Third year and feeling old!

Early birthday cake / favourtie cinema treat / dissertation work began in fog, always a good omen / birthday onesie from flat mates / beautiful present / free cocktail kettle / so much free champagne, only 21 once though! / drunk Eliza Thornberry and an evil Minion in the background / toilet selfie with Amy

Having my birthday in freshers week every year since being at university meant that becoming 21 was going to need a few get togethers with family and friends before heading back to good old Bangor.

My mom got Sleeping Beautys castle made for me and it was perfect! One layer vanilla the other chocolate, yum! Felt like a 5 year old and loved it. Had one final trip to the cinema with my brother to finally see Monsters University and I wasn't disappointed! Of course I had to indulge with this delicious drink. Arrived back at Uni and the first thing I did was go straight out discussing my field work! Was so much to take in when I just wanted to sleep and the places I'm collecting my data are just so pretty. BIRTHDAY! My flat mates know me too well! This onesie is perfect and so warm though in this flat I shouldn't need to wear it but I currently am trying to fight off freshers flu! My parents spoilt me and I wasn't expecting this beautiful camera at all, but it will be used lots for my dissertation. What's a birthday without a night out where drinks are free and you're dressed up as Eliza Thornberry! Save to say it was the best night out and the best birthday ever! The hangover was surprisingly pleasant with the drinks that I'd had, there was some mixing...ops! I certainly have the greatest friends here at uni and they make life here so much fun. Last night saw the return of Rock vs Indie a favourite of ours and once again we got drunk and spent time with a Canadian band called Colfax who were really good. Since turning 21 the hangovers are much worse, feeling old now! Naturally there just had to be a nice drunk toilet picture!

Well I'm officially a third year and will be going out at ridiculous times to collect my data in the cold but I will be watching birds for several hours. So glad I have Amy to do all this with! So nights out will be few and far between now. And I will be going to Tenerife in March which I'm really excited about because the furtherest away I've been is Paris and I'm so ready to have adventures!
I've decided I'm going to be Hermoine Granger and keep my head in books and do well this year. I am determined to get better grades!

Have you started university? How was freshers week? Hope no-one else has freshers flu cause it feels like a bitch this year!

Birthday Wishlist

1 Mouse Tee | 2 Fall Out Boy Album | 3 Up Iphone Case | 4 Top Cat Purse | 5 Africa Book | 6 The Twits Jumper | 7 Toy Story Alien Iphone Case | 8 Batman and Robin Tee | 9 Wonders of Life Book | 10 High Top Converse 

It's not long until my birthday so I thought after seeing many wishlists I thought that I'd do one for my birthday. As you can see I'm pretty simple really. When it comes to clothing I do love a good  cartoon character top and finding the Roald Dahl collection at Truffle Shuffle made my day! As a child I absolutely loved reading his books and the illustrations by Quentin Blake were so captivating so having it on a top is a must for me! I love a good book especially the massive animal books so having a book about David Attenborough's Africa is completely perfect for me especially with my love affair with that place! Converse are my favourite shoes and I've had 3 pairs and sadly they've started to fall apart so replacements are needed! The Top Cat purse is so nice! As a child I loved a bit of Top Cat and so this would be a great addition to my handbag. Now these Disney phone covers from RedBubble are among a list of about 20 that I would like but I narrowed it down to these as they sum me up, childlike and Disney fanatic, fantastic!

So my birthdays 17 days away and I'm really excited about it this year whether that's because of the numerous things that I'm doing to celebrate or whether it's because I'll be 21. Well whatever the reason I can't wait to rip open my cards and see what presents are hidden under the wrapping paper!

People Pleaser

I'm a people pleaser and always have been.

This came to light recently when discussing my past and things that have happened. I've always been the one to make people happy and make them smile. Even if I've been the one hurt or upset and someone I care for got upset over it, I'd be the one comforting them when it was me who needed the comforting. 

I'd rather my friends were happy than upset because its not nice to see. Sometimes I'd rather not talk about things that are upsetting me if a friend is upset and has something going on because I'd rather make sure they're okay and happy. 

I've come to realise that I should try and focus on pleasing myself and not others but after doing it for a long time it's a little difficult. I'm sure I'll get there though it may take some time.

Am I the only one who prefers their friends to be happy or is it just me? And do you have any advice on focusing on yourself instead of others? 

What's on in September

It's no lie that September is my favourite month, well it is my birthday after all! My shifts at work are becoming fewer which gives me days to unwind and see friends and family which I haven't been able to do as much since mid July! 

