New togs!

I picked up a new Maru Swimsuit (or togs  as we Irish call them!) this morning - am planning to get back swimming seriously.  I swam competitively up to my teens but haven't done much as an adult except for a 1500 km swim as part of a triathlon relay.  The triathlon was in Chicago and it was probably about 8 yrs ago.

The race itself was great but the training was tough.  I even swam in the river Shannon in preparation!

LCHF Shopping and eating

Our Low Carb High Fat food shop for the week.  I didn't need to buy eggs as we have a dozen left over from last week. Note that we are now using double cream for in our coffee.

 

 

I made Avocado salad.

Oil, lime juice and pepper mixed to make a dressing.

 

Steak and garlic butter for Ciaran.  Steak and pepper sauce for me!

For more info about the health benefits of eating fat click here

I should also note that that the last time I ate a piece of chocolate was on December 31st.  Eating fat kills my cravings for sugar!

Big Art!

Our new artwork has been installed.  It's a huge piece!!

 

It's a self portrait by my husband.......I'm still deciding whether I like it......only joking, I love it!!

I opened the door to show the size of our 50" TV against the painting.

 

 

We finally found a sideboard after searching for probably close on a year!  It's a G Plan "Fresco" Sideboard from the 1960's. It is made from a mix of Teak and Afromosia (poor man's rosewood at the time of construction but now desirable........but extinct!)

Oopsie Bread - Low Carb Bread

Tonight I made "Oopsie Bread" - it's a low carb bread substitute.

 

First thing I did was separate the whites of 3 eggs from the yolks.  I then whipped up the whites in to stiff peaks.

200 grams of cream cheese was mixed with the 3 yolks.

When I mixed the yolks and cream cheese together it turned in to a creamy mixture.

The creamy cheese mix was folded in to the egg whites.

I spread the mixture on to a baking tray and baked at 150 degrees Celsius for 25 mins.

Tomorrow I will have the Oopsie Bread for breakfast with scrambled eggs and bacon!

 

To update.....

Oopsie Bread is not too bad and it certainly is an option if you are desperate for bread!!!

It is best a day or two after baking as it dries out.

 

Cup Song in Irish (as gaeilge)

A friend in the USA sent me this cool video of school kids singing the cup song in the Irish Language (as gaeilge).   It is definitely worth a look.

In Ireland it is compulsory to study Irish until you leave school at 18.  Many children take additional classes during the Summer Holidays by travelling to Summer Camp in the Gaeltacht region (all Irish speaking region) of Ireland.  This video of the cup song was filmed in one of the Gaeltachts.

While at the Gaeltacht, they stay in the homes of families who converse through Irish (Gaelgoirs) and they do classes during the day through Irish.  The classes are a lot of fun and consist of singing, Irish dancing, acting, sport and quizzes - this is all done through the Irish language.

In the evening time the kids attend "Ceilidhs" (prounounced Kay-Lees) which are dances where set dancing is done.  For many teenagers it is a rite of passage to meet their first boyfriend at a Ceilidh in the Gaeltacht!

Generally it is children from the age of about 13 to 16/17 yrs who go to these camps and it is very beneficial as they tend to come home with a fluency that you don't get from studying in the traditional classroom during the year (case in point being able to translate the cup song in to Irish!).

By the way the cup song is extremely popular at the moment here in Ireland, click here for another version by Irish school children which was performed on the Late Late Toy Show just before Christmas.

New dress!

I went for a browse around shops in Dublin City yesterday.

The first shop we visited was the Kilkenny Shop.  As per their website, Kilkenny is "Ireland's Largest Emporium for Irish Designed Products".  I enjoy looking around this store - it's like a mini department store with lots of lovely products including jewellery, clothes and household items.

Look what I bought! A beautiful silk dress in a tropical Hummingbird fabric!

It's by Irish designer Jennifer Rothwell

Here's the link to my Square Neck Silk Dress on the Jennifer Rothwell website.

It's Friday!!

Wow this week has been tiring!  I hope it is due to the fact that it was my first full week back in work after the Christmas Break.  

I am back in Swords for a meeting this morning and then in Blanchardstown for the afternoon.  My drive this morning took me past the National Conference Centre. I took the below photo of it as I was stopped on the new bridge over the Liffey.  I'm unsure of this bridges name - I just call it the new bridge.  In fact I don't think I know the names of any of the other bridges except the walkable Ha'penny Bridge (so named because it used to cost a Half Penny to cross!) and also Millennium Bridge

Currently there are issues with the Ha'penny bridge - damage is being caused by people attaching "Love Locks" to it. Along with damage, it costs Dublin City Council a lot of money to remove the locks.

Have you heard of "Love Locks"? They are currently the scourge of many European Cities.  The concept is that a couple buys a padlock, writes their names on it, locks it to a landmark bridge and then they throw away the key.  Cute concept perhaps - but not when it destroys heritage sites.  Maybe the council should provide a particular site for these love locks to be attached to???

 

Next time I am in the city I may take a stroll down to the Ha'Penny Bridge and take a few photos of the bridge and maybe a few locks if I can spot them.

 

I had a little time before my meeting so I went to Starbucks in the Pavillions Shopping Centre.

I bring my own cream to Starbucks - is that weird???

I can't use their cream because they add a vanilla sugar flavoring and I am not consuming sugar these days (I'm substituting fat for sugar to aid weight loss!)