What Comes Next

On May 18th I finally finished my University degree, handing in the final copy of my magazine and accompanying documentation, to be free of full time education. Relief, exhaustion, fear, excitement, handing in that final bulk of work left me overwhelmed with emotion. For the first time in my life I had no plan, no idea of what was going to happen next. This in itself was and is equal parts terrifying and fantastic, until now I've spent all of my life in full time education, I'm not entirely sure what I am supposed to do now.

What I didn't account for, is the overwhelming pressure from oh, everyone I meet, to have my life figured out. Family, friends, strangers, everyone wants to know whether I've got a job yet, and what my plan is. Even the shop assistant when I bought my graduation wanted to know what my life plan was.

And the honest answer is I have no idea what I want to do. Three years studying fashion journalism has left me sure of nothing, but the fact that I do not want to be a fashion journalist. Oh the irony. 

And whilst thinking about the uncertainty of the future, not knowing what I'll be doing in three months time, scares the bejeesus out of me, I've made a decision. I'm going to be cool with it.

This next month or two is probably the last time I'll ever have where I don't have to go, do or be anywhere. What an amazing, freeing thing that is. I can stay in bed all day if I want, or I can just jump on a train and go anywhere. And it doesn't matter.

So instead of spending the next month until my graduation (and celebratory graduation vacation) worrying. I'm going to have fun. I'm going to relax and do whatever it is that takes my fancy. And if anyone else asks me if I've got a job yet, I'll probably punch them in the face. Or at least throw a drink.

Party for Two

Last week marked the birthday of my main girl Daphne. I tried to talk her into wild birthday plans, but the daft girl was happy to let the day pass without much fanfare, so I decided to take matters into my own hands.

I invited Daphne over, luring her in with the promise of food and a catch up. Figured I'd jazz the place up four year old birthday style, complete with sweet treats! 

The main course was an amateur recreation of the unbeatable Ikea Meatballs. It was good but no cigar. We followed up with traditional movie night treats, fresh popcorn served in these adorable little 'treat bags' I found in Tesco, as well as some yummy sweets served in cute pink cups, also from the Tesco party section. I decorated with a Happy Birthday banner and a sea of cream balloons (which the boyfriend and I nearly passed out blowing up). I loved how cute everything looks!

Sometimes you just have to play the kiddy card!

19/52

Despite less than savoury election night results, having to fight off the ends of a cold, and procuring a quite nasty break in my toe, this week has been a good one. I've been keeping a journal over the last few weeks, where I record the happy things, however small, and it's helped me keep perspective through the not so good things. Honestly, if you struggle with stress or anxiety, it's worth giving it a go. It forces you to really concentrate on the little things. 

This week is officially my last week in education, a terrifying and exciting thought. Whilst I'm excited to wave goodbye to my workload, and have a bit of R&R, I'm nervous for what comes after. I'm a planner, I like to know exactly what will happen next, and the unknown of the future scares me. I'm trying to not think about it right now, but after Monday the 18th, I'll be putting together and looking for a job. Scary stuff. 

Shall we talk about the happy things? 

- The boy coming home from uni with a coffee delivery. It's the little treats that are the best. I've become quite reliant on Starbucks recently, they're seeing me through the end of my project!

- Having a bit of a treat yo'self moment with Con this week, after a harmless trip to buy socks, cotton wool and fabric softener. We both left with new shoes, and I picked up a pair of sunglasses too. It had been a while since either of us had treated ourselves, and it felt good (even if it means one or two less meals out this month). 

- The Big Bang Theory season finale. I was so sad! But it was well done, and nice to see some plot development after a fairly slow season. 

- Voting. Whilst the overall outcome wasn't what I'd hoped, it felt good to get out there and have my say, and in our constituency, my chosen MP won. A small victory, but a victory nonetheless. 

- The first burn of my Diptyque Pomander version 2. I bought this a while back but I was saving the first burn for an all day workathon. It was blissful, these candles are the best!

- Along the same theme, it's been good to see people getting involved in political discussion. For the most part, the conversations I saw and was part of were civilised and insightful, it was good to see people sharing their views whilst being respectful of others. And most importantly, to see so many people taking an active interest and role in politics. If only we were all so politically aware all the time! 

- Fresh blooms, from Lidl of all places. £2 a bunch, I picked up some tulips and carnations, they're so beautiful, I can't stop taking photos of them!

- A sushi date with The Boy. You can't beat a good cucumber maki dish. 

- Cooking a midweek roast as a little pick me up treat. We made garlic roasted chicken and piled the plate high with fresh seasonal veg and butter roasted potatoes. And gravy. Lots of gravy.
- Girls night in with the wonderful Daphne. We watched Guardians of the Galaxy, stuffed our faces, danced to Taylor Swift and baked. It was great.

