Who doesn't love bread?!

I decided to try my hand at making sourdough after I found a really cool book in one of those discount bookstores.

I was all set to source my organic grain, sprout it, activate it, grind it and make my bread.

But I found that even the best gluten flours still upset my tum a bit.

So I gave up for a while.

And then we bought a loaf of Gluten Free Precinct Buckwheat and Chia loaf and it was DIVINE! Looking on the back of the packet, I worked out what flours I would need to make a loaf like theirs.

And I think I have it.

It's amazing. It's chew, it bends, it slices well, it's got a nice sour taste, and best of all, it doesn't upset my tummy. WINNING!

BUT it does take ages to make. Like days. But most of the time is just waiting around. So I do the steps on different days, there is really only a day that you need to hang around and babysit the bread.

So here we go.

Gluten Free Buckwheat and Chia Sourdough

First up, let's make the starter.

It took me 7 months to get a good starter where I did not need to use commercial yeast to get my bread to rise.

If this isn't your thing, you can just use commercial yeast to make the leven.

Or you can buy a sourdough starter, or maybe someone you know has been making one.

It's worth doing if you plan to make bread often.

Starter

DAY ONE

In a clean bowl combine:

1/2 cup flour (I used spelt because I started with buckwheat and it didn't work, but feel free to try buckwheat and see how you go and email me about it! My friend took my starter and fed it rye flour and it worked a treat)1/2 filtered water or pineapple juice (here the pineapple juice adds the correct acidity to get your starter going. You can however just use water, or water and a squeeze of lemon juice or a probiotic capsule, it's really up to you. They all work.)

Leave out, uncovered on the bench and stir as many times a day as you can to aerate with natural wild yeasts. Keep it covered with a damp cloth overnight to stop it drying out and bugs getting to it.

DAY TWO-DAY SEVEN

To your starter add

1/4 cup flour1/4 cup water

Repeat day one process.

DAY SEVEN

Split your starter in half and gift one half to a friend.

Feeding your half starter with

1 tablespoon flour1 tablespoon water

DAY EIGHT - DAY FOURTEEN

To your starter add

1 tablespoon flour1 tablespoon water

Repeat day one process.

On Day FIFTEEN your starter will be ready to bake your first loaf. BUT you will still need commercial yeast to make a good loaf. It took me 7 months to get a good enough starter to make bread without adding yeast. I did the initial 2 weeks of feeding. Then I would put my starter in the fridge for a week or so and then take it out from the fridge 3-4 days before I wanted to bake a loaf and feed it with 1 tablespoon flour and1 tablespoon water, for 3-4 days and then remove 2 tablespoons of starter for my loaf and then pop it back in the fridge. I probably did this 2-3 times a month for the 7 months.

So let's get onto the bread making.

BREAD

With bread making, I have found weighing the ingredients MUCH better for resulting in a good loaf. I use my thermomix, but you can use scales and kneed it the old fashioned way.

DAY 1

Make the leven

For the leven you will need:

2 tablespoons of your starter (or 1 pack dried yeast)75 g of warm water (around 50degC)75 g of flour (here I use spelt as I find it feeds the yeast better. Feel free to try rye or buckwheat)1/4 teaspoon of commercial yeast if your starter is still young and needs a little help

Weigh all your ingredients and add them together.

If you have a thermomix, you can mix them on speed 3/50deg/4min and then leave it.

Otherwise in a large mixing bowl and whisked with a fork if fine.

Leave your leven covered for 12 hours/overnight/till whatever time you can get to it the next day.

DAY 2

Start the dough

In a nutribullet or thermomix or blender, grind 100g of chia seeds (if this is too hard, just use 100g of hemp seeds, they are soft enough that they don't need to be ground)

Either do this in your bowl or thermomix bowl.

To the leven add:

525g of warm water (about 50degC)1 tablespoon coconut sugar

Mix the leven through the water:

Either in your thermomix speed 3/50deg/4min or

In your bowl, with a whisk (don't worry if you can't get the leven totally dissolved)

To this water/leven mixture add:

100g ground chia seeds (or 100g of whole hemp seeds)90g psylium husks300g buckwheat flour200g tapioca starch

Mix the flours together with the leven/water mix. This can be done by hand in your bowl or in the thermomix on the knead function.

The dough will look pretty ordinary. Shaggy and unattractive and dry. But don't worry. The only thing you need to worry about it that there is no flour showing. Just make sure all the flour and seeds have been mixed into the dough and are in contact with moisture.

Next is the autolyse phase. Here, the cultures are breaking down the proteins in the flour and the flours are properly absorbing all the water. So leave your shaggy unattractive dough on the kitchen bench in a big fat lump covered with a damp cloth overnight or until you can get to it the next day. This resting stage needs to be at least 4 hours but I've left it for more like 24 and it was still fine.

You can knead the dough by hand or in the thermomix. When incorporating the salt, I find it easier to do it by hand as the whole amount of dough is too much for the thermomix to handle. Which is why after I add the salt, I will divide the dough into 2, 3 or 4 ball to make smaller loaves that the thermomix can handle.

DAY 3

THIS IS THE DAY YOU WILL NEED TO BE AROUND YOUR BREAD.

To your shaggy dough add

1 1/2 tablespoons of salt dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water

You will need to incorporate this by hand, adding a little water at a time until all the water and salt is incorporated.

Now, divide the dough into 3 equal portions.

You are now going to knead your dough a few times.

I find three is enough, but you can go up to 6, in theory, the more kneading, the springier the loaf.

You can do this by hand or in the thermomix, either way, I find dividing the dough makes the kneading easier.

Here on the right we have the dough after the salt has been added but before it has been kneaded. On the right is the same dough after it has had one round of kneading in the thermomix.

If using the thermomix, for each loaf, using the knead function, process each portion of dough for 1 minute. If doing it by hand, knead each portion of your dough individually by hand for 1 minute.

Allow your dough to rest for at least 30 minutes (not set in stone - I have left them for more like 2 hours and its still fine) and then repeat at least twice (2 times) more - totally 3 rounds of kneading for each loaf.

Using your hands, shape your portions of dough into loaves, you can make them round or oval, whatever you like. Place these loaves either in separate tins or all together on a pizza tray (it's a round oven tray with holes in the base).

Allow to rest in a cool spot overnight/till whenever you have time the next day.

Loaves, ready for resting overnight and baking in the morning, or whenever you get around to it the next day.

DAY 4

IT'S TIME TO BAKE!

Don't worry if your loaves haven't risen a lot overnight, sometimes they do, sometimes they don't.

Using a sharp knife, make a cut in the top of each of your loaves.

Now I have a little trick when it comes to baking. You want there to be lots of steam in the oven when you put your loaves in so that they puff up.

So I leave a bunch of trays in the oven and crank the oven up to as hot as it goes. Then I put a oven safe dish filled with boiling water in the bottom of the oven.

When the oven is as hot as it is going to get, I pour some boiling water, about 2-3 cups over the loaves, this works best if they are on a pizza tray as the excess water just falls through, (if you're using tins, I would just brush the loaves with warm water instead). Then quick as you can, pop the bread in the oven. Keep the heat high for 10 minutes and then, without opening the oven door, turn the oven down to 200DegC and allow the loaves to keep cooking for another 20min. You will know when your loaves are done when they are dark and when you take them out, turn them over and tap them, they sound hollow. Don't be afraid to bake them for a long time until they are quiet dark, they are heavy loaves that need time to cook all the way through.

Once the loaves are done, take them from the oven and allow them to cool completely before you slice them. This is because they will still be cooking, so try and resist the temptation for hot bread, at least try and leave it until it is mostly cooled. You can put a clean tea towel over the loaves as they cool to help them cook all the way through and keep their crust soft.

You can see the tray I bake my loaves on, it has holes in the bottom. This allows teh steam to get up all around the loaves and they can rise really well.

And that's it!

Yes. It takes for ever, but it;s so worth it.

face-to-face

adjective & adverb

a (of two people) close together and facing each other.

"a face-to-face conversation"

in direct confrontation.

Episode 30 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Facetoface: Part 2: Communicate or Die: Exploring how other people see us with Jason Malouin.

Jason is a photographer (and an American) he takes ridunculously good portraits. He has shot me a few times and taken my husbands portrait too. While taking photos of people, he started to realise that a photo communicated things. And communication is what he is really into. So we talked about communication, photos, personal branding, authenticity, knowing yourself and his new podcast - Communicator.

Our head shots taken by Jason

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP

One Small Step to becoming a better communicator:

Record yourself

And your super power would be....

To Fly

Resources

Where to find Jason

face-to-face

adjective & adverb

a (of two people) close together and facing each other.

"a face-to-face conversation"

in direct confrontation.

Episode 29 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Facetoface: Part 1: Communicate or Die: Exploring how other people see us with Jason Malouin.

Jason is a photographer (and an American) he takes ridunculously good portraits. He has shot me a few times and taken my husbands portrait too. While taking photos of people, he started to realise that a photo communicated things. And communication is what he is really into. So we talked about communication, photos, personal branding, authenticity, knowing yourself and his new podcast - Communicator.

Our head shots taken by Jason

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP

One Small Step to becoming a better communicator:

Record yourself

And your super power would be....

To Fly

Resources

Where to find Jason

fierce

adjective

having or displaying a violent or ferocious aggressiveness.being bold, displaying chutzpah, especially relating to fashion, clothes, hair or makeup.the combination of a positive mental spirit, bold words and unapologetic actions used collectively.a term used in fashion for cool, sexy, awesome, or any other positive remark about something. it is most famously used by christian sirianos, project runway winner, and tyra banks.A word that can describe something as outstanding, really cool, eye catching, brutal and satisfying

Episode 28 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fierce: Is there space inside one person to be both fierce and at peace? with Ricci-Jane Adams.

Ricci-Jane Adams, Ph.D. is the high priestess of the Institute for Intuitive Intelligence, and the author of Spiritually Fierce, a handbook for living our unlimited selves. She trains women all around Australia as leading edge intuitive practitioners of the Intuitive Intelligence™ Method. Intuitive Intelligence is the system of living intuition. In decades of immersive learning and applied research, Ricci-Jane has created this system, which powerfully and unfailingly connects people to their innate intuition, so that there lives are ones of infinite personal power, inevitable success and wild abundance.

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Where to find Ricci-Jane

Facebook

fragile

adjective

(of an object) easily broken or damaged.(of a person) not strong or sturdy; delicate and vulnerable.

Episode 27 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fragile: The difference between losing a loved one and losing a loved one to suicide with Tania.

Tania is a good friend of mine. When we met, Tania had just lost her dad and her brother. While her dad died of natural causes, her brother chose to end his own life. Tania was the first person who I had met who had lost a loved one to suicide.

We explore what the difference is in loosing a loved one not at their own hand vs suicide.

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Chocolate has gotten a bad wrap as a junk food.

But strip away the sugar, dairy, vegetable oils and other not so healthy ingredients and you'll find that chocolate actually is a super food.

Why Chocolate is good for you:

It is full of minerals such as potassium, zinc, magnesium, manganese, copper, selenium and iron.Acts as a mood enhancer. It contains phenylethylamine (PEA), which is the same chemical that is released when we fall in love.Improves insulin sensitivityCan reduce appetite by signalling to the brain "I'm full"

So how do you get all these benifits without the detriment of all those other yukey ingredients?

Well you can buy high quality chocolate from the shops, I like Lindt 70% dark and above, Loving Earth Chocolate and Pana Chocolate. But all to often the budget doesn't stretch to these amazing brands, so I make my own. You can get all the ingreindts from your local health food store or online.

Super Easy, No Refined Sugar, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Vegan, Paleo, Healthy, Homemade, Basic Raw Chocolate Recipe

Ingredients

50g cacao butter

20g coconut oil

1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

2 tablespoons raw cacao powder

optional add ins

1 tablespoon cashew nut butter (this will give it a more "milk" chocolate taste)grated citrus zestcandied or dried fruits like sultanas, ginger or figsnuts - roasted or rawshredded or flaked coconutactivated buckwheat (buckinis) or cacao nibs for a crunch

Equipment Essentials

Thermomix or

scales, whisk and a double boiler (a glass bowl over a pit of simmering water)

Make Me Up

Thermomix version

Add in your cacao butter and coconut oil. Cook 3min/70deg/speed 2 until the two are melted together. Now add your maple and cacao powder (you can add you nut butter and essential oils now too) and mix, speed 3, 2 minutes or until combined. Pour the chocolate into small silicone ice tray moulds for chocolates or onto a dinner plate or baking tray covered with baking paper to make a "bark". Sprinkle over any add ins or flavours you are using. Place in the fridge and allow to set for at least 2 hours.

