Tag: life

  • New year, new blog!

    New year, new blog!

    New year, new blog | seefoodplay.com

    Reading through my last blog post, all I keep thinking is… what a difference a year makes. This time last year, I was adventuring in the Maldives on a much-needed two week vacay. Now, I’m finishing the holiday period getting ready to head back into work in cold and rainy London.

    The new year period is always a time for reflection: on the past year, lessons learned, experiences had and life in general. Last year, I remember a distinct feeling of exhaustion. Just plain tired, from work, from doing too much, and from the feeling of life not going in the direction that I hoped. I was happy to leave 2016 in the dust as I transitioned to 2017, dancing it up on a party boat in the Indian Ocean. This year, though, I’m feeling a bit different. I’m less inclined to write 2017 off as having been a shit year. Yes, lots of shit things happened and it was long, tough, and filled with more unpleasantness than I would have liked. But 2017 showed me something about myself that I already knew, but I didn’t know know. I’m resilient, and can handle whatever life throws at me.

    Even in the saddest moments, or the most challenging situations, we can always come out on the other side, and will almost always be stronger for it. I’m less focused now on living a perfect life and more into the idea of living my best life, whatever that happens to be. I’ve always spent a lot of time looking forward to the next big adventure, the next big life milestone, the next big achievement… in 2018, that will be different. As cliché as it sounds, my most sincere resolution is to learn to live in the moment. I wrote about enjoying the moment a few years back, and this year, I plan to do exactly that.

    So, you can call it a comeback – seefoodplay is renewed and refreshed, and will hopefully be better than ever! I’ve got lots of new content planned, and will be writing about some of my new favorite recipes, lots of travel ideas and trip reports, and of course a few DIY projects here and there.

    Stay tuned 🙂 xx

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  • Life: enjoy the process

    Life: enjoy the process

    It’s already December 2015. As in, one month away from January 2016. Ever have the feeling that a whole year of your life just flew by, in the blink of an eye? That’s definitely what I’m feeling right now. This past year has seen its ups and downs (though, mostly ups) and honestly I don’t know where the time went.

    Logging in this morning I realized that it has been months (yes, months) since I’ve added content here. But then I reflected on all the other stuff I’ve been up to, and didn’t feel so bad after understanding that I’ve had to make a few…priority adjustments, and some things just took over. That’s not so say that I don’t loooove seefoodplay.com, but sometimes you need to focus on other things that are more important at a particular moment in your life.

    So instead of pretending that I had 25 hours in a day and struggling to fit it all in, or worse yet, doing too much and start focusing on quantity rather than quality, I did what made sense for me: I took a break.

    Last summer, I went on a leadership training course geared towards women where I learned all sorts of self-improvement techniques and personal leadership skills. During our break-out sessions, a common remark from other participants was a feeling of being constantly overwhelmed, having trouble finding time to accomplish everything, or the feeling of not being enough. I’m definitely guilty of waking up on Sunday morning, already feeling stressed that I only have 16 hours to get everything done on my to-do list. Sound crazy to you? It should, because it is!

    My stress levels were through the roof, and I constantly felt like I wasn’t getting enough done. I wasn’t cooking enough, I wasn’t writing enough, I wasn’t spending enough time with Jonathan, I wasn’t working on creative projects enough. No matter what I did, it was never enough.

    So I’ve taken a step back and I’m spending time focusing on what matters most: the process. I’ve struggled with this my whole life, but sometimes you really need to force yourself to just enjoy what you’ve accomplished at any given moment, instead of always working towards some arbitrary (and probably unattainable) golden ring of success.

    When I was in high school, I couldn’t wait to go to college. In college, I couldn’t wait to study abroad. Couldn’t wait to get that next promotion. Couldn’t wait to buy an apartment. Couldn’t wait for that next travel experience. Couldn’t wait. couldn’t wait. couldn’t wait.

