25th Wedding Anniversary - Party

Last night we held a party at the local village hall with family and friends to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary.

We had over one hundred guests turn up, which was fantastic. The food and disco were superb and I believe that a great time was had by all,

Ali and I would sincerely like to thank everyone who bought us presents and cards, but truly the best gift was just having some really fantastic people around to help us celebrate the occasion.

The photo above captures us at the end of the evening about to release a handful of silver balloons left over from the evening into the night and making a wish together.

Isn't that romantic......

25th Wedding Anniversary

Today it's our 25th Wedding Anniversary

Like many other people who've been married for this amount of time, we've had our 'ups and downs', but doesn't everyone. On the whole however we've had a pretty fantastic marriage.

This Saturday (25th July) we are having a party with all our family and friends to celebrate this milestone, then in September we are heading off to Italy for a romantic holiday - we can't wait.

As you've probably noticed I've included a nice picture of some Roses. My sister Bev bought us these from Hampton Court Palace. They're actually named the "25th Wedding Anniversary Rose" - How appropriate.

It's the second Rose bush that we've received as a gift, (maybe someones trying to tell me something?) See my post titled 'contemplating'.

Today I'm shopping with my wife in Norwich (why change habits of a lifetime.) I'm looking to buy her a little gift for putting up with me for all those years, so it's got to be something pretty special.

I'll post later what I came up with!

One Year On !

Today it's my 49th birthday, (thank you for your for the card PSBN Jon - I think you're the only one who actually reads this blog.)

Just to remind anyone else who may be reading, the main reasons for me starting this blog 12 months ago, was because I was feeling very down in the dumps, overweight, tired and very sluggish.

Of course much of the above was down to a string of events that had previously happened to me, such as the passing away of my father, my daughter leaving home and my wife suffering with the 'empty nest syndrome' my whole life had taken a considerable down-turn.

So, one year ago I decided to try to do something about it. So I started writing, exercising and dieting as a kind of therapeutic outlet and I have to say that over the past year it has helped me tremendously.

Thankfully my head has now emerged from those dark clouds and a new 'MD' has emerged. Here's the picture to prove it. (Minus 15lbs in weight)

Big Daddy !

One year ago I had the above picture taken.

It was a photograph that I wanted no one to see. At the time I was weighing in at 13stone 12lbs.

I recall feeling sluggish, heavy, and mightly depressed. This picture was one of the main reasons in me writing this blog and doing something postive concerning my own health & fitness.

I named myself 'Big Daddy' and then used it as a motivation tool to get myself into shape

Coming soon - One year later!

Watch this space................

Deep Breathing Exercises

Every morning I awake about 7am and the first thing that I do (after visiting the bathroom) is to perform my breathing exercises.

These are specific breathing patterns that are performed in combination with holding certain positions.

These exercises have derived from the Buddhist aspect of Kuk Sool Won and have been practiced for thousands of years by monks and martial artists.

There are many benefits that arise from making deep breathing a part of your daily routine, most of which are due to the fact that deep, cleansing breaths also give your lymph system a helping hand in clearing out the toxins from your body.

By breathing we can encourage the flow of the energy (ki) throughout the body. Deep breathing does not only stimulate and regulate this flow of energy, but it also has a powerful cleansing effect on the entire body.

Of course it is only after a continued period of practice that the benefits can be recognised, these benefits include increased strength and vitality and an overall feeling of well-being.