Life Lately #147

Hello lovelies,

I know you're probably all incredibly bored of me talking about my new house by now (especially if you read last week's post!) but I'm still absolutely loving it! I can't believe we've been moved in over a month now & the weather has been so beautiful, we've been out in the garden eating breakfast & dinners most evenings. We've also had family & the doggies over for BBQ's, which has been lovely! Honey & Harvey adore the garden & spent the first day exploring every nook & cranny they could stick their noses in. Once our grass seed has improved the lawn, I can see them sitting out there for hours! 

We have also been doing some work on the actual garden. Like I say, we've laid some weed killer & grass seed, as well as planted some flowers & seeds for onions & lettuces. I've started weeding the patio as well, but had to stop as I got so hot last weekend! I'm currently writing up another post all about falling in love with our garden, which I can't wait to share with you.

At the end of April, it was Gem's birthday. We celebrated by having the most delicious roast at a local pub. Baby Alice also said my name & made me cry, much to Boop's amusement!

At the beginning of May, James & a few of the girls & I went to watch Bo, Chris, Cathy & Ben perform in a play at our local theatre. It was such a good production! They performed Night Must Fall, a play I have to admit I hadn't heard of, which actually made it alot more interesting to watch the story unfold. 

The Sunday after, James & I went to Hever Castle. It was the most stunning day & we explored the castle & gardens before heading home to a BBQ with Allan & Maria. I've written a full post about our day here if you'd like to see what we got up to.

James & I went to Prezzo for a date night on last Wednesday. I know we live together but with our work schedules being so different, there's nothing quite like getting dressed up & spending quality time together. I have to mention my dish, it was absolutely delicious. I had the penne gorgonzola, which I'd highly recommend!

Last Saturday, the girls came round to mine for a housewarming / Eurovision night as James was in London on a stag do. We all dressed up in connection with our countries, either colours from the flag or something related to the country. We also had a prize for the highest placed country, which Char won! Congrats again Israel!

Last Sunday I went to Ikea with Cathy. We had such a good time! I managed to pick up a few extra bits for the house, including some more tea lights, which I buy on every single trip! But I did manage to resist bringing another plant home.. amazing for me as I seem to pick up a new baby every time we go..

Oh & I've been feeling like complete death this past week. I've been off sick from work & am just starting to feel human again. It always feels so wrong to me being ill at this time of year, it's Summer! I should be out in the garden with my plant babies, not wrapped up in 10 blankets sweating my face off! Nice image for you there.. haha!

Oh & I can't not mention the Royal Wedding in this post. What an amazing day, Meghan looked absolutely stunning & I honestly couldn't have been more proud of our country. I actually wish I'd booked the day off work & had the girls round because it would have been so much fun as I heard there were so many wonderful events in our area!

& finally yesterday James & I went to Brighton as we had some vouchers to use at Café Rouge. Never, ever again will be go to Brighton on the same day as the "mini marathon". The journey was supposed to take us 45 minutes max, but we ended up on the road for 2 hours. The traffic was at a complete standstill in some places & we had to call the restaurant twice to say we were going to be late! They were very understanding & weren't fully booked thankfully, so we managed to get a table & sit down to eat at 2.15pm, instead of our initial reservation at 12.45pm. We had planned to go shopping for last minute holiday bits as well, but we couldn't face the shops after the ordeal of getting there, so we headed home! We had a lovely lunch regardless, it was just so frustrating!

How has your week been lovelies? Did you watch the Royal Wedding?

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Life Lately #145

Hello lovelies,

In my last post, I mentioned James & I were heading to Crufts for the weekend in Birmingham & if you follow me on Instagram, I'm sure you would be sick of seeing all my dog pictures, but it honestly was so much fun! I got to meet the wonderful JB from The Kingsman & Fru Fru from Beauty & The Beast! I also got to stroke about a million different dogs, I was in heaven.

We stayed in the most adorable Air B'n'B, which was perfect for us. As we were driving up late Friday night, we wanted somewhere we could access after 10pm, which surprisingly limits you on the places you can book! Jo's home was perfect for us & was warm & welcoming when we arrived. Oh & if you haven't booked with Air B'n'B before, you can use my code to get £25 off your first trip! It's the first place I check when James & I are looking for a short break away.

On Sunday it was Mother's Day, so we went over to my parents' for lunch with my grandparents. Mum had made the table look incredible as always, laid out with way too much food. We bought Nan some presents too, here she is buried in a massive box! It was hilarious seeing her open it!

