Destination Dreaming: Edinburgh, Scotland



View over Edinburgh up Arthurs Seat

My favourite stop in the UK and in all I saw in Scotland was Edinburgh! The amazing greenery, the lovely people, and history, EVERYTHING! I loved Edinburgh and would love to go back again.

On this particular day, Ant and I decided to do abit of exercise and climb up Arthurs Seat! It took at least 30 minutes from our hostel to the edge of the Royyl Mile, the a couple of hours up and down and then back so was good to get out and stretch the legs! We got caught in a few massive down pours, and out "rain jackets" were pretty much designed to stop drizzle, but with our new scottish flag umbrella, we trudged on and had a fantastic climb! I mean, look at that view!! Castle and all! and so very very green :)

Ill say is again, I love Edinburgh!!

Its here!! Dip Dip Hooray (Sorry I stole it mum)

Lemme explain that title haha :P

For a year and a half I stubbled across the website called Bodyrock.tv, a site with so many followers they call themselves the Home Workout Movement! Just a quick run down:

Bodyrock.tv posts a couple of worout routines per week, incorporating bodyweight and afew pieces of equipment, all to be performed in the comfort of your livingroom and guarenteed to make you sweat your ass off! and even better.. pledging that is all you need to do for 12 minutes+ a day!

Whats that? A workout for 12 minutes? Sounds crazy doesnt it! But it works! People from all over the world are quitting their gym memberships and busting out in the own home and getting the same benefits in less time with the same intensity! A way of HIIT (High intensity interval training), people are getting results! Combined with clean eating and your on your way to a much healthier lifestyle without forking out $$ to gyms!

Anyways, as I was browsing through the site, I was instantly drawn to the host of the videos; Zuzanna!

She is stunning, has an amazing body and for some strange reason always seems to make me smile while I listen to her talk. Guess I could say she's my girly crush haha but she is also my inspiration! I would kill for her abs and her legs, but not so much her arms, but too musclular for my liking! But I mean, just look at her:



Yep! She's my fitspo!



In all her videos, she pushes throughher workout with great form and flow, making sure she fully engages every muscle that needs to be used in each movement, not racing through yet not slacking off! And the breath and sweat dripping off her makes you see just how hard sheis working! And she has also stated once that thses are the only workouts she completes! No gym! No secret weight classes! Just her body weight and some equipment to intensify and challenge some moves! So simple and effective!

I have tried several workouts at home and lemme tell you, you sweat!! Like stings your eyes, drips off your nose to make the floor slippery kind of sweat!

Love it!

I have mainly stuck to the bodyweight routines though, or just modified some of the moves to be done without equipment but recently I decided it was time I invested in a Dip Station:



Zuzanna with her dip station



This piece of equipment can be used for tricep and chest dips, knee raises, reverse pull ups and much more!

So I brought it last week and after days of pestering mum as to whether it had been delivered or not, IT FINALLY ARRIVED YESTERDAY ARVO!! WOOP :D (I received a txt from mum saying "its here dip dip hooray!!" hence the title haha)

I got Dan to set it up and I had a little play on it! I thought I was pretty average at dips since I do them atthe gym! Gave them a shot on this...... could barely get down for even 1 of them o.0

Tried a reverse pull up..... ouch!... and I thought they looked easy!

Knee raises.... wowzas!!!

Everything Zuzanna made look so easy was so much more of a challenge then I originally thought!

....and I LOVE it! I love my new dip station and cant wait to start to use it with more workouts! Infact here is one I may try tonight and use my dip station with!

A written run down of the workout is here: Set Fire Workout

Just on an ending note, Zuzanna does not host on Bodyrock.tv anymore :(

But after a short break, she is back on her own youtube channel called: Zuzka Light

There is a new host on Bodyrock.tv named Lisa-Marie but she doesnt have the same flair as Zuzanna and I find the workout are majority all very similar and involving so much equipment so I like to look back and Zuzannas old workouts and try her new ones :)

Ok, Im going to suss out a workout for tonight *squee*

Enjoy! :)

xx

June Update: Storms, Football and Travelling

Not much as been happening recently, but what has happened has left behind some damage!

The other weekend a massive storm blew threw Bunbury, snapping trees, ripping tiles off of roofs and blowing down fences. We had no damage, but also no power for 24 hours so mums freezer got stocked up with our meat. I will admit it wa nice sitting by candlelight with friends (tho I do wish their iphones had run out of battery sow e could all have a conversation, not just them shouting out their scores to each others while I was not blessed with mobile internet or wifi connection :( boo!!)

Photos c/- Mother @ Bits About Us

Another storm blew through 2 nights later but wasnt as bad!

Another damaging story, Daniel has been off football with an injured knee. When it happened were were u at the hospial for 4 hours and he had xrays done and given the call clear of bone breakage, just some strain and damage and with rest and recovery it should heal up. 7 weeks later he was given the all clear to play again :D With his knee strapped up tight, he was in high spirits for his first game back.

