29

I don't know how but every year, regardless of it I've been blogging constantly or not, I find myself sitting down in the middle of January to review my year. I guess it's become a bit of a tradition, but seriously, reading last year's post back, it seems like no time has gone at all.

So 2019 was quite a big year for me looking back.

Firstly, James & I bought our first home together! I've mentioned previously our journey with properties; which have included renting our first 1 bed flat back in 2017, we then moved in Spring 2018 to a 2 bed house, to now finally being able to say we are the owners of a 3 bed house as of September last year! I do really want to write a full post on our homes & how special they've all been ('cos lets be real here, I get seriously attached to things waaaaay too much) but re-reading last year's post & remembering writing the sentence "We haven't decided what we are planning yet for our next move & if we'll be here a while longer, but everything seems to be moving in the right direction, so watch this space" I genuinely remember typing that as I was scrolling through Rightmove looking at all the amazing houses & setting up viewings, which we started in February last year. It was a complete roller-coaster. I lost count of how many properties we viewed (yes I am picky, but I'm so pleased I was as our property now is everything I hoped for) & I knew it would take time for the right one to come along. Anyway, fast forward to the end of September & we got given the keys & the rest is history. I can't begin to tell you how happy we are here, to have celebrated our first Christmas in our new place was so special, surrounded by amazing friends & family. There really was nothing like it.

Another massive change in our lives is James & I have adopted our first fur baby! I'm actually writing this on Wednesday 15th January & we are picking him up on Saturday 18th & we actually can't wait. I'm not sure when this post is going live, but yay! If you want to see lots of puppy content, head over to my Instagram account. We have also set up a home account, which you can follow & I'll link pup's here too.

Ah so now would be a good time to mention fitness maybe? Start of the New Year, new you right? What a load of rubbish! Haha. However, last year I did discover an exercise that I love, it definitely deserves a mention. If you know me, you know I'm not a massive fan of exercise. I tried the gym (once, hated it!) but I found a class with my work besties that I actually look forward to & feel fabulous afterwards. It's called Bounce. It's honestly so much fun, we do a class once a week (wish I could do more, but just depends on working hours) but I honestly can't recommend it enough. I'm still not there 100% with my fitness, but it's definitely helped me get on the right track. I'm so grateful as well but for my birthday this year, my Grandad kindly bought me a Fitbit, so I'm extremely excited to track my calorie burn at class.

Leading nicely on from my Bounce classes, last year James & I took part in the South Coast Challenge. We walked 25km, from Eastbourne to Alfriston over the Seven Sisters - raising just under £1000 for The Alzheimer's Society in memory of my Nan. It was an incredibly emotional day, for myself & my family, but I was so proud of us for doing it. As we'd been training for the walk, I found some beautiful places in our home town. I feel like it was a year for discovering new things that actually were right under our noses to start with. There's nothing better than walking out your front door & being able to walk to town in 20 minutes, but equally, 5 minutes down the road you find the most beautiful countryside. Feeling so extremely lucky. 

As well as raising money for The Alzheimer's Society, I couldn't forget about the other amazing charities. My work ladies & I took part in the Race For Life this Summer & raised an incredible £1100 for Cancer Research. Sally is trying to persuade me to do the Pretty Muddy this year & as I'm away for normal RFL, I don't see how I'm going to get out of it.. haha! We also took part in Wear It Pink, Children In Need, Christmas Jumper Day, Elf Day & Red Nose Day, where we dressed up as superheroes. I also organised 2 extremely successful quiz nights as work. The most recent one being last Friday where a last minute raffle managed to raise £150 for The National Kidney Federation. I'm extremely passionate about raising money for charity & even though it's going to be hard to top last year I'm going to try my absolute hardest to keep raising as much money as possible for these amazing causes.

So onto a completely different side of the year was all the incredible places I visited. It wasn't a year of big holidays - but James & I managed to spend 3 nights in one of our favourite places, the New Forest. We did this a few years ago & loved it so much, it's the perfect base for travelling to Bournemouth for the day & we also explored the surrounding area. I honestly can't recommend it enough. We were also lucky enough to visit my godparents in Cambridge In September. I used to go & stay with them for a few days when I was younger, but hadn't been to Cambridge for years so it was lovely to explore again. Oh & I had the best few days away with the girls. We booked a lovely 2 night stay in Birdham at the end of October & it was honestly amazing. Highlight? THE ORANGE TWIRLS! Hahaha. I joke, we made some amazing memories & I'm extremely grateful to them all.

