Sweet for Sunday

This week I've decided to share with you some of my favourite things lately - things that have made me smile, or that are just super lovely!

It's half term here, which means that my Mum is home during the week, so I have her help to make something gluten-free and delicious. My recipe inspiration for this bake is from a new cookbook I got for Christmas, I adapted it slightly to make it completely Mel-friendly and surprisingly it came out quite well.
        The recipe I tried was a red onion and rosemary focaccia - this is my first ever attempt at a gluten-free bread from scratch, rather than a packet mix. I was stoked that it came out so well, and when I troubleshoot it to perfection I'll share the recipe with y'all! But here's a look at my first attempt…

I've started making a collection of recipes to try, so hopefully on some of my good days (and with the help of my Mum) I'll be able to try even more and get some tempting, scrummy alternatives for us allergy sufferers!

So what else have I been loving this week?
        Cheeky days that look deceivingly like Spring. Waking up and looking out to blue skies and sunshine makes me instantly happy. Mix the blue skies with some relaxing music and you've got yourself a b-e-a-utiful start to the day.
        Another bonus of this weather is the gorgeous river walks (well rolls… what word do you use for going for a walk in a wheelchair?!). I go out wrapped up like a Michelin man to stay warm, cause despite that sun it feels like I could freeze, but it is so nice to escape outside, and forget for just a few moments all the troubles and worries.

Lastly this week I've gone crazy for the Bodyshop's Pink Grapefruit Body Butter - the smell is divine! I wish somehow I could upload the smell to the internet to let y'all have a wiff of the summery goodness!

Progress… perhaps?

These past few weeks have definitely had their ups and downs, unfortunately slightly more downs than ups. It has been a pretty busy schedule compared to what I usually do, as my sister came home for just under two weeks; it was her birthday whilst she was down, so everything got a little more chaotic.

I'm gonna rewind to before she came back first, and tell ya some of my ups - although I felt similar to usual, I saved enough energy to attend Monday night prayers at Church. The thought of it made me overly anxious - I hadn't been out for a while, and I was unsure who I would know there, and my mind was jumping ahead (as it likes to do) thinking of the consequences of it all. With the support of an extremely close friend, everything turned out fine. I felt so blessed to have the support of friends and overwhelmed with the huge amount of love.

I got mail this week too, with a gorgeous surprise gift arriving from America. It was a present from Brianna, and I can't do justice to how lovely and thoughtful it was - I cried just from reading the note, and then the actual gift made me cry more. It was an Alex & Ani bracelet, with a water lily charm. It reminded Bri of me, and when I read the description card I understood why.
        I couldn't have been happier with the gift; the only downside is that I can't thank her in person, and it just makes me miss her more.
       If you are looking for a special gift for someone Alex & Ani make lovely jewellery; they are all hand made and each one has a different meaning. Stunning.

Last week my family and I went to see Sarah Millican in concert. We'd booked the tickets over two years ago, and I'd nearly completely forgotten. She was so so funny, all be it a little lot rude! It was her 'Home Bird' tour, and we all got either a Home Bird or Dirty Stop Out badge - I'm definitely a Home Bird, I love everything about my home, being with my family, relaxing, and of course I can't do much else apart from be at home lately. Even if I could do a lot more, I'd definitely still be one because staying out late is not my thing. I'm a pyjamas and cuppa splash cuddled up on the sofa kinda girl.
        Which one would you be?

For my sisters birthday we went out for lunch, just her and me, to our local garden centre, which has a little cafe in it. It was great to spend some time with her, chatting things through and eating yummy food.

All the busy-ness (not sure if that's a word) took its toll, and I've been paying for it this week, but it was worth it. To spend time with friends and family, and to do things that I enjoy was lovely, and I think there is perhaps the tiniest bit of progress happening - there's just always that cloud hanging over me waiting.

Food for the Weekend

Weekends are all about trying something new and different in the kitchen - for ages we used to have 'freaky friday' in our house, where we would pick a new recipe, and just give it a go! It definitely made us more adventurous, and gave us some great recipes to add to the binder. We lost our way a tad, and so this weekend we decided to try a new recipe, and push the boat out with our meals again.

