My 5 Top Places to Visit

One of my favourite quotes is; "We weren't just born to just pay bills and die", and that is utterly true. "The world is a book, and those who do not travel only read a page" is another quote I really like. There is a whole world out there, so many beautiful places to see, different cultures to learn about and people with fascinating stories to meet. We only have one life, and once it's over there's no more chances. We have to make the most of the life we have. No one knows what could happen in the future and no one can control it, and we can't change the past, so instead of worrying about them, focus in the present moments, enjoy them and make memories.

 

 

Traveling the world is something I have always wanted to do, but as I'm getting older, I'm realising how short life is and sometimes I just want to drop everything and go, although sometimes that isn't as realistic as my minds makes it out to be. There are however 5 places in the world I will ensure that I see before I die.

 

#1: Australia

 

I have some sort of fascination about Australia. I don't know what it is or where it came from, but it is my number one place to visit and the number one thing on my bucket list. If I'm laying on my death bed in the future and I haven't been to Australia, I will honestly feel I've failed in life.

 

I want to see the whole of Australia from the cities to the outback, maybe I'll backpack it one day, but if I could only go to one place, it would be Bondi. I am a huge fan of the program Bondi Beach, and by that I mean I have seen every episode of every series that has ever aired in the UK. I want to sunbathe on the beach, swim between the flags and see the boys in blue work their magic (and meet them of course, fangirl moment that would be).

 

 

#2: Africa

 

Africa is a huge place, but I want to see it all. I want to see South Africa; the beaches and the big houses, but I also want to see the more deprived parts of Africa; the shelters to sleep under and the miles to walk for water. I want to experience everything, even the toughest situations so I understand what some people have to live like and I stop taking everything for granted.

 

I did have the chance to sometime last year, but I decided not to because at the time I had too much on, but at some point in the future I would like to volunteer with a charity where I can go and help builds schools and community centres and water pumps, anything that can help the small communities who are struggling. Living as we do, we take so much for granted, and I want to give to them what they deserve more than us, what they will really appreciate.

 

However, one of my top things to do in Africa is a safari. To go out and see so many beautiful animals in the wild with the sun shining and the fear of danger just sounds like the most amazing experience you could ask for.

 

 

(this picture really reminds me of The Lion King West End Show, and I loved that)

 

#3: Asia

 

I know Asia is a continent, and a huge place with so many different countries, but the culture in any part of Asia you visit is just so different to anything in Europe, and I want to learn more about every culture out there!

 

The top places in Asia I want to visit are:

- Thailand: it just looks like the most naturally beautiful place, and nature is one of my favourite things. You look at some natural places and just think wow..
- Vietnam: very similar reasons to Thailand, the fact it's such a beautiful place, but it also holds so much history which I would absolutely love to learn about through speaking to locals.
- India: I want to learn about the Indian culture. I know that's broad, and I know there's probably many different cultures in India, but it's so different to ours that it intrigues me so much and I would find learning about it fascinating.
- China: the food, the attractions and the complete step out of my comfort zone. China just sounds absolutely incredible, and the locals are always so happy, and I want to experience it all myself.

Next year, my best friend and I are hopefully going to India with a company called Camp India. Here, we will be able to travel to three places in India, learn about the culture, volunteer in schools and animal sanctuaries and just have an experience like no other. So far, it looks pretty realistic, and I'm determined to make it happen for myself because it is probably the closest I will ever get to ever going to any of these places.

#4: Florida

Who doesn't want to visit Florida sometime in their life? The sun, the beaches, the food, Disney Land.. What other reasons do you need?

#5: Holland

I don't know exactly what appeals to me about Holland, but it just seems such a beautiful place. Also, one of my best friends in college grew up in Holland, and she said that it's a really flat country so everybody rides their bikes everywhere, and I love riding my bike. Therefore, one day I want to visit Holland and see everything it has to offer on nothing but my bike.

Who knows if I'll ever visit all of these places, but it is my number one priority in life to do so, and if I do, I'll certainly be writing many posts about every adventure I have!

Where are your top places to visit? I'd love to know!

Make every day worth it,
xx

Herbalife; My Journey.. So Far

I never used to believe in shake diets. I just thought shakes were a drink and they wouldn't fill you up and that using shakes for a diet was starving yourself. Well, was I wrong! This blog post is all about my journey with Herbalife so far, from finding out about it, to doing a trial to actually taking the challenge on.

