August plans for the blog

Hey!
As you most likely know, I am going on vacation on the 22nd of August (to be honest, we are leaving between the night of the 21st of August and early morning of the 22nd).
Today is the last day of July, and the month went by quite quickly. Sometimes, it feels like just last week when I was still in hospital... yet it's over a month since I was discharged now!

Anyway, my plans for August are;-
1-17 August;I am going to make the most out of it as this is the last of my Summer holidays at home. I can't take everything with me on vacation, so I am going to make the most out of London summers as there won't be another one for 12 months! Perhaps do a bit of preparing as well such as shopping, take advantage of the shops and buy myself little fun things for school,things to keep me busy, things for vacation etc. Autumn is good for shopping too, but Summer is great since it's so warm and I can enjoy a smoothie outside a café with some ice cream- you can't really do that in Autumn or Spring, can you? O_O Spring isn't exactly smoothie season yet... and don't get me started on Winter shopping. My face feels like it's about to freeze off, but if I'm wrapped snugly in 5,000 layers I'm *more or less* just fine.

18-21 August; Dedicate those three days to getting ready for vacation. There will be chaos, and time is going to be tight. Pack my suitcase with ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING I WILL EVER NEED, pack my travel bag with things I'm going to need in the car- so; snacks such as fruit( in containers of course, I can't stand brown mushy bananas or squishy pears), and things such as biscuits, pastries, you know- whatever I am going to find in the cupboards and fridge at the time. Oh and of course, if I'm going to need it I'm going to pack myself a portion of breakfast cereal. Also, I'm going to need some water, but no more than a litre, random essentials such as hand sanitizer, and of course entertainment- books, technology, magazines, notepads and maybe little toys. I won't pack TOO much, since I'm going to buy extras such as more food and magazines on the ferry and petrol stations.I'm also going to need to clear out my Kindle to install good apps and maybe buy some books, install just a few apps on my phone and I am going to have a few lists ready and a schedule for the day we leave. I'm not sure when our ferry is but I think it's going to be between 2 and 6am, so I'm going to have a very early night on the 21st of August which means every second is going to be precious. If it turns out I have some free time, I'm going to post here, and make the most out of the Summer in London.

I'm going to do a few 'tip posts', and other things like that. I know some of you go back to school in August, but I decided I'm going to save school posts for when I'm back. It makes more sense, since all students reading this blog would have most likely started by then (around 10-11 September)

So, the posts over the month of August are going to consist of;
Prior to 22 August:
*Summer-related posts- I'm thinking of doing a post on coconuts, something about summer fruits&treats, some recipes, fun activities, something on my garden, and perhaps a few tips such as staying safe in the sun and all that. Just all sorts of Summer posts are coming soon, so get ready!
*Experiences- when it's an exciting day and worth sharing my experiences, I will dedicate a whole post to that.
*Vacation- so, posts on things like what's in my suitcase, how to pack your travel bag well, etc. This will come closer to the 22nd of August, so don't expect a post titled 'My suitcase' on the 7th of August.

22nd August and after-
*My vacation! I am going to try my best to post daily, I'm sorry if I won't be able to :((
However, I am going to squeeze in as much of my experience as possible, including the things I am going to do daily.

Have a wonderful last day of July,and see you all in August!
-Queen Pickle

P.s; Did you know a new rubber band tutorial is coming soon? Check back on the blog often, as a guide to making a mini watermelon slice is coming! Bonus- the design is my original design ;)

P.p.s; I have a blood test tomorrow at noon *o*

The beach

Hello!
On Sunday, I finally visited the beach. I have a feeling we won't visit the beach again this summer because the 22nd is coming closer (check out the new countdown!) and we are going to get more busy, especially since we still need to do some shopping and our ferry isn't booked yet. Anyway, it was a fun day- except from waking up, of course.
We all woke up early in the morning, it was 7-8ish. I felt rather tired, but had some breakfast and quickly did a tiny bit of last-minute packing (you know, unplugging devices and packing food).
The journey was a bit boring to be honest, I looked out the window and got myself some fruit salad. We stopped by a car boot sale, where my sister got fries, my dad got a hot dog and I was just eyeing that food like O_O'
However, I saw a  loom kit for £13! I bought it, since it is rather good and for quite a reasonable price. It was a little cheaper than its eBay counterparts I was looking at the day before, which ranged from £14-17.
The loom kit isn't from the 'Rainbow Loom' company since I wasn't able to find that, but it's called 'Colourful Rubber Band DIY Luxury Kit Set'. It contains;

• 6,000 bands in a wide range of colours, including a few double-coloured bands
• S-clips (I'm giving up on finding c-clips; I suppose s-clips are better)
• A hook tool (I have another one but I think I need a stronger hook- the one that came with the kit is plastic and I think I was being a bit harsh on it lately)
• Mini Loom, came with the hook
• A loom board- very good and even though it differs a little bit from the Rainbow Loom, it's still very good.
• 6 charms though I'm not sure how to use them just yet.

Overall, the kit itself is very good. It's my fault some of the bands broke when I was making a panda- it was my first attempt of a charm and wasn't a beginner charm. Because it was my first ever charm, I looped a lot of the wrong bands which caused them to snap right off. They didn't fly off the loom though! Plus, I never used a loom before, so it's all my fault.
The kit I got had a broken peg on the loom- this has not affected me yet but I am going to use a very strong glue to glue it back on- it should stay.

Anyway, we continued our journey and finally got there! We laid out our stuff quite far from the sea, we had blankets and a beach shelter. We went to the toilet, and then we explored the beach. Here's some pretty fun stuff we did on the day!

