One of my presents from Mr Mutton was this green City Poncho from Kettlewell. I find ponchos very useful - they're good as a cardigan substitute indoors and in spring/autumn they're just right when you don't need a coat.
This one is in my favourite kelly green shade. Plus, it's in the sale, although not now in this colour.
I'm wearing it with my old Hush jeans and ankle boots from Sainsbury's (old).
I was given some fabulous beauty and skincare presents, below, including a huge palette of eye shadows by Morphe, the James Charles palette. (I didn't know either, but he's apparently an "American Internet personality, beauty YouTuber and make-up artist"). I went to town with the green shades in my poncho picture.
I liked my 2019 beauty Advent calendar from Look Fantastic. I'm not showing all the products - a Neal's Yard hand cream, for example, has already been taken to work. My favourite product was Elemis's Pro-Collagen Marine Cream which I have used before. It came along at actually the right time: I'd just finished a jar of moisturizer.
I find some of the products perfect sizes for travelling. A very luxurious product, which I probably wouldn't buy for myself, was Omorovicza Queen of Hungary Mist, Rose Gold Limited Edition. Gorgeous. My stepdaughter had a different Advent calendar, the Space NK one, but her final product was also by Omorovicza.
New Year's Resolutions
I don't tend to make many resolutions. January is such a dreary month it seems cruel to impose sanctions on one's self. Normally I start the new year determined to shed at least half a stone but I hit my target weight just before Christmas, after a low carb eating regime which started in September after a stay at Grayshott Spa. I've found it a very easy way of eating, for me, and I've lost 12 pounds in total (just under 6 kg). I could probably lose another half a stone to look more slender, but no, this would make me look more gaunt and wrinkled, so I take Barbara Cartland's advice: after a certain age, you can keep your body but lose your face.
I'd like to start yoga again: last year I did hardly any yoga because I couldn't find classes nearby at times which suited me. I'm determined to find something on a Saturday or Sunday. It gets more important as we get older to retain flexibility and stretch.
Stand On One Leg
I'm going to stand on one foot more often (!) - for example when cleaning my teeth. This is great for balance.
And my biggie, as far as exercise is concerned, is to take up the Walk 1000 Mile Challenge. I attempted this in 2018, as training for the 200 mile Coast to Coast walk, and for the first four months of the year was determined to get out every day. I clocked up around 500 miles traipsing around Cambridge in my lunchtimes at work, and around the local area at home. Some days I only walked for a mile and a half (the daily target is 2.73 miles) but anything is better than nothing.
Getting some mileage under my belt will be good for when I join Mr Mutton in the Lake District for a few weekends. He has set himself the goal of walking all of the Wainwrights in 2020 - that's 214 - and he'll be driving up during the week and staying there, coming back for the weekends. But occasionally I'll go up by train to join him.
Walk 1000 Miles in 2020
If you want to give the Walk 1000 Miles Challenge a go, there's a thriving community on Facebook and you can get lots of support plus buy badges and other memorabilia at the Walk 1000 Miles website.
Another resolution I have is to organise more weekends and outings with Mr Mutton. He's often a bit resistant to this although he enjoys it once the activity is underway. I've already booked our June summer holiday in Greece and we're seeing Elton John in Liverpool in November, so that'll be a fun weekend away. I have a big birthday this year and need to give it some thought: a party, dinner, holiday? It's all to play for.
Now for the return of the #WowOnWednesday link up. This is a great way for bloggers and Instagrammers to find new readers, and for readers of this blog to discover new writers. Next week I will reveal the readers' most clicked, and my favourite post.
