Monday 22 September 2014

20 Years of Friends

Friends has been making us laugh for 20 years. I remember watching it every Friday night with my mum and brother when I was younger and Nescafe was the sponsor! It's not until I was older that I really appreciated it (obviously).

To celebrate 20 years, here are my 10 favourite top Friends moments:

1. Ross: "I just want to be married again" Rachel walks into Central Perk in a wedding dress. Chandler "I just want a million dollars! 


2. Ross: Well uh, I like how you look, what are you?
Tanning Salon Guy: Puerto Rican.

3. "Hi, I'm Chandler, could I be wearing anymore clothes?"

4. "PIVOT!"

5. "Ross, we better stick to the routine, we don't want to look stupid."

6. "I'm FINE!"

7. "I'm just a love machine."


8. "I'll be a fool for you."


9. "I'll be my something blue."


10. "I got off the plane."


What are your favourite Friends' moments?


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Family | Becoming Mummy



At 7am on Tuesday 09th September, I woke up with slight labour pains. A trip to the Mums and Midwives shop in my local town centre was already on the agenda for the day so I could have a second sweep since little Baby Walker was already over due! 

When I went for my exam in the shop (which my midwife was working in that day), she told me I was already 4cm dilated which meant no sweep for me! I was told to go home and bounce on my birthing ball and to take it easy until my contractions got stronger and closer together. 

After ringing my (midwife) mum (who screamed down the phone), she said I would be approximately 7cm dilated by the 8pm and that was when we would go up to the hospital. She advised me to go home and have a hot bath to ease the pains, and take some paracetemol (also a running joke in our house as she advises this on a regular basis!) 

By the time 8pm come, my contractions were really painful and getting closer together, so we rang the hospital and off we popped. I was told I was only 5cm dilated - which I was really upset about as I thought I'd be well further along than that. The midwife who examined me was concerned about the size of my bump and I was really big, therefore my birth plan went out the window and I was advised not to have a water birth. 

I was then sent to an active birth room where there was a birthing ball, and a horse shoe shaped chair to sit on to try move my labour along. I was on gas and air from the minute I got into the room and what an amazing thing that is, it made me feel drunk. After another examination, I still wasn't progressing as baby was back to back and his head was in a funny position, so the midwife looking after me broke my waters around 4am.

Labour was extremely slow and I didn't start pushing until 10am on the 10th September. He got stuck because he was so big and had a slight shoulder dystocia, so when he finally come out, he was really swollen and his head was really long, but he was perfect. We never had a definite name when we went into hospital, but as soon as we saw him we knew George was his name. 


11 days over due, he was certainly worth the wait. The past 12 days have been hectic with visitors and night feeds, but we're really settled at home with him and I'm excited to share all our new experiences! 


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Friday 19 September 2014

Reads | Zom-B Circus by Darren Shan


Aimed at a younger audience, you could say that Darren Shan is the James Herbert of the teenage fiction world. Zom-B Circus is a short story that doesn't follow B Smith in the Zom-B books. If you're looking for something new to read and you've not yet read any of the Zom-B series, I highly recommend you start with this and you will definitely be intrigued! 

Darren Shan isn't your average run of the mill kind of story teller, so if you're expecting a typical story about a zombie apocalypse and the survival of humans against monster, you'll be pleasantly surprised, because let's face it, the zombie thing has been done to death these days.

Cat Ward is a teacher in a high school when it is over taken by zombies, she's ruthless and will do anything to survive, including throwing school kids to the zombies. Callously, she continues to sacrifice humans in order to save herself, which came as a surprise to me as normally Shan's characters are pretty damn loveable! 

Taken into consideration his younger readers, Shan incorporates a nasty lesson for Cat which is presented as an excellent plot twist at the end! 

For fans of the Zom-B series, this is a great little additional story which doesn't effect the series, but keeps some other characters fresh in our minds, such as the creepy babies, Kinslow and of course Mr Dowling himself!

Have you read any of Darren Shans's books?



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Wednesday 17 September 2014

Wishlist | Autumn Edition


So I'm currently writing this at 41 + 2 days pregnant, knowing my baby will be here by the weekend which means I can lust after post pregnancy clothes again! This makes me happy because I love to shop (what girl doesn't?) I absolutely love collarless coats and even though I own many coats, I want one to add to my collection. I'm a fan of the pastels which seem to be staying with us throughout the colder months.

What items do you have your eye on this Autumn?