 

£1 Fit Club

Me and my mum have always been into fitness. Every year she does the Great South Run and I did they junior one (before I got to old) and any sort of fun runs that come up in our area we go and take part. It's just something we love to do together.

 

One day, my mums friend told her about a circuit training session she went to every week on the field of the Mountbatten Centre at the end of our road. It was £1 to take part each week and it was a whole hour of exercise, run by Herbalife coaches. It sounded really good so we went along, and we loved it! The coaches gave routines to do and every one encouraged each other to carry on and it was so much fun! There was nothing serious about it. It was all about having fun whilst exercising in the sun.

 

We started going every week. The first few weeks were extremely difficult, to the point I thought I was going to pass out half way through, but as the weeks went on, my body got used to it and it got easier. It's still a challenge now and I still go home with my arms and legs shaking, but I'm able to get through the hour without feeling sick or faint.

 

 

Wellness Assessment

When you go to fit club, you're able to have a wellness assessment with your coach. We didn't have a coach as we went along due to my mums friend, so we spoke to the main lady who runs it, Sadie, and she invited us round her house for a wellness assessment.

 

In these assessments, they measure your body fat percentage, your lean muscle percentage, your visceral fat (fat around your vital organs), your hydration, your metabolic age and how many calories you burn at resting rate as well as your measurements of your arms, thighs, bust, hips and waist. These assessments happen once every four weeks if you're just attending fit club, and once every two weeks if you're using Herbalife products and they help you keep track of your progress in weight loss or just generally keeping fit.

 

In my first assessment, all my measurements were good for my age and fitness level apart from my hydration. My hydration levels were really low which I wasn't surprised about. Sadie suggested an app for me to use to log how much I drink each day and to help me drink more. It's called WaterBalance. During the day, you put in what you drink and how much you drink, and a little body on the screen fills up with each drink you add. When the level in the body reaches the top of the head, you've drank the right amount for the day. You can also view the last 30 days in a bar chart to see if your drinking is increasing or decreasing. When I first started using it, I couldn't even drink a litre. I was only filling the body up to about the knees. Overtime, my drinking has improved and I'm drinking between 1.5 litres and 2 litres every day and some days I'm even completely filling up the body! I feel so much better for it too!

 

In the assessments, Sadie also gives us advice on things to eat which have high levels of protein and the best things to eat for breakfast and lunch, as they were the worst things for me and mum. We're cereal lovers, but cereal just gives you a high in energy for a short while before completely dropping due to the amount of sugar found in it. Now, thanks to Sadie, we know the best things we can eat, and we've definitely noticed a difference in energy!

 

Nutritional Workshop

After fit club one night, the coaches ran a nutritional workshop. As well as promoting the Herbalife products, they taught us all about the importance of a balanced meal, high protein snacks and eating five times a day. As well as giving examples of normal foods to eat, they linked their information to their products and we heard stories from people who have used their products and changed their life by changing their diet. It was actually really interesting and I learnt a lot about what I need to eat and why.

 

The most interesting thing I learnt was how fruit and vegetables aren't as good as we think they are. Most fruit and veg now-a-days are picked before they are ripened and instead ripened under artificial UV lights in the back of trucks whilst they are being transported to shops. This means that they don't grow as big as they would and they certainly do not provide the nutrition they would if they were naturally ripened. So whilst we really think we're getting good nutrition from them, we're really not. And that's what makes Herbalife products so special. They provide the nutrition our body needs that we just don't get in real food anymore.

 

3 Day Trial

During the time going to fit club, I kept hearing the term "3 day trial". I started to get intrigued about what is was, so at the nutritional workshop, I asked Sadie about it.

 

The 3 day trial consists of 6 meal replacement shakes and 8 energy tablets to help get you through the day. It can be done in two ways. The first way is having a shake for breakfast and lunch every day for 3 days, or having the shake just for breakfast everyday for 6 days. The shake contains everything you need for a balanced meal and the trial pack shows you in a short time the energy you can have and the healthy feeling you can have just by eating the right things.

