16/52

This week has been somewhat unremarkable, as I would expect so close to deadlines. There's been lots of working and not much play, but I'm kind of okay with that, since there's not that long to go. Also, I've been fairly anxious again this week, which really sucks, but I'm trying to work on that! That being said, there's still been a lot of happy things this week that definitely deserve a mention.

1. Setting up the mobile office in Starbucks twice this week. I'm not sure what it is about Starbucks, but I seem to be more productive when I work there! It's nice to get out of the flat too, when you work from home, it can get a little tedious. 

2. Reaching gold status on my Starbucks card. This excited me a lot more than it should have. 

3. Also in Starbucks related news, my cute new Starbucks mug has me all kinds of happy. 

4. Uncontrollable giggle fits whilst sunbathing with Daphne in the park. I'm pretty sure everyone thought we were insane. 

5. The Boy's family coming to London for an unexpected visit, and the GIANT tub of Marmite they bought with them. 

6. Two words. Free. Nandos. 

7. Late night cheese date study breaks with The Boy. Who says we aren't living it up? 

8. A very good friend who answered my late night call for a walk, sometimes you just need to get out of the house and get some fresh air, even if it is past 10pm. 

9. This story from a while back about a man and his turtle. Oh the giggles. 

10. Visiting the Natural and Organic product show with my mama, and following it up with a big steaming bowl of ramen at Wagamama. Nothing better than food and mummy time! 

This week is going to be a busy one, cause I need to finish my magazine! I can't wait to get it finished now, and I can't wait to show you guys!

Have a great week! x

11/52

Now that I've handed in my dissertation, I feel like a giant weight has been lifted from my shoulders, and this week has definitely felt calmer, despite being busy preparing for my trip! I've spent most of the week trying to get ahead of myself work-wise so I don't feel too guilty about taking six days off!

I thought this week I'd use this post to share all the happy moments of this week!

1. I saw a nutritionalist this week to find out if there were any changes I could make to my diet that would help with my anxiety, which has been pretty bad the last few weeks. She had a lot of interesting things to say, and I'm starting to make a few changes to both what I consume and how I consume it, to help feel better. I have to say, I feel better in myself already, so if you guys would be interested in hearing any of the tips, I'm happy to share them with you!
2. I got to attend a pretty exciting event on Saturday with Nip and Fab, where I was invited to a top secret London location to meet their new brand representative Kylie Jenner. I got to meet up with the wonderful Katy & Charlee, we ate delicious burgers at GBK, and chatted all things blogging. Hanging out with bloggers is the best, they don't mind when you pick a restaurant based on it's Instagram potential, or when you rearrange your food to create the perfect Instagram. 
3. Also, said Nip and Fab event left us with buckets of popcorn. 'nuff said.
4. With my birthday coming up this week, the last few days have been filled with lots of sneaking around from my loved ones! The boyfriend disappeared for a few hours on Friday on a secret mission for my mum, but he did come back with a little treat for me, a bag of Eyk Eton Mess Candy Kittens. These are amazing on many levels, they're natural, gluten free, Eton Mess flavoured, pink, and they're shaped like kittens. Amazing. 
5. I won a £50 Etsy gift card this month, and I've spent a lot of time trawling the site for the best way to spend it! I haven't spent it all yet (although I have bought a LOT of planner stickers), so any recommendations are welcome! 
6. I've had a lot of good lunches this week, a delicious Honest Burger post-dissertation-hand-in pitstop, a sushi & curry hangout with my babin' friend Daphne, a Wagamama date with The Boy as well as my aforementioned GBK blogger date. I'll be eating beans for the rest of the month, but it was so worth it. 
7. It's been SUNNY this week guys. What a revelation. I've worn my sunglasses four days this week. Long may it continue. 
8. The sunny weather made it seem appropriate to pull my Bath and Bodyworks Coconut Leaves candle out of hibernation. I burn this and pretend I'm sunbathing on a tropical island. Bliss.
9. I've been searching for some dresses that are more day-time appropriate, that I can wear with tights but also without when it's a little warmer. I checked all the usual high street suspects and found nothing, but did find two gorgeous striped numbers in Primark, for a bargain £5 each. Primark saves the day again.
10. I filmed my MAC Lipstick collection this week, and it made me fall in love with all the lipsticks all over again. I feel a week of bold lips coming along!

This next week is going to be so exciting for me, I have my birthday, my trip to Disney, and some more exciting plans, I can't wait to share them with you! Make sure you're following me on Instagram so you can keep up with my adventures!