Apart from holidays, I was lucky enough to go to London with our family, to see the amazing Phantom of the Opera, as well as recently Dear Evan Hansen with my girls. I would highly recommend seeing both if you get the chance. Dear Evan Hansen blew me away completely as I had no idea of the story before seeing the show & it was simply beautiful. We also saw McFly in November which was absolutely amazing. My teenage self could not contain the excitment, despite being in the scariest seat in the world. Hahaha! 

I also got to meet two new arrivals last year; Gemma had her second little one Harry & Sarah welcomed baby Ella into the world. Both absolutely gorgeous & I can't wait to watch them grow up.

& someone else who has grown up ALOT, is Honey. My little girl celebrated her 10th birthday in October & we threw her a sausage birthday party! Make sure you check out the photos on my Instagram page, she had the best day!

 Oh & I can't fail to mention hosting another 2 events - my Easter Party & Summer BBQ. The Summer BBQ I do every year but the Easter Party was such a success, I'm hoping to do that again this year!

So there we go, these are my highlights. I started this post thinking shit, what am I going to write about?! I haven't done anything this year, but actually looking back at all my photos, I've actually done quite a lot & achieved so much. So how am I going to end this.. Promise to blog more? Exercise more? Adopt more dogs?? Haha, that last one sounds like the most likely to happen. But in all seriousness, my Fitbit is currently vibrating my wrist, telling me to move more, so I'm actually going to walk round the garden a few times & grab some lunch.

Thankyou if you've made it to the end of this post. It's actually felt lovely being able to put all this down & review the year. I have an amazing feeling about 2020, I'm not going to lie. 

Oh & before I forget, here's the link to my last blog post. Honestly, please give Anna's book a read if you're thinking about setting up some goals for this year. It's never too late to start a new habit : )

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Life Lately #148

Hello lovelies,

As you're reading this, I'm hopefully sunning myself on the Greek island of Kefalonia! I am so ready for a holiday it's unreal. 

Anyway, flash back to last weekend, when I met up with my best girl Ricka for brunch. We hadn't seen each other for so long, it was so nice to have a catch up. We tried a new place for breakfast in town (I say new, they moved location, so it felt like a new place!) & we had the most delicious meal, overlooking the old part of town, from the top floor, with the window wide open. The weather last weekend was absolutely glorious down south & despite the recent week of rain, it still has been really warm. 

In the afternoon, I watched James play cricket. The season has recently started up again & it was lovely to bask in the sunshine while he was playing!

I went to visit mum that evening & saw the doggies. We went on a walk around the field by my parent's house & the sun was still glorious. It was so hot - unlike most bank holidays in the UK!

On Sunday, James & I went back to Shere. We visited the village a few months ago (it was a lot colder then!) & we decided to go again for another roast as it was so delicious last time. I wrote a full post on our day out which you can read here if you like. We went for another walk around the village before heading to the pub & found this adorable little library in the middle of the woods. How cute is that! We're going to take a book to trade next time we go!

It was Boop's birthday at the beginning of March so we organised a girl's day last Thursday to Brighton. It was a surprise for Boop, she had no idea where we were going or what we were doing. We started with lunch at Giggling Squid, one of our absolutely favourite place to eat, before heading to an escape room at 3pm. I'd never done one before but it was so much fun! We actually managed to solve the puzzles & escape in 47 minutes, which we were chuffed with. We're looking to go back again in the Summer, as they've just opened up another room there that looks good fun!

& finally I spent the end of the week packing! I can't tell you how excited I am for this holiday! I'm going to completely sign off social media, so will see you all when I get back next week! : )

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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 #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 #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 #137

Hello lovelies,

It isn't everyday you get to wear sparkly green glitter on your lips is it? Halloween feels like a life time ago now, but almost like it was yesterday at the same time. We all dressed up at work, Elisa & I dressed up as witches & Nicola was a dead bride. I was so in love with my makeup, I'm going to try to recreate the look (maybe slightly more subtle) for my birthday with pink glitter!