So what's happening this month? Well it's quite busy really which is always nice and I have quite a few things to look forward to which is a bonus!

I've got my first pre birthday party with my family and some friends from uni which I'm really looking forward to. I'm going to be very hands on with it to make sure it's just how I want it and to make sure it's fun. 

Moving back to uni which I am really looking forward to because I've missed Bangor a lot and I'll be with my friends pretty much 24/7 again!

Freshers week is always fun wonder what things will happen this year!

My birthday - the big 21! which is always in freshers will be spent with my friends having a lovely chilled out day.

Cartoon character fancy dress party the day after my birthday will be good - I can't wait to see what my friends come as and I'm still undecided, typical. I'm torn between two character.

My friend will be coming to stay with me the weekend of my birthday which I'm really excited for cause she's never been so there will be more partying, yay.

Well that's everything I have planned, but no doubt there will be last minute plans cropping up along the way, even better!

What's happening this month for you? Have you got any plans that you're looking forward to?

Scotland part 2

Been so busy working lately that I've had little time to actually get this post finished, but having two days off has meant that I can catch up on posts yay! My mom took a sneaky picture of me staring over Loch Lomond and I quite like it. Loch Lomond was beautiful  We went to a place called Isle of May which is situated 6 miles from the mainland and about 100 people go on at a time so it felt so peaceful. It also has a huge colony of breeding birds during the summer and there were so many puffins there it was amazing. Personally I think Puffins are the cutest birds with their little colourful beaks and their old man groan noise they make. 

holiday in scotland - part 1

After a lovely two weeks away, it's safe to say that it has taken a few days to get back into the swing of things again. Well Scotland was absolutely lovely and I really didn't want to come home, mind you I say that after every holiday and still come home! It was the first time we've ever been across the border up north and I had a picture in mind of what Scotland was going to be and for the most part it was just how I imagined it would be which was great.

We went to a part called Fife which I'd never heard of before and I couldn't of told you where Edinburgh was beforehand as my geography isn't very good at all!

Anyway we were lucky with the house we were staying in as it was about 100 metres away from a coastal path and the ruins of a castle and so the views were stunning when it was sunny. It was such a  peaceful place to go for a walk and stare out across the never ending sea. 

I would definitely recommend going to Fife especially if you've never been before :)

Holiday Tomorrow!

And so finally the time is here for me to pack up my things and get away for a two whole weeks! And with the weather being as glorious as it has been I'm truly excited to be getting on a beach and into the sea. 

And after working hard for quite a while a break is definitely needed.

I won't be blogging when I'm away nor will there be any scheduled posts as I've not had time to write any up, so you'll have to excuse the quiet blog. But fear not for I shall return with a few posts based on days out whilst on holiday.

Hope you're all well and keep putting on that sun cream, I know I will be!

Off to Neverland

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Neverland made me never want to grow up.

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Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit made me want to have dwarves as friends as they'd fight with me, sing and make me laugh. Oh and also to have elves, cause let's face it they are quite beautiful.

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Narnia made me want my wardrobe to lead to another world where the king was a talking lion.

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Harry Potter made me want to become a witch and learn to cast spells and play quidditch.
I'm still waiting for my letter though Hogwarts!

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Star Wars made me want to own a lightsaber and kick baddies ass.
"The force is strong with this one."

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Toy Story made me want my toys to come alive, be awesome and tell me of their adventures. I'd be so jealous of them though.

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Lion King made me want an old baboon to randomly come into my life and give me advice that would make me sort out my life.

A Summers Walk

So the weather has been glorious for the past week or so now which is great. Over a week ago, me and my parents went to Attingham and had a lovely stroll through the park. Amazingly the deer were super close which was lovely and they weren't fussed about us being there. 

Hope you've been making the most of this glorious weather and putting on sun cream!

Nothing ventured, nothing gained

There's nothing like receiving a package in the post. It's even better when it was free!

Over the past year I have been collecting Disney Rewards Points which is just a wonderful idea. Especially when points means prizes! And even more so when it's Disney! 

I decided to order Sword in the Stone as its a film I've liked but have never actually owned, so that needed to be changed.

I was really excited when it arrived this morning as I'd only ordered it Thursday by paying 500 points and I received an email soon afterwards to tell me it had been dispatched, oh the joy!

I know what I shall be doing when I get home from work tonight! :)

Holiday Countdown

It's summer and holiday season is here!

