It's Friday morning, I've got my coffee, sunshine pouring in - as it has all week, so feel good - and I thought I'd write one of my favourite posts. Here's a little list of 10 things that have made me happy this week.
1. As I already mentioned - the sun has been shining all week. I've had an edit heavy week, which means a lot of work from home days. Sunlight beaming into our home is one of the best simple pleasures in life.
2. My best friend Abi turned up unannounced with coffee and homemade vegan Snickers on Wednesday. She ended up staying the whole evening. What a treat.
3. We've just had our bathroom redone and I am IN LOVE. Is it weird to want to work from your bathroom?
4. 70's style. Give all the floaty sleeves, flares and chunky platform boots.
5. Good Winter TV - Deadwater Fell, The Stranger, Cold Feet, Sex Education - there's a lot to watch at the moment.
6. Roasted Veggie & Lentil Jumble I had in my Hello Fresh box this week. It was one of the nicest meals I've had in a long time. Tasty, healthy and a good one for when Henry is out and I want something filling and nutritious.
7. Buying a new little house plant to fill one of my favourite pots that's been waiting for a housemate for a while. I'm so eager to get back out in the garden when Spring rolls back around so for now, new houseplants to look after can fill that void.
8. An app that's a newbie in my life, it's called 'Habit'. You can track if you're keeping up with habits you're trying to make stick - it's colourful, simple and visually pleasing - I'm tracking reading, drinking more water and waking up before 8am.
9. Speaking of reading - I'm on book 3 of the year and I'm loving getting lost in another world. It's a really nice break from screen-time which is at a big high right now.
10. Still feeling those new year productivity vibes. I usually find January to be a pretty positive month for me - albeit a bloody long one - and February I start to tick back to my usual headspace. This year that 'lets push forward' feeling seems to be sticking around and you won't see me complaining!
So there you go, 10 little things that made me happy this week. What's put a smile on your face?
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One of my favourite posts to write, my little positivity log that makes me take a minute to reflect on the moments, big or little, that made my week a little sweeter.
1. Working hard for something I'd really like to achieve, but also realising the hard work won't be wasted if it's doesn't work out.
2. Daffodils in the shops and little snow drops starting to pop up in patches of woodland. Very early, but hopeful signs of Spring.
3. A chilled weekend after endless weekends of celebrations since November. Called for sleepy mornings, relaxed evenings and comfy clothes.
4. Turning to the last page of my first book of the year.
5. Friends on Netflix. Need I say more?
6. Learning so much on a Jessops photography course on Friday. I left feeling very inspired and excited to see what I could create with my new knowledge. I also love that classes like this bring together the most random group of people, and apart from having photography in common, you end up finding so many things to chat about. We're not as different as we all think!
7. Reaching out to someone I'd love to work with on the off chance they'll agree and getting a YES back!
8. Bubble baths. I could count the amount of baths I've had in the past 5 years on one hand, but this year I realised just how relaxing they are and plan to make time for one each week.
9. A super fun shoot day with Ems for her portfolio. Arctic conditions, sassy snaps and some serious cry laughing.
10. Still feeling the 'new year' positivity vibes.
What's made you happy recently?
This week, I turned t w e n t y - t h r e e.
HB to me!
Twenty-two was fun! I had some great time with friends and family, progressed in the 'job world', gaining more experience and getting some jobs under my belt. But, if I am completely honest, I feel like I should of achieved more in that year. I don't like to have regrets, so I don't regret anything I did or didn't do, but I do like to learn from my mistakes and move forward.
I'm in a tricky part of life, post uni but not quite fully into adult life - still living at home, not earning enough to move out. Don't get me wrong, I love living with my mum but ultimately, my goal is to get a job and to earn enough to move out, like most people my age. This year I became self-employed, but that is HARD, seriously hard, which I most definitely underestimated. I'll most likely have some big decisions to make and paths to chose and I want twenty-three to be a year of progress and good choices.
Here's some thing I've learnt in my year of being twenty-two. Things I want to work on next year, reminders of what cherish and some general life advice about drinking too many margaritas...
Nothing is permanent
Things come to an end, both good and bad, which is always worth remembering. But I also need to remind myself that I have the ability to put a stop to things that aren't making me happy and that I am allowed to put myself first sometimes.
If I don't do it, no one else will do it for me
No one else will make that important phone call for me. No one else will apply for that job for me. I put 'scary tasks' off for as long as possible, which means they niggle at my brain for weeks on end. I'm well aware no one else is going to do it, so what am I waiting for?
Weekends are Weekends
I feel a real guilt when I switch off at the weekends, but working for myself it's very important I do. I'm not working full-time so I also feel the guilt that I shouldn't be relaxing because I haven't worked a full week. This year has to be about focused weeks and fun weekends!
