Okay so usually when I am looking forward it is to worry about something. I very rarely focus on the present and my mind constantly wanders to the fearful future ahhBUT not in this post it won't!
Instead here is 5 positive things to look forward to (Yay!)
1. Bake off is back! and we have weeks of biscuits, cakes, innuendos and showstoppers left to enjoy
I can't wait to get to know the contestants, to see wonderful creations and not so wonderful creations and to cosy up watching this treat every week.
2. Autumn/Winter Menus in coffee shops
I love Costa especially in the colder months when you can have a praline latte or a white hot chocolate or one of their special seasonal cakes. I can't wait to see what's in store!
3. OneRepublic's new album Oh My My
I have always been a big, big fan of Ryan Tedder and OneRepublic; to me they are music at its best. I'm excited to discover new favourite songs and to listen to great music.
4. Bastille on tour and coming to Cardiff
Unfortunately not many artists seem to include Cardiff in their UK tours :( which means I haven't had many opportunities to hear great music live and to enjoy the 'concert experience' but.... Bastille are and I have booked tickets to see them!
5. Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them
Who isn't excited for this film to come to cinema? and if November 17 is too far away Bridget Jones's Baby is out September 16 apparently. They couldn't be more different films but I would love to see both in cinema. What are you looking forward to? Let me know :)
This week hasn't been the easiest. With more responsibility at work it has unnerved me and made the jittery and anxious me become very scared, low and panicky. So why 5 Happy Things ? Well, simply because that's when we need to pick out the positives and remind ourselves it's not all bad. So here goes...
1. Meeting up with friends
Although, I really didn't feel like going out it was lovely to meet up with friends for some food and a chat. One of my friends and I hadn't seen each other in such a long time that we both had birthday presents to exchange to each other (they should have been given in July). It's nice knowing that someone cares about you and wants to get you something nice to show it. Thank you friends!
2. A little walk looking for the moon I LOVE the moon! The moon makes me feel calm and it makes me feel that we are all special. We are special because we get to see the moon shining at us and lighting up our dark nights. I have many moon quotes and pictures I could share but I'll save them for another time.
3. Early morning coffee
It's not always nice to wake up early in the morning, especially when you're afraid of what the day has in store for you, but once you're up and you're organised it's nice to sit down, empty your thoughts (or try veryhard to) and enjoy some early morning coffee.
4. Trying new things
In this case, it was cheese!! This week, my local town had its annual fair where stalls come from all over the place selling food, clothes, toys, sweets, jewellery and all sorts! One particular stall had some unusual cheeses and the lady invited me over to try them. There was blueberry cheese, madras cheese, caramel cheese, smoked paprika cheese, chive and onion cheese, red port wine cheese and others like red leicester and cheddar. I tried almost all of them and purchased the caramel and smoked paprika ones. Very tasty!
5.Making pizzas
Okay, so I bought the bases ready made but still I didn't buy a pizza. I had fun choosing toppings and sprinkling them on top and the end product was delicious :) I made cheese, tomato and pepperoni pizza and a barbecue, cheese and chicken pizza.
Looking at my 5 happy things it's hard to tell that I had a bad week and most people would consider this a good week but it's my head, my anxiety and my negative thoughts that turn the good into bad. I must try harder to be positive and to change these thoughts for the sake of my mental health!
How has your week been? What are your 5 happy things?
Often, with people experiencing anxiety, it is hard to have GOOD Days. Your head can be so full of anxious thoughts and your belly may be so full of knots that the day is just full of worry. You want to be happy, you want to switch off, you want to stop feeling this way- of course you do! but sometimes you just can't.
I want to encourage you, amongst any anxiety you may be feeling, to write down (maybe in my comments) 5 happy things! This could be: things you've done this week; things you like; your favourite band; your favourite book; your favourite food; anything that makes you happy! If you're struggling to think of anything then perhaps you need to make a list of 5 happy things to do.
Here are my 5 happy things:
1) Sunshine
Last weekend the sun made an appearance and it made me want to stay outside all day. I eat outside, I did yoga outside and I even did some written work outside.
2) Yoga and ice cream
I am not a very...hmm what shall I say?...active person. I love walking but other exercise does not appeal to me. However, after reading a lot about yoga recently, I wanted to try it and I thought it was perfect weather to do it outside. So I downloaded an app called Simply Yoga and I was about 5 minutes in when I heard the music of an ice cream van. What did I do? I paused my yoga and ran to get some ice cream hahaha! (I did go back to the yoga later...I promise)
3)Chinese and Nashville
Saturday night was made for takeaways and TV, right? Chinese mmmmm. Nashville=LOVE!
I am a big One Tree Hill fan and although I am happy to watch episodes of them over and over again it's nice to have a new series that I feel just as excited about. Nashville is so me; music and meaning! Here is one of my favourite performances so far:
Lennon and Maisy Stella are wonderful.
4) My Beatles Day Out
I love The Beatles (You may notice the music theme- I love music)and so when I heard that The Beatles musical Let it Be was going on tour I asked my parents if we could all go. Christmas day I was really pleased to open an envelope with tickets for just that. This week the day finally came. I had a lovely day with my parents; lunch out, a spot of shopping, a fab musical full of brilliant songs and performers and some wine and dessert in a pub after. Such a good day!
5)Making my own pasta sauce instead of using a jar
Last night, I fancied making some pasta for dinner but instead of just using a ready made sauce I got a pan fried some onions, added tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and seasoned with pepper. This may not seem like a big deal but I sat down with my pasta, poured a glass of wine, lit a candle and I was happy eating it.
