Relentlessly Purple

Italian chocolate chip bread

Uncategorized / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

Today we made Italian chocolate chip bread from a recipe Eva had chosen in a book ‘Bread 100 everyday recipes’ we’ve had laying around for a few years.

The recipe and method were nice and simple for the girls to do and they absolutely loved eating it too!

I shared these pictures on my Instagram and after @wendy_naptimenatterblog asked if I would share the recipe I decided to share the recipe on the blog for anyone who wants to use it since it really is so simple yet so delicious and fun to make! Especially with Cadbury’s chocolate spread…

Fancy giving it a try yourself?

You will need

Vegetable oil for brushing

225g/8oz plain flour + extra for dusting

1tbsp cocoa powder

Pinch of salt

15g/1/2oz butter plus 1/2tsp melted butter for brushing

1tbsp caster sugar

1 sachet easy blend dried yeast (We used 7g Allinsons easy blend dried yeast)

150ml/5fl oz lukewarm water

55g /2oz plain chocolate chips

Method

1. Brush a baking sheet with oil. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and salt together into a bowl. Add the butter and cut it into the dry ingredients,
then stir in the sugar and yeast.

2. Gradually add the water, stirring well with a wooden spoon until the dough begins to come together, then knead with your hands until it leaves the side of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 1o minutes, or until smooth and elastic.

3. Knead the chocolate the chips into the dough, then form into a round load. Put the loaf onto the prepared baking sheet and cover. Leave ti rise in a warm place for 1-11/2 hours, or intil the dough has doubled in size. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas mark 7.

4. Bake the load in the preheated oven forb10 minutes,
then reduce the oven temperature to 190°C/375°F/Gas mark 5 and bake for a further 15 minutes. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack and brush the top with the melted butter. Cover with a tea towel and leave to cool.

Enjoy!

Our first NIKEiD order

Family / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

Something some of you may have noticed from some of my posts is that my Mr is quite fussy so it’s no surprise he is a nightmare to buy trainer’s for. His were well overdue a replacement and with his birthday coming up and my back pay coming through I decided to treat him to a new pair of Nike’s which are the only trainer’s he will wear because they are wider and comfy.

The Mr only like’s leather trainer’s and prefer’s the Air Max 90’s which with Nike’s current mesh craze made it extremely difficult to find any that were full leather yet alone the colour scheme he was after as he prefers plain and simple trainers. He refused to look at any over around £70-80 to begin with which made it even more difficult as of course most Nike Air Max 90’s are around the £90-100 mark but he eventually though he had found a pair on ebay and he won them for £72 inc p&p.

Unfortunately when they arrived they were not brand new, never worn as the description stated, they had paint and what looks like tip-ex on parts of the sole and filling in colours which also made them seem like fakes. There was some orange staining on them and lots of stitching issues too so after a lot of hassle and a week of the seller refusing a return & refund (even with pictures of all the issues) until Ebay stepped in I decided I’d had enough as I was paying out for them and told the Mr he was only to buy a new pair from a proper site or shop.

Again he spent ages searching for the colour scheme he had seen and wanted but it wasn’t stocked anywhere not even on the Nike store but there was the option to customise your own for £125. After eventually managing to convince the Mr the price was fine as it was a present he got on with designing a pair his way.

After double checking he was happy with them I ordered them for him on the 30th June and we have received email’s from Nike updating us along the way which is nice. We were told to expect them anywhere up to 5 weeks from the day we ordered to receive them so we were quite impressed when we received an email the very next day telling us they had already started to make the Mr’s new trainers!

On the 6th June another email arrived letting us know the finishing touches were being done before his trainer’s were shipped which got us a little excited thinking they could possibly arrive within the next week or two!

Neither of us have ever ordered something like this before so it has been a bit exciting for us I wont lie haha! I’m rather relieved too as in the 8ish year’s we have been together I’ve struggled to buy the Mr anything for his birthdays as I either can’t afford it or he doesn’t want anything and I always feel so guilty so it was nice to finally do something special for him at last.

Just 2 days after the previous email we got another letting us know our order had been shipped on the 8th with UPS and were provided with tracking information. It was quite interesting keeping an eye on their journey starting in Vietnam plus we were quite relieved to know UPS would be delivering too as they tend to be rather quick and reliable. We were still rather surprised when we when we saw yesterday morning that they had finally reached Barking and that we would receive them by the end of tomorrow (13th)!

We were even more surprised when they actually turned up a few hours later and the Mr opened them up straight away.

