Blogmas Day 31: New Years Resolutions 2022

1. Read 2 Books a month
2. 2000 followers on my blog
3. Have a Pamper Evening every week
4. Drink 2000ml of water every day
5. Post on Instagram twice a week
6. Post on my blog 6 times a month
7. Do something nice for Maya once a week
8. Reach 50,000 views
9. Cook something once a week
10. Reach 450 on my bucket list
11. Reach 75 things on my 101 things list
12. Go to 5 theatre shows
13. Save Money
14. Do some sort of workout twice a week
15. De-clutter and organise my room
16. Write a letter to my 30 year old self
17. Dye my hair
18. 365 project/gratitude journal every day in 2022
19. Travel somewhere
20. Make monthly playlists
21. Watch all of the Marvel projects released in 2022
22. Make more time for self care

Let me know in the comments what your 2022 new years resolutions are 🙂

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Blogmas Day 30: New Years Resolutions 2021 lookback :)

1. Read 2 books a month- I actually managed to read 30 books this year which is pretty cool 🙂 I have always loved reading (I think I get it from my Mum) and I have been off my reading game lately so it was nice to get back into it 🙂 I have a couple of favourite books from this year: The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and The Couple by Helly Acton 🙂

2. 2500 followers on my blog- I actually did not manage to reach 2500 followers on my blog I feel like this was a very ambitious goal but I did manage to reach 1730 which is really cool and I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has followed me ❤

3. Have a pamper evening every week- I absolutely LOVE pamper evenings and I have spent a lot of time having lots of baths using lots of bath bombs and face and hair masks 🙂

4. Complete my running bucket list- I actually haven’t looked at my running bucket list this year because I have done a few other bits of working out instead which was I started climbing and also some Yoga 🙂 I did quite a bit of running at the start of the year but haven’t had a lot of time since going back to work 🙂

5. Do some Yoga- I have been working through a lot of Yoga stuff this year as I was doing Yoga with my brother at the start of the year doing a 30 day Yoga challenge and I actually did 2 of those throughout the year 🙂

6. Drink 2000ml of water a day- I have actually drunk a lot more water since going back to work as I take a massive water-bottle with me and drink lots of water which there 🙂

7. Post on Instagram twice a week- I have actually posted twice a week on two social medias because I also posted on Mayas Instagram once a week which was so much fun 🙂 I loved getting to spent more time with her at the start of the year while on Furlough and then when I went back to work I have tried to balance my time between work and spending time with her 🙂 I enjoyed working on my social media as well and taking photos and capturing the few moments that we have been allowed to do stuff and spend time with friends and family 🙂

8. Post on my blog twice a week starting in February- Despite going back to work in June I have actually managed to post twice a week on here which is so cool, its been hard at times but I enjoy having this creative outlet to talk about some of my favourite things and to talk about my life and take photos for posts as well 🙂

9+ 10: Be More minimalistic and also sort out my laptop and room: I tried to be relatively organised when it comes to sorting out my bedroom and also have made a consious effort to not buy as much this year and to only buy what is absolutely necessary 🙂

11. Save Money: I have managed to save a bit of money this year which is really cool but obviously I wont be talking too much about this for security reasons 🙂

12. Do something nice for Maya once a week: Like I mentioned earlier I managed to spend quite a bit of time with Maya at the start of the year and then I have spent quite a bit of time with her since going back to school and it was nice to have this resolution to make sure I spent lots of time with her and made her year special as well 🙂

13. Do something nice for a friend once a week: I have taken the chance to really try and do something really nice for friends this year- lots of little moments and presents 🙂

14. Have a photoshoot once a month: I have done quite a few photoshoots this year which have been a lot of fun and just taking random photos with friends 🙂

16. Reach 30,000 views- I actually did manage to reach 30,000 views which was so much fun and again I want to thank everyone who has read and commented and liked my posts this year 🙂

17. Write down 5 things I’m proud of every month: This I did this actually for the first few months of the year and then it started to unfortunately dwindle as the months went on and I got busier which is a real shame as it was something that I really enjoyed looking back on as we went into 2021 from 2020 🙂

