The Liebster Award

One of my favourite teen bloggers, Peyton, who I met over Instagram has nominated me for the Liebster award.  Peyton is a lifestyle blogger from America who writes about life with a chronic illness. Reading her blog, Patience and Pajamas has made me a lot more aware of issues I had never considered before. Check out Peyton's blog and instagram, and give her some love!

The Liebster award is a tag made by bloggers which gives bloggers the opportunity to share about yourself, and introduce readers to some other very cool bloggers! First I'll share 11 facts about me, then I'll answer 11 questions from Peyton, and then I'll leave 11 questions for anyone else who wants to do the Liebster award. (I'm doing 11 of everything because that is what Peyton did, I'm sure you could do more or less if you wanted)

11 facts about me:

1. I have five siblings, one brother and four sisters

2. I'm a major home body, and plan to never move out of Christchurch

3. I cried watching Finding Dory

4. I am the only redhead in my family, everyone else has brown hair.

5. When I was 14 I only dreamed in cartoon

6. I've never been further out of New Zealand than Australia

7. If I could have any superpower, I would fly

8. I've never broken a bone

9. I play the piano, and the flute

10. I love planning, and am already planning my birthday party... for April next year

11. I'm scared of needles

11 questions from Peyton:

1. Where were you when you decided to start your blog?

This was a while ago, so I'm not actually 100% sure. I think I was at home, but I had been considering starting a blog for a long time before that.

2. What is one thing you wish you could say to every reader who lands on your site?

You will never find satisfaction in material things

3. If you could instantly become fluent in any language, which language would you choose?

I think I would choose either French or Italian. I've been learning French for almost 4 years, and am going on an exchange trip to Geneva, Switzerland at the end of this year, so being fluent would be incredibly helpful.

If I didn't choose French I would choose Italian because I think it's a beautiful language and I love European languages.

4. Picture your dream home: is it big or small?

My dream home is reasonably big because I want to have a big family

5. If you could only access one of the following for the rest of your life which would you choose: Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter?

Definitely Instagram! I live on Instagram.

6. Stripes or polka dots?

I'm a stripes kinda gal for sure

7. Who is your biggest inspiration?

I don't think I have just one, in terms of life I aspire to be like Christ, but my blog goals is Morgan of Morgan Alice Beauty . She is simply the cutest!

8. What is your favourite movie of all time?

This is going to make me sound like such a little kid, but my favourite movie is Rio.

9. What are your feelings on rain? Dislike? Indifference? 

I love I'm tucked up in bed or cosy in the lounge and it is pouring with rain outside. When the rain is very heavy it makes me feel comfortable and happy. But I hate the wet smell just before it rains, I have never liked it.

10. Do you follow professional sports? Which is your favourite?

I'm not a big sport person, but I do enjoy watching the Rugby with my Dad.

11. What is your favourite dessert?

Cheesecake, it's my guilty pleasure and biggest weakness when it comes to my sugar-free diet.

11 Questions for Nominees:

1. Why did you start your blog?

2. Have ever wanted to shut your blog down, and why?

3. Where is your dream holiday destination?

4. Sunrise or Sunset?

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

6. Who is your Instagram goals?

7. What is your biggest regret?

8. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

9. Are you an introvert or an extrovert?

10.  What is one thing you could never live without?

11. What is your favourite lolly?

I'm nominating anyone who wants to do the Liebster award! I think it's a really cool tag, and so I'm leaving it with you.
If you do decide to accept the Leibster Award be sure to:
1. Explain what the award is
2. Share 11 facts about yourself
3. Answer 11 questions from whoever nominated you (me)
4. Leave 11 questions for those you nominate
5. Nominate your favourite bloggers!

Amesmames xx

A Day at Sumner Beach

Sumner is one of my favourite places in Christchurch, I love the cheerful atmosphere. I'm always nagging my family to go on a walk at Sumner in the evenings. Being the planner that I am, I had organised everything and been looking forward to going for the past couple of days.

 I generally only go in summer, on mild nights, and it's normally packed! Because of the freezing temperatures and the high tide it was much less busy than I'm used to which was really nice.

  Me and my sisters wandered down the beach and headed to the fish and chip store when I spotted this cute, pink building and made everybody stop....

... And made them take photos of me.