Non-Thermomix Version

In the glass bowl on top of your double boiler, add your coconut oil and cacao butter. Whisk the mixture gentle until they are completely melted together. Remove from the heat and add in your cacao powder and sweetener and whisk to combine. Once the sweetener and cacao are dissolved and mixed through, you can add you oils, nut butter and any other add in's you like. Pour the mixture into a silicone mould or ice cube tray or onto a dinner plate or baking tray covered with baking paper. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to set.

fairplay

noun

Conformity to established rules.An established standard of decency, honestyJust and honorable treatment, action, or conduct.When you are in a bet or argument or any other kind of competition with someone, and your opponent does something that you respect or would do yourself, then it's fairplay.

see also ethics, morality, rules

Episode 25 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fairplay: Part 2, Rules of engagement and being a good human with George Kats.

This is part 2.

This conversation was amazing. So amazing that there is 2 parts to it.

There are too many amazing points to even summarize it. So just listen to it.

What we talk about in this episode:

ActivismTrying to force people to believe what you believeCausing harm to othersWhat makes someone a good person?Why is being nice not a moral virtue?UtilitarianismPrograming AIFault vs ResponsibilityUnnecessary and Misplaced GuiltPeople pleasers and narcissistsBeing enough

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP

Resources

Where to find George

fairplay

noun

Conformity to established rules.An established standard of decency, honestyJust and honorable treatment, action, or conduct.When you are in a bet or argument or any other kind of competition with someone, and your opponent does something that you respect or would do yourself, then it's fairplay.

see also ethics, morality, rules

Episode 25 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fairplay: Part 1, Rules of engagement and being a good human with George Kats.

This conversation was amazing. so amazing that there is 2 parts to it.

There are too many amazing points to even summarize it. So just listen to it.

What we talk about in this episode:

What is morality?JustificationWho are we to say that someone else is wrong?What does it mean to be moral?The rulesThe choices we makeWillful ignoranceDoes the internet allow us to be less moral?Language that allows us to justify immoral actionsHaving "fangs"Why conflict is goodAre morals and values the same thing?Separating people from their behavioursRaising good humansCreating expectations for our children

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Resources

Where to find George

femboss

noun informal

a boss, who just happens to be a female.

see also ladyboss, girlboss, she-o

Episode 24 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Femboss: The law of being a woman at the top with Jacqueline Brauman.

Jaquie is a lawyer who works in a small country town in Victoria.

Interestingly enough, Jaquie has an all female team. We talk about being a boss and a woman #femboss and what it’s like being a female lawyer in a boys club. As an aside, Jaquie has decided not to have children.

What we talk about in this episode:

Jaquies law firmWomen and labelsDeciding not to have childrenOn judging womenOn living in a rural townOn raising childrenThe difference in ambition between women and menHarassment in the law workplacesMen and women's behaviour in the workplace

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On being a working woman

"There is this perception that women are less ambitious because they have other roles."

One Small Step:

Talk about your options.

And your super power would be....

Invisible

Resources

#finance episode 12 of The F Words Podcast

Where to find Jaquie

fellow

noun informal

a man or boya person in the same position, involved in the same activity, or otherwise associated with another.

adjective

sharing a particular activity, quality, or condition with someone or something.

Episode 23 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fellow: Blokes in love: Gender roles, emotions and evolution with Rodney Owen.

Rodney is a bloke who almost died from swine flu. That was wake up call enough for him to found Bloke Support counseling men in all facets of life.

We chat about what it means to be a man.

What we talk about in this episode:

The different ways men and women are wiredEvolution vs societyHow to talk to menMen and their identityWhy we get married -now and thenThe things couples disagree onReality and expectations in relationshipsHugh JackmanWhat "a man" looks likeDomestic ViolenceHow people use anger

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On thinking

"Logic is not enough. We need emotions to make decisions."

One Small Step:

Learn how to communicate. It's a skill we aren't taught. The reasons people fight is more about the fact we can't communicate properly.

And your super power would be....

To Stop Time.

Resources

Where to find Rodney

fief

noun

a person's sphere of operation or control.

Episode 22 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fief: Question everything, make money, do what you love with Marty Vids.

Marty has been many things, bread seller, banker and stand up comedian, and now he helps people create their own financial freedom which includes accumulating property. Which is why he embodies the word, feif.

Being a millennial, I was very interested to hear what Marty had to say about how millennial can get their money in order so they can follow their heart and pursue all the experiences they want to have.

What we talk about in this episode:

Millenial Money mindset and how that differs from other generationsHow Marty learnt about moneyAdjusting the Australian dreamWhat are the top investors doing?Marty's prediction for the future of life and workAbout traveling and workingBelief systems around moneyWhat I learnt about money and value while practicing as a ChiropractorMaking plans for your futureOn getting olderOn freedom fundsFinding good investment opportunities

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On pursuing money

"The pursuit of money is thankless and aimless and really void of any emotion...it's really about doing what you love "

"Concentrate on being the best you can be where ever you are"

One Small Step:

Sit down with paper and coloured paper and start drawing what matters to you. Just create. Then ask yourself the question, "realistically, what can I implement now?" And then be your own hyper critic and ask "What are my non negotiable? What are the 3-4 foundations I can build my life on?"

And then ask: "What is the next step?" and give yourself a deadline.

And your super power would be....

To Fly.

Resources

Where to find Marty

fraud

noun

a person or thing intended to deceive others, typically by unjustifiably claiming or being credited with accomplishments or qualities.

"mediums exposed as tricksters and frauds"

Episode 21 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fraud: What is the cure for imposter syndrome? with Nicole van Hattem.

Nicole Van Hattem has counseled heads of state and royalty and you know what? They all have had a case of imposter syndrome once or twice too.

So what is the key to curing it?

What we talk about in this episode:

Authenticity and living in flowFinding our tribeAsking yourself the difficult conversationsWhy money won't make you happyWhere to spend your energyThe torch vs the lighthouseGetting back to yourself and creating a space where you can listen to yourselfChanging your language to serve youUsing adrenaline to your advantage

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP

About not being a fraud.

"It isn't what happens to us, it's how we respond to it"

"Adrenaline can be a positive force"

One Small Step:

Switch off. Look into moving meditation and mindfulness.

And your super power would be....

I would love to show people that bit in the centre of them just shining out like fireworks.

Resources

Where to find Nicole

Fulfil

verb

achieve or realize (something desired, promised, or predicted).gain happiness or satisfaction by achieving one's potential.carry out (a duty or role) as required, promised, or expected.satisfy or meet (a requirement, condition, or need)

"arts grants go to young people who say they wish to fulfil themselves"

Episode 20 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fulfil: A Millennial Workforce: the future of work, life and a purpose driven career with Drew Corby.

I am a millennial. And we cop a lot of flack. But there are some really good things about being a millennial. And Drew and I explore these things in this episode.

We also talk about what's next? And get into topics like AI and sex suits.

I learnt a lot in this podcast, it's the first one where someone talks politics and I was out of my comfort zone, but that's what The F Words is all about, difficult conversations.

What we talk about in this episode:

The old paradigm of work vs the new paradigmWhat your work-life is really aboutBeing a millennial in the workforceAre millennials more cut out to be entrepreneurs?What is so attractive about being an entrepreneur?Can you make a living from a side hustle?The new philanthropyThe first step to successThe paralysis of choiceDefining your own successEarly self-aculisationHow to get the best out of a millennial workforceThe new rich and what they are doing for the worldWhy money doesn't really matter anymoreWhat does Artificial Intelligence mean for the future of work?Living the life of a rock-star billionaireWhat does augmented reality mean for the future?What might the world look like for my now 4 year old when she is in her 20's?

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On success

"We're very good at pursuing success, but we're not very good at defining it, because we have been taught to pursue it and not define it."

One Small Step:

Spend sometime googling your own thoughts, like "Is sugar good for me? Debunked"

And your super power would be....

To be able to truly multitask, like read two books at the same time.

Resources

Where to find Drew

Facebook

Trademark

the brand name of a social media service and website, launched in 2004.

verb

to communicate with (a person) or search for information about (a person) by using Facebook

"My old boyfriend just Facebooked me."

Episode 19 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Facebook: Let's be friends! Building relationships on social media with Kate Toon.

Have you ever decided to be friends with someone because you like their dress and accent?

Kate Toon and I met at We are Podcast 2016. She was wearing an 50's style dress and handed out cookies so obviously I knew we should be friends.

Kate has built a really successful business on Facebook and she spends a lot of time on Facebook, so she knows A LOT of stuff about the platform. So we sit down and chat Facebook, dog voices and photo shoots. LOTS of laughs and some really deep thoughts too. Love this episode.

What we talk about in this episode:

What our dogs voices sound likeWhat the rooms we are recording look likeTypewritersMe leaving my laptop everywhereWhat I use Facebook forHow Kate uses FacebookAbout Facebook groupsWhy you can't build a business solely on FacebookWhat Facebook likesFeed blockersKate's bookAuthenticity on FacebookFacebook for businessConfessions of a Misfit EntrepreneurHow Kate picked her photo for her book coverHow I pick my cover photosBeing realThe power of people and public shamingThe episode I had to take downThe difference between having judgments and being judgmental

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP

Making friends on Facebook.

"Who wants to have a life when I can be on Facebook?"

"Of all the social media platforms, Facebook is the most casual"

"To be successful you try really really really hard and you try thing and you fail and you turn up and you be consistent"

One Small Step:

Spend an hour or so deleting things from your Facebook feed that don't serve you, cull groups, friends, unfollow and replace it with things like Ester the Wonder Pig.

And your super power would be....

Go back in time. As a Bloke.

Resources

Where to find Kate

friends

noun

a person with whom one has a bond of mutual affection, typically one exclusive of sexual or family relations

verb (informal)

add (someone) to a list of friends or contacts on a social networking website.

Episode 18 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Friends: For a reason, a season and a lifetime with Giovanna Lever.

Giovanna and I connected in the strangest of ways.

It all really began when I bought a bottle of Vanessa Megan Natural perfume in Byron Bay. I snaped a shot, posted it on instagram and before I knew it, Vanessa contacted me herself saying how lovely it was to connect. From there, I sent her a copy of my first book and then on a whim, applied for their search for a new face campaign (my podcast photo is from the shoot and wrote an article on my experience). I gave them a bunch of my books to give away and Giovanna just happened to win one.

She loved my book so decided to email me. A quick (2 hour) skype conversation later and I was booked to speak at her event Wellness Woman 2016 and we were friends.

Giovanna is a natural connector, a warm bubbly and genuine human who has built a community Smart Sparrows out of a love of getting to know people. We talked about all things to do with friends in this episode.

What we talk about in this episode:

How Giovanna and I became friendsWhat wine has to do with friendshipMothers groupsThe different types of friendships"Chunking up" to find agreementOn growing up and making friendsOn attracting the right friendsWhen your siblings become your friendsHow Facebook has changed friendshipGiovanna's High school reunionsReconnecting with old friendsWhen a friend breaks up with youWhen friendship meets businessThe advice Giovanna's Dad gave her on her wedding dayFriends show each other their boobsExcuses to become friends - book clubs and podcast clubWhy we love the "drop in"Keeping friendship and business separateAbout being brave and honest in friendshipsPaying friendships forward

On trauma.

"You can always find common ground with anybody"

"Friendship takes a bit of courage"

"The energy you put out is the energy you are going to get back"

One Small Step:

If you want something, just go for it. Be brave and just connect with someone if you want to get to know them better.

And your super power would be....

Healing.

Resources

Rockfords Winery

Where to find Giovanna

feelings

noun

an emotional state or reactionstrong emotionan idea or beliefa sensitivity to or intuitive understanding of

Episode 17 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Feelings: Working through your s**t: Growing up with domestic violence with Katherine Maslen.