So many scans on the tracking info!

He was instantly pleased with the quality and detail on the trainers and of course the fact they are all leather with no mesh.

He picked University red to give them a little colour which is a really nice red especially on the back logo.

The Mr tried them on grinning and straight away said they were like putting on slipper’s as they were so comfortable and the perfect fit which was quite a relief after the let down when the first pair arrived.

He really is pleased with the way they turned out and the overall service from NikeiD & UPS and it’s beginning to sound like this won’t be his last pair either and although I normally don’t like spending that kind of money on anything I would happily pay it again.. and possibly design a nice purple pair for myself too haha!

What colour scheme would you go for?

A busy quiet patch

Family / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I’ve barely blogged, barely Tweeted and even my Instagram has been much quieter over the last few weeks as thing’s have been quite up & down and I really haven’t felt great at all.

Despite being relieved I passed my ESA assessment my back hasn’t been amazing, my hip’s feel worse & I discovered I have anaemia which has been causing me to feel constantly drained too which has made it especially difficult to focus & write anything over the last few weeks. I have started taking iron tablets again though which has definitely helped over the past few days

On a good note I received a nice little back pay a few weeks ago as I was entitled to the ESA support rate backdated to the 13th week of my claim, I was aware they do this but didn’t realise how long I had waited so it was a lovely surprise and arrived in time for me to be able to treat the Mr properly on his birthday for pretty much the first time in the 10 years I’ve known him!

I gave him money to spend at the Thurrock Beer festival which he attends every year since its around his birthday and he loves real ales. He came back happily carrying TWO! of these bottles (admittedly one was cider for me :P) & a glass.

a busy quiet patch — The Mr happily came back from the beer fest with this!

We also ordered him some new trainers from ebay which turned up with paint and marks all over & didn’t appear genuine, after waiting for our refund & the Mr still struggling to find a pair he liked we decided to order him a pair of Nike ID’s which are custom made how you want!

He has to wait anywhere up to the 8th august for them but it stops him settling on a pair and not being happy especially as he does so much running around doing school runs & shopping where I cant. We ordered them last thursday and already recieved an email yesterday (6 days after ordering) telling us the finishing touches are being done before they are shipped! So hopefully we wont have to wait too long.

After giving up on our desperate backpack search we gave in and bought him a new backpack too (which I’ll review at a later date) since he does all the shopping and carries it all home from town.

I spoilt the girls a little with some new clothes & shoes..which may have led to a new wardrobe to fit them in.. Admittedly they did genuinely need a wardrobe and the clothes & shoes so it was another issue sorted for us!

I treated my brother to a few lunches & little bits whilst out shopping including some yummy pancakes & a chocolate milkshake at Roadhouse in Basildon! They were so good but so filling that we both took the rest home for later!

I also treated myself to a new bag, purse and a few clothes aswell as doing things like having my eyebrows threaded over the last few weeks and the Mr dyed my hair purple on Sunday too which has made me feel much more human!

Izzy approved of the new handbag & tried to steal it!

It’s been lovely being able to do those things as we’ve been struggling to buy things like clothes and pay bills on time so it has been a lot less stressful financially.

The kitchen toilet & bathroom didn’t get finished off properly but the Mr has somehow managed to fit in repainting the toilet purple & glossing the wood as the way it was left made it feel extremely claustrophobic! He’s purpling the bathroom & kitchen next too!

Although I have been really down lately I am thankful there’s been a lot of positive going on for me to focus on too and Izzy has been going almost everywhere with the Mr lately give me a lot of time to rest & focus on myself doing silly things like actually straightening my hair, having a bath in total peace, taking a nap etc which has really helped my mood the last few days.

I have a lot of catching up to do with the blog and saying hi to people again but I’m hoping to slowly catch up over the next few weeks, feel free to say hi and send me your latest posts to help me catch up!

Izzy’s Firsts

Family / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

We all love keeping track of our little one’s firsts and I’m definitely no exception so I couldn’t wait to join in with the Brit mum’s #PetitFilousfirsts challenge!

My toddler Izzy (22mo) had a few firsts lately. She has been asking for the potty every now and then and surprised us this afternoon by asking to use it and having a poo for the first time!

I finally got to take Izzy to feed the ducks for the first time too! It’s something we have been meaning to do but just haven’t gotten around to so I took her to Gloucester park in Basildon and she absolutely loved it!

