Life Lately #129

Hello lovelies!

Long time no speak!

I've had a few weeks off blogging & I have to say, I've loved it. James & I moved in together (a month ago in 2 days time! Crazy how fast the time goes..) & we have just been so busy with everything, I've hardly found the time to just sit down with my laptop & type. In the moments I have had spare, blogging has been the last thing on my mind if I'm honest. I've been out & about with friends & eating lots of yummy things as I'm sure you can see from this update! Anyway, I can't promise I'm going to post as often as I did before, but I really do want to keep up with blogging, but when it feels right to me. There's been too many moments recently where I've felt forced to post when I really haven't been feeling it & that to me is not what I want my little space on the internet to be about. Anyway! Let's look back over the past 2 weeks!

At the end of April, Gemma celebrated her 26th birthday! We went to a lovely Italian restaurant called Filippos. We had a lovely table upstairs with plenty of room (there was around 20 of us) & we were supplied with countless bottles of wine & food. I had the risotti el pollo for main & chocolate tarte for pudding & then we headed into town for more drinks. I wore my new favourite jumpsuit (the one from BooHoo I wore to Maria's hen do) & got so many people ask me about it. It's just the best. I've found I can eat a crazy amount of food & no one knows as it does a great job of hiding my food baby!

Last week I went to visit my mum & all the lambs that have recently been born. Just look at their adorable little faces! They are so tame, the mummies come up to you to be stroked (& obviously have a nosey around to check to see if you have some food!)

Aren't these flowers just beautiful? With moving into our new place, I never expected people to be so generous with gifts, but the amount of cards, flowers, alcohol & house-warming gifts we have received has been over-whelming, so thankyou all again! We've also had some people over for dinner; James' mum & Barrie came last week, along with our friends Boop & Seb & we have James' dad & Maria booked in for next Monday night. We aren't the best in the kitchen, but apart from a failed mushy risotto, we haven't done too badly! (Sorry Boop & Seb!)

Last weekend Char came home for brunch so we headed to one of our fav restaurants, Bills. It was so lovely to catch up with her & the girls & we even managed to squeeze in a visit to our new flat so Mils & Char could see it with a cup of tea & cookies (brunch pudding, that should totally be a thing right?)

On Monday I had my hair cut & I seriously love it! I had quite a lot chopped off but seeing as I hadn't had my hair cut since the end of December, it felt way overdue. I'm debating whether to have my balayage put back in, but not sure. I do love having a few blonde bits in my hair because I think it really brightens it up, but it just costs so much to do! I need to befriend a hair dresser..

& finally on Tuesday night, James' mum & Barrie treated us to dinner at Cote. We haven't eaten there for a while, so it was lovely to go & they have brought back my favourite pudding; the praline, salted caramel, banana crepe. Oh my lord, if you can, go try it. It's amazing.

Hope you're having a fab week so far lovelies! : ) 

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January & February Favourites

Soap & Glory Face Wash
I got this face wash in a Soap & Glory gift set for Christmas (how amazing was that deal in Boots for a whole suitcase of products btw!?) & I've been using it since the beginning of the year. My skin absolutely loves it & it makes my face feel so clean after I've used it. I think because it smells so minty, it just makes you feel so awake & fresh.

Hygge Book
I picked this book up at the beginning of the year & I'm obsessed. I've got a full post coming on it so I won't write too much about it now, but if you haven't heard of Hygge, I'd highly recommend you pick up one of the many books out there about this style of living. What I've found most exciting is I can literally pick up this book when ever I feel like I need a warm hug & it's right there to offer comfort & relaxation.

Video Editing Software - Power Director 
So, after struggling with a basic video editing software for the longest time, I put the Power Director on my wish list for Christmas & I kindly received it from my grandparents. I'm absolutely loving using it & editing videos from last year! Vlogging is so much fun & this allows me to play around with all my clips & make videos.

Soap & Glory Speed Plump Moisturiser
 This smells incredible. Seriously. If you haven't tried this, you need too. I use this as a primer before applying my makeup in the morning as my skin is very dry on my T-zone, so this just preps my skin before I apply my foundation. I just can't get enough of it!

Garnet Ring
I got this ring for my birthday in January & haven't really had a day where I haven't worn it. It's just so pretty! It was from my parents & they ordered it off Etsy. The rings are all handmade & after looking at a few more of the seller's pieces, I really want to order some more!

Garnet Necklace
This was a gift from my best friend for my birthday & how perfect was it that it matched my ring! The two of them together make the perfect combo!

Barry M Quick Dry Nail Polish
I love painting my nails as I'm sure you all know, however, I do get extremely impatient waiting for them to dry when I've got things to do! These Barry M nail polishes are life savers, they dry within a couple of minutes & the shades in the range are just so beautiful. This lilac shade is my absolute favourite & perfect for spring time.  