Katherine is like me. She's a naturopath and is into food and natural health, our daughter are the same age, we're both authors and speakers, but there's one glaring difference between us. Katherine grew up with an abusive father. Growing up in a home with domestic violence, Katherine has seen first hand how difficult it can be for someone to leave an abusive relationship so she decided to help by a. telling her story and b. signing up for Dancing with the CEO's.

We have a really good conversation about what it was like growing up with domestic violence and the work Katherine has done to get where she is today. Take a listen.

What we talk about in this episode:

Why the issue of domestic violence is important to KatherineDomestic Violence, why women stayKatherine's storyWhy Katherine got involved with Dancing CEO'sWhat life looked like growing up with domestic violenceAbout Katherine's familyWhat I thought about 50 Shades DarkerEmotional intelligenceThe connection between mental health issues and domestic violenceThe way men communicateWho we hang around withHow Australians deal with emotionsWhy it's a good think to mess your kids up just a little bitWhat Free Range chickens and eggs and labeling have to do with awareness

DONATE to Katherine's Dancing with the CEO's fund

On trauma.

"Our Trauma and our story is what makes us strong"

One Small Step:

Mindfulness.

Listen to your inner voice and ask yourself if you have a toxic relationship with yourself.

And then observe if you have behaviors that don't serve you.

And your super power would be....

Flying.

Resources

Where to find Katherine

freight

verb

transport (goods) in bulk by truck, train, ship, or aircraft.be laden or burdened with.

Episode 16 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Freight: Human Cargo: Sex Trafficking in Cambodia with Nicky Mih.

So congratulations if you get to the end of this podcast, because it's tough. You will be rewarded with a big fat rant from me at the end.

The title is pretty self explanatory, Nicky and I talk about Sex Trafficking. It happens and it happens in the poorest countries in the world and it happens to girls because they have no other choices. Nicky wanted to work with rescued girls but out of the 200 rescued girls she spoke to, not one wanted help, instead, they wanted her to help the girls who would be trafficked because they had been saved and the sex traffickers would be looking to replace them.

So, Nicky started FreeToShine.org to empower girls with an education and prevent sex trafficking.

What we talk about in this episode:

What is sex traffickingThe history of Cambodia that has lead to an environment where sex trafficking can occurThe gender inequality present in CambodiaThe level of poverty present in CambodiaWhat living and education costs in CambodiaHow sex traffickers target familiesThe power of choiceWhere sex trafficking happensWhere the line is between what we as privileged developed world views and the real world of the developing worldAbout my upbringingThe decisions that parents in the developing world have to make out of povertyHelping families stay togetherWhy developing nations (particularly Cambodia) don';t have the government support like we do in AustraliaWhy paying tax is importantThe difference between countries like ours with services and countries like CambodiaWhat we can do - simple stepsThe difference between awareness and action

Why does Sex Trafficking happen?

"Men are like gold and women are like white cloth"

"You've got these needs, basic human needs that are competing on this tiny amount of money."

"Sex Traffickers make 41 BILLION DOLLARS the rest of the world contributes less than 0.01% of that to help stop it"

"We can't turn a blind eye when any child is being raped and tortured 20 times a day"

"Get girl's into schools and then they won't get trafficked"

One Small Step:

Step 1: Learn about the issues

Step 2: Advocate

Support brands that don't exploit people

And your super power would be....

To Fly. I've actually started to learn to fly a plane.

Resources

Born into Brothels DocumentaryThe True Cost DocumentaryFree To ShineThe TIC reportGlobal Slavery IndexThe International Labour OrganisationThe Copenhagen Concenses

Where to find Nicky

foster

noun

encourage the development of (something, especially something desirable)bring up (a child that is not one's own by birth

"the teacher's task is to foster learning"

Episode 15 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is Stepmother: Wicked Witch or Wonder Woman, you choose with Mandy.

So this one really is a chat with my girlfriend.

Mandy and I have known each other for just over a year. Our daughters are friends, our husbands are friends, we share a love of going out, good healthy food and looking pretty, We chat lots about what it is to be a mum and we have very similar ideas on how to raise children. One difference, while Mandy gave birth once, she has 3 children, two of them have a different mum and Mandy is a step-mum.

We've always talked candidly about what it is like to be a step-mum and these chats have helped me to understand and process more about people, the world around me as well as my own experiences growing up with a step-mum. I though that other people could benefit from these chats too. So I recorded one. ***Note: no wine was consumed during this recording, which is a shame really***

***UPDATE*** This podcast was taken down for a bit, because it was suggested to me that Mandy and I could be subject to legalish stuff if I left it up as is. I still think that this is an important conversation. It might be just one woman's experience and opinion, but it's a story and I think it's important to tell people's stories and gain perspective of what other people go through. And also, this is my town and ain't no one gonna tell me what to do. So names have been removed and this baby is back up.

What we talk about in this episode:

Mandy's experience in having a step mum and now being oneThe first time Mandy met her step childrenThe progression of Mandy's relationship with her step childrenParenting teenagers in a blended familyMandy's parenting styleSocieties view on step mum'sMandy's storySympathizing with step mum'sOn being an adult and sucking it upWhat I have recently learnt about my parents divorceAbout dealing with difficult personalitiesWhen ego ruins your lifeWhy being a step mum is the thing she is most proud ofParenting from a places of fear vs authenticityRaising children in this day and ageAbout tying your self worth up in being a mumTying our identities up on one thingAbout drawing boundaries

On being a mum and step-mum.

"I can wholeheartedly say that the love for my children, biological or not, is the same, but the experience is different"

"People's reactions to you have a lot more to do with their insecurities"

"Being a step-mum is the most amazing thing I have ever done and ever will do, and that includes being a mum."

"I'm not "the mum" but I'm the mum in our house, and there's a very big difference."

One Small Step:

It's time for you to think about what type of mum and step mum you want to be and talk about it with your partner and get on the same page.

Do you. Be who you want to be with those kids and in our own house.

And remember that it's not about you, but just be you.

And your super power would be....

More Patience. With myself and with whats happening around me.

Resources

Where to find Mandy

falling out

noun

a quarrel or disagreement

"the two of them had a falling-out"

Episode 14 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fallingout: Breaking up is hard to do: the emotional cost of divorce with Clarissa Rayward.

I am a child of divorce, so I guess it's natural that I don't think much about divorce. It's something I see as just a part of life. But While I was scrolling through Facebook one day, I realised how many people I went to high school with, people in their early 30's, married for less that 10 years, are already part of the staggering 48, 517 divorces every year. In the year 2015, almost 50% of all marriages ended up in divorce.

But why?

So I thought I would explore the idea of divorce with The Happy Family Lawyer, Clarrisa Rayward.

What we talk about in this episode:

Why people get divorcedHow we enter into marriageThe difference between marriage and a weddingThings to think of before you get marriedThe nuts and bolts of divorceLegal vs emotional end to the marriageHow Clarissa got into lawHow law differs from the versions in the mediaHow marriage changes after kidsWhy Clarissa is The Happy Family LawyerDoing things that you loveWhat you can do before entering into a marriageThe importance of connection and communication within a marriageThe media and fairytales and their roles in creating our views of marriageSocial stereotypes when it comes to divorceSupport systems during divorceHow we as parents can prepare our children for conflict

On marriage, relationships and divorce.

"For many of us, time changes us."

"I think we don't realise how significant marriage is."

"At the core of it, divorce is heartbreak...There's no more significant grief event that you could be going through "

One Small Step:

Slow Down. You don't have to make decisions quickly and you don't have to change things overnight.

And your super power would be....

To Fly. It would be so helpful. If you could just pick people up and just zip around, up in the air.

Resources

Where to find Clarissa

Twitter

forward

adverb

towards the direction that is in front of youonward so as to make progress.relating to the future

"the traffic moved slowly forward"

Episode 13 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Forward: Shedding labels and moving on after you fall with Angela Counsel.

What do you do when all your best laid plans fail?

What do you do when you are helping people with their health, but yours is a mess?

What do you do when you feel like you have failed?

Angela and I connected through the KPI program and share a love of natural health, I've been on both of her podcasts too, but it was an email she sent in February that really made me want to chat with her. I was struck by her honesty admitting that sometimes things don't go according to plan. As entrepreneurs and people who live our lives in the social media spotlight, it's often difficult to admit when we fall. So I thought it would be nice to have a real conversations about when things don't go according to plan.

This is a great follow on conversation from episode 7 #fine and episode 9 #fanatic, so make sure you listen to those too.

What we talk about in this episode:

The fronts we put up to the outside worldAngela's personal journeyAbout being a natropathThe lifeline techniqueChiropractic and natropathy and vitalismAngela's 2 podcastsManaging stressWhat made Angela sack herselfFinding H.A.R.M.O.N.I.EAngela's new bookCreating intentionsFailure - what is it?Our obsession with analyzing thingsWhy we want to make meaning out of thingsOverthinkingBeing a part of the universeThe difference between kids and adults when they try new thingsWhat is success?Connection and finding meaning in chaosControlOn being a coachOn loosing yourselfOn being "just a mum"Labels and how hey hold us backSeparating who we are from what we doBeing really honest with what really lights you up and having the courage to go and do itThe value of being in the moment and just experiencing thingsIdeas - are they really yours?

On overthinking and obsessing over meaning

"We tend to be meaning making machines...we kind of get hung up in trying to find answers."

"A label is what you do, not who you are"

One Small Step:

Choose one thing to focus on for 90 days and work on that.

And your super power would be....

Trust in the future and that everything is going to be ok.

Resources

Where to find Angela

finance

noun

money or other liquid resources of a government, business, group, or individual

"The Library closed due to lack of finance"

Episode 12 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Finance: Money Monster: how women can tame the fiscal beast with Susan Bryant.

After reading an article in the paper one day about "the new poor people" that talked about how older women are left destitute once their husbands died or they got divorced, I started to think a bit more seriously about money.

So we started to teach our daughter about saving up for something she wanted to buy. I shared a photo on instgram of her savings chart, where she would get $1 every time she did a chore, colour in a square and track how close she was to buying herself a music box. Susan commented on the photo saying how awesome it was teaching our little girl how to save, but that were were teaching her to spend everything she saved.

I knew that this was one smart lady who I needed to talk to to learn more about money. So here is our super informative conversation about all things women and money.

What we talk about in this episode:

How Susan got into financeFinance is still a man's gameThe narrative around young women and moneyThe conversations we have with young women about moneyThe masculine energy around finances and moneyMoney and powerSexually transmitted debtEducating yourself about the money in your householdWhat it was like for women working in the 1960's and what they are facing nowWhat happens when the husband who takes care of the money disappearsCompound interestWhat young women can do now to help secure their financial freedomThe mathematics about saving with compound interest and superannuationAbout putting more away into superannuationThe decisions women make that can disadvantage them financiallyAbout women asking for what they wantThe Gender Pay Gap and how employers get around itBudgets and the internet tools availableGetting control over your financesWhere women can go for help with their moneyThe things that conspire against women's financial independenceHow much you should be savingSusan's tips on how to get out of debt

On women and money

"If you are a young woman you've got the opportunity...to avoid becoming a poor old lady. The younger you are the more powerful it is. It's call compound interest...the only free gift in the financial world"

"I still think that there is a narrative amongst a lot of young women that they don't have to be serious about money because they will be in a partnership and it will be ok."

"I see women that have either been divorced or widowed and they have got no clue...and that makes them extremely vulnerable...there's always someone willing to take advantage of that"

One Small Step:

Pay yourself fist and starts saving small whatever you can, whenever you can, whenever you can.

And your super power would be....

To see inside people, what their soul is like.

Resources

Where to find Susan

fanny

noun

a woman's genitals

Episode 11 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fanny: Yoni Palace: How loving your vagina is the way to self acceptance with Rosie King.

This was a conversation that I was both really excited and really terrified to have. I mean, it's not like I haven't chatted vagina's with my girlfriends over wines, but it's usually just giggling, nothing serious. But it begs the question, why am I so afraid to talk about a body part? Would I be so nervous and uncomfortable about talking about an elbow?

I was introduced to Rosie through a mutual friend Amber (I interviewed her for episode 7 #fine) and after stalking her just a little bit on the internet, I decided I had to talk to her. I'm glad I did, because she's super smart and open with all her knowledge about female sexuality, and she's really nice too. I felt totally comfortable to ask all my (and your) questions about the vagina.

