November recap // Freezing Cold Days, Catching Up and Many Meals Out

Sure you’re sick of me saying it non-stop on my Insta but I can’t wait for Australia! Woo! Very soon we’ll be on that plane on our way to sun ourselves in the winter sun yay 😊

Every month I sit here and say how quickly the month has gone by and I’m saying the same thing again… I just don’t know where its gone. I mean I have been wishing the time away as it means the sooner we’ll be on hols! We literally live for our holidays and time off work. I definitely work so I have money to then go and explore the world/ eat tasty things and just enjoy myself. Sure I’m not alone with that one…

So what have I been up to this month…

I’ve been away with work a couple times – first to Wakefield and then to Coupar in Scotland. Both times I stayed in lovely hotels so I can’t complain about that although I did have a bit of a nightmare up in Scotland while staying at Doubeltree. The room I was in had a very noisy radiator – and I mean noisy! It sounded like a boiler which was about to explode. So I ended up calling reception at 12:15am and was eventually moved into the most lovely room but then had to move again after breakfast into another room. After all the room jumping the rest of the stay was fine – I was basically dead that first morning though as I didn’t get much sleep. 

Holiday Inn Express in Wakefield

Doubletree by Hilton Dundee Room 1

Doubletree by Hilton Room 2 – wish I could have stayed in here!

While in Wakefield I had the most tasty pineapple rice at a place called Tet Restaurant – I mean just look at that!

Insanely good pineapple rice <3

It was also my car’s MOT and I failed because I had caught my tyre on a curb and got a deep cut 😓 So that cost me £170 to replace as apparently I have run flats… expensive lesson learnt!

I’ve been trying to keep on top of my running and its been slow journey but I’m getting there – there’s no need to get angry with myself if I’m not running every other day as I want to be able to enjoy it. I just can’t shift this cold – it feels like I’ve had it for weeks and weeks… so I’m struggling to breath when running but I’m hoping going to Australia where its nice and warm will help the cold disappear  and I can get back to running properly 😊

My brother made a comment when we caught up the other weekend that all I ever post on insta is cups of tea and snaps from my runs at the gym… gotta say I love my cups of tea in bed at the weekend (ultimate chill time activity for me at the weekend after a long week at work) and then posting pics of me at the gym I feel just keeps me accountable. So there you go! Tbh the way he said it annoyed me because it made me feel inadequate (I’m sure it wasn’t his intention!). I love being able to connect with people on insta and share what I’m up to just like on this blog but I don’t like being made feel like I’m being judged by friends or family. Anyways I’ve come to the conclusion that if anyone don’t like what I post or if it bores them they’re more than welcome to unfollow me. Glad that’s now cleared up…

Love my insta tea pics :p

This month we also discovered Robinsons Spiced Apple and Cinnamon squash – omg it tastes like Christmas – just divine – and have it warm… its a game changer! Have you tried it yet?

Last month my grandparents came to visit which was lovely – first time they’ve been to see us up here. The weather wasn’t the best but that didn’t stop us going to Baddesley Clinton to have a wonder around. We’d never been before and had a nice wonder around – one of my favourite bits was definitely the huge fireplace which was actually roaring! I loved it! I could have sat there all afternoon… It’s definitely a good few hours out. If it hadn’t been raining so much we would definitely have gone for a walk around the grounds. Maybe we’ll go back in the Spring…

Something I’ll never say no to is sushi… I love it! Until I started going out with Tim over 11 years ago I barely touched it. To begin with I would only have sushi with veggies or cooked chicken/ duck but eventually branched out to prawns (my absolute fav) then salmon and tuna – give me a spicy tuna roll any day yum! Waitrose have sushi counters which do a good range of take away sushi – the crunchy chicken and prawn ones are the best and make for a tasty lunch.

I mentioned above that I went up to Scotland for a week with work and it was freeeeezing! We got a flight up to Edinburgh and then drove up to Dundee. We stayed in a Doubletree which was lovely. I especially loved the warm chocolate cookie you get on arrival #chocolateforlife!

There was a really nice gym area and the pool was nice. I started off a couple mornings in the gym or pool finishing with a sauna to start the day.

