Christmas Baking: Chocolate Orange Cheesecake

Whilst flicking through recipes this past week for some ideas for Christmas bakes, I magically found this chocolate orange cheesecake recipe on the BBC Good Food website and was immediately tempted. Tis the season for Terry's Chocolate Oranges after all and I love chocolate oranges, they're one of my favourites!

The Halls are Decked!

You may remember my post from last Christmas where I shared a few photos of our little flat all decorated for the festive season... Well looking back on the blog has made me feel a little bit sentimental. My final words in that post were: "maybe next year we'll have a house to decorate! Now there's an exciting thought!" and here I am, just 12 months later, sat on the sofa in our very own home. I feel incredibly lucky that our dreams came true this year and we were able to finally become homeowners, it's something that many people my age can only dream of so I'm making a conscious effort to remind myself often of how fortunate we are.

Anyway - I thought I'd do the same as last year and share some photos of our home adorned with Christmas decorations. I'm so excited about our first Christmas here and even though we aren't celebrating Christmas Day at our house, it's nice to enjoy some festive sparkle and decorations at home whilst counting down the days...

Project Grey Kitchen: Our Kitchen Makeover

The open-plan kitchen, dining and living area was the first part of the house that we wanted to get sorted first. Our house is only four years old so it's very new and structurally doesn't need anything changing, but we were reluctant to move in all of our belongings before painting the walls exactly how we wanted them. Avoiding paint splashes once all moved in would have been much more of an ordeal, so painting first seemed more sensible. Luckily the majority of our furniture was in storage at my parents', so we didn't have to worry about paying hefty storage fees and this meant we weren't under any pressure to get things finished quickly. That said, we couldn't wait to get going!

Our house and the house next door were built as a pair in 2011 and are identical but mirrored. All of the fittings, floors and windows are exactly the same. Goodness knows why but the kitchen, dining room and part of the living room were painted in a dark, chocolate brown with chocolate brown interior doors throughout the property to match. I assume that the designer wanted the houses to feel rather contemporary but it was such a poor choice of colour given the size of the house. It made the whole of the downstairs feel incredibly dark and the first time we viewed the house I remember saying to Rob "the chocolate brown has GOT to go!"

Christmas Tree Oh Christmas Tree

Happy 1st December you lovely lot! The Christmas Tree is officially up and our living room is full of sparkle and that wonderful smell of fresh Nordman Fir. You just can't beat the smell of Christmas, can you?!

Our New Home

So where to start?! I've been away from blogging for so long that I don't really know where to begin with telling you all about our house purchase and our experiences as becoming first-time buyers. It's been the biggest, most exciting and emotionally draining whirlwind and one which I hope not to have to go through again for a long while! So it would probably be sensible to start from way back in April of this year, when we moved out of our beautiful flat in Greenwich and in with Rob's Mum, in East London.

I had mixed emotions about moving out of our flat. It was the first place since living with my parents, that had felt like a real home to me and Rob & I had created so many happy memories there. We had fallen in love with Greenwich, a place which will forever be close to my heart. It was an ideal place to live, albeit an expensive one, and for me it was always going to be difficult leaving. But, {and I like to think that this was a wonderful bit of fate} a few weeks before our impending move-out date we found the most perfect house. We had been searching for just over a year{!} and the areas of our search kept changing; initially in central London, then out into beautiful Kent and then back towards London. I scoured the Rightmove app every single day for what felt like months, for properties within our budget in various different areas. We looked at houses, flats, more houses....  And when a modern, semi-detached two-bed house with a garden & car parking space appeared on Rightmove I literally jumped with excitement and organised a viewing. Luckily we were the first people to view the house and made an offer that same day. 