I always get excited about packing up and going away for two weeks each year, especially when my parents pick beautiful places to go each year without fail. They are just so good! This year is no exception we are off to Scotland for the first time ever and I am so excited! I love going to new places and exploring the beautiful places! Where we shall be staying looks amazing and it's near the coast, a perfect little get away destination.

11 days to go and counting!

Oh and only 6 shifts at work leftttt!

Get me outta here :)

Are you looking forward to getting away anywhere? 

A Little Baking Session

Baking - something most people enjoy doing and I'm no exception. Given the chance I'd quite happily bake everyday, making the kitchen a mess, getting flour or icing sugar on myself and not really know how I managed to do it at 20. Today was no exception.

It's been a while since I've baked properly and so with the house to myself for a few hours I decided to blast some music, sing along to it loudly and get everything prepared to begin the creative mess.

I've been baking for as long as I can remember and have always loved it, especially the part where I would get to eat the remains of the mixture that the spoon couldn't quite get. Yes I still do this.

Recently I have started to think about different ways to make a fairy cake more surprising by adding jams in the middle of the cakes or mixing up the colours of the sponge. I decided that today I would experiment again with fairy cakes/cup cakes and see what the end result would be. 

I rummaged through the cupboard and found food colours, writing icing and various decorations  which was a pleasant surprise as I didn't think I'd have anything left in the house. I also found an icing pipe which I'd be given but never used so I decided to give it a try.

I divided the cake mixture equally in half so that one half could be the normal golden cream colour and that the other half could be one of the food colourings, I decided to try our green as I've never tried it before. I put the green mixture into the cases first as it would be a hidden surprise then the normal mixture went on the top. 

Decided I'd put some butter cream on top of the cakes and try out my icing pipe and well it ended with the bag bursting and me trying to rescue any spilt butter cream with already sticky hands, oops. Think I got a little eager with the amount of the butter cream I put in but I'll know for next time now. 

This was the best decorated cake I managed to do before the bag split resulting in the next few not being so great, but I'm still pretty pleased with them. I love how the butter cream started to blend and the pink began to come through. Definitely my best cake moment.

I've now got the baking bug back and am already thinking about what I could try out next!
Do you have a favourite baking moment? What's your favourite thing to bake?

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Quick Catch Up

Well it's been a while! Work has taken a large chunk of my time over the past two weeks so blogging has taken a back seat. When I have had the odd few days off they've been spent with family and friends having catch ups.

Here's what I've been up to:
Monday - trip with my brother to Birmingham where we went to the sea life centre and then proceeded to pizza hut for a buffet lunch which was well worth the money and we were stuffed afterwards, score!

Tuesday - a well needed catch up with my lovelies Nat and Laura over some drinks and a lovely  chinese! This has become a little bit of a tradition with us now which is always nice.

Wednesday - had a nice chilled day in

Thursday to Monday was spent at work running around like a headless chicken particularly the weekend though surprisingly Sunday was busier than Saturday for a change!

Tuesday - made angry phone calls to pizza hut, went out with my dad and then randomly decided to go and see Despicable Me 2 with my brother. And boy it was funny! Could just hear us laughing, everyone else clearly were boring or maybe our sense of humour is a little childish.. ah well. Would definitely go and see it again though!

Come on Barbie let's go party

This week has gone so fast, and I can't quite put my finger on where the time has gone! This week I've been busy at work doing stock takes and becoming a receptionist for a few hours for the pop in store vets we have weekly. I swear Wednesdays at work have got it in for me, going by the past two weeks aha! 

This week has been popular in regards to people asking me questions where I simply haven't had the answers prepared let alone given them any amount of thought!
 The question of the week this week has been what are you doing for your 21st and my answer has been the same I don't really know, because for the past two years my birthdays have been when I've been at uni and this year will be the same but my mother wants to do something because it's special. Getting closer to being 21 has scared me a little as that's when I'm an actual adult, like really me an adult ahaha oh god. So this morning I decided that instead of not being able to answer that question I'd sit down and have a think of what I could do. 

I've played around with a Disney theme but the character I'd like to be well their costume isn't exactly cheap which put me off a little cause I'd love to wear it more than once but I'm not one for splashing out on clothes. So I decided to get back on Pinterest and have a nose around at some boards and sure enough I was getting some ideas. Pinterest is a great way to organise ideas and can help with organising things such as parties and it's always good to browse through other peoples boards to get some inspiration which I did. 