I went to visit my grandparent's last week & took Honey for a walk in their garden. You know those places that just bring back all the happy memories of your childhood? Their garden does exactly that. It's so special to me & Honey absolutely loves playing in the fallen leaves, just like I used to do.

Ricka & I met up for some Christmas shopping last weekend & we headed to Guildford. It was so busy in the shops, I never knew people were so organised with their Christmas shopping! We had such a lovely day & catch up.

On Wednesday, I met up with Gemma, Alice, Elisa & Lily at Costa. The plan was to test out the new Christmas drinks, so Gem had the Lindt hot chocolate & Elisa had the black forest hot chocolate. They both smelt incredible.

James has started his new job & he's loving it! One of the perks of the job, is he gets to bring home their dog food. Honey was extremely excited by this as you can see. Every bag / tin I got out the bag she would sniff & try to open & then decide to roll on top of the food! Was so funny to watch.

James has been away this weekend & he sent me flowers at work! I seriously can't believe how lucky I am. Thankyou babe, you made my day!

& finally Boop & Cathy came round for dinner last night & we ordered a Chinese & stuck on Horrible Bosses 2. It was so lovely to catch up with them & show them the Lanzarote vlog that I recently finished! We all seriously had the Summer blues after though.. why has it suddenly got so cold!? It's really starting to feel like Christmas! I picked up our Christmas tree today from Tesco, the decorations are also bought ready for the tree & I've started my shopping. I can't wait to make our little flat all festive.

Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? : )

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Life Lately #136

Hello lovelies,

So if you follow me on social media, you would have seen that I got my hair cut towards the beginning of October. I decided to have a longish bob, which is the shortest my hair has been since I was a young teenager! I absolutely love it & styling it is so much fun now it's shorter. I'm quite sad I didn't do it sooner!

On 12th October, Honey turned eight. EIGHT. Oh my god, where do the years go!? I came round to visit her & we had lots of cuddles & played games before curling up on the sofa together. She's such a cutie.

Last Sunday I met up with the girls at Pizza Express for lunch before I started work. It was so lovely to have a catch up with them. I was actually planning on doing some shopping after we'd met up, but we just talked for hours & I had to head straight to work! I also managed to pick up a few bits in a charity shop before meeting them, so keep an eye out for a small haul soon!

James & I both had last Monday morning off, so we decided to check out a local pub that's started doing breakfast. Oh my god. Look at my foooood. I couldn't believe how delicious & well presented it was. Oh & of course, you can't have breakfast without a cup of tea! Next time we go, I'm going to test out the pancakes, because they looked amazing as well!

It was Mum's birthday on Sunday & I spent the afternoon with her, eating lots of food & drinking lots of tea. We also took the doggies on a very Autumnal walk, which they enjoyed!

& finally, I've started to decorate our flat for Autumn / Christmas! I'm determined to get all my shopping done as soon as humanly possible this year. I do always try to get it done & dusted before December starts, however, I want to be finished by latest middle of November. Whether this will happen or not, who knows, but I'm excited to try! Would any of you be interested in me doing a post about decorating your flat on a budget this year? I've managed to do a few Autumn DIY's & managed to pick up some cute little decorations quite cheaply.

Have you started decorating yet?
Did you have any plans for Halloween? : )

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Life Lately #135

Hello lovelies,

I mentioned in my last update post that I was staying at my parent's house looking after the animals. Just look how adorable Honey looks snuggled up in bed. I thought she would be getting me up at the crack of dawn, but I actually had to wake her up! The chickens were so cute as well, they all lined up in the morning for their food & went to bed obediently at night.

Charlotte organised a late birthday celebration for the 4 of us in London at the end of September. I'm going to write a full blog post on our day, so won't talk to much about it now, but we had such an amazing day. I was the only one (bar Char obv!) who knew what we were doing & it was so much fun giving the girls clues through-out the day! We visited The Shard, Choccywoccydoodah & saw The Comedy About A Bank Robbery in the evening!

Last week, we had a launch night at work for the Year Of Culture that's coming in 2019. It was so beautiful, we got out the red purple carpet & had lanturns all around the foyer. People came from all over the District to watch the launch & it truly made the building feel magical.