Weekend Ramble

Happy Sunday all, have you had a good weekend? I enjoyed a lazy Saturday yesterday with a dog walk in the morning followed by an afternoon of ticking some boring chores off my to-do list. Then I made the yummiest glam mac n cheese for dinner with chicken and pancetta {I'll have to blog the recipe soon because it's a winner} and spent all evening curled up on the sofa catching up on trashy TV. Today was due to be a washout weather-wise and indeed it rained all morning but we refused to feel defeated, so we wrapped up warm, got in the car and drove down to the Kent coast for a Wintry walk along the beach with the pup. The English seaside is beautiful during the Summer months but equally as beautiful during Winter I think. I love cosying up in thick scarves and big coats to keep warm and any excuse to wear my Hunters! It was pretty stormy this afternoon - the waves were wild and the sea was bitterly cold but we still took the opportunity to paddle in our wellies which is always fun. I was really excited about taking Rosie to the beach and she loved it! She was terrified of the sea, probably because it was so cold but she ran excitedly along the sand and kept finding bits of seaweed to chew on... typical cheeky puppy! And once we were sufficiently 'beached' we headed to the cutest country pub for a hearty Sunday Dinner and some vino.

Thought I'd share some photos anyhow - 

Enjoy!

A Little Bit Lydia

So you may have noticed that I took a break from blogging. An accidental break at first I'll admit, but suddenly we're five months down the line {how on earth did that happen?!} and I have a serious case of blogger's guilt. So here I am once again, sat at my laptop with the urge to write type. I'm back for good this time, I promise!

I don't even really know where to start... the last five months have been a complete whirlwind but it's safe to say that Summer 2015 was a goodun. We finally bought our first home at the end of June{!!!}, moved in almost immediately, repainted the kitchen and bedroom and have enjoyed slowly transforming it from a house into a home. It's a work in progress and I keep having to remind myself that there's no need to rush things, we'll be here for a while after all! In July we enjoyed the most dreamy week in Croatia and saw one of my best friends get married which was blooming lovely. I've started tackling the garden {which was a jungle when we moved in} and we enjoyed a much needed, relaxing week in Italy in September, with my family. There is so much news and so many photos to share with you! Oh... and we only went and got ourselves a puppy!!! She's called Rosie and we're totally in love...

Roaming around Rome... an anniversary Eurotrip ♥ {part one}

At the beginning of May we were lucky enough to spend four days in beautiful Rome. You may remember in this 'this week's happiness' post back in December that I spontaneously booked our flights with Easyjet whilst lying in bed one evening feeling very sorry for myself and craving a holiday. I managed to get return flights to Rome for the two of us for a bargain of £120! And with the hotel booked a couple of months later all we had left to do was count down the days until our minibreak. May 5th finally arrived and off we went - a 4am alarm, suitcases packed in the back of the BMW, a reservation in the long stay car-park at Gatwick and a breakfast in Pret a Manger. Is there anything better than a pre-flight breakfast?! We were so excited to be spending our 3rd anniversary in one of the most romantic cities in the world.

I've been looking forward to blogging our trip to Rome, apologies that I haven't done it sooner! But it's been a nice excuse this week to look back at all our photos and be reminded of what an amazing few days we had. I've split this up into two blog posts, because I was far too snap happy!! I hope you're ready for a photo marathon...!

Vendredi

So it's Friday morning and I'm sat on the train to work, and I've suddenly realised that I haven't done my #thisweekshappiness post! What a rubbish blogger I am. So instead of my usual Friday post you can have a good old ramble instead. I hope this suffices!

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Summer picnics

Ahh don't you just love packing up a picnic, taking a blanket and finding a pretty place in the countryside to sunbathe, eat and just relax?! I really love picnics! This week Rob and I went into Epping Forest, which isn't too far from his mum's where we're living now. It's really pretty, with so many places to explore - lots of little trails, always busy with cyclists, walkers and families. We managed to find a secluded spot on some open grassland and enjoyed our lunch al fresco. Thank you sunshine, you can keep coming!

Happy feet: the perfect deck shoes

I've been on several shopping trips recently with the aim of finding some sensible flat shoes but on each occasion I've totally failed the task and come back home with dresses, tops and lingerie! Story of my life. It would seem that I am an absolute expert at shopping spontaneously! But, to my complete surprise last week I wandered into the UGG shop {with the intention of browsing their Summer wedges collection} and found these beauties: the UGG Chivon deck-style shoes.

