Do you remember in the Grow Your Gorgeous 2016 Daybook, the page that showed the palette of paints?

The idea was that you had to select the three colours that most called to you, then turn the page and discover the three qualities that correlated with the colours.

These three qualities then represented characteristics of your ahead.

When I did the exercise my three colours represented:

Health

Fun

Breakthrough

The quality that inspired me most was “breakthrough” as I’d been having a challenging few years.

The “fun” bit felt light and gave me a deep sense of relief.

The “health” quality seemed – if I’m honest – a bit alien and unlikely.

But, now, looking back, what I experienced during 2016 was a incredible FUN BREAKTHROUGH in my HEALTH.

During the summer just gone, I was invited by a local Body-Surf-Paddle-Boarding-Goddess (Lucy) to join her early morning Wild Gym.

Wild gym involved using the breath-taking (literally) hills of our area, as well as rugged coastline and woodlands, to exercise and strengthen The Bod.

Since having Reid – and having limited time to get out and move freely – my body was feeling heavy, sluggish and a bit creaky.

Wild Gym realigned my health in a fun, colourful and inspiring way … and it appeared that the Grow Your Gorgeous 2016 Palette Prophesy was coming true.

Summer ended and Lucy the Body Goddess then took flight to Portugal where she was setting up an oasis for people who want to revitalise and redesign their Body-Loving-Lifestyle.

Meanwhile, myself and the silver-shoe-and-PJ-wearing Clare W, continued our early morning fitness and I blogged about it here.

Admittedly almost straight after I published that blog, Life decided that there were other plans for Clare and I.

She got an injury.

I turned my ankle.

Kids got poorly.

The weather turned.

The Bitch Hill Walking Club folded.

However, despite all of this, the 2016 Fun Health Breakthrough  was not over.

Lucy contacted Clare and I to ask whether we would come to Portugal an spend a week at her brand new Body-Love-Retreat … Ocean Blue Oasis.

We were like, “errrr …. yeaaaAAAHHHH!”

And last week, that’s exactly where myself and a five other lucky people went.

We got up every morning and did Yoga before the vast, primitive sky.

We stomped a stunning segment of the pilgrim pathway, Camino de Santiago, passing through lush past terracotta butterflies, cork trees and praying mantis.

We dined and laughed our way home under the Beaver Super Moon – which happened to be at its largest in this southern tip of Europe.

On one afternoon, we found ourselves at a windswept outcrop of rock, called Sangres.

Here, the ocean had carved massive caverns beneath the land and a spiral building had been created around the point where the land has cracked open and the ocean and air could be heard rushing upwards.

Clare and I took turns, standing on the centre point of this grid and sang sacred Oms and songs to the Earth and also … eek … a few verses of Bohemian Rhapsody (to the delight/horror of the other people in the area).

On our final day we took a 40 km bike ride from the top of a the mountain in Monchique, where we were immersed in forest, ancient Portuguese villages and eucalyptus valleys.

Alongside the physical fitness and strength building activities, the laughter we experienced – possibly amplified by the Beaver Moon Madness – was like bathing in serotonin.

The 22degree blast of Vitamin D was like a sunshine smoothie for the soul.

In retrospect I feel rather like a clever mouse who has zipped into Europe and hoarded a huge supply of Prana, Vitamin D, good memories, good practices and then smuggled them all back to the UK in her mouse-like suitcase.

Which is good because it hasn’t stopped raining since I came home.

The sky here is cold, wet and slating and 80 mile per hour winds hit the island last night.

I am well and truly bunkered down for the cosy, twinkling, magical phase of 2016.

New health practices are in hand.

New fitness routines are part of life’s fabric.

A definite breakthrough in healthy fun and fun-filled health has occurred.

It’s now time to journey within, unpack the scarves and gloves, bring in more firewood and weave some dreams and visionary loveliness for the year ahead.

And guess what???

*Rubs hands, grins insanely and can hardly contain excitement*

The Grow Your Own Gorgeous 2017 Daybook – A Manifestation Guide For Conscious Women arrives in the Boutique this week!

I can not wait to see what she has in store for us then.

Can you?

Wishing you a warm, delicious, nourishing and nurturing weekend.