• The sea- I couldn't swim in the sea because of my liver :( However, at least I still got to paddle a bit which was quite fun ^-^ The sea was warm, but the seaweed was problematic. Eww. My sister had a lot of fun splashing around everywhere, but eventually I got bored :P 
• Shells- I collected a lot of shells and it was quite fun looking for them! Some of them were very big, some were pretty, and some were common but if I add a splash of colour and decorate them a bit then they will look a bit better ^o^
• Grill- We got a portable barbecue en route and then had some sausages on the beach. We then had some of my mum' homemade apple cake, and the whole meal was quite nice. 
• Ice cream- Of course, we all ordered some ice cream to cool off a little. Yum ^-^

I also wrote random messages in the sand, because I'm awesome like that.
Overall, it was a great experience! I look forward to my next beach visit, even if that is next year.
By the way, yesterday I visited an art store called 'Hobby craft' and I LOVE THAT PLACE! :D
I managed to walk out with a sequin art set (in progress), a 3D wood puzzle of an owl (next in line after the sequin art), two packs of those plastic eyes, some stickers and pom poms. A few things that are pretty much essentials.
Bye bye and see you all tomorrow ^-^
-Queen Pickle

More photos from my adventures in Central London

My adventures in central London

Hello everyone!

On Saturday, my mum suggested we should take random buses to random places and see where we end up. Because I like buses, exploring and I really needed to go somewhere, I also saw the opportunity to perhaps buy myself a little something and eagerly accepted the idea. So, I decided I'm going to lead everyone off to Central London >:D When we got out of the house (my two sisters, me and my mum) we discussed which bus we should take first. We settled for route 77. When we waited for the 77, it suddenly came off the bus timetable! So, we waited for the next one and hopped on. The route was rather long, but it was fun seeing some new bus stops. It was fairly boring and quiet for quite a lot of the journey, but then it started to get more busy. We got off at Waterloo, the last stop. It was busy! It was so crowded, buses were EVERYWHERE, shops, traffic... wow. We searched for another bus stop and my sister decided we should take the number 4 next. We took it, and went a few stops. We went on so many buses, I don't even remember all of them XD I know we went on the 73,25,8,4,11... there might have been a few others I forgot about. Central London is huge! When we got off the 4, we saw that the 11 stops at the bus stop we were on! I always wanted to take the 11, so I was really glad. First, though, we went to McDonald's- my sister did, anyway. She got herself a happy meal and then we went to a Sainsbury's- I bought myself some pineapple chunks. We waited for the 11, and I ate my pineapple. When the 11 arrived, I just about managed to stop myself jumping into the bus. I eagerly pressed my Oyster card on the card reader and was quite amazed- the bus was so different from your average London bus! It wasn't like my school bus, it wasn't like an ordinary route such as the 270 or the 264.It was... INCREDIBLE. Anyone who takes this bus to work should consider themselves lucky x3 There are so many tourist attractions it passes through! After we went on the 11, our day consisted of looking around shops (I saw a loom kit that cost £20 in a shop where everything was quite expensive, so despite some pretty cool things there I didn't buy anything) and deciding which bus to go on next. It was so much fun! I only bought myself one thing- a Warrior Cats book (Into the Wild). I never read that series, so I will start it once I get through my school library books and two other books I bought earlier. I know I didn't buy much, so next time we do something like this I'm going to buy more things. After going on buses,looking around loads of shops and buying things,we were eventually quite tired, so we decided to come back home. I had no idea how, until I saw a 73 that went to Victoria. I quickly figured that if we could get to Victoria, we can catch the 44 back. So, I told my mum and hopped on the next 73 that we saw which went to Victoria. I checked on my phone and noticed there weren't too many bus stops left. We got off at Victoria, and waited 12 minutes for the 44. Eventually, it came and we sat down. The traffic was rather bad, but eventually we got out of Central London and the rest of the way was better. We then went home, and it was a great day! I'm hoping to do something like this again, as I really like central London. My mum says we might, so I'm looking forward to that. Vacation is drawing closer and closer, and I can say I'm busy enough! The time is going quite quickly now. I took quite a lot of photos- you can see some of them below. I'm going to updated the London Buses page after I finish this post, though I didn't manage to photograph EVERY BUS I SAW. However, I can do that next time, right? ^-^
Tomorrow, I'm going to post about my day yesterday, which was a LOT of fun too! I didn't take my phone though, so no photos :(( Maybe my dad can send me a few?
I will see XD

This is the 77, not the one we took though. I took this photo when I was waiting for the 77 to Waterloo.

A 270 from the bus stop we were waiting at.

The 264 bus!

Here's a 44, not the one we took. 

The 333 from the bus stop were waiting at.

More photos in my next post, which has some exclusive photos of the interior of the 11! XD

-Queen Pickle

Yet another amazing day

Hey!
So, I had another pretty fun day today.
I woke up a little bit late, it was almost 9am! I ate breakfast, and my mum had to go somewhere. I cleared out my bag in the meantime, and then when it was nearing 11am, my mum, sisters and I set off to do some shopping. We started by catching a bus, and then we went around a few shops. My mum continued her search for a dress, and I didn't buy anything though there were a few things that caught my eye. I still couldn't find any keyrings anywhere,or any cheap watches or anything. So, we wandered around, then took another three buses to do a little more shopping. I still didn't find anything, but I did enjoy looking around. It was full of restaurants over there!
Then, we took another bunch of buses, and did some more shopping.We went to McDonald's- I don't really like their food but my sister ordered a happy meal and my mum decided to eat a salad with chicken.Then, we went to the shops- my mum looked around for a dress, while I dashed off to the health food store. I was a bit frustrated with myself for not buying anything so far, and I was all like- WELL, COME ON, BUY YOURSELF SOMETHING BECAUSE THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE! YOU DON'T COME HERE EVERY DAY, WOMAN.
So, I got two Nākd bars- one apple crunch which I never tried before and then a Caffé Mocha, which I never tried before because I never saw it being sold elsewhere! I felt like I needed to buy myself a bit more, but then looked around the neighbouring health food store, walked out empty-handed, then proceeded to the WHSmith, most of my hopes kind of drained away by then. I didn't really find anything, but I didn't look so carefully, either. Most likely because I was worried I spent a bit too much time in the shop, so I checked on my mum who was still looking. My sister decided to come with me, as I returned to the health food store to buy some more. I got myself some of those energy-ball things, which were dates,raisins and sunflower seeds blended together into cute little balls, topped off with some coconut. I got my sister some sugar-free candies sweetened with xylitol, since she really liked those. She really likes the taste of them! Finally, I bought myself a banana and walnut muffin, then my mum called me and I had to rush off. So... I'm still looking for things, but I'm sure I will find them ^-^
We then finally came home, fairly exhausted, but I spent some time relaxing, and that's where I am, now- posting about my day. Tomorrow, I am going to the park, and I think I will post about that. Once I have some quieter days, I will post about some other fun Summer topics, so don't worry!
Have a gorgeous day everyone, and see you tomorrow for yet another post!
P.s- If the blog looks a little different- don't fret! I'm just experimenting with several themes :D
-Queen Pickle