An afternoon at Chartwell {The National Trust}

I love London but I wouldn't go as far as calling myself a city girl, I'm a country girl at heart, hence the name of this blog! As soon as I have a few days off work, I get 'countryside cravings' {you can take the girl out of Hertfordshire but you definitely can't take Hertfordshire out of the girl}. Living in London is great but I really miss fields and forests and fresh air. I miss walking out of my front door and not hearing a bloody police siren! I miss the unpolluted air and I miss the peacefulness that you instantly get when you leave the city. So as soon as we get a day off together Rob and I will jump at the chance to drive into the nearby countryside. Not too far, just far enough to be somewhere a bit more peaceful.

A month or so ago we decided to drive into Kent and visit Chartwell, one of the many properties owned by The National Trust {we really need to get on and purchase our NT membership, having visited several properties this past year I'm sure it would save us a fair bit of money!}. Situated just outside of Sevenoaks, Chartwell is the former home of the Churchill Family and is where Winston Churchill himself lived from 1924 until his death. Today, both the house and it's vast beautiful gardens and rural grounds remain well maintained. If you're in Kent and you're after a stroll, a bit of history, a cup of tea and some cake then this really is the ideal spot.

This week's happiness

It feels like forever since I have done one of my beloved Friday posts! So here is what's brought me happiness this week...

Guilt free fro-yo

Oh my word. This stuff is incredible!! Guilt free, dairy free, raspberry and coconut fro-yo made with frozen coconut milk. Amazing! I try to steer clear of eating too much dairy in my diet as it doesn't seem to agree with my tummy, or my skin, so this is a perfect alternative to ice cream. I've enjoyed some this evening with fresh blueberries and raspberries, so good!

Recipes: Bananas for bananas...

We're a bit banana mad in our house, we tend to go through about 2-3 bunches of bananas a week. I think I eat one every single day without fail! Hey, at least I'm getting that potassium...! But the problem with bananas is that they tend to turn brown so quickly, especially if they're kept out in a warm-ish environment {never ever put them in the fridge though, they brown even quicker and go all hard and gross}.
So... What to do with leftover brown, over-ripe bananas? Bake of course!! I do love a good excuse to bake as you've probably gathered by now. And with leftover bananas to hand I thought I'd share some of my favourite go-to banana recipes...

That Friday feeling

My #thisweekshappiness hasn't really happened today as I've hardly taken any photos this past week, it's all been a bit uneventful as I've just been at work! Anyway, it's officially Friday and I can excitedly say that for once in my life I actually have 'that Friday feeling' like a normal person and I'm looking forward to a long bank holiday weekend! Even better, this is my last day at work for a while - once today has finished I've got two weeks holiday, yippeee!! I've been counting down the days for this moment for what feels like weeks now so I'm excited that my annual leave has finally arrived. I have felt so exhausted recently and we've had so much going on so there's nothing I need more than a total break.

A night at The Gallivant, Camber Sands

Carrying on from yesterday's post on our recent trip to Rye & Camber Sands, I wanted to write about our stay at The Gallivant, but being such a gorgeous hotel I felt that The Gallivant deserved a blog post of it's own. 

We'd had a hectic few weeks at work and with our house move on the horizon I had the irresistable urge to just escape the stress of everything for a couple of days and be somewhere tranquil. When looking at last-minute, one-night seaside getaways, I immediately fell in love with The Gallivant, a boutique Mr & Mrs Smith hotel on the East Sussex coast. It was exactly what I was looking for - somewhere beside the seaside but not with the hustle and bustle of a town, rural but not in the middle of absolutely nowhere and classy but not ridiculously overpriced. I'd seen a few photos on Instagram {all hail social media} and had heard nothing but good things. To my delight I managed to get us a last minute double 'cosy' room for the night, on the hottest day of the year! And so it was official: we were off to the seaside!

An afternoon in Rye and Camber Sands

Do you ever have the urge to just drop everything and escape for a few days? I often feel like this and I think it can be the most refreshing, rejuvenating thing you can do sometimes. A couple of weeks ago, that's exactly what we did! After a busy few weeks at work, a university assignment handed in and with just a week until we were due to move out of our flat I was feeling rather exhausted and there was nothing I was craving more than a couple of relaxing days away, somewhere different and more peaceful than London. On my lunch break at work on the Tuesday I texted Rob "pleeeeeease can we drive to the beach tomorrow?" fully expecting him to reply with a no, but to my delight he agreed! The weather was forecast to be twenty four degrees on the Wednesday {in April, can you believe it?!?} so I booked us a last minute stay at The Gallivant at Camber Sands {a hotel I had been wanting to stay at for a while - blog post to follow}. 

