So if you could choose one image or icon that sums up the way you want the year ahead to pan out, what would it be?  Could you wrap everything up into just one picture?

I’ve opted for this.  I’m sure it can be interpreted in different ways but this year I might step out with a few ruffled feathers but I’m going to be sticking my neck out a bit and spreading my wings.  Quite possibly a few bumpy landings in store, but there are bigger fish out to be had and I want one.  Please.

I don’t have a swishy linky function, but if you like the idea of joining in, do post a blog and leave a comment with your link.

I am massively into brain training at the moment.

Since becoming a mother I’ve really suffered from the curse of the baby brains.  It manifests itself in different ways so learning how to recall information is a skill that’s proving tough to master.

And on that note, I totally forgot until today that last August (I know), Innocent kindly sent me some vouchers so we could sample their latest range of Smoothies (liked kiwi, apple and lime but mango and passion fruit remains our favourite).

The also sent me a link to their new online game.  And I have to confess that I passed it off as a little gimmick.  But no, how wrong I was – it’s so addictive.  And good for your memory too.

Memorise the items on the conveyor belt, then pick them from a line up – I failed after picking out one item on my first attempt, but slowly, I am improving.

Have a go, but be warned you’ll be on there for ages.

Innocent sent us about £5 of vouchers (I think) to go and test out their smoothies which are all delicious.  I stick to the bloggers with integrity code to post honest and open reviews.

Who invested in a fleecy pair of snowflake adorned pyjamas from Primark this Christmas?

Well I did, along with a pair of red and white striped socks just to complete the look.

Festive?  Yes.  Fetching?  Maybe not.

Call me a Southern Softy if you will but I adore my pyjamas.  I love nothing better than being wrapped up head to toe in fleece or flannel and getting into a comfy bed.

The person that doesn’t quite appreciate my love of such creature comforts as much is my husband.

We’ve never actually had that ‘I wish you wore something more sexy in bed’ conversation.  I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

It’s just like an unspoken tolerance.  Well, almost – bar the odd raised eyebrow and ‘warm enough in there are we?’ comment.

It’s not as though I have loads of faults.  And he ALWAYS leaves the microwave open, wet towels on the bed AND he eats far too much so we’re kind of even.

Actually I’m pretty sure that my bedtime attire is pretty much my only fault…..

So, what do you wear to bed?  Have you been married for years yet still make an effort?  Or maybe you’re still in the honeymoon period but you’ve already laid down the law and made it clear that it’s full length PJ’s from here on in.

Teddy bears – that’s where I draw the line.

No explicit details required thank you.

Image courtesy of Todd Ehlers on Flickr Creative Commons.

Apologies for the blurryness ad odd angles of some of these – our three-year old was cameraman today.

I chose this outfit for a day at work – a big meeting this morning and time in the office later on.  The dress is great with delicate shoes and tights for weddings.

Dress – Closet at Dorothy Perkins (about a year ago)

Tights – H&M (about a year ago)

Long sleeve t-shirt – New Look (recently)

Boots – Zara (this month)

Coat – TK Maxx (too many years ago)

Scarf – Tesco (about a year ago)

Check out the other entries over with Transatlantic Blonde.

Every now and again you just want a really delicious, rich, creamy starter before dinner – this one is great if you’re dinner isn’t looking as big as you’d hoped and you want something to start off with!

It works on the experienced cooks method of ‘a pinch of’, so add as much or as little as you like of each based on taste.

Mushrooms

Ciabatta

Butter (knob)

Garlic (squeeze of puree)

Fresh Parsley (three sprigs)

Tarragon (pinch)

Paprika (1/2 teaspoon ish)

Nutmeg (1/4 teaspoon ish)

Thyme (pinch)

Bouillon (teaspoon)

Double or single cream (1/3 to 1/2 small pot)

Lime juice (squeeze)

Marsala (two to three tablespoons

Worcestershire Sauce or Henderson’s Relish (a few shakes)

Red wine (a glug)

Pan fry the mushrooms in a little butter.

Meanwhile add the butter, garlic and all herbs and spices to a small pan.  Mix together well, making sure not to burn.

Add the cream.  Stir and simmer.

Add the remainder of the ingredients.

Add the mushrooms and simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve on toasted ciabatta.

Enjoy.  Proper posh comfort food.

This post is also my entry for the Sheepskin Life food competition!  Sheepskin Life rent out stunning holiday cottages and homes across the UK.

Just before Christmas I met a lady by chance at the opening of a florists.  She complimented me on the top I was wearing (you always remember people who compliment you, right?) and it turns out that she’s a stylist. I love fashion.  I shop on a high street budget with some investments in more luxurious pieces from Karen Millen, Jigsaw or Whistles.

I really don’t shop extravagantly.  Caroline is the brains and beauty behind Style Intelligence - she was a retail buyer for years for stores including Warehouse, Oasis, Coast and Miss Selfridge. Thousands of thoughts start running through my mind including ‘my god I need a stylist in my life’ and ‘I wonder if she thinks my jacket is too tight’ as well as ‘she’d think I was insane if she saw my wardrobe organised in colour order’.  