18. Do training with Maya: I have done quite a bit of training with Maya this year which has been a lot of fun and a good way to make sure I am setting aside time to spend with her giving her all of my attention 🙂

19. Cook/Bake 5 new things: I have cooked so much more than 5 new things!! This year we actually started getting Hello Fresh delivered which I cook 3 times a week 🙂 I have definitely improved my cooking through doing this and have also done a few little baking sessions as well 🙂

 20 and 21. Complete half of my 101 things list and reach 400 on my bucket list : This I have managed to do and I have had so much fun doing it as well 🙂 I love capturing special moments in my life which my bucket list and the 101 things list allow me to do 🙂

 

Blogmas Day 28: What I got for Christmas 2021 :)

DISCLAIMER I am not in any way trying to brag or show off I just love reading these types of posts and watching these kinds of videos so I thought I might try and do one myself ❤ DISCLAIMER

This year I have been so so lucky and have received some really thoughtful and lovely presents 🙂 I think the last few years have shown that Christmas really isn’t about the gifts but its about who is in your life and the people that you love ❤

The first person I saw was one of my best friends Birunda when we went to see Spiderman NWH together and she got me two books which I’m very excited to read!! We actually became friends because everytime we would borrow a book from our school library it would have the other persons name as the last person to borrow it so then we got chatting and the rest is history 🙂

My Mums best friend popped round the day before Christmas eve and dropped round some presents including a mini greenhouse for me which is so so cool!!! I have gotten really into plants and stuff over the last year so I’m very excited for my new project 🙂

As many of you will know I’m a big fan of lush stuff and bath bombs and candles so I got a few different toiletry bits from different people which I’m so grateful for and will last me till next Christmas ❤

One of the really cool gifts that my Mum surprised me with was an orange syrup for my hot chocolate as I am a big fan of the Costa Terrys Chocolate Orange Hot Chocolates so she thought that it would be a nice idea for me to be able to make them myself at home 🙂

Most years my Mum gets me some sort of calendar for the year ahead and so this year I picked out a Hamilton calendar which I’m very excited to put up and write all over it with hopefully lots of lovely plans in the new year 🙂

From my oldest brother I got a Nightmare Before Christmas cookbook and music box which are both so cool!!! I am a massive fan of that movie and end up watching it multiple times in the lead up to Halloween which my brother knows 🙂 He also got my Mum and I tickets to a show in the new year!

My parents also got me some clothes from Lucy and Yak which I was very grateful for and my middle brother got my Mum and I a combined present which he does most years and he sends us on a Spa weekend ❤ Thank you so much to everyone who sent me well wishes, presents and love this year ❤

Let me know in the comments what Christmas present from years past has meant the most to you and why 🙂

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Blogmas Day 27: Christmas Bucket List Updated :)

1. Make some Christmas Cookies

2. Decorate for Christmas

3. Christmas Movie Night

4. Write a Christmas Blog Post

5. Buy Maya a Christmas toy

6. Buy Maya a Christmas Outfit

7. Wrap my Christmas presents in front of a Christmas movie

8. Do a Christmas photoshoot

9. Read a Christmas book

10. Buy a 2021 Christmas ornament

11. Christmas Hot Chocolate

12. Ice Skating

Let me know in the comments what was on your Christmas Bucket List 🙂

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Blogmas Day 26: Mayas 3rd Christmas

To start off with I want to say that I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and has an amazing Boxing Day today eating lots of food ❤️

This year is Maya’s 3rd Christmas with my family which is so weird to think about because I still think of her as that little puppy but this year we’ve had some lovely moments that I thought I would share with you guys!