As I've mentioned in previous posts, I'm slowly building up my book collection & recently added Lily Pebbles' book, The F Word. I'm only a few chapters in, but I'm finding it really interesting & very relatable. Have you got a copy?

Last Thursday I met up with my girlies for Pizza & a catch up & it was so lovely to see them & hear all about Boop's birthday! I can't wait to get our plans together for her surprise.. ; )

& finally, I couldn't do another update post without mentioning the snow again.. I mean.. what is actually going on.. it's nearly the first day of Spring!? James & I came back late Saturday night to find our parking space covered by snow, it made our little flat look so pretty. It's now only 2 & a half weeks till we move seriously not looking forward to packing up everything but we're extremely excited to get settled in now. I'm just going to miss our little flat so much.

How has your March been lovelies?

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Our Adventure To Shere - The White Horse

Shere has been a village I've wanted to visit for the longest time. I'd heard so many lovely things about it; a perfect place to have a wonder with some cute little shops & some delicious places to eat. Also, it was where one of my favourite movies, The Holiday was filmed!

James & I both had a Sunday off together at the beginning of February, so decided to head to Shere, for a stroll through the village & have lunch at the White Horse.

I decided to drive which probably wasn't the best idea, as the village is tiny & alot of people park on the road, making it almost impossible to weave through all the cars! However, we survived.. just..

I'd mapped out a walk around Shere to build up an appitite before lunch, called the Villiage Trail. It took us round the back of the village, through a ford, or you can choose to use the footbridge if you aren't wearing approprite footwear! You follow the path round till you get back into the village, by the River Tillingbourne.

The were loads of ducks, big & small on the river & lots of families feeding them bread. We even saw the most adorable bakery called Crumbs, were children were buying bread to feed to the ducks. It was like a scene out of a movie!

We'd booked lunch at the White Horse for 12.15pm that afternoon & I'm so glad we did! They had a sign up to say they weren't taking anymore bookings & were completely full for lunch. Definitely a popular spot & I'd highly recommend booking if you're going to take a trip there.

The pub itself is in the middle of the village & is a 'proper' countryside pub! By that I mean, picture open fireplaces & comfy arm chairs nestled in an old fashioned beamed pub. It has the cutest little seating area out the back, which I'm guessing is heaving in Summer. We weren't seated near the fireplaces, but everytime I went past to the loo, I would stand & enjoy the warmth from the flames before heading back to our table!

Right, onto the food. James started off with the Farmhouse Pate, which I had a small taster of & it was delicious. They provided us with so much pate, there was plenty to share between the two of us!

We both had a roast for main. We sat near a couple who had arrived a bit before us & when we saw their roasts come out, our minds were definitely made up! You aren't just limited to the 'Sunday Menu' - all of the dishes on the lunchtime / evening menu are available if you don't want a roast.

James chose the Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder & because I couldn't make up my mind, I had the Trio Of Roasts, which consisted of pork loin, turkey & beef. All of it was incredible, but the turkey was my favourite, it was so tender & cooked to perfection.

We managed to eat our way through most of the meal, however there was so much on the plate, it would have been near impossible to finish, even though we tried our best! It was one of those moments when you just think "I'm so full, I'm going to explode, but it's so yummy I just want to keep eating!"

After a half hour break, we decided to share a pudding as they all looked so good. We opted for the Chocolate Fudge Cake with ice cream, which again, I can only describe as amazing. It wasn't too big either which we were both hoping after our massive roast!

I'm honestly not exagerating when I say this was one of the nicest pubs I've ever eaten at & we can't wait to go back again! From start to finish, we couldn't fault it.

It also started to snow when we were getting the bill, which just made the whole afternoon even more perfect.

Have you ever been to Shere? We can't wait to go back to visit The Dabbling Duck.

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Life Lately #144

It feels like ages since I wrote an update post! & it obviously was as my first update is from Valentine's Day!

You might remember if you read my last update post, I bought Cathy a Valentines afternoon tea for 2 at Wyevale Garden Centre. We attempted to get there on the Thursday after Valentines & got stuck on the M23 for 3 hours! We re-arranged it for Sunday & actually managed to get there this time! It was so worth it as well, which was lucky, as I'd never been to the garden centre before, so it was a bit of a gamble. For £5 each, we had a full afternoon tea, complete with sandwiches, scones, cream, jam, strawberries dipped in chocolate, brownies, macaroons & bake wells!