Blog news and my amazing day today!

Hello!

Wow, it's the 23rd of July already. What I need to take in mind is that not all my readers live in, say, China, or Australia. Or whatever. To be honest with you, we are getting real close to the back-to-school season, with many Americans going back to school next month. This means I'm going to post about all sorts of fun Summer-related topics now, helping you make the most out of your Summer! I can't wait to get back to school for some reason, perhaps because I haven't been for so long O-O However, if you dread going back, relax- my Summer posts are still yet to come and we're still in July.

I hope this is somewhat exciting!

As I start to drift away from the addictive, plain internet life (thank goodness!) and more into real life, I am becoming more of an interesting person and that equals MORE ATTENTION FOR THIS BLOG! 

This means more posts, and those posts will be lively, fun and interesting!  So, blog news is that more posts are coming, and this blog will certainly receive more attention now. I am thinking of changing the layout a bit, and maybe the name...

There's also a new poll (at last!) 

Now, away from the blog news we go, and into...

My amazingly thrilling day- 23 July 2014

Hmm, day started out normally. Woke up at the usual time, which is good. I had a dream about going back to school, and you have no idea how relieved I was to know that the timetable which appeared in the dream was not real. Ate breakfast, took all medication... except my calcium and vitamin D supplement, because I ran out. Anyway, soon after, the children of my mum's friend came over for a while- and since I'm not in their age range I can't say much :P I just got on with my own business, and did a few things to stop me getting bored... a bit of sticking, some trimming, experimenting with sequin bracelets, experimenting with loom band charms... all sorts of RANDOM stuff. Then, they went to the playground, and my mum's friend came back so my mum and sister returned home. Then, my mum and I set off for another hospital appointment today, but we had to go to the bank first. No, no no. First, I went to a shop and bought myself a doughnut. Oh yum yum yum! THEN I went to a McDonald's toilet, to the bank, queue was annoying AND we caught the bus (when we arrived it said 1 minute- talk about good perfect timing!) So, bus ride was okay, except for some nasty insect wandering around. We got off to change buses, and since the bus was coming in 7 minutes, I went to the Sainsbury's which was right next to the bus stop to look around. However, the buggy space in the bus was full and my mum had a buggy, so we couldn't come on... I knew I was going to be late for the appointment O-o

The next bus that we could take was due in 5 minutes, and it was getting dangerously close to my appointment. So, we took the bus, and quickly went for the lift. My appointment was for 2pm, and by the time we checked in, it was around 2.23pm...

We waited in the waiting room for a long time, until a nurse came in to do my blood pressure. Okay. No problem. We waited a bit more, and then I was seen by a doctor to discuss general stuff about my treatment, you know. I was told I wasn't responding to the steroids properly, but this was common and nothing to worry about. They gave me a prescription of another medicine to help me respond to the steroids, so problem solved. My blood clotting is normal  (though this morning I had a rather scary nosebleed) so I'm going to have a biopsy... before I go on vacation (it's what I was told). It's going to be a liver biopsy,I was told I was going to have to stay in hospital overnight after the biopsy... and then I was told I was going to have another blood test. RIGHT NOW. I was caught off-guard, with no numbing cream. ;-;

So, I waited, frightened, until the phlebotomist came up and called my name. Hoping it was going to be something NOT blood-related, we walked into the room titled 'Phlebotomy'. Inside, I was screaming and making earthquakes in my little ideal mental world.

I was so scared, I started crying and that was noticeable by the time I started confirming my date of birth- I could barely say it normally 0_0

The nurse was really friendly though, and offered the spray. I explained that I usually had cream and didn't know how well the spray worked, and I was frightened of blood tests. I held my arm out, and everything was going so quickly O_O

The spray came on...

And then, I felt a sharp STING/PINCH/WHATEVER.

Dun dun dun!

THE NEEDLE WENT IN AND I FELT IT. TIME TO PANIC.

I was technically crying my head off, though I was quiet enough.  I didn't feel anything apart from that though, and thanked the nurse at least a million times after I went out of the room. :o

My mum was downstairs, dealing with my prescription. I got lost after trying to find the lift, but found my mum eventually and then we found the lift XD I needed the toilet, and when I went outside, my mum revealed the BEST THING EVER. TWO, TWO TWO! Not one, TWO! beautiful slices of my favourite Millionaire's shortbread. I was really glad, and then we spent AGES waiting for the prescription to come. AGES. I looked in the shop a bit, but didn't actually buy anything. Though I kind of wanted the samosa, the grape packet and I liked the muffin and cookie. Oh well, I  had enough already XD

Anyway, I guess that's the end of my day, since the rest was spent at home just relaxing and eating a dinner of spaghetti. I also had some jelly and some of my mum's cake. I'm saving the shortbread and doughnuts for a little later ^-^

So, that's it! Thanks so much for reading my blog, have a wonderful day and see you tomorrow ^-^

Endoscopy?!