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Monday 15 September 2014

Family | It's a Boy!

On Wednesday 10th September 2014, Pete and I welcomed our gorgeous baby boy, George into the world. As you can imagine, life has changed dramatically in the past 5 days. We now have a perfect little man at our beck and call, but wouldn't have it any other way. I've never been in more in love (sorry for gushing but he really is just amazing and I'm still very hormonal. Cue the tears writing this post). 

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Tag | The Autumn Edition


Is it too soon to start blogging about Autumn? I am so ready to embrace this season! I love Autumn because it means Winter is on it’s way , Winter is my favourite season!  I’m a natural red head, so the sun doesn’t agree with me at all. I love scarves, hats (I’m a hat person), coats and boots! I like dark colours too, so I’m ready to embrace my inner goth! Bring on the berry lips, plum nail varnish and dark eye makeup!


For Autumn, what is your…
1. Favourite thing about it? 
Coming home from work when it’s been wet and cold, making a cuppa, putting my pjs on and getting cosy when the nights get dark!

2. Favourite drink? 
Spiced Pumpkin lattes from Starbucks. I hate seasonal drinks though because I miss them when they're gone.

3. Favourite scent/candle? 
I don’t have a favourite autumn scent or candle, but I do like spicy candles, I associate these more with winter though. I love the smell in the air the day after Bonfire Night. I recently bought a Champagne scented candle from Dunelm Mill which is really nice.

4. Best lipstick? 
I love Barry M’s Ultra Moisturising Lip Paint in Cranberry Red or Avon’s Smooth Minerals Lipstick in Cranberry which sadly they discontinued because it’s my favourite lipstick.

5. Go to moisturiser? 
At the moment, I’m really liking Simple’s Light Hydrating Moisturiser.

6. Go to colours for the eyes? 
I don’t really experiment much with my eyes, during the day they’re mostly neutral colours and my night time look is dark and smokey.

7. Favourite music or band/singer to listen to? 
I don't really associate music with seasons, I listen to whatever I fancy. At the moment, I'm rediscovering my love for Funeral for a Friend.

8. Favourite outfit to wear (i.e. boots & a scarf combo)? 
I recently bought a fluffy cardigan from Primark and a pair of grey Chelsea boots which I've already worn quite a lot. I can see them getting a lot of wear this Autumn.

9. Autumn treat? (i.e. a new scarf or bag you have your eye on) 
There's a tweed coat in Primark at the moment that I really like, but as always with Primark, you have to snap it up really quickly! 

10. Favourite place to be? 
At home, I love being in the warmth and comfort of my own house! Candles on, blinds closed, heating on with a cuppa tea!

All credit for this tag goes to Georgina  at makeup-pixi3 I had fun doing this tag!
I tag you :)

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Wednesday 10 September 2014

Wishlist | Baby Edition feat Next

So with the much anticipated arrival of Baby Walker happening this week (yep we're very over due), I thought I'd do a little baby wear wishlist. Believe me when I say, shopping for neutral clothes is fun and cute and exciting, but I secretly pine over pink and blue outfits whenever I go past any of the baby aisles. Had we found out if baby was boy or girl, we would have gone absolutely mental buying everything pink or blue, so in a way it's saved us a small fortune (not really, we have a lot of clothes for Baby W already.)


My mum and I cut through our local Next store recently and instantly fell in love with this little collection. Who says a baby girl needs to be in pink? While I'd probably wait a few months before I put baby in proper little clothes like this, it's safe to say if Baby W is a girl, she NEEDS this little outfit in her life. I think it's perfect for A/W! 




This boy's post is a little bit more suitable for newborns than the girls clothes. How adorable is this little panda collection? I just absolutely love the little baby grows with the panda hat! I just want to dress Baby W in all things animal although I don't think Pete will appreciate it very much! 

Are you having a baby? Did you find out what you're having?


All items above are from Next. This post was not sponsored.


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Monday 8 September 2014

Nails | Barry M A/W 14

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few weeks, you'll know that Barry M have just launched their new Autumn/ Winter Hi-Shine Gelly Collection. Being a big lover of Mr M and his amazing nail paints, I of course had to have them all and sent Pete out to get them on launch day. They were 3 for 2 so he treated me to Mustard, Paprika and Chai.

L-R Mustard, Paprika and Chai

L-R Chilli, Cardamom and Matte Black

Unable to resist a good 3 for 2 offer, I purchased Chilli, Cardamom and since I'm not a fan of brown nail varnish, I skipped out on Cocoa and went for the Matte Black instead. I know, I'm a cheat.