Our weekend meal was Saucy Beef Stir Fry. It was super easy, and really delicious.
We put together two recipes, from Good Food and goodtoknow.co.uk and it turned out great.

Saucy Beef Stir Fry

Ingredients
500g Beef Strips
2 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
2 tbsp Dark Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
Small bunch spring onions (chopped diagonally)
1/2 - 1 Carrot (cut into thin strips)
1/2 Red Pepper (cut into thin strips)
1/2 Green Pepper (cut into thin strips)
100g Sugar Snap Peas
100g Beansprouts
2 Bundles Rice Noodles

Directions
1. Marinate the beef strips with the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce and worchestershire sauce for 20 minutes, or overnight if you have the time.
2. Heat a wok over a high heat and add the beef and marinade. Also add the spring onions. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
3. Pour boiling water over the rice noodles and leave for 5 minutes. Then drain and pour over cold water.
3. Whilst the rice noodles sit, add the vegetables to the beef, and heat for 2-5 minutes, depending on how crispy or soft you want them.
4. Before serving add the rice noodles (drained from cold water) and stir into the mix to cover in sauce and heat.

This served 3 people, however there was a large amount of beef, so adding more vegetables and another bundle of rice noodles would easily serve 4-5.
The vegetables can easily be substituted or swapped to suit your fancy! You could also serve it with boiled rice, or even in a tortilla wrap instead of rice noodles.

The Strength of Research

I've recently been looking at research about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and it's amazing how much I felt that I could relate. It made me feel less alone, and that others feel exactly the same way, and that more was being done for our cause. However, whilst I was researching I found a shocking statistic, that made me incredibly frustrated:

"At least 1 million Americans have CFS, more than have lung cancer or MS; yet more than 80% go undiagnosed."

Another fact I found (unfortunately I can't find the source now!) showed that many people with CFS suffer more than those in final stages of other illnesses, yet the research is so limited, and lacks major funding! However, some new research is promising and is really capturing what it is like to be chronically ill. Here are a few glimpses of research I found that really summarised how I feel, and what I go through.

CFS Patients Strive To Remain Active:

Prior to illness patients were energetic. “When this pattern was interrupted by illness, participants attempted to maintain their previous level of occupational engagement. Negative associations and emotions were described in response to the concept of doing nothing or limited activity. A recurring cycle was reported of increasing activity levels when symptoms improved, followed by post exertional symptoms… patients expressed negative feelings and beliefs towards the concept of doing nothing and therefore sought to push their activity levels … ” (Pemberton & Cox)

“Not being able to be with friends, or attend school, made the adolescents feel different and forgotten. They felt alienated in their own bodies and were struggling to be visible to themselves and to their surroundings. Spending less time with friends and more time with their parents constituted a threat to independence and development. Yet they managed to envision a better future despite all the difficulties.” (Winger et al.)

2013

• 2013 was an extremely challenging year for me, and I'm glad to say that I have made it through, and am proud of the things I achieved. I found this set of questions and thought that it would give everyone an insight into things that happened over the past 12 months, and would put the year into review for me. So here goes...
• 
  
• 1:What did you do in 2013 that you’d never done before?

I took a huge leap of faith, and went out to live in America for over 3 months - I lived with family in Maine, and interned at UMaine in Food Science to give myself a greater depth of knowledge about the subject and whether it is my path to follow. This adventure was the biggest part of my year, in my eyes, and really gave me unexpected results. Pretty much everything went completely opposite to how I had expected, and unfortunately my trip was cut short due to my illness worsening, when I had hoped greatly that the time there would have the opposite effect.

        On the contrary to the negatives, I grew so much as a person whilst being there, and my bonds with my family, and new friends grew stronger. I have learnt to think of it now not as a failure, but as a lesson - I may jumped in too deep, but by jingo I have some stories to tell, even if they aren't the stories I expected!