Let me know in the comments what you have gotten up to this year for Christmas ❤️

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Blogmas Day 25: Merry Christmas 2021 :)

I actually can’t believe Christmas is finally here!! It feels like I blinked and December just came and went- I feel like this year it hasn’t felt like Christmas at all due to a sense of impending lockdown/doom however its finally here!! I actually have a bit of time off just before and slightly after as well so I’m looking forward to spending some festive time at home 🙂

This Christmas is going to look slightly different than my usual christmasses as this year we have decided to go to my Nans for Christmas dinner and see all of my Dads side of the family there including all of my nans dogs and my cousins and my aunt and then my Mums side of the family is coming for a Boxing day dinner once I get back from work 🙂 I believe my middle brother is going to come over however my oldest brother is currently having to isolate so I think we’re going to skype him on Christmas day which will be lovely 🙂

This year is Mayas third Christmas so I’m excited to see if she remember past years and gets excited to open presents! Last year near the end she started opening her presents herself which is very fun and we always take her for a nice family walk together as well 🙂

Merry Christmas everyone 🙂

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Blogmas Day 18: My favourite lyrics from Encanto :)

As many of you will know I am a big Lin Manuel Miranda fan and one of his newest projects is the Disney film Encanto which is coming out on Disney+ on Christmas Eve so I thought that I would write a list of some of my favourite lyrics 🙂

• A rhythm of its own design, This is my family, A perfect constellation, So many stars and everybody gets to shine- The Family Madrigal
• My primo Camilo won’t stop until he makes you smile today, My cousin Dolores can hear this whole chorus a mile away- The Family Madrigal
• Always walking alone, Always wanting for more, Like I’m still at that door longing to shine, Like all of you shine- Waiting On a Miracle
• Under the surface, Was Hercules ever like “Yo, I don’t wanna fight Cerberus”?- Surface Pressure
• But wait, If I could shake the crushing weight of expectations, Would that free some room up for joy, Or relaxation, or simple pleasure?, Instead we measure this growing pressure- Surface Pressure
• grew to live in fear of Bruno stuttering or stumbling, I can always hear him sort of muttering and mumbling, I associate him with the sound of falling sand- We Don’t Talk about Bruno
• When he calls your name it all fades to black, Yeah, he sees your dreams and feasts on your screams- We Don’t Talk About Bruno
• It’s not symmetrical or perfect, But it’s beautiful and it’s mine- What else can I do?
• What could I do if I just grew what I was feeling in the moment?, What could I do if I just knew it didn’t need to be perfect? It just needed to be? And they let me be?- What Else Can I do
• The miracle is not some magic that you’ve got, The miracle is you, not some gift, just you- All of You
• And I wanted you to know that your bro loves you so, Let it in, let it out, let it rain, let it snow, let it go- All of You
• We have no gifts, but we are many, And we’ll do anything for you, It’s a dream when we work as a team- All of You

Let me know if you have seen the film Encanto and if so which song is your favourite 🙂

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Blogmas Day 16: Caltagirone, Licata and Selinunta, Sicily July 1969 :)

My mum found her Great-Grandmas travel diaries a while ago and I have been typing them up for her to read and thought I would put them on here as well- If you want a little bit more background read part one  here 🙂

Caltagirone

An Arab fortified town built on hills, its streets are actually flights of steps; each row of steps has a different mosaic on its front, following a pattern of 2 rows, of geometrical designs, then a row of either faces, figures, animals, birds, travel scenes, hunting, fighting or some sport, all in beautiful columns. Ceramic works flourishes here and the main buildings have ceramics as exterior decoration. The population is mostly farmers as the land is fertile producing mainly olives and fruit.

Licata

This small, dirty, dusty town has no water supply, the occupants have to lay it from a water cart which gets its water from a nearby fountain. Licata and Agrigento shared a reservoir in the past but the growth of the latter town absorbed all the supply. Money collected to construct a new reservoir is not paid by most people, who can get some official to excuse them paying, so the money which is collected is collected is spent on another project In contrast to Licata, Pibera has a splendid irrigation  system which waters the orchards of cherry, pear, peach and olive trees, these are on the mountain slopes; the water runs through large cement troughs and a water tower to the lower levels of the sloping ground. In May wild strawberries are plentiful; cotton is also produced. At Sciacca, nearby, are thermal springs; it is possibly the worlds oldest spa; 2 large hotels, have been built on a mountain top over the springs. Sardine fishing and canning provide work and Sciacca is famous for its ceramics.