You should always listen to your Mum
When your mum tells you to wear a coat, wear a coat! When you don't tell your mum you're getting two piercings in your ear, but know she'd tell you not to, TELL HER and listen to her. Otherwise put up with ongoing ear piercing infections for a month, cry a lot, take a trip to minor injuries and eventually have to take one out anyway. (Oops. Soz Mumma)
The value of friendship
I've always loved my girlfriends and they have always been such supportive, fun and all round babes. But this year, my friends smushed (is that a word?) together - my childhood friend, my school friend, my sister from another Mr and I are one solid girl group and I can't even explain to you the happy feels it gives me. It can be hard having separate groups of friends - you want to be with all of them all the time - so when you smush them together and it works it is the best! My other bestie Luce also moved back from Manchester and it's so good to have her closer to home! Win win for friendships!
I have no idea what I'm doing, but I don't think anyone else does either.
Reassure me on this one, does anyone actually know how to adult? Like, taxes what? Contracts, business, budgeting, making big decisions, anyone have a clue? With age comes experience, so I'm going with that and suppose I will learn as I go on!
Other peoples opinions don't matter
This, of course, is within reason. The opinions of your nearest and dearest are important to consider as they're likely to have your best interests at heart. But the opinion of random school friends your haven't seen for four years or Facebook friend you haven't spoken to for eight years not so much. I worry about the tiniest things, down to things as small as posting a photo 'ah, what if they think I've got a big ego?' 'is it vain to post a selfie?' 'what if I'm posting too much and it's annoying?' Ridiculous. If something is making you happy no one should have a problem with it.
If they do, well... bye felicia.
Put the phone down
A serious wake up call to iPhone addiction was downloading the app 'Moment'. It tracks the time you spend on your phone every day and what apps you're spending the most time on, it then gives you a daily report with a summary. It is absolutely shocking! I have to put my phone down and care less about what is happening online. It's there now and it will still be there in an hour.
Tidy Room. Tidy Mind.
Not exactly a news flash here, but the importance of a tidy desk space/office/room is insane! I can't focus properly unless everything's tidy, so it's the absolute worst for procrastination.
Most Importantly...
A night of drinking Margaritas will be full of salsa dancing, hilarious boomerangs and cry laughing, but will leave you feeling like you have ERODED YOUR INSIDES AWAY AND HAVE NO TEETH LEFT the next morning. You'll text the girls and all agree to not drink them again for a while. Next month another Girl's Night rolls around and you'll hear the call of the marg and you'll make the same mistakes again.
So, here's to twenty-three!
A year of caring less, working more and having fun.
And as my birthday card from my Mumma so aptly said...
'A wise woman once said 'fuck this shit', and she lived happily ever after...'
A rainy, yet very productive Monday.
Today felt like the perfect time to get back into the swing of things on my blog. It's been more of a struggle than I'd probably like to admit to keep up a schedule with my blog and YouTube channel recently. Work life blew up a bit throughout the Summer and with that and spending time with friends and family, everything slipped a little bit. With September giving everyone that 'back to school' feeling (do you ever really shake that?) it's the perfect time to get my routine back.
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| Editing, Editing, Editing. |
I'm kicking off September with one of my favourite blog posts, filling you in on 10 things that have made me happy recently. It always feels like these posts are a little like a life update, but with appreciation for the smaller things in life too.
1. I've just got home from a wonderful week in Polzeath, Cornwall with my boyfriend and family. We had surf lessons everyday with the most incredible team of surfing instructors and had such a happy week. A seaside guide to Polzeath will be up on Friday so keep an eye out.
2. The last few days of late summer, leading in to beautiful Autumn.
3. A beautiful Himalayan Salt Lamp I picked up last month.
4. Celebrating my Grandpa's 90th Birthday and Granny and Grandpa's 60th wedding anniversary yesterday. Without a doubt the luckiest family in the world to have these two heroes leading the way.
5. One Second Every Day app. After seeing Zoella's video I really wanted to give it a go myself. I've managed to piece together clips from before I bought the app from vlogs and have done it consistently since then. Lots of happy memories!
6. Autumn/Winter TV is back. Doctor Foster, Great British Bake Off, Cold Feet, Strictly... just so much cosy night in viewing!
7. Collecting up the fresh plums, tomatoes and strawberries in the garden whilst house-sitting for Dad last week. Like finding hidden treasure!
8. Henry's curly beach hair. MY HEART.
9. The thought of the next few month, my absolute favourite months of the year!
10. Planning and pinning Autumn style ideas on Pinterest. All the chunky knits, mini skirts and boots.
What's made you happy recently?