A-Levels - At the beginning of 2013 my attendance for sixth form was below 30%, and teaching myself at home was becoming more difficult due to my health. I am a constant worrier, and I continually worried that I wasn't doing enough, or that I would forget absolutely everything I had taught myself. I was concerned I wouldn't be able to take the exams - one exam did take me 4 hours to complete - let alone get a grade at the end of it. To my utter surprise I passed, and even more shocking I gained two A's and a B. I taught myself A-Levels, woah!

Only a small thing, but I flew by myself.. went through the airport and everything successfully by myself. It all went rather well until I had a brief moment of near fainting, oopsy.

• 2:Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

I never really made any new year's resolutions in 2013, and this year instead of resolutions I have made goals. They may be only small things to everyone else, but to me they would be amazing to achieve. Here are a few:

• Build up my strength.
• Regain the independence to do daily tasks, such as getting up or making food.
• Visit a friend at university (this one will be a toughie, I'll definitely need to build the strength first!).

• 3:Did anyone close to you give birth?

My cousin's wife gave birth to their second child, a little girl named Kitty.

• 4:Did anyone close to you die?

No one close to me died - my Nan's partner sadly had a stroke, but he's been pulling back ever since!

• 5:What countries did you visit?

This past year I visited Spain and America - 3 states to check off my bucket list, yay.

I went on a post-exam, relaxing girls holiday to Spain, and then off to New York to start my few months across the pond, lovely jubbly. I can definitely see why millions of people travel to New York and want to live there, it really is a truly amazing city.

• 6:What would you like to have in 2014 that you lacked in 2013?

Oo this one's a toughie… maybe a bit more of a clue to what I'm going to do as the next step in my life.

• 7:What dates from 2013 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

Definitely my last day at sixth form, and Summer Ball - they were both great and it was just lovely to spend time with everyone before we all went our separate ways, and we don't get to spend as much time together. The day I got my results from my parents over Skype is etched in my mind; it was so nerve-racking having them open the paper on camera! My parents had their 25th anniversary this year so that was a super important day! Finally, of course, the day I landed back in England and got to see my sister and parents at the airport, I've never been so relieved.

• 8:What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Oo this one I'm going to have to tie two achievements for first. They are, as you may have guessed my A-Level results (can you tell I'm still super happy about them?), and living in Maine for a wee while, trying new things, meeting new people, and of course, starting this blog, hehehe.

• 9:What was your biggest failure?

There were no major failures that I can think of in 2013, although for a while (and occasionally now) I saw my trip to America as a huge huge failure, as it had turned out completely not how I wanted, and things were not how I expected them to be.

• 10:Did you suffer illness or injury?

In 2013 I did not suffer any new illness or injury, but continued to be weighed down by my M.E (also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). With symptoms fluctuating, everyday was difficult to predict, and everything I did had to take into account how it could affect me. It affected huge portions of my life, including sixth form, for which I barely attended, and socially. Not being around my friends at school meant that I was less likely to be invited to things outside of school, and if there was something I was invited to, well there was only a slim chance I could go, or I wouldn't stay long - it was extremely difficult and wearing as many did not understand and still don't now.

        The last part of 2013 was my worst period of illness, and I could barely do anything without the help of my parents (whom I am extremely grateful of). Since then I have improved slowly, but improved I have.

• 11:What was the best thing you bought?

Oh goodness, these questions are really making me think, I have no idea?!

• 12:Whose behaviour merited celebration?

I could list so many people for this, so I'm gonna have to cut the list down. At the top of the list, of course, are my parents and sister, everything they have done over the past year I could never in a million years thank them enough.

        Oo there are just too many people that I think deserve celebration, family, friends, the air stewards on my plane, even the nurse who stopped me freaking out at my blood test… I could go on forever with this question! This question really shines light on the good people in my little world.

• 13:Whose behaviour made you appalled?

I'm not going to go into this question, but over the year there have been people whose behaviour I have questioned, but hey ho.

• 14:Where did most of your money go?

In my bank account - boring answer!

• 15:What did you get really, really, really excited about?