It was great to watch his back out on the field, you can see how much he loves this sport with his fierce determination and passion shining brightly as he plays! He got a free kick and kicked a goal for his team and it seemed all was well.....



Kicking his first goal back :)

Until I saw him being helped off the field! I quickly zoomed in with my camera lense and watched him limp to the sideline looking heartbroken :(

This time he had hurt his other knee, only alot worse! An appointment at the physio predicted at 80% its was a ACL (Anterior Collateral Ligamen) injury and will possibly need surgery! He has an MRI scan booked in the following weeks so everything is crossed that it all works out well for him.

He is very sad that his footy season is finished this year and possibly next year, and on top of that he maynot be able to do wakeboarding during summer either.

I dont like seeing his this down, he is always a positive person and I can understand how frustrating this all is to him. As I said before, he has alot of passion for football and he enjoys wakeboarding so to have to give up 2 things that are huge parts of his life must be heartbreaking for him. So it is my job now to make sure he is looking at the positives instead of moping about. I gonna send him as much positive vibes as I can and keep him distracted and happy in anyways I can and support him every second of his recovery! Love you hun!

On a more jealous note: My sister, parents and pop are off to Europe next weeks and I envy them so much!!!! This time last year I was still in Greece planing our next move to Spain! I really REALLY want to go on another holiday! May I can use Dans injury to my advantage and get him travelling so he can see how AWESOME travel is! haha I know he knows its awesome, he just has more pressing issues that make it difficult to travel like a mortgage :) I get him out there one day someday! But I hope they all have a fantastic time and make some wonderful memories :)



Would give anyhting to be overseas right now! I miss travelling! (Me at Palantine Hill, Roma)

and on a happier note: I got to see my other sister who came home for a week, so that was great to see her again :) I ordered a dip station which I cannot WAIT for!!! and ... thats pretty much it :)

Ciao for now, until next time

xx 

Bali Adventures Day 2: Waterbom Park

After a very uneventful yet restless flight, we finally arrived in bali in the very early hours of the morning!



Look out Bali!



All luggage accounted, we headed out into the humid morning and paid for 4 taxis to take us to our accommodation for the next 9 nights!

It was the usual hustle and bustle of Bali: mopeds everywhere, very few road rules, we quickly made our way through it to Kuta. The whole taxi ride there, I spent watching Dans face! And I would have to say this was by far the highlight of my trip! This look of disbelief/ excitement/amusement/shock was priceless as his head darted from side to side, taking in the foreign country!

By the time we arrived, checked in and snooped around our room, it was 2am and finally time to pass out!

Before we had boarded the plane, our group came to agreement that for our first day, in case it got to hard down the track if people wanted to go off and do their own things, we would head to Waterbom Park which was directly across from the hotel!

Up, and ready to face the day, Dan and I had a peek around at out room and view (nice gardens) before heading down to meet everyone at breakfast! Damn it was a good breaki too! Banana and plain pancakes, all sorts of eggs, fruit and cereal, toast, all your basics and abit more, but tasting soooo good, it was just what we needed for a day of fun in the sun and water!

So off we trotted to Waterbom Park! The girls all said goodbye to their boyfriends as they ran off to do every slide possible and film themselves with their waterproof cameras, and then we headed off to the easiest slides to get into it! Always good fun going backwards, screaming loudly and getting massive wedgies when coming out the tube at the bottom, and soon we were all in agreement that it was time to get our drink on! So off to the pool bar we went for some oh so yummy cocktails!



Top: The boys mucking around - Left: Sexy Ladies - Right: Cocktail time



A couple of hours later the boys found us to say a quick hello, some muck around photos, brag about their sliding accomplishments and then bugger off to do them all again. I yelled after Dan that he had to at least do one of the big ones with me, and got a wave or acknowledgement as he ran off down the path with the boys! Haha

A few more slides and then it was time for a nice relaxing lap or ten in a man made lake type of course that you drift along with the current in blow up tubes! More chatting, photos, dunking and lapping, and once again a couple of hours later, the boys were back! As you could imaging there were crashes, more dunking, tipping off tubes and splashing everywhere, but it was short lived! Their attention span for such a “boring” ride shorted and the call of the slides was loud! And they were gone again!



Floating around the lagoon



Soon it was time for afew girls to tackle the more exciting slides, and I finally dragged Dan away to do at least one of them with me! All good fun!



you go out the tube and down the drop (R), then go up the wall behind Dan (L), then backwards down into the pool (R)



Around mid afternoon we were buggered and keen for a lay down before dinner, also some girls had had enough while others including myself, had been to Waterbom Park before so was nothing new and exciting. So we left the boys to their probably 5 time down every slide while the girls went back to chill in the aircon and refresh.