TV

Ibiza Weekender
This show is my absolute guilty pleasure. I love all the characters & now they're back with a bang for 2017, I'm loving everything about the show, especially David being head rep. He's just so fabulous.

Making A Murderer

This has totally taken over our lives, both James & I are obsessed. But equally, it makes us so angry watching it! If you've seen it you'll know what I mean, but we're about half way through & can't wait to finish it.

The OA
Ahhh, who's watched this?! We finished it a few weeks ago & I've actually written a full review post on it here if you'd like a read. In a nutshell, it was one of the most confusing shows we've watched, but it was so gripping at the same time. Season 2 has been announced so we're keen to watch that when it's out.

Events

In the middle of January, James & I moved our furniture into storage, with the help of his dad Allan. It took us all day, in the snow, but we eventually got everything packed safely away. It's so exciting, because as soon as James starts his new job (on Monday!) we can get a few months pay checks under our belts & start looking for a place to move into!

It wouldn't be a January / February favourites without mentioning my birthday & as always, I had 3-4 days worth of celebrations & I loved every minute of it. I have to say though, my favourite part was staying in 'a cabin in the woods' with James on my actual birthday evening. I reviewed the place we stayed & it was absolutely beautiful & perfect for us. You can check out the post here if you like.

At the end of January, we organised Gem's baby shower. Can you believe she's due to give birth this month!? Where does the time go..

Ah Valentine's Day this year was just perfect. James & I went to Brighton for the day & I finally gave him the tickets I bought for Craig David back in December, so he now knows we are going next month! I'm so excited!

Nan & Dad's both had their birthdays at the end of February, so we had a buffet lunch to celebrate. I've written a bit about it in my last update post if you wanted to see Nan's cake!

& finally, this is kind of a sad event but also a happy one. My manager at work had his retirement do last Sunday & although it was the most wonderful day & he was so grateful to us all, we are going to miss him so much. Work already feels so different without him.

Music

JP Cooper - September Song (Indian Summer Mix) 

What have you been loving this year so far? : )

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A Cabin In The Woods

Hello lovelies,

For my birthday in the middle of January, James & I booked a night away in this beautiful cabin. I'd been desperate to go away since the end of last year & when I found this place, I knew it was the one!

I booked it through Airbnb, which I'd heard good reviews about from a friend who had used it last year to book some unique over night stays when they travelled around the country for their honeymoon. It takes a bit of sifting through the website (think of the sale rack in Primark..) but I really did stumble over a gem when I found this cabin!

The cabin we booked was in Pulborough, a large village about half an hours drive from our house. I didn't want to go too far, but also somewhere that I hadn't really had a chance to explore. To be honest, we could of been absolutely anywhere, the cabin itself is very secluded, down a track about a half mile of the main road.

When we arrived, it was around 3pm, so we quickly dumped our stuff & headed out for a walk while there was still some day light. James & Misty, who own the cabin, were in constant communication with us, so they knew exactly what time we were arriving. They left the heating on for our arrival, a personalised message on the chalk board in the main living space & we found a bottle of processo & chocolates in the kitchen! We were so surprised & slightly over-whelmed by how amazing everything was. 

They had also left a welcome guide, filled with lots of local walks. The cabin itself is on a bridle path, so it was well signed & we were able to navigate our way across some fields towards the local pub.

We headed home & cooked dinner & enjoyed a night infront of the tv on the sofa, lit up by fairy lights.

I can't stress to you enough how beautiful this cabin really is, the pictures don't do it justice. We had such an amazing stay, we're definitely thinking of booking it up again in the Spring.

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Life Lately #121

Hello lovelies,

The girlies & I met up for a catch up a few weekends back to discuss baby shower ideas for Gemma's up & coming day! We are so excited & plans are coming together nicely. I can't wait for her little one to be born.

We had a staff meeting at work on Tuesday morning & I had a gap between the start of my shift, so James & I went for breakfast at Bills. I've mentioned this restaurant hundreds of times on my blog I know, but they honestly do the best breakfasts ever. Just look at those pancakes!

Last Thursday we had a short downpour of snow! I'd just arrived at work & suddenly the sky opened & we had a snow shower! It only lasted a few hours but still, it was most exciting! Elisa & I thought we'd be trapped at work forever.. luckily we weren't.. ; )

Thursday was also my last day at work before 5 days off. On Friday, James, Allan & I moved our furniture into storage. We were kindly offered some furniture which had been hardly used (including a sofa, 3-doored wardrobe & bedside cabinets) just before Christmas as a friend of the family was moving into a rented house, but bringing her own furniture. As James & I are currently looking for our own place, but not yet found anything, we put all the furniture into storage. It took all day to move it from the house to the storage area, but it's one step closer to being in our own place!