This is a great follow on conversation from #feminine, so make sure you listen to that one too.

What we talk about in this episode:

What Yoni isYoga and Sanskrit and TantraRosie's journeyWhat tantra isNaked Yoga and Rosie's experience with teaching yoga naked and outdoors3rd wave feminism and sexualityOur disconnection with our lady bitsSexulaisation of the vaginaGetting nakedThe shift to embracing the vaginaYoni Wands and eggsHow to use yoni eggs and wandsVagina gymSelf pleasure practiceVaginal weight liftingThe different types of crystals used for yoni eggs and wands and their purposeWhy Jade eggs are usedBlack obsidian eggsYonis after birthThe connection between sexual energy and creative energyKundalini yogaSelf pleasure and self lovingRosie's experience and journey with sexThe church and how it quashed the feminine movementMasculine vs feminine energiesHealthy vs unhealthy masculineHow Rosie started selling crystalsSex toysYoni MassageWomen being giversWhat is Tantra and Kundalini TantraHow to listen to and connecting with your yoniGetting the 3 yes's

Getting in touch with your yoni

"Often when I am shut down sexually, I am shut down creativity."

"I remember when I lost my virginity as 17 I cried and cried and cried because I had just given away this thing I was meant to keep for my husband. So I had a lot of sexual shame up until I was about 26"

One Small Step:

Invest in an yoni egg to start the journey of self love.Tune into your yoni and listen to your vagina. It speaks to us through smell and feelings.See if you can get your partner to ask for consent before he enters you. Something as simple as that is a nice way to revere and honour the yoni and the feminine.

And your super power would be....

I want to fly.

Resources

Where to find Rosie

freedom

noun

the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wantsthe state of not being imprisoned or enslavedthe power of self-determination attributed to the will; the quality of being independent of fate or necessitythe state of being unrestricted and able to move easily

""we do have some freedom of choice"

Episode 10 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Freedom: Why creating a subtle life is the key to happiness with Sean D'Souza.

Sean wakes up at 4am (yes, it's crazy I know) but it's a choice and it's his. It's things like this that allow him and his wife to fly business class all over the world and take a 3 month vacation every year. Sean started his business PsychoTactics™, some 17-ish years ago (before the internet), helping entrepreneurs understand the way their customers brain works.

What we talk about in this episode:

What "freedom" isWork vs freedomThe reality of entrepreneurs and passive incomeThe freedom that comes from leverageWhen work becomes so much fun that it rules youHaving a clear demarcation between workHow to do your best workThe difference between how kids and adults learn and workPractice makes perfectTime management vs energy managementHow to make planning work for youSpending your energy on creating not worryingUsing your energy to make things you loveWhat driving an electric car teaches you about energyWhat hardship teaches us about freedomPrioritizing what it is you want from life to then create freedomCreating quality products vs having 100's of 1000's of customers or products to create a business that gives you freedomRedefining what we call workThe core of freedom is controlDoing things to nourish your soul, whether they are "work" or notHow you don;t have to be good at everything, you just have to be better than most people at one or two things

Create Your Own Freedom

"Work is not the enemy of freedom"

"There is nothing that hasn't been done before, but to get novel insights, your brain needs to be rested"

"Everyday there is a diversion and if you spend energy getting upset with the diversion, you end up failing to see what the diversion is trying to teach you. "

One Small Step:

Mastery. Be smarter than everyone in one way that no one else can do.

And your super power would be....

Convince people that there is no such thing as inborn talent. People who are stunningly brilliant at one thing are often poor at doing other things while the rest of us are average geniuses.

Resources

Where to find Sean

fanatic

noun informal

a person filled with excessive and single-minded zeala person who is extremely interested in something, to a degree that some people find unreasonable

Episode 9 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fanatic: Never be Satisfied: confessions of a hyperstriver with Talya Rabinovitz.

I met Talya while she and I were both speaking at Wellness Woman 2016. She totally rocked the panel on work/life blend with her honesty about her struggles with anxiety and depression and her experience working with people suffering from addiction. What really caught my attention was a term she has coined - Hyper-striving. It was like this woman had read the book of my life. Talya is reluctant to call hyperstriving an addiction, but in essence, it is an addiction to success. A hyperstriver is someone who is never happy or content with their achievements.

I felt like I was catching up with an old friend during this conversation. Talya is free with her knowledge and has some great strategies for dealing with hyperstriving.

What we talk about in this episode:

What Hyperstriving isWhere self worth comes fromWhere hyperstriving comes from/the risk factors of hyperstrivingHow to prevent or at least reduce hyperstriving in your childrenWhat Talya did to help herself become a recovering hyperstriverAbout being enoughThe difference between being and doing"arriving" at being good enoughHow to achieve successRedefining your own measures of successWhat Talya's measures of success areThe spark of lifeBalancing achieving things without becoming addicted to successSharing from a place of love vs sharing from a place of fearThe catch 22 of being in a business that you love and making money from itPutting up internal boundaries between you and your workSeparating your physical being from your spirit/sparkThe hallmarks of a hyperstriverHyperstriving and perfectionismThe steps to recovering from Hyperstriving

Talya's thoughts on self worth and self love

"Often we hyperstrive away from the things that really mater to us"

"Pull a hyperstriver out of their work environment and place them on a dessert island and they will be the best castaway ever"

"If my sense of worth is coming from what I am doing, then I will never arrive at a place of self love"

One Small Step:

Tell people. Tell your closest friends and those you feel safe with, that you are a hyperstriver. We hyperstrivers travel in packs so you will probably find their are lots around you. That way you can form your own support group to help nourish yourselves.

And your super power would be....

That I could just touch people and they could see the truth of themselves.

Resources

Where to find Talya

fabric

noun

cloth produced by weaving or knitting textile fibres.

"they weave cotton into the finest fabric"

Episode 8 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fabric: Consumer beware: the ugly side of the textile industry with Anne Foster.

Anne is a mum and founder of luxury ethical home wares brand, Elkie and Arc. We met at Wellness woman 2016 where we were both speaking and hit it off instantly. Anne is the epitome of Cosmopolitan Hippy. She started Elkie and Arc because she didn’t want to compromise on having beautiful things, but she also didn’t want to contribute to mass consumerism, devastating the planet or taking advantage of the people overseas who make most of our textiles.

Total girl crush with this guest. Anne is down to earth and real. She shares freely of her knowledge and is an inspiration for us all to do just a little bit better.

What we talk about in this episode:

What Australian Made actually meansHow major fashion houses like Zara and H&M produce their garmentsWhat fashion houses can do to helpHow difficult it is for big fashion houses to be ethical and sustainableThe balance between fashion houses supportingThe differences between bamboo, organic cotton, non organic cotton and flaxFarming of textile cropsChemicals used to treat textiles - especially bambooThe education and support that is given to organic farmersWhere your money is going every time you buy from ethical, sustainable and organic companiesThe lifelong and terminal issues that are caused to children in villages by farming in the developed worldWhat green washing and fair washing areThe difficult conversations Anne has had to have to ensure a truly ethical productThe trafficking of girls involved in the textile industryBeing aware of the amount of people who are involved with making your clothes and textilesWhat fairtrade means for farmers and communitiesFairtrade vs direct trade and how it differs between products like cotton and coffeeHow you can support brands that do the right thingsThe trade model of supporting the textile industryOn Child Labor

Anne's message to brands

"Don't hide people away because they don't fit your marketing story"

"My business is not about charity, it's about fundamental human rights"

"When people don't have alternatives, then it is easy to take advantage of them"

One Small Step:

Feel that you can write to companies and ask questions of them.Take that little bit of extra time to find a brand that is doing things ethically and sustainably and see if you can support them and then give them feedback on their productsStop buying so much stuff

And your super power would be....

Time travel! With the caveat that I couldn't change the future by anything I would do when I am in the past.

Resources

Where to find Anne

fine

adverb informal

in a satisfactory or pleasing manner; very well.Freaked out. Insecure. Neurotic. Emotional. (F.I.N.E)Not fine.

"How are you? Oh I'm fine"

Episode 7 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fine: How you're selling yourself short by saying "I'm Fine" with Amber Hawken.

Sometimes I just pick people who I like talking to for my podcast episodes. Amber is like that. She's fun and cool to talk to. So why not chat to her? I didn't realise how smart and insightful she is. She's always had a fanatical obsession with wanting to understand life. Amber wants to experience things and push boundaries, kinda like me and exactly what The F Words Podcast is about.

Listen and feel the energy of this episode.

What we talk about in this episode:

Why Amber HATES the word fineAmber talks about the most difficult period of her life and how it changed her and the path of her lifeWhy people are scared of feeling thingsHow important it is to experience all emotionsHelping children understand emotionsThe difference between saying "I'm fine" and "and that's ok"Why going through the hard times can be the making of youThe ego and perfectionThoughts, beliefs systems and conditioningAmber's easy trick for mediation

One Small Step:

Be ok with not being ok. Realise that if you try to numb the not ok parts of life, you will be missing out on the most incredible parts.

And your super power would be....

To be able to teleport because I love traveling.

Resources

Amber and I met at We are Podcast

Where to find Amber

I love anything with gelatin.Lollies, puddings, marshmallows, jelly. But every time I have tried to make a mousse, it sets hard, like a child's bouncy ball toy. Not fluffy at all.

But I did not, could not give up.

Instead I tried again with mango. I have to say, that living down south in Ballarat, the mango's are not nearly as delicious or plentiful as they were when I lived in Darwin. As such, I have added sweetener to this mousse but I know that if I were still up top in the midst of mango madness season, I would not have needed the maple syrup so I suggest you taste your mixture before you add any sweetener.

I think the trick lies in cooling the whole mixture down to just before setting point before you attempt to whip it. This requires skill. Or a timer set on your iphone.

**NB forgive me crappy picture, I just wanted to eat the damn thing and then get the recipe up so you could all make it ASAP***

Paleo Good Fat Gut loving Mango Mousse

Ingredients

270g (about 1 cup) thin coconut cream or milk (I used a pack of the Kan Tong Coconut cream, it's 100% coconut and comes in pouch)

1 large mango, seed and skin removed (about 1-1 1/2 cups mango flesh)

2 tablespoons grass fed gelatin (I use the Great Lakes Gelatin - the red one)

Maple Syrup to taste (I used a tablespoon)

Equipment Essentials

Thermomix (Butterfly attachment too)

Blender AND electric beaters AND saucepan AND glass bowl

Make Me Up

Non Thermomix version.

In the bowl of your blender add all of your ingredients and blizt together to form a smooth liquid. Pour the liquid into your saucepan and heat over medium, stirring continuously until the gelatin has dissolved, about 3-4 minutes. Pour the warm mixture into a glass bowl and place in the fridge until the whole mixture has cooled, but keep an eye on it and grab it before it sets completely. 10 minutes should do it. Once the mango and coconut mixture in cooled, use your electric beaters to whip it. Keep whipping until the mixture is light and fluffy. Place the mousse back in the fridge to set for 4-6 hours, or overnight.

Thermomix version

Place all of your ingredients into the thermomix bowl and blitz on speed 6 for 30sec. Then heat the mixture 3min/speed 2/100deg until the gelatin in dissolved. Place your thermomix bowl into the fridge to allow your mixture to cool. This may take a while as the bowl is insulated. But don't get too cocky or the mousse will set as a pudding instead, in the bowl. About 20 minutes should do it. Now place your butterfly attachment into the thermomix bowl and whip speed 4 for 15min.

Once whiped and fluffy, pour the mixture into a bowl, cover and set in the fridge overnight or at least 4 hours.

Cake is such a joy.

I love baking cake, like all the time. But my everyday cakes tend not to having icing. Too fussy and way too much effort for an everyday cake. But for birthdays, well, that calls for something special.

I've played with lots of different cakes and icings before, normally I made a fudge type icing based on nuts, (if you haven't already done it, go and download my birthday cake e-cookbookfor my hummingbird cake, lamington cake and double chocolate cake recipes). But when my oldest daughter asked for a unicorn birthday cake, I had to try my hand at something...whiter.

THIS is what she was after.

It's white. Whiter than white. And when you cook with all natural (read NON REFINED) ingredients, white is hard to come by.

But I came up with a plan.

Marshmallow.

It would also give the added benefit of hiding my favourite ingredient, gelatin in it.