We were lucky enough to be sent out some Vouchers to try the delicious Petit Filous fromage frais so on our way home we stopped off to pick up a pack of My First Petit Filous but unfortunately we couldn’t find any (we shall try again!) but Izzy was more than happy to find the family pack!

She couldn’t wait to have one when she got home as she loves fromage frais and quickly demolished the entire pot herself. Funnily enough it was the first time she has managed to entirely empty a pot before without any help too! Apricot or ‘cot-cot’ is definitely her favourite flavour (and mine too) but they are all delicious and such a great healthy treat.

My First Petits Filous is a low sugar, vanilla-flavour weaning fromage frais, designed to introduce children to fromage frais from 6 months. The main ingredient is milk and all ingredients are 100% naturally sourced, so parents can rest assured there are no artificial colours, flavours, sweeteners or added preservatives. Not only is My First Petits Filous delicious, it has calcium and protein to help children develop strong bones from an early age and the low sugar content reassures parents that their child will maintain a balanced diet during weaning.

*This post is an entry for Brit Mums #PetitsFilousFirsts Linky Challenge, sponsored by Petit Filous.

A huge sigh of relief

Physical and Mental Health / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I can finally breath a huge sigh of relief! The last few weeks have been so damn stressful it’s unreal! I’ve been stressing about my ESA assessment decision almost constantly, we had to make such a tough decision and re home the cat’s knowing whatever the outcome we just can’t afford the extra cost’s any more, we’ve had several problems with the refit the council are doing and 2 kids at home with it all going on this half term (which of course has been miserable!) has just been utter chaos!

Getting a call yesterday morning from a number I didn’t know freaked me out and I almost rejected but I am so glad I didn’t!

It turned out to be the person finalising my ESA decision which initially made me panic even more as I was convinced I would be refused but I spoke to such a lovely lady and after a chat and adding on a little more information about the side affects I’m having from my medication she made the decision to award me ESA for the next year!

Honestly I was gob smacked I’ve heard so many depressing stories and anything that involves the job centre has always gone badly for us so to finally be taken seriously and have all that stress lifted had me almost in tears with relief as I thanked the lady on the phone.

When she explained I had originally only been given 6 points based on my anxiety and I would have been refused as I needed 15 to pass I nearly passed out but after explaining the nasty side affects of my medication to her and how things have worsened in general she had decided to award me full points!

My assessment was based on my chronic pain which without the medication side affects they see me as fit for work. My depression was basically ignored because I told them that although I have attempted suicide a few times in the past, knowing I have a family now I wouldn’t be able to bring myself to attempt it again knowing the emotional and financial impact it would have on them. My anxiety was at least considered severe enough to be awarded some points but looking at the overall picture it’s horrible to think how many people in a similar or even a worse situation would be refused and deemed fit for work!

I know I am extremely lucky to be given this break and I appreciate it so much being able to just focus on my health and my family for the next year and I’m hoping in this year I learn to manage everything better so one of us can go back to work and we can start saving and getting somewhere at last!

Kitchen, Bathroom & Toilet Refit

Rambles / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

Since last week we have had contractors in starting on our Kitchen, Bathroom & Toilet as they were all over 20 years old and needed fully replacing.

We are on a 20 day programme where work will be done between 8am-5pm and all 3 rooms are being entirely refitted so we had to empty all 3 rooms (not easy to do in a 2 bedroom flat!) for the next few weeks whilst the work goes on.

My usually rather lived in flat is now half a building site & half a storage depot with bags j boxes everywhere & the fridge in our living room!

The work began Wednesday morning with the kitchen & bathroom being ripped out including flooring & tiles leaving us with just the kitchen & bathroom sink & bath for now. It’s been quite difficult at times especially with everything bagged or boxed up and 2 kids & 2 cats! With the first lot of workers repeatedly leaving the front door wide open after agreeing not to which was also previously agreed with the surveyor and resident liaison officer we have had to try and keep the cats in the living room only we aren’t allowed to keep the living room door shut so there were lots of stressful cat hunts on the first day.

When the kitchen floor was being ripped up they found the tiles had asbestos in them which meant the other rooms probably had them too so they stopped & left it as it was and we were told someone would be back to remove them ‘later’ which ended up being 2 days later!

On the second day the electricians turned up to put in new everything so as they had to drill through the walls I took Izzy to Basildon to see her Uncle for a few hours which was a nice break from the noisy dusty flat and Izzy really enjoyed her day out going on the bus, lunch at a cafe, feeding the ducks & playing in the park before being picked up by our friend & taken home (Izzy loves the car!). When we got home though I was a little surprised at the wonky plug sockets & switches throughout the kitchen although I do like the new lay out and placements.