I blogged at the beginning of the year about my goal of reading at least 8 books this year & so far I'm on number 3. I finished this one by Jill Mansell at the end of February & I've written a full post reviewing it which will be coming up soon, but I'm currently on track to read at least 1 book a month, which means I'll be smashing my goal!

Now, I couldn't really do an update post without mentioning the snow could I?! I stayed over at my parent's house while they went away for the night to celebrate my Dad's 60th birthday & got to spend some time with my little girl. She's not a massive fan of the snow, it tends to get matted in her long fur coat, but we did venture out a few times before it got too heavy! I can't believe how cold it got as well, I was wrapped up in so many layers! I also wanted to show you this scarf I got from Primark, it was £3 in the sale & is the cosiest thing ever, even though it's constantly malting!

On Sunday, I travelled to Worthing to visit my friend Ricka who has just bought a house nearby. It was so lovely to have a catch up with her as I hadn't seen her since before Christmas & see her new place! We ventured into town where one of my best friend's mum was putting on a book show. We got to meet a few authors & listen to them talk about their books, then had a mooch round the town, before heading back to hers for crisps & tea!  

Later that evening, James & I went to see Allan & Maria for dinner. They've just got back from a 2 week holiday, so it was great to hear all about their adventures over dinner.

& finally, the girls & I got to try the new halloumi with chilli jam at Nandos. It was ridiculous how excited we all were for these & just to confirm, they were amazing!

Oh & the final update for this month is I became contracted full time at work! I've always worked around 40 hours a week at my current place of work, but only been contracted 25 hours & the rest was overtime, so when I was offered a full time contract, I obviously was over the moon. When James & I come to look at buying a house, that will definitely help!

How has your month been so far lovelies? I'm in the best mood as Crufts has officially started & James & I are headed to Birmingham this weekend to see all the doggies! I can't wait.

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Life Lately #143

Hello lovelies,

At the end of January, I had to say goodbye to this wonderful lady. I've been working with her for nearly 10 years & she's like my second mum. She's starting her new adventure in Devon & I couldn't be more excited for her, but I'm also going to miss her like mad. Work really doesn't feel the same without her.

I met up with my tea ladies at the beginning of February, which was lovely as we don't all get to see each other very often. I also got to meet & cuddle the gorgeous baby Rupert, who was so adorable. Just look at his little face! He's almost 2 months old.

James & I had a rare day off together on Sunday & we booked a meal at the White Horse. It's a beautiful pub in the middle of a small village called Shere, in Surrey. I'd planned for us to do a 2 mile walk before our roasts to build up an appetite & despite it being freezing cold, it was an absolutely perfect day. The food was seriously incredible, I'm not exagarating when I say, it was one of the best roasts I've ever had. We explored the local area as well & picked out a few nice places to shop. We'll definitely be heading back to Shere soon to try out The Dabbling Duck.

Last Monday night, the girls & I celebrated Galentine's Day at ASK Italian. We had such a lovely evening. The food was delicious & we had a few cheeky glasses of wine!

For Valentine's Day, I spent the day with one of my best girlies. Cathy totally spoiled me at work & I came home to James, who had surprised me by cooking dinner. He also brought balloons & confetti to decorate the lounge. So cute!

On Thursday I met up with Lorna & Sarah in town before heading to afternoon tea with Cathy, I'd bought her 'Valentines tea for 2' at Wyevale Garden Centre.. except, we got stuck on the M23 for 3 whole hours because of a diesel spillage! We later discovered they'd shut the motorway & had to re-surface the road over night! We luckily managed to re-arrange the tea for this afternoon. Don't worry.. we'll be taking a different route this time! (Follow my Twitter for updates & see if we actually make it..)

Friday I went to Guildford with my girls & we had the most delicious Nandos while browsing the shops. I picked up the most beatiful playsuit for Summer, which I'm sure will feature on my Instagram soon. Look at Lily trying on all the shoes! Here she is modelling her favourite pair!

& finally last night, Gem cooked us dinner at hers. We had pasta bake & had a massive catch up, while watching lip sync battles! Have you seen Channing Tatum's Lip Sync's? Oh my god, we were crying with laughter!

How has your week been lovelies?

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Life Lately #142

Hi lovelies,

My birthday seems like so long ago, but also like it was yesterday. I managed to pack so much into my 5 days off, it felt like I was constantly on the go!