This week's happiness

Firstly, apologies that there was no #thisweekshappiness last Friday. I've no other excuse other than I'm a rubbish blogger and didn't have the time due to work and a load of other things that seemed to absorb my time... But here I am, back on a roll with the blogging!

Things that have made me happy this week...

Sunny weather, happy feet

Hasn't the weather been glorious this past week?! It's been hard to believe we are in April, it has felt like Summer has arrived prematurely with bright blue skies, warm afternoons, mild sunny evenings and everyone in true British BBQ mode. I dusted off my sandals and have been enjoying summer dresses with bare legs, which equals happy toes!

Beauty: More Skincare Favourites

It's been a little while since I blogged some of my recent skincare favourites so I thought I'd share what my skin has been loving recently... 

La Roche Posay
"Efflaclar H Multi-compensating Soothing Moisturiser"
As I've mentioned before in my previous skincare post, finding the perfect moisturiser is always a difficult task for me. My skin is naturally incredibly oily {and not to mention acne prone} and I seem to find it difficult to find a good balance between not applying moisturiser at all in fear of over-greasing my skin, and lathering my skin in moisturiser in fear of it not getting enough moisture/hydration. Most moisturisers leave my skin feeling totally yucky and even more oily than it is naturally! I've been using this Effaclar H moisturiser from La Roche Posay for the past month now and I've got to say I really like it. It's designed for skin which is naturally very oily but has been 'weakeaned by drying skin care products'. I've been using some antibiotic gel recently as a means of clearing up my acne, which is quite drying, so I've found that using this in conjunction with that has worked wonders.
It leaves a bit of a sheen on my skin immediately after applying but after a bit of fresh air the greasiness disappears. My skin looks and feels really fresh. It's a little pricey but as with all La Roche Posay products you really do get what you pay for, and this stuff does exactly what it says on the packaging.

Packing my life into boxes...

As I write this blog post I am sat in my living room, surrounded by boxes. This will be the eighth move I have made in seven years, which is crazy really! I moved around a lot during my university days.  But this move is different. Rob and I are finally buying somewhere of our own, somewhere which will be ours to keep, for ever and ever if we so wish. This move is much more permanent and scary.

The flat we have been in for the past 18 months has been the first place, since living at home with my parents, that has really felt like a home for me. In previous flat-shares with various friends and strangers there was always a subconscious awareness that the place wasn't really home... just a temporary residence. But our flat has felt like a real home to me, with all our belongings, and it's become a place I will treasure in my memories.

This week's happiness {and a rant}

Things that have made me happy this week...

Creme eggs <3

I can't even count how many of these I've eaten over the past two weeks but you seriously can't beat a cadbury's creme egg. Maybe they're one of the silly reasons I wouldn't ever want to move abroad... cadbury's chocolate is the best! I even got given one by the vicar at church on Easter Sunday, how lovely is that?!

#ThursdayThoughts

Too often I can be really hard on myself, blaming myself for how others are feeling, not seeing the positive side to things and allowing myself to stress about things that simply aren't worth the stress. 

Be kind to yourself today! I love this quote so much. "Just let go. Just be".

Lydia xxx

Fashion: The perfect Springtime coat

One of the chores to tick off on my never-ending 'to-do' list recently was to have a big wardrobe sort out. I do this a couple of times a year, packing bags of clothes to give to local charity shops and other bags for the bin. With warmer weather on the horizon as Summer slowly approaches {fingers crossed for good weather!!} it was time to say goodbye to my Winter wardrobe for another year. When finishing such a task, it often feels like there's a gaping hole and dare I say it, like most women, I allow myself the cheeky excuse to do a bit of shopping! This year I was determined to find myself the perfect Springtime coat. I have a few warm, Winter coats which have lasted me a couple of years now and will undoubtedly last a few more. But what I didn't have was an 'inbetween' coat. One to wear when it's still a bit chilly but the sun is out and you don't need the excessive warmth of a Barbour or a Duffle. {#firstworldproblems}

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Blossom

Beautiful baby pink blossom spotted on my walk through Greenwich Park this week. Blossom fills the park at this time of year, it's got to be the prettiest thing about Spring for sure! I took these photos on my way home from one of my nightshifts, it was such a beautiful morning.

