Belated New Year Goals....

Hey guys and a happy 2015 from Hellofreckleface! :)

I haven't blogged so far this year (it feels weird saying that!) I've been pretty busy with work recently and have been feeling a bit sluggish and unproductive. So I thought I would share my belated new year goals and how I've worked towards them so far to help kickstart my motivation.

1) Run a half marathon this year:

    After running the Great South Run last year which is a 10 mile run, my next challenge is to complete a half marathon. This is something which I never thought possible but I'm more determined than ever. So far this year I've been aiming to run at least twice a week, I now need to increase this to at least 3 times a week to improve my fitness and improve my chances at surviving a half marathon.

2) Eat a gluten-free diet:

    After trialling a gluten-free diet last year and noticing the improvement the diet had on my eczema and my health, I am determined to make more of an effort to try to stick to a gluten-free diet this year. I'll miss my bread and cakes however I'm looking for some satisfying gluten free alternatives. I've started this resolution this week by buying a healthy, gluten free food shop. If you guys have any good gluten free recipes then please feel free to share :)

3) Sort out my spare room and my garden:

    Since moving into my new house, I've been trying to make the place as homely as possible, I've not managed to get around to sorting out my spare room. This Spring, I would like to make my spare room cosy and comfortable for any friends/family staying over and to also make my garden covered in flowers and pretty. Thankfully I absolutely love homeware shopping, nowadays I even prefer it to clothes shopping (I'm growing old gracefully), so this will be a fun new years resolution.

4) Be as happy as I possibly can:

    After a pretty turbulent 2014, I am determined to make the most of everything I have this year and to try to see the positives in every situation. I'm incredibly grateful for what I have and I've decided to make the most of every opportunity presented to me.

5) Travel more:

    Last year, I didn't go abroad at all and I'm definitely starting to get itchy feet. So this year, I'm definitely going to travel more. I have a mini break with the girls in Paris planned for May and I'm also hoping to go island hopping in Croatia with another friend this year. I'd also like to explore more of the UK and my local area this year, especially by having picnics in the countryside when the weather is warmer. (A perfect excuse to buy a super cute picnic basket!)

What are your new years resolutions and have you been sticking to them so far?

Adele x

P.S: Here are some pics of what I've been up to lately......

Dancing with my pals on my birthday... :)

Cooking and eating my first attempt at homemade gluten-free pizza!

Using all my Christmas and Birthday Lush products!

Cuddling my beautiful bunnies!

This Week I.....#1

Hey guys,

I've decided to start a little series of lifestyle posts about what I've been up to over the past 7 days as I know that these are the posts that I love reading the most on other lifestyle and beauty blogs. So here's a little round-up of what I've been up to this week.

This week I have been.....

Watching: Orange is the New Black

I'm a little bit behind everyone else but this weekend my friend Sophie and I had a Netflix binge and started watching Series 1 of OITNB. I have to say I'm hooked already. I love the fact that every episode focuses on a different character's back story and why they have ended up in prison and the witty dialogue and quirky characters have got me hooked! Give it a watch if you haven't already.

Eating: Bills

I'd heard of Bills in London and have been regularly perving at other bloggers' food porn on Instagram, so when a new Bills restaurant opened recently in Nottingham, I knew I had to try it out. I had a chicken and chorizo burger with avacado and skinny fries and it was so delicious I forgot to Instagram it before I tucked in, oops. I had just enough room to squeeze in a warm chocolate brownie with milk icecream and it was so good. I loved the sound of everything on the menu so I'll definitely be heading back there soon.

Listening: Banks

If you haven't already heard of Banks, Jillian Banks is a 26 year old singer-songwriter from LA. 

She came third in the BBC's Sound of 2014 list and she is on her way to major stardom. I absolutely love her RnB/electro sound combined with her very personal lyrics about relationships. Personal faves of mine include her acoustic cover of Aaliyah's ''Are You That Somebody?'' and recent single ''Brain''. Check her out and let me know what you think. 

Running: Race for Life 10k 

On Sunday, I ran my first ever 10k race and after a few months of training I was very happy with my time of 1hr 3 mins. It was for a great cause and my family and friends came down to cheer me on which definitely helped when I started to get a bit red faced, sweaty and tired. It was a brilliant experience and it was so lovely to see so many girls and women turning out to run for their loved ones that have been lost to cancer, it was an inspiration to me and I'm definitely going to be running again next year.

What have you guys been up to this past week?

Thanks for reading

Adele x