We only really saw Dundee by night but it seemed nice! The food also was great. One night we went to 172 at the Cairo where I had Arancini followed by pasta with Cod – so good! I love Arancini but the best I’ve had still has to be from a little place in Rome.

Breakfast was fairly tasty at Doubletree – the choice was great with your usual continental but there was also a pancake station and they did some tasty eggs benedict. Also liked the touch that you could get a tea to take away when you left. We won’t talk about the morning that I spilt my tea ALLLLL over the table as I was about to leave – oops! I definitely have butter fingers 😋

We also found a restaurant which was in an old railway station called Bridgeview Station – we went for 2 courses for £20 which were lovely. It was definitely cheaper than it would have been down South. I had crispy brie to start followed by salmon.

Finally on our last night we went to a place called Porters Bar and Restaurant where me and my colleague had burgers and chips with a soft drink for £20! Bargain! We then had to have pudding – we both went for the sticky toffee pudding – so good! The location was quite nice too although it was bitterly cold – I mean I wouldn’t expect anything else for this time of the year in Scotland…

At my new work we have a dinner allowance of £20 so you definitely try to hunt out all the good deals.

It was a late one back home that Friday but it was nice to be home. I’m getting used to staying away a bit more but I’m liking it so far – I like visiting new places and it means you get to try new food places which is always a bonus!

That weekend my in-laws stayed over which was lovely. My mother in law isn’t very well so we decided to go to West Midlands Safari Park on the Sunday as we could stay in the car and didn’t have to walk very far. You’ve probably guessed but Tim and I love animals so will never say no to a trip to a safari park or zoo. Having just been to Chester not too long ago it is interesting to see a slight difference in West Midlands Safari Park as it mustn’t get as much  income as Chester. The enclosures didn’t look as enticing but you’d hope that they are definitely what the animals need. I love seeing the lions and elephants. It was too cold and muddy for my favourite – the giraffes – but we got a little sneak peak of them!

That evening we went to see Jack Whitehall. We were a bit skeptical about what he’d be like but he exceeded our expectations and we had a great evening. His support acts were also great – sometimes support acts can be a bit odd but these guys were good and we laughed a lot!

And of course I had a couple more meals out last month – you know I love my food! We went out with some good friends to celebrate their engagement so had an early Christmas meal at Purnell’s Bistro – it was delish as per! Here are some pics of the meal for you to enjoy…

Cute decor at the bar

Happy hour cocktails! YUM!

Scotch egg of dreams…

Words can’t describe how tasty this plum rice pudding was…

I also popped out for a tasty lunch with an old work friend and we went to Las Iguanas for a delicious meal. Of course we had to have 3 courses and 2 for 1 cocktails – dreamy! It was a well overdue catch up and there was lots of gossip to get up to date on! I only managed to get a pic of pudding…

Finally, we went out for a meal with Tim’s parents after going to see Tigers loss to Saints. Love a rugby match but it was soooo cold! I had my fleecey tights on to keep me warm thank goodness. We went for Wagamama’s and I had the prawn lollipops and then chicken ramen – I was so full but wow it was good.

And that was my month really! We’ve been counting down to Australia so we’ve been planning the final bits and pieces which has been exciting. I started my packing prep which has been harder than I thought it’d be…
Earlier in the month I had a big clear out of my wardrobe – I went through everything and got rid of everything that was an xs and even some things that were 2 sizes too small from when I started work 8 years ago – there’s no chance I’ll ever be a size 6 again or an xs! Definitely feels good having a clear out – I filled up 3 bags to take to the charity shop and have a bag of other bits to sell. I did keep a few bits in the hope I’ll get back into them with a bit more exercise. I’ll revisit again in a few months.
So at least when I started my packing prep I knew what would fit so was a good starting point.
I’ve still got some bits still to sort but that’ll be a job for just before we go.

Wardrobe clear out was successful!

Packing is well and truly underway!

Going through all of that it definitely looks like its been a busy month! I guess it has been 😋 Wouldn’t have it any other way! I definitely prefer it busy and this time of year I find I need to keep busy so I don’t think about how cold it is! The past 2 days I’ve woken up and couldn’t get over how chilly it was brrrrrrr! I’m literally counting down the days to the sun in Australia… dreamy! Just got to make it through another week of chilly and cold days… not long to gooooo 😁

Until next time,

Cathers xx