#ThursdayThoughts

Happy Thursday, keep sparkling!

Lydia xxx

{From now on, Thursdays on the blog will mean #ThursdayThoughts where I will share a thought, a quote, some inspiration or just how I'm feeling. Hope you enjoy!}

Easter Baking: Chocolate Mini-Egg Nest Cake

Happy 1st April! 

This is a rather special blogpost for me as its my 100th post! I'm so glad I finally jumped on the blogging bandwagon last year, it was something I had wanted to do for a long while but didn't quite know how - and somehow I've managed to blab my way through one hundred whole posts!! Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read my blabbing!

So the Easter Weekend is fast approaching and what more could you want at Easter time than a huge chocolate cake covered in Cadbury's mini eggs?! I created this delicious mess of a cake this week and it's too good not to share. It's a firm Nigella favourite, Nigella never lets me down.

Easter at Hever Castle, Kent

It's officially Easter week{!!!}, which reminded me of one of my favourite days out last year, a gorgeous sunny day out at the beautiful Hever Castle in Kent. Sitting down to write this post, I can't quite believe how quickly the past year has gone. It's zoomed by! And right now the weather couldn't make me feel any gloomier, so looking through these photos is making me pine for the Summer months...

Over 700 years old, Hever Castle was the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, wife of King Henry VIII {before she was beheaded... don't you just love medieval history?!}. But whether you're a history boff or not, the magnificent castle makes for a perfect English day out with it's beautifully manicured gardens, restaurants, boating lake, a maze to get lost in and various medieval activities to join in with such as jousting and archery. The weather was set to be a winner so we packed the picnic blanket and drove down into Kent. We'd never visited Hever before but as we drove through the surrounding Kent countryside I had a feeling it was going to be pretty special. It's no wonder that the castle is situated where it is. Where else would be fit for royalty other than in the middle of Kent, The Garden of England, with its' beautiful rolling hills?

Not so happy Friday...

Apologies for the lack of blog posts this past week, I was struck with the delights of a stomach bug and so I've spent the past few days in my sick bed feeling very sorry for myself. I can't think of anything worse than being sick, but it's made me truly thankful for my incredible boyfriend-turned-nurse who looked after me even when my dignity was totally lost. {I love you, Rob! <3}

Thankfully I'm feeling a lot better now, but needless to say there is no #thisweekshappiness post today. You can look forward to some Easter Baking on the blog next week though :)

Here's to healthier and happier times!

{Bright yellow Daffodils in Greenwich Park earlier this week}

Lydia xxx

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Spring-scented candles

I got these cute miniature Yankee candles in my Christmas stocking from Rob - he'd bought them in bulk online, I think there were about 20 in total{!!} so as I reached into my stocking I found more and more and more of them! I love them and it's nice to have some alternative smaller sized candles to tealights {I do love tealights though, never under-estimate IKEA tealights!!}. Now the Spring and Summer months are arriving it's nice to have some more refreshing floral, fruity scents going on... I'm fed up of Wintery scents like cranberry and cinnamon now. The Bahama Breeze yankee smells so good!

Review: Tacx Satori Pro Turbo-Trainer

My boyfriend Rob is really into cycling so I can't say it's ever a surprise if I arrive home to find that he's purchased yet another bike gadget. Our balcony has turned into a bike shed, after all! When I discovered he was planning on getting a turbo trainer however, I was {secretly!} a little bit excited. It's such an ingenious idea, to be able to fix your bike on to a stand and train static, right there in your living room. An exercise bike in your home... literally! I was immediately keen on the idea - I'd be able to ride my bike at home whilst watching TV!! 

