Good Health Box – Review!

I was lucky enough to win a Good Health Box last month and I was not disappointed!

With chronic health issues, I struggle to exercise and maintain my weight; this is not helped by the fact that I am a complete foodie!

When I can across a competition to win a selection of healthy and yet interesting goodies, I had to enter!

Established by two guys Tim and Chin, Good HealthBoxes started after both guys became snacking fiends and vending machine villains! They both knew they needed to kick start a healthier way of life but without missing out on interesting and filling foods – So Good Health Box was born!

Tim and Chin offer an array of different snack selection boxes including the Youth Box full of healthy treats that can be used in lunch boxes, after school snacks or fuel for a homework session.

They also do large family boxes for everyone to share, a Protein box for those who exercise a lot and need foods that will support their regime, there's the Free From boxes that are brilliant if you have dairy or gluten intolerances and many more tempting box selections.

For my prize I chose their Health Box. This included;

My Box of Goodness!

Cofresh – Hummus Chips (Tomato and Basil) – The bag was big enough to share and they’re delicious dipped in low fat sour cream dip. The Hummus chips have 30% less fat than average crisps too.

Mini Moo’s –Lily-Lu’s Minty Moo Chocolate – After a long stressful day I usually crave a big old bar of chocolate but I delved into my Health box for my Mini Moo bar, served it with a low sugar hot chocolate, killing the craving dead!

Two Organics’ – Chocolate Chip and Hazelnut Cookies – These were lovely and could easily replace my normal favourites plus their wheat, gluten and dairy free!

Goobers – Orange Flavoured Raisins – I don’t like most orange flavoured treats so I gave these to my niece, she loved them asking for more afterwards – a true seal of approval!

9 Bar – Flaxseed Snack Bar – I love 9Bar products, I always have them in my cupboard for breakfast on the go. The Flaxseed one is particularly crunchy and scrumptious!

Ma Bakers – Giant Bar Strawberry Flapjack – The bar is a huge 90g’s. I found it a little heavy so split it into three snacks, a tad too sweet for my palate in one sitting.

Plamil – Coffee Chocolate Bar – I loved this bar, I have since bought more of them. The chocolate has a lovely coffee taste without being too strong or bitter.

Traidcraft – GEO Fair Trade Snack Bar – Full of fruit and crunch this was a satisfying 4 o’clock snack and not too sweet or sickly!

Eat Natural – Date, Walnut and Pumpkin Bar – Like 9Bar I always have Eat Natural bars at home for interesting flavours and combinations without too much sugar or too many calories. I tend to eat these for breakfast too.

Beond Organic– Organic Apple Cinnamon Bite – I could eat these everyday! A raw mini bar in place of a sugary biscuit is mouth-watering. This one reminded me of Christmas pudding! Vegan, Gluten, dairy and soya free, these are great to serve to friends with specific or complicated dietary requirements.

Nakd. – Cocoa Mint Bar – This was a lovely treat without the guilt of average chocolate, containing only cocoa, dates, cashews and raisins, you feel like you’re doing your body good whilst still getting your chocolate fix!

I would highly recommend Good Health Boxes for guilt free snacking and treats, unlike other similar services Good Health Box do not make you subscribe, you can leave Tim and Chin to pick your goodies for surprise selection or you can make up your own box with your favourite’s included. There are so many products to chose from at affordable prices.

For more information on Good Health Box see their Facebook, Twitter and webpage!

Big thank you to Good Health Box for treating me to some of the best snacks on the health foods market!

L x

P.s If you would like me to review or test your products please email me at Lynsey_Ellard@hotmail.com I have over 2,000 readers a month and a lot of lovely Twitter and Facebook followers :)

Somerset Part Two

Sunday at the Chapel was a lazy day, there isn’t much to report and I wasn’t a fatty eating all day either – surprising, I know!

Monday Mike, his Dad and Brother in law Andrew went to the Bovington Tank Museum so us girls went to close by Dorchester to go to the Dorset Bear Museum. Beth, our niece, loved the almost 6ft bears as much and the tiny ones; it’s a small yet sweet attraction and because of our under 3 and carers discounts an inexpensive one too!