I met up with my girly Ricka for brunch at Bills last weekend for a catch up. We hadn't properly seen each other since the middle of May, so we had so much to talk about. 

The girls & I went to see Home Again last week & I haven't enjoyed / cringed at a film for so long! Reece Witherspoon is fantastic as always & the 'young boys' were brilliant as well. Highly reccomend it for a girls night out.

Saturday night I spent with my Grandparents. We had a family meal at their house to celebrate my parent's wedding anniversary in September (they were away at the time) so we had a long over-due catch up, was so lovely.

& finally Char came back for the weekend, so we arranged to meet up with our other friend Shez for a roast. There is nothing better than a roast dinner on a Sunday. Since moving out, James & I haven't yet cooked a roast, but that's made it seem like more of a treat when we do have it, either round parent's houses or out & about.

How has October been for you lovelies? 

Getting excited for Halloween? I've already planned my outfit!

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Life Lately #134

It seems like an eternity ago now, but we went to watch banger racing on Bank Holiday Monday! It was so so so hot, I think the hottest Bank Holiday we've had on record. We were out in the sun the whole day, watching the cars race around the track. I was the only one that had been before, so it was great to watch everyone's reactions to the racing. (especially yours Jules!)

Oh, now how cute is little Maggie? My mum is looking after her a few times a week for a friend while they are working in London & I met her at the beginning of September. She is such a character, she's in to everything!

Look at these two. Aren't they just the cutest things? We had a girls night while all the boys hit the town & the evening was filled with baby cuddles, Say Yes To The Dress & pizza. 

Jigsaw puzzles. How under-rated are they? Seriously. Ever since I bought one for Elisa for her birthday, I've wanted to complete my own one. The Works had a 20% off sale a few weeks back, so I picked this one up for James & I to play. We're only half way through as it's so difficult, but so much fun!

Char finally came home for Nandos, yay! I'm kinda hoping she came home to see us, but really I know it was for the chicken.. haha! She's been away in Edinburgh for what's seemed like forever, so it was lovely to have a catch up over a bite to eat in town. 

Last weekend, James & I went to the New Forest for a couple of days. It was the perfect holiday for us, filled with animals, food & a cosy log cabin in the middle of nowhere. I'm going to write up a full post on our trip, so I won't go on about it to much now, but it really was the most lovely break away.

This week, the boys have been playing their annual golf tournament, so I decided to cook for them & Maria on Tuesday night. I was extremely proud as every plate was cleared! I made a lamb with orzo dish, with hot crusty bread & we had nuts & crisps for starter & a strawberry cheesecake for pudding. (Thanks Tesco!) Btw, would you guys be interested in me doing a 'what we eat in a week' series on my blog? I've seen quite a few YouTubers doing them recently & find them so interesting to watch. 

& finally, I'm currently staying at my parent's house, looking after Honey. They have gone away on holiday for their anniversary, so it's just the 2 of us (until James comes round for dinners in the evenings) & it's given me so much time to just sit & blog & edit all the footage I have from days out / holidays over the past few months! Expect a few more blog posts & videos over the next few weeks!

How has September been for you lovelies? Are you all set for Autumn? 

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Life Lately #133

There are so many birthdays in August. This has been a month of celebrations & food! We went for an all-you-can-eat breakfast at The Beefeater to celebrate Cathy turning 26 at the beginning of August. She has now caught up with me. Not long till we're in our 30's girl..

Ah, our holiday to Lanzarote! There is a full post coming soon, now I've finally managed to sort through all the photos! I seriously can't thank the girls enough for our time away, it was exactly what I needed.

Oh look at my little one. I missed her so much when I was away, but I got to see her last Monday when my parents invited us round for a BBQ & a catchup. She looks so adorable with her teddy.

Tuesday morning, Elisa & Lily took me to Fun Splash. There were so many cute babies there!

On Thursday, it was Elisa's birthday. Now as you guys know, I'm big on birthdays, so when someone decides to work on their birthday & doesn't have any plans, what do I do? I make plans! I bought her a massive balloon, (no joke, it seriously was massive) & we had a 'present per hour' rule at work. I also got all the girlies together on Friday night for a meal at a lovely Italian restaurant in our local town, followed by a chocolate cake of dreams. It was so lovely spoiling her : )

& finally, bank holiday weekend is finally here! For once, I have Monday off! The plan is to go watch banger racing with my family & friends. I've just got to get through work today & then a day off is exactly what I need!

