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January Favourites

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Hello, hello, hello!

It’s FINALLY the end of January, which is probably my least favourite month of the year. The excitement of Christmas is gone, it’s dark, dreary and everyone is skint. I haven’t been feeling the positive vibes! BUT every month I’m going to share my favourites, this month is fairly random, simply because I haven’t done much but I’m hoping others will be a little more interesting!

Promising to look after myself 

I’ve had a rough old time this January but have tried to spend a little bit of time caring for myself, embracing the Hygge way of life. 

Lady Dates 

Abbie and I had our First Lady date in AGES this month, popping to a little pub for dinner and dessert. I need these little catchups over some dinner, chilled conversation and food by a cosy fire. Shout out to The Weatsheaf in Dummer, top notch as always. 

We moved! 

7 months after graduating we finally got the keys to our new home. While I might be going a little mad waiting for internet I’m so happy to have our own home! 

Birthday Celebrations! 

My littlest cousin Jamie turned one this month, I love seeing my little smiler so happy! 

Getting back into fitness 

I’m starting to try and go to the gym, get a routine and try something new, hence boxing. 

Little treats 

I love the Powerpuff girls, I always have. I was SO happy that my Mum picked these up from Primark for me 😊

Content planning 

There’s going to be lots of fun and new content here! Keep your eyes peeled! 

Ed Sheeran 

Yes he really made the end of the month. I love his new track Castle on the Hill and thanks to my Mum I’m seeing him LIVE in May! Eeeeek! 


Hamski 

As always my little Ham never fails to make me smile ❤ 
I can’t wait to see what February brings! Let me know your favourites from January in the comments below!! 

 

Sunday Seven: Characters I Want To Cosplay As

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I absolutely love going to MCM Comic Con London. I’ve been a few times now and picking a character to cosplay as is always a tricky choice. For my first, I didn’t dress up I simply wore my Hogwarts jumper, for my second I made my first costume going as Rey from Star Wars , my third the Scarlet Witch from the Marvel Universe. I like dressing as strong and inspiring characters. I haven’t included Harry Potter in this list because I also attend Harry Potter nights where I can dress up too!

Princess Leia

Princess Leia was the original badass princess. After meeting Carrie Fisher just weeks before her death, I also want to pay tribute to a wonderful actress, icon and rebel. I can assure you though, I won’t be dressing in the gold bikini!

Arya Stark

When I read Game of Thrones I was instantly fell in love with Arya, small, young and tough. Her costume is definitely going to be tricky but 100% worth it.

Spider Gwen 

This was the first comic book I properly collected, the first time I saw a kick ass female super-hero I absolutely love Spider-Gwen and her character throughout all the comics.

Jyn Erso 

Another Star Wars leading lady, I’d like to eventually have cosplayed all of the female leads in the franchise (although I know Padme isn’t on this list). Jyn was different, I felt that she was more real to me than some of the others because she was just a normal person caught up in a war.

Louise Belcher 

Louise is funny, says what she thinks and wears a great pink rabbit hat…ok maybe I just really want to wear the pink rabbit hat.

Ariel 

What is the world without a little Disney magic? Ariel is my favourite animated Princess, the Little Mermaid was my nickname as a kid and my whole 21st birthday was Little Mermaid themed, it only seems right I would cosplay as her at some point.

Harley Quinn

I’ve been a HQ comic book fan for quite a while, although I haven’t cosplayed as her because of the Suicide Squad hype (I counted 88 Harley’s at the last convention) I really want to dress as Harley because I think she’s a great character and if I had an alter ego, I’d want it to be like her.

What do you want to Cosplay as? Let me know in the comments below!

Book Review: A Mother’s Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy – Sue Klebold

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On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold walked into Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. Over the course of minutes, they would kill twelve students and a teacher and wound twenty-four others before taking their own lives.
For the last sixteen years, Sue Klebold, Dylan s mother, has lived with the indescribable grief and shame of that day. How could her child, the promising young man she had loved and raised, be responsible for such horror? And how, as his mother, had she not known something was wrong? Were there subtle signs she had missed? What, if anything, could she have done differently?

