Birthday Spa Day and Picnic!

Special Birthday day for my mum - isolation edition. So today I spent the whole day pampering my hardworking loving mum for her birthday, which was unfortunately during self-isolation (due to coronavirus). But that didn’t make her special day any less special. For breakfast, my mum woke to a breakfast-in-bed of french toast and fresh fruit with some hot chocolate sauce and a coffee. (see previous post for photos). Then when she left her bedroom, she saw our lounge room all ‘dressed up’ as a day spa. I covered the couch in soft blankets and throw pillows, the tv stand with deliciously scented candles and had other spa-like knickknacks around the place (e.g, dream catchers, a salt lamp etc.). I found a youtube video of 3 hours of an image of a beautiful cascading waterfall with tranquil music and water noises and put it on the tv. She then rested her feet in a heated foot spa and using my homemade sugar cookie foot scrub, I gave her a foot massage. Then using my homemade coconut hand lotion, I also massaged her hands. She then relaxed with puzzle books and mindful colouring in whilst I prepared lunch. I blew up a few balloons and hung up a bunting saying ‘It’s Your Day!’ on it in our backyard, where I had laid out a picnic blanket in the sunlight for us to have lunch on. For lunch I made zucchini slice, crumbed chicken and veggie sticks (with some homemade hummus). Then came the long-anticipated birthday cake. I made a New York Lemon baked cheesecake - my mum’s favourite - and put three candles on top (one for each member of our immediate family). Then we all drove to a local park and went for a walk amongst the beautiful Aussie wildlife until the sun started to set. Then for dinner I made us some butter chicken with coconut rice. All in all it was a lovely day - especially for the birthday girl I’m sure 😊

Day 34 of Isolation - and it’s someone’s Birthday

26th of April, 2020
Day 34 of Isolation. Today is my mum’s birthday. Unfortunately, her birthday is during self-isolation, so we can’t go anywhere and we can’t visit family and friends. Fortunately for her, this means I spend the whole day pampering her. Starting off with a delicious gluten free and dairy free (but certainly not taste free) breakfast-in-bed and then a foot spa and hand massage, then a delicious backyard picnic - complete with a birthday cake. So far I’ve only gotten to the breakfast part (it’s only 10am) but I’ll keep updating later on in the day.

^ Gluten and dairy free French Toast with fresh fruit and homemade chocolate sauce 😋 

Day 31 of Isolation

23rd April, 2020.
Day 31 of Isolation. Hey I haven’t posted in a while so I thought I’d post a simple but delicious recipe for a healthy breakfast/lunch dish I made...

Ingredients:
2 slices of fruit bread
1 apple (green or red, doesn’t matter - I used green)
Butter or margarine (to spread on toast)
Cinnamon (for dusting)

Method:
1. Toast fruit bread to liking (I may have accidentally burnt mine slightly...don’t do that)
2. Remove core from apple and cut into thin slices (I cut mine into 24ths but it depends on how big the apple is)
3. Butter toasted bread
4. Layer the sliced apple pieces on the bread
5. Dust with cinnamon and enjoy! 😋

Btw, I used gluten free bread, which is why it looks so small.

Day 15 of Isolation

7th April 2020
Day 15 of isolation. Last Friday (3rd of April) was the last day of my school term (I was doing my schooling online at home anyway), so today was the second day of my school holidays (I don’t count the weekend). However, I’m in isolation so there’s a lot I can’t do. But there’s also a lot I can do. Today I utilised my free time by properly organising my bathroom cupboards. I feel much better having everything organised. I then decided to complete a 500 piece Harry Potter puzzle. It took me a while but I got there...

Self-Isolation Due to the Coronavirus (Day 8)

31st March 2020
Day 8 of isolation. If you’re reading this then you may have noticed that I didn’t post anything the last two days (Days 6 & 7). I won’t post everyday but I’ll post as often as I can. Today I had mostly school work to do again, but after that I decided to do some more cooking. I made some Maple Bacon Scrolls and they are delicious 😋 Although I’m still not quite sure if they’re supposed to be sweet or savoury. Maybe a bit of both.
The Karate club I attend has closed classes due to the coronavirus, which is no surprise. Luckily the club is using the platform Zoom to continue classes online via live video meetings. Today I had my first proper class (there was a few before today but then I wasn’t training because I was helping out since my parents run the club) and it ran mostly the same as a normal class, save a few technical difficulties with my internet connection. I’m really glad that I’m still able to do karate so I have something to do during isolation and also so I can maintain a somewhat regular routine.
Also to pass the time, I’ve mainly been doing lots of reading. At the moment I’m reading a book called ‘Specials’ by Scott Westerfeld. It’s the third in an amazing series, I even got my dad reading them, although he’s only on the second book.
I’ll hopefully be posting some more this week, until then stay safe, stay positive and remember to wash your hands.

Self-Isolation Due to Coronavirus (Day 5)

28th March, 2020
Day 5 of isolation. Today is a Saturday, the first day of isolation where I haven’t had school work to keep myself occupied. To pass the time, I’ve decided to start learning a new language. I’ve already spent a good hour of today trying to learn Greek on the app Duolingo. It’s actually not as hard as I thought it would be, but it’ll definitely be a while before I’m speaking it fluently. I’m using today as an opportunity to do some tidying of my room. After that I might try and learn a new song on the guitar. I started learning (online) how to play acoustic guitar about a year ago but I haven’t really had very much time to play. I know a few songs and basic chords, hopefully I’ll learn a lot more whilst isolated.  I’ll also get to catch up on some reading. I have plenty of books in my bookshelves that I’ve yet to read. Last year I had a goal to read 50 books. It’s not much, considering how fast I read, I just find it difficult to find the time. I’m happy to say that last year I achieved my goal. This year I have a new goal to read 75 books. Each year I plan to slowly increase my goal, to push myself to find more time to read. Although...so far this year I’ve only read 6 books, I’ve got quite a while before I reach my goal. But whilst isolated, I have plenty of time to read, which is good because I love reading. At the moment I’m reading a book called ‘Raelia’ by Lynette Noni. It’s the second book in a series that my friend recommended to me. She has a blog too, you should check it out...
http://maddiebookworm.blogspot.com
Anyway, I’ll be updating my blog with more on what I’m doing. And remember: stay positive!

Self-Isolation due to Coronavirus (Day 4)

27th of March, 2020
It’s day 4 of self-isolation due to COVID-19. I do not have the virus but I am staying home to prevent getting it. I am currently in year 11 and am having to do all of my schooling at home. I’ve decided to post regular updates on my blog to let those very few who read my blog see what I’m doing to keep myself occupied during this time of isolation. It’s a good idea to find activities to do to keep your spirits up whilst unfortunately being unable to catch up with friends and family. I’ve decided to have a positive outlook on this whole situation. I see it as an opportunity to learn how to adapt and to be able to do my school work at my own pace. I also get to spend more time with my immediate family. Aside from the school work I had to complete today, to keep myself entertained, I decided to make some gluten free bread rolls because I love to cook. I used a Thermomix recipe and they turned out great, I’m using them as burger buns for the ‘Mexican Style Burgers’ I’m making my family for dinner tonight. If the burgers (and the potato salad I’m making on the side) turn out well I might post the recipe on here. Look out for more updates on what I’m doing during isolation 🤗