I started my celebrations off with an evening meal at my Grandparents' last Friday. We had a catchup over a roast dinner.

On Saturday, James & I went to brunch with Allan & Maria at our local pub. They have only recently started doing breakfasts & after James & I tested it out a few weeks ago, we brought Allan & Maria to try it out. I had a full English last time we went, but tried the pancakes this time & they were so delicious. Definitely will be going back again!

Our friend Tom came down to stay for the weekend on Saturday evening & we spent the evening playing games & eating pizza!

Sunday morning I'd organised a brunch with my girlies at Sunmers Pond. I won't go into too much detail as the service wasn't great, but the food was lovely. We had a walk around the pond before coming back to the cafe for cake & tea. I was thoroughly spoilt by the girlies & although we won't be going back there in a hurry, it was a lovely morning.

In the afternoon, we went to see The Greatest Showman. It was absolutely fantastic, I can't reccomend it enough. We've had the soundtrack on repeat since we saw it!

On Monday, James, Tom & I went to Brighton for the day. Tom had only visited Brighton once before, so it was nice to show him Churchill Square & The Lanes. It was pouring all day, so even though we didn't get to venture onto the pier, we briefly saw the sea from afar! I treated myself to the most beautiful coat from Pull & Bear, which I'm sure will be appearing on my Instagram in the next few weeks, as I've literally not taken it off since buying it!

& Tuesday was my actual birthday & I spent the day at my favourite place, West Wittering Beach. I wrote a full blog post about this place just over a year ago & why it's so special to me. It really was a no-brainer when Mum asked what I wanted to do on my birthday! It was extremely cold, but not too windy & it just started spitting with rain when we were driving home. We met so many adorable dogs & had birthday cake & tea when we got home.

& finally I wanted to mention one of my lovely birthday presents that I've become obsessed with, The Bullet Journal. I'm going to do a full post on this once I've properly finished organizing mine, but if your not sure what this journal is all about, just have a search on Pinterest & you'll find loads of examples!

& finally finally! I wanted to say a massive thankyou to everyone that wished me Happy Birthday. I had such an amazing week, filled with cake, presents & the best company! Roll on 28!

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Life Lately #141

It feels like Christmas was so long ago! Especially as James has his birthday so soon afterwards (1st Jan) & we celebrated the New Year & we're now planning my birthday! It all goes by so quick.

On 23rd December, we had our yearly friends Christmas do at Elisa & Jamie's. This year, instead of everyone bringing a dish individually, they cooked the entire meal themselves! Complete with this amazing cocktail to start. We swapped Secret Santa presents & ate waaay too much food! I always love going to this every year, they really are the greatest group of friends a girl could ask for.

Christmas is always a bit of a whirlwind for us. We travel to family every day, starting with James' mum & partner Barrie for Christmas Eve. We travelled down as soon as I finished work at 6pm for an evening of food, games & presents. They had 2 french families staying for Christmas Day, so we had tons of food & drink! I managed to make my way through a whole bottle of champagne! We left just after midnight & headed back to our flat.

What made this year extra special was we woke up on Christmas Day in our own place. I've absolutely loved decorating & making the space our own this year. We bought a Christmas tree at the beginning of December & it was lovely to add presents underneath throughout the month. We opened our presents to each other early Christmas Day before heading to my Grandparents' for lunch.

We always have a full roast dinner at lunch time on Christmas Day & this year was no exception. My family completely spoiled us this year!

& finally Boxing Day was spent at James' Dad & Maria's house with extended family. We ate way too much again & played lots of games. I'm so rubbish at most games, I usually end up last! Hahaha, but it's fun none the less.

We celebrated James' 24th birthday last weekend, starting with a meal at my parents' on Friday & we went to Globalls in Brighton for the afternoon on Sunday & played 2 rounds of golf. If you've never heard of Globalls, have a look at some of the pictures on their website! It's such a brilliant concept & really inexpensive. I actually won the 1st round & came 2nd overall, so not bad at all!

We then went out for dinner at our local chinese, which put on a special New Years Eve menu. It was brilliant for trying dishes you'd never normally order. Complete with a glass of champagne, it went down a treat! We then headed back to Allan & Maria's for fireworks to see in the New Year.

On New Year's Day / James' actual birthday, we spent the day with family. We visited Allan & Maria for the afternoon, then headed to Valerie's for dinner & games.