 

After Sadie told me about it, I wanted to try it! So at the next wellness assessment I had, only a few days later luckily, I got a 3 day trial pack. Breakfast is my biggest flaw as I live (or should I say lived) by cereal, so I did it for the 6 days and only had the shake for breakfast. I noticed the difference by around the third day. At first it was hard because the shake didn't feel me up as much as cereal did, but I got used to that, but the energy it gave was amazing! I was able to get to lunch time without having a sugar low and that's never happened. I felt so much more awake in the morning as well and had the energy to do anything. Not only did the shakes help, but they taste amazing as well!

 

After my trial had finished, I had lost body fat, my lean muscle percentage had gone up and the calories I burn at resting rate had also gone up which was great news! I knew straight away I wanted to do this long term, so although I had to wait until my next pay day to afford it, I knew I would order a whole tub of shake and use it for breakfast every day!

 

 

Opportunities Meeting

Once every month, Herbalife coaches go to an opportunities meeting where they learn how to progress in their individual Herbalife businesses. Coaches are able to take people along with them so Sadie took me along one night.

 

I didn't really know what to expect, but I was excited to learn more about something I had begun to love. The meeting taught me so much about Herbalife as a company and what nutrition is all about, and I also learnt about the business opportunities Herbalife offers which was really interesting and something I definitely want to consider once I gain results myself from the products.

 

Starting My Journey

Finally, I got paid and I was able to purchase my first lot of Herbalife products. In my first purchase, I got a tub of shake, Chocolate flavour, fibre and herb tablets and multivitamin tablets.

 

I use the shake every morning for my breakfast whilst I take the tablets with breakfast, lunch and dinner. I then have high protein snacks mid morning and mid afternoon.

 

I've noticed so much difference using the products! Before using Herbalife products, I was sleeping in until at least 10am everyday, I would have a lazy morning every morning because I didn't have any energy and I just wouldn't feel like doing anything all day because I would be so tired. Now, not only have my energy risen to an all time high, which is amazing because I can literally do everything I want to which I couldn't before, but I'm also waking up between 7:30am and 8am not feeling tired and being able to go straight to the gym before doing what I want for the rest of the day without feeling tired once. Having the right nutrition in my body and drinking around 2 litres of water a day really makes a huge impact on your daily living, a positive one that is!

 

 

What I've Learnt

Herbalife isn't a diet, it's a healthy and nutritional lifestyle. Yes it can help you lose weight, but it isn't just for that. It's a nutritional lifestyle which can help with weight management, muscle gain and body toning, and even gain weight in the right way if you're really struggling eating properly.

 

 It also doesn't just come in the form of shakes, there's so many more products which I have yet to try!

 

I can't wait to continue my journey and see what results it brings, and even begin to help other people! There may come a month where I don't have the money to order the products, but Sadie and all the other coaches and the opportunities they have given me have taught me how to eat healthy too, so when I don't have the shake at hand, I will never turn back to my old ways. I know what I need to eat to maintain my energy levels, get the right nutrition in my body and get to the goals I have set myself. I can have a bowl of cereal here and there and I can have a take away with my family on the weekend, I don't have to cut the bad things out, I just know how to control what I eat.

 

If you want to follow my progress or find out more, you can find me on Facebook and Instagram.

Everything I have learnt is thanks to my amazing coach, Sadie!

I can't wait to see what the future holds!

 

Make every day worth it,

xx

Stamford Bridge Tour & London Eye

I've been with my boyfriend almost 9 months now. I've never had a long or even a real relationship as such so when it came to Christmas I had no idea what to get him. My mum was looking on wowcher one night when she came across a Stamford Bridge Tour and she mentioned it to me as my boyfriend is a huge Chelsea Fan. I hesitated for a few days as I didn't know if it was something he'd like, but then it got to the point I didn't have a clue what else to get him and it was a good deal so I went for it. 

I got him a few little bits, so when it came to Christmas Day he had a big bag full of things to open. I made him open this one last. Every present he opened he smiled and he liked it, but when he opened this and read what it was, there was just an uncontrollable smile on his face and he just stared at it for ages. Later on he said there was one present which was definitely his favourite and I knew it was that. 

It took me months to book it as we had to find a day we were both free, but it eventually came to the day; 25th February. 