These are questions that Klebold has grappled with every day since the Columbine tragedy. In”A Mother’s Reckoning,” she chronicles with unflinching honesty her journey as a mother trying to come to terms with the incomprehensible.

When you go into a book like this, you expect to face difficult questions, questions of morals and honestly, someone to blame. A lot of people were quick in the days after Columbine to point the finger at the parents of the shooters, after all they should have known, right? In the years since the shooting, Sue turned down many book deals, she didn’t feel she could speak honestly about the son she still loved despite what he did, as well as being in many long legal battles. This book needs to be read with an open mind and with the reminder that this is a mother who has had to try and deal with not only the death of her son, but also the aftermath of what he has done.

I was completely fascinated with the idea of this book, because to my knowledge it hasn’t been done before. We never think of the parents of the shooters, which is understandable, we want to think of the victims, their families. To see Sue’s perspective opened my eyes to the aftermath of these events when the news crews leave and a community is left to pick up the pieces and look at people in a new light.

Sue doesn’t shy away from the darkness and depression that she felt, the hopelessness and self-hatred both her and her husband felt in the years following the shooting. She also is completely honest about her feelings towards her son. At times it is hard to read, she is a mother, of course, she would try to see the good in her son and try and find every plausible reason he is innocent. Sometimes you want to shout through the book, but it is at this point that you will need to look at the bigger picture, I admit I struggled with this throughout the book. By the time I finished, I understood as much as I could the emotional journey she had gone through.

It’s definitely a tough and complex read, which Sue addresses throughout but it is also educational. Sue has done a lot of research, contacted experts and looked over every shred of evidence she could, really to try and understand what went wrong with her son. In light of this Sue wanted to understand mental health, start conversations as she truly believes that this is the only way to prevent further violent acts, that parents should know the warning signs of depressive behaviours. She talks in an educated manner about suicide, mental illness, what it’s like to not know someone is suffering. These topics are all covered with honesty, intelligence and care.

I gave this 4/5 stars. It was a particularly interesting, challenging and emotional book and I can only applaud Sue for speaking out. Some will, of course, question whether Sue should have written this book, whether anyone should feel sorry for her. They’re valid questions, particularly in light of the victims and their families, but all I can say is you have to read it to understand. Sue want’s to bring education and attention to the world in regards to mental health, because she does feel guilt and pain about what her son did, but she’s going to fight for the rest of her life to try and help those in need.

 

Copy received via Netgalley for review

Book Review: In The Dark In The Woods – Eliza Wass

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The woods were insane in the dark, terrifying and magical at the same time. But best of all were the stars, which trumpeted their light into the misty dark.

Castley Cresswell has always is one of The Cresswells. In her town they are outcasts, living in the middle of the woods without modern appliances, clothing or even friends. Along with her brothers, Castley has lived as her father and his messages from god have instructed, although certain things aren’t adding up and as her father becomes increasingly cruel Castley begins to question the world around her.

This was a novel on my Christmas list this year, I’d heard good things about it (although in the US it’s called The Cresswell Plot) it seemed dark with interesting family dynamics. There was also discussion of religious extremism and the lack of challenge towards the children’s father and his methods of ‘punishing them’.

The novel has a combination of mystery, thiller and teenage rebellion. There are five Cresswell children, all under strict rules and ‘guidance’ from their father, including the fact that the family will be God’s chosen people when the time comes, meaning they do not need communication with the outside world. It isn’t until they are forced to go to school, be separated and to be around other young people that they begin to test the limits and see the world for themselves, and rightfully so.

I loved the character of Castley, I loved the natural development of her character as a young woman and as a teenager. There are some elements that are true of all teenagers like  the sweet taste of rebellion, but for Castley this is mixed with a real element of danger. She quickly realises that the danger is no longer from God, if there ever was any, but that her father’s forms of punishment are not the norm. The fact that there is a sense of fear as well as the rebellion makes it more realistic. Castley has obviously lived under her father’s rules for her entire life. A new way of living is both full of fear and hope.

That said, I didn’t want to give the novel 5 stars, simply because I wanted more. I enjoyed the ending but felt that it was very rushed and left a lot of questions unanswered, I just felt incredibly frustrated with the lack of information at the end. I loved the description, the ideas behind the novel and the writing as a whole was brilliant. I would love a second novel to follow on from the ending!