What are your plans for this weekend?

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Life Lately #131

Hello lovelies!

It seems like ages ago now, but did you all have a lovely Father's Day? I stayed over at my parent's house the night before (I mean, just look at that sunset I was driving into, just perfection) & woke early the next morning to give my Dad & Grandad their gifts. Honey was so excited to see my Grandad appear, she ran the length of the garden & got seriously puffed out!

Our best friend Sheryl celebrated her 30th birthday last month & we organised a surprise evening out. She thought it would just be the two of us, but after I rocked up with Elisa, her little face was already beaming before she even knew where we were going! We drove her to a local pub called The Greets Inn, which she'd never been to before. We sat outside, next to the ducks & chickens & waited for Cathy & Mils to arrive (again more exitment!) We bought her a personlized book & some tiaras for us all to wear! It was so much fun.

We also managed to have a catch up with Allan & Maria now their back from their honeymoon. We had a family BBQ & got to see all their beautiful photos from their adventures last month! So jealous of the safari.

I met up with my tea ladies last week & we had lunch at Pretty Things. I've mentioned them before I'm sure, they just have the prettiest cafe in town. Everything is pink & girly, it's just so me! We had a slice of cake & a catch-up before heading to the park to sit in the sunshine.

Alex celebrated his 21st birthday this month! How scary is that?! Alex is James' little brother, so we met up with the family at Allan & Maria's for another BBQ in the evening, then headed to Valerie & Barrie's for dinner on the Friday night. A night or two of extremely naughty food.. but so worth it!

& finally, last Sunday I organised a brunch with the ladies I work with. As we didn't do Race For Life this year, I decided it would be nice to arrange a brunch to get us all together like we would have done for the race. We went to Sumners Ponds & sat in the safari tent, next to the pond. It was such a beautiful day & the food was delicious. I'd highly reccomend going if you're local.

How has your month been so far lovelies?

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Spring

Spring always brings a smile to my face.

I took these photos on Mother's Day at the end of March. It was such a bright, beautiful day, I couldn't resist heading out with my camera & snapping a few pictures. You might recognise the final image of Honey, as I posted it on my Instagram a few days ago. How cute does she look!? She's gotten so fluffy this year, her hair has almost made her double in size (she looks incredibly fat!) Anyone else have this with their Dachshund when they hit a certain age?

I also adore photographing bees. There's nothing better than capturing them whizzing through the air or perched on a flower enjoying the sunshine.

Most of the images here were taken in my grandparent's garden. It's my absolute favourite place to come when I want to relax, as it holds so many childhood memories for me.

What do you love most about Spring?

Where is your favourite place to go from your childhood?

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Life Lately #125

Hello lovelies,

I went to my first ever bra fitting just over a week ago. I know right, I've just never been brave enough to do it before, but I wrote a blog post on my experience & why I think it's such an important thing to do. I won't go into too much detail as like I say, I've written a whole post about it, but you can read it here if you like : )

I had a lot of leave left at work from this year, so I decided to take a few days off last week. It was so lovely to just be at home & doing lots of bits & pieces I never find the time to do. One of which was finally editing the footage from our holiday to Corfu last June. I couldn't be more proud of how it turned out! You can watch it on my YouTube channel if you like. I also noticed it became Spring, almost over night! The sun was shinning & it was actually so warm walking the dogs.

Last Thursday my parents went to Crufts. James & I went last year & after we came home & raved about how much we loved it, they decided to book tickets & go this year. Crufts is a big thing in my family & we all watch it together every year, but they'd never actually been. Did you watch it this year?

Last Friday, mum & I went to Guildford for the day. We did some shopping & I took her for tea at The Tea Terrace at the top of House Of Fraser. We had such a lovely day & managed to pick out a few options for an outfit I'm hoping to wear to a wedding in June.

For my birthday, Cathy bought me a voucher for afternoon tea, so on Sunday, we booked a table in the local tea room & got this feast! It was so nice, all the sandwiches & scones were freshly made & we even got a slice of cake to takeaway as well!

