Why I’ve Sent the Kids Back To School.

In April I made the decision to take the kids out of school.

What was ment to happen was we would spend time working through work books, learning while we travelled around the Uk and Europe!

We traveled to Norfolk, and a few day trips here and there to different towns.

Heres what Ive found.

Our local library wasn’t at all helpful and I even felt quite unwelcome!

I found that when we go out going to the toilet can bee an issue and in-fact in some places I cant get in at all! Having a twin pushchair means I cant access a-lot of places.

A Chris’s work there has been a major shift meaning he’s not at home as much as he was!

It also means the trip we could have gone with him on we no longer can!

instead of having relaxed mornings, once breakfast was done and books were out things started getting stressful.

Jake is quite a way behind Melody and I didn’t really realise how far.

He wouldn’t listen  to me and Melody tried to but in at every opportunity.

Ive realised I’m not a very good teacher.

I’m not sure how to put things to get across how to do things.

Days were just getting filled with anger and stress instead of the days I dreamed about where it would feel relaxed and carefree!

The babies were becoming more and more in need of attention!

So I made the hard decision to put them back into school, for now!

Thanks for all your support on our little home ed journey.

I hope you stick around and follow our new adventures!

 

Nina x

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Getting Fit For Forty!

Last week I posted about turning 38 and only have two years until I hit the big 40!

I’ve mentioned before that I have bad habits when it comes to eating and exercise.

When we hit 40 it is easier to gain weight and we have to work harder to get fit!

40 is often classed as middle-aged and can bring on such things as aching joints and bone loss.

I am really not in a good shape. Although I try to swim a couple of times a week and am often found chasing twins I could do with fitting in more exercise.

So with only two years to go before it gets harder to get fit I am taking stock and finding out what my starting point is!

I mean the past year or so has been a bit of a health rollercoaster. I’ve had more blood tests and observations done than I care to remember but there were just two on my list that I needed to know for my getting fit for forty mission.

My stats at the start of my mission.

Cholesterol 6.0  (Average for the UK is 5.7)   *Drs blood test

Diabetes 37 ( This is within the normal range) *Drs Blood test

Waist circumference 112cm  (Anything over 80cm and you should try and lose weight anything over 88cm and your at high risk) *NHS Website

BMI 31.5 (Obese) Ideal 18.5 – 24.9

Body Fat 43.8 %  Ideal 25-32%

Muscle Mass 45.9% (Normal 24 – 30)

Bone Mass 2.4% (Average 3-5%)

Hydration 41.1% (Ideal 45-60)

Visceral Fat 11 (1-12 Healthy anything over 12 is excessive)

The last few measurements were done on the Activ8rlives Body Analyser   so I’m not sure how accurate they are but I work better working to a goal so have decided that these are what I will aim to change!

So with this all in mind I need to work on lowering my cholesterol, lower my waist circumference and drop my BMI and my body fat!

The plan

Healthy Eating

Plan healthy meals for the week including breakfast and lunch so that we don’t turn to fast food or processed food.

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How will this fit in with our family’s travel plans?

Well while we are traveling we often book into AirBNB so that means we have a kitchen to cook and prepare healthy foods.

This needs to be a lifestyle choice though not just a diet. This has to be something that can be followed for the rest of my life. Leading a good example to my children.

So if we are on holiday and are visiting a the beach where there is an ice-cream parlour I will have an ice cream. I will sometimes have a cake and coffee with friends.

It just means that 70% of the time I will choose the healthy way and the rest I can have a treat.

Healthy to me means Home made from scratch where ever you can  using fresh ingredients anything that is bought in a packet should have less than 5 ingredients.

Also a good rule is looking at a packets nutritional info

I use the fat and of which sugar should be under 10g’s in any 100g’s .

Excercise

This is a hard one for me. I struggle to fit in a workout with 4 children and trying to run a business.

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My goal is to have a workout every day for at least 30 mins a day 5 times a day.

I would like to think that I can achieve 5 mornings of yoga each week too.

Mental Health.

I know we are mainly focusing on physical health however my mental health has always been up and down.

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For improving my Mental Health the above will make a difference anyway. But on top of this I want to add things that will add to a positive wellbeing.

  • Journaling
  • Creative activities
  • Eliminating stress
  • Stepping out of my comfort zone a little.