 We then headed back down to the beach to eat our chips. It was short lived, as we were swarmed by seagulls and had to run a hide behind a rock.

Little trips like this are such mood boosters. It's so calm and peaceful, I found myself totally relaxed, which is incredibly rare for me. I found the week going so much faster when I had something to look forward to.

Outfit Details:
Pom Pom Beanie - Cotton On (similar style here)
Peplum Top - Glassons (similar style here)
Skinny Jeans - Cotton On
Shoulder Bag - Laura Jones

Amesmames xx

Winter Walks

 Last Monday was one of the nicest days we've had in a long time, it was so lovely and warm. So I did what any teenage girl would do, I dragged my brother out for a walk - which turned into more of a photo shoot. He wasn't impressed, but I couldn't let the chance pass me by!

It is winter now, my least favourite time of year. As much as I love cozy days wrapped up in blankets watching tv and playing board games, the reality of winter for me is stressful projects, tests, long and slow days at school, and a general lack of motivation. The truth is I've been very lazy and, I wouldn't say depressed, but low and lonely. I've been saying I'm too busy to do housework and homework, and then just going on my phone in all my spare time. So I'm making a huge effort to nip it in the bud, by doing little things like going on walks, face timing friends, and getting off technology more often.

Although I'm doing a lot better attitude wise, I'm still counting down the days until the school holidays. Two weeks and four days to go! I'm keeping myself going by planning holiday activities and blog posts. If anyone has any cheap ideas for Christchurch in winter I'm all ears!

Outfit Details:
Rib Knit Sweater - $70, H&M
Boyfriend Jeans - $50, Cotton on
Black Ankle Boots - $80, Number One Shoes
Ring - $30, Ore Jewellery
Leather Jacket - Glassons

Amesmames xx

Sugar Free - The Update

It's been almost 1 year since I made the decision to be sugar free. I never imagined I would stay sugar free for so long, I thought it would last a couple of months at most! But now as I near the end of my 12th month I can't imagine going back.

This year has definitely been a learning curve for me. Finding sugar free snacks that aren't loaded with carbs is a lot harder than it sounds. I try to keep my diet as diverse as possible and try not to overeat one snack because otherwise I would get sick of everything really quickly!

It didn't take me long to find sugar free snacks in summer. I was eating a lot of fruit and veges, as well as chia seed puddings and smoothies, and all those things taste so good I didn't really want anything else.

I'm finding winter a little bit harder as I am craving comfort food. I would love to stuff myself with pies, sausage rolls, and spiced wedges, but it's not doing anything for me. I generally take leftovers from dinner to school for lunch which is nice and easy, but it's when I get home that I struggle. It's 4pm, I'm tired, and all I want is to eat some cracker and cheese, or even just plain bread. It takes a lot of willpower and self-control to not have an afternoon binge. Scrambled eggs have been my best friend this past month.

One of the most interesting things about this whole sugar free experience is my body's reaction to sugar now when I do have it. I feel incredibly tired when I eat sugar. If I have a proper cheat day (i.e. eating dessert and snacking on sweets throughout the day) the next 2-3 days are always low for me. I generally end up conking out and having a nana-nap in the afternoon, and feel very unmotivated. I also get bloating and ulcers after a cheat day. 

When I first started, I knew that my body wouldn't be able to handle sugar like it did when I was eating sugar, that's a given. I just wasn't expecting to have such an intense reaction. 

It has made me very conscious of when I have a cheat day, and as a general rule, I will not have a cheat day anytime that something is important or stressful is happening. I guess it's just more motivation to not cheat.

Although it is nice to have a cheat day every now and again, I am slowly feeling less of a need to do so. I don't really want chocolate or lollies, and if I am in the mood for something like that there are sugar free options like healtheries chocolate and Tom and Luke's salted caramel snackballs. My 13 year old self would be so disappointed in me, I used to HATE healthy food that 'tastes just as good as normal food' because it never did. But when you're not eating normal food regularly, you can't tell the difference. It honestly tastes delicious to me, and I don't need anything else.

I love how I feel now that I'm sugar free, and love the fact that I don't crave sugar anymore. I have a couple of good friends who have recently become sugar free too which makes it so much easier as I'm not alone! I'd love to hear how others have found their transition, and I'm always open to food suggestions!

Amesmames xx