Yet a few weeks later I did invite her to come and inspect my wardrobe.  Which is quite unlike me as I am usually very hard pressed to part with my hard-earned cash to any type of expert or guru.  The only similar investment I’ve made in the past was with a accupuncturist which was so worth it. So Caroline, the stylist came and spent three hours with me at my humble abode one Friday morning.

I had last-minute doubts – it was like a first date – would it be awkward sitting on my bed – in my bedroom – my personal space – looking through my clothes? Well those doubts lasted all of a few minutes.  Armed with a cuppa each we started by flicking through fashion mags looking for inspiration and pulled out lots of outfits we both envisaged me wearing.

Now, my wardrobe wasn’t a disaster area in terms of individual items but I struggled to put together complete outfits and was getting fed up of that ‘nothing looks right’ sulk each morning. Caroline said that she’d help me with a list of a few key items that would pull together my existing wardrobe – queue relief that I wasn’t going to be starting from scratch and needing a new credit card.

We happily ate toast after we’d finished the first section, excited to move on to the next. I was really astounded by a number of revelations – the colours that suit me being summer tones rather than the autumns I’d imagined and springs I’d envisaged as a second choice for a start.

Caroline also measured my proportions and explained which parts of the body to focus on as a result – my neck and shoulders with jewellery, scarfs and fur, as well as my lower legs (more skirts or shorts and tights).  This was such a simple exercise but so enlightening.

Alongside all of this we looked at which shapes and styles suit me and it turns out I can’t wear yellow, mid length coats or puffy sleeves.  So this saw a small heap of clothing being evicted from my wardrobe which are now happily hunting for new homes on eBay.  Caroline explained why none of these items worked for me – and most were simply too big or too frumpy – bought in a wave of desire to look more grown up. And to that end, my new stylist (hark at me) said not to be afraid to dress in young fashions because it suits my personality.  Could I be more pleased?!

The icing on the cake for me was the fact that Caroline had already been for a mooch around the shops and spotted a few items that she thought would work well for me – including a pair of plum skinny work trousers from Whistles which by the time I got there were reduced from £150 to £40 in the sale.  If only they’d still had my size…

So as a result I’ve bought one or two things – and I haven’t gone crazy by any means – I’ve actually spent far less because I’m not wasting money on impulse purchases.  And my little colour swatches come everywhere with me so that I can confirm that clothes I pick out are the right shade for me. Caroline also had a rifle through my makeup bag and it turns out I was wearing totally the wrong colour foundation, blusher and lip gloss.  She gave me a Liz Earle tinted moisturiser to try and my skin was totally transformed to this dewy alabaster appearance.  All this new-found confidence could be trouble – but I like a little trouble!

Caroline did a mini style review for me which included colour analysis, wardrobe review and style advice.  I can’t recommend her highly enough, she has totally transformed the way I think and feel about clothing – I still get it wrong some days but more often than not, I feel pretty damn comfortable in my own skin.  Check out What I Wore Wednesdays for a little insight.

My mum really wants a session with Caroline, so if you do too, do what I’ve suggested to her – sell a load of old clothes on Ebay that you never wear and use the profits to pay for a session.  Prices from £65 per hour.

Shhh… new purchase (Zara sale, god love it).

If you watched the wonderful Sherlock this week (how can you not be hooked?!), you will have seen him trying to recall the significance of the word H.O.U.N.D as part of an ever-deepening mystery surrounding Baskerville and a disappearance on the moors.

Sherlock recalled memories from his ‘mind palace’ and found the acronym H.O.U.N.D tucked away safely in one of the bedrooms of said palace – a memory he’d stored from the past.

If you read my post ‘I was saved by a raisin’ – the one I struggled through during the crowdsourced section of CyberMummy last year, you’ll know that I battled with some mild forms of OCD – including the inability to recall information – mainly ideas and must-do’s for the coming day.  Because I also had slight obsessions with lists and stopped listing everything, my memory became even more important a tool.

So when Sherlock so dramatically visualised his ‘mind palace’ with lots of crazy waving and gestures, I decided to get myself a palace too.  I have no delusions of grandeur so have settled on a mind house, which just so happens to be a three bed end terrace – just like mine.  Makes sense for it to be a familiar place I decided.

So on Monday night in bed I remembered that I still hadn’t emailed an old contact about rearranging a cancelled lunch.  I sat him on the toilet reading The Guardian.  Come the morning, I went back to my mind house and found him, still sitting there, just where I left him and remembered to email him.

On Tuesday night I put a friends mother up on the shelf in the kitchen with all of my nice little dishes and bottles to remind me about an idea I’d had for a press release (I work in PR) about holidays and holiday habits -my friends mother goes back to the same resort every year.  And lo and behold, I remembered the idea in its entirety when I thought back to where I had put someone.

On Wednesday night I put the host of a networking meeting I was attending the following morning in the kitchen cupboard nestled in with the washing powder and fabric softener – well he is only small.  I wanted to remind myself of the theme for my ‘one minute’ – the bit where you have to stand up and make a good impression about yourself and your business.  And again it worked.

