Healthy Berry Muffins

Pictured with wild handpicked plums

I recently made these delicious healthy muffins and I just had to share the recipe. 

Well, I say healthy. Each muffin contains around 80-90 calories which is much less then you average chocolate bar, and are full of flavour. So if you have a sweet-tooth like me, you have to try these! 

To make about 10 of these gorgeous muffins you will need:

175g Self-Raising Flour

1 teaspoon of Ground Cinnamon

140g of Brown Sugar

75ml of Apple Sauce

75ml of Almond Milk (or whatever milk you prefer)

1 free range egg

1 teaspoon of Pure Vanilla Essence

Whatever fruit you want. I used Red Currents, Raspberries and Blueberries.

1.  Firstly pre-heat your oven to 200C and line a muffin tin with cases. In a large bowl sift all the dry ingredients together (Flour, cinnamon and sugar) and mix until well combined.

2. In a separate bowl mix all your wet ingredients together (Apple sauce, milk, egg and vanilla) until well combined.

3. Add your dry mixture carefully to the wet and mix until just combined. Next fold in your chosen fruits. (If you want the fruit to stay near the top of the muffins sprinkle them onto the muffins after they have been in the oven for a couple of minutes).

4. Spoon the mixture into the cases filling them 2/3 of the way full. (Optional: Sprinkle your muffins with porridge oats or coconut) Bake in the centre of the oven for 12-15 minutes until golden.

5. Enjoy your beautiful muffins! I hope you like them! 

Mistakes are meant to be made

I love the idea of my blog as 'my space'. It's like a small haven where I can get away and write about things I enjoy, things I'm passionate about and my journey. I find writing down my thoughts and feeling so useful. That's kind of what I feel my blog is like. I pick a topic or something close to my heart and I write what I feel. Putting my opinion on the internet is scary, you're going to be judged no matter what but hey, why shouldn't I express who I am in a way which I enjoy.

No matter how you live your life you're going to be judged. So you might as well live it your way.

Everyone makes mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes are hard to forget. I constantly find myself re-living those moments in my mind, and feeling disgusted with who I was. Luckily, I catch myself out and tell myself to stop. We have all made mistakes but we shouldn't punish ourselves over them. In my opinion the past is the past and it's this moment right now that you should be focused on.
When we make a mistake we should think about what we've done. We should realise the fault we made and learn from that. Then forget it ever happened. No one wants to be judged on the things they're done wrong in the past, so don't judge yourself. You're always going to make mistakes, they're there to learn from. For this moment and future moments.
If you constantly beat yourself up over something then that's not fair on you or others around you.
If your mistake had something to do with hurting someone else then tell them you're sorry. Tell them that everybody makes mistakes.

I've made plenty of mistakes and I'm not proud to admit that. But those mistakes have made me a better person today, in this moment. That's what matters, the person you are right now. You should live for this moment because the future is uncertain and the past is gone. Do things that make you happy but don't forget that everything you do has a consequence.

Forgive yourself and forgive others. Because life's too short to live with regret.

What defines you?

Who are you? If you could think of a word to describe yourself, what would it be? How would you want others to see you? What would you want others to say about you?

If you're struggling to think of anything, imagine this:
You're at a funeral, surrounded by your friends and family. It's your funeral. Members of your family and friends start to speak about you. What do they say? What do you want them to say? In all your life, what do you want to have achieved? How do you want people to remember you?

When I did this exercise, I knew straight away how I would want people to remember me. I would want people to say things such as, 'Evie was always positive, she loved life. That was one of her biggest dreams, simply enjoy her life. She wanted to explore, develop and grow as a person. She focused on the sort of person she wanted to be and she was that.
She made the most out of everyday and inspired so many people. She inspired all of us. She adored nature and appreciated the world. She had so many dreams and fulfilled each one. Evie was compassionate, Inspirational and loving.'

I think my ideas of how I want to be seen will change overtime. However this is my idea of how I would want to be remembered now.
Once you've though of some answers, think to yourself 'Will people see me this way?' 'Do people see me this way now?'
I feel like if I keep living a positive, joyful life people will. Obviously in time I hope I will be able to fulfil my dreams but if I died next week I would still want people to remember me in that way.