    So I’m already looking forward to 2016 as I am vowing to have a new perspective, a healthier (and less stressful) way of getting through life. I’m never going to slow down (after all, we are who we are) but I’m going to make sure that I always enjoy the process. And sometimes, you just gotta cruise though life not doing too much all…pulled by a pack of overly-energetic Arctic huskies towards a gorgeous Finnish sunset:

    Life: enjoy the process | seefoodplay.com

    And one of the processes that I truly enjoy is working on seefoodplay, so it’s back on my list of priorities and I’m really looking forward to sharing our adventures with you in the next few months. So stay tuned!

    Xx

  • Life, love and Happiness

    Life, love and Happiness

    anniversary shots | seefoodplay.com

    Sometimes life is filled with all sorts of unexpected surprises (sometimes good and sometimes bad) and these past few months have been full of ‘em for me. A few health issues, two surgeries and a full month off of work later, I’m back and finally getting back into the swing of things. Our health is fragile, and life is short, and these past few months have definitely helped me to appreciate that. Jonathan and I have had lots of deep and meaningful’s these past months, and we have decided to turn a few of our dreams into realities. More to come on that in the months to come, so keep an eye out for an update hopefully sooner rather than later!

    So even though I haven’t been posting definitely does not mean that I haven’t been thinking up all sorts of recipes. I’m really focusing (even more than before) on whole foods that are completely preservative-free, and meats that are hormone-free and organic. I’ve always been hesitant to jump on the Organic Train, especially since opinions on whether it’s actually necessary are pretty divided, but I’ve been on the Organic diet kick for almost a month now, and I have to say… I feel fantastic. Many of the recipes that I’ll be posting will have been made with totally organic, totally unprocessed ingredients. Of course if I’m out of organic pasta, I don’t stress, I use regular. If I don’t have any organic milk, I use regular milk. The idea for me to is pay total attention to what I eat, even though there will always be exceptions because well…life. Business lunch? No problem, I’ll get the healthy option on the menu. Dinner with friends? Not gonna sweat it: a glass of wine (or two…) and a nice steak, definitely. But most of the time, I’m eating only things that I know without a doubt are good for me.

    The thing is, I’ve never been big on processed foods anyway, as I’ve mentioned before: they’re not quite as common in Europe as they are in the U.S. (although sadly, that is changing). It would never occur to me to buy pre-made spaghetti sauce, or use seasoning packets these days, simply because the homemade version is easier, cheaper, and tastes better. But I realize this isn’t the case for everyone, so hopefully some of these recipes will help you make a few of your favorite meals from scratch.

    What I have not always been good at, though, is making sure I eat balanced meals. I’m not a big meat eater, but I don’t really compensate enough with other proteins. I’m a self-diagnosed pasta addict, but don’t always get enough veggies, and my water intake was definitely in need of a boost. Meal planning was a step in the right direction, but now I’m consciously making an effort to get in three solid and nutritious meals per day. Starting with breakfast, I’ve been keeping track of what I eat every day, and more importantly, not skipping it altogether! Organic Earl Grey tea and oatmeal have been my staples lately, with mid-morning bananas and apples. Because of my 30-day organic cure that I’m 19 days into, I’ve pretty much been forced to bring my lunch to work every day which means: no more greasy (but oh so delicious) grilled sandwiches or grabbing a soup, while delicious, but not really enough to get me through the afternoon, and perhaps more importantly: no more Starbucks! (okay, I’ve had two, but decaf with soy milk… c’mon! how am I supposed to live without my pumpkin spice lattes..!?).

