Life Lately #150

Hi lovelies!

I'm officially back from my 'blogging break'. I really hate saying that, as I'm not actually sure what qualifies for a break anymore.. but I think this has been the longest time period where I haven't blogged & I've missed it. I thought I better start with an update post (number 150!) from this past month as I feel like so much has happened..

As this weather has been so beautiful recently, I've been spending more & more time in our garden. My plants however are not loving it so much.. my strawberry plant in particular! But I have been loving growing my own vegetables & fruit in our garden this Summer. Our onions are currently flourishing & the lettuces we grew were so successful. I've got another post on the sidelines about falling in love with my garden this summer which should hopefully be published in the next few weeks.

James' brother Alex celebrated his 22nd birthday at the beginning of July. Our present to him was a day out to Brighton to do an Escape Room. I completed my first escape room at the beginning of June with the girls & loved it so much, I thought it would be the perfect present for Alex. We completed the room in 58 minutes just in time & then headed to Nandos for lunch. England were playing in the world cup at 3pm, so we rushed home in time for the match!

That evening we headed to Valerie & Barrie's for a Murder Mystery night. I'd never done one before so wasn't sure how it all worked, but it was really good fun. We each got sent our characters a week or so before, so we knew a bit about them & how to dress & act at dinner. The game also comes with a tape & you follow a script to find out who committed the crime. I was Lady Shippe, the widow of Lord Shippe & James was the local vicar who was into drinking & gambling! We thought we would find out the murderer quite early on, but it kept us guessing right till the end. I'd highly recommend taking part in one if you haven't before!

Oh & I held my annual Summer BBQ, which was amazing as ever! It always feels like the day goes so quick, what with all the planning & preparation, but it's always so much fun. I love getting everyone together & playing games as the sun sets. We had the most amazing weather as well.

James & I headed up to Bristol for Matt & Alice's wedding. James was an usher for Matt, so we attended the rehearsal on the Friday evening before the big event on Saturday. It was so much fun meeting all their friends & family & getting to celebrate the day with them.

& finally, at the end of July, we went to Quimper in France for a week with James' family. It was a week full of exploring, socialising & relaxation. The accommodation came with a private pool, which was so nice, as the weather was just as hot as England at the time.

So I think that's about it! I'm currently working my second to last shift before 9 days off from work & I couldn't be more excited. I'm planning on doing a Summer / Autumn clean (is that a thing?) in our house & organising a few days out with my girls but otherwise, I haven't got much on, just going to make the most of the last of the Summer if the weather co-operates!

I'd love to hear if you've been anywhere nice this year? Or still have any holidays coming up? : )

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Life Lately #149

Hello lovelies,

If you follow me on Twitter, Instagram or read my blog regularly, you'll know I've recently been on holiday to Kefalonia in Greece. I'm going to write a full post about our holiday, but for now, let me just say it was one of the most stunning places I've ever visited. The views were breath-taking & the sea was the most beautiful shade of blue. I've already written a post about how to deal with the holiday blues as I'm missing it so much! But I can't wait to show you all the photos from the places we explored. (keep an eye out for that post coming soon!)

On Saturday, we finally got to give Char her birthday day out to Brighton. We started with breakfast at The Breakfast Club, a place I've wanted to visit for years! They do the most amazing breakfasts as I'm sure you can imagine. I couldn't decide between the pancakes & a full English, so ended up having bacon, sausages, egg & pancakes on the side! It was honestly so delicious & not at all greedy of me..

We then headed to Churchill Square to do some shopping before walking to the theatre to see Legally Blonde the musical, which has been on my list to see for the longest time. It was absolutely amazing. Rita Simons was fantastic playing Paulette & she had great chemistry with her co-stars. I also didn't expect the show to have real life doggies in it as well, which was an added bonus! We got to meet Rufus (Bertie) outside the theatre when we left, he was the cutest bulldog but sadly we didn't get to see Bruiser.

Last Sunday, it was Father's Day, so I visited both my grandparents & my dad with some gifts & to have a catch up. I headed over quite early to see my family as I'm still trying to sort out the house after holiday! We currently have clothes everywhere.. all clean but just scattered through-out the house! I really need to start selling some again soon..

Oh & in case you didn't know, the World Cup has started..

James is mad on football, so he is in his element with all the matches (3 a day! Sometimes 4!) We watched England play on Monday with some friends & what can I say.. I'm just glad we had Love Island to watch after.. ; D

& speaking of Love Island, I spent my day off yesterday in my garden, catching up on the episode from the night before. Are you watching this year? I have to admit I wasn't as keen when it started as I have been in previous years, but I'm really getting into it now! Relationships are being tested & new people are coming & are hopefully going to stir everything up.. it's very exciting! Who are your favs?

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Life Lately #130

Hey lovelies,

Cathy & I went to see Ruby Wax live on stage on her Frazzled tour in May & she was so funny. We didn't really know what to expect but it was a show made up of humour, mindfulness & her life stories, told by Ruby herself, in a comfy armchair, in the middle of the stage. We got to meet her during the interval & had my copy of her book signed. It's definitely one I'll be taking on holiday with me.

James & I booked to see The Sidemen play their second charity football match at the beginning of the year & it soon came round at the end of May. We travelled up to London for the day, had a bite to eat at Pizza Express, had a walk along the Thames & headed to Charlton to watch them play. As always, they were brilliant, despite the fans absolutely ruining the end of the match by invading the pitch again..

For James' birthday, I bought him a driving experience at a local race course. He got to drive two super cars & have a passenger lap in a Ariel Atom. He chose to drive the Audi R8 Spyder & a Lamborghini. It was such an awesome day, I took a few videos, so a vlog will be going up soon!