I thought I'd try my hand at some tribal nail art to match these gorgeous Autumnal colours. Okay, so they're not perfectly straight but it was my first attempt.

The formula of these nail paints is amazing, I used one coat for this mani and the varnish glides on so easily! I love how shiny they are, gel manicure without the salon price! I've been alternating between Mustard and Chai since I bought them! I'll definitely be sporting all these colours throughout Autumn and Winter.

Have you tried the new Barry M nail varnishes yet?


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Sunday 7 September 2014

Bump and I | 41 Weeks


Bump and I reached 41 weeks yesterday, which means we are now 8 days over our due date. This is extremely frustrating because Peter and I are desperate to meet Baby W. While we are waiting for our bundle of joy to arrive, I decided I'd share my experience of being pregnant without going into TOO many gory details!

1. The First 12 Weeks:
The scariest 3 months of your life is those first crucial 12 weeks from when you conceived. Waiting for your 12 week scan, checking you have no spotting or bleeding every time you go to the toilet, knowing that morning sickness is a GOOD sign and keeping this big secret all to yourself before you announce you're expecting. Then, when you have your 12 week scan and see your baby is fine and wiggly and perfect, your heart does a massive sigh of relief, it's emotional, 

2. Morning Sickness:
Doesn't always mean you will throw up. You will want to throw up to make yourself feel better. You can be extremely nauseous and not want to eat anything. Ever. Smells make you sick. You don't have to throw up to experience this. And all you'll want to do is sleep.

3. Bump:
You will fall in love with your bump, yes you will probably have a hissy fit (or 10) over clothes not fitting you properly, but you will love your bump. I touch mine all the time, like a comfort thing. Although my bump is quite huge at this moment in time, and I can't bend down, it's stayed very neat throughout my pregnancy (which makes me lucky because I'm all baby and no additional weight), and I LOVE it when people compliment my bump. People will want to touch it, which is weird, it's something I'll never understand, you can tell them no, it's your body! I'm going to miss my bump when it's gone.

4. Questions, Questions, Questions:
You'll get bored of hearing "do you know what you're having?" "have you had any weird cravings?" People ask these questions all the time. At one point, I wanted to get a tshirt printed saying "it's a surprise and we don't crave anything strange" just so I could point to it when people asked.

5. The "Are You Still Here?"
The absolute WORST question you will ever hear in your last few weeks. If you go shopping, people will ask when you bump into them. You want to scream "no I had the baby a week ago" while pointing to your massive baby bump. Along with this, people will text you asking if you've had the baby, they will write on your Facebook wall, they will tweet you, they will comment on Instagram posts, they will tell you off for posting photos of other babies. They will tell you to hurry up. They will ask when the baby is coming. They will ask if there's been any signs. While it's nice that people care, and people are interested, it's a little bit frustrating when you're sitting at home, past your due date, just waiting and waiting for one little twinge yourself. Nobody is more excited and impatient for your baby to come except YOU. You want to tell people "if I could have it today, I would, but unfortunately, it's not up to me." but you have to be polite don't you?

I must apologise for the little rant at number 5. It's the hormones!



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Wednesday 3 September 2014

Wishlist | Nightmare Before Christmas Edition


Wow, it's been a while since I posted a wishlist, since being pregnant I've not done any clothes shopping apart from the odd maternity item! 

Anyway, my lovely friend, Heather, brought to my attention some of the amazing Nightmare Before Christmas items the Disney Store have in stock at the moment and MY GOD I WANT IT ALL. 

It's been a while since the Disney Store have stocked many NBC items, much to my disappointment, but this year they're on top form. These are just some of the items I have my eye on (I'm a 14 year old, emo kid at heart I swear). 

I'm currently trying to persuade Pete to buy me the pyjamas as my Christmas Eve pyjamas this year. I used to have a Jack Skellington sweatshirt when I was in college and don't know what happened to it, boo! This tealight holder wouldn't go anywhere in my house, but I don't care because I'd put it on the fireplace with pride. I love love love this Oogie Boogie mug, every Christmas my family and I visit the Trafford Centre and I normally pick a NBC mug when I'm there, but the past few years they've had none, so I'm highly excited about the mugs this year. Sad I know. I'm not quite sure how I feel about the scarf, it's a bit on the emo side, but it's cute all the same!

What are you currently lusting after?



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