When we had all finally regrouped, Billie had organised for us to go for dinner at a restaurant somewhere in the market area! I cant remember the name or the location but DAMN it was amazing food! There was a special on for drinks and ribs so everyone was set! Every mouthful was more delicious then the next! And Im pretty sure Dan cleared 5 full plates of ribs! In fact he was so impressed by the food, we went to thank the kitchen staff, and he gave the chef a 10000 rupiah tip, and they were so happy! It was secretly a proud moment for me to see him do such a kind act! To this day he still goes on about those ribs and how he tipped the kitchen staff and I know it’s a memory he will always remember fondly.



Dinner antics



The drink were going down well and soon we all got very rowdy and keen for some singing and dancing! Danika jumped up to sing with the band while one of the staff members danced with me, and she randomly kept flicking my dress around haha!



Danika singing and Dan with his plate of rib bones!



A couple of people were keen to hit the town, while most of us were ready for bed! I was one of the bed keen people, as was Dan and some others, so off we headed home with full bellies and beaming faces at such a busy, yet fun first day!

xox

Bali Adventures Day 1: Departure

Whilst I was overseas for 4 months last year, the most exciting way Daniel and I would keep in contact (that I always looked forward to) was to conduct weekly Skype sessions! Ant and I would make prior arrangements with our other halves a couple of days before to work out time differences and non-traveling (for us) and non-working (for them) days, then proceed to spend a good solid 4 hours or so, cooped up in our hostel/hotel room in some remote town, close to a power point, headphones in and typing away excitedly till we couldnt type anymore. (A quick run down, so Ant and I wouldnt be talking over each other over video chats, we would chuck on the headphones and type our conversations while still being able to see our other halves over video)

And it was during one particular catch up that Dan gave me some exciting news!! Not only was it enough that I was currently making my way though Europe, UK and America, but in March 2012 we were to be heading over to Bali, Indonesia!! AND.. he brought my flights as a birthday pressent :D :D

Fast-forward 10 month, and preparations were in full swing. This wasnt just a small trip Dan and I were to to take together, this was just a small gathering of 15 people all up, heading over to Bali! For some, including Dan, this was to be their first time overseas! For this fact, I was particularly curious to see how he would handle his first internaional trip. If he enjoyed it, well lets just say he's in for a treat when I introduce to him my travel plans for the next 5 years! *hehe*



All packed and ready to go! Hello my old friend!



Car seats to full? Stick the rest on the back



After a couple of meeting, some last minute hiccups and a small terrorist scare afew days prior, it was finally the day to depart! Packing, house locking, pet dispursing and passport/ticket checking was all finalised and loaded into 3 full cars, we were off to Perth!



Freeway races with Boori and co.



Waiting for everyone to arrive to arrive



A fairly general drive up with a bit of peek hour traffic, we all made it to Perth International Airport in good time! Bit of a hanging around the check in desk whilst we waitied for Danika to race with the peek hour traffic from her direction but nothing the boys couldnt handle (cue iphone games i.e. stick cricket and worms *rolls eyes*)

15 people all checked in, breezed though security check with a couple pulled aside for random bomb tests *cough Dan cough*, when we finally made it though, we joined everyone in the best part of the international airport... Duty Free! Purchases of 1lte per person to take and 2.25ltes to collect upon returning home were in full swing, with Vodka for me and Dan purchasing a very old Jim Beam bottle to add to his slowly growing collection. Now there was nothing to do but wait for our boarding call! Easy enough reason to head to the bar!



Danika, Billy and myself hitting up to wine selection



First holiday together "yay"



It was nice to sit down with everyone and just have a moment to collect ourselves, our thoughts and finally relax into holiday mode! All there was left to do was board the plane then next stop: Bali!!!!

xox

Baking time: Chocolate Chip Biscuits

Winter has arrived, and as the days start getting colder, nothing excites me more then snuggling in bed with my doona, sitting by my parents pot belly with the fire crackling away and baking in a warm kitchen!

Im starting to get back into abit of baking, which I've always enjoyed, but just lost time and motivation when i moved house. But the baker is back, and though a little rusty, I have no doubt that no matter what or how anything I bake/make turns out, Daniel will eat it with a (forced) smile.

Chocolate Chip Biscuits

You will need:

1 egg

1/2 cup of Brown Sugar

1/3 cup of Castor Sugar

1 tsp of Vanilla Essence
125g of Butter

1 1/2 cups of Self Raising Flour

3/4 cup of chocolate chips

Method:



soften butter in microwave

1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/3 cup of castor sugar

cream softened butter and the sugars together until light and fluffy

Whisk in 1 tsp of vanilla essence and an egg

Stir in 1 1/2 cups of sifted self raising flour and 3/4 cup of chocolate chips

mould teaspoonfuls of mixture and place onto a baking tray

ready for the oven

bake in a moderately slow oven 160 degrees for 10-15 minutes

Cool on a wire rack then enjoy :)

Recipe Source: www.cadbury.com.au