• Going to New York!
• Meeting my family at the airport after 3 months!
• Getting to see Hannah after 5 months!
• Achieving incredible results, against all odds.
• Going on holiday with my friends.
• Seeing Mumford & Sons in concert again!
• Finally deciding on a dress for both Summer Ball and Charlie & Anna's wedding - it's the little things!

• 16:What song will always remind you of 2013?

Oh geewizz my mind has blanked all possible music, okay let's think… probably something by Ben Howard!

• 17:Compared to this time last year, are you: (a) happier or sadder? (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer?

a) Happier. b) Probably the same? c) Probably the tiniest bit richer, but that's mainly due to gift vouchers haha!

• 18:What do you wish you’d done more of?

I wish I'd been able to go into sixth form more, and spend more time with my friends, but unfortunately that couldn't be changed! 

• 19:What do you wish you’d done less of?

Worry, panic, get upset.. the usual for me really.

• 20:How did you spend Christmas?

I've been meaning to write about Christmas, so I will do that sometime soon. Christmas was spent with my parents and Nan on the 25th, and then Leanne and John joined us on the 26th and stayed for about a week. We had a lot of good food, gifts, games and company over the whole week, and as exhausting as it was, it was lovely!

• 21:Did you fall in love in 2013?

Nope.

• 22:What was your favourite TV program?

My ongoing favourite programme is still The Big Bang Theory - you just can't go wrong with it.

Other than that, Broadchurch was probably up there, it was such a teasing, need to know who did it programme. The Mindy Project has also been a winner for me this year.

• 23:Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

Sadly I do, but I've started to put it behind me as I know that there is no point letting it get me down still, so I'd say that hate would be too strong to describe my feelings at the minute.

• 24:What was your greatest musical discovery?

Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros - I saw them live at the Olympic Park and their songs were so happy and upbeat!

• 25:How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2013?

Relaxed, preppy, comfy and cute.

• 26:What kept you sane?

Family and friends.

• 27:Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

Josh Hutcherson & Usain Bolt.

• 28:Who did you miss?

I miss seeing my Uncle, spending everyday with him and then not seeing him is definitely weird! I also miss Brianna and Katie, I felt really close to them just before I left. I also miss my friends that have gone to university, they're kind of in a 'uni bubble' which is sad and I haven't seen them for ages.

• 29:Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013.

No matter what you're going through, you can still achieve things, no matter how small.

Family and health come before everything.

• 30:Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

"Keep your head up, keep your heart strong."

        - Ben Howard

Belated British Thanksgiving

        I've been meaning to write this for the past week, however writing has got a lot more difficult over the past month or so. It took me two days to write a single email. I used to be able to get them done in a flash. Oh well, I'm finally getting round to it which is an achievement!

        We all know that Thanksgiving is a huge American tradition, and before things turned a little, well a little topsy turvy, I was hoping to spend the holiday out there and experience everything about it. Unfortunately, that wasn't able to happen so my sister and her best friend planned for us to have our own take on Thanksgiving. We had cute little turkey decorations, and a traditional menu (of course, all gluten free!).
       For our main meal we had turkey and pulled pork, with roast potatoes, sweet potato mash, maple covered carrots and parsnips, veggies and gravy. It was all delicious, and I think we really pulled it all off; especially my sisters pulled pork - none of us had ever made or had it before, but on all the cookery programmes and in restaurants it looked amazing, and so my sister took on the challenge and it came out great. The recipe was also really simple, using the slow cooker, and we had leftovers for sandwiches the next day.
        Pudding was a slight disaster, to say the least. Pumpkin pies are traditional, but due to them not being Mel suitable, we decided to go for an apple pie, using a package pie crust mix. All we had to do was add the flour mix to oil and water, this part went swimmingly, until we tried to roll out the pastry. Uh oh this wasn't gonna work. We ended up pushing the pastry into the pie tray as best we could. The filling seemed to be the only bit that worked, yummy cooked apples and raisins in a sugary syrup. The pastry topping didn't work either, and we ended up renaming it a jigsaw pie as it really looked so mismatched on top! Surprisingly, when it came out the oven it looked golden and yummy... that was not the case. The pastry had a chemical taste, so we ended up only eating the filling. Never gonna use a package pie crust again.
        To save the day we got back on track with a final bite of delicious food, turkey decorated cupcakes. Alison is an amazing baker, and these were no exception, and the decoration was super.