Have a wonderful week! x

Little Things #2

1. Lots of lunch dates with my mum. I got lucky, my mum has been in London three times in the last two weeks, which means two lunch and two dinner dates. I'm a total home-bod and I miss my family so much whilst I'm hear, so I relish all the time I get to spend with them. I'm lucky that my parents have pretty flexible work schedules and can be around a lot! This week Mum and I went to Scandinavian Kitchen, and ate giant salads topped with Swedish meatballs!
2. Rewatching Parks and Recreation with Con. Leslie Knope never gets boring. Also, Chris Pratt.
3. Connor. I had a bit of a rubbish start to the week, but Con's been a total babe. I'm lucky to have someone around who is so supportive and kind and loving, who does lovely things like bring me hot water bottles, takes me to lunch and puts up with my constant nagging for hugs. 
4.  Teapigs Spiced Winter Tea. It's just my favourite, so warming and delicious on these cold winter days.
5. New jeans. Is there anything better than new jeans? I finally branched out from my staple Topshop Leighs, to, err, Topshop Jamie jeans. It's a small branch anyway. I feel like these are more like real jeans, and Leighs are more like jeggings, so I'm hoping these will keep their shape a little more!
6. Having a makeup clear out, it feels so good to say goodbye to products that just weren't getting the love they deserve!
7. The This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray. Why did nobody tell me about this before? I've been sleeping so much better since I've had this in my life!
8. I bought the latest issue of Frankie Magazine, and remembered how much I love it. It's just filled with different, interesting opinion pieces, and it's just refreshing to read something a little different. 
9. Cosy winter evenings burning cinnamon scented candles. Cinnamon candles are the best, especially when it's raining really heavily outside!
10. Feeling like I'm getting somewhere with my uni project. I've got a lot of research done, and a lot of amazingly helpful people giving me a hand too! I'm excited to share the finished result with you all! 

10 Favourites From the Week

My advent calendar: or even, just feeling festive in general really. There's something inherently Christmassy about eating a chocolate every morning, it's definitely helping with the festive spirit in this house! It's nice to be home too, with a big ol' Christmas tree, the radio in the kitchen permanently playing Christmas songs. I just feel festive.

Christmas wrapping: continuing the festive theme! I've actually really enjoyed doing my wrapping this year, I don't really know why? Either way, I've had some cute ribbon and gift cards and I've tried to make the presents look cute!

My Tangle Teezer: I've always had a compact Tangle Teezer, but last week I finally bought a full size one (after months of searching for the lilac and baby pink one, it's so hard to find!). It makes brushing your hair so so easy, and my hair always feels so much softer and healthier when I use these over a normal brush!

The Hobbit: Battle of Five Armies: I finally got to go see the final installment in the Hobbit series this week and it was amazing. It's one of the few movies that I actually think does the book justice, and I definitely got a bit teary at the end (read: I cried like a baby). I'd definitely recommend catching it!

A Christmas card from my best dog friend: some friends of ours have a Boxer called Rio who is literally one of the nicest people I've ever met. Deadly serious. Anyway, every year she sends me a Christmas card and it makes me beyond happy, I've always wanted a Boxer, so at least for now I have a festive picture of Rio to fill the gap!

Starbucks Christmas Mug: last week I picked up this gorgeous mug from Starbucks, which combines a ton of my favourite things, coffee, London, Christmas and anything gold. I'm obsessed with making giant cups of tea in it!

Frosty mornings: We've had a few cold starts this week, and they've just been beautiful. At the weekend I went for breakfast at the golf club, and the view of the frosty grass and blue skies was just beautiful, I just love this time of year!

H&M sequin jumper: the closest thing to a Christmas jumper I will ever own. This sweater is so cosy and soft, sparkly and festive, and I feel like because the design is a perfume bottle, you could probably get away with it in January & February too! It's so cosy and warm! I've been pairing it with my sequined mini skirt a lot for an extra festive feeling!

Kitten cuddles: being home means being surrounded by my favourite furry creatures, from the one eyed dog who loves a cuddle, to the kitten who likes to lick your eyebrows if she gets half a chance. It's a motley crew to say the least but I miss them all so much when I'm gone!

Lazy mornings: the very best thing about being done with uni, lots of cosy late morning lie ins in my brushed cotton duvet! There's something so satisfying about getting to be back home, in my own bed, with no alarm set!

10 Happy Things #2

1. I've been on the hunt for a few new wardrobe pieces this week, since I feel like I'm always wearing the same clothes, and I've found a few pieces I love, particularly the tshirt in the top left image! 
2. I've been making an effort to eat healthier this week, and as a result have been eating a lot of salad! I'm obsessed with adding purple sprouting broccoli and asparagus to them, so tasty! Also, a little bit of wholewheat pesto pasta, mmmmm.
3. That being said, I made a giant stack of American Pancakes on Saturday morning, we ate them with apricot yoghurt and piled high with fruit, deeeee-lish.
4. I had a massive sort out of my desk this week, I picked up a couple of storage bits from Ikea, and I'm so pleased with how it looks! I might snap a few pictures and share them with you guys?
5. I went for a midweek pizza date with The Boy in central this week. If you haven't been to Franco Manca yet you should, awesome pizza and so cheap!
6. My awesome friend Vanessa from across the pond sent me a Bath and Bodyworks candle this week, and it is AMAZING. She's the best.
7. The boy and I have been eating big lunches and then having indoor picnics for dinner! The weather's been rubbish so we just curl up in the living room with leftovers, and big bowls of salad and fresh fruit, and just pick what we fancy!
8. Daphne and I went on a little road trip to Bicester Village this week. We didn't buy much but it was just nice to spend time together. We went to Busaba Eathai for lunch and it was reeeeaaally good. 
9. Ben's Cookies. That is all. 
10. Mindy Kaling's Book. I downloaded it on my iPad and am now about halfway through, it's given me a good few giggles this week!