We travelled to London on a National Express coach (I've used these a lot and their cheap and reliable) and we travelled around London in uber taxis. I have never been more impressed by a taxi than I have uber, they are fantastic! 

Our first stop was Stamford Bridge. Once we had got our passes, we had half an hour to wait until our tour so we went upstairs to the museum. Here we got to see all the trophies, the shirts, stadium models and even play a game of football in this little booth. 

Half an hour was the perfect time to look through the museum before going down for the tour. 

The tour started by going to a stand named after a man who was a huge part of the club (I can't remember his name though..). After a talk about the man and some facts about the stadium, we got time to take pictures. 

We then moved onto the press room. Here we all sat in the seats provided whilst our tour guide sat at the interview desk, I don't know the actual name for it, and gave us a talk about the press sessions. When press come in, they get colour code depending on what company they've come from, they then go into the press room where there is a buffet available to them, they then sit in the chairs and important people like the managers come in and answer their questions and then they can either stay in the room where there are stations with plugs for them to write up an article on their laptops or they can be escorted to a press room where there are similar facilities available where they can watch the match at the same time. We all then got to sit at the interview desk and have our pictures taken there.

We then went to the changing rooms. We started in the changing room for the visiting team. It was a simple changing room with shower and toilet facilities, kind of like you would get in school but a lot cleaner.

When we moved onto the Chelsea changing room, it was like luxury! They had a huge area with personalised lockers and a flat screen TV along with a gym, a massage room and state of the art washing facilities. It was incredible! 

The lockers used to be in order of number, but when one of the captains joined the team they wanted a specific number and locker so it was changed and now the lockers are in nationality order. 

 

The last stop of the tour was to walk through the players tunnel and out onto the pitch and sit on the managers seats. Above the players tunnel is the Chelsea logo and the tour guide said that every time Chelsea walk through this tunnel to play a game, each player taps the logo for good luck, so we did the same. We then just got to spend some time in the managers seats and looking around the pitch before finishing the tour. 

After the tour had finished we still had about 4 hours until our coach home, so after a big cofuffle (yes I made that word up and spell check didn't like it) with my bank card, we went to the London Eye. Neither of us had ever been on the London Eye before so it was a great experience. 

The day was a really successful day and a great Christmas present too! At no point in the day did we have to wait around or have nothing to do, thanks to my planning everything ran so smoothly and we had time for everything we wanted to do.

If you're a Chelsea fan or you know someone who is, I would definitely recommend the tour, and if you aren't afraid of heights I would also recommend the London Eye! 

We can't wait to go back to London another time to do all the other attractions and a bit of sight seeing! 

Make every day worth it,

xx

MAC Makeover and Photoshoot

I was really stuck on what to get my sister for Christmas, but looking through wowcher.co.uk one day I came across a deal. Usually £75, this deal included a clarins facial, a MAC makeover, a GHD hair makeover, a celebrity Photoshoot and one makeup product to take away and I got it for £10! 

My sister and myself both love makeup and we both wish we could own MAC products. We also don't have any up to date photos of us together so I thought this would be something she would really enjoy, a sister bonding experience and some new pretty photos of the both of us. What a gift it was! 

It was held at Momentos Studio in Southampton, not far from where we live. When we got there we looked through some books to see what sort of makeup and hair look we wanted. We were then taken to have our hair and makeup done by two makeup artists who were so lovely. After, we went downstairs, got changed into some dresses we bought along with us and had our photos taken. We had some together but also some individual ones too. Photography has always been a huge passion of mine so listening to how one of our photographers got to where he his now was really inspiring and he gave me loads of tips on how to get far in photography. After our Photoshoot, we went back upstairs and had some cocktails whilst waiting for a viewing. Our viewing consisted of seeing all of our photos and choosing which ones we would like to buy. We had around 50 photos between us, but due to the ridiculously expensive prices we were only able to buy 6 photos, two of us together and two individual ones each. We did get a free photo too for recommending 15 people so we had 3 together and two individuals each. 

Overall, the experience was an amazing one. We came away with some amazing photos and one amazing memory. I'd really recommend this to anyone, but only if you have the money to buy the photos after, the prices shocked me so much! 

Here are our pictures: 

Make every day worth it,

xx

Make Every Day Worth It

So I realise that the last post I posted, 7 months ago, was called 'I'm Back' and I stated I would be blogging again, but clearly that didn't go down too well. But this time I really am back.