        The day really made me feel grateful for the family and friends I have around me, and I couldn't of asked for better people to spend our belated take on Thanksgiving.

Back to Basics & Baking

        First of all I'd like to apologise for the radio silence - since I've come home I've been resting pretty much 24/7 as my chronic fatigue has deteriorated drastically due to the last 3 months. I've there for decided (well, partly because my body is making me) to go back to basics, and start rehab and recovery from the beginning. Struggling to do anything at all on my own is such a huge pain, so I'm spending the days resting, using my wheelchair to get about, and starting to do some basic exercises, in the hope that the rest will renew my energy, the use of the chair won't wear me out and the exercises will start to build my strength.
        That's the plan anyway; and although my plans don't seem to be going quite how I'd like, I really hope starting from scratch will finally help me recover.

       Another thing I've gone back to this week is one of my favourite hobbies - baking! With my current situation, I find doing any sort of activity difficult, so my Mum and I decided to start again with a basic recipe (I've had a 3 month break from baking - hardest thing ever!) of banana bread. It was so much fun to get baking again, even if I had to let my mum do most of it, and thankfully the recipe came out great!

Recipe - Gluten Free Banana Bread

Ingredients
150g Mashed Bananas (peeled weight)
200g Gluten Free Self Raising Flour
1 tsp Xanthan Gum
125g Pure Sunflower Spread
125g Light Soft Brown Sugar
Grated Zest of 1/2 a Lemon
2 Large Eggs
100g Sultanas
100g Chopped Pecans
        (The last two are optional, and could be substituted with chocolate chips, dried fruit, or other nuts).

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 180C, 160C Fan, or Gas Mark 4.
2. Line your loaf tin.
3. Mash your peeled bananas in a bowl and set aside for later.
4. Beat together the sunflower spread, brown sugar and grated zest in a mixing bowl.
5. Beat in the eggs, and add the flour and xanthan gum, until thoroughly combined.
6. Add the bananas and stir, and lastly stir in the sultanas and pecans.
7. Put the mixture in the loaf tin, and bake for 50-55 minutes or until the top springs back when lightly pressed.


        This recipe creates a delicious, fresh banana bread, which is perfect with a cup of tea before bed, or served with custard as a pudding.

Welcome Home

        I'd been trying to think of what to write even before I was completely home, and nothing I was preparing to write would cover what happened! I was packed and ready nearly two weeks before (a bit eager I know), and did the final few bits of packing that weekend, ready to head home on Monday.

        We started out reasonably early on Monday morning, driving down to Portland to catch the Concord bus to Logan International. It took about 4 hours, and it was 4 hours of me getting slightly frustrated at every little thing that happened, or things that certain people did. Arriving at the airport, with time to spare, even though we got caught in Columbus Day Parade traffic, was a quiet relief. I wasn't able to check my bags in for a couple of hours, so we went to the Boston Bar & Grill and grabbed some lunch - although I'd already snacked on sandwiches, crisps and cookies on the way down and had said I'd grab something before I got on the flight.

        After having lunch it was time to check in my bags, and head to security. The queue went quite quickly for the bag drop, and because we ate in the Boston Bar & Grill the receipt allowed me to go through the upper classes security lane. Saying goodbye to Uncle Ian was hard, and I got upset - all a mixture of upset, and anxiety of flying on my own for the first time. The queue was a lot shorter than the normal security section, but it still took a long time, and it was such a pain to do it on my own, as I had four trays of my things going through the scanner!

        On the other side of security, I went to the little news agents, and brought a drink for the flight, and later on some chewy sweets for take off and landing. I had lots of time to kill so brought a small hot chocolate, and tried to get the nuisance internet to work so I could chat to Mum and Dad - I got it working on and off, but in the end gave up and let them get to sleep anyway, and went to my gate to wait to be called.