 Have a great week! x

15/52

Contrary to the bit of a moan I had on this blog yesterday, this week has been a good one.

Firstly, and most notably, THE SUN HAS ARRIVED. I'm sure you're all bored of hearing about this by now, but hey, I'm British, I get excited when the sun comes out. And in true British fashion, this week I've had the first barbecue of the season, worn a dress without tights, and gotten sunburnt. 

It's been equal parts chilled out, relaxation time, and full steam ahead busy busy this week. I spent the first half of the week back home, I had a stomach bug, so I decided to just take it easy for a few days, lazing around in the sunshine, reading books and hanging out with my family, and puppies. Then I came back to London on Wednesday and since then it's been go go go, with blogger events and a ton of work. It's been good fun though!

I'm starting to really look forward to writing these posts, and compiling the happy things from the week. I've actually started keeping a sort of 'happiness journal' and writing down all the best bits of the week, it really helps me keep perspective on the not so great days.

This weeks happy things are as follows;

1. The seriously warm sunshine.
2. I really love my hair right now, it's a really good length, I like that my layers have grown out and my fringe is just how I like it, I've found a way I love to style it and I've found a styling product that makes it look great!
3. Long walks on the beach.
4. My elderly Labrador Teaser refusing to give the toys back to her hydrotherapist, and swimming in the wrong direction when she gets tired
5. The way my Cockapoo Finn looks when he gets out of the hydrotherapy pool. He goes from cute fluffy teddy bear to drowned wirey rat.
6. My pretty new notebooks from M&S. I have no idea what to use them for, but they're SO pretty.
7. Ordering a funny slogan tee from ASOS that sums up my life. Too excited for it to arrive. I may never take it off. 
8. Watching Finn play games with the dog trainer, he was so happy!
9. Being reunited with The Boy after a week apart! Lots of cuddles and lazy evenings watching Top Gear reruns.
10. Discovering the BEST summer drink ever from Starbucks. An Iced Green Tea with a slurp of the juice from Mango Passionfruit Frappacinnos in. Deeeeeelish.
11. Visiting the Debenhams beauty press day and making my own moisturiser with Trilogy. A pinch myself moment.
12. A sneaky treat from Lola's Cupcakes with the boyfriend.
13. Louis Theroux's Not Guilty By Reason Of Insanity Documentary on BBC. I love his documentaries, they're always so thought provoking.
14. Starbucks dates with the boy. Iced beverages and salted caramel cookies are THE BOMB.

A few more than ten this week, but it's been a good week! 

Have a great week guys! 

Overwhelmed.

A more appropriate photo for this post would have been one of my asleep at my desk, drooling all over important paperwork. But since I don't often have a photographer on hand at those moments, this will have to do.

Overwhelmed.

That's how I feel right now.

Overwhelmed.

With a little over a month to go until my final hand in, and the end of my full time education all together, I guess it's only natural to feel a little out in the deep.

Up until this point, I feel like I've been doing a really good job of keeping all the balls in the air so to speak. I'm happy with where I am in my uni work, I'm happy with the content I've been creating here and on BITK. I've, for the most part, been keeping up to date with Social Media, I've been seeing my friends, hanging out with my family, and making time to work out and get a good nights sleep. 

But, I feel exhausted. 

I want to run away to a spa/home/a remote village in the Artic with no internet connection. I feel like I need a week of just lying in bed and sleeping.

I tried to explain this to someone the other day, and they didn't get it at all. They told me to just drop everything else and concentrate on Uni work and rest. But I don't want to do that. I'm proud of myself for making it this far, and I honestly believe I can keep all this going until the 18th of May (when I will proceed to climb into bed and not speak to anyone for a week at least). 

But I definitely need some way to relax and unwind, daily Yoga sessions just aren't cutting it anymore.

I know that probably every third year uni student in the world is feeling the same right now, but it definitely doesn't make it any less difficult. 

Any and all tips are welcome at this point!

One month to go!

The Long Weekend

 Apologies for the radio silence this week, I have no excuse! I headed home last Thursday for the double bank holiday weekend, and ended up staying longer than expected! What ensued was a very long, very lazy weekend that rolled right through til Wednesday!

The weather was surprisingly amazing this week, with temperatures hitting 22c, practically Mediterranean for England! I even got sunburnt, which has now turned into a pretty hint of a tan!

Daphne came back with me and essentially we went on an eating tour of Bournemouth. We hit up Burger Shop, Giraffe and Urban Reef, in between Starbucks runs, lazing in the sunshine and reading lots of books! The best thing about having a fellow blogger around is they don't judge you for organising your food for the perfect instagram, and they too get into weird positions to take blog photos.