And it worked a TREAT. You can get the recipe for the cake here and the instructions on how to put the cake together here. Below is the recipe for the icing.

Paleo Gut Loving Marshmallow icing for birthday cakes

Ingredients

4 egg whites

1/2 a teaspoon vanilla extract

3 tablespoons raw honey

1 teaspoon gelatin (I use the Great Lakes Gelatin, the red one)

Equipment Essentials

Hand Held beaters

Double boiler (that is a glass bowl over a saucepan of boiling water)

Make Me Up

Set up your double boiler. In your glass bowl add your honey and vanilla and sprinkle over your gelatin. Allow the gelatin to melt. Once the gelatin has melted, add your egg whites and beat them on high with your electric beaters until the mixture is pale and fluffy. Then, turn off the stove and remove the glass bowl from the saucepan and place on a cool surface (I seriously do this on my floor). Continue to beat the egg white and honey mixture until the bowl and egg whites have cooled down. The icing should be thick and glossy and smooth. Spread it onto the cake quickly.

Allow to set for about 15-20 minutes before you start decorating.

***Note: I have also made this icing coloured by adding a few drops of natural colouring. I use the hoppers brand***

feminine

adjective

having qualities or an appearance traditionally associated with women, especially delicacy and prettiness.belonging to the female sex.

Traits traditionally cited as feminine include gentleness, empathy, and sensitivity,

Also womanhood, female, girlishness.

Episode 6 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Feminine: Sex, vaginas and motherhood. Embracing all that it is to be a woman with Leonie Percy.

Leonie is a mum, yoga instructor, author and entrepreneur. When her marriage ended, Leonie turned to yoga. But Leonie struggled with single motherhood and in 2012 she combined her psychology degree with her passion to keep families connected to create Yoga Mamata.

Since then, Leonie has been on yet another journey, meting her now fiance, moving states and giving birth to her beautiful daughter, who was the catalyst for her deep love of everything feminine. Leonie lives with an open heart and talks candidly about stuff polite ladies don't discuss. This is a warm, honest and eye opening conversation.

What we talk about in this episode:

SEX - oversexulization of it, the shame attached to it and how it is a life forceLeonie's sex lifeThe importance of self love and compassionHow having a baby changes your relationship with your vaginaLeonie's birth storiesRaising connected kidsThe reality about being a mumBeing in our feminine energyThe wounding around our womanhoodPeriods

My favourite thing Leonie said:

"In the stillness, comes the clarity"

One Small Step:

Surround yourself with beauty to help you connect with your feminine energy. Connect with colour, sounds, scents. Seek tranquility and stillness to help you be with yourself and cultivate self love.

And your super power would be....

Compassion and kindness. I'm a connector who seeks to make the world brighter.

Resources

She BirthLiving Wholeheartedly with Brene Brown

Where to find Jenny

feisty

adjective informal

Excitable, spirited (can sometimes mean irritable or easy to anger)From the german 'fist' which means a small, aggressive and lively dog

"She's a feisty little godess" "That feisty bitch just bit me"

Episode 5 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Feisty: Mastering you passion in a male dominated world with Jenny Vandyke.

Jenny is the managing director at Startup Adelaide and the author of The Innovation Recipe. Jenny is on a mission to help South Australia to pivot from the industrial age to the entrepreneurial age.

Having spent a large chunk of her career in the corporate sector, Jenny understands the catch 22 of being a woman in a male dominated field: should you show your passion to help you get ahead and risk pissing people off? Or stay quiet and risk blending into the background?

What we talk about in this episode:

Showing your passion allows for deeper connectionsThe double standard of men and women showing passion in the workforceDo women make better entrepreneurs than men because of their capability to show vulnerability?What we as feisty women in business have observedHow Jenny dealt with being a passionate young woman in the corporate environmentHow women diminish their behaviourAustralians and Tall Poppy SyndromeWhy Adelaide?

Some of my favourite things Jenny said:

"I remember quite vividly being told, "no one wants to hear from you""

One Small Step:

Find what you are passionate about (check out Jenny's 1 minute why cheat sheet to find your passion). BUT don't expect it to come all in one hit, it might take a while and that's ok.

And your super power would be....

Helping other people to translate their complex problems and ideas into simple ones that they can communicate to a wide audience.

Resources

Where to find Jenny

Father

noun

a man who has begotten a child

He became a father when he was 30.

Episode 4 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Father: The difficulties of becoming a father with Michael Bromley.

Micheal Bromley is a successful lawyer, but nothing could prepare him for the biggest challenge of his life, becoming a father.

Now with with his own head hunting company, Micheal has the unique challenges of being an entrepreneur and a father, something that many of his friends haven't experienced. Micheal really opens up in the episode, revealing the struggles of balancing his pre-children life and post-children life and how that affected his mental wellbeing.

What we talk about in this episode:

Michael's top tips for being the best parent you can beLetting go and embracing a new life and version of yourselfHow he bonded with his daughterStruggling to connect with his daughterHow hard it is to be real and honest

Some of my favourite things Micheal said:

Family and putting your life in perspective

"I think family brings the biggest swings...it amplifies the lows as well as the highs"

"I think everyone's going through the same stuff...once you know that everyone is going through the same thing, it's kind of liberating"

One Small Step:

Don'y Judge yourself and be happy in yourself and your abilities as a father.

And your super power would be....

I'd want to be able to heal, not just physical but emotional too.

Funk

noun

a state of great fear or panica depressed mood or state of minda sad or worried state

"I need to get drunk to get out of this funk"

Episode 3 of The F Words Podcast with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker (Chiro) is #Funk: I'm feeling sad and I don't know why: Dealing with the entrepreneur roller coaster with Ronsley Vaz.

Ronsley Vaz has always been an entrepreneur, he just didn't know it until he started his own restaurant 6 years ago, and then it crashed and burned.

That sort of failure changes you. It makes you hungry and a little fearless and a little reckless. because you've already stared defeat in the face. It was this that called Ronsley to start the KPI program (and how we met). Fast forward 3 years and not only are Ronsley and I good friends (he is Miss E's Godfather), but Ronsley has built Australia's first audio marketing agency, Amplify wrote a book, Amplify - the book, started 2 of his own very successful podcasts - Bond Appetit and Should I start a Podcast? and created the southern hemispheres biggest podcasting conference, We Are Podcast.

But is it all enough?

What we talk about in this episode:

External ValidationGratitudeAbout never being satisfied with our successThe difficulties with feeling contentMasculine and feminine ways of dealing with feelings

Some of my favourite things Ronsley said:

Success changes you

"I am constantly worried that success will get to me...and it will make me weak"

The challenges of Marriage

"When I got married, the hardest thing for me was to be seen falling off my white horse"

One Small Step:

Guard the people around you and the conversations you haveChallenge your current beliefs on a regular basis

And your super power would be....

I already have one and it is resilience and back up plans for my back up plans.

Where to find Ronsley Vaz

I really love mince tarts or pies – I’m not 100% sure which is which really, but whatever you call them, these are delicious, possibly the best I have ever had. I like a chunky fruit mince, so I keep the apple and pear at a larger dice, feel free to keep the apple and pear small if you like. These tarts are gluten, grain and refined sugar free. You can make the fruit mince up to a week in advance and keep it in the fridge until you are ready to use it. Packed in a pretty glass jar, it would make a nice little Christmas gift.

Paleo Fruit Mince Tarts

Makes around 30 tarts

Ingredients

Fruit Mince

1 cup sulfite free sultanas

1 cup fresh pear, finely diced

¾ cup fresh apple, finely diced

½ fresh apricots, diced

1/3 cup sour dried cherries or unsweetened cranberries

Zest of ½ an orange

Zest of ½ a lemon

Juice of ½ an orange

6 pitted dates, diced

1 teaspoon mixed spice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ a nutmeg, grated

½ a teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ a teaspoon ground all spice

Pastry

2 cups almond meal

1 ¾ cups tapioca starch

4 tablespoons coconut flour

4 tablespoons coconut sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

180g cold butter or coconut oil

1 egg

enough almond milk to hold it together and form a pliable dough

½ cup Pecan pieces

For the Fruit Mince

Thermomix version

Place all the ingredients into the thermomix bowl and cook the fruit, 35min/speed 2 reverse/70deg. Once cooked, transfer the fruit mince to a sterilized jar. Allow to cool completely before you put the fruit mince into the pastry tart shells.

Non Thermomix version

Place all the fruit mince ingredients into a large heavy based saucepan. Cook on low and stir with a wooden spoon continuously until the fruit has broken down and softened. Once cooked, transfer the fruit mince to a sterilized jar. Allow to cool completely before you put the fruit mince into the pastry tart shells.

Pastry

Place all the pastry ingredients, excluding the almond milk, in the bowl of your thermomix or food processor and blitz until they come together to form crumbs. Slowly add some almond milk, a little at a time until the crumbs stick together and form a ball of dough around the blades. The dough should be soft, not sticky and easy to roll into balls.

Putting it together

Pre-heat your oven to 160degC.

Grease your tart tins/muffin tin/cupcake tin with coconut oil or melted butter.

Roll the dough into a small ball and then flatten it in the palm of your hand. Push this flattened ball into a muffin or cup cake or mini pie or tart tin and use your fingers to push the dough in and cover the bottom of the tin. Repeat until all of the dough is used up.* Place your tart cases in the oven to bake for 10-15 minutes or until the pastry starts to turn golden. Remove the tarts from the oven and allow to cool.

Once cool, spoon your cold prepared fruit mince into the cooked tart shells until it is all used up. Sprinkle pecan pieces on top of each tart. Place the tarts back into your 160deg oven and cook until the pecans are toasted and the edge of the tarts are browned – about 10-15min.

Remove the tarts from the oven and allow them to cool in their tins for 10 minutes until you can handle them. Remove each tart from it’s tin and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 10 days.

Fear

noun

a : an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of dangerb (1) : an instance of this emotion (2) : a state marked by this emotion

anxious concernreason for alarm (danger)

"I've been trying to overcome my fear of flying." "He told us about his hopes and fears"

Episode 2 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Fear: Different types of fear with James Tuckerman.

James Tuckerman is no stranger to fear.

Not only did he start is own print magazine, Anthill but then he took that magazine online creating Anthill online and then he started his own school in Not so Freaky University and he is also the creator of the biggest small business awards, The Anthill Cool Company Awards (which by the by receives more applications that the Telstra Business Awards - or so I am told).

But all of this pales in comparison to the scariest experience of James' life - his kidnapping in Morocco.

What we talk about in this episode:

Being Kidnapped in Morocco and his subsequent escapeThe 3 types of fear - Fear of Missing out (FOMO), Fear of Ridicule and Fear of the tangible (like physical harm or financial)The advice James' mum gave him about fearReal fear vs imagined fearFear as a driving force

Some of my favourite things James said:

Putting fear in perspective

"Compare the fear of starting a business to a threat on your life....Worst case scenario, you end up washing dishes or with egg on your face"

"What do people envy about you? We are often so wrapped up in envy and fear of missing out, that we often forget to just be grateful and in the moment"

One Small Step:

Only hang around optimistic people. If your are fearful, hang around people who have done what you want to do.

And your super power would be....

How cool would it be to be able to touch someone and be able to speak their language?

Resources

James talked about Dan Norris' book Create or Hate - check that out here.

Where to find James Tuckerman

More About James TuckermanAnthill WebsiteNot So Freaky University WebsiteFacebookTwitterLinkedIn

Four (4)

noun

one more than threehaving been alive for four years

"Asha is four ."

Episode 1 of The F Words: Difficult conversations with Dr Leandra Brady-Walker is #Four: Musings of a four year old with Asha Brady-Walker, my eldest daughter.

What's more difficult than having a deep and meaningful conversation with a 4 year old?

It's no secret that I am a working mumma and it can be tough fitting it in, so when I wanted to go to We are Podcast 2016, the family had to come along, including Lady A - Asha.

After the 2 day conference, my 4 year old wanted her own podcast so I gave her episode 1 of my podcast.

So, what does life look like to a 4 year old?

LISTEN TO IT HERE

What we talk about in this episode:

SuperpowersWhat she thinks I and my husband (her dad) do all dayPrincessesAnd she even sings a little song

Keep listening to the end when she says goodbye.

