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Blogmas Day 11: Q & A with Vikki & Zoe

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For my second Q & A post to show you all the blogging community at Christmas Vikki & Zoe answering questions about what Christmas means to them! Don’t forget to go and check out their blogs too!

Vikki
Zoe

 

What are you most excited about this Christmas?

Zoe: This Christmas I’m most excited about being with family and giving the presents I have bought, I absolutely love buying things for other people especially if its something they will love!

Vikki: I am excited about spending Christmas with friends and my partners family, in comparison to last year I am also looking forward to not being stuck in Heathrow airport due to a delayed flight for 14 hours!

What’s at the top of your wish list?

Zoe: The top of my Wishlist is probably new makeup/clothes, or even a HP sprocket! To be honest I will be happy with anything that my friends/family get me!

Vikki:  I don’t really have a wish list, my wish would be that ASOS has a massive sale so I can stock up on British brands. If I am being soppy I would also wish that all of my friends and family here in Australia and in Scotland have a safe enjoyable Christmas with hangovers they can cope with.

 

Favourite Christmas movie?

Zoe: I’ve haven’t actually seen many Christmas films but I will be watching loads this year to make up for it haha! So I’m looking forward to seeing what others say for this so I know which ones are worth the watch!

Vikki:  My favourite Christmas movie is probably Home Alone, although I love the Wizard of Oz and they always tend to show that movie at Christmas too!

 

Favourite Christmas song? 

Zoe: There are loads!! I honestly am a HUGE lover of Christmas music and I have a whole playlist dedicated to it! For answering this I will put my top 3 because I honestly can’t pick just one favourite:

Merry Xmas Everyone – Slade

Stop the cavalry – Bona Lewie

Do they know its Christmas? – Band Aid

Vikki:  Fairytale of New York without a shadow of a doubt, I love the music, I love the lyrics and it’s also my mums favorite Christmas song so it has a  sentimental value for me.  

Favourite Christmas food? 

Zoe: Favourite Christmas food is 100% Turkey, my absolute favourite food at Christmas time!

Vikki:  Can I say all of it? I love how there are 65 versions of potatoes but also pigs in blankets are YUM


Your perfect Christmas in 3 words.

Zoe: Family, Friends, Love.

Vikki: Snow Family alcohol

Thanks so much to Vikki and Zoe for sharing their answers! Make sure to go and check out their wonderful blogs. And stay turned for more Blogmas posts to come!

Blogmas Day 6: Costa Hot Chocolates, Ranked!

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Every November I’m eagerly awaiting the time when Costa bring out their Christmas drinks menu because I am absolutely in LOVE with their hot chocolate menu. So, I thought what better for Blogmas than to rate these festive treats because of course I’ve sampled each of them and there’s still a few weeks to go!

Coming in at number 4… 

Billionaire’s Hot Chocolate

I heard SO MUCH about this, everyone was raving about how tasty it was, how it was a game changer. Unfortunately, for me, it didn’t taste as good as I thought it would. It just didn’t have a wow factor for me. I know it’s still the favourite for a lot of people though!

Number 3 goes to… 

Black Forrest Hot Chocolate

I know, I’m shocked too. Usually, this is my favourite festive drink every year but this year it’s slipped down the list! While it has a yummy taste of cherry (and not just a cherry on top like last year), the actual syrup really sits at the bottom of your cup, so when you get to the bottom you might get a mouthful of syrup which is a bit too much.

Almost there, number 2 goes to… 

Lindt Hot Chocolate

This is your classic hot chocolate with a luxury twist. This was absolutely gorgeous and you could definitely taste the difference when Costa is using Lindt. So if you want a normal hot chocolate with a bit more luxury this is the one for you.  Sometimes I like something

And finally in at number 1…

Mint Hot Chocolate

When my Mum and Sister told me this was their go to this year I wasn’t keen because I don’t like overpowering mint. I was a little apprehensive but decided to give it a go, I’m glad I did. This has a perfect mix of mint and chocolate and, thankfully, isn’t too overpowering. Throw on some whipped cream end enjoy the tiny candy cane, you won’t regret it.

 

Have I got it all wrong?! Let me know your favourites in the comments below!

Blogmas Day 1: Welcome to Blogmas!

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Hello, hello, hello lovely readers!

This year I wanted to set myself a challenge because, apparently, I don’t know the meaning of the word relaxation. I absolutely love Christmas, it makes me feel so happy. The thought of love, sharing, giving and family puts a big smile on my face.