Working shifts means that neither of us has any kind of routine whatsoever and so exercise can be rather sporadic. Generally I try and run around 3-4 times a week but some weeks I'll only manage one if I'm lucky. Occasionally I'll mix it up and go swimming and I use the gym quite regularly too where I use the exercise bikes and do some weight training here and there. But shift-work is exhausting and when I'm tired there is always the temptation to choose the sofa instead. Leaving the house is effort isn't it?! Not to mention when it's dark and cold outside too, it's so difficult to find motivation to exercise when all you want to do is light candles and cosy up indoors!
 
But this is precisely what is so great about having a turbo trainer. It's like the gym has come to you instead. I don't even have to leave the flat to exercise - I can sit on my bike in my PJs, merrily peddling away whilst catching up on trashy TV. Amazing!

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Daffofils
I've arrived a bit late to the daffodil party this year, I only got round to picking up my first bunch this week! They've been cheering up the kitchen with their bright, gorgeous yellowness. Spring has finally arrived!

Recipe: Peanut butter squares

It feels like forever since I posted a recipe on here so I guess it's about time for an overdue baking post.

There's always, without fail, a few jars of peanut butter in our kitchen cupboards. Usually we have a few jars on the go because one of us will foolishly open a jar without realising another is already open... but I guess it doesn't matter too much really because they always get finished. We go through jars of the stuff! Peanut butter is one of my favourite, staple foods and I adore it, whether it's layered on thick slices of toasted brown bread or spread on slices of fresh, cut-up apple or... yep, I'll admit it... straight out of the jar on a spoon. Too good! Just the smell of peanut butter takes me straight back mentally to my childhood. On cosy afternoons at home my Mum would make us peanut butter on toast as a pick-me-up. Maybe it's a sentimental thing but peanut butter will always remain a comfort food for me.

In a moment of chocolatey-craving-madness this week, I started flicking through my recipe books in an attempt to find something that would satisfy my desire for naughty little treat. Then I remembered about one of Lorraine Pascale's recipes I discovered a while ago -  Peanut Butter Squares. With my firm love of peanut butter, I couldn't resist giving them a try.

The Sky Garden at 20 Fenchurch Street

It's funny isn't it, how as a human race we are so fascinated and won over by the concept of climbing the tallest buildings to get great views from the top. Just like so many people, I love the idea of being able to look around from above, from a totally different viewpoint than my normal peripheral vision allows. There's something quite special about the occasional ability to observe the landscape for miles and miles. So when I heard about The Sky Garden {which opened in London to the public recently} I immediately booked us a slot to visit.

The Sky Garden is located on the 35th floor of 20 Fenchurch Street; otherwise fondly known to us Londonders as The Walky Talky Tower in honour of its toy-like shape. It really does look like a gigantic Walky Talky looming above London's smaller albeit beautiful, charming buildings. It was within planning permission requirements that the vast space at the top of the building was to be used as an area open to the general public. What a great idea! And so the space has been designed as a garden in the sky; a tranquil getaway from the hectic hustle and bustle of the city below. A space to look, admire and enjoy. 

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Self indulgence

...because it's totally necessary sometimes, isn't it?! I treated myself to a new pretty floral scarf in the Fatface sale and enjoyed the naughtiest hot chocolate in Bill''s Cafe earlier in the week whilst waiting for my friend to finish work. Sitting in cafes by myself always makes me feel like a real grown-up {hah}!

Beauty: La Roche-Posay

During one of many {miserable} visits to my dermatologist about my never-ending, ever-depressing problem with acne, I was recommended a couple of products. On a scrap piece of paper along with my Isotretinoin prescription, the Doctor quickly scribbled down La Roche-Posay - Effaclar and Vichy Laboratoires - Normaderm and told me to "stay positive and try them". But I'd had enough of endless silly recommendations that didn't work and felt frustrated that nothing seemed to help my skin calm down and appear less angry. I'm pretty certain that little piece of paper was thrown away as soon as I got home. Two years later I'm kicking myself that I didn't take note of it and take the Doctor's advice sooner...

Whilst scrolling through the lovely Rosie's blog {Cider With Rosie} a few weeks back, I stumbled across those words again... La Roche-Posay. Rosie has deemed the Effaclar Duo blemish control serum as a miracle product for her, so what could I possibly lose by trying it out for myself?!

