Farewell 2014...

I wasn't planning on writing another blog post until 2015 but you know how it goes, those famous last words! Here I am, sat at my laptop with a green tea in hand, typing away! It feels quite natural to want to wrap up the year with one final blog post. One final farewell to 2014...!

 

2014 has been a good year. Not a brilliant year but not a rubbish year either. A pretty average year. I'm definitely not looking back on the best year of my life by any means, but there's been little to complain about. I feel like I've been happily plodding along on my little journey! There have been good times, some really good times! We've enjoyed some refreshing breaks to Norfolk and Scotland, celebrated a couple of our really good friends getting married, I ran my first 10km, we enjoyed a wonderful summer holiday in Lanzarote, I've earnt myself the title of Junior Sister at work and we've enjoyed some brilliant nights out, BBQs, dinners, theatre trips, gigs and adventures with the best friends and family we could wish for. Other times have not been so good... I've battled my way through several university modules whilst working full time, there was a minor collision with the BMW and a bollard in Waitrose carpark and we've still had no luck in the house buying department. But over all, the good has outweighed the bad and for that we can be thankful.

Christmas: At home ♥

It's Christmas Eve Eve!!! Ahhhh how exciting is that?! I have just one more nightshift to get through and then Christmas can finally begin! Being a nurse, it's within my job specifications that I sacrifice many nights, weekends and early mornings for the hospital ward. The long, unsocial hours are part of my job. And just because it's Christmas, it doesn't mean that people stop being ill. People don't just magically get better, unfortunately. Which means that all of us do our fair share in working some of the unsocial hours over the festive period. Last year my Christmas was a very short one as I had to race back to London to work nightshifts. This year however I feel truely lucky to have a whole 3 days off which means I can celebrate with all of my family. You have no idea how happy this makes me!! I guess this is a reason I love my job, it makes these moments all the more special. I'm working over the New Year instead, which if I'm honest doesn't bother me in the slightest because I often feel that New Year's Eve is a little overrated. 

So what's Christmas like in my family? I have read a few blog posts recently with insights into people's Christmases so I thought I'd let you into my world...

Christmas: Ice-Skating at The Natural History Museum, London

It's a bit of a tradition to go ice-skating every year in the build up to Christmas. Being one of the best cities in the world, London has several brilliant ice-skating locations to choose from and I've done a few of them over the past few years including The Tower of London, Somerset House and Kew Gardens. This year, I didn't think an ice-skating session was going to happen what with work and other things going on (which, I've got to admit, made me feel a little bit sad) but this week my best friend Georgie and I made last-minute plans to meet on Friday morning and enjoy a morning of ice-skating at the Natural History Museum. I'm so glad we managed to squeeze it in, because I felt like the festive season was missing something... and ice-skating was that missing thing!

It was such a beautiful day for it, we could not have been luckier. A bright blue sky, a chill in the air and the winter sun beaming down. The light shining on the Natural History Museum looked magnificent. It's such a stunning building, one of my favourites in London I think. It reminds me of being a child, I've got some very vivid memories of visiting here with my mum and on school trips!

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Brunch at Villandry

We had the best brunch on Sunday with my lovely friend Clare and her boyfriend, Scott. Have you been to Villandry before? There's a couple of locations but we went to the one on Great Portland Street and if you haven't been, it's definitely worth a visit. The menu is deeeeelicious, mostly serving French and Mediterranean food. As well as a cafe area, a shop and a deli, they also have a slightly more sophisticated restaurant area. We ate in the cafe which was really spacious and bright. I had the most amazing continental breakfast I've had in years... pain au chocolat, cheeses, ham, an amazing fruit salad and some toast, with a spinach smoothie and hot chocolate. Big yum. Deffo recommend.

Christmas: Yule Log baking

On Saturday night we went to my best girl Georgie's flat-warming party. She's just moved in with her man, so they threw a party to celebrate. Being in December, it was only right that the party was Christmas themed! Saturday nights in December were just made for gatherings and parties weren't they?! I love this time of year when everyone is in the festive spirit. Lots of us were wearing Christmas jumpers, the mulled wine was flowing, we munched on mince pies and the Christmas tree was looking beautiful with the cutest retro baubles and coloured, twinkly fairy lights. It was such a brilliant night!

And what better excuse to bake, than a party?! I decided to bake a Yule Log to bring with us to share with everyone... I could have bought wine but I'm trying to cut back on alcohol at the moment. Yule Log has got to be one of my favourite, favourite Christmas desserts. Okay so it's basically just a chocolate-swiss roll, but sprinkled with icing sugar to look like snow, it looks really magical served up on a plate. And for those people who aren't too keen on mince pies or Christmas cake, then Yule Log is often the perfect alternative... because who doesn't like chocolate?!

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

A little holiday to Rome...

Do you ever find yourself with the sudden urge to book a hotel or some flights? The urge to just get away for a few days and explore some more of the world? Well, this happened this week. I think it was the idea of going back to work after having such a relaxing week off last week... It made me pine for a holiday. I wanted something on the horizon, something to really look forward to. I lay in bed browsing flights and found a good deal for some return flights to Rome, so we're all booked up! We're going in May over our anniversary. I already cannot wait. I've been a few times now as we have a family villa about 2 hours away from Rome, but Rob's never been. In my gap year I interrailed around Europe and Rome was one of my most favourite cities, I was so overwhelmed by all the old architecture and could not seem to get my head around the fact that some of the buildings are older than Jesus!! Whoa! Anyway... bring on May!!

Decking the ...flat!