Hey people of the world!
How is everyone today? I would imagine my fellow human beings are having a rather day-like day today, and today's post is going to be about my rather interesting day today! :D
I woke up just a little earlier than usual, perhaps around the time I usually used to wake up for school. I went over to my mum's friend's house because my mum did some work there, and then after around 2-3 hours we got out and got the bus to do some more back-to-school shopping.
It was generally rather small, just to kind of... finish off shopping for school. Kind of. We did most of it on Sunday, and we got a voucher so we decided to spend it. I got some HB pencils I needed, some highlighters to use when my current ones run out (my current ones are the ones I have been using a bit last academic year too,so they are due to run out any time soon) and also a pack of really good coloured pencils I wanted for a while. They were normally quite expensive, but there was a sale for back-to-school stuff and they were 30% off, so I just couldn't resist *o*
We did more shopping, walking around all sorts of random shops. Some were random shops my mum wanted to check out, since she still needs a dress to wear to the wedding, and others were shops I wanted to visit too. You know, a few random stores and stuff ^-^ I still need to find a shop to buy keyrings and charms from, because I think that they would be rather cool to have for next academic year. I also want to buy a few more loom bands, because they are quite a fun and interesting thing to do when I'm bored in the summer. I'm hoping to buy one of those things called 'Looms' at some point, because almost all tutorials require one and IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY!!!

Then, we took another bus as I had a hospital appointment today, too. We had quite a lot of time so I checked the Costa store, expecting my favourite Millionaire's Shortbread to be there. Guess what, though? IT WASN'T THERE! :(
I was HEARTBROKEN. Alright, not quite heartbroken, but I was definitely disappointed to some extent. I looked at the other store but didn't really find anything I wanted, so I went into the lift with my mum, got off and tried to find where we were meant to go. I'm going to be totally honest with you, we weren't the best when it came to navigation -^o^-
We waited in the waiting room, waited waited waited.
Waited some more.
...
...
...
Some nurse measured my height and weight, which I won't tell you >:D
Why? Well, it can *kinda* give away my age :T I don't want people judging me, either, but all I can tell you is that I'm at a healthy weight, no need to worry ^-^
We waited even more, and another nurse saw me to explain why on earth I had this appointment.
Okay, so sometimes, liver disease also comes with some sort of gut disease. Because of this correlation, they need to check if I have something wrong with my gut too, just to be sure. So, I'm going to have an endoscopy T^T I'm not sure when exactly just yet, but I was told they were also going to take samples from organs in my GI tract or something... I think so, yup. I'm a bit clueless about some points, really.
Oh yes, not everyone knows what an endoscopy is!
It's where a camera is inserted into your body (in my case, around my intestines) to see what's going on. I was told I will be put to sleep, and the procedure takes up to an hour. I will need to stay in hospital for a few hours until I feel comfortable,and I should be able to go home on the same day.

Then, I went to the hospital shops again (and returned with nothing!), and we then took the bus again a few stops to do some more shopping. I have never done shopping in that area, and I have to say there was quite a wide range. Didn't find anything at first, but then went to a Sainsbury's and I settled for a Danish Cinnamon Whirl (I was getting REALLY hungry!!), I also bought some bagels. Then, we took another bus,  but got off again after several stops because my mum wanted to buy herself a skirt she saw before we went to the appointment. So, we did, then checked when our bus was going to come.
You know what the timetable said?
11 MINUTES
My mum decided we were better off walking, so we walked the distance. I was really tired by then, but once we got home, I stuffed my face with grapes and had some of my mum's homemade cake, waited (rather impatiently!) for some homemade spaghetti (I LOVE MY MUM'S SPAGHETTI), shoved it in my mouth... yum yum yum.... it was about 8pm by the time that was done and I noticed I still haven't posted on here.
So, I took a chocolate croissant (honestly, it was only because if I didn't eat it today, it would be spoiled by tomorrow and nobody wants to waste croissants), sat down in front of the computer, munched on my croissant and started to deal with my extremely interesting blogs.
I have to admit, I suppose I can relax Operation-banish-summer-boredom for now because it almost seems like there are TOO MANY things now, and I'm forgetting some of them actually.
So the plan is, just carry on with life and if you happen to run out of activities, just get yourself out of the house and buy some big fat books from a charity shop (but books you will actually read!) or something. Or, just go shopping- the shopping KILLS time and so does the fancy new stuff you get. The more fancy new stuff you get, the better! :D
I'm always on the lookout for loom bands, a  (good!) loom,charms,keyrings,books and other fancy schnazz that will keep me occupied, and perhaps liven up the upcoming academic year. I'm thinking of getting a plastic wallet, too.

Have a nice Summer everyone, and see you in tomorrow's post!
It might be a fun craft post, or a post about my extremely thrilling day tomorrow.
I love all my pickles! :D

How to make a rubber band bracelet

Hello!
Sorry for such an absence, I started a few posts and just left them there. Strange, previously, Summer made me spend MORE time on the computer, but this time, it seems like I'm spending less...
Recently, I have been introduced to those things called 'Loom Bands' and trust me, people are CRAZY about them. For those that don't know, they are basically little rubber bands that you can easily make bracelets and things like that from. So, I decided to yesterday buy myself a bag of them and try them out.
You can make all sorts of bracelets, here's mine ^-^

They are quite fun to make, so today I will teach you the method I most commonly use for making them!

There are two main types of simple bracelet you can make- simple chain and fishtail. There are other types too, but today I'm just going over the basics.

Alright, so all you will need for this is some loom bands,your fingers, somewhere to sit and some time. 

