40 Day Challenge: Cola

It’s been a while since I attempted to do a 40 day challenge. But there is one that I have been meaning to do for some time. I know I have been drinking way too much fizzy drink, especially cola. It started with enjoying a glass with something spicy like biryani or when I am eating out, then it moved to having a glass with a meal when the kids are not around. I could see it now creeping towards a glass or two with every meal or whenever I am thirsty. Not good. It made me dislike the taste of water and it left me feeling very dehydrated. So my current challenge is 40 days without any fizzy drinks. I should so without any sugary drinks, because some juices are just as bad, but lets start with what we can manage.

I started the challenge without any expectation of getting past a day or two and just told myself to start and then see what happens. So far I have managed eight days without any fizzy. That was after a false start when I just forget on the second day and had some. I started again on the next day.

I spent about two days feeling as if I am missing out on something and that my meal was not quite satisfying. After that I started to become more aware of when I felt thirsty, drink more water and actually enjoy drinking the water too. It’s funny how sometimes we take the best of Allah’s (SWT) blessings away from ourselves due to our own actions.

Anyone else overcome the fizzy drink/too much sugar enthusiasm? What helped? What were your obstacles? How did you do it?

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My fist 40 Day Challenge – Evaluation

My first 40 Day challenge, which seemed too long, now seems if it was over ever so quickly. I thoroughly enjoyed it and surprisingly it taught me lots. I was very happy with some of the pictures and not impressed with others at all – it has encouraged me to be more thoughtful about method and technique (it took me two years to find the close-up option in my Nokia phone camera, so lets see how this iphone treats me. Okay, actually Kooks showed me the close-up feature on the Nokia). I also found that I spend too much time oblivious, going from one thing to another or lost in my thoughts to properly take in the beauty and interest in everything around me. Once I started looking, I started finding things to take pictures of everywhere, the scrap metal yard for instance was one of my favourites. Another fun one was this picture I took at Pimlico Station of an artist’s work, only to find her blog where she had challenged readers to find the artwork and take a picture.

This first challenge has whetted my appetite for trying a new one. Some of the ones I have come up with are:

Experiencing something new every day
Doing something outside of my comfort zone every day
Doing something new with my children every day
Writing a book review every day (have a great pile that I need to catch up with)
No coffee for 40 days (this is going to be a tough one for me)
Call one friend or family member every day (I am not great on the phone, so this would be an interesting one)
No complaining for 40 days
Memorise one ayah of the Quran every day
Write down everything I spend for 40 days (help me manage my finances)
Spend little/minimum money for 40 days (hmm…sales are coming)

As the kids are on holidays and I have a week or so off too, I am going to go with the “doing something new with my children every day” option I think. I am looking forward to this one!

Below are my favourite pictures from the 40 Day Photo Challenge. Are you thinking of trying a challenge? Do you think I should try a challenge that’s not on the list above? Do you think the whole thing is a terrible idea? Would love to hear your thoughts.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 40 – Sunset Challenge

For my last photo, I had a go at Kooky Little Sisters sunset challenge over at her Harlequin Tea Set blog. Except I woke on the last day of the challenge to find the sunrise painting the sky in the most beautiful colours, so my attempt at the sunset challenge is a picture of the sunrise. Both pictures are very flawed, but I think I managed to capture some of the colour.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 39 - Light and Shade

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 38 - Light

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 37 – Little Lady and Happiness

What makes you happy?

Going to visit my nan’s
Having sleepovers at my cousins
Reading books
Getting to be door monitor at madrassah
Wordsearches and puzzles
Going different places like Cornwall and Bournemouth

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 36 – Little Man and Happiness

What makes you happy?

Making friends
Playing with my friends
Jelly
Being looked after by my parents
Speed cars (any old car with a spoiler at the back)
Speed shoes (trainers)

This drawing was by Little Man a year or two ago. He is meticulous and will spend ages on his drawings getting every finger, toe, eye brow and detail into his picture. I couldn't find his picture of a cactus and camel, but it had me in stitches for days. I love that he took the time to draw everyone into the picture. Little Lady wasn't very impressed with her likeness though.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 35 - Mr Gorgeous and Happiness

What makes you happy?

