Good morning/afternoon/evening my lovely readers! As we speak, I’m sitting here basking in full post-holiday glory. Robbert and I came home yesterday evening after a weekend away in the country. We booked this little trip back in December when I wasn’t feeling my best and now I can say it was a great decision. The weather was absolutely perfect and we got to spend some much needed quality time together. The two of us have been together for seven years and living together for one now, and even though we’re still doing great relationship-wise, I feel like it’s important to break the routine every now and then and just enjoy each other’s company like you used to in the beginning of the relationship. We don’t do that a lot as we’re quite pleased with our daily routine, but this winter felt like the perfect moment.
Anyways, more on that later, let’s take a look at the rest of the week first!
Now that I’m going to the gym and hoping to build some muscle, I feel like I could use a bit more protein in my plant-based diet. I decided to get a protein powder to boost my intake after workouts. This pea protein packs a whopping 27g of protein per serving (30g), which is pretty great. I’ve never used a protein powder before so I’m going to have to look for ways to incorporate it into my life, but a simple post-workout shake is a good place to start.
The progress on my month of Curly Girl Method. I’m getting pretty good wave definition in my wet hair, much more than I ever expected to see in any case.
However, I haven’t managed to keep that wave as my hair dries. I feel like that’s my biggest challenge at the moment and I’m looking for different ways to dry my hair that might help. Getting a diffuser is step one, and I’m also trying air drying during the day so that I don’t flatten the hair in my sleep like I did in this picture.
On Tuesday night, Robbert and I headed to our friend’s place in Gouda for a Dungeons and Dragons session.
Will you look at that, my l’Eau Couture by Elie Saab is all gone! I don’t remember ever having used a perfume up completely before. The smell usually turns before I get the chance to use a fragrance up, but I went through this one really quickly. I remember writing a blog post about it when I first got it, as I was so in love. Luckily I don’t have to say goodbye yet, as I have another bottle waiting that Robbert got me a while back :) It’s such a delicious warm, soft scent!
Time to try the protein powder! I got home from the gym on Thursday and made a shake with a scoop of pea protein, a tablespoon of cacao powder and a cup of almond milk. It has a bit of a funny taste for sure, but nothing I can’t get used to.
While we’re at it, a little gym update: I’m going at least once a week (usually twice) every week and still enjoying it a lot. Who would’ve thought! I really hope this is a new habit I’ll keep up throughout the year.
Filming a hair tutorial on Friday. I really liked this braided hairstyle I did in the “vintage hairstyles for long, straight hair” video and ended up wearing it for the rest of the day.
Including at scouting, where one of the explorers gave us a loom knitting workshop. As there weren’t enough looms for everyone, I took a crochet hook and worked on a little hat. I needed a bit more time in order to finish it but I still feel like I got pretty far, haha! It’s been a few years since last I picked up yarn and a hook, and I’m glad to know I’ve still got it :)
On Saturday morning, Robbert and I hopped on the train and made our way over to Zeist where we were going to spend the weekend. This was our lodging for the night: the beautiful Kerckebosch castle.
We knew it’d be pretty before we got there, but my gosh it was GORGEOUS! A very tasteful mix of authentic details with touches of modern luxury. The castle is marketed as a wedding venue and I can definitely see why.
We booked a suite with this gorgeous view and beautiful little balcony. If it hadn’t been freezing, I’m sure we would’ve spent some time there :)
It was freezing though, and we went on a long walk instead. The Utrechtse Heuvelrug is my favourite part of the Netherlands with its beautiful varied landscapes and large natural parks, and it was wonderful to spend some time here. I’d absolutely love to move to this area one day.
We ended up going on a three-hour walk through this gorgeous, enchanting area. The sky was clear and the sun was shining, so we didn’t get cold. We couldn’t have asked for better conditions, it was perfect!
In the evening we headed into Zeist to have some dinner at a tapas restaurant.
Our room came with a whirlpool bath, which was a heaven-sent for our sore feet. I really miss not having a bath tub, the last time I had a bath was actually at the Efteling hotel a year ago. If we ever buy a house in the future, I’m going to make sure it has a bath tub for sure.
Next morning we enjoyed a delicious breakfast in the castle, before heading into Zeist again. We had another walk planned and needed to take a bus to get to the start of it, but we hadn’t considered the fact that the bus might not run on Sundays. Which apparently it doesn’t. So we decided to take the train to Utrecht and spend the afternoon there instead.
On our way home in the evening we stopped by Robbert’s family’s house for a bit, and then we went home. My brother was kind enough to stay in our apartment and take care of the rats while we were away, so we treated him to some yummy sushi for dinner. Afterwards we played some video games for a bit and then he went home again.
My brother sent me this photo of the twins while we were away. Right in the middle of a drink bottle battle! :)
And that brings us to the end of my week, or rather to the start of a new one. This week I’m mostly planning to get a lot of work done again, but we also have a few fun meetings with friends planned that I’m looking forward to. I hope you have a good one, guys!
So glad you had a fun weekend together. Looks lovely! The ratties are too cute, as usual <3