Oh, and don't forget a clip! (I use an s-clip)

All of those come with the bags of loom bands you can buy, so it's really easy ^.^

So, let's start! :D

1. Get your first band, and make a figure of 8 with it on your index and middle fingers; like this!
   
2. Now, get your second band and put it over your first band, but there's no need to make a figure of 8 now! 
   
3. Put your first band over the second band, just like this:
   
4. Put another band over it, you don't need to make any more figure-of-8s! 
   
5. Repeat steps 3-4, and you will notice a chain going down your fingers. Carry on until it is your desired length! 
   
6. To finish a bracelet, put your last band over the one on top, then grab your clip and attach it to the band on the index finger.
   
7. Grab the clip and take that band off, ensure the clip is still on the band. Using the same end of the clip, attach it to the band on your middle finger now. Take your band off the finger if that helps!
   
8. Now, use the other end of your clip and attach it to your first band.
   

Congrats! Here is my tiny rushed loom-band chain :D

For fishtail, it's basically the same thing but you have three rubber bands on your fingers instead of two. So, you put three bands on, put the bottom one over, put another band on, put the bottom one over etc.

Here's the difference between fishtail and simple chain!

Simple chain

Fishtail

Have you ever made a rubber band bracelet? You're not just limited to bracelets- you can make necklaces, rings, hair elastics... and once you get the hang of it, you can make other things such as hairbands and more complex things!

Have a nice day, and bye bye!

-Queen Pickle

Vacation

Hey there!
I have decided to finish off 5-a-day week 2014 today, meaning you can now expect normal posting today (at last!)
I am going to dedicate today's post to a bit of news...
I AM GOING ON VACATION!
Yay!
What I know is that we aim to leave on the 22nd of August, which does sound like ages away but time really does fly.
The reason I'm going is because I'm attending a wedding, and I'm going to the country I came from :D
I haven't been there since about 2010-ish.
Anyway, we're going by car (and also ferry because we need to cross the sea) and it will be a rather long journey, but I'm excited nevertheless.
I hope I will be able to post, but the time until the vacation already is going very quickly meaning that planning has to start now- it's good to have everything ready in advance.
Here is my check-list of things I need to do before we go;

• Complete back-to-school shopping for September.
• Pack your suitcase well.
• Have your travel bag ready (for the car and ferry)
• Do research on ferry companies.
• Be prepared for school for September.
• Clear out Kindle Fire and download good apps.
• Download some good apps on my phone
• Goal: go to the beach at least once!

I will most likely be back in time for around the 2nd week back to school,but I'm not 100% certain of my return date.
This means I need to get all school business sorted too, and I may have missed out some things I need to do on the check-list.
As I progress through the check-list, I will let you know how I'm doing and perhaps share a tip or two.
My posts ought to be quite interesting leading up to when I leave, because posting daily kills time AND  I will have a lot to post about. Not only will I post about all sorts of awesome Summer topics, but also things related to my check-list. I hope to go to the beach at least once, so that's something to look forward to, perhaps.

My steroid dose is down to 30mg now (remember I started with 60mg) and I will be able to return to school once it is down to 20mg. I finish school next Friday anyway, but if everything continues at the rate it is now then I might be able to return for the last day only- I have textbooks, a library book and a locker to clean out anyway so it would be quite useful if I could :P

My PE bag is still in my locker, and I think I'm switching form rooms next year too.

Alright, bye bye!

5-A-DAY WEEK 2014 DAY 6

Hey!
Day 6 already,PHEW.
Almost over, so let's get today's suggestions over and done with ^-^
Care to try any? :)

BREAKFAST
Scrambled egg- but make it with some vegetable! It enhances the taste and has health benefits- win-win!
Chop up some tomato or onion (onions are very aromatic!), toss it in and enjoy!

You can add any vegetable you desire.

MORNING SNACK
Freeze/chill your favourite fruit- VERY refreshing. Serve in any way you like! E.g dice watermelon, toss in a bag and chill. Quick and easy!

LUNCH
Have you ever tried a tuna and vegetable salad? Rather healthy, delicious and gets some vegetables in there. A good recipe can be found here!

AFTERNOON SNACK
Make your own ketchup, if you don't know how- try here! Or, if you can't, use some tomato sauce/paste with a LOT of tomatoes and use it as a dip for crackers. Spread some cheese on the crackers if you like and add some vegetables, and you have a vegetable filled snack! You can use any other vegetable sauce, too.

DINNER
Omelette infused with some vegetables or fruits e.g avocado- yum yum! Makes omelette much less boring! Serve with another vegetable if you wish, too, such as broccoli.

Apologies, I have a headache ^-^

5-A-DAY WEEK 2014 DAY 5

Hey!
Day 5! Wow! There is still a bit to go, and I apologise for another rushed post today :(
You will forgive me, I hope, once you see those cool ideas!

BREAKFAST
Banana pancakes- yummy yummy pancakes with added banana! There are many variations, the simplest one requires only two ingredients and can be found here . Other recipes can be found here and here, or by making a simple Google search ^-^

MORNING SNACK
This is such a cute company that makes fruit snacks! They are mainly aimed at younger children but I admire the company nonetheless, it's a brand I can trust! Just grab one of their snacks on the go, and try them out! Yum! ^-^

LUNCH
A sandwich with a fruit and veggie twist! Instead of butter, use avocado flesh. Find out how by clicking here or doing some Google research! Then pile on your favourite toppings and slip in a tomato slice or two ;)

AFTERNOON SNACK
Place greek/plain yogurt in a blender and toss in some of your favourite fruits (in small pieces). Add things like sugar, extracts,colours and so forth if you wish, blend, and freeze for about 15 minutes to an hour. You can enjoy a fruity treat very much like ice cream!

DINNER
If you don't usually eat salads with your dinner, now is your opportunity,and if you do eat salads, try a new one! That's your mission- simple,huh? ^-^

Have a wonderful weekend, and see you all tomorrow!