        On the plane I was sat next to two guys, probably a bit older than me, and they were really lovely. There was also a crowd of 'grannies on tour' near me, which were quite amusing. I was pretty darn anxious, but taking off and the start of the flight was actually a lot better than I expected. The dinner was the best gluten free meal I've had on a plane so far, and I got to watch Monster's University which I've wanted to see since it came out. The film was great, so funny, and even though it's made for children I still loved the story and the characters are super as always.
        Just before breakfast was served, I got up to go to the bathroom and on the way back I had to wait behind the breakfast trolley. Next thing I know, my vision is blurry and two men are holding me up from behind, as I was swaying all over the show nearly about to faint. They got the attention of the air steward, and he told me to sit down, but before I could I felt extremely sick, and had to run to the bathroom. I'm never sick, which can sometimes be a bonus, but other times you feel like it might help - this was one of those times. The steward got me some water, sick bags, and told me just to stay sitting for a while, until I felt well enough to get back to my seat. Eventually I did get back to my seat, but after a while I felt myself going all over again, and so they took me to the jump seat thing at the back, and got me some coca cola (flattened coke is meant to reduce sickness, which it did); I then started shivering crazily, so next thing I had a hot water bottle and blanket, and they had radioed ahead to Heathrow to let them know that I would be needing the beep-beep cart to go through the airport.
        I went back to my seat before landing, and the guys made sure I was okay, and everyone was so sweet when they got off the plane wishing me well and making sure someone was waiting for me.

        I honestly couldn't of asked for better people to look after me on the plane - both the steward and stewardess were extremely kind and caring, and did everything they possibly could to make me feel comfortable and well.

        After getting through the airport on the beep-beep cart, not having to wait at the passport check, I got my luggage and as soon as I looked through the double doors I saw my family waiting for me with signs and a balloon, and I just knew that I was home and that even though things haven't been great, I was home and I would be able to go through everything with them now, instead of half way around the world.

Goodbye

        Goodbye. It's something I have been trying not to think about. I've been trying to think about it not as a goodbye, but as a see you soon.

        Today is my last day at UMaine, and the only thing to do was see Brianna for the last time. This past week I have only been in yesterday and today, as I have been unwell, and Bri has no lab work due to writing her thesis. We caught up at lunch yesterday, and put off the goodbye until today - I brought her a gift, and she adored it (so happy about that!), and she gave me plenty of abalone shells. All that was left was to say goodbye. Incredibly, I didn't cry - until I got back to the office - but it was still extremely hard, as I have become so close to her over the last few months, and she has been so supportive, understanding, and has done everything she can to make my experience amazing.

        I really don't have the words to express how thankful I am for her, or how happy I am that I got to become such great friends with her. She is truly incredible, and gave me such sweet advice for my future.

Little Bit of Charity

        Yesterday evening, Katie and I represented the UMaine Food Science Club in the community by going to the Ronald McDonald house and cooking a meal for the residents. For those of you who haven't heard of the Ronald McDonald House, it is a house sponsored by McDonalds that gives families who have children in hospital a home away from home, with a comforting, supporting environment, where families can meet others in similar situations, and allow them to be near to the hospitals whilst not having to stay in hotels all the time.

        I originally thought that the whole food science club would be attending, but it turns out that they find it difficult to organise everyone to go, so it was only me and Katie - this didn't bother me at all, and between the two of us we managed to cook the meal, and make some pudding.

        We started off by hitting the grocery store and getting some last minute things including, veggies and cheese ends; if you go to the deli cheese counter and ask for cheese ends they give you a bag of spare or ends of their cheeses for such a good price! We then headed to the house, and set up in the kitchen and began cooking. The dish Katie had chosen to make was called 'hearty chicken casserole' - I'd say it wasn't a traditional casserole, but it was still delicious whatever we want to call it! It consisted of chicken, kidney beans, celery, and onion cooked in a tomato and creamy sauce, with melted cheese on top, all served with white rice and steamed broccoli.