Annoyingly we now have a fluorescent light in our kitchen which gives me serious migraines as it is so bright! They managed to place it well off centre & left one of our previous light fittings in place though so it’s rather odd having a normal light at the darkest end of the kitchen and the brightest nearer the window. I don’t understand why they have done it that way at all but apparently that is how it will be left.

On Friday the bath & toilet were replaced & I’m kind of regretting not agreeing to an adapted bath as I used the new one last night and really struggled to get out although I did forget to use a step. I think we may have to get a handle fixed to the wall to help me keep my balance when I get out as I’ve been having accidents climbing out of the bath over the last few months anyway.

Friday morning whilst the bath was being done I popped out to get some lunch with Izzy & came back to the kitchen door sealed up and the asbestos removal guy lifting the tiles.

He had done all 3 rooms by the time Eva got home from school at least but we are a little concerned about the amount of dust left behind especially in the kitchen but its good to know the tiles are now gone.

The weekend was a welcome break from workmen in and out but it was still stressful doing everything out of bags & boxes and still having the fridge freezer in our living room.

By monday morning I couldn’t wait for the work to continue and be able to slowly use the rooms again! The plasterer came in and did all 3 rooms on Monday and the tiling in the bathroom was started on the Tuesday with the bath & toilet pipework being boxed in again.

I was really happy to find out the kitchen units were being put in Wednesday. We had a few issues where the surveyor hadn’t listened & measured our fridge freezer properly after being told several times its larger than average! The poor guy fitting the units had to pull one back out and alter it and order in a smaller wall unit which will take 2-3 weeks to arrive so although thing’s are progressing rather quickly we will be missing a unit for a few weeks.. not too much of a problem for us though as we have gained a good few extra cupboards & drawers!

I was quite unsure of the choice’s I had made for the worktops & units until I saw it all in place & now I can’t wait to see the end result! I hated the 80’s style council kitchen look we had and although it is still a council property being done by contractor’s I do think it looks a lot better already!

We seem to be about halfway through already although we are only on day 6! The kitchen is being tiled today and and after that it is pretty much just sorting niggly bits, laying the new floor & decorating left to do. I’ll do a follow up post once all the work is complete and hopefully find the time (and space!) to work on the blog again properly soon (I know.. It’s been one thing after another & I miss writing and bothering other bloggers 😉 haha!)

An Exhausting Week

Family / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

It’s really been an exhausting week as I was due my ESA assessment on Tuesday afternoon and had spent the past week or so beforehand feeling gutted that I was going to miss out on the little time we had to spend with Eva on her birthday around schopl but on Monday I got a call asking me to move my appointment time from 2.45pm to 10am. Part of me was so glad it meant I could surprise Eva and collect her from school, hand out sweets to her classmates & take her to spend her birthday money in town but the change of times also threw me and made me panic so I spent most of Monday night waking and was up by 5.30am panicking and feeling sick & nervous.

On the plus side I had plenty of time to get Eva’s cards, badge & balloon ready before she woke up & was the first one to wish her a happy birthday!

I managed to keep calm until the Mr took Eva to school & then I begun panicking more about the assessment and started feeling really sick.

I hate talking to strangers but the woman that did my assessment wasn’t too hard to talk to at least but every pause made me even more nervous and several times I felt so hot and dizzy I thought I might pass out. I had a friend in with me but I spent most of the time staring out the window.

I dont really remember exactly what was said now as I was mainly trying to focus on breathing and answering each question without stumbling over my words but I remember going through my daily routine which was quite depressing to hear out loud.

We moved on to my depression and anxiety when my previous self harming came up which I stupidly didn’t expect and it threw me especially as I had to explain it fully aswell as my failed overdose at 18. By this point I suddenly realised I was running my thumb nail across my left palm hard enough to leave my hand bright red underneath the desk.

I dont remember much that was said again after that but I remember doing the physical tests before being told to expect to hear something within 2 weeks and leaving. I couldn’t wait to get out and panicked as I felt so hot & sick after doing the physical and was shaking by the time I got out into the fresh air.

I thought I’d feel relieved afterwards but instead I felt even worse. Talking about my past, how much I’m struggling mentally and physically every day, explaining my boring depressive life messed with my head a bit. Its been a few days now & I feel a little better at least but I am still worried about the outcome and what could happen next.