5-a-day week 2014 DAY 4

Hey!
How's your week going? We are on day 4 already!I will use yesterday's format for today, and this again meets your 5-a-day aim for fruit and vegetables. ^-^
Enjoy!

BREAKFAST
A handful of your favourite fruit and/or veggies, and optional yogurt/milk/water/flavours/colours/sweeteners all blended into a handy, convenient smoothie! Yum!

MORNING SNACK
Have you ever heard of the Nākd range? If not, click here.  I do not think it's available in America, so for all my American readers, the closest company I have found is the Larabar company. Of course, you can try making your own bars any time ^-^

LUNCH
Pasta mixed with fruits and vegetables- good ones include avocado, carrot, cucumber and little broccoli pieces.

AFTERNOON SNACK
Diced avocado sprinkled with salt in a convenient bag

DINNER
Omelette made with some sort of vegetable-yum!
This works for some fruits like tomatoes and avocados ^06

DESSERT
A slice of apple crumble! Yum! Or any method of getting some fruits into your dessert, really :)

How is your week going? What cool ways do you know of slipping fruits into your dishes?

5-a-day week 2014 day 3

Hey!
Sorry for the late post, and today's post will be rather quick, but here's today's fruity and vegetably menu that meets your 5-a-day! ^0^

BREAKFAST
Toast with a generous layer of fruit jam
And
Water with a dash of lemon juice

MORNING SNACK
Dried apricots blended together and shaped into cute little balls.

LUNCH
Broccoli covered in a vegetable sauce
And
Fresh fruit juice

AFTERNOON SNACK
Diced carrot in a ziplock bag

DINNER
Smoked salmon drizzled with vegetable source and served with a sliced cucmber

DESSERT
A delicious mix of grapes, raspberries and strawberries served with cream and some honey/sugar/sweetener.

Deep apologies for the rather shabby post, how's your week going? Have you been making an effort with your fruit and vegetables?

5-A-DAY WEEK 2014 DAY 2

Hey!
Remember, you do NOT have to follow those ideas precisely. After all, they are just suggestions!

BREAKFAST
Help yourself to your favourite breakfast cereal and give it a fruity twist!

• Slice up strawberries, berries or any fruit and toss them in for interesting flavour and texture. Cornflakes? Now, every spoonful won't be the same- you will have grapes or blueberries to look forward to!

If you can't manage that, try eating some fruit or vegetables as a side. For example, if you normally just eat cereal for breakfast, how about you eat a banana afterwards? Fruit juice isn't too bad, it's rather convenient so give it a shot ^-^

MORNING SNACK
Hunger- it's coming for you. Fight it off with this awesome fruity snack!

Fruit and nut snack balls
You will need;

• Your favourite fruits,nuts and perhaps some oats. Ensure they are peeled and in small pieces.
• A blender or food processor.

All you need to do is prepare your fruit and nuts, blend them and mould them into balls! Then, pack them into little bags and enjoy! Hopefully, you won't be hungry until lunch.

LUNCH
Yes, it's vegetable time. All you really need to do is prepare your favourite combination of vegetables,mix them together and lay them out attractively. Serve with dressing if you must, and enjoy! Good combinations include cherry tomatoes and lettuce-an easy classic. If you need a quick dressing, try olive oil or a store-bought dressing you like. Enjoy! :)

AFTERNOON SNACK
Hunger is coming back, so fight it right off with this delicious snack idea.

Take your favourite fruit/s and/or vegetable/s and if they are not soft already, boil them in water until they soften. Then, toss them all into a blender or food processor until they are at your desired texture. Scoop it up into individual muffin cases,cups etc. Eat with a spoon and enjoy!
Make sure your combination tastes good together, and don't forget you can add things to the mix such as cocoa powder :)

DINNER
This is one of my favourite dinner ideas during the summer, and it's YUMMY.
Its a type of rice, I'm not sure which kind it is exactly though. It is served with strawberries with cream, and I love it! It's a great way of putting fruit into your dinner.

How are your 5-a-day aims going? Good? I hope so ^-^

5-A-DAY WEEK 2014 DAY 1

Hey!
So, today is Monday,7 July, meaning only one thing- 5-a-day week starts today! For now, the layout will be all of the day's meals planned out in one post during the day, I hope it works well enough ^-^
Of course, those are all just suggestions- I never said you have to follow the plan precisely!
Without further ado,here is my plan for today.

Breakfast
Try some oatmeal/porridge- yes, it is boring, I know. On its own,anyway. Did you know, that by sneaking in some fruit, you are improving the taste and also getting one of your 5-a-day aim? Here are some creative ways of slipping fruit into your oatmeal/porridge;-

• Mix it in with some fruit juice- if you are picky go for 100% fruit juice, it's a rather nice way of boosting the amount of fruit in your breakfast. However, you might need to add a bit more other fruit to your breakfast too ^-^ The juice makes the porridge sweeter and gives it an interesting flavour- I always had my porridge with strawberry or raspberry juice.
• Mix it with some of your favourite fruit- grab your favourite combination of fruit, slice some of them up with needed, mix them together and scatter them on your porridge to give it a rather interesting texture and flavour. Berries are very good for this if you are in a hurry, just toss some raspberries and blueberries on top and you're good to go. However, you can add banana, sliced apple, and even sprinkle a spice like cinnamon or ginger!
• Oatmeal dip- you might want to flavour your oatmeal a bit if you are doing this, but them main idea is to slice up some fruits, put them in a bowl and dip them in the porridge as you eat them. It can work quite well,especially if you have a funky apple flavoured porridge ^-^

What cool ways do you have of putting fruit into your oatmeal? If you cannot put fruit in your oatmeal, try at least for a glass of refreshing fruit juice or perhaps a whole fruit on its own, such as a banana as you are heading out of the door.