I will try and update regularly on here.

I will also add posts to Instagram using the hashtag #ARCfitfor40

If you fancy joining me use this # and I will repost some of your posts on my instagram stories.

If you have any tips for keeping up my will power to do this let me know.

Also spam me with your realistic mum fitness blogs, vlogs.

Let’s do this.

Nina x

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Mum days! – A trip to the park.

Last week while the big kids were at forest school I headed out to our nearby town my plan was to have a cuppa and then mooch around the shops.

What happens instead was me & the baby twins headed to the park before meeting up with a friend for lunch.

Mason & Jessica although are hard work are such a joy sometimes.

Watching them explore the big world around them is such an amazing privilege.

Our trip to town really lifted me.

Don’t get me wrong, wrangling twins away from the splash area , (we hadn’t got spare clothes) taking bits of sand from their mouth and dealing with sandy clothes isn’t up there as one of my favourite moments. However if I have to endure those bits to bank the good memories then I’m happy to do so.

Not only did it’s save me spending money on tat I don’t need but it made me remember the good in the frugal simple things.

Nina x

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40 things before I’m 40

Last month I turned 38.

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It seemed to just whizz by with the blink of an eye. I’m well and truly the wrong side of my 30’s.  In two years time I’m going to be 40.

How did that even happen? Just yesterday I’m sure I was in my 20s.

I have achieved loads in my run up to now. Including getting married to my childhood crush. 4 children from two pregnancies,  meeting my idol Kirstie Allsop, running a business, working on the entertainment crew at a theme park, working with several stars as a backstage crew at the local theatre, and loads more!

Now there are loads more I would like to achieve especially before I reach 40.

Here is my list.

40 Things to tick off Before I’m 400!

Travel

1. Copenhagen
2. New York at Christmas
3. Disney Paris
4. Lisbon
5. Barcelona
6. Cornwall
7. Edinburgh
8. Cardiff
9. Lake Garda
10.Greece

Home

11. Update each room
12. Homeschool the kids
13. Declutter
14. Fix up a camper
15. Have my own office
16. Stick to a weekly cleaning schedule
17. Have a more minimal wardrobe

Health

18.Be a size I’m happy with
19. Stick to a fitness schedule
20. Eat healthily
21. Give my self time for self-care each day
22.  Yoga 5 days a week
23. Take part in 10k run
24. take part in a mud/ colour run

Money / Work

25. Become debt free
26. Get the mortgage payment below £1000 per month
27. Hit 5k on insta
28. Earn a living from social media.
29. Get in a position to pay cash for things

Other

30. Have a helicopter flight 31. Do the Lanzarote wine run
32. Raise £5k for Jessops
33. Read 40 books
34. Write a will
35. Get better at Spanish
36. Find ‘my’ craft
37. Meet another Celeb from my list (Ant & Dec, Philip Schofield, Micheal McIntyre, etc)
38. Lean how to properly style my hair.
39. Balloon Flight.
40. Get a skincare routine

So there we are!

I will update this list during the next two years ticking off things a we go adding pictures etc.

Who else is heading to 40?

Are you already there did you make a list of things to achieve?

Nina x

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August Word Of The Month.

July Update.

July was so amazingly busy I decided to give the update it’s own post.

So head over to yesterdays post but don’t forget to come back and see my plans for August.

August Word Of The Month

Simplify

If I’ve learnt something over the past year it’s that my world needs less stress, less clutter, just well less. I really need to simplify life.

This means decluttering the house living a more simple existence. – Not getting wrapped up in the face paced world. The one where I’m trying to keep up with the Jones with a top of the range car, or the tropical getaway.

Making more time in my day for being present in our family’s life.

This summer holidays I’ve been trying to not over complicate our days. Just planning cheap, fun activities. Like trips to play groups, taking advantage of our national trust membership. (There are some great play parks in the national trust grounds. And you can’t beat an afternoon tea while the babies nap and the kids are eating ice creams.)

So that is my word for August. Simplify.

What’s on your list for August?

Hit me with ways I can simplify our life!

Nina x

Other Word of the Month posts.

January. – Fit

February – Recover

March – Planning

April – Dare

May – Self Care

June – #spencersarcselfcare

July – Summer

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