        I think the meal went down well, even if some of the children were very opinionated on various parts of it, and there wasn't much left at all, so we sat down with a portion ourselves and I absolutely loved it and would happily make it at home. For pudding we had already prepared the pretzel bites - we did pretzels dipped in chocolate for any peanut allergy sufferers, and then the main pudding was pretzels with a creamy peanut butter filling dipped in chocolate. Hopefully the kids will like these better, kids always like sweet foods!

        After we had finished eating, washing, drying and generally tidying we said goodbye to some of the residents, and the man who was on duty, and jumped in the car. Katie had been telling me about a Giffords ice cream stand that was only a short drive away, so we decided to treat ourselves to dessert. The stand was surprisingly busy for a Tuesday night at 7 o'clock, but we got served quickly and both absolutely devoured our ice creams! I went for a cup with one scoop of vanilla and one scoop of mint chocolate chip; I'm not really meant to eat dairy as it upsets my tummy, but having a bad stomach anyone I thought it wouldn't make any difference. Both these flavours were incredible, and the ice cream was so smooth and delicious, and all made here in Maine. Katie 'accidentally' ordered a sundae, and it included a scoop of s'mores ice cream, a scoop of muddy boots ice cream (it has pieces of brownie in), caramel sauce, whipped cream, sprinkles and a cherry! Katie was an absolutely cutie and treated me to it, as she wasn't sure whether she would see me again before I leave on Monday - I really hope that I will see her on Thursday or Friday at uni though!

        I really don't know what I'm gonna do without this girl back home, I've got to know her really well and just love hanging out with her!

Airport Diner

        The Airport Diner is located in Manchester, New Hampshire - I knew little about New Hampshire before visiting this past weekend, only that their motto is "live free or die" (a little drastic, I think), but upon my visit I now know that you can find some extremely good diner food there! The diner is situated next to a large hotel, and near to the Manchester airport - hence the name - so has a flowing trade; what makes it even better is that the food is incredibly good and the atmosphere happy and relaxed, so people visit from far and wide, not just passing trade!

        The restaurant was clean and tidy, with the interior reminding visitors of the boom of the diners, and allowing them a traditional experience. The decor inside was simplistic and classic, with the added bonus of model aeroplanes hanging from the ceiling, and hand painted art on the walls to mimic the skies. However, none of this drew the attention away from the food! As soon as you entered, the dessert and pudding glass case was in view, so you could drawl over those while being served. Even better, if you sat on the counter, or in a booth nearby, you could watch every meal be made, with the precision and care each of the chefs gave them.

        The menu includes all of the classic diner food, such as burgers, steaks, sandwiches, and a large breakfast selection, and although many of these classics appear simple, the chefs and owners at the Airport Diner have hit the nail on the head with the flavours and taste, and have ventured to new depths by adding an unusual twist onto some of these classics.

Try some diner lingo!

        On the Friday evening, the restaurant was really quite busy, so we sat at the counter, and despite the hustle and bustle of people coming and going, the service was quick, easy and the staff were extremely accommodating, and as warm as the pies they serve! We dived straight into the mains, with myself ordering a bacon, cheese burger with no bun, fries and a salad, and my Uncle ordering the chilli salad served in a ginormous taco! The burger was delicious, perfectly cooked and the fries seasoned perfectly. My Uncle's portion was huge, and could of easily served both of us! The chilli was delicious, and had a great depth of flavour, with a slight heat that lingered in the mouth. The salad included a great mixture of vegetables, which allowed for a cool bite after the heat of the chilli. Being gluten free I didn't try the taco, but just the look of it was appealing - I have a feeling that if I had wanted that meal they would have happily served it without the taco basket, and probably offered another option like chips for myself, as they were extremely understanding of my dietary requirements.
        There were a variety of desserts to choose from, and we ended up choosing the Grasshopper Pie, which is essentially mint chocolate chip ice cream (all ice creams are hand-made) in a gram cracker pie crust, served with whipped cream, fudge chocolate sauce, and sprinkles. The portion size was huge again, and we delved straight in! I avoided the gram crust, but even without it, the dish was great - the mint chocolate chip ice cream was smooth and perfectly flavoured, and the fudge sauce, I would happily fight someone for that!

