Accent Vlog

Hi Guys,

This is my first ever vlog post! For the past few months loads of vlogs have been going round the blogging community so people can hear their accents. It's totally random and just a bit of fun. I'll post the words and questions below so you can have a go. Please post below if you think I have an accent or say any of the words in a funny way! Also if you do a vlog please link to yours :)

Ps my webcam isn't that great and doesn't sync well! Slightly annoying!

Say the following words:
Aunt, route, wash, oil, theatre, iron, salmon, caramel, fire, water, sure, data, ruin, crayon, toilet, New Orleans, pecan, both, again, probably, spitting image, Alabama, lawyer, coupon, mayonnaise, syrup, pajamas, caught

Answer these questions:
What is it called when you throw toilet paper on a house?
What is the bug that curls into a ball when you touch it?
What is the bubbly carbonated drink called?
What do you call gym shoes?
What do you say to address a group of people?
What do you call the kind of spider that has an oval-shaped body and extremely long legs?
What do you call your grandparents?
What do you call the wheeled contraption in which you carry groceries at the supermarket?
What do you call it when rain falls while the sun is shining?
What is the thing you use to change the TV channel?

Christmas Preparations and Yorkshire pud

1 week until Christmas!! So excited.

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Most of my Christmas shopping has been done and wrapped, just a couple of little bits to get this week. Have you all done yours?

I've not had a lot of time to prepare this Christmas, with the day job, cake business, family stuff and my longer commute but I'm happy that I've done enough. Next year with me working for myself I'll be able to do a lot more planning :)

All my veggies for xmas dinner have been prepared, blanched and put in freezer bags ready to be finished off xmas day. This saves loads of time.

I've been planning our xmas meal plans and still in the process of doing them. I've not decided 100% on the main event for Christmas dinner. I have a few contenders but tonight I'll decided! Any ideas? 'll do a post with some of the things I'm planing to do. We are having all the normal trimmings (vegan), brussels, stuffing, bread sauce, maple roasted carrots and pasrnips and yorkshire puds.

And this brings me on to...

Vegan Yorkshire Puds


Makes 12 mini yorkshires


Oil for cooking
115g self raising flour
pinch of salt
280 ml soya milk
55g whole egg replacer (I use Ener-G)

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas Mark 7.

2. Put 1 tsp of oil in each muffin hole and place into oven to heat.

3. Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. Mix the egg replacer into a smooth paste with 50 ml of water. Mix this in with the milk in a jug.

4. Add half of the wet to the dry mix. Mix it into a smooth batter then add the remaining liquid. It should be like cream, if it’s too thick add more liquid.

5. Transfer the batter to a jug and fill each compartment to the top. It should sizzle as it goes in. Do this as quickly as possible before the heat gets out. Cook for 15-20 mins.

When these were done they didn't look like normal yorkshires- they don't tend to sink in the middle. I was worried. But they were great! Even Phil loved them. He preferred them to normal yorkshire pud. Win!

Right I'm off to make some dessert, do some more menu planning and relax on the sofa with my man!

Jess
xx

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2012 Planning

In case you hadn't noticed, I'm a planner. And as off December 23rd I'm leaving my day job to take the plunge into full time self employment. This will give me the time to focus on myself and create new opportunities. I've always wanted to work towards working for myself and never fully made the jump. I've asked for signs etc to help me make the decision and now I have. This is the 4th time I have been made redundant. The first 3 times were really hard, and financially we've struggled but this time I thought what if these redundancies were signs for me to make the move!!! Someone up there must be shouting "Hey girl you asked for signs, we've given you 4 redundancies sort it out"!

Sort of reminds me of this!


A religious man is on top of a roof during a great flood. A man comes by in a boat and says "get in, get in!" The religous man replies, " no I have faith in God, he will grant me a miracle."

Later the water is up to his waist and another boat comes by and the guy tells him to get in again. He responds that he has faith in god and god will give him a miracle. With the water at about chest high, another boat comes to rescue him, but he turns down the offer again cause "God will grant him a miracle."

