A LAZY DAY, HOUR BY HOUR

If there is one thing I love the most about having a bit of time off work it is a day where we have nothing planned. I love it even more when it is one of those wintry days where the sun is bright and there is a thin layer of frost on the roof; days like that call for long walks and hot tea.

:: 7.00am

There is nothing like starting the day with a cup of tea and a flick through magazines. I picked up the latest Women's Health at the weekend for added motivation, but, honestly, a beauty or lifestyle magazine works just as well for me! Tea wise it is usually a cup of Twinnings Everyday first thing, but I am trying to up the antioxidants, so this green tea with mint (below) is just the ticket too!

:: 8.00am
Breakfast time. I can honestly say that breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. I do mix things up and have porridge or toast, but mostly I reach for my trusty Greek yoghurt with honey and granola, it is super yummy and good for you and fills me up for a good few hours too.

:: 8.30am

Having decided last night that I would pop over to see L for tea and a dog walk at 10am I lazily head up stairs, armed with my new Lush BB Seaweed face-mask that L brought round for me on Boxing Day! I have never bought one single thing from Lush - slapped wrist for me. The reason for that is mostly down to never having one local to where I live (no, I have not discovered on-line shopping yet...honest!). Mask on, YouTube playing my 'Watch Later' playlist, I am set for 15 minutes of sitting time before my 'must-have-a-quick-shower-now-because-it-is-almost-9am-and-I-have-to-leave-soon' rush. Lucky for me L delays 'kick off' time to 10.30am - phew, make-up can now be applied with a slower hand!

:: 10.15am Time to shiver in the car whilst I let the heating work its magic to defrost everything. Taylor Swift is plugged in and playing and I dance on the inside before heading off to L. I always enjoy the 15 minute journey to the little village L lives. It takes you past so many beautiful views of fields, farms and wide-open skies; you can't help but mentally unwind on the way.
:: 11.15am A warming cup of tea drunk, a chat with all the family and we are all wrapped up, Casper the dog in hand, and out the door. I am thankful for my new bobble hat as the frost has hit harder here and the ground is slippery but once we hit the fields safety levels return to 'low risk' (apart from my one slip in the mud - I managed to stay upright though...just). 
:: 12.00pm Walking on a day like this reminds me how lucky I am to live here. It is stunning and I make a mental note to get out walking more, there is really no excuse.

^^can we just note the dog munching on melting ice in the background^^

:: 12.30pm

Back at L's I have my very muddy boots cleaned by A (thanks!) and am on my way back home to Joe, who I left making music and looking after the house (a very important job!).

:: 1.30pm

Joe and I enjoy a lunch of hot ciabatta with olive oil and balsamic vinegar (and maybe a slice of left over cake too) then we are off to our separate rooms for guitar playing/blog creating for a bit.

:: 2.30pm

I am working on a new blog layout at the moment and attempt to throw down some ideas with water-colour which I need to scan in to Photo Shop, but being useless with our wireless printer/scanner I have to drag Joe out of the 'man-cave'... he is so good with these things and has the patience of a saint when it comes to helping me. Personally, I would have thrown the scanner out the window in about 2 minutes!

::4.30pm Training time! Even though it is hard over the Christmas period, when you are bloated from all the rich food, it is great to keep ticking over with the exercise. I find it helps keep me more mentally 'with-it' too, so it is win-win! Today's session included Joe and we chose an Insanity DVD. My poor legs were burning from the warm up which was partly down to a good hill walk this morning and partly because it was the 4th exercise session of the week. I still don't think I have burnt off even half the calories consumed however!
:: 6.00pm Exercise done and we are on to my second favourite meal of the day - dinner. Tonights choice: sausages with roast vegetables and lots of broccoli for me (plus jacket potato for Joe).
:: 8.45pm I mostly don't drink at all, but tonight we crack out a bottle of whiskey. One whiskey later we are both falling asleep - Joe on the sofa with a very comfy cat, me in front of my laptop scheduling blog posts and videos...I better check the content for slurring!
:: 10.00pm Up to bed and I am suddenly wide awake. Typical :-)