Also, you might recognise her voice from my intro.

Have you seen those super cute unicorn cakes making the rounds of the internet?

They are super "on trend" (something I am not). But when Lady A turned 4 and wanted a rainbow princess unicorn birthday party, I though that these unicorn cakes looked pretty simple to knock up. And I was right.

Only problem was, she wanted a rainbow cake like this:

Sorry baby cakes, but there is no way I would be letting any child of mine anywhere near this chemical cocktail of crap.

But, I was determined to make her dream came true.

First up, the cake.

The Cake

6 layers of no refined sugar, grain free, gluten free, no artificial colouring whole foods rainbow cake.

Piece of cake right?

First off I sourced good food colourings from sistermixin.

And then I got to work baking.

This is the recipe I used. The recipe will make 2 layers of cake. So you will need to make it 3 times to make the 6 layers you need for this cake.

Once you have made the batter. Divide it into 2 separate bowls and add your food dyes. They are thick and don't have droppers, so just pour a little in and mix it up until you get the desired colour.

**TIP** The Cherry Red came out blue for me. So use it for the blue layer and then use the pink for the red layer. All the other colours came out ok.

Then put each coloured batter in a separate lined 18cm cake tins and bake. They won't take long - check them at about 15min. And they will be thin. There will be 6 of them (6!!) so the cake will be high and you will only need a small slice. I think we got about 40 slices from our cake.

***NOTE*** These are natural colours and when you add heat and bicarb and other chemical reactions, the colour will change. So you will never get the lurid brightness of the fake colours. Expect various shades of brown and yellow. But in all honesty, the kids didn't mind a bit. They were just super stoked about the layers and the height and the fact that there even were layers.

The Cream

A colourful cake needs white icing. Pure white is a tough gig to achieve when you only use unrefined ingredients. I made this cashew cream that I have used before on cakes with great success like my hummingbird cake.

Once you make the cashew cream, you can start assembling your cake, I used a glass cake stand and placed the "purple" layer on first, you may need to cut a little off the top of the cake layers to make sure they sit flat on top of each other. I didn't bother and as a result my cake was a little;e lopsided and higher in the middle. I choose to believe it added to the homemade charm of it.

Once you have sandwiched all the cakes together, use a spatual or palette knife to smooth the icing all around the outside of the cake.

See? It's not very white is it? Enter...

The Marshmallow Icing

I remember my mum used to ice Christmas cakes in marshmallow icing instead of marzipan and when I was nutting out the white icing problem with my friends, one of them suggested a marshmallow too. So that's what I did.

I used this recipe, which is SO SIMPLE and then just slapped it on the cake with a spatula as quickly as I could before it set. It's quiet ok if you make it a bit rough, I like to think it make the unicorn look fluffy.

You want to place the decorations on fairly soon after you put the icing on before it sets. Leaving it too long will allow the gelatin to set and will make pushing in the decorations more difficult and will ruin the effect if your fingers get stuck to it.

The Decorations

Now to make a round white cake into a unicorn!

The Horn - I used silver sparkly cardboard and I used a party hat, that I turned into a unicorn horn, as a template. Just cut it out, rolled it into a horn shape and secured it with a staple.

The Ears - Using the same sparkly silver cardboard, I just roughly cut out ear shapes. I could have googled them or used a toy as a template...but I just winged it and it was fine. To make them more 3D and to help them stand up on the cake, I used a staple vertically at the base.

The Mane - Fresh pink flowers from my mother in laws garden that I washed and dried very carefully served as the pretty pink mane.

The Eyes - Ok so here I didn't have much of a choice, I used licorice, and not even the good kind! It's just cheap stuff from the supermarket. I told everyone it was plastic so no one ate it and I threw it away after the party. Hey, I'm not perfect, and I figured I had done so good replacing everything else that this would be ok.

And Volia!!

And how did it taste?

Well...let's just say that a few people said it was the best cake they have ever had. And the birthday girl?

I think she was pretty happy with it too.

Love cake? Have you checked out Get the recipes for a lamington cake, a humming bird cake and a double chocolate cake, complete with icings and decoration tips .

For my daughters 4th birthday, she wanted a rainbow unicorn cake.

I did make that cake happen (you can check it out here) and this is the cake recipe I used.

It is a crap free whole foods cake, but it does have lots of nuts in it. This recipe will make 2 layers in an 18cm cake tin and they will be thin. You can make as many batches as you want and bake them separately to make your cake as high as you would like it to be. This is a plain vanilla cake but you could flavour it anyway you like with spices or dried fruit like freeze dried strawberries.

Paleo Vanilla Layer Cake

Ingredients

100g almond meal

80g brazil nuts

80g of cashews - raw

1/2 cup olive oil

1/3 cup raw honey

4 eggs

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 teaspoon of baking soda

Equipment Essentials

Food processor or thermomix

2x 18cm round cake tins lined with baking paper

Make me up

Pre heat your oven to 160degC.

Place all of your ingredients in your food processor or thermomix and blitz together till you have a smooth batter (speed 10/5 min).

Divide your cake batter in 2 and transfer it into your prepared tins. Smooth out the top as best you can, taking teh time now will help you get a more even finished product that will layer better. Place your cake into the oven for 40-50min, it's ready when the top is springy and golden and a cake skewer comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin for 5 min (this allows steam to build up under the cake so it tips out easier) and then carefully tip the cake out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Once your cakes have cooled and you have the desired number of layers, you can start to layer your cake. You could use chocolate mousse or a ganache or fresh cream and chia jam or a raw cashew cream.

Love cake? Have you checked out Get the recipes for a lamington cake, a humming bird cake and a double chocolate cake, complete with icings and decoration tips .

I've been really under the weather at the moment. Don't you hate it when first the kids go down with a virus first, then the husband succumbs and by the time you contract the dreaded lurgy, you're already so tired that you go down hard.

That's where I'm at.

For over a week I've been binge watching Netflix between napping and cups of tea. On top of that, it's still really cold and our heating had decided that it too needs to check out for a bit.

It's times like these you need comfort foods.

But, when you are low on ingredients, time and energy, what can you make?

I had this idea of a fish pie, so I hazily relayed some instructions to Mr CH and he came up with this beauty.

Fish pie with creamy cauliflower sauce.

Ingredients

Sauce

2/3 of head of a medium sized cauliflower

3/4 cup bone broth

1/4 cup almond milk

1 tablespoon grass fed butter

1 teaspoon salt

2 wild caught NZ Hoki fish fillets - defrosted and diced (I think it would also work well with scallops or prawns too).

2 medium sized carrots - peeled and small diced

1 zucchini - diced

A good handful of frozen peas

3 medium sized potatoes - peeled and sliced thinly

A teaspoon of butter

Make Me Up

Preheat your oven to 200deg C.

in the bowl of your thermomix, add your cauliflower and blitz on speed 5 for 10 sec to chop up. Add your other sauce ingredients and cook at 100/speed 2/15min until the cauliflower is soft. Blitz your cooked cauliflower up to get your sauce consistency - it should be thick, smooth and be the consistency of a thick soup. Add a little more broth or almond milk to get it the consistency you desire.

If you don't have a thermomix, you can just boil your cauliflower in a pot of salted water on the stove and once it is cooked, place it in a food processor or blender with your butter and blitz, gradually adding your broth and almond milk until you reach the desired consistency.

Once your sauce is made, pour it into a medium sized casserole dish or enamel pie pan. Add all your other ingredients, except your potatoes and mix well to combine. Now arrange your potato slices on top of your pie filling like fish scales. Dollop a little butter and sprinkle a little salt on top of the potatoes and put the pie in the oven. Cook for 35-40 minutes until the potatoes are golden. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before you dig in. This pie is perfect on it's own but would also be nice next to some garlicy steamed

greens too.

I love wearing make up, but when I found out was is actually IN make up - I thought twice about putting it on my skin.

It was about 6 years ago I discovered Ere Perez Cosmetics while reading an in-flight magazine. It was then I transitioned to using only her cosmetics. I am lucky enough now to know the team at Ere Perez (and have had a few make up tips from the Lady herself) and work with them helping spread the word about beautiful natiral make up.

Recently I sat down for 5 minutes with Ere and chatted about beauty.

Tell us a little bit about Ere Perez Natural cosmetics. What made you decide to start?

I was born in Mexico into a long-standing family legacy of natural therapies and science. I studied nutrition and natural therapies, which is where my passion comes for nature, wellbeing and skin care. I recognise the importance of leading not only a healthy lifestyle, but an environmentally conscious lifestyle too and believe they greatly complement each other, as I try to prove in our cosmetics.

What are the challenges of having children and a thriving business? How do you manage them both?

Sleep!!!! I call it positive stress, too many good things at the same time, meaning you only give your time to want really matters

What does beauty mean to you?

Being the best version of yourself! Inside out beauty first with good food, positive and thoughts, feelings with passion , a smile and to finish great makeup :)

What does "having it all" mean for you?

Health, good laugh , and love from your family and friends

If you could give your 20 year old self any advice, what would it be?

Listen more than talk , people that has been there will tell you advise because they love you. we have two ears and one mouth to listen double than we talk.

Ere Perez make up is the make up I chose to make the attendees of my I want to be a Cosmopolitan Hippy retreat up for their head shots. It's also the make up I use, even for my photo shoots.

I don't wear a lot of make up, but my Ere Perez make up choices, used to create the look above are:

A few months back I was lucky enough to be a finalist in my favourite skin care brands search for a new face. As awesome as this is, it almost didn’t happen.

When I saw the facebook post announcing that Vanessa Megan Skin Care was looking for someone to be the new face of their brand, I instantly wanted to apply. But then that little voice in my head, the one that we all have, piped up.

“Oh don’t be silly, you’re not advertising campaign material. You’ve just had a baby, you’re still carrying most of your baby weight, do you really want there to be photographic evidence, on the internet, never to be erased, documenting you not at your best? Cheek bones hidden under chub? Thick arms? Huge milk filled boobs? Let’s face it, you’re more dairy cow than super model.” *

It’s true that only four months after giving birth to my second daughter, I didn’t look like I did when I was still breast feeding my first as well as walking 3 times a week and fitting in 2 pilates classes around my active 9-5 Chiropractic job, but I still felt good. Sure my arms weren’t toned, my stomach wasn’t flat (in fact my stomach has never been flat), and I was dangerously close to having a 3rd chin, but looking in the mirror, most day’s I was happy with how I looked.

But was that enough?

After agonizing over whether to apply or not for weeks, on the very last day, after a nice long shower (I make all my important decisions in the shower) I decided, why the hell not. I took a few selfies in my bathroom, attached them to an email and sent them off. And about 3 minutes after I did, I regretted it.

The voice started again.

“Don’t expect anything back. They probably have undiscovered supermodels applying. They don’t want you.”

And maybe that was true. ** But I silenced the voice by telling it I would rather be disappointed than not give it a go and be left always wondering.

A few days later, the phone rang with the news I was a finalist. So we flew to Sydney for the photo shoot, had a great little break while we there, met some amazing people, like Vanessa Grey, the founder of Vanessa Megan, did some business, struck up some partnerships and got some cool photos, like these.

I didn’t end up winning, but that hardly matters. What matters is that I was in with a chance because I gave it a go. And if I had ever listened to that inner voice, with all her negativity, I would have never had that great Sydney trip.

And I can’t help but wonder, even though I feel great and am happy with how I look, why do I still look outside myself for validation?

We all do it. In every aspect of our lives, we look outside ourselves to others to tell us that we are beautiful, to tell us that we are doing things the correct way, that we are getting it right. We let that bitchy inner voice talk over and drown out that smaller voice of truth that tells us that we are already beautiful, that we are already on the right path and that everything we are doing is right for us. That smaller voice of reason, the one that sometimes breaks through, like it did for me in the shower when I made the decision to enter the new face competition: that is your intuition. And she, she is your truest friend. She is the one who sooths you in the middle of the night when you wake in a cold sweat, she is the one who makes you turn right when everyone else is turning left, she is the one who will always lead you on your truest path. Listen to her, above all else, nurture her and heed what she tells you because she knows what is best for you.

And above all, don’t let your inner mean girl kill your intuition.

*Let’s be honest, my inner voice is a bitch of the highest order who gives even the meanest mean girls a run for their money. I’m working on her.

