A final slice of summer.

Porthmeor beach. St. Ives. 

This is the life.

Freshly ground coffee. Cornish morning sunshine. Knitting. Perfick. 

Happy Fathers Day

We love you Dad. 

My lovely home town.

Enjoyed strolling through my home town last evening. The boys were on scooter and bike. I was on foot which is uncommon for me. It was nice just to stop and stare awhile. 

We have some beautiful buildings....

And some stunning views too. 

As well as England's last temperance bar....

I love where I live. 

My low carb high fat experiment update.

Well, it's the end of my first week and I have lost 4lbs. I am now a mere 17stone 13 lbs. (sounds better than 18 stone something don't you think?)

It could have been better but I fell off the wagon big style at the weekend and consumed a whole flagon of Henry Weston's Old Rosie vintage cider (the stuff dreams are made of.) As well as some home made carrot cake and oaty biscuits, a Belgian bun and a double decker. So all in all 4lbs is a pretty damn good result. 

Anyhow, here are my findings of the experience:

- I wasn't hungry at all on the days I followed the plan

- I slept better 

- I didn't crave any foods at all

- I didn't burp once and trumped a lot less (huge bonus)

- I was generally satisfied with everything I ate

- I didn't feel deprived at all (a first for me when on a "diet")

- but the biggest surprise of all for me was a dramatic reduction in catarrh which has plagued me all my life. 

- I did miss the 1 spoon of sugar I take in tea so mainly did without tea. I will tackle it by gradual reduction I think. 

All in all a pretty amazing experience. Took my boys for haircuts tonight and got onto the subject in the barbers. A fat undertaker waiting for his haircut was very interested and shook my hand as I left. There is going to be a revolution I think. Onwards and upwards. 

Tomorrow is the start of Lent and I am attempting no alcohol for 6 weeks. Can't believe I just said that! So on with the sackcloth and ashes. 

Thank you to the girls who commented. It is great to have some encouragement. 

Sated

2 eggs, 1 slice of bacon, 6 Brazil nuts, 1 pint of freshly ground coffee with double cream for breakfast. 

Perfick!

My low carbohydrate high fat experiment.

I have lately been reading a lot about low carb and high fat eating. In particular Professor Tim Noakes' take on the whole concept. It makes credible reading. Apparently several of the Aussie cricketers have adopted the principals and I personally think that has contributed to the thrashing they served us in the Ashes. So I am about to try it out for myself.

I have been fat, nay, OBESE, for most of my adult life. I have successfully lost several stones on more than one occasion, usually with weight watchers.  But I have never successfully maintained the loss once the diet has stopped. In the last 27 years I have yo-yo'd from 11 stones 13 lbs at my lightest to 20 stones 8 and a half lbs at my heaviest. 

This is me now at almost 49 years old. 

5 feet 7 inches tall. 

18 stones 3 lb. 

Vital statistics, are you ready for this?....

54/48/55 (bust/waist/hips in inches)

If you knock 20 inches off each I could be in the Miss World pageant!

My legs and buttocks are not fat per se, but I have an abdomen the size of a small ocean and an amount of back fat that would be positively alluring if I was a Minke whale in season!

I am beginning to feel the come hither of potential diabetes and worn out hip joints. And as I approach my half century over the next year, I want to give them the two fingers and walk in the opposite direction towards improved health and vitality. 

Here's the plan....

- eliminate as much carbohydrate as I comfortably can from my diet.

- eat fresh whole foods, i.e. vegetables, all kinds of meat protein including offal bought from my butcher, oily fish out of tins (very cheap) eggs, real butter, cheese (full fat), Greek yoghurt (full fat), coconut oil, olives, almonds and Brazil nuts. 

- fruit will be limited to berries (probably frozen as cheaper in the winter) 

- double cream for in coffee. 

That's about it, apart from what I anticipate to be the hardest part of all, giving up the grog! As those of you who know me will know my penchant for a drop of vintage cider, followed by late night foraging for fodder!!

I plan to weigh myself weekly on a Monday at work on calibrated NHS scales. So wish me luck. I can do this. 

Tea for One

Picked up a gorgeous little Meakin part teaset for a snip today. It was on a second hand stall at my local market. 

Only a single teacup but perfick for indulging oneself.....

Sandyford Clover SUPERCOW 2013

They have done it again.

My super brother and his family have officially bred reared and nurtured the best dairy cow in the whole of the UK winning the highest accolade of SUPERCOW 2013 at the UK's biggest farming event of the year, Agriscot

Well done the Tomo's!

We are so proud of them and our dad Eric would have been bursting with pride.

Logs and Legolas

Trying out James Martins' Yule log minus the chocolate coating. Never made a cake from just eggs and flour before. It has of course cracked in the rolling but tastes good nonetheless.

And middle daughter has gone to a fancy dress party with the theme of a character from a film. She has made the costume entirely from the contents of the dressing up box. Hair her own....

Rainbows......

and wow skies .......

And coffee cake......

Perfick.

Blue Skies

Late summer fun, actually it's the first

day of autumn.

Christmas Dinner 2013

Freshly picked

We have a moderate crop of apples here on our three year old tree.

So we are able to pop them in the lunch box straight off the tree.

A novelty indeed.

Heaven Preserve Us

We have had a good crop of blackcurrants from one bush. We also had lots of redcurrants but they were raided by some wily critters who managed to circumnavigate the net!

Jam was the order of the day. It's not my best, the fruit is a little chewy. I didn't soften them long enough I expect.

But the flavour is good nonetheless.

Right now....

Crocheting on the beach....

My most favourite cider ever....

Happy fisherman.....

A feat of sand engineering...

Enjoying the spoils

Happy days.

Holiday Fun

Having a great time in St Ives our most favourite place. Plenty of sunshine, sea and gorgeous pasties.

It's a blooming long journey but well worth it.

Fresh tea in a tin mug on the beach just can't be beaten. (Unless it's cider in the tin mug of course!)

Let The Baking Begin.......

In honour of the new series of " The Great British Bake Off" Lucy has baked a Mary Berry signature bake of WHOLE SPICED ORANGE cake .......

Holiday Baking

It's all very informal around here during the hols.

Meals are often not at the usual times and sometimes not the usual fare......

so when there's a cry for pancakes, it's time to don an apron and make your own.....

and very tasty they were too!

All the Fun of the Farm

An overnight sojourn to my brothers farm to celebrate his littlests 4th birthday and a chance for a catch up.

Here is the birthday girl rounding up cows in her party frock.

 

 

Here are his beautiful multi award winning brown and white ladies (Ayrshires) coming home for milking....

 And here are the cowhands.....

...a bit different from my day when you walked around the field, usually with a dog.

I can vividly remember lying in the grass when a cow got up from lying down and feeling the grass warm against my cheek where her big body had lain.

Great fun to be had feeding the numerous new calves.

Even more fun having a go on some of the boys toys....

All very nostalgic.