James got given a new board game for Christmas called Labyrinth from Alex & Charl & I'm obsessed with it! We played it on James' birthday & every night since! Like I say, I'm not brilliant at games, but this one is so much fun.

& finally, now the week of celebrations has come to an end, last Tuesday, we went to see Pitch Perfect 3 at the cinema & it was hilarious. Quite a far-fetched storyline though.. let me know if you've seen it & thought the same!

How has January been for you so far lovelies? Do you have any resolutions?

Hope you all had a wonderful New Year!

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November & December Favourites

Advent Calendar

If you follow me on Instagram, you're probably sick to death of seeing this advent calendar! If not, then keep an eye out for my blog post coming in January, reviewing all the bits I got! I've absolutely loved opening this every day through-out December & I'm extremely sad it's finished.

Candles

If I had a life time favourites, candles would feature for sure, but this month I've fallen back in love with Yankee Candles. James & I were kindly gifted a pine scented one at the beginning of December from my mum & we've already burnt through it! I'm so sad, but perfect timing to say goodbye to Christmas & start a fresh for the New Year.

Blood Orange Bodyspray
This was one of the items I got in my advent calendar & I've been wearing it most days since opening it. It smells so Christmassy & not surprisingly.. quite orangey! Who wouldn't want to smell like a chocolate orange at Christmas time?!

Clinique Lipstick

I mean, nothing beats a red lip at Christmas time. It just completes every outfit in my eyes & makes you look like you've put in so much more effort than you actually have! This one from Clinique is never far away from my lips, it's such a lovely formula.

Matte Pink Lipstick

I've never bought anything from the brand Stila before, but loved the look of their products, especially the lipsticks. When this one popped out of my advent calendar, I was so excited! I started wearing it the next day & haven't taken it off my lips (apart from when I'm wearing the Clinique red lipstick!) 

Mince Pies & Cheese
I mean, not together obviously, but who doesn't love a mince pie & cheese & crackers at Christmas! I've lost count of what I've consumed this year.. oops!

Music

Ed Sheeran - Shape Of You (remix)

Christmas songs!

TV

Vampire Diaries 
James & I have started watching this from the beginning & are loving it. I'd watched up to season 5 a few years ago, but forgotten so much of it! 

Events

Grandad celebrated his 90th birthday in the middle of November! 

James & I celebrated our 5th anniversary with a trip to Kingston-Upon Thames.

As well as meeting up with friends & family in December, the girls & I went to Wakehurst Place for the Glowalk, we had a group meal at Elisa & Jamie's & I organised our work Christmas do at Bills. It has definitely been a month of eating, drinking & social gatherings!

& finally, it was Christmas! From start to finish, Christmas is always so busy. James & I started off with Christmas Eve at Valerie & Barrie's, my Grandparents' on Christmas Day & then Boxing Day at Allan & Maria's. I still haven't managed to sort through all my presents yet as it was so manic, but I wouldn't have it any other way!

How was your Christmas'? Hope you all had a lovely time however you celebrated & I hope you all have a very Happy New Year! : )

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Life Lately #140

Hello lovelies,

Sometimes with these life update posts, it takes me ages to fill them, but this month has been so manic, with events & social gatherings, it was pretty easy to get this one together so soon after my previous one!

Last Friday morning, I visited my friend Lorna at her new place. It was so lovely to have a catch up with her over a cup of tea & a shortbread. I absolutely loved her new place & it's the perfect area for exploring which I know she loves to do. We exchanged Christmas presents, I opened mine early as she explained I'd enjoy it more on the lead up to Christmas. How adorable is it!? James & I have placed it right by the door as you enter our flat so it's the first thing you see : )

I also caught up with Shez on the Friday afternoon. (Friday was so manic as I literally went straight to work after the socials!) We had a tea & swapped pressies. I actually wanted to desperately write this post to tell you what she got me, as she was seriously paranoid I wouldn't like it, but I love it. It's a massive pug canvas, which matches perfectly with our pug cushions at home. I need to find the perfect place for him to live, but at the moment he's residing under the Christmas tree!

As I said, after meeting the girlies, I headed to work for Christmas Jumper Day! I blogged a few weeks back showing you my favourite red jumpers from the high street this year & I purchased the Dachshund one from Tesco! I absolutely love it so much, definitely wearing it for Christmas day!