A Typical Day.

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When I asked you all what you would like to see on the blog via Twitter, you all asked for a little more Lifestyle and I am more than happy to oblige. For tonight’s post I thought why not let you know what my day to day life is like? I touched upon how hectic it could be in a recent interview with Yada so I thought I’d share with you all what a typical week day is like (because my favourite thing to do at the weekend is sleep, not gonna lie.

6.30 – 7.00am 

Alarm goes off, I usually  hit snooze. Once I finally wrench myself from my nice warm bed I’ll put on my clothes for work, brush my teeth, put on a little bit of make up and make sure I drink some water.

7.10 – 7.45am 

Assuming that I haven’t forgotten anything I’ll be on the road for about 40 minutes. I’ll usually listen to music (carefully selected) and be thinking about my first cup of tea of the day.

8am 

I start work at 8am, which I chose to beat the traffic because the A road I have to go down is a nightmare in rush hour. While my computer is booting up I’ll make myself a glorious cup of tea and catch up with the other 8am starters.

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9am-1.30pm

I spend the morning working on my to do list, replying to emails and doing whatever it is I need to do. Sometimes I’ll have meetings or will be editing some graphic design work. I’ll usually schedule Social Media for the day too.

1.30-2pm 

Lunnnnnccchhh! Depending on who’s in the kitchen and how I’m feeling I’ll either chat or read while I’m on my break. I always take a book with me to work so that I can do a bit of reading on my lunch normally.

2-4pm 

I usually adjust my to do list to reflect anything that’s come in that morning. I’ll compare to the week and highlight how things are going.

4-5pm

Drive home and do any bits and pieces I need to do on the way. Sometimes I drop into my Mum’s for a cup or tea or will need to go to the supermarket to get some food. Nothing that exciting.

5-6pm 

Chill time. I need some time to just chill out after getting home from work before I start blogging and writing so I’ll give myself an hour to catch up with Ali and have a bit of a rest.  Sometimes I’ll just catch up on some reading.

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6-9pm 

No rest for the wicked. I’ll spend my evening sorting and eating dinner, blogging and planning blogs. I work a lot on the blog and trying to work out what I want to do next, looking at my stats as well as talking on Twitter. Oh and feeding and playing with Hamski.

9-10.30pm 

Need to get showered and ready for bed. After I’ll get my clothes ready for the next day, read a bit and scroll through social media.

10.30-11pm 

This is when I’m supposed to go to bed to make sure that I’ll get up the next morning, it doesn’t always work. Once I am in bed though it doesn’t take me long to look like this…

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So that’s a typical day for me? How does it compare to yours?

Let me know in the comments below!

Book Review: You Will Not Have My Hate – Antoine Leiris

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“You want me to be scared, to see my fellow citizens through suspicious eyes, to sacrifice my freedom for security. You have failed. I will not change.”

In December 2015, Antoine kissed his wife goodbye before she went out for an evening of music with friends while he stayed at home and cared for their young son. She loved music, in fact the couple met at a concert. A few hours later gunmen opened fire on the Bataclan in a horrific terrorist attack. She didn’t survive. This is Antoine’s heartfelt response to the loss of his wife, to the responsibility of raising a son alone and to those who wanted to help but didn’t know how.

I personally requested this book when I knew it was available on Netgalley, I was going to read it regardless because I had heard of the beauty of his words. Antoine first wrote a Facebook post to family and friends in the aftermath of the attack. This is an outpouring of his grief, as he tries to piece his and his sons lives back together. The book has a poetic quality to it, as a reader I was confronted with both the beauty of the words on the page, as well as the pain that radiates through them.

From the ashes of tragedy rises a phoenix of hope. The book is so much more than just a heartfelt message of hope and defiance in a lyrical and heartbreaking form. This, at its heart, is a love story, between Antoine and his wife, lost in the horrific terrorist attack on the Bataclan. Antoine recounts his struggles as he faces a life raising his their son alone, to explain that his Mummy isn’t coming home. While short, this is a prominent piece of work. You Will Not Have My Hate shows the love, hope and resilience that is needed to show those who did this they will not win, they will not have our hate.