But, why Blogmas? I’ve read Blogmas and watched Vlogmas for the past few years and I thought this year why not give it a go myself? Sharing joy, my own insights into Christmas and the festive season and I definitely have some treats in store for you such as:

My Christmas Playlist

My Favourite Christmas Films

Christmas Throwbacks

How to Stay on Budget

And that’s just a few of the posts me and the elves have been putting together for you.

Remember Gals and Guys, only 24 sleeps until the big day!

This or That: Books Edition!

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I found this great tag over on Jenny in Neverland’s blog and thought it would be something fun to try! So, let’s give it a go.

Audiobook or textbook?

I love having a physical book in my hands as much as possible, that said, I absolutely love listening to audiobooks on the go, especially autobiographies.

Paperback or hardback?

I’m a huge fan of paperback books, but, I fully appreciate a nice hardback.

Fiction or Non-Fiction?

It definitely depends on my mood. Sometimes I like reading about real lives and people but at other times I want an escape so I read fiction.

Harry Potter or Twilight?

I’m a die-hard Harry Potter nerd I love everything about the Wizarding World (I’ve even subscribed to the Loot Crate). That said, I did have a Twilight phase in my teens and loved the books (the films, not so much).

Bookshop or online?

You can’t beat a good bookshop trip, can you? If I ever won the lottery I’d head straight to Waterstones Picadilly and go absolutely mad.

Standalone or trilogy?

Standalone, I’m not that keen on trilogies.

Sweet and short or heavy and long?

Sweet and shot, definitely.

Cosy read or reading in the sun?

Cosy reading every time, blankets or a duvet, comfy clothes. Bliss.

Hot chocolate or coffee?

Hot Chocolate om nom nom.

 

What do you think? Let me know below or do your own post!

September Favourites!

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I don’t quite know how it’s October tomorrow. This month I’ve had a very quiet one, Ali went off on tour on the 3rd, so I’ve spent a lot of time chilling at home and reading. So, this might not be the busiest favourites month but here they are!

Birthday! 

This month I turned 23! I went out a few days before with a few of my closest friends for dinner and drinks (more than a few drinks) before spending the actual day with my family and having the surprise of a Bose speaker delivered from Ali!

Books 

When it’s just me I read a lot. And I mean a lot a lot. I’ve read 8 books this month, around 2 a week! This month I’ve started getting back into reading fiction slowly. There were some really great reads and some I felt were a little disappointing. Making Faces and Fully Functioning Human  were two of my favourites and reviews this month!

 

General

And down to my general choices. I’ve spent the month trying to meet up with friends or seeing family, so that I don’t spend all my time alone! This included friends from my time at uni, my godchildren and family. It’s also been a good month for deliveries including a haul from Typo and my Ginny Weasley Barnes and Noble exclusive Pop Vinyl, as well as my first Wizard World Loot Crate! I think the best part has to have been getting a visit from Ali, even if it was only for 28 hours  and baking for the guys on tour.

My Favourite Posts: 

Long Distance Love

23 Things I’ve Learned in 23 Years 

How Is My Mental Health Right Now?

Goodbye 22 – Looking Back on a Weird Year

Feminist Friday: 10 Things You Can Still Do & Still Be A Feminist 

Using Food as a Crutch

 

Vogue’s 73 Questions Tag

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1. What’s your favourite movie?Love Actually, so many great people in it. 

Love Actually, so many great people in it.
2. Favorite movie in the past five years?

That’s so hard! Star Wars, The Force Awakens

3. Favorite Hitchcock film?

Haven’t watched enough to have a favourite
4. A book you plan on reading?

What happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
5. A book that you read in school that positively shaped you?

To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee, made me think about race issues.
6. Favorite TV show that’s currently on?

None, Game of Thrones is over.
7. On a scale of one to ten how excited are you about life right now?

About a 7, could be more exciting!
8. iPhone or Android?

iPhone, always.
9. Twitter or Instagram?

Twitter.
10. Who should EVERYONE be following right now?

Me 😛
11. What’s your favourite food?

Pasta, all the pasta.
12. Least favourite food?

Watermelon. Gross beyond gross.
13. What do you love on your pizza?

Meat, lots of meat! Or different cheeses.
14. Favorite drink?

Coke
15. Favorite dessert?

Chocolate Sundae with warm Brownie chunks!
16. Dark chocolate or milk chocolate?

Milk chocolate on its own, Dark chocolate if there’s flavourings in it.
17. Coffee or tea?

Tea, always.
18. What’s the hardest part about being a mum?