Beth

Sweep, Sooty & Sue!!!

After some lunch at a place called Taste in Dorchester we headed to Yeovil and a soft play center called Rug Ratz to amuse Beth whilst we waited for the boys to return. As Mike’s sister Emma, is 7 months pregnant and I’m well… me (i.e. crap) chasing Beth was left to Andrea (i.e. Grandma!). When the boys came back all testosterone fueled from the man toy exhibition they took over with play duty then we headed to Ask for dinner.

One of my best friends, Helen, moved the Ivybridge in Plymouth in July and since we were close by we met up in Exeter today. Staying in town centre, we took Beth and Helen’s son, Alex to another play centre called Dinkys which was two minutes’ walk from the cities Cathedral. With the little ones in tow we decided not to go inside, it’s such a beautiful building but currently covered in scaffolding – annoying!

Goofing outside the Cathedral 

Exeter had just a huge city centre, Southend is looking remarkably small and dull now. Exceter has such a wide range of shops and they’re all huge – there’s a 5 storey John Lewis and a Cathy Kitson store… I may just be tempted to move here myself!

Lucky for Southend, I come home in three days’ time!

L x

Back To My Adventures

After coming home from Spain, since we did so much, I felt I needed to rest, any fellow Cerebral Palsy and RSD/CRPS (in fact anyone with a long term condition) folks know it doesn’t take much to completely exhaust us. There’s this funny attitude that if we do something fun we must be alright – doesn’t work like that - pain doesn’t stop for the sunshine or a party – in my case I pop I few more (prescribed!!) pills and suffer the consequences, and by consequences I mean more pain, for the next day/week/month.

Anyway whilst I’m not bed bound I’m not resting for long in between my adventures, so three days after landing in Luton from Spain I headed to Suffolk and the Centre Parc’s at Elvenden Forest for my friend Clare’s Hen weekend!

I drove up with my pal Helen and we met with Clare, her Mum Bev, her sister Gemma and her future sister-in-law Sophie.

This was not my first hen night and I doubt it’ll be my last for a long time yet and I’ve come to realise much like and actor or comedian you must know your audience on a hen do, too much filth – you’re a pervert, not enough – you’re a prude! F.Y.I I’m neither!

On this occasion I had only met Mummy Bev once at a kid’s party, Gemma half a dozen times and I had never even met future sister in law Sophie before. So whilst putting together games I had to tread carefully – funny not filthy, amusing not alarming... I was going to have to spend not only three day’s for this hen weekend, with these people, but two day’s for the wedding too. I didn’t want them avoiding me as the smut monster!

Turns out I had nothing to be worried by and there was in fact a little disappointment I hadn’t included the odd naughty question in my Mr and Mrs Quiz (I e-mailed the Husband to be; Matt questions beforehand to answer - questions Clare had to get right - or face... well.. more booze) although Sophie being Matt’s sister was probably grateful!

I love the Elevenden Centre Parc’s it’s accessible, the apartments are clean, spacious and well maintained plus there’s so much to do on site. Although I visited the centre in March 2011, this time - I discovered there is tiny, weeny cute little nightclub called the Forum where the DJ was very fond of auto-mix and every song jumbled into one giant collaboration – and no it wasn’t me just being drunk – the others noticed it too.... okay that’s not a good example either, but at one point LadyGaga was mixed into Jon Bon Jovi which morphed into Kung Fu Fighting!

Clockwise Starting from: Me, Helen, Sophie, Bev, Gem and Clare

Saturday was spent in the huge pool and slides, followed by a leisurely float in a pedalo, a delicious Mexican feast cooked by Sophie and then a four hour trip to the heavenly spa.

The Spa were great about the wheelchair – I’m always worried about tire marks and scuffs in places like this but after falling over and managing to kick the spa wall resulting a week of agony on my last visit, I was taking my chair everywhere!

I have to say there was a point where I was laying outside on a water bed, in my bikini, at 8pm on a warm evening and thought - how very lucky I really am!

L x