Oh & finally, Honey on my bed yesterday morning. She hasn't been feeling too well recently, just a bit of an upset stomach, so has been snuggling down with me watching Netflix before work. I'm finally up to date with Riverdale! Is anyone else watching it? I'm really enjoying it but find it a bit weird how sometimes a massive storyline in one episode won't even feature in the next.. I won't give away any spoilers, but those of you who are watching, do you feel the same? : )

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Life Lately #122

Hello lovelies,

I met my friend Ricka for a late birthday treat at Bills last Sunday. I haven't had afternoon tea there for over 2 years & even though they've changed it up a bit, it was so lovely! We had two scones each, a pot of blackberries, a piece of Victoria sponge cake & a pot of earl grey tea each. Heaven.

It was Bo's birthday on Wednesday, so we went to the pub for dinner. James & I both had a burger with pave for pudding, just look how delicious it was!

On Sunday Cathy, Boop & I planned Gemma's baby shower. It was so much fun to organise (if a little stressful at times) but we managed to get all the decorations ordered at the beginning of January, invites sent out & cakes baked. Everyone was asked to bring along a sweet treat, so we had mountains of food! Also, Elisa made this fantastic cake for Gemma & Ollie, just look at that little elephant! Gemma knows she's having a little girl in March, so it was easy to buy presents for her. I managed to pick up a personalised penguin dressing gown & had 'Baby Rogers' printed on the front. It was so adorable, I wanted to keep it for myself to be honest..

Tuesday morning I met up with Shezza, Elisa & Lily to have a catch up with life. Those girls seriously know how to put a smile on my face, especially Lily, just look at her little bunches!

Oh, & I always try to include a picture of Honey in these posts, because she's always a massive part of my life & makes me smile so much everyday. After my birthday in January, all the excitement of the last 2 months fades away. I know for most people that happens at the beginning of the month as Christmas & New Year becomes a memory, but it can get you down. All I need to do is make a cup of tea & cuddle this little one & my day is instantly better.

& I have to be honest & admit, a bit of retail therapy does help too.. look at my beautiful boots I managed to pick up in the ASOS sale! They were £19 down from £34.99 & I can't wait to style them once storm Doris has passed through.. the weather really knows how to bring down your mood. I seriously can't wait for Spring now & for us to head into the warmer months. It's seriously scary to think we are in February already though? Madness.

How was January for you lovelies?

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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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Life Lately #119

Hello lovelies,

In my last post I mentioned that panto prep was well under way. We officially opened last Friday night so we are now a week into the shows. It's absolutely manic at work, especially as Star Wars started Thursday & we also have Moana showing too (which I'm seeing today & am so excited about!) Have you seen either film yet?

My parents went to see the panto last week, so I stayed at home & watched Christmas films with Honey & Harv - they looked so cute by the tree.

Oh & just look at my friend's fur babies! When we got out all the Christmas decorations & put up our tree, we found these two little jackets of Honey's. After a good 10 minutes of trying to cram her fluffy slightly tubby body into them, we decided it would be best if they went to a new home.. : ' D

Last Sunday, it was my "tea lady" Christmas meal. We went to a curry house this year for something a bit different & it was so nice to catch up with all of them. I hardly get to see them over the course of the year as we are all so busy, so it was lovely to spend some time with them & stuff myself with curry before work! We also did a secret santa, thankyou Sarah for my present!

On Monday, Mum & I went to my Grandparents' to decorate their house for them. They are in their late 80's, so not too fussed about Christmas now, but we made the house look extra festive! Just look at Harv, stretched out on the sofa. He really does know how to make himself at home!

On Thursday I met up with my friend Ricka & we went for lunch at a local pub. It was so lovely to have a catch up before Christmas & swap pressies!

& finally yesterday was Christmas Jumper Day at work, so I wore my new addition to my jumper family this year, my grey festive Dachshund jumper! Just look at it! I'm seriously obsessed with it : )

How is your December going lovelies? Have you done all your shopping?

I'm finding it so difficult to juggle work, blogging, socialising & staying healthy at this time of year, it all gets a bit much sometimes, but Christmas Day is a week tomorrow which is so exciting! I can't wait : )

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