I’m not a Mum! Well only to a Hamster.
19. What’s your favourite band?

Paramore.
20. Favorite solo artist?

Ohh that’s tough right now it’s Ed Sheeran
21. Favorite song?

Changes week to week!
22. If you could sing a duet with anyone, who would it be?

Either Hayley Williams or Lady Gaga
23. If you could master one instrument, what would it be?

Guitar
24. If you had a tattoo, where would it be?

I have two but I think my third will be on my shoulder.
25. To be or not to be?

To be
26. Dogs or cats?

Dogs
27. Bird-watching or whale-watching?

Bird-watching
28. Best gift you’ve ever received?

Handmade Harry Potter gifts
29. Best gift you’ve ever given?

Tickets to shows.
30. Last gift you gave a friend?

Chocolate 🙂
31. What’s your favourite board game?

Monopoly
32. What’s your favourite country to visit?

Hmm probably Greece.
33. What’s the last country you visited?

Majorca
34. What country do you wish to visit?

I want to go back to Italy!
35. What’s your favourite colour?

Baby Blue
36. Least favourite colour?

There’s very few I don’t like.
37. Diamonds or pearls?

Diamonds are a girls best friend
38. Heels or flats?

Flats.
39. Pilates or yoga?

Yoga?
40. Jogging or swimming?

Swimming every time.
41. Best way to de-stress?

A long, Lush bath.
42. If you had one superpower, what would it be?

Mind Reading
43. What’s the weirdest word in the English language?

I have no idea.
44. What’s your favourite flower?

Roses
45. When was the last time you cried?

A few days ago, Chronic Pain sucks
46. Do you like your handwriting?

When I have time to write nicely
47. Do you bake?

I do indeed!
48. What is your least favourite thing about yourself?

The amount I over think
49. What is your most favourite thing about yourself?

My perseverance.
50. Who do you miss most?

Ali.
51. What are you listening to right now?

Netflix, The People vs OJ Simpson
52. Favorite smell?

Chocolate
53. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone?

My Mum
54. Who was the last person you sent a text to?

Ali
55. A sport you wish you could play?

Football.
56. Hair color?

Redhead
57. Eye colour?

Blue
58. Scary film or happy endings?

Happy Endings
59. Favorite season?

Autumn 🙂
60. Three people alive or dead that you would like to have dinner with?

Sylvia Plath

Ellen Degeneres

J.K Rowling
61. Hugs or kisses?

Hugs
62. Rolling Stones or the Beatles?

The Beatles
63. Where were you born?

Basingstoke
64. What is the farthest you have been from home?

America
65. Sweet or savoury?

Sweet
66. Lipstick or lip gloss?

Lipstick
67. What book have you read again and again?

Nineteen Minutes – Jodi Picoult
68. Favorite bedtime story?

None!
69. What would be the title of your autobiography?

Just Keep Going
70. Favorite sound?

Happy Hamster Noises
71. Favorite animal?

Dwarf Hamster
72. Who is your girl crush?

I have many
73. Last photograph you took?

Stuff I’m selling online

Goodbye 22 – Looking Back on a Weird Year

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As I write this it’s my last day of being 22 and in the words of Hayley Williams of Paramore ’22 is like the worst idea that I have ever had’, I’m not sad to be turning 23, not at all. I’m pretty happy that I’m walking away from a very, very weird year.

There’ve been so many ups and downs to this year, going to see Britney (a dream since I was a little kid) and spending quality time with my Mum was a great way to start 22 but then I lost my hamster, Noodle a few days later. That set the tone for the rest of the year I think.

I had three jobs, in a year which makes me CRINGE so much! The first had to let go of the marketing department (they were a startup and the money needed to go elsewhere), the second I was incredibly unhappy and being let go was one of the best things that could have happened to me, the third was a temp job for 3 months which made me get enough to gain the confidence I needed to get the role I’m in now, which I love.

Ali and I have had a big year too, we moved into our first flat dealing with everything ourselves, we lost two of our beautiful hamsters, Hamski and Noodle and ended up getting our third, Wickett. We’ve both dealt with making big career decisions and have spent a fair amount of time apart.

So, I guess in this big ramble I’m calling a post I’ll say that 22 was really, really, tough. There was a lot of stress, pain and growing up but coming into 23 I feel like I’m going to have a good year, I’ve gotten through a lot and I just want to get the next part started.

Taking chances and making calls

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Hello, hello, hello!

As many of you know, back in April I lost my job which sucked and majorly damaged my confidence. BUT! I managed to find myself some temp work between jobs, where I gained some of my confidence back. As my three-month contract was in its final month I really upped my permanent job search.