Best Friend Tag!

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May I introduce you to the lovely and wonderful Abbie. We decided to give a tag from bestfriendtagquestions.com a go. So, here’s the basics.

1.How and when did you meet?

Chloe: We met through Ben, Abbie’s boyfriend and one of my best friends. The first time I met her was in the Kings Tun Pub in Kingston, she was so nervous because me and Ben were such good friends.

Abbie: We met in like… August 2015?? Through Ben because Ben was introducing me to his friends, it was scary (for me)

2. What’s your favourite memory together?

C: Going to the Harry Potter launch together, I knew I’d found my true Potter match.

A: Seeing Busted last year, because it felt like it was when we became hang-out-without-Ben-friends, and because it was a last minute plan that worked

3. Describe each other in one word.

C: Caring

A: Strong

4. What’s her dream job?

C: To have a job that meant stroking and playing with cats all day

A: I’m going to go with author or Mental Health Marketing

5. What’s her favourite makeup brand?

C: Hmmm, currently Nyx!

A: Bare Minerals…I think

6. What is something that annoys you about the other person?

C: When she doesn’t pick up the phone

A: She has load of books I want to read on Kindle, I can’t borrow them on Kindle.

7. If you could go anywhere in the world together, where would it be and why?

C: DISNEY WORLD, DISNEY WORLD, DISNEY WORLD

A: Disney World, obviously.

8. Favorite inside joke?

C:  #ibslife

A: #ibslife

9. Who takes longer to get ready in the morning?

C: Abbie.

A: Me, I need coffee to function in the morning.

10. Favorite season?

C: I know she loves the Autumn, that’s when the best Lush exclusives come out.

A: I’m not sure but I feel like Autumn because blankets and birthday, just about, September is Autumn, right?

11. Favorite song?

C: Anything Disney

A: I feel like it changes a lot, I know Ed Sheeran has a new song so it may currently be that

12. What is it like being best friends with someone who is obsessed with books? * edited from original post*  

C: Amazing, we can share!

A: Good but expensive, she encourages the book buying.( C: I encourage good book buying, it’s part of being a good friend)

13. Heels or flats?

C: Flats, neither of us can deal with sore feet.

A: Flats, Heels are ouchy.

14. Pants or dresses?

C: Dresses, she’s much more or a dresses person.

A: Pants because they’re easier to shop for? Dresses when the right one comes along.

15. Favorite animal?

C: Cat or Bunny. (A: Sneaky curveball, it’s a Giraffe, I love them so much it makes me want to cry.

A: Dog?

16. If your house was burning down, and your entire family was sure to be okay, what would you save and why?

C: Lush

A: How many books do you think you can carry? I think books or wands.

17. Comedy, horror, or chick-flick?

C: Comedy

A: Comedy

18. Blackberry or iPhone?

C: iPhone, but she’s not as obsessed as me.

A: iPhone

19.Favorite movie?

C: Damn it I know this, I know this!!! Something Disney? I want to say Bambi because of Thumper?

A: I feel she had an extreme obsession with 101 Dalmations? So I’ll go with that.

(we both got this wrong, Abbie’s in Princess Bride, mine is Love Actually)

20. What is something weird that you eat?

C: Abbie eats as safely as me because #ibslife

A: I think it’s weird that Chloe eats kebabs occassionally because what a risk when #ibslife

21. Do you guys have anything matching?

C: I’m pretty sure we have matching Hogwarts t-shirts but in our house colours

A:  We nearly had matching blouses for work but Primark was working against us.

22. What’s your favourite TV show?

C: We both love The Crown

A: Maybe Bake Off? Even though it is a relatively new love. (She’s right, we both love a bit of Bake Off).

Thanks to my wonderful Absie for working on this blog for me.

How about you and your best friend? Tag me I’d love to read yours!

Get to know me a little better – 25 Questions

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Seeing as I’ve been lucky enough to get quite a few new subscribers and followers (hello, hello, hello lovely people!) I wanted to let you all get to know me a little better. I found this over on Megan’s blog and thought I would give it a go!