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Tea in bed.

Nothing beats a cup of tea in bed on a Sunday morning. Especially when it's a cup of earl grey tea made by my mum, in my old bed at my parents' house. Heaven.

Quintessentially English baking at Bread Ahead Bakery

Did you see my recent post featuring my Italian Breadmaking lesson at Bread Ahead Bakery? If you did, then you'll know how much I enjoyed myself and how won over I was by the bakery. It truly is the most wonderful institution nestled in the heart of Borough Market. Rob bought me a couple of lessons at Bread Ahead for Christmas. It was such a brilliant, thoughtful idea for a present, as he knows how much I love baking and I always think it's much nicer to be given an experience for a gift rather than something materialistic - life's about making memories, after all! So last Friday I went for my second lesson, a lesson in Quintessentially English Baking. I had assumed this would mean baking scones, a Victoria Sponge... maybe some tea cakes? I guessed totally wrong though and was pleasantly surprised to find that we would be baking a few things I had never attempted before: a traditional cottage bread loaf, some Devonshire splits, some good old "lardy cakes" and some traditional Bath buns...

Beauty: A love affair with Molton Brown

This week I finally cracked into my Molton Brown bath set that I got for Christmas. I've been having a little love affair with Molton Brown this past year, my showers were totally transformed after I discovered the incredible Pink Pepperpod body wash so when I was given this amazing set for Christmas I literally squealed with delight...

Isn't it look amazing?! I love the cute 50ml bottles, they'll be perfect to take on holiday or to pop in my bag for weekends away and having so many of them will {hopefully!} mean they'll last ages. I'll be the first to admit that I'm the shallowest of shallow when it comes to packaging, I'll buy anything based on its appearance but seriously, shall we just take a minute or two to fully appreciate how beautifully arranged and colour-coordinated this box set really is?!...

Skiing at The Snozone, Milton Keynes

I suddenly remembered yesterday that I never blogged properly about my first skiing lesson at The Snozone in Milton Keynes, so I thought I'd do a belated post, just incase any of you are thinking about taking up skiing and want to know what to expect.

For a while now Rob has been hinting about skiing holidays but I've always been rather apprehensive, replying with excuses like "but I've never been skiing before and you'll race off without me!" {which still applies, I may add!}! Anyway, after some deliberation I decided that it was time to finally bite the bullet and have a few lessons to prepare myself for a possible future ski trip, especially seeing as 'learning to ski' happens to be number 14 on my 30 before 30 list! 

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

Sunshine

Could it be, that Spring is finally arriving?! We've had some really lovely sunshine this past week with brilliant blue skies. It always amazes me how uplifted I feel when the sun's out. I've managed to get out for a couple of runs this week which has made me feel so much happier in myself and the sunshine kept me going each step of the way! I also spied hundreds upon hundreds of daffodils beginning to sprout in Greenwich Park... It won't be long until the park is cheerfully yellow and full of Spring!

{ The best view of London... from Greenwich <3}

House Hunting... Trials, tribulations and celebrations!

It's been a while since I updated you all on our house hunt and that's because, for a little while, there was no news to update you with. We decided to take a break from the house hunting over the Christmas period because quite frankly it was making us both a bit grumpy. It began to feel like some huge, depressing chore with no light at the end of the tunnel. "When will we finally find 'the one'?" "Why is there nothing out there for us?" "Why can't we afford the beautiful house worth £648933363839303936?". These were all reoccurring rhetorical questions we asked ourselves again and again and again. A break was most definitely needed.

Then January arrived. A New Year. A good time to start afresh, I guess. Who sells their house in December anyway?! January arrives and people get the urge to sell up and move. Surely there would be somewhere for us on the market if we looked again...?! So we scouted Rightmove and drove down to Sevenoaks, in Kent, to visit a few local estate agents. It was in and around the Sevenoaks area we had our hearts set on. Frustratingly, as we began to speak to estate agents, we began to feel just as let down as we had done in October and November and December... There was nothing on the market that seemed to fit our budget.

