The Final post for 2011

This is my final post of 2011! I would have never thought at the beginning of last year that I would start a blog and it would be as successful as it has been! I've had readers from countries all over the world reading my blog! There is such a feeling of satisfaction to know that I might be helping someone around the world, I might have inspired someone to go to the doctor to get tested and finally get a solution to there problem.

Personally my year has been filled with a rollercoaster of emotions and bad luck, hospital visits, 2 surgeries and lots of pain from my accident. I had thought about blogging, as I was enjoying reading Lori's blog from RASHM and Emma, from What's in Emma's Brain.

I remember the moment that I decided I would start my blog, it was at a child's birthday party, and a conversation with Emma, who encouraged me to write the blog. I remember sitting at my house typing the very first post, setting up my blog and pressing the publish post button, I sat watching the amount of times that the post was viewed. I was amazed as the numbers of viewers dramatically went up and the excitement was even greater when I read that people from all over the world were reading my blog! As time continued, so did my readers and I was in total amazement at the amount of countries that my readers were coming from!

Even in times when I was too sick, or in too much pain to write my blog, my readers stood by me and where still there when I was back on my blogging feet again. I even had my mum and my husband type my blog, whilst I was lying in bed, or they were sitting next to me.I couldn't believe how much blogging had become a part of my life.

I remeber my first recipe I put up, it was a recipe from someone else, a cookbook or something, as my confidence began to grow, I began to develop more confidence in my cooking, in how flavours worked together, I began to make recipes from scratch, use a recipe as a base and work from there. I now find it difficult to work out how to write down recipes, cause I use a bit of this and a bit of that, that's how I know that my skills have improved. And I love that look on peoples face when they try your food and its like their eating a piece of heaven. That's when you know you have nailed a recipe.

Some of the nicest food I made this year was the Chocolate Baileys and Choc Cream Pavola, with berries (my creation), the Cherry Ripe Cake (Delicieux's creation, I just played around with the ingredients to make it gluten free), the Orange and Chocolate Cake (once again a marvellous recipe by Deliiceux, originally Nigella's) I added orange segments around the outside for decorations, The Chocolate, Almond and Butterscotch Schnapps Christmas Balls, my favourite main meal was probably the mustard encrusted roasted beef (my creation again), and finally the very last thing is the cocktail I created for a Nuffnang competition, a White Nectarine and Butterscotch Schnapps Cocktail (delicious, light and fluffy and not too strong).

It was only recently I joined the Twitter world, and here I came across many fellow food bloggers, both gluten free and standard food blogs! I can't believe how nice some of these lovely women are, Jennifer from Delicieux and JJ from 84thand3rd, I'm also reviewing an ebook for a fellow food blogger, Kim from Simply Natural Health, and Im sorry if I have missed anyone out, but thankyou to all the people that have helped me, let me particiapte in blog hops, which I have enjoyed so much and welcomed me with warm arms into the world of food blogging. I would also like to again thank Emma fro Whats In Emma's Brain for giving me the courage to start the blog and Lori fro RASHM (in a time of emotional turmoil, she gave me the time, to help me out with some beginners questions, for that I am so grateful). Before this point I was kind of feeling like a wall flower, sitting there in the blogging world, but now I have been welcomed by these lovely people, become part of a group, not so lonesome anymore!I also have to mention Nikki From Styling You, she has also welcomed and supported me with open arms! I look forward to joining more blog hops, more competitions and whatever else comes my way. I have to also thank again Jennifer from Delicieux for selecing me along with De Bortlio to be one of the 10 people to win some of their lovely wine, as promised I gave the wine to my best friend and my darling sister, the people who have driven me around and helped so much this years in more ways then words can mention! Thankyou girls, I love you both and am honoured to have you and my other very special circle of friends and family in my life, you know who you are.

I have also enjoyed reseraching the links between autism and the gluten and caesin free diet, the more I have discovered the more apparent it seems to me, that removing gluten and caesin (a protein in milk) has massive positive affects on children on the autism spectrum. With my education background, I also believe that if could have positive affects on children with various behaviour problems like ADHD and ODD, its a simple, non medication alternative. I never claim to be a medical professional, all I put forth is the research and I encourage you to try something for just a week and see if there are any differences, the pros for this so out weigh the cons!

My goals or resolutions for the New Year are as follows;

1. A revamp of my blog, to reach a wider population of readers
2. Follow some dreams I have about gf products and spreading my wings in the gluten free world, there is deinately a hole in the market out there, I hope you will see it all next year!
3. I want to get more of my reviews etc in published print, I've had one local review, its given me a taste for more.
4. I want to write a gluten free recipe book, either published or e-book.
5. To join the blogging world on a bigger scale, perhaps attend some conferences, get to do the fun things that I see other bloggers do!
6. To loose a bit of weight (the most common new years resolution!).
6. To continue doing things that make me happy.
7. A big lesson I have learnt this past year and a bit is that its in times of trouble and hardship, you really find out who your true friends are. I will and I recommend you, to do the same, surround yourself with the people who you love and who are there for you no matter what, in bad times as well as good.

I hope that next year brings me more good luck, good health and recovery. I hope that everyone who reads my blog gets enjoyment help, advice, recipes that they like and can use. I wish everyone good health, good personal contentment and personal happiness. So until next year, drink sensibly tonight, a hangover is not a great thing to have, frock up where ever you are and have some great fun. Remember to follow my blog if you have been reading this, it means so much to me! I get excited when I get a message from a reader or someone follows me or leaves a comment!

So to all Happy New Years Eve, good riddness 2011 and bring on 2012, I have a good feeling about next year! Tonight I'm making my Chocolate Moouse with Cherries soaked in cherry liquer, I will put up photos with the recipe next year. Have a safe night from the summer of Australia, to the freezing cold of Russia and everywhere in between I wish my readers all the best for the new year!