1. What is your middle name?: Francesca, after my aunt.

2. What was favorite subject at school?: Drama and English were my favourites. Anything artistic actually.

3. What is your favorite drink?: Tea, nothing’s better than a good cuppa.

4. What is your favorite song at the moment?: I don’t really have one, I’ve been listening to a lot of Melanie Martinez.

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5. What is your favorite food?: Chocolaaaaaaaaattttttteeeeee.

6. What is the last thing you bought?: Some readymeals for work this week because I didn’t have time for a big shop. 

7. Favorite book of all time?: Hmm, that’s a really hard question. I’d probably go with Order of the Phoenix off the top of my head.

8. Favorite Color?: A nice turquoise will always be lovely.

9. Do you have any pets?: Hamski 🙂

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10. Favorite Perfume?: Fantasy by Britney Spears.

11. Favorite Holiday?: Florida!

12. Are you married?: Nope but I hope to be in the next 5 years.

13. Have you ever been out of the country, if so how many times?: So many times I can’t even remember.

14. Do you speak any other language?: Nope, I have tried but not been successful.

15. How many siblings do you have?: Just the one little sister

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16. What is your favorite shop?: Waterstones

17. Favorite restaurant?: Cosy Italians

18. When was the last time you cried?: A few days ago about missing Noodle.

19. Favorite Blog?: I can’t choose just one!

20. Favorite Movie?: Love Actually

21. Favorite TV shows?: Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Friends. Just American comedy in general.

22. PC or Mac?: Mac

23. What phone do you have?: iPhone.

24. How tall are you?: 5’0

25. Can you cook?: I can bake but I’m not a good cook at all, I leave that to Ali.

Remember to tag me in your replies below, I’d love to read them!

Sunday Seven: Things To Look Forward To In 2017

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Happy New Year!!!

Hello, lovely, lovely people and welcome to 2017! We’re almost a day in and I wanted to share with you some things I’m looking forward to in 2017. Now I’ve said before and I’ll say it again I don’t believe in new years resolutions, nope, nope, nope. I want to spend the whole year setting goals and I know for a fact that I find it harder in the dark winter months to be happy and motivated. So, instead, I focus on things to look forward to! So, here are 7 things I’m looking forward to.

A New Home 

This year at some point Ali and I will move into a new home. It means so much to us and we’re really excited!

Getting Stuck Into Work 

I can’t wait to get even more stuck in with my job, it’s a really exciting time for me. I’m in a company I love and a job I really enjoy, I can’t wait to see what this year brings.

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Carrying On With Spine Recovery 

In the next 8 weeks I should have an appointment for my spinal injections. While I’m absolutely terrified I’m also excited because it’s another chance at relieving the spinal pain I’ve been living with for the past 20 months!

Going on Holiday! 

Ali and I will finally be getting a relaxing break together later in the year, a week in sunny Spain. We haven’t had a relaxing holiday in years so it’ll be a nice time to chill out and spend some time together.

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Improving My Blog 

I’m really focused on my blog and this year I can really focus on it without university work taking up each and every evening. I have some great ideas and plans so keep an eye out!

Celebrating 9 Years 

Yes! The boyfriend and I celebrate 9 years together this year, which is crazy. I’m so lucky to have my best friend by my side every day.

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Caring For Myself 

I bought so much stuff from Lush in the sales, meaning I have a lot of bath products for relaxation purposes. I’m really bad at relaxing, I’m always doing something so I need to work on that but this year I can make that time for myself.

What are you looking forward to? Let me know in the comments below!

Sick Blues

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I didn’t intend to be putting all plans on hold a few days before Christmas a tickly cough and sore throat have quickly turned into an infection and now I’m going to be stuck on rest for at least 3 days. To say that it’s put a bit of a dampener on my Christmas spirit is an understatement. It might sound strange to some but I’m so upset that I won’t be spending the next few days with my colleagues getting ready for Christmas, because Kosnic is really like a little family. I’m hoping that after a few days I will be well enough for it to not impact my Christmas plans! So apologies in advance if I don’t blog as much as I wanted to this week, I’ll be resting up!