The girls & I went to Ikea at the beginning of the month to stock up on the final bits for the flat. We managed to get the most adorable coffee table, a plant (named Greg) & some candles amongst other essentials for the kitchen. Oh & of course, the kids section was our favourite part.. BRAIN HEAD : ' )

James & I went to visit our friend Tom in Wales 2 weeks ago. We stayed in a beautiful apartment, which made it a lovely trip. I'm going to write a full post about our adventures next week, so keep an eye out for that.

Ok, so how long have I been waiting for this day!? On 3rd June, James' dad Allan & partner Maria got married! They have been together for 17 years, so to be honest, it was about time guys! ; ) I'm so honoured to be apart of their special day. Again, a full post will be going up soon, so I'll go into more detail then.

Finally, the girls & I went to the South Of England show last Saturday. It was so hot, we all burnt (even those wearing factor 50!) but it was such a fun day, filled with stroking lots of animals & eating lots of cheese.

How has your month been so far lovelies?

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Life Lately #107

Hello lovelies!

Feels like ages since I've done an update post. My head hasn't really been into blogging the last week or so, thank goodness for sensible me who decided to draft some posts a month ago! I don't know what it is, but I've been struggling to even want to sit down at my laptop & start typing. I think because I sit & look at a computer screen every day for work, I'm reluctant to want to do it in my spare time.. anyway, hopefully I'll soon get back into the swing of things.

The month has felt so busy, but when I actually look back over the past week or so, I don't seem to have taken many pictures..

My group of friends & I had a games day round Cathy's house  at the end of May & her cat Millie decided to hunt me down & rub herself all over me. I think cats have an inkling when someone has an allergy & will pounce as soon as they see you. As well as Millie infecting me for a few days, my hay fever has been driving me insane ever since. It's fine some days, but then others I'll feel completely run down by it. Please tell me its not just me?

On Friday 3rd June I went to my first football match in Southampton. I bought James tickets to the Sidemen VS YouTube Allstars charity match for Easter (who am I kidding, they were a gift to myself as well!) & we travelled up in the afternoon to grab some lunch before the game. We ate in a lovely place called Pitcher & Piano. The starters were delicious but we were unsure of the main courses. I had a burrito & James had a burger. They were a bit plain to be honest but it was a nice place to eat as it was right on the harbour. Anyway, the match was so good! It finished 7-2 & up until their young male fans decided to run onto the pitch at the final whistle destroying everything, it was amazing. I just wish they had been able to do the trophy presentation properly at the end. I vlogged the day, so that will be coming soon on my YouTube channel if you're interested.

Last Sunday, myself & the ladies from work took part in the Race For Life. It was our third year raising money & awareness for Cancer Research & thankfully, we had a dry, hot day! I'm so proud of them all!

I met up with Gem & Cathy last week for dinner at ASK. I always seem to forget about this restaurant in our local town as it's at the far end of a row of restaurants & because I cook pasta dishes regularly at home, it doesn't feel like a treat when I go there. However, I had the mushroom & chicken risotto & oh my god, it was amazing. To finish our meal, we had one of their new desserts, the chocolate lava mountain. It was heaven!

On Saturday, the girls & I went to the Ardingly Show, which is filled with animals; pigs, goats, sheep, chickens, horses, cows, rabbits etc & lots of food tents, stalls & floral displays. We had such a nice day, despite the rain & overcast skies. This is Gareth, you might remember me mentioning him in previous posts. He was on display in the chicken tent. Little Lily also came on our day out & had a lots of fun looking at all the animals!

& finally yesterday I had a day off. I can't tell you how excited I was to do nothing but cook, blog & relax. How did you spend your weekend?

 & I think that will be the last update from me before we head to Corfu next Monday. I'm actually so excited to spend some time in the sunshine away from work & every day life. I haven't decided if I'm going to set up a few posts while I'm away, I'll have to see if I can get my head back into it. Thankyou as always for your love & support on this page & all my other social medias. You guys are amazing < 3

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Our Trip To Liverpool

Hello lovelies,

 

I mentioned in my previous "Life Lately" post that myself & James took a trip up to Liverpool to visit Anfield Stadium. My parent's bought James a legend tour around Anfield for Christmas & his 21st birthday back in January. He's supported Liverpool since he was little, but has never been to their home pitch. Until now.. : D

 

We headed up to Liverpool from Gloucestershire last Friday - we stayed in a local Travelodge, right next to a Toby Carvery. I've never eaten there before but was pleasantly surprised as they offer a roast for £5.99 through-out the day & an unlimited breakfast buffet in the morning for £3.99.

 

 

After breakfast, we rang for a taxi to take us to Anfield stadium ready for our tour with the legend, Phil Neal.

 

James was lucky enough to have a photo at the interview table & with the legendary sign that all the players touch before they head out onto the pitch. I'll never forget him saying to me as we walked down the stairs, that he felt all warm & tingly inside. Made my day!

 

 

We were then shown around the changing rooms & onto the pitch. Phil was so lovely the whole way round & was genuinely excited to tell us all his stories. He played 417 consecutive games for Liverpool & despite me not being into football, I could definitely appreciate his awesomeness!

 

 

After our tour, we headed back to our car before driving down to the Albert Docks for a quick bite to eat before heading back to Gloucester. We stopped at Costa for a tea & cake & had a wander down past some of the local shops.

 

 

Although it was a very overcast day, it was a pretty beautiful place. We heard music coming from The Cavern Club where The Beatles were first seen by Brain Epstein. We also discovered a cute (very expensive!) sweet shop filled with weird tasting jelly beans..

 

After that, we headed back to Gloucester & cooked steak & chips before collapsing in a tired heap! How was your weekend lovelies? Have you ever been to Liverpool, The Albert Docks or the Anfield Stadium?

 

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