**Or maybe my inner voice is just a bitchy friend who really doesn’t want to see me happy.

Last week was international breast feeding week.

I am a big breast feeding advocate and I say if you are lucky enough to be able to breast feed, then get those babies out whenever and wherever you little one needs it.

I was lucky enough to be able to feed my first girl till she was just over 2 years of age and am currently feeding my youngest who is almost 7 months. It's not like I am lacking in milk, but I thought I would give lactation cookies a go. Couldn't hurt right?

Do I think they increased my milk? Maybe. But probably not.

These cookies were delicious anyway. And don't worry if you're not breastfeeding, these cookies won't make you produce milk or anything wierd liek that.

Ingredients in these cookies that make better milk

Choc Chip Lactation Cookies

Makes about 24 cookies

Ingredients

2 cups oats

1 3/4 buckwheat flour

1/2 cup coconut sugar or rapadura

1/2 cup LSA

2 eggs

4 tablespoons almond milk

3 tablespoons Brewers Yeast

250g grass fed butter, ghee or coconut oil

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 tablespoons almond butter

1 tablespoon tahini

100g dark chocolate cut into chunks or dairy free choc chips

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup raisins, sulfur free

Equipment Essentials

Thermomix or food processor

Baking tray lined with baking paper

Make Me Up

Pre heat your oven to 160degC.

Place all your ingredients, except your chocolate chips and raisins, in your food processor or thermomix and blitz till they all come together (thermomix speed 5/ 4min).

Mix in your raisins and choc chips on 2/ slow in reverse.

Scoop out 2 tablespoons at a time and roll into balls and place on your baking tray 3cm apart (they won't spread much) and press down the top with a fork. Repeat until all the mixture in used up.

Place your prepared cookies in the oven and bake for 15min until the top is golden and the cookies are slightly soft and springy in the middle.

Some days are tougher than ever. But nothing gets you back on that horse than pumping some inspirational tunes through your headphone/car stereo/sonos. So pack up all your cares and woes and

10. Stronger – Britney Spears“I’m stronger than I ever thought that I could be”

Britney has had her trails and let’s face it, if Britney can get through 2007, you can through anything too.

9. Confident – Demi Lovato“So you say I'm complicated, But you've had me underrated. What's wrong with being confident?” Nothing Demi. just swing your hips and rock out knowing that there is nothing wrong with being a bad ass boss bitch.

8. Can’t Hold Us feat. Ray Dalton – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis“This is the moment…We’ll fight till it’s over” I can’t rap, but if I could, I’d learn this one. A good reminder that ceilings cannot hold us back.

7. Not Giving In – Rudimental (feat. John Newman & Alex Clare) Just scream "I'M NOT GIVING IN" at the top of your lungs. That should clear any doubts you might have about yourself.

6. Let it go – Idina Menzela

"Let it go"

If like me, you have kids, the Frozen soundtrack is a permanent fixture in your car CD player. Embrace it. It is strangely cathartic to belt out: "Let it goooo!@ Can't hold me back anymooore!" at the traffic lights. Although it's better if my daughter isn't in the car, because apparently when she does it it's all cut but when I do I'm "ruining" the song.

5. Bulletproof – La Roux

“Life’s to short for me to stop”

The boppy beat will lift your mood guaranteed. A great one if you've just had a bit of a disappointment and are finding it tough to move on.

4. Shake it off – Taylor Swift“I never miss a beat, I’m lighting on my feat and that’s what they don’t see”

Only this low on the list because Tay Tay is not on Spotify. But my 4 year old does a stellar version of this girl power anthem that reminds us that "haters gonna hate", so best just get on with it regardless.

3. Survivor – Destiny’s Child“I’m a survivor, I’m gonna make it”

This was my jam in high school. Works for every situation. No matter what happens Queen Be and her crew want you to remember that you can't keep a good girl down.

2. Titanium – David Guetta (feat. Sia)

“You shoot me down, but I won’t fall I am titanium” Sia just gets me. Perhaps it’s because we both grew up in Adelaide or perhaps we’re soul mates, it’s unclear.

1. What You Waiting For? – Gwen Stefani

“Look at your watch now, you’re still a super hot female”

Good question, Gwen, What ARE you waiting for? Sure, things are scary, sure, people might talk, you might fall on your face, but look how amazing your life is, be grateful and "take a chance you stupid hoe".

PS. I need to get me that watch.

The Middle East as always held a fascination for me.

The smell of incense, the sultry heat, the spices the colours. I've been to Egypt and Dubai but I've always dreamed of Morocco and Turkey.

For now, the closest I am getting is food.

This cake I think, might just be the best cake I have EVER made. And that's saying something because I do make pretty good cakes.

Rose, Pistachio and Cardamom Cake

Ingredients

175g of almond meal

150g or pistachios - raw and shells off

100g of cashews - raw

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup raw honey

7 cardamom pods - seeds only

4 eggs

3 1/2 tablespoons of natural rose water (get it from the health food store)

the zest of 1 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)

the juice of 1/2 a lemon (about 2 tablespoons)

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 teaspoon of baking soda

Equipment Essentials

Food processor or thermomix

Cake tin with a hole in it (I think it is call a bunt tin?)

Make me up

Pre heat your oven to 160degC.

Place all of your ingredients in your food processor or thermomix and blitz together till you have a smooth batter (speed 10/5 min).

Transfer your cake batter into your tin and smooth out the top. Place your cake into the oven for 40-50min, it's ready when the top is springy and golden and a cake skewer comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin for 5 min (this allows steam to build up under the cake so it tips out easier) and then carefully tip the cake out onto a serving platter. Serve warm or room tempertaure with a dollop of coconut yogurt.

Love cake? Have you checked out Get the recipes for a lamington cake, a humming bird cake and a double chocolate cake, complete with icings and decoration tips .

Jelly slice is an Australian thing. So don't worry if you have no idea what I am talking about.

I grew up with this stuff.

It reminds me of school fetes where you could get a slice for $1. Super sweet and wobbly with that store

bought biscuit and butter crust. Sort of like cheesecake, but more fun.

A few months ago I was walking past a bakery and saw some jelly slice and I just had to have it. I brought it home triumphantly to Mr CH. We cut it in half, salivating. He too remembers jelly slice fondly.

We should have left it as a memory. It was crap. Too sweet, no real flavour, nothing like I remember. I looked up countless recipes on google to find that the ingredients (as I suspected) were just total rubbish. Condensed milk, sugar, low quality gelatin, sugar, artificial colours, sugar, wheat, sugar.

And there were NO good health recipes either!!!

So I had to make up my own.

And it was a hit! Mr CH and I thought it was better than the bakery version (Lady A only ate the jelly, but she doesn't like custard) and I shared it round with some friends for afternoon tea who also loved it.

It's not as sweet as the childhood version in my head, but I think that's a good thing.

This recipe does have a lot of steps, but each are simple on their own, so you can do one step at a time over a few days if you like, allowing time for everything to cool down and set.

Paleo Jelly Slice

Ingredients

Base

1 cup almond meal

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/3 cup macadamias

1 egg

3 tablespoons of coconut oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Custard layer

400g can of coconut cream

400g almond milk (just fill up the coconut cream can after you empty it)

1/3 cup maple syrup

4 egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla powder (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)

1 1/2 tablespoons gelatin ( I used the Great Lakes Gelatin - the red one)

1 tablespoon coconut oil

1 tablespoon tapioca starch

Jelly layer

2 cups berry juice (I used a black mulberry juice)

1 1/2 tablespoons gelatin (same as above)

1 tablespoon maple syrup

Equipment Essentials

Food processor or thermomix

Square cake tin lined with baking paper

Saucepan

Whisk

Make Me Up

Pre-heat your oven to 160degc.

BASE

In your food processor or thermomix, place all of your base ingredients, except you macadamia nuts. Process them together on high (speed 10 for thermomix) until the mixture comes together in fine bread crumbs. Add your macadamias and pulse or process on low (speed 5 for thermomix) until the nuts are chopped and incorporated. Test that the mix is not too dry by squeezing it between your fingers. If it seems dry, add a tablespoon or so of cold water and process again.

Once the base is ready, press it into your prepared try at for an even layer. Dock the base (ie prick it all over with a fork) and place in the oven to bake for 15-20 min until it is just golden. Allow to cool and the place in the fridge to get cold.

CUSTARD

Now, clean out your thermomix bowl or food processor (but no need to be too fastidious) and add all of your custard ingredients. Blend them up together until everything is well incorporated.

If you are using a thermomix, cook the mixture, speed 4/80degC/20min.

If you don't have a thermomix, place the custard into a heavy based saucepan and place on a low heat. continually whisk it until the gelatin and tapioca have dissolved and the custard has thickened, about 25min.

Allow the cooked custard to cool, this is easiest if you transfer it out of it's cooking vessel into a separate bowl or jug. Allow the custard to come to room temperature, this might take 20-30 minutes. Once cool remove the now cold baked base from the fridge and pour the custard on top. Place the custard layer back in the fridge and allow the custard to set. This will take about 2 hours at least. Or you can leave it overnight.

JELLY

This part is easy. In your saucepan, place your juice, gelatin and maple syrup. Place on a low heat and whisk the juice until the gelatin has dissolved, Continue cooking the juice for a further 10 min. Don't let the mixture boil. Allow the jelly too cool and once it is at room temperature, pour the jelly on top of the custard layer. Allow the jelly to set in the fridge. This should take about 2 hours.

Once the jelly is set, take the slice out of the tin and cut into squares. I prefer to serve this at room temperature so you can taste all the flavours.

Love cake? Have you checked out Get the recipes for a lamington cake, a humming bird cake and a double chocolate cake, complete with icings and decoration tips .

Recently, I had my BFF stay with me for two glorious weeks. It was like a teenage slumber party the whole time. Cooking together, swapping clothes, shopping and making up dance routines. And as we’re modern girls, there was a bit of internet shopping too. It all started when I spied a 70% off Stella McCartney underwear sale. Having just moved out of maternity bras I was keen to get my sexy back but my body ain't what it used to be, so I was curious as to what bra size I must be now. Armed with a tape measure, my bestie came to my rescue. Naturally I stripped off my corporate black dress in the boardroom of my office and allowed my friend to measure me properly.

Underbust – 73cm. Right that’s a 12

Overbust – 88. Ok so I’m an A cup.

Say what?

Now, not to gloat, but my assets have been known to get me a free drink or two in my time, so I was perplexed. My bestie on the other hand, (and she won’t mind me telling you this), mosquito bites.

“Ok so what am I?” my friend asked, taking off her work camisole.

Under bust – 75. Ok so you’re a 12 too.

Overbust – 81. Wait…that’s not even on the chart. So what… minus A?

Standing there in our bras, we were more confused than ever.

I was wearing a 10C bra, my friend a 12A. So we swapped (as you do).

Yes, she could do up my bra, and I was popping out of hers.

Curious…

Why then were our measurements telling us that I should fit into my friend’s bra, when clearly in real life that was not the case?

Further investigation was needed. And more online shopping.

First stop, Forever New. Looking at the sizing chart, my friend was a size 8 bust and a size 10 hips. But the Forever New work cami she was wearing? A Forever New size 6.

Next, Cue. My measurements have me at a Cue size 10 bust and a size 8 waist and 12 hips. Yet my corporate black dress? A Cue 6.

What the?

No wonder we women are so confused when it comes to body image!

We see crazy photo shopped images in the media, women with no cellulite, wrinkles or laugh lines. We are shown what we SHOULD look like in clothes. Then we shop for said clothes and low and behold, we don’t fit.

You know why?

Because you are more than just a size!

You are you. And there is no one you-er than you are.

You have your hips, and your boobs and your thighs.

Maybe they are not a perfect size 6, but who is? According to all the sizing charts I shouldn’t be able to even fit into over half my wardrobe, but that doesn’t stop me from rocking my wiggle dresses and A-line skirts.

So what are we to do?

My top tips for building a better wardrobe.

Stop looking at size. As my bestie and I have proved, it means nothing.Start looking at shape and fit and cuts of clothing.Find stores and brands that ‘get’ you and start by shopping there, once you get more comfortable with what suits you, then branch out a bit.Wherever you can, choose Australian made and local is even better. They have a better understanding of the body shapes that are buying and wearing their clothes. Plus you can feel good about supporting your local economy.Opt for natural fibers instead of man made synthetic ones that are bad for the environment and feel yucky on.Find out what works for you.