On Saturday, the girls & I travelled to Wakehurst Place for the Glow-Wild Lantern Walk. We booked our tickets way back in September, as it sold out almost immediately last year. The walk itself was quite muddy, but absolutely beautiful. It took you through the grounds of the house & actually into the house at the end, with lots of little photo opportunities on the way. They had some hot chocolate, waffles & marshmallow stands at the end, which smelt incredible. Definitely recommend going if your local. 

James & I had a day off together last Sunday, so we spent the day wrapping & watched Love Actually in the evening. It's my favourite Christmas film & I couldn't wait to watch it this year, I actually might try & watch it again in the next few days if I have time..

So, I started organising our work Christmas meal back in September & on Wednesday it all came together. This year we decided to go to Bills in our local town, for a 3 course meal. It was so delicious, I couldn't fault it! I'm so lucky to work with such amazing people, I couldn't do the job I do without them.

& finally I spent yesterday with mum, wrapping the last few pressies & trying on Christmas jumpers with the dogs. Just look at Honey! She is going to look extremely festive on Christmas day!

I hope you all have an amazing Christmas & Happy New Year if you celebrate it! : )

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Life Lately #139

Hi lovelies,

Why did someone forget to remind me how busy December is!? Literally, I have no time to breathe at the moment. My diary is fit to burst & with one day off in the lead up to Christmas, it's all a bit manic.

I managed to meet up with my girlies at Nandos the week before last for a catch up over some chicken. I also got to see Boop for a Christmas drink at Costa which was so lovely. We went after work about 6pm & it was so quiet. Perfect time to have a drink & catch up over a hot chocolate. We also went & bought her perfume with the voucher I gifted her for her birthday earlier this year.

I mentioned in my previous post that James & I celebrated our 5 year anniversary a week early, so last Friday, we had a cosy night in with a takeaway. You can read about what we got up to here for our actual anniversary if you like.

Like I mentioned, December has started! This year I was kindly gifted the M&S advent calendar by my mum, which I adore. All the products I've opened so far have been beautiful & I get so excited opening it each night! I'm filming each day over on my Instagram stories, so make sure you're following me over there to see what I get!

On 3rd December, James & I put up our Christmas tree! This is the first one we've ever bought together, so it felt really special putting it up & decorating it. It looks so pretty in our little flat, I can't wait to stuff a million & 1 pressies underneath!

We also put on our Christmas bedding last week. I don't know what it is about Christmas duvets, but they just make everything so much better!

Oh look at Harv. He's been feeling extremely Christmassy this week. I popped round to see mum & wrap a few pressies & write some cards & he was so adorable. He even posed for a picture with his christmas hat on.. keep an eye out for that in the next few weeks! 

& finally, panto has started at work! Friends & family are invited with staff to the dress rehearsal each year, so my parents joined James & I for the annual event. We are currently wearing bright green t-shirts & feeling extremely festive at work! If any of you work in retail / entertainment. I feel your pain. NOT LONG TILL CHRISTMAS THOUGH!

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Our 5 Year Anniversary!

Hello lovelies!

On Friday, James & I celebrated our 5 year anniversary. I mean, how crazy is that!? In a way, it sorta doesn't feel that long as it's like he's been apart of my life forever, but at the same time, it's gone so quickly.. weird huh? 

Due to time off work & booking the hotel that we did, we actually celebrated a week early. James' Dad & Maria kindly bought us a Secret Escapes voucher for Christmas last year, so we used it to book a night's stay at the beautiful Warren House.

We didn't want to travel too far from home, meaning the outskirts of London was a good option for us. Warren House is in Kingston-Upon-Thames, which is about an hours drive away. We decided to make a few stops on the way to our hotel, starting with Chessington Garden Centre. I absolutely love it here. We used to visit quite often when James worked at Chessington World Of Adventures, but we hadn't been since early Spring. It looked so beautiful & festive. Garden centres are one of my favourite places to go to meet a friend for tea or lunch as there's always so much to see & eat! Perfect place to pick up a unique Christmas pressie.

The added bonus of this particular garden centre is it's dog friendly & there's even a assigned place for doggies. It gave me the chance to sneakily take a few photos of cute ones!

After lunch, we then headed to Jurassic Encounter Golf, which was literally down the road from the garden centre. Despite it being freezing, it was really good fun. James actually plays golf properly, but mini golf is about as far as my ability will stretch, so it's fun to play it together, despite it getting seriously competitive!

We could check into our hotel from 3pm, so we'd timed our arrival about 4pm, just when it was starting to get dark. We were greeted with prosecco & were shown to our room, which over-looked the gardens.