Selinunte

The huge temples of this site are so ruined it is impossible to re-erect them and only a few are partially re-built, the town was raged by Hannibal during the Carthaginian wars, and the temples have been given alphabetical names as their true names are unknown: earthquakes also provided additional havoc. The Temple of Zeus is a mass of fallen drums and blocks, the drums are some of the largest found in any ruin. The columns are plain or fleuted, the style is Doric, but the presence of plain columns proves the temple was not completed before it was destroyed by Hannibal. The stove is limestone, some capitals remain, gigantic but plain, no freize or canning. The temple is also desiguated as Temple D. Temple E was probably the Temple of Dionysius or Hera, it has been partially erected with its tall Doric columns, and houses 3 of the enormous capitols rescued from the ruins. Among the fallen masoney and catacombs and remains of houses. The Acropolis is surrounded by a city wall; it held 4 temples and many small houses, some of the walls of which still have the blue and the white plaster intact, were protected from the elements. Its main street is intersected by parallel roads which are straight and run N.S., E.W. Some of the road stones have channels worn by chariot wheels, and tethering places for the houses. The lower stones of some buildings are not shaped or smooth, thus proving that the acropolis like the Temple of Zeus, was destroyed before it was completed. The main entrance gate and walls are large, the approach to them, long, wide and pointed as in those days the sea came right up to the gate. No arches are in the walls as the art of their construction was then unknown. The drums and pillars of the 4 temples are smaller than those of the temples outside the acropolis on account of the stone being much heavier. The Acropolis was also within the city walls. Outside Selinunte are the hovels of people who fled from earthquakes; as at Sciacca, where the new houses were completed, the seuts were so high, that the people preferred to remain in their houses.

Let me know in the comments if you have ever been to Sicily 🙂

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Blogmas Day 15: Ranking Marvels 2021 New releases 😊

On the 22nd of May I wrote a post ranking all of the Pixar movies which was so much fun and so this week I thought I would rank all of the Marvel shows that have aired on Disney+ this year and also the Marvel movies that have been released this year as well ❤️

God tier: Hawkeye, Loki, Shang-Chi, Black Widow

Top tier: Wandavision, Eternals, FATWS, What If

Mid tier:

Awful tier:

Spider-man No Way Home comes out in the UK today and I’m so excited!!! I’ve booked tickets to go on the 22nd with two of my friends 😊😊 I have a feeling it might be my favourite Marvel film from this year

Let me know in the comments which 2021 Marvel release was your favourite 😊

Blogmas Day 13: 2021 Christmas Movies

I have written many posts about some of my favourite Christmas movies but every year there are new ones that come out that I love so pretty much every year I will write an update post 🙂

• LoveHard: Lovehard is a modern day Christmas romance movie about a girl who meets her seemingly perfect guy however when she travels to meet him she finds out she has been catfished! Its a very funny film with lots of very awkward near-misses and a very satisfying cute ending and I am a big fan of Nina Dobrev so it was very cool to see her in a Christmas movie 🙂

• The Happiest Season: This is such a cute movie!! It has some amazing music, a very adorable plot and a great cast including Kristen Stewart, Dan Levy and Mackenzie Davis 🙂 The story follows Kristen Stewarts character when she travels with her girlfriend to her parents house for the holidays and prepares to propose only to find out that her girlfriend has yet to come out to her parents!

• The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star: This is the third movie in the Princess Switch series and it is just as cheesy and amazing as ever 🙂 I am a big fan of Vanessa Hudgens and Christmas movies so combining the two is always going to be a win in my book 🙂 This series includes all of the classic cheesy tropes including people switching over, cute dates, princes and princesses and a Christmas heist- whats not to love!! 🙂

• A Boy Called Christmas- This is the newest Christmas film from Sky Cinema and it is the story of how Christmas first started and I actually watched this movie with my parents on one of our movie nights and I always love a Christmas movie and especially ones that tell the story of how Christmas originally started 🙂

• Single all the way- This is a new Netflix Rom-Com which is so so cute! The story follows Peter who gets tired of his family always asking about his relationship status so pretends to date his best friend Nick however he ends up going on a blind date with someone else who seems absolutely perfect and its just a very cute, easy watch 🙂

Let me know in the comments if you have any favourite Christmas movies I haven’t mentioned 🙂

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