Happy Monday everyone! I just thought I would pop in to share a quick recap of the awesome adventures I got up to this weekend. I’d love to hear what you did with your weekend hours too so please comment below!
I started the weekend on Friday night by taking Miss Penny for a long walk that ended at the train station so we could Chris as he came off the train. (In case you can’t tell Miss P gets very excited on our walks.) Also I bought the puffy vest I am wearing in this photo at the beginning of winter and I think it is one of my favourite purchases of all time. I feel like a warm, cottony marshmallow when I am wearing it. 
Saturday morning Jess, my Mum and I met the hair and make up ladies who are going to make me all glamorous for our wedding, which is less than three months away now! I think they have pretty much found the perfect look for our big day. I am happy that I am not going for a heavy make up look because that’s not what I am comfortable with. All of you brides out there remember that you do you with decisions for the wedding!
Then a quick pit-stop for lunch. My current favourite: avocado, cheese, tomato, beetroot and lettuce. Plus a few dried dates and a square of chocolate for lunch dessert. 
And then Jess and I headed out for a 9km hike while my brother-in-law (her husband, Trent) went mountain biking with some buddies. We were all exploring Daisy Hill National Park, which is a beautiful national park right in the middle of suburbia. We came across the old quarry which forms part of the park and is a beautiful place to stop and rest after some mad scrambles up hill. Jess and I completed the Buhot Creek Trail if you are a local looking for an enjoyable hike in Brisbane. 
We beat the boys back to the car so headed out to explore some of the neighbourhood streets nearby. Jess and I agreed that we wouldn’t mind living in one of the houses around this gorgeous little lake. 
Saturday night turned stormy and Chris and I braved the rain to do our grocery shopping and pick up pizza for dinner. It started bucketing down right when our pizza order came up so we sat inside the take-away shop and ate our piping hot pizza while the rain came down outside. I didn’t take any photos because I was enjoying time with Chris, and it was a good reminder to me that you don’t always have to be in a fancy restaurant, or on a planned ‘date night’, to take some time to get closer to the person you love.
Luckily the skies cleared on Sunday morning because I had a walking date with a friend that I had been looking forward to for ages! We got started talking and two hours later we had covered nearly 10km! Brisbane city really was putting on her best show for us after the rainy night. 
By the time I got home it was lunchtime and my body was craving veggies after my cheesy pizza feast the night before. I put together a huge salad using Aldi’s kale slaw mix, chickpeas, haloumi, and spring onions with some seeds and the random creamy dressing included in the kale mix bag. Hit.the.spot. So much crunch and flavour. 
A little while later I was hungry for something sweet and I wanted to make a morning tea snack for the week that wasn’t muesli bars (I am a little over bars at the moment) so I whipped up a batch of coffee walnut muffins. I will be making these again and sharing them with you when recipe posts return in a few weeks. They were so good. And delicious with a cup of tea while I relaxed on Sunday afternoon. 
Chris has been experimenting with barbecuing ribs on Sunday nights, so I am in charge of the vegetable part of the meal. Last night Chris enjoyed pork ribs and we both enjoyed roasted zucchini, capsicum, onion, and potatoes. I paired mine with chickpeas and garlicky hummus for dunking. 
After dinner we watched ‘Ghost in the Shell’ and ate ice cream before I tucked my tired self into bed and drifted off with Penny snuggled between my feet.
I was grateful to my body for carrying me through so many kilometers this weekend. It is the first time in a while that I have felt strong enough to do so much movement on both weekend days, and the first time in a while that I have felt that special exhaustion that comes from movement that you enjoy. None of the movement I did on the weekend was particularly strenuous (except for few hills on our Saturday hike!) but movement doesn’t have to be high intensity to be good for our bodies. If you choose movement/exercise that feels good to you, and that you enjoy, then you are moving in a way that is kind to your body, and your mind – and you are more likely to include more movement in your life which has so many positive benefits for us! I’ll be talking more about kind, joyful movement in an upcoming Wellness Wednesday post!
So what did you get up to on your weekend? Did anyone else get outside for some adventures, or maybe eat something delicious?