With the water at chin high, a helicopter throws down a ladder and they tell him to get in, mumbling with the water in his mouth, he again turns down the request for help for the faith of God. He arrives at the gates of heaven with broken faith and says to Peter, I thought God would grand me a miracle and I have been let down." St. Peter chuckles and responds, "I don't know what you're complaining about, we sent you three boats and a helicopter."




So there will be a few posts on my plans and of course I'll have time to blog more- especially on the craft and home side!


For now I wanted to get a few things down:


1. Focus on my businesses

My first is as most of you know Jessica's Cupcakes. There will be more class dates including a weekday one. New products coming: baked gift boxes, romantic picnic hampers, china hire, tea party packages, cake pops, cookies, cupcakes in jars and more.


The second business is Pink Chilli Virtual Assistant. If you look at my web page it should tell you a bit about it. The reason I decided to set this up is firstly I already have 2 clients on board which made it possible to leave my day job. I was made redundant due to relocation. For the past 5 months I have been doing the long commute but it isn't possible long term so I took redundancy. Also as much as I love my cake business, I have spent years building up my career and skill set that I didn't want to lose my "business" side. I love that too. So this way I get to do both :)


2. Create my 2012 inspiration board

I haven't got a pic of my last one so here is the one before- it wasn't completely finished but you get the idea. I'll be working on my 2012 one over the festive period. I'll do a proper post on it once I have finished and explain some of the things on there. Do you do an inspiration board?


3. Look after me

I went Vegan at the start of 2011 and it was the best decision I've made. I feel so much better for it. But the past 5 months with the commute, working a day job and running my own business meant I have seriously neglected myself. I'm not fueling my body properly- not having time to plan meals, taking the easy route and grabbing something less nutritious. Exercise pretty much stopped and I was so enjoying it and just taking time to relax- meditate, long baths etc. 


I'm looking forward to reclaiming my life back. Planning and cooking nutritious meals, exercising 4 times a week- cannot wait to get back on the Turbo Fire wagon and having time to unwind. I'll be doing more specific posts on my health goals


Don't know what Turbo Fire is? It's the best exercise programme I've ever done. Watch this video







Those are just some of things I'll be focusing on- more posts to follow.


Let me know what your plans are.


Bedtime Reading
Personal Goal Setting


Jess
xx

Christmas Gift Guide

The holidays are coming! I'm so excited about Christmas. I can't wait to have some time off and spend it relaxing  with friends and family.

Christmas shopping however is sometimes not fun. We went to Milton Keynes on Saturday and I only got two things, each shop was so busy that it was pointless. Luckily I have done most of mine online- thank god for the internet. I thought I'd put a little gift guide together, some of these things I already have and some would definitely be on my list!

1. Sony reader EBook. I have one of these and it's fab. I love reading and don't get me wrong nothing beats reading from a "real" book but these are so handy to just load up and take wherever you are going- holiday, business trip, commute on the train etc. I suppose the Kindle should be included in this as they essentially serve the same purpose but only having the Ebook myself I can only really recommend that one!

2. Kitchen Aid- I have wanted one for ages! Not only would it be of great benefit running my own cake business but it is pure kitchen porn.

3. Michael Bublè Christmas album- I've had this a week and I love it. It really makes me feel all christmassy and there is nothing better than sitting by the fire with a glass of wine whilst Mr Bublè sings some great classics. EDIT: after careful consideration I have also decided the "porn" comment also applies here :)

4. Estee Lauder Double wear foundation- I've tried many foundations in my time and this is in my opinion the best, great coverage and stays put all day. Bit more pricey around the £26 mark but worth every penny.

5. Peas and Thank You Cookbook- When I went Vegan Sarah Matheny's blog Peas and Thank You really helped me transition to great, yummy healthy vegan meals that were super easy to do. I still read her blog everyday and she has some fantastic recipes on there but as soon as her book came out I ordered it. I use the recipes at least 2-3 times per week. Some of my favourites are "Meaty" Green Bean Casserole, Black bean burgers, Anytime cookies, Mac and Cheeze and German Chocolate cake :)

So there are a couple of things to have a think about as gifts for your loved ones or to maybe add to your own list!!!!

Jess




xx