Morning Snack
A simple solution to keep you going until lunch- all you have to do is reach out and grab a delicious piece of fruit. Fruit is rather good at giving you energy and fighting your hunger, so eat some fruit! It can be a simple thing like a banana, orange or apple. Or, if you prefer smaller fruit, how about a few grapes or berries in a bag or box?  If you like to make your own, perhaps toss some of the fruit in a bag before you dash out of the door and you're good to go.

Lunch
Finally, lunch! Eat whatever you want for lunch, be it a bagel or a piece of toast. If possible, why not try incorporating some fruit into it? For example, spread some jam on your toast. That's a rather good way! However, try to get fruit into your lunch in any way- here are some ideas.

• Jam- rather fruity ^-^
• Sneak some fruit into your yogurt!
• Chop it up and eat it as a side.
• Eat it whole!
• Drink some juice!

Or, dont forget the vegetables! Putting more cucumber in your sandwich is a rather good step to take,so try to get some fruit or vegetables in there any way you can!


Afternoon snack 
The energy from lunch is wearing off, and you don't like it. So, time for a snack! Here are some ideas you could try, they are rather fast ^-^
FRUIT

1. Try a trail mix- your favourite dried fruits plus some nuts and it's very quick, convenient and stops hunger. For example, I like dried apricots and hazelnuts, so those coming together make a rather nice afternoon snack. Yum!
2. Of course, here's the classic- just enjoy fruit on its own! Bananas, apples and oranges are probably the easiest- just grab, peel and munch. 
3. If you have time, toast some bread, spread it with your favourite nut butter and add some banana slices on top. Delicious!
4. Yet again, if you have time, get some greek yogurt and toss in some of your favourite fruit. It's fast and quite yummy!

VEGETABLES

1. Who says you can't peel and eat some cucumber on your own? And who on earth dares suggest you cannot eat some peas or kale alone? Go ahead and eat your favourite vegetable alone!
2. Try corn on the cob, if you have time! It's a rather nice way of getting your vegetables.
3. Whip up a quick salad! If you don't have the time, many stores sell small salads in pots, so give those a try ^0^
4. Sneak it in a sandwich! You will feel grateful you added those tomatoes or cucumbers into your cheddar sandwich, you will.

DINNER
Finally, your opportunity! To catch up on any missed fruits or vegetables, perhaps.
Eat what you want, but here are some ways of increasing your fruits/vegetables;

• Add some salads or vegetables to the rest of your meal
• Drink fruit juice
• Incorporate fruit into dessert, i.e fruit salad
• Eat any missed servings of fruit or vegetables as you like them!

I hope you enjoyed this post and that it was good enough, good luck getting your 5-a-day! ^0^

Stay hydrated this summer!

Hey!
Summer is a time when it is easier than ever to get dehydrated- the weather's right for vigorous physical activity and because of the heat, you lose more water by sweating. Therefore, I feel the need to share some tips so you do not become dehydrated this summer, which can really be problematic!
Dehydration can make you tired,sluggish and confused, so here are my top tips for avoiding that trap. Dehydration of doom.

• ALWAYS carry a bottle of water with you to top up your water intake. Every time I go out for a short walk or shopping trip, I take a 33cl bottle of water with me. Many popular water brands sell bottles in small 33cl versions, medium 50cl versions, bigger 75cl versions, 1l versions and so forth... you need to know what you will need! If you are going to the beach, take more than one bottle of water with you.
• DRINK FIRST THING  when you wake up, reach for a bottle of water and take a few sips. Since it has most likely been a while since you last had something to drink, make sure you drink some water to top your water supply up. It doesn't have to be an entire bottle- it can just be a few sips.
• MAKE SURE  there is at least one water bottle at your bedside in case you need to drink at night. Also, it is much easier to drink as soon as you wake up that way.
• DRINK WITH EVERY MEAL as a general rule, I drink at least 1 glass of fluid with every meal. The most obvious and healthiest choice is water, but don't forget you can also drink fruit juice, milk and flavoured water. Drinking with every meal keeps you very well hydrated!
• EAT TO HYDRATE it's not just fluids, some foods can be very high in water content, too! When you are feeling hungry, perhaps consider incorporating a hydrating food. Foods such as watermelon and cucumber are high in water, but so are blueberries, strawberries, raspberries,peaches,pineapples,pears,carrots,broccoli,grapes,celery and many more! So, next time you eat a bag of crisps as a snack, try pairing it with a slice of watermelon and you're ready to go. You might find it helpful to have a handy box of blueberries of grapes too the next time you go out this summer!

BUT WATER IS BORING. 
Yes, water can get boring indeed. However, there is also milk and fruit juice, and you can flavour your water too! Try spicing up your water, and I will give you some ideas soon this summer.

Remember, 5-a-day week 2014 starts on Monday!

Commenting just got easier!

Hey!
First of all, to all Americans- Happy 4th of July! How are you celebrating, if you do? It must be rather exciting for you ^-^

Credit to Google Images

In an effort to make commenting much easier, I have made some changes so it is more efficient to share your views on my posts. The two changes are:-

• Anyone can comment! Now, you do not need to have a blogger,google etc. account to comment- you can now comment without signing in! This is quite a good change since now you don't have to sign in, and those not allowed accounts can comment. You can also protect your identity if you need to!
• No more word verification! Nobody likes word verification, and it can get rather annoying. Now you can comment without having to go through the word verification process- good, right?

Of course, if there is lots of spam or undesirable comments, I will need to take appropriate action -sigh-... temporarily, I assume.

Bye bye!

-Queen Pickle

Smoking in public :(

Hello!
Today's post is basically going to be a rant- prepare yourself for this.
Oh yes, I hate smoking in public. I hate it so much. It's SELFISH,IGNORANT AND JUST IMPOLITE.

Credit to Google Images.

Now, let me tell you why I hate smoking in public that much. Enough to make an entire post about it. 

If it wasn't for 5-a-day week next week, I would have been posting about my love of fruit, really.