My anxiety in general has been through the roof lately and I’ve been struggling to focus on anything for the past few weeks where we have had so much go on and I just can not shut my head up long enough to do anything so I’m hoping now things are calming down again and we have less appointments to deal with for a few weeks I can get back on track and relax a bit more.

Starting next wednesday we have workers in and out doing our kitchen, toilet & bathroom which is making me panic a bit but I am hoping that as I’m pretty much stuck indoors with little to do whilst they do the work I will have a bit of extra time to focus on the blog & crochet and hopefully stress a little less!

Hellman’s American Smokey Barbecue Sauce

Food / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

This week we recieved a bottle of Hellman’s American Smokey Barbecue sauce to try from Bzzagent!

We love Barbecue sauces so couldn’t wait to give it a go, the girl’s decided they had to try it first with their dinner & gave it a thumbs up instantly with both girls demolishing all of their dinner and Izzy attempting to lick all the sauce off her plate haha!

I gave it a quick taste when the girls had dinner and was surprised there wasn’t a really strong tangy after taste. I find a lot of barbecue sauces I have to have small amounts of due to being quite tangy so it made a lovely change having such a lovely smooth flavour. We ended up making new york style chips (bacon, cheese & bbq sauce) for our own dinner and it was lovely.

I can definitely see us buying more of this sauce in the future!

A little catch up

Family / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I’ve had to neglect the blog amongst other things over the last week or so & thought I’d give you a little catch up. Eva came down with tonsillitis & a viral rash. She is very rarely ill but when she is it can be hard work as she get’s very emotional and scared and to top it Izzy has been poorly too so I’ve literally fallen behind on everything!

Luckily they both seem to be a fair bit better today although Eva still has an upset tummy but I am at least getting more done now and a bit of free time.

A fair amount has gone on whilst I’ve been away including Eva’s neurologist appointment about her headaches Thursday just gone. She has been referred for an MRI scan on her brain but the Dr thinks it will come back ok.. I hope so! I’m now just waiting on a date.

Annoyingly my ESA assessment was cancelled and rescheduled for Eva’s birthday (10th May) in the afternoon meaning I’ll maybe see her for an hour across the day as she is also at school. I’m really gutted but we have planned to make the most of the good weather we are supposed to have this Sunday with a nice picnic at one of our local park’s and we’ve invited a few people. We also decided to let her have her presents & cake Sunday too so she has a chance to play with them as Tuesday will be a rush with school & me off to my assessment. We will still give her card’s a badge & some sweets to hand out at school on her actual birthday too which she is happy with as she says gets two birthdays!

I had some good news in the week from the council, giving us a date (18th May) for our new kitchen, toilet & bathroom! I can’t wait to finally have enough kitchen cupboards for all our pots & pan’s and have everything fit in nicely at last

I received an awesome parcel from The Insiders too! I’m taking part in their Calmurid Pro Campaign and received an entire bottle for myself to test as well as a ton of samples attached to a £3 voucher to give out too! (Feel free to get in touch if you’d like one!)

How’s your week been? Have you had any good/bad/interesting news lately?

Purple Relentless for Relentlessly Purple

Rambles / 8 years ago / RelentlesslyPurple

I am ecstatic right now..My 2 all time favourite things have at last merged into one!! Purple Relentless!

The Mr went shopping yesterday and came across the new Passion Punch Relentless and sent me this picture..

Yes you are seeing correctly…Purple Relentless! IKR amazing!! I wont lie I did get a little over excited seeing this picture and may have done a little happy wiggle haha.

Not only is it purple BUT it tastes amazing! The flavour – Passion Punch, is absolutely divine & most definitely going to be my go to drink for summer with it’s fruity flavour! I cant wait to try it with some Rum or Pimm’s!

I tried pouring a little out to see the colour of the drink itself and although it is more a pinky colour I can see it turning a lovely shade of purple when mixed with Pimm’s 😉

It’s a little sad I know but I’ve been hoping for a purple can of Relentless for years now as Relentless has been my favorite drink since my college days and well.. Im obsessed with purple.. If you couldnt tell!

It seem’s a new flavour in an amazing purple isn’t the only change to Relentless, the brown origin can’s are now black. The design has changed a lot too and it’s a lot simpler now.. I love the colour change but I do prefer the detail in the old design but overall I’m more impressed that there is finally a can of Purple Relentless for Relentlessly Purple haha! 😉

How awesome is that!? If you could have your drink of choice in the colour & flavour of your choice what would it be?

Relentlessly Purple