I've been trying for weeks now to finish this website and get it published (in its former life, this website was actually a platform for a business I used to run, so it needed A LOT of work to convert it into the lovely website it is today!) but what's been preventing me from getting it finished is the little man in this photo...this is our darling doggy Sparky who arrived 4 weeks ago and is now 12 weeks old.  As I write this he is curled up at my feet looking as cute as a button.  We've had lots of dogs over the years including Yorkies, Pomeranians, Labradors and Collies, but this is the first time we have ever had a teeny tiny 8 week old Yorkie puppy who has the personality and confidence of a Rottweiler.  

When I tell you our lives have been turned upside down since he arrived, believe me, I'm not exaggerating!  For anyone who has never shared their lives with an 8 week old bundle of canine joy, it's a little like suddenly finding yourself with a toddler you haven't given birth to but is now yours forever...we've had sleepless nights, moments of pure joy and happiness, total panic and anxiety when he almost swallowed a stone from our garden and sheer exasperation at cleaning up yet another puddle on the floor, in spite of making every house-training effort possible!  But the benefits of having this furry little fellow in our family are enormous.  He makes us laugh, gives us so much joy and when he greets us every morning our hearts just melt with love for him.  This week we were able to take him to doggy daycare for the first time and he loved it.  We're lucky to have a great doggy daycare facility near our house which he will attend 3 days per week, so we can drop him off on the way to work and collect him at the end of the day.  The other two days he will spend having lots of fun with his grandparents who also have a dog so he'll have even more fun.  

When I hear people saying they leave their dogs alone at home all day every day, with no company and no stimulation, I wonder why they bothered getting a dog at all?  Dogs (especially young puppies) are a massive commitment and on many levels it's like having a baby to look after...you can no longer take off at a moment's notice without arranging a dog-sitter, your dog or puppy needs your time, love and commitment in the same way a baby or a child does.  People often forget that dogs are pack animals and, unlike cats, are not solitary creatures preferring to spend hours and hours alone.  Dogs love us so much...they love being close to us and are a human being's most loving and faithful companion, apart from other humans of course (or horses and donkeys who also should never be kept permanently alone).  

If you are thinking about getting a puppy or rescuing an older dog, your life will change completely for the better as you share your home with your new best friend, but it is really important to be aware of the enormous commitment involved and to realise that along with that cute face and unbelievably adorable furriness comes sleepless nights, vets bills and lots of chewing and biting while your new pal's teeth are coming through (this can go on until your pup is 9 months old!).  However, to balance out those sleepless nights when your puppy is howling the house down because he's missing his mum and siblings, are moments when he or she will look at you with complete love and adoration, cuddling up to you and giving you the biggest and best welcome each and every time you come home.  

We will be taking our little guy camping with us, on forest and mountain walks and, of course, on our family holiday this year (we've found a super dog-friendly house by the sea where we'll go for a week this summer).  He is part of our family now so we want him with us whenever we can.  For us, that's what having a dog is all about.

This week I am celebrating turning the lovely age of 40!  It seems like only yesterday that I turned 30 and 40 seemed like absolutely ages away.  So many people dread turning 40.  In the last few weeks I have heard people say things like "Oooh, I locked myself away on my 40th birthday and didn't want to see anyone..." and "Oh God!  Turning 40, it's like the end of a road isn't it?"  Not for me it's not!  

When I turned 30 I was in an unhappy relationship with someone completely unsuitable for me (oh Lord I am so grateful that never worked out!), working very hard in a job I hated and I honestly felt as if I was waiting for my life to begin.  It took another few years for me to ditch the bloke, ditch the job, meet a few more unsuitable suitors and finally be completely honest with myself about what I really wanted and deserved (yes, deserved!) from life.  It was only in the last few years after meeting the man of my dreams and finally stepping out bravely into the unknown world of working for myself that I started to realise that as I was getting older, life was in fact getting much, much better.  

So many people dread 40 (and 50 and 60 and 70 and 80!), but why?  What's so scary about it?  It's just a number and life is one wonderful experience regardless of age, ability, disability or anything else.  What holds us back from living the best life we can is usually fear-based ("I can't do it" or "I'll never be any good at it" are some of the negative things we repeatedly tell ourselves because we are afraid of stepping forward into the unknown) and it's this ridiculous fear of getting older that often makes us think we cannot continue to achieve all of our hopes and dreams.  

Sometimes we use others as benchmarks for our own achievements and compare ourselves to other more successful/more attractive/more popular people when we are feeling unhappy in our own life.  Have you ever wondered if perhaps someone looks at you and admires one of your many enviable attributes? Perhaps they love your curves, your smile, your kindheartedness, your way with people, your witty sense of humour, or perhaps they wish they had your confidence, your amazing attitude or your strengths?  Some of the prettiest, slimmest or most popular people are the most insecure people.

What I've learned as I turned 40 is that I am happier, calmer and more content with myself, my body and my life than I ever have been at any other point in my past.  When I was 21 I was a size 8 and about 8 stone.  I could eat whatever I wanted and not put on a pound.  My skin was perfect and line-free.  I had just left college and moved to a new country.  Was I happy?  Yes, sometimes.  Was I happier then than I am now? Most definitely not.  

Age really is just a number, but I know that I really love the number 40!

If you're like most people (me included), when January 2014 rolled around you made a few resolutions, resolving to get fitter, healthier and happier, but things haven't quite gone to plan and a few weeks into the New Year things may have started to slip. 

I know only too well that it's really easy to let those resolutions slide and forget about the reasons we made them in the first place.  If your plan was to get fitter, healthier or lose weight then chances are you probably made those resolutions when you were feeling low, a bit lethargic or didn't like what you saw in the mirror.  What often happens is we lose motivation, start feeling low again and go back to our old habits of eating the wrong foods (many of us comfort eat when we feel a bit down) to make us feel better...and there starts the vicious cycle of comfort eat - feel bad - comfort eat.

I've always been fairly fit and healthy and love the outdoors, but when I started my business at the end of 2012 I needed to work longer hours to build up my business, and after a few months my good habits went out the door and instead of going for a run and eating healthy food every day, I started eating a lot more carbs (which convert straight to sugar in the body), exercising less and working long hours, using coffee and toast with loads of honey to keep me pushing through those tired moments.  Before long I couldn't function without coffee as soon as I woke up each morning and found myself reaching for sugary snacks such as chocolate biscuits and doughnuts between meetings to keep me going!  

Not So Sweet Sugar
Over a period of weeks I started to feel more and more lethargic and after doing lots of research I figured out that the excess high carb foods and sugar in my diet were making me feel ill.  The answer for me was to cut caffeine and sugar from my diet completely (this included all alcohol!), to eat good carbs early in the day (porridge, brown bread) and to eat some protein with every meal to keep my blood sugars stable.

Since I cut sugar from my diet, I am feeling 100 per cent better and have lots more energy.  We hear and read so much more now about the damage sugar can do to the body causing adrenal fatigue, weight gain, insomnia and a host of other health nasties (I read recently that sugar is the new tobacco), so next time you reach for a quick fix such as a chocolate bar or can of fizzy drink (even the diet ones have sweeteners) you might find a handful of healthy nuts or an avocado will make you feel much healthier and fuller for longer!

I made a few resolutions when 2014 dawned...one was to get fitter and healthier, another was to try new things this year (my man took me diving for the first time last year and despite feeling terrified beforehand I really loved it!) and my third resolution was to enjoy every minute of our downtime either in the evenings or at the weekends and not to waste a single second of precious time.  So far, so good on No.1 and No.3...now I just have to find something new and different to try.  Watch this space!