After a few glasses & a nap we went down for dinner at 7pm & basically had the dining room to ourselves! We were wined & dined & truly spoilt with a three-course meal. I had salmon pate for starter, James had goats cheese ravioli & we both had a steak for main & white chocolate cheesecake for pudding. To say we were full afterwards was an understatement!

The next morning, we woke to a full English breakfast & an all-you-can-eat continental buffet in one of the many dining rooms. It was soooo delicious. 

We then wanted to explore a bit of the local area before heading home & after some researching online, we headed to Richmond Park. Neither of us really knew what to expect, but when we started to drive through, we couldn't actually believe how close we were to London! We honestly felt as though we were in the middle of the New Forest! There was so many beautiful deer as well, this massive 'army' that we found as well as a smaller heard, with a gorgeous red stag.

We had a walk through the woods & despite it being freezing cold, the sun was shinning & it honestly felt so Christmassy! I'm honestly so sad I'd never been before, but can't wait to go back again already!

Have you ever visited Bushy Park? That one is next on our list!

Hope you're having a wonderful December so far lovelies! The Christmas countdown has officially started! Make sure your following me on all my social media (links below!), as I'm truly in the Christmas spirit this year. Also, I was lucky enough to recieve the M&S Advent calendar from my mum & I'm opening each day of my Instagram stories if you wanted to check that out as well!

I would love to read your Christmassy blog posts, so please leave them in a comment down below.

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Life Lately #138

Hello lovelies!

In the middle of November, 4 of my friends took part in a local theatre production of Two. If you don't know the play, you can read all about it here. It's usually performed by 2 people funnily enough, however, they are a small theatre group of about 10. It was so well done & was lovely to see them on stage.

Last weekend, we finally got to celebrate Charlotte's birthday with her. You might remember a few weeks back I posted about Our Adventure To London, that Char had suprised us all with for our birthdays. We decided to plan a night out for her, starting with a posh dinner at Miller & Carter Steakhouse in Brighton. I'd never been there before, but the food was delicious! We had a starter & a main before heading back to Cathy's for games, presents & birthday cake.

On 17th November, my Grandad turned 90! We had a birthday buffet celebration with all the family on the Sunday afternoon. Elisa made him a cake which was personalised from his time in the Merchant Navy. It was so nice to get everyone together to celebrate.

We met up with James' mum & Barrie last Monday for dinner at Prezzo. It was so nice to see our little town covered in Christmas lights & decarations. We also managed to catch up with Allan & Maria on Sunday for brunch at Bills. Allan had also recently celebrated a birthday & they'd just returned from a snowy trip to Iceland so it was lovely to hear all about it.

& finally last Friday, James & I travelled up to Kingston-On-Thames for an over-night stay at Warren House, to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. (which will actually be this Friday!) We stopped at Chessington Garden Centre for a look at all the Christmas decorations & to have lunch in Sedum Restaurant. I absolutely love it there, we used to go quite often when James used to work at Chessington World Of Adventures. We then played mini golf at the Jurassic Encounter Golf Course, before heading to Warren House. The following day, we headed to Richmond Park, which I was so excited for! We saw lots of deer & had a walk through the woods (where I got to play in the leaves!). It's such a beautiful place. 

How has your November been lovelies?

James & I are decorating our tree this weekend & I couldn't be more excited! I'm also going to be blogging a lot more frequently throughout December, so keep an eye out for some festive posts! : )

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Our Trip To London

Hello lovelies!

On 24th September, the girls & I travelled to London to visit our friend Char, who had arranged a day out for our birthdays. I was the only one that knew the itinerary for the day, the other 3 girlies had no idea where we were heading too! Char had made clues that we could all open just before we headed to our next location. 

Our first stop was a picnic in Hyde Park. Now I know it's a big park, but nobody warned me how many dogs would be there! I managed to spot 5 sausage dogs within 2 hours. I was in heaven. And on to the actual picnic, Char made us all a packed lunch, which was so sweet. We each had a juice box, with a chicken wrap & salad.

The girls were then given their next clue, which resulted in us heading to Choccywoccydoodah! I didn't actually realize you could sit & eat in one of these shops, as I've been into the one in Brighton before & never realised they had an upstairs seating area. We'd just had lunch in the park, but their menu was too good to resist! I had a pink lemonade, with salted caramel brownies & ice cream, which was incredible! It amazed us all how filling everything was, which resulted in quite a few of us getting doggy bags for the jounrey home.