I'm sorry that so many of these are about food.

10 Happy Things

1. I love these photos my sister snapped of me this week in the setting sun, I think they came out so well!
2. Being back in London is the best thing, I missed my boyfriend so much! The night I got back we popped out for a quick dinner in GBK on Baker Street, it was so nice to catch up and spend a quiet evening together! 
3. I've been looking for home decor inspiration this week, I want to make my flat feel more homely, and I came across this blog, and this blog, and fell in love, in particular with this apartment. My future home right here.
4. Costa Strawberry Lemonade. Need I say more?
5. I finally got to go to the cinema this week, I dragged my dad out to see the movie adaptation of my favourite book ever, Divergent. As far as movie adaptations go they did a pretty good job, and the movie was great (although not as good as the book ;)), but the best thing was spending time with my dad! We were half an hour early to the cinema so we went for Mocktails in TGI's first, and all in all had a great evening.
6. Last night we popped over to our friend's flat for dinner, and the three of us drank a bottle of Lanson with the balcony doors open, watching the sunset. Bliss. 
7. The boy and I are on a healthy eating kick, and did a massive food shop this week which was 90% fruit and veg. I had to explain why Cheese Coleslaw isn't healthy and is definitely not one of your five a day. It's been fun thinking up new recipes and healthy alternatives to our favourites. We aren't dieting, but we are trying to make healthier choices so we don't feel as bad when we have the occasional naughty burger! 
8. I cooked a big old roast today, which was mostly fresh veg and it was delicious! I won't feel too bad about tucking into my Easter Egg later! 
9. The boy bought me a gorgeous Easter Bouquet this week, and it's really brightening up our living room! Fresh flowers instantly make me happy! 
10. The lovely team over at Polabora got in touch this week and offered me some free photo prints! I received them on Thursday and I'm in love, especially with the Retro Strips which look like photobooth print outs! They're amazing quality and look perfect in my scrapbook! If you're in the market for some photo prints I'd highly recommend them!

What's made you happy this week?

5 Happy Things

 After yesterday's post which didn't have the happiest vibe, I thought it would be nice to do a 5 Happy Things post, partly to remind me of the good things, and partly to brighten the mood a little!

1. The boyfriend and I went for a walk yesterday, and we discovered a really gorgeous park, less than five minutes from my flat that we had never seen before (and my boyfriend has lived on this road for a year and a half). It's got a massive field part, big trees and pretty flowers, a kids play park, basketball and tennis courts, and outdoor gym equipment, so I think I'll be redirecting my morning runs that way! 
2. Sunday Brunch. Is there anything better? I was wide awake at 9am this morning, but because the boyfriend was still asleep I ended up falling back to sleep (after brushing my teeth, drinking a pint of water and reading a bajillion blogs), and not waking up til midday. We made american style pancakes in our PJ's, covered them in cinnamon sugar and ate them on the sofa. I really love lazy sunday Mornings.
3. I've discovered a new photo editing app on my iPhone, it's called PicFX and I am totally obsessed, it's got a ton of fab filters and effects, and you can add light effects too which I love. 
4. My new MacBook. I am a very lucky girl, for my birthday this week my parents bought me a new MacBook Air, since mine was on it's way out, and I've had so much fun setting it up and downloading apps for it!
5. I am totally obsessed with The Pretty Reckless and their new album came out this week, and I'm obsessed with it. If you're a fan of rock music, you should definitely check this out.

In the spirit of spreading the happiness, leave me a comment telling me what has made you happy this week! 

10 Happy Things

1.  The weather. Today, I walked around central in a skirt and strappy top and I was boiling.
2.  My pretty daffodils. I picked them up for a pound in the supermarket on a whim (bargain), and they just make my living room so much prettier and brighter and it makes me feel like it's spring.
3.  My Diptyque Pomander candle. I finally burnt this for the first time last weekend and I have burnt it three times this week and it's the best thing ever.
4.  The word Sassy. Isn't it just a fabulous word? I feel like this is a word I want to describe me. At my funeral, I hope they say "She was a sassy one, wasn't she."
5.  My friend Sam giving me a bottle of my new favourite wine. It's delicious.
6.  Finally trying Ben's Cookies... I feel like drooling just thinking about it.
7.  Spotting pretty buildings in Central London. I think I've need to spend more time just walking round London, it's so pretty.
8.  Finally getting to meet the awesome Daphne, who I have now decided is going to be my best friend forever whether she likes it or not.
9.  Carrot Cake from Wenzels Bakery. It's the best.
10.  My Mum and Sister coming up for a girly day today in London! We had a late breakfast, a wonder round the shops, Victoria's Secret, Selfridges and Whole Foods most notably, and then finished the day with a mammoth late lunch on the Southbank in Giraffe which left me feeling about four dress sizes bigger.