Lots and lots of food
Sweets
Yellow
Playing games on mum’s phone all day long
My superman t-shirt
thomas the tank engine

I cannot tell you how hard it is to get a picture of this child that is not a blur!

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 34 - A Romantic Getaway

I treasure the few minutes I have on the way home from work to catch up with my husband (he picks mee up) before I get home and everyone (kids, guests, mum-in-law, house, dinner) start vying for attention.

Today he took a different route and I was pleasantly surprised at the detour to the local scrap metal yard where he needed to pick up some money for some metal he dropped off the day before. He kindly parkeed the car in the middle of the yard and went off to the office. I was a little worried by all of the machines and crunching and scraping noise going on around me, even moreso, when one of the workers peered into the car and then started yelling for hubby to come over:

"You can't park here, it's dangerous, what if we squashed the car?"
"You can see its not scrap!"
"You've got a girl in there - aren't you bothered?"
"No go ahead and squash it!"

Charming! Well beggars can't be choosers and with three boisterous kids, an ill mum-in-law, an endless stream of guests, blogging, working and who knows what else, even a trip to the scrap metal yard is good enough for me if it's with hubby (even if he did try to get me squashed!).

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 33 - The Lighted Lady

We drive by this installation very often, it's called the Lighted Lady of Barking (by Joost Van Santen). When she was tiny, Little Lady was convinced that mermaids lived in the sculpture and I never disabused her of the idea. I've been trying to get a decent picture for days and this is the best I have manaaged so far.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 31 - A Healthy Diet

So much for the idea of going without sugar for 40 days...I really, really need to get a grip...right after I finish these...

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 30 - Domestic Diva

I really do need to get a bit more domesticated. Or at least remember to empty the pockets of my husbands trousers and take the belt out before I put them in the wash next time...

Unfortunately, I seem to have given my husband the impression that my answer to cleaning the cooker or fridge is "maybe we should throw it away and get a new one?"

I can't remember saying that exactly...

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 29 - TLC and Woolly Hats

This little one has been off school with a nasty cold and temperature. Little Man is a foodie like me (okay, just plain greedy) and is the only other person I have met who doesn't lose their appetite when they are sick. I spent the whole day finding him things to eat, including the packed lunch I made for him so that he could have the same things to eat as his siblings took to school.

I love the way this boy goes and gets his big, soft woolly hat when he is feeling unwell or cold and keeps it on day and night until he feels better. At the moment he is sleeping with it on. That coupled with mum-in-laws insistence that he should be wearing a sleeveless jumper under his clothes at all times, means he should be better soon insh'Allah.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 28 - Gift from Pakistan

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 27 - Acrobatics

I get the usual call of "Quick Mum, Look at thiiiis!!" and turn round to find Little Man in mid-air, hands on the sofa feet wedged against the fish tank.

This is about right considering the number of times I have had to coax him down from bookshelves and chairs-on-tables. My first reaction "Oh my God get down!", My second reaction: "Do it again, I'll take a picture"

Gratitude Journal/40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 26 - Friendship

I love how tactile and physical my children are in expressing their emotion (except when they hug my hard enough to almost knock me over - Little Lady!). The youngest, Gorgeous is a very physical child and loves to put his arms around whoever is nearest to him, in the rare moments when he is not wrestling or rough-housing.

I love the way he looks up to his older brother who is a little shyer in expressing how he feels than the other two.

I took this on the way to visit a new baby. The boys were walking ahead discussing something of the utmost importance, probably Ben10 or sweets. I often get asked if they are twins, despite the two year age difference, dressing them the same probably doesn't help.

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 25 - Mosaic

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 24 - Sunny Side Up

40 Day Photo Challenge: Day 23 (b) - Caroline Barby Art at Pimlico Station

Interestingly, when I went to visit the artists website, she had a picture of this artwork with a challenge to take a photo of it with yourself.

40 Day Photo Challenge - Day 23 - Paolozzi Sculpture Pimlico Station

This one had the kids totally stumped. It's Eduardo Paolozzi's Ventilation Tower sculpture outside Pimlico Tube Station.