We then got given our tickets for The Sky Garden, which Char had booked up months ago! If you haven't heard of the Sky Garden, it's basically exactly what it sounds like, a garden, in the sky. The views over London are incredible, we could see for miles.

It's actually a free attraction, where you can purchase drinks & food if you wish from the bars when your up there. Such a beautiful location to visit, I'd highly reccomend going.

Char's photo

& finally we headed to see a show in Piccadilly Circus called The Comedy About A Bank Robbery. The show is written by the Mischief Theatre Company, who did The Play That Goes Wrong, which has been on my list of shows to see for ages! It was absolutely hilarious, I can't reccomend it enough. We had seats in the first circle, that were 'restricted view', however it was extremely quiet in the circle, so we just moved a few seats along & only had small pillars on one side of the stage, so for £10 per ticket you couldn't really complain!

We then said goodbye to Char & headed home, with a cheeky stop at McDonalds on the way! 

Just want to say again Char how amazing the day was, you are an incredible human. This post is in honour of your birthday! Hope you're having the most wonderful day & we all look forward to spoiling you in a few weeks time!

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September & October Favourites

Glittery Nail Polish

A glitter top coat just completes my everyday look at the moment. I'm loving using this one from Nails Inc over dark reds, greens & even pastel colours like lilacs & baby pinks. If you want to check out more of my nail art, you can see them over on my Instagram, or I regularly post about What I'm Wearing On My Nails so keep an eye out for those!

Soap & Glory Mascara
I only seem to discover new products when I run out of my exsisting ones. My favourite mascara is & always will be the Maybelline Lash Sensational mascara, but I have to say, this one is slowly creeping up my list. I think it's pretty similar to the Maybelline one, it definitely lengthens my lashes but it seems to hold the lift longer throughout the day.

The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying
I bought this book a few years ago & never actually read it. I mean, I started it, got a few pages in, then completely forgot about it & moved on to the next book. I rediscovered it the other day when I was sorting through my collection of books & decided to give it another go. It amazes me how the subject of tidying can be so interesting. That sounds weird, but why would you write a whole book on how to tidy? Isn't it easy..? Marie Condo is a brilliant author & honestly captures your attention on the subject right from the first page & I can't wait to put into practice all the tips & tricks she suggests.

Gold Accessorize Eyeshadow 

I mean, can you get anymore Autumnal? I've absolutely loved wearing this for evenings out over the past month, paired with this Primark top, they make such a statement together. 

Primark Top

I picked this up in the Primark in Poole on our holiday to The New Forest last month & I'm obsessed. It's perfect for days out, or dinner & drinks in the evening with jeans & boots. It goes with everything & I can see it's going to be a staple in my wardrobe. I went shopping with my girlies last week & I also picked it up in red.. it's just such a lovely style, I couldn't resist.

Music

Ellie Goulding - First Time

The Citrus Clouds - Fire Exits

TV

TOWIE

Ah the new season started in September & as always, I'm obsessed. 

Dr Foster 
So, it was only when someone said to me 'season 2 starts next week' did I suddenly remember 'I forgot to watch season 1!' James & I started this last month & we are hooked. It's so gripping. We are half way through season 2 at the moment, so no spoilers please!

Events

James & I went on holiday to The New Forest in the middle of September & had the most amazing time. I wrote a full post on our adventure which you can read here if you like.

James got a new job! I'm so proud of him. It's still working with animals but is in a much better paid position. He's just started his first week so we're excited to see where it'll take him in the future.

The girls & I headed to London for the day & we generally had one of the best days ever. We had a picnic, visited Choccywoccydoodah, The Sky Gardens & finished by seeing a show in the evening. It was called The Comedy About A Bank Robbery.

I got my hair cut! I absolutely love it. I now have a longish bob & it's so much fun to style.

We celebrated Mum's birthday on 22nd. We had a chilled day together, eating lots of food & venturing out on an Autumn walk.

& finally it was Halloween! I didn't go out to celebrate this year, but we all dressed up at work & it was so much fun. I'll obviously fill you in a bit more in my next life update post!

& seriously, I can't actually believe that when I come to write the next Favourites Post, it's going to be reviewing the end of the year.. how scary is that!? So much has happened, it's going to be quite an emotional post I think.

Did you celebrate Halloween this year? : )

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