I’m no fashion expert, but I know what works for me. And if you need help finding out what works for you, don’t be afraid to enlist the help of a professional. Because seriously girl’s, it’s a minefield out there.

Oh and in the end, I didn’t end up buying any Stella McCartney online; instead I popped into the local intimate apparel shop and got fitted properly.

And I am a 10C.

This article first appeared in Smart Healthy Women Magazine.

Need some help loving yourself? Then you need my FREE set of affirmations cards to remind you how awesome you are each and everyday.

Also, if you want the whole girl's weekend away AND to learn more about clothes, then you should check out Hannah at The Clothing Cleanse and my 3 day I want to be a Cosmopolitan Hippy retreat.

My pork belly love affair started late in life.

I was a vegetarian for 12 years until I met my (now) husband - avid carnivore. And although we don't eat a lot of meat, we do enjoy it occasionally. 1. because I'm not used to eating lots of meat and 2. because we always buy free range or organic meats.

The price of high quality meat can be restrictive. But that's sort of the point. It shouldn't be cheap to eat meat. Meat costs a lot of money to properly produce. You need to feed and house and take care of the animal for years until it is ready to be made into what we buy. And then the killing (yes, I said it) needs to be humane and ethical too.

This all costs money.

And for me, it is something I am willing to pay for. Because it is important to me that what animals I eat have been taken care of properly. I have no problems with eating animals, but I will not support industries that exploit them.

As a consequence, we rarely buy meat from the supermarket. We will occasionally get the Cleavers meat and sausagesbut for all other things we go to our local free range butcher (Goldfield Organics) and order our meat directly from the farm. At the moment, we are working our way through half a lamb from Dunluce Lamb and once that is done, we will be getting half a pig from Zed and Co.

Hand on heart I can tell you that you can taste the difference in free range ethically raised animals.

And fat is good for you.

Your brain and nervous system is around 80% fat.You need fat to make your hormones.A high fat diet keeps you full for longer.

So, onto the pork belly (that I bought from Zed and Co. The broth I use in this recipe I also made from trotters that I got from Zed & Co as well. The BEST broth EVER by the way.

Pork Belly with the BEST crackling

Ingredients

1x 1.5kg pork belly

2 teaspoons of rock salt

1 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 bulb of fennel cut into quarters

2 green apples (wax free), cut in half

1 large brown onion, cut in half

2 cups of bone broth

4 potatoes - diced

1 medium sweet potato - diced

2 medium carrots - diced

Equipment Essentials

Heavy cast iron pan or heavy roasting tray with deep sides (it holds the heat better)

Sharp knife

Mortar and pestle

Make Me Up

Pre-heat your oven to as high as it will go - most will go to about 250degC.

Place you fennel seeds and salt in your mortar and pestle them until you have a fine fennel salt powder.

Take your pork belly and on the skin/fat side, make some deep cuts - BEING CAREFUL NOT TO PEIRCE THE FLESH (this will result in the juice running out of the meat and the meat will be tough) about 1cm apart, parallel in one direction, then turn the pork belly 90deg and do more cuts, 1cm apart and parallel to form a diamond pattern in the fat (this allows the fat to render and come out, making it super crispy).

In the bottom of your roasting pan, place your apple, fennel and onion in one layer.

Now rub your fennel salt all over your pork belly, making sure you gets it in the cuts you just made in the fat. Place your seasoned pork belly ontop of your cut vegetables and apple in the roasting tray. The aim of putting the belly on a bed of vegetables is two fold - 1. the bottom of the belly wont burn and 2. it keeps the belly as one flat piece, this will allow the cracking to be more even and the belly will cut better too.

In total you will cook your belly for 2 hours.

Place your roasting pan with your belly and veggies into the oven for 30min.

After 30 minutes, add your bone broth to the bottom of your roasting pan and turn the oven down to 150degC. Cook for another 30min.

Now add your other diced vegetables (the carrots, potato and sweet potato) to the pan around the belly. Toss them in the pan juices and return to the oven to cook at 150degC for a further 30min.

After 30min has passed, turn the oven back up to it's highest setting for another 30min.

Now your pork should be soft and your crackling crispy. If your crackling needs a little more help, just pop it under a high grill for a few minutes till it is crisp, but rescue it before it burns.

Remove your pork from the pan and place it on a chopping board. Allow it to rest for 15min. Then cut in thick slices, against the meat grain and serve it up alongside your veggies and some steamed greens.

Need an idea for dessert? One of my paleo cakes would hit the spot. Get the recipes for a lamington cake, a humming bird cake and a double chocolate cake, complete with icings and decoration tips here.

A celebration without cake is just a meeting.

I know you might be thinking that I’m a kill-joy by taking away all the gluten, dairy, grains and refined sugar from a celebration treat like a birthday cake, but believe me, it’s not a treat when you’re eating your weight in cake for 4 months straight (like we usually are because all the birthdays in our family fall between September and January).

Plus my cakes are so delicious that you wont miss the bad stuff, I promise.

This no refined sugar, paleo, gluten free, dairy free AND nut free double layer chocolate cake was such a hit, I had people paying me to make and decorate them for several kids birthday parties.

But making and selling cakes is just not my thing, so I decided to put all the recipes in a FREE Cake e-cookbook, which you can get here.

It has a chocolate cake, a laminton cake and a hummingbird cake, complete with ICING!!! You can mix and match the different icings and change the flavours, like I left out the cinnamon and pineapple in the hummingbird cake (the pale cake with dinosaurs) and added raspberries to the cake and freeze dried strawberries to create the rose topped cake.

Paleo Double Layer Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

6 eggs 1 cup coconut oil 1 ripe banana 1/3 cup coconut sugar 1/2 raw cacao 1/2 cup coconut flour 3/4 cup tapioca starch 1 teaspoon bi carb soda pinch of salt

Make Me Up

Pre-heat your oven to 180deg C. Meanwhile, in the bowl of your thermomix or blender, place your 6 eggs and 1 cup coconut oil. Blitz together on high until pale, thick and creamy. Then add your very ripe banana and blitz again until the banana is well incorporated.Now add all your dry ingredients, coconut flour, tapioca starch, cacao, coconut sugar, bi carb and mix on medium speed until all the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet.

Want more? Take your cakes to the next level with my FREE “Cosmo Hippy Cake Book”.For instant access to my newest e-cookbook featuring this Chocolate cake plus a hummingbird cake and a lamington cake, all complete with icings and decorating tips, go here>>>

With so many brands and experts out there, it can be hard to know who to trust.

Bibi Lafleur owns a health food store - Bulk Whole Foods, but she doesn't confess to be perfect. In fact her family gets pizza once a week and she has even bought shoestring fries from the supermarket before! But for Bibi, it's about balance and the 80/20 rule. 80% of the time her and her family eat healthy whole foods while 20% of the time they enjoy the occasional treat.

Bibi is a mum of 3 girls and totally gets the juggle of healthy lifestyle, business person, mum and everything in between. We talked about business, being a mum and health. You can listen to our whole conversation here.

A realistic view on health.

Bibi and I talk about how being healthy is about balance and priorities. Like when she bought shoestring fries and spent the evening with her family instead of spending hours in the kitchen making chips from scratch. We talked about how sometimes choices have to be made between being perfect and your sanity.

Hands off parenting.

As a mum of 3 girls, Bibi reflects on how much her parenting style has changed from being so focused on the "shoulds" of parenting to now being more relaxed with her youngest. As a mum of 2 young girls myself, it was nice to hear about how her less is more style with her 4 year old has resulted in a confident young girl who is not afraid to make mistakes.

Trust my intuition.

Bibi and I talked about how important rhythm and intuition are in both business and health. Bibi has found listening to your body and the feeling you get in your gut, is the best indicator of whether you are making the right decisions whether it be in diet or business.

Connecting with like minded people.

In running a health food store, Bibi has noticed how isolating it can be to be a mum and/or a health food advocate. She is on a mission, like me, to help connect like minded people together to share information.

Bibi and Bulk Whole Foods will be supplying some amazing tasty foods for myI want to be a Cosmopolitan Hippy 3 day retreat.

In the meantime, check Bibi and Bulk Whole Foods out:

Dinner time rolls around and yet again you are locked horns with your kids, battling to get them to even TRY their broccoli.

What if I told you that Kyrstie Barcak has the solution for you? And it isn't bribery.

It's getting your kids involved with growing their food.

Personally I have always loved the idea of growing my own food, but as a self-confessed black thumb with little spare time, I was hesitant. But Kyrstie's book, "Grown Just One Thing" makes the task less daunting.

It is what it says, a guide to get you stated into growing your own food, but growing just one thing. You can listen to our conversation here.

What are the easiest vegetables to grow?

Kyrstie says to go slow and get your confidence up with things like herbs and kale. Apparently rosemary, thyme and kale are pretty darn hard to kill. Curious on how to get started? Then you can download Kyrstie's Seasonal Planting Guide here.

Best activities to keep kids busy.

Running around the garden chasing butterflies, checking on your carrots to see how they are going, having a garden is a wondrous and magical activity for children.

How to turn your hobby into a business.

When Kyrstie was made redundant, pregnant with her first son, she started to think about food and how to give her children the best start in life. This lead to a love of gardening which she has now turned into a thriving business.

I believe that it is so important to know where our food comes from and experienceing teh joy of growing just one thing of your own. I am so excited to have Kyrstie taking us on a tour of The Pop Up Patch in Melbourne CBD on Friday 12th of August as part of myI want to be a Cosmopolitan Hippy 3 day retreat. Included will be copy of Kyrstie's book, Grow Just One Thing.

Want to get your hands dirty before the retreat weekend? Check Kyrstie out.

Staring into the clutter of a thousand pieces of clothing in your wardrobe, you scream "I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!"

Sound familiar?

How many times have you looked at your wardrobe and thought "I must sort this out"?

How many times have you pulled out a piece thinking "Why on earth did I buy this? And why the hell do I still have it?"

Some days you just need a stylist. And I know how Kardashian that sounds, but if you think you know what a stylist dies, then you haven't met Hannah Grey from The Clothing Cleanse.

I've been following Hannah on instagram for a while, I love her clean photos, lots of white. And I love fashion and so does she. But there's something different about what Hannah does. She doesn't buy fashion magazines, she doesn't follow the trends and she doesn't make you throw out all of your clothes.

So what does she do? We had the best conversation about what Hannah does, which you can listen to here. She is a true Cosmopolitan Hippy and so much fun.

What do my clothes say about me?

I have always said that your clothes are an expression of who you are. Hannah and I talked about how you can be corporate and appropriate. And how important it is as an entrepreneur to be authentic and true to who you are, and what you wear is part of your personal brand. Don't change what you love to wear just because you work in a high powered business world, just tweek it. We also talked about how damaging it can be to be inauthentic with your brand using Gorman as an example.

Eco Brands of clothing.

Something I have become more conscious of in recent times is where my clothes are coming from. Who made them? What chemicals were used? What is it made of? Hannah and I chat about all of these things and about a few of our favorite brands and some brands who look good from the outside but are guilty of greenwashing. (cough cough Gorman we're looking at you!) Hannah also mentioned one of her favorite documentaries, The True Cost that addresses all these issues.

How do I sort out my wardrobe?

Hannah has a very specific process which she talks about in detail, but a few tips she shared were having things mended and the Spark Joy method - holding an item to your heart and if you feel no joy, get rid of it!

Where do I donate my old clothes?

Hannah recommends sorting clothes into piles and donating rags to The Brotherhood of Saint Laurenceand corporate clothes to charities such as Dress for Success.

So much value in this interview, if you have any inclination to tidy your wardrobe, you NEED Hannah. I have already started to cull my clothes using the tips she gave in this interview and I cannot wait to have my own Clothing Cleanse and have Hannah show me how I can utilise what I have more.

As you can tell, I am beyond excited to have this fabulous Cosmopolitan Hippy sharing her knowlege in a workshop on Saturday 13th of August as part of myI want to be a Cosmopolitan Hippy 3 day retreat. Not only will it be informative, but Hannah will help style everyone for their head shots.

In the meantime, go soak us some of Hannah's awesomeness.