        We returned twice on the Saturday for both lunch and dinner, as the diner is in a perfect location, which was easy for us to get to - we stayed only one junction away on the motorway. For both lunch and dinner we sat in a booth, as it was quieter than Friday, but still with a great amount of people. I ordered 'The Doo Wop' which included two eggs any style, a choice of bacon, Canadian bacon or sausage, home fries or beans, and toast. They even gave the option of gluten free toast for a $1 upcharge, which was perfect for me! The meal was great, and I was absolutely stuffed and couldn't eat it all. My Uncle choose 'The Big Cuban Melt' and it was definitely big, and even came with chips and a pickle.

        For dinner we both decided that we had our best diner meals yet - I had the roast beef with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables, whilst my Uncle had fried steak with mash and veggies. Both dishes were phenomenal, and I would recommend anyone to try these! I also highly recommend everyone to try the dessert of banana split! This was no ordinary banana split, but the best banana split (the server even said to us that she makes the best one in the diner). Banana served with chocolate, strawberry and vanilla home-made ice cream, with pineapple and mixed fruits, fudge chocolate sauce (in spoonfuls), whipped cream, strawberries and sprinkles. It is safe to say I had the biggest food baby after that monstrosity!

Hello Banana Split!

        If you are ever in Manchester, then please treat yourself to the Airport Diner, the food is amazing and the prices extremely great value. The restaurant, the service and the food were just top notch.

New Hampshire

         Friday afternoon and I'm packed up in the car with a great playlist (courtesy of yours truly), a hot chocolate and some jam sandwiches, ready to head on the journey to Manchester, New Hampshire. Luckily, we had a good trip down and the setting sun made for a peaceful view. Travelling is definitely not my favourite thing and I was ready for a nap when we arrived - so a nap I had.

        The Holiday Inn Express we stayed in was great, and I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Manchester. I got the luxury of a twin double room, which gave me the choice of two beds, and was extremely spacious and super clean.

        After freshening up we headed to the Airport Diner, which was just one junction down the motorway. It was really busy, which I expected for a Friday night, so we got two stools at the counter. The food was great, and the pudding delicious - so we headed back twice the next day!

        Our plan for Saturday was to visit Mount Washington, which I had searched and found out was 3 hours away - we were only an hour from Boston! - but my Uncle insisted it was 40 minutes to an hour, until he searched it as well. Time for a re-think. I went down to the lobby and looked at the guides available, and eventually found a State Park not too far away, so off went. Bear Brook State Park is located in Allenstown, New Hampshire and gave us a nice break to see the Autumn leaves. I think that the park would be a great place to visit in the Summer, as there was a little beach on the edge of a lake, with the trees surrounding the distance.

        For the remainder of the day we got lunch at the diner, and then spent the afternoon at the hotel - which was really needed! We headed back out to the diner for dinner, and had one of the best banana splits known to man!

        Sunday was reptile expo day - I had more of a slow start with my Uncle coming back to get me from the hotel. At the show we walked around, and also manned the stool; I was classed as a "vendor" which was pretty cool. It was quite bizarre to see so many reptiles, especially snakes, all in one place, and it was even weirder to see people carrying cotton bags and thinking "they've got a snake in there!".

        After spending some time there we started the journey back home, stopping in Portland, Maine for lunch (well an afternoon snack) at Whole Foods, and to do a brief shop in Trader Joe's. Travelling back really didn't go down well with my body, and I felt extremely sick and dizzy, and was glad to get back to the house and my room.

        The weekend has definitely taken its toll, and I'm glad I'm inside today, hiding from the rain and the wind. The weekend was really lovely, and nice to see somewhere different and do new things.

        It was also another state to check off my list - bonus! 5 down, 45 to go!