I Googled this technique and found this page about memory recall and mind palaces – I’m not sure if I am going to need specific routes or whether rooms will continue to suffice, we shall see.

The principle is based on the Method of Loci and works on the basis that we are better at remembering locations that anything else.  So by putting thoughts into specific locations, with symbols, icons and images to help us remember chains of information, we make them easier to recall.

“Why don’t you just write it down?!!!” my husband said.  But if you’re almost in the land of nod and are enjoying that heavy feeling that comes when you are finally drifting off to sleep, you simply can’t move as far as a pen and paper or your phone – you just will yourself to remember.  And usually don’t.

Next stop, putting this to the test when in the shower, driving, or swimming with my son – all times when really you shouldn’t be over-thinking anything but always seem to have those little brainwaves.

Only trouble is, if I remember every single one of these good ideas, I’m going to need someone to help me get them all done…

I am quite sure that I am the only person who has spent her adult life being called Caroline by new acquaintances.

I wouldn’t mind so much, except my name is Catherine.

It always has been.  I’m Cat to some of my friends, Catherine at work.  I was Caz for a while at school, as well as Titch.  Toots to my dad.  I debated being cool and being a Cate and have never been a Cath or a Cathy – whatever the guy at the beauty salon insists upon.

Last time I was in SpecSavers the assistant fitting my frames was a Catherine.  I guffawed, trying to make witty conversation when I saw her name badge and said ‘huh, I bet you get called Caroline all the time?!’.  Quiet pause followed by ‘Um no, not really’.  Just me then.

But I’d say 9 out of 10 times I meet someone new, before the conversation concludes I hear a little apologetic voice saying ‘It was Caroline, wasn’t it?’.  Occasionally it’s Christine or Charlotte but more often than not it’s Caroline.

I have absolutely nothing against the name.  It’s a very nice name.  But it’s not my name.  I wonder what it is about Catherine that’s so un-memorable?  Maybe it’s me that’s not memorable….I should work on that.

Image credit: Catherine McAteer

Like many people, I’m never far from my iPhone – whether it’s work calls, Twitter, blogging on the go or checking train times.  I’ve never had a decent in-car kit so when we were offered the chance to try the new Jabra Drive I jumped at the chance.  I regularly had to pull over to make or take calls – yes it’s the exception to the rule but being able to phone ahead if you’re running late makes getting from A to B far less stressful if you don’t have to find somewhere to stop.

Like many of my gadget reviews begin – I hate reading instructions.  So I read the back of the box, figure out what I can and take it from there – I have no interest in unfolding a world map size leaflet with point size 4 print and trying to figure out how to make something work.

So luckily the Jabra Drive is literally just plug and go.  Switch it on, search for bluetooth devices on your phone and it picks it up instantly.  I have mine clipped to the sun visor.  When I first used it I found that the caller at the other end heard quite a lot of vibrations so I really wedged it on tight using the clip on the back which resolved the problem.  Now calls are crystal clear and many people wouldn’t know I’m even in the car.

The thing I like most is that you can switch it on after the phone starts ringing and it clicks in and intercepts the call, meaning you don’t have to remember to switch it on when you get in the car.  I also like that it’s slim enough to flip the visor up and be hidden from view when we’re parked somewhere public.

The commands are spoken voice so when you switch it on a nice lady says ‘connected’.  You also get voice warnings when the battery is low.

Looking at the website, it also transmits music, podcasts and GPS commands.  I haven’t used it for this but it’s worth knowing that you could play music through it; from an iPod I guess (do those have bluetooth?!).

They’re also reduced to £28.77 on Amazon from almost double that so a great price as well.

Finally, I love that when daddy has been away with work, both me and our three-year old can talk to him from the car if he gets a moment free to call us.  Priceless.

We received the Jabra Drive to review.  I stick to the bloggers with integrity code to post honest and open reviews.

Our oven is on the blink at the moment so we’re cooking on the hob alone.

After a glut of meat over Christmas, we had fish pie for dinner last night and the improvised recipe went down so well, it’s only right to share it.

Ingredients

1 onion

2 packs of smoked fish – we had coley and haddock

1 pack of cooked king prawns

Potatoes – sweet (1) and normal (3)

Squash (half)

Spinach (large frozen pellet)

Sweetcorn (1 cup)

Wholegrain mustard (two tablespoons)

Milk, butter, flour, parsley (for white sauce)

Garlic

Salt and pepper

Method

Simply adjust the ingredients for the number you are cooking for – this would serve around three people with generous portions.

Make up a white sauce first and set aside.

Brown an onion and add the smoked fish until nearly cooked.

Boil the potatoes and squash while the fish is cooking.  Mash with milk, butter and salt.

Add the mustard, garlic and pepper to the fish.

Add the prawns and sweetcorn and cook for a few minutes longer.

Add the white sauce.

Serve the fish onto plates.

Pipe the mash onto the fish stew for added brownie points.