8 February, 2023
Valentine’s Day Instructions: Find the ingredients, give them a good mix and sprinkle in your own magic. Contemplate for 24 hours, then wait for the unique feeling of “huggyness” to take hold. Recipe should be taken with a large pinch of salt and a dose of sense of humour.
List of Ingredients:
10 Breaths Of Fresh Air: Give your immune system some love: it loves being outside in the fresh air. Research suggests that breathing in the airborne chemicals that are released by plants called phytoncides help us fight off infections and diseases.
Buy 5 Large Flowers: Buy yourself some flowers and enjoy the scent: this is your aromatherapy hit mother nature style. We all love the smell after it rains, the first smell of a new day, freshly cut grass, an open fire, Christmas trees or a field of flowers. The smells help us feel content, happy and relaxed. Smells are an underestimated power that can remind us to take a step back and slow down.
Add 1 Secret Hideaway: Pick something you have never stayed in before and make it happen. I guarantee you will LOVE doing the research! The UK is full of amazing places to stay.
Find somewhere fun to stay, what about?
Read 100 Pages: Reread your favourite book, in your favourite spot with a coffee in your favourite cup. A chance to wind down and keep it simple. Give yourself some space to breathe!
Walk 20 Minutes: in a wood and be a better you: Who knew that by getting outside could make you a better YOU! Psychologists suggest that exposure to nature helps us deal with the pressure of day to day life and tap into a calmer space within ourselves, allowing us to engage with the simpler things in life. Mother nature has her own ways to provide natural stress relief, lift your spirits and help tackle depression. Nature is a place to switch off, download, heal and unwind which helps reduce stress and in turn can have a positive effective on our mental and physical health.
Find 5 Reasons To Be Grateful: Counting our blessings is a way to reflect and practice a positive mindset. It can remind us to embrace the important things like family, friends, kindness and connecting with a wider community.
4 Whoops Of Joy: Jump on a bike and enjoy the feeling of letting go and whizzing down the road. I have just been to the New Forest with my Mum who is nearly 80, she had an electric bike and loved the freedom. That feeling will never change however old you are!
Find 2 Beautiful Sunrises: Find somewhere to feast your eyes, find a banquet of colour to feed your soul. Look for fields in bloom, a quiet park, a blue horizon, a cherry blossom, an empty beach, a mountain top or a misty morning. Beauty can spark creativity and soothe our busy minds.
Bake 10 Cupcakes: I am going to leave you with my favourite ingredient! Go out today and practice random acts of kindness (RAOK). The planning, execution and afterglow of a ROAK is worth its weight in gold and can even be a little addictive! Here are 3 to get you going: bake 10 cupcakes and delivery them with a secret note to your friends and neighbours, leave a book on a park bench with a positive message inside. Buy a coffee and pay it forward!
Mix these all together and leave to marinate 24 hours - A feeling of “huggyness” will follow!
Plan to do more of what YOU LOVE and your mind and body will LOVE YOU for it
Note: Definition of “Huggyness” – a delightful feeling of rainbows and clouds over a 24-hour period coupled with the essence of love and marshmallows. Characterized by the desire to give frequent hugs to others at random times of the day!
Happy Huggyness - Daisyvw the Camper Van will be out and about on Valentines handing out hugs!
My very first adventure was on a Tall Ship called The Sir Winston Churchill when I had just turned 18.
I have loved adventures ever since. Although I still get seasick 30 years on!
I would describe myself as an everyday adventurer. I try and squeeze adventure into my every day from walks, swims and runs to film, podcasts and books. I am always on the look out for communities to connect with and adventures to be found.
I have just hit 50 and my adventure journey has changed so many times over the years, from a 20-year-old canoeing and sailing instructor, to a Mum with young children teaching them to embrace the outdoors through camping, building dens and cooking on open fires, to a mum of young teens when we surfed, coast steered, climbed Ben Nevis and swam in the North Sea!
My boys are in their late teens now and are slowly flying the nest, it is here I find myself now, ready to embrace the next stage of my adventure journey.
Embracing my new found freedom and loving being outside, I am ready to do some exploring!
My adventure journey has included Moonwalks, marathon walks along Hadrians Wall and the South Coast, firewalks, abseiling down castles, coast steering, a cross country ski marathon in the Arctic Circle, a wing walk and training in an Environmental Cold Chamber at the University of Sussex at minus 20!
I have just come back from running a 1/2 marathon in Greenland - the biggest and most extreme event I have ever taken part in. This Arctic adventure has definitely left me with a fire in soul for more adventures.
This year I will be walking in the Lake District, hiking around the Isle of Wight and organising a mega sea swim for over 500 "mermaids" to celebrate International Women's Day.
When I am not on an adventure I am working with my beautiful VW Camper Van called Daisy on photo shoots.
See what DaisyVW has been up to
Next DaisyVW Photo shoot April 26/27
Check out The Big Mermaid Dip for International Women's Day in Brighton - March 11th
Happy Adventuring
Nicky Chisholm aka #PinkNicky
Most recent articles by Nicky Chisholm
Last weekend we put a call out on social media to gather together the South Coast’s Sea Swimmers, our aim was to unite them in one place, at one time for one big photo in honour of International Women’ Day.
Contributor, Nicky, shares her experiences of sea swimming over the last year and what she has learned along the way. Could sea swimming be for you?
Whahoo! Nicky is off on her next adventure - it's
very big, it's very scary, super remote and absolutely freezing! She is heading back to the Arctic Circle to raise much need funds for two very
special charities. This time, she is going even further north towards
to the actual North Pole!
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Do you love the great outdoors? Are you keen to spend more time outside? Inspiration, motivation and expert advice will be available in abundance at the National Outdoor Expo, Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th March at the NEC Birmingham.
Take a look at the video highlights of the first ever National Equine Show!
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