Shrove Tuesday... Pancakes gallore

Ever since I was little, Shrove Tuesday has been up there as one of my most favourite days of the year. I remember racing home from primary school, feeling nothing but excitement that Mum was going to let us loose in the kitchen to help her cook pancakes for supper. The kitchen would quickly become messy with various sweet and savoury {but mostly sweet} toppings and the surfaces would get covered with spilled batter. We didn't care though, we were having PANCAKES, yeaaaaaah!! My older sister and I would both take it in turns to flip the pancakes in the big pan and after topping our pancakes with everything imaginable we'd sit at the kitchen table, making the most of every bite until we felt absolutely stuffed. Pancakes didn't come often in our house, so a pancake dinner was always a real treat. Even now, that heartwarming smell of pancakes reminds me of those Shrove Tuesdays at home.

Nowadays, I'm unashamed to admit that my child-like excitement is still there when Shrove Tuesday comes around. It still remains one of the only days of the year that we cook pancakes in our house, which is crazy really because they're so easy to make and delicious!

Binge Shopping: Dune Pollie Boots

I'm not particularly proud of this but I have a little something to confess... I'm a binge shopper {ssssshhh don't tell anybody!!}. You'll probably be able to guess what this means but if not, I'll explain. Being a binge shopper basically means that for the majority of the time, I'm pretty sensible when it comes to money and actually find it rather difficult spending on myself because I find the guilt overwhelming. But, just like binge drinking, my sensible hat is thrown out of the window on rare, unpredicted occasions and I'll have a massive splurge and spend far too much money. 

On Saturday I threw my sensible hat out of the window. But, I bought these beauties....

This week's happiness

Things that have made me happy this week...

A {much needed} haircut
I'm one of those strange people who hates having their haircut... I've had long hair for years now and I feel sad when it's chopped off! The hairdresser thought I was crazy, I nearly cried! But I desperately needed a cut, so I grew some balls {not literally} and went to the salon. It feels so much shorter, even though it's still pretty long. The hairdresser curled it all for me and I felt like a princess afterwards :)

 

Beauty: Skincare favourites

I've suffered from acne from the age of thirteen. Over the years it has driven me crazy, left me feeling embarrassed beyond belief - to the point where I have avoided leaving the house - and above all, it has stolen large chunks of my self-confidence and self-worth. I truly believe that acne is one of the most destructive things. It's such a ridiculous first world problem! It's silly really, how your skin can affect your mentality. Especially when there is so much suffering going on in the world. But when you're the one suffering from it, it can feel like the biggest, ugliest thing. It is only in recent years that I have begun to learn to accept and even love (yes, love!) the skin I'm in. We're all made differently and this is just my little hiccup. A massive hiccup for a teenager I'll assure you, but in the grand scheme of things you can't let something as trivial as ugly skin ruin your life. And so, instead of getting upset over it, I try my best to just deal with it... 99% of the time anyway! Maybe one day soon I'll pluck up enough courage to share with you on here my experience of "the evil little drug" AKA Roaccutane.

Anyway, that's my acne rant over! Now for a more positive stance. Having oily, acne-prone skin means that a strict skincare routine is pivotal in ensuring that my skin remains as clean and as healthy as possible. I do my best to make sure I drink as much fluid as possible and eat a relatively healthy diet. I've found that running has also helped - all those endorphins & happy exercise vibes must help my skin to breathe (don't understand the logic here but never mind)! As soon as I'm home from work or being out, I take my makeup off and wash my face thoroughly. After all, home is a place for naked skin where I don't need to worry about how red or sore my face is looking! I thought I'd share with you my current number ones when it comes to skin care...



Neutrogena
"visibly clear pink grapefruit cream wash"

I love anything Neutrogena and my dermatologist swears by them. Their range is very affordable too and you'll be able to find them in most pharmacists/chemists. Neutrogena do various face washes, cleansers and daily scrubs but this is my favourite probably because of the smell {'pink grapefruit' as it says on the label} & I won't lie I also fell for the pink packaging. It smells yummy trust me! A little drop of this stuff goes a long way once mixed with water so a bottle can last a while. It's quite thick in consistency and feels very creamy when washing but is oil-free so it's perfect for my skin and it leaves you with the most refreshed feeling.