So I promised I'd share a few more of the things we've done around the home to make it feel just that little bit more Christmassy! Rob's a bit of a Grinch when it comes to Christmas decorations and I've got to admit I'm not a fan of anything majorly tacky so there are definitely no large reindeers around here, nor is there any tinsel which I cannot stand! We've stuck to rather simple decorations but I have to say our flat is looking quite cute and festive! It's nice to have little decorations here and there to brighten things up...

This cute little Christmas tree fell into my shopping trolley in Waitrose... oh my goodness how cute is it?! A perfect sized tree for the hallway!

A festive visit to Leeds Castle

On Saturday we woke up to the most gorgeous wintry weather - blue skies, sunshine and a frost on the ground. These are my favourite kinds of days! What with the nice weather, Rob and I were keen on visiting somewhere in the countryside for a walk, but with Christmas only a matter of days away now we also wanted to do something festive. As we've been house hunting in Kent over the past few months we've enjoyed exploring more of the county, or should I say "the Garden of England" which could become our future home. Back in April we visited Hever Castle, which made for a brilliant day out {definitely worthy of a future blog post} but Leeds Castle still remained on my list. So we hopped in the car and drove down into Kent...

Leeds Castle is situated just outside Maidstone in Kent, so it's an easy enough journey from London.  Over 900 years old, Leeds Castle was once the stomping ground of King Henry VIII and is now, apparently, one of the 'most visited historic buildings in Britain'. I can definitely see why!

A December getaway: Oxford, Bicester, Bath & Bristol

Like I said in my This week's happiness post, I've been on annual leave this week. Sometimes there is just nothing better than a week away from work to relax and recharge and I have to say I feel so much better for it. Rob was due to work all week so I was conscious that if I was to stay at home in London I'd probably end up getting rather bored. I get itchy feet if I stay at home with no plans for much more than a day! So I took it upon myself to organise a little get-away, to spend a few days by myself visiting some loved ones and getting some Christmas shopping done! My best friend Jess went to uni in Oxford and now lives in Bicester, so I decided to start my adventure by visiting her. My sister lives in Bristol and works in Bath so I then decided to extend my trip and visit her afterwards.

So on Tuesday, I hopped on the Oxford Tube at Victoria for a pain-free journey westwards to Oxford. If you've never heard of the Oxford Tube, it's the most amazing coach service which runs every ten minutes from London Victoria (Buckingham Palace Road) to Oxford city centre. The coach prices are very reasonable and almost certainly cheaper than what National Rail charge for their train services. You're always guaranteed a seat on the Oxford Tube and the coaches are super comfy with WiFi and power sockets on board so you can charge your phone en route! It takes approximately 1 hour & 40 mins all in all, so I sat back, enjoyed a hot chocolate and listened to some music whilst enjoying the view out the window. Before I knew it I was in Oxford! I have some brilliant memories of being in this city, some with Jess (who I visited frequently during our good old uni days), some with other friends and some with my cousins who all grew up there. If you've never been to Oxford, then you must, you really must. It's definitely one of my favourite cities in the UK. It's small enough that you can wander around the centre pretty easily and become familiar with it, but big enough so that each time I visit I explore a bit more that I haven't seen before. Host to one of the world's leading universities, Oxford is rich in history and culture and is famous for it's beautiful colleges, libraries, churches and academic buildings. I can't put into words how quaint and beautiful it is - it just feels so English with it's yellow-stoned buildings and cobbled streets. Oxford has been used as the set to so many films and tv series... Harry Potter, The Golden Compass and Inspector Morse to name but a few. And despite how many times I've visited, this time I was wowed over at how lovely the city looks at Christmas time. There are lights everywhere! It was getting dark as I arrived so I wandered around the main shopping streets (Oxford is a great place to shop) and took the opportunity to take some photos...

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Mulled wine

I love a glass of mulled wine at this time of year. Especially on cold days like these as it's so warming. The smell of it is just so delicious and festive and it's a true sign that Christmas is just around the corner. Yesterday Rob and I enjoyed lunch and some mulled wine in one of our favourite local pubs, The Gypsy Moth. It's such a cosy pub and has been adorned with decorations and lit up with Christmas lights, the perfect place to relax during the afternoon.

Recipe: The ultimate homemade burgers

Homemade burgers always get the thumbs up in our home... infact any meal that does not require a knife and fork goes down an absolute treat, there's something about using your hands and getting a bit messy whilst you eat isn't there?! Rob is a total burger-a-holic and has slowly been making his way down the Burgaffair List of Best Burgers in London (check it out, amazing blog!) but there's something comforting about making your own food and knowing exactly what's in it. Especially since I've been trying to be as healthy as possible this past year, I much prefer to know exactly what's in my food - I hate the thought of all the additives, preservatives and stabilizers they put in supermarket food to keep it fresh for longer. I'd rather cook from scratch. We buy most of our meat from Smithfield Market - the best and largest wholesale market in the UK, which I promise I will blog about soon because it's quite simply amazing! You can be sure to buy good quality meat there, at very reasonable prices.

If you've always bought shop-bought burgers because you've been under the impression that homemade burgers are expensive and a nuisance to make, then you couldn't have been more wrong! They're so simple to make and don't take any longer to make than it would do to cook a spag-bol. After attempting various different homemade burger recipes we've created our own... and trust me it's a goodun. They turn out amazing every single time - they're so yummy and juicy. So I'd love to share the recipe with you. Sure, these burgers are not perfectly round or neat looking but I think this adds to their rustic, homemade feel. Are you feeling the love for homemade burgers yet?!