So start being that person you want to be remembered as. Figure out the person you really want to be and be that person. Love yourself and love life. You have the choice and the power to be and do whatever you want. So do it. 

So, what defines you?

My Goals 2014

At the beginning of each year we usually find we're setting unachievable goals and asking too much of ourselves. 

That is also what I did.
Although it is almost March and defiantly not the new year there's still no reason I can't look at my past in a positive way and think of goals which will benefit the present and my future.
You don't need to wait for a specific day to start making changes in your life. If you realise you want to change for the good or want to start doing more things that make you happy then just do it.

Since I've completed changed the way I see the world and how I want to live my life I decided to look back at my past in a positive sense and also think of who I want to be in this moment. So I could create some new achievable goals that will make me feel like a better person and be proud of what I'm doing.
I have actually written down a list of goals on my phone. Some are very minimal and others not so much but each means something to me. You should make goals that you what to achieve for yourself, no one else. If doing something will also make your parents proud then that's just a gain. Always remember that you're in control of your life.

Goals 2014:

Focus on who I want to be
Love & Enjoy (in general)
Create and Love myself
Make the most out of 2014, make the most out of today.
Learn, Explore & Develop
Blog at least twice a week
Make a video at least once a week (because it's something I love and am passionate about doing).
Be my own best friend (want to want to please myself)
Do things that make me happy (sometimes it's easy to get lost in work, I'm doing to give myself time).
Exercise every day
Be my own inspiration (be proud of the person I am or am becoming).
Love how I look (not at all in an arrogant way, except who I am and how I look and be content with that).
Stay Positive
Live in the moment, live for the future.
Don't worry about money, treat myself and buy nice things (I hate spending money. I want to feel as if I am allowed to treat myself sometimes)
Be the best version of yourself!
Make University a great experience.
Love who I am, be my own role model, embrace who I am, love being me.
No negative thoughts
Do something every day that's worth taking a photo of!
Appreciate the world.
Show compassion for all living creates.
Wake up earlier and seize the day.
Work hard & reward myself
Explore who I am, who others are and the world beneath my feet.

These are my goals for 2014. Yes there are a lot but none of them are unachievable. They're goals but they're also words of encouragement to make me want to see the best in life and live it my way. 

Voicing my Opinion

Since changing my attitude to life, I want to share how I feel in as many ways as possible.
I want to make a difference anyway I can. So I have chosen to voice my opinion of life here and also on my other networking platforms. I already have a YouTube channel, however many of the videos I made because I thought I should, not because I wanted to. Like my blog I've decided to start again with YouTube. I deleted the majority of my videos (the ones I didn't enjoy) and I am planning on making videos which make me happy. I love my blog. I'm writing about things I care for and I'm not just doing it for the sake of it, I'm doing it because I enjoy it and I want people to know how I feel.
That's what I want my YouTube and Instragram to also be about. I want all these Social networking sites to flow and work together. I am super excited to start making video that mean something to me and I am even more excited for you to see them.

I want it to be more than just a hobby, I want it to be something that I am extremely passionate about. I would love to hear your suggestions on what videos you think I should make or any questions you want me to answer. I will be making a video at least once a week and blogging much more often.
Since I want my blog and YouTube channel to work together a lot of the videos will be about my opinion on life. Although my blog has just begun and I am yet to drive into my interests such as Fashion, baking and beauty. Over-time I hope you all will get a better idea of who I am. 

Let me know any suggestions you have.

What is life?

Have you ever just sat staring at a blank wall thinking about why we're here, what is the meaning of life, why do we exist?
When I think about 'Life' I'm overwhelmed with emotion. Actually, I'm overwhelmed with desirer and happiness - Isn't life incredible! Just think about it, think about who you are, what you can do; Dream, speak, love. It's unbelievable.
Although the meaning of life itself hasn't yet been decided, it's a existence. For some unknown reason you've been given an amazing opportunity. An opportunity to live.
You have been given a chance and it is completely up to you what you decide to do with it. But for me, the answers simple. To make the most out of an amazing opportunity and love every moment of it.

We have all been given this chance, yet some people chuck their lives away, and other do choose to end theirs. I'm not saying that how I chose to live is right and that there is no other way.
Of course there is. That's the beauty of it. While we are all the same we each have the ability to make choices.

I choose to have an amazing and positive existence. What about you?