On Friday evening, we had a meal at my grandparents to celebrate my birthday. Mum brought the most amazing cake for me, it was called Freddie The Frenchie. Isn't he just the cutest!?

Saturday morning I'd arranged a pottery painting session in town with my tea ladies. It was so lovely to catch up with them all & to obviously paint with a cup of tea & some cake! I decorated a bowl for Honey, which we get to pick up in a few days time.

Saturday evening I'd organised a pub trip with my best ones in town. It was so much fun, despite the fact I've been put off orange licquer for life..

Sunday morning the girls & I went for brunch at Joanna's Tea Room. I tried it out in December with the family & loved it so much, I had to book it for the girls to try as well. They have chandeliers, pink tea cups & endless supply of cakes. What more could you want? The original plan was to go for a short walk while we were there, but due to the rain, it was a walk to the duck pond & back!

Finally, on Monday, James & I travelled to this adorable little lodge we'd booked for the night. It literally was half an hour down the road, but right in the middle of nowhere. I'm going to do a full review post about it in a few weeks, but oh my goodness. We are already looking to book it up again in the Spring / Summer. It was so perfect.

How has your week been lovelies?

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26

Hello lovelies,

I've been thinking about this post for a while & how I would write it this year. I wrote a post entitled 25 a few days before my 25th birthday last year & I wanted to come back to it now, as I'm turning 26 tomorrow. So this will basically be like a new year / update over the past year post.

In that post, I reviewed my whole 25 years on the planet, so I just wanted to address a few points over the last year that I wanted to accomplish & what has changed. I'm pleased to say quite a few things have changed & some have stayed the same.

So let's start with James.

We'd just celebrated our 3 year anniversary (& have now celebrated our 4th, yay!) & he graduated university this year which I'm so proud of him for. I wrote in that post that I was excited about being in a relationship which wasn't going to be long distance anymore & I can safely say, it is soooo much better. I do still appreciate having my own space sometimes, but getting to see him most days has been amazing. I also mentioned about the possibility of us moving in together in 2016, which when I think about it now, was quite premature. We're both at a point now where everything is falling into place & I'm so glad we've waited a while before jumping straight in to living together. Hopefully though when I come to write my '27' blog post, we shall be living in a house together!

Work.

So this is a tricky one. So much has happened over the past year that has made us a bit unstable at work which I won't go into, but I will say, I'm still in the same job, which I wouldn't class as a bad thing at all, I still love what I do & I also had the confidence to branch out a bit more last year with a few opportunities that boosted my confidence. I attended a conference in London (which I was so chuffed at myself for going to) & it also opened my eyes a bit to a world within work. That probably makes no sense to most of you.. but just a few inspirational words & speaking to people in the same position as you can really change your perspective on things.

Friends & family.

Lots of exciting things have happened last year with my family & friends. We had two engagements, a wedding & a pregnancy announcement! All very exciting for the year to come. My family also have once again been so supportive & caring as always.

Because life's too short to say "I'll do it tomorrow."

This was the quote I used to finish my blog post last year & how right could I have been. I've really pushed myself over the past year to do things I would normally have said no to, just because I didn't think I could do them. & yes, some of them are the smallest achievements, but I'm so so so proud of myself for doing them. Here's a few that made my year;

I organised a Disney party.

This was one of my favourite things about 2016, my birthday party. I planned the whole thing & it was honestly one of the most amazing nights. Plus I got to wear a princess dress!

I went to Crufts.

Like I said in my post last year, I wanted to do things that have been on my list to do for the longest time & Crufts was one of them. I got to cuddle a Chihuahua & a Pug!

I went to a football match.

Ok, so it was a charity match played by YouTube Stars, but it was still a big thing for me to travel to Southampton & be in that environment. I actually loved it so much!

I went abroad with my best friend on holiday.

Yes, yes I did. I still can't believe I did it. I managed to go on a plane, stay in a new place & managed to relax all while miles away from home.

I got my ear pierced.

This is something that I've wanted since I was 18 years old & never had the courage to do it, until this year! Thanks Gem again for doing it!

So, in conclusion, 2016 was pretty good for me.

I managed to visit new places, do things I never thought I would do & I met lots of new people. There's a few things I want to achieve this year, but mostly I just want to continue with what I'm doing. 2016 was definitely the most positive, confident year I've experienced in a long time as I was completely knocked in confidence after leaving college & it takes a while to bring that back up again. I want to travel more, book things because 'why the heck not' & just live life to the full. I've already got a few exciting days out / weekends away planned & I honestly can't wait to see what 2017 has in store for me : )

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