 The best bit about going home is snuggling with the zoo! We had a long dog walk in the New Forest, and along the beach, and we took them to Hydrotherapy too. Finn looks more like a rat than a dog when soggy!

Coming back to London was a bit of a hardship after such a lazy weekend, but at least the sun is still shining!

The Week in Unseen Photos

I've been a very bad blogger the last week, mostly because although lots have things have happened, there hasn't been much worth sharing. However, flicking through my camera and phone, I've actually taken a lot of photos the last couple of weeks that I haven't shared anywhere, but came with their own little stories, so I thought I'd share a few of them with you!

First of, I'm totally obsessed with my gorgeous new teapot, it's from Selfridge's and it was a birthday gift, it's all hand painted and ever so pretty. I lost my last teapot when I moved back in July, and have been teapot-less since, so it's nice to be able to brew a big pot when I'm at my desk all day! I'm also totally obsessed with having big pots of fruit in the morning for breakfast, and before bed. I like to put a little sprinkle of sugar in in the evenings, just as a sweet treat, but it stops me from snacking throughout the day, and it's much healthier than the biscuits that my boyfriend has been eating at the same time!

I've been back home for a while, and the best thing about going home is all the animal affection I get! Our dopey Cockapoo Finn (the furry black thing in the first picture) get's so excited when I come home that he cries and hugs my legs. When he finally calms down, he just sits and stairs at me, it's so cute! My kitten, affectionately known as 'Derpy Cat' since she's a little on the strange side, has been choosing inappropriate moments  to try and love me, like when I've just gotten out of the shower and am trying to get ready, or am on the toilet (try peeing when a cat is sitting on your lap staring at you). 

I got the opportunity to go for afternoon tea at the Aviator Hotel with my Mum over the weekend, for a talk from NARS's International Lead Makeup Artist, Jane Richardson. The whole afternoon was lovely, Jane was so nice and spent ages chatting to me at the end! The food there was amazing, we were greeted with tasty cocktails on arrival, followed by an amazing sandwich, scone and dessert spread, that left me feeling very full indeed! It was great too spend time with my mum! 

I spent an evening last week sat chatting with my family in the garden next to the firepit. We don't have a fireplace in the house, so dad bought a firepit last summer, which hasn't had a tonne of use, but it was so nice sat out in the cold being warmed by the fire! 

 My boyfriend's parents own a restaurant and bar back home in Bournemouth, and the four of us ended up going for dinner last week together. I had Tomato and Mozzarella, followed by the Steak, which are two of my most favourite dishes. As always, the food was amazing, and the company too! We ended up working our way through a couple of bottles of wine, and I laughed so hard that my cheeks and stomach hurt by the time I went to bed.

I have a couple of posts to share with you before the weekend, one from my sister's birthday, and one with some snaps I took yesterday, so I'll speak to you very soon!

Sundays are for Sleeping

I had such good intentions for my day today, but when my alarm went off this morning and I saw the drizzly skies outside, well I just snoozed the alarm and went back to sleep.

The boy and I have really been enjoying our Sunday strolls, exploring different parts of the city we only have a year and a half left in. Today, we were planning on heading to Regents Park, where the first hint of blossom is starting to appear, and then walking along the canal to Camden, for a stroll round the market, it's been about a year since I last was there. But who wants to give up time in bed when it's cold and miserable outside? Not me, that's for sure. 

So in true student fashion, I slept til midday, and didn't actually change out of my pyjamas til two, which was really quite nice. I've spent the last couple of hours getting the boring jobs out of the way, food shopping, cleaning the kitchen, getting some uni work done, and now the plan is to curl up with a good book, a bag of Milkybar buttons, and burn my latest Diptyque Candle. I've had this candle for six weeks now and I haven't yet lit it, it smells so good just sat on my desk in the hallway that I haven't felt the need to burn it yet, but I think tonight might just be the night.

I'm a big fan of Dan Brown books, but despite having this since just after it's release, I haven't had the chance to read it yet, I've started it a few times but it's never really grabbed me like his previous books have, so hopefully I'll put a dent in it tonight. 

It's also pretty nice to know I don't have to cook tonight, yesterday I made up a big ol' pot of meatballs in the slow cooker, using this recipe from Nouvelle Daily, which I've tried before and is delicious, so I'm just gonna have that with a big bowl of spaghetti, proper rainy day comfort food.

I'm really looking forward to this next week, I get to pretty much polish off this terms uni project, and then on Friday I'm going for burgers with the amazing Daphne, which is definitely going to get me through the rest of the week!