    So, this post is to let you know that I’m back and better than ever ☺️ and I can’t wait to share some of the recipes I’ve been working on, as well as a few trip reports from some of our travel highlights from the past few months. In the meantime, and in the spirit of celebrating life and love, I’d like to share a few photos from me and Jonathan’s 1-year anniversary photo shoot. If there’s anything I’ve come to appreciate since I’ve met Jonathan, it’s the value of having someone always by my side, no matter what. These past twelve months have been filled with lots of changes, decisions, and complications, but also with lots of love, understanding, and adventures. We made it to Year One and I can’t wait to see what the rest of this adventure will bring ❤️

    anniversary shots | seefoodplay.com anniversary shots | seefoodplay.com anniversary shots | seefoodplay.com anniversary shots | seefoodplay.com

    Photography: http://www.ksquared-photography.com

  • Weekly meal planning: update

    Weekly meal planning: update

    weekly meal planning | seefoodplay.com

    It’s Sunday evening (8:10pm, to be precise) and for the first time in weeks I feel ready to take on the upcoming week energized and not stressed out feeling that I didn’t accomplish everything that I wanted to over the weekend. I think there are two types of “weekend people” — some people use the weekend to relax, and just recuperate from a tiring work week, and some (crazy) people view the weekend as the only time they can really get stuff done. I definitely am in the latter group, and sometimes drive myself crazy trying to get through a to-do list of about 45 things (for Saturday morning). I’m often left feeling like I have wasted my weekend if I sleep in (seriously, if I’m still asleep at 7am on Saturday morning…panic). Just “taking it easy” ain’t really my thing, and staying as organized as possible is what gets me through it, and meal planning has definitely become my saving grace throughout the week. Nothing like having a rough day at work, then coming home to a hungry husband, a fridge full of random food, and no idea what to cook. I’m lucky that I loooove Jonathan’s cooking, but I also loooove to cook myself. Enter: weekly food shops & meal planning.

    I had fallen off the weekly meal prep wagon for the past few weeks, since we had house guests and were eating out so much, but I’m back on track and am even more resolved than I was before to keep up with it. As is always the case when I plan out my weekly meals, my grocery costs are way down and my “intelligent recipe-based shopping” is preventing me from wasting food, too! No more buying random stuff and trying to figure out what to cook as an after-thought.
    It took me a little over an hour to plan out this week’s meals, another hour to order the groceries (hello, distracting internet), and then about 30 minutes to wash all the fruits & veggies when the groceries arrived this morning. I’ve kept the recipes pretty simple this week, and will probably add in some salads here and there to keep things fresh.

    So, here’s what’s on our menu this week:
    Monday
    • Breakfast: Apple slices & peanut butter + copycat McMuffins
    • Lunch: Carrot sticks w/hummous + BLT Bagel
    • Dinner: Roast chicken
    • Dessert: Giada’s lemon & ricotta cookies
    Tuesday
    • Breakfast: Cottage cheese w/berries + sliced swiss cheese
    • Lunch: Black bean soup + English muffin grilled cheese
    • Dinner: Baked salmon & asparagus
    • Dessert: Mousse au chocolat
    Wednesday
    • Breakfast: Copycat McMuffin & fruit
    • Lunch: Greek salad & homemade pita chips
    • Dinner: Oven roasted garlic chili shrimp, avocado, cilantro rice
    • Dessert: Homemade salted caramel popcorn
    Thursday
    • Breakfast: Bagel w/turkey & swiss cheese & granny smith apple slices
    • Lunch: Homemade chicken & vegetable soup
    • Dinner: Turkey meatballs w/marinara sauce & pasta
    • Dessert: Cottage cheese w/sliced fruit
    Friday
    • Breakfast: Avocado toast w/soft-boiled egg & cherry tomatoes
    • Lunch: Leftover spaghetti & meatballs
    • Dinner: Homemade pizza w/bresaola + portobello mushrooms & garden salad
    This week’s grocery bill was a little over £100, but mainly because we had a few pricy items to stock up on..like..ahem…tequila. As usual, I don’t really plan out the weekend’s meals since we often go out to eat, or just eat leftovers. Besides, this Saturday is my birthday 🎉 so maybe Jonathan has something planned for me…that involves him taking me out to a nice restaurant and showering me with gifts? 😉
    Anyway, I hope you all had a productive weekend (or a relaxing one, if that’s your thing!) and are also looking forward to this beautiful new week. Enjoy!