I was put through for a job by a recruitment agency at a top PR firm. I went to the interview and thought it went well, I genuinely thought I would get a second interview. Unfortunately, I didn’t get it. I’d applied for job after job all through websites, which meant recruitment agencies. Something just wasn’t working. I wasn’t getting jobs and I knew I wanted to work in an agency.

After that rejection, I decided to do something. I looked up agencies local to me and wrote them all down. I went through websites, made a short list and called to ask if there were any jobs available on my lunch break. I called a company called HCT Creative and was told there a be a position, send my CV within the hour. Later that evening I had a chat, the next day I had an interview and was offered the job after 2 hours of chatting with the two directors.

The thing is, we were never told that was an option at uni, it wasn’t encouraged. We were to apply for grad schemes, to go through assessment centres, to use our networking. I know that for a lot of companies you can’t just call up and see if there are jobs, but what if I hadn’t done that? I’m a week in and I can see so much opportunity that I haven’t had before with genuinely nice people.

I’m so excited about my new job, I get up every day and look forward to it. I can’t wait to get more stuck in, to learn and grow because I really think I can. All of that was just by taking a chance.

My Blogging Journey in 10 questions

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I get asked a lot about blogging once people find out about my website, so I thought I’d share my journey in 10 questions for my lovely readers. So, here we go.

Why did you start blogging?

My very first blog was to review my bookcase, as a reason to keep all my books. For this blog, I wanted to document my uni experience and it’s become so much more!

How has blogging changed for you?

My confidence, people read what I write. It’s made me realise I can write and it’s good enough for people to read.

What’s the BEST part of blogging?

Being able to connect with people, exchanging stories!

What’s the worst part of blogging?

Comparing yourself to others. It’s so easy to look and go why aren’t I at their level? It’s often a case of right place, right time added to hard work.

How do you schedule?

I used to be SO good at scheduling. Now if I can I try and schedule a week in advance but it doesn’t always go to plan…

Do you keep track of stats?

I have a spreadsheet (because I’m a total spreadsheet geek) to keep an eye on how I’m doing, what’s working and what’s not.

What makes you keep blogging?

Every now and again, I’ll get a message for a comment from someone about how my blog has been positive for them or helped in some way. It makes me feel good. That and I enjoy it!

What are your blogging goals?

  • To raise awareness of Mental Health
  • To work with some brands to promote something I love
  • To reach 5K Twitter followers
  • To use my blogging experience to write my own book

What do you want your blog to achieve if anything?

To raise awareness of Mental Health first and foremost.

What’s your top tip for new bloggers?

Keep going! Talk to other bloggers and push on through any writer’s block!

 

If you’d like to use these questions too then make sure to let me know! Leave links in the comments below 🙂

Book Review: The New Girl: A Trans Girl Tells It How It Is – Rhyannon Styles

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Imagine feeling lost in your own body. Imagine spending years living a lie, denying what makes you ‘you’. This was Ryan’s reality. He had to choose: die as a man or live as a woman.

Rhyannon is brilliant, to put it simply. Throughout her life she has been a light in what sounds like quite a bland place to live for someone so fabulous. After being assigned male and named Ryan at birth, Rhyannon knew she was different. From her earliest memories she wanted to be a girl. At the age of 30 her dream finally came through, this is her story.

I’m a huge fan of reading about people’s journeys and how they have faced adversity. I listened as Rhyannon narrated her story, the highs and the lows and what it was like growing up in a small town and labelled ‘gay’ to living in the city and realising who she really was.

What makes this stand out for me is how Rhyannon adresses her family and their reaction to her transition. I appreciate the honesty that she has about how she and her family differed about her being Trans, how families can struggle and feel the need to grieve the person they thought they knew. I feel this could really help young people who go through a similar experience not feel so alone.

The only issue I had with this book is that it seems to be divided in two, but not in an obvious way. Rhyannon has decided that she would first tell her story in relation to happiness and light-heartedness but later reveal her ‘b-side’ as she calls it. With this there was a bit of a risk that people would give up before that point, I know I wondered if the story was sugar coated until I got to this point. It’s not a case of wanting misery, rather I wanted to know more about how Rhyannon felt prior to transition.

I gave this 4 stars. I found Rhyannon to be intelligent, insightful and show her feelings well throughout the book. There is also humour in the book as Rhyannon looks back and considers both the good and the bad in relation to her experience. I’d definitely recommend for an informative read.