After a little bit of blog neglect (saaaaad times) I thought I'd try and get things back on track again. Kicking of with one of my favourite posts to write, 10 things that made me happy this week. It's a chance to look back on the little moments that have made me smile recently, I find it really helps my headspace when I'm stressed - a small reminder that it's definitely not all that bad. This post was also one of my Aunties favourites, she used to tell me that when I ended the post with 'what made you happy this week?' it really made her think about the things that made her smile and she loved that. She'll forever be the brightest star in the sky, shining even brighter yesterday with it being her birthday - so this post is for her.
1. A handful of moments from care home performances last week. Singing 'Please Mr Postman' to a gentleman who used to be a postman - He was beaming! A grandson watching his grandma dance and sing non-stop for 45minutes, she was loving it, he even got up to join her. A 90 year old man asking me to marry him. Too cute. (I said Yes. Obvs.)
2. Cocktails and cry-laughing with Emma on Saturday night.
3. Dancing to Magic FM in the kitchen with mum on Saturday afternoon. She was baking, I was getting ready to go out and they were playing #1's from the 90's.
4. A recent trip to Dorset with my dad and little brother to visit family. Collecting sea glass on Charmouth Beach, eating ice creams and visiting the crystal shop brought back all the memories of happy seaside holidays.
5. I received my first payment from YouTube. It's not huge, it won't be buying me a house, car or holiday and to most people won't seem like much, but to me it's kind of a big deal. I don't blog or make videos for money (if I did I'd of quit a looooong time ago) so this is purely a bonus, to earn a bit of money doing something I absolutely love. When you pour your heart and soul into something, it's very rewarding.
6. Doing 'adulting' so well last Tuesday morning. Insurance quotes sorted, student finance forms, postal vote applications, prescriptions picked up. Thing I'd been putting off for a long time so I felt so happy to get them all done!
7. Holiday shopping with Charlie. One month to goooo!
8. Bluebells. I love seeing the blur of purple as I drive through the countryside.
9. Despacito - a new song J Biebs features on. It's bloody amazing and gives me all the holiday salsa vibes.
10. Blake Lively's look for the Met Ball. Or just Blake Lively's look in general. Or Just Blake Lively.
What's made you happy recently? :)
*There WILL be a post coming on Friday, no more slacking from me!
I'm not too sure how we got to the first week of April so quickly, but here we are!
March was good. I had lots of fun days and enjoyed the sunshine which appeared rather frequently. I lost track a little of my goals and targets though, I started to just take life as it comes, which while is good at times, I do also like to be a little bit more planned when it comes to targets and having an idea of what I want to get done. Off topic, but I also had the worst dentist experience ever *insert upside down smiling emoji* which I go into a lot more detail in my video coming at 6pm today!
Here's my to-do's for April (you may notice a few of last months popping up again...)
-- A P R I L --
- Finish reading book number three.
- ACTUALLY DO SOME BLOODY EXERCISE. Yes, I said this last month. Yes, it's now two months until my holiday. Yes, it's Sunday night and there's a butterscotch yum yum in the kitchen that's calling my name. Yes, I'm tempted to eat it because 'I'll start on Monday'. (and yes, I will tooootally kick myself for this in two months time!)
- Use my paper diary more. I rely on iCal, but I enjoy writing it down, pen to paper.
- Read the gigantic stack of magazines sitting in my room.
- Moisturise after showering and do my proper skincare routine more often.
- Plan my days better to help my productivity. I tend to leave things until then evening (ehem, like right now) and then panic when I can't get it done. It also means I go to bed with the worst mind traffic. It's got to stop!
What are your 'to-do's' for April?
I'm back! I'm not free of university just yet, but all the essays are done, with one singing exam to go, so it's definitely time to get back to my little happy corner of the internet!
1. Goodbye dissertation! It's all done, over 18,000 words, 10 lesson plans, tonnes of market research, a lot of hard work and a few (read: many) breakdowns, all the essays have been handed in. A huge weight off my shoulders with just a practical exam to go and then my degree is done.
2. The fact I am actually able to sit down and write this post. Hello (a little bit of) free time...
3. Seeing one of my oldest family friends get married on Saturday. It was just beautiful, very emotional and such a happy day for everyone involved.
4. Homemade guacamole. Check out Vivianna Does Make Up's recipe, it's a gooden.
5. The breathtaking Dr Blighty show at the Pavilion in Brighton, it told such a wonderful story through the colourful images projected onto the building.
6. This girls got her curls back! I had a healthy chop and some blonde put in my hair last week and it's like my hair has a new leash of life!
7. Sunshine. More vitamin D in my life please?
8. Greedy - Ariana Grande. SO. FREAKING. GOOD.
9. It's peony season, how are they SO pretty? I'd like a bunch on every surface please...
10. Soaking in as much Brighton as possible. I move out at the end of this month and I will have officially finished university. I'm making the most of this beautiful place whilst I'm still here!
It's so good to be back! Look out for my The Great Escape posts this week.
What's made you happy recently?
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