I have 30 things I want to do by the end of 2013.  Some things I have never done despite saying for years that I really want to, others I may have done before and loved, but haven't done them again and should!  Nonetheless, they will all be ticked off before the year is over :)  Here it is...

1.   Make a vegie garden
2.   Go on a cruise
3.   See a live concert
4.   Go rollerskating
5.   Donate blood
6.   Go whale watching
7.   Get my half sleeve (tattoo)
8.   Join a dance class
9.   Learn how to drive manual
10. Build something out of wood
11. Lose 15kg
12. Ride a tandem bike or trike
13. Climb a mountain
14. Kiss in the rain
15. Finish the 50 Shades series
16. Sing karaoke
17. Go kayaking
18. Adopt an animal
19. Book an overseas holiday
20. Have lunch with a friend I haven't see in more than 12 months
21. Capture something absolutely magical on my camera
22. Help a stranger
23. Go to Fraser Island
24. Visit a town I've never been to
25. Complete an adventure run longer than 5km
26. Grow my own herbs
27. Go on a picnic
28. Learn to play a harmonica
29. Encounter a new animal
30. Go snorkling

I'm sure some of things sound boring or uneventful to some, but they all make me smile for one reason or another and I can't wait to do each and every one!  As I tick them off I will share my experiences right here.  I shared this list with my beautiful sister and it got her thinking about what she wants to do so perhaps it has made you think to.  What do you want to do in 2013?

*EDITED TO ADD LIST IN PROGRESS BELOW:

Here is the list!  30 things I want to do/achieve during 2013 :)  I will be talking about these activities regularly on my blog throughout the year.

1.   Make a vegie garden

 

2.   Go on a cruise

     

3.   See a live concert

      We have bought tickets to see Pink in July!  It's going to be great!

4.   Go rollerskating

5.   Donate blood

      In honour of my Daddy on his birthday 06/02/13.

6.   Go whale watching

7.   Get my half sleeve (tattoo)

      I have three ink sessions booked in for March, April and May :)

8.   Join a dance class

     

9.   Learn how to drive manual

10. Build something out of wood

11. Lose 15kg

      

12. Ride a tandem bike or trike

13. Climb a mountain

14. Kiss in the rain

15. Finish the 50 Shades series

16. Sing karaoke

17. Go kayaking

18. Adopt an animal

      Adopted Rahayu on 07/01/13 - read about it here.

19. Book an overseas holiday

20. Have lunch with a friend I haven't see in more than 12 months

21. Capture something absolutely magical on my camera

22. Help a stranger

      The Jan 2013 flood provided an ideal opportunity to help LOTS of strangers!

23. Go to Fraser Island

      We went on 20/01/13 - what a challenge it was!  Check it out.

24. Visit a town I've never been to

25. Complete an adventure run longer than 5km

26. Grow my own herbs

27. Go on a picnic

28. Learn to play a harmonica

      I bought one!  It arrived on 22/01/2013 - learning in progress :/

29. Encounter a new animal

      Hubby rescued a bandicoot we named 'Bandi' on 27/01/13 - take a look!

30. Go snorkling