 

A lot more has happened in the last 7 months, but something has happened recently that really made me think. A work colleague of mine who I was just starting to become really good friends with passed away so suddenly. She was only in her forties and it was completely unexplained. It made me think that life is so precious and we need to live it to the fullest whilst we still can as we never know what's going to happen. Therefore, this year and for the rest of my life, I am going to take every opportunity I get given, I'm going to go more places and do more things and I am going to document every bit of it on this blog. I have always cared about others so much more than myself and always put myself last, but when things like this happen you realise you do need to be a bit selfish sometimes and put yourself first for once.

 

 

I want to start this blog with an overview of everything that has happened in the last 7 months, good and bad. 

 

On the 17th of June, I got asked to be someone's girlfriend. This someone I had liked so much since the beginning of college, so around 2 years. We had always been really good friends and stuck by each others sides, even if it meant losing other friends, but eventually we lost contact for a while until the beginning of 2015 when he messaged me again.

Me and Jordan have now been together exactly 8 months today. There has been ups and there has been downs, but I have never been so happy and content than I am with him.

 

 

I passed my driving test! And I my first car, brand new with 12 miles..

 

 

I left my job at Primark after 2 years and started working at a nursing home, and I love it! Yes it's tough sometimes, and yes it's very stressful, but I love it and it's one of the most rewarding jobs you could possibly do.

 

 

I've also been on many more holidays with the Caring Cancer Trust which you can read on my other blog omgitsstew (which I am working on updating, I promise!).

 

 

I'm going to use my passion for photography to help me keep this blog up. Every place I go, new or old, I am going to take pictures for memories and share them on this blog. I am determined to do this as something, firstly for me to look back on in the future and see the amazing things I've done, and secondly for other people to see and to encourage them to live their life to the fullest whilst they have the chance.

 

Make every day worth it,

xx

I'm Back!

So I have just looked at my blog and realised it's been almost a year since I last wrote a blog post.. But now I have finished college and I have an extremely long summer holiday ahead of me, I'm going to get blogging again! And I thought I would start with an over view of everything that's happened in the last year.

Firstly a lot has gone on with the Caring Cancer Trust, a charity I am a mentor for which I have written about in previous posts. Since this time last year, I have been on 2 more holidays with the charity, done a small fundraiser with Barclays bank raising £78, helped out at the Telegraph Ski and Snowboard Show (where we were lucky enough to meet Olympic snowboarder Jenny Jones and have her come to our stand for pictures in her busy schedule for the day) and I have 2 upcoming holidays with them as well as many more fundraising ideas! But you can read all about that on my second blog; OmgItsStew. (Well, you can once I have got around to updating it which is also on my list to do this summer)

 

Barclay's Bank fundraiser

Me, Jenny Jones and Shannon

A the beginning of this year, I celebrated my 18th birthday. I became an adult! Not that I feel it.. I'm not a person for going out clubbing or getting really drunk, that stuff just doesn't appeal to me, so instead, I went for a meal to a nice a Italian Restaurant with my family and to the casino afterwards.

However, my mum had a huge surprise for me at my meal. I only knew that some of my family were coming, but out of nowhere, my friend Aleasha walked through the door. I just assumed it was a coincidence and she was there with her family, but then she came up to me and hugged me and gave me a present. Soon after, two more of my friends turned up for the same reason. My mum and searched them on Facebook and invited them to surprise me and it was the cutest thing ever!

 





My cake made by my mum

Around October 2014, both my mum graduated from university.

My mum graduated with a diploma in midwifery from Bournemouth University..

 



And my sister graduated with a BA Hons in Performing Arts at Chichister University..

 

Very very proud!

 

One of the biggest points that has happened this year is that I left college with D*D*D* in Level 3 Health and Social Care Extended Diploma. I'm so happy I achieved that grade and the two years I have spent at college earning it have been the best two years ever with the most insane but incredible people!

 

 

A lot more has happened this year too but I just wanted to share the main points with you all before I started blogging again and sharing even more.

 

I hope you enjoyed seeing everything that's happened in the last year and I'd love to hear what has happened in yours too in the comments below!

 

Until next time beautifuls,

xx