Why I hate smoking in public places

It's bad for the environment- Oh yes. It is. You see, when a smoker lights up that sinister combination of tobacco and paper, the fumes emitted are the real hazard. Not only to humans, but  to the environment. Do you really want to leave the earth as a horrible,polluted place to future generations? If yes, quit reading my blog- I beg you. Now, you may be wondering HOW exactly  smoking is bad for the environment. The fumes emitted by the cigarette escape into the air, and there's nothing good in that smoke. Nope, definitely not. If smoking wasn't bad for you, cigarette packets would have no warning labels on them. It's about time I show you a picture of what is IN cigarette smoke... 

Scientists have identified a LONG list of thousands of chemicals found in cigarette smoke. Amongst those, there are over 70 carcinogens (cancer-causing chemicals)

Credit to Google Images

If you would like to learn more about chemicals found in cigarette smoke, click here,here,here,here and here. Please note that ALL LINKS in this post are not owned by me and credit goes to the original creators respectively. Now, back to the point...

A lot of those chemicals can potentially damage the environment. The environment is not only damaged by the smoke- think of how economically unfriendly it is to manufacture so many cigarettes. The government puts warning labels on, sure, but they cannot stop the production of cigarettes. Why? Cigarette companies- they make money out of this. If they can no longer produce cigarettes, what happens?THEY GO BANKRUPT. Just like that.

The governments of the world may have the POWER to stop it, but if they do, they may just as well be spammed with all sorts of complaints, rants and petitions.

Since I am getting off-topic, let's just get to how cigarettes damage our environment. Approximately 600 million trees are cut down annually to provide trees to dry tobacco! (Source)Trees play a HUGE role in our environment, which covers things such as helping reduce global warming, providing us with oxygen and resources. Plus, trees are important to maintain many forms of life. Wait, there's more. What do you do with a cigarette once you finish with it? Yes, you discard it. How many times did you see a pavement full of cigarette butts? There are plenty of bins to discard them, but no- people still do not dispose of them properly. Personally, I believe action could be taken. There are already fines in my area for dropping cigarette butts- but people still ignore it. Disposing of cigarette butts properly should be strongly encouraged and it should be much easier to spot offenders. This is important, because dropped cigarette butts account for a lot of damage. Who would know that such small pieces of rubbish could do so much? First of all, bush and forest fires CAN be started by cigarette butts being discarded while they are still alight. This is damaging to the environment and the habitat of many animals.Bush fires can also KILL. Not only that, but it looks extremely unpleasant. What else can those butts do? They can be swallowed by innocent animals- and since cigarette butts STILL have chemicals and tobacco in them, it damages their health too. In fact, they have been found in stomachs of numerous animals including birds. How could a bird know the difference between edible food and carcinogenic litter? Finally, cigarette butts can even progress to the ocean and rivers. How? By falling and being washed down gutters. They make their way into the oceans, polluting them, which in turn affects marine life AND our water supply. How selfish can that be? I could say more, but I do not want to make a post too long. However, learn more about environmental damage from cigarettes by clicking one or more of the following 5 helpful links, and do some more research if you are very curious.

Source 1, Source 2, Source 3, Source 4, Source 5

Note I only used Source 1 for this article.ALL links in this post open up in a new window.

I trust all sources and believe they are of good quality.

Also, did you know that smoking could contribute to global warming? This may be because of chemicals such as carbon monoxide and methane, and the impact cigarettes have on trees. Learn more here! However, the effect smoking has on global warming is small, compared to other causes. If you wish to read more, there are many sources on the internet available.

On to health. Smoking doesn't just harm the smoker's health- it also harms whoever inhales the smoke.

Credit to Google Images.

While there are so many sources online , I will outline the main offenders as this post is starting to get very long, and it's Summer.

Anyway, here are the main health risks posed by inhaling cigarette smoke;-

-Increased risk of many cancers due to the carcinogens found in the smoke.

-Possible brain damage if exposure is severe due to chemicals such as lead and toluene.

-Smoke includes nicotine which can reach the brain in 30 seconds, is harmful, and also addictive.

Cigarette smoke can wreck your health, especially if you smoke yourself or are around smokers VERY often. If you would like to learn more, here are 5 sources; here, here , here, here and here.

Pregnant women should not smoke because it can seriously damage the developing foetus. I find that smoking in public is very selfish, as it harms other people who did absolutely nothing. There are COUNTLESS of harmful effects of smoking, to both the smoker and anyone breathing in the smoke.

There is a lot more I could say, and you can let me know if you need me to expand on anything because I'm quite sure I can. I avoid cigarette smoke as much as I can, which is really difficult and irritating. I need to watch for smokers and hold my breath- if I have any more to say, that will be another post.

Again, thank you so much for reading this post. Please click here :)

-Queen Pickle

5-a-day week 2014

We have all seen it- dieticians, doctors, schools and governments show strong support for increased consumption of fruit and vegetables. We are constantly exposed to this encouragement- eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Why? Statistics revealed that obesity, heart disease,diabetes and many more degenerative diseases are on the rise, and they are at an extremely high level. Many scientists blame our food for this-they claim that the chemicals in our food and our lack of nutrients are causing us to live shorter, more miserable lives. Fruit juices and fruit products here in the UK have a label to show they are one of your 5-a-day, further showing the strong encouragement for us to eat more. However, this rise in such diseases could be caused by the fact many foods we now consume regularly are not very nutrient-dense, such as candy. This means we lack those nutrients, and therefore, we are more likely to catch such diseases. This is why 5-a-day week has been started- next week, you can look forward to meal ideas daily that sneak in fruit and vegetables- then you can see the positive difference.
Remember to enjoy your favourite foods, though, as you only have this opportunity to enjoy it. Nothing lasts forever, does it now?

Coming on Monday,7 July 2014 you can check back daily for the whole week to find ways to consume more fruit and vegetables.