So I went from looking at Disney themed food and decorations to suddenly thinking about a 90s theme to then going through my favourite tv programmes, bands, books etc throughout my 21 years and I'm actually quite happy with my board, but I've got three months to go so there are going to be some changes. It'd be nice to reminisce through the years about the things that I loved to what I love now, which I can't see being that different really. 

Thanks to Pinterest I have got some inspiration and am now looking forward to planning or rather giving my parents hints about what I want, after all I'm only 21 once! Now to count down the three months until my 21st and see what happens!

How has your week been? Has there been anything that has got you all excited, if so what? Would love to hear from you!

Mundane Midweek: What Happened Wednesday

So Charlotte has started a series of posts for lifestyle bloggers to share stories of their Mundane Midweek days. I've decided to jump on the bandwagon and give it a go - I like to see what people get up to, just a little nosey y'see. So here's my attempt at a Mundane Midweek: What Happened Wednesday.

Wednesday was an early start with my alarm going off at 6.30am and surprisingly I woke with a spring in my step and bright eyed and bushy tailed. I work in a pet shop which opens in the week at 9am so normally I get there 15 minutes before we open, but was needed in at 8am to do a stock count. 

The day was going fine, I algae wiped all the fish tanks, served on the till and generally it was quite quiet. Our area manager came in unannounced which threw us as she was supposed to be popping in today (Thursday) and from that moment onwards the day just went up in smoke (not literally of course, just figuratively.)

Our day was planned to get a lot of jobs done but with an unexpected visit and with only 4 of us in until 2pm we were running round like headless chickens trying to juggle jobs and at one stage I was in the juggling water changing the fish tanks, serving on the till and helping a customer! Definitely need more arms!

Dinner came and soon went and everything seemed to have calmed down a little, until there was a shout from one of my colleagues as an escaped budgie had been found high in the stock room. So there were three of us attempting to catch the little bird and I feel this would have been perfect for the time spent 'chasing' the little fellow!

Eventually though the budgie was tiring and flew into the staff room and was finally caught, after a little struggle of course. So after that excitement the day started to get a little quieter though the shop was full of dogs competing for loudest bark due to having vets in. Time to then carry on with jobs that should have been done by dinner time, so the plant tank was completely cleaned and then so were the shelves. 

Then it was 4.30 and it was time to go home but of course it was tipping it down and everyone asked 'hevv have you walked' 'yeah' 'you got an umbrella?' 'aha no' so a colleague gave me a lift home which was lovely of her considering she'd be scrambling the stack of pallets to get the budgie. So the rest of the night was spent being chilled out whilst watching some tv before crashing.

I'd like to read other Mundane Midweek posts that were inspired by Charlotte!

So how has your day been? Let me know :)

She's up all night 'til the sun

Actually I've stayed out in the sun whenever possible until the sun disappeared! Missed that yellow thing in the sky.

Well, what a first week back home! 

This time last week I was driving back from Bangor in a car packed with all of my stuff after moving out of the house, sad times. Arrived home for 3 months and unpacked the car and this wasn't even half the stuff! Yikes!

Most of this week has been spent at work and typically it has been lovely outside but sweltering in the shop, not very nice in an all black uniform! Even the customers came in and said 'ohh it's hot in here' or 'it's hotter in here than it is outside'. So it was nice when I finished work on an early shift and could get a good few hours out in the sun. Being away at uni and not having a garden made me miss this beaut of a place even more, so with the sun out I was rather content with life, though a cider or two and a bbq would have been nice.

Hope you all managed to get plenty of time out in the lovely weather we had!

First Quote Post

After seeing various posts of inspirational quotes I figured I'd give it a go and see what happens. 

I found this quote earlier and fell in love with it. It's one of those quotes that everyone can relate to after reading it and it does touch a nerve. It's even better that it relates birds method of flying to how we manage to pick ourselves up from falling. Being a zoologist I'd rather relate to an animal than a person, makes me feel a bit special and that anything is possible.

Will definitely be looking at this quote when ever I am feeling down for some much needed inspiration. 

Hakuna Matata

This bank holiday weekend has been so good but it's such a shame that it's my last weekend in Bangor until mid September! :( With the sun being out it meant getting out and about and soaking up the rays, which is something I shall miss deeply when I get home.
The picture was from Saturday night when we decided to have a bbq on 'chill hill' and we watched the beautiful sun set.

Hope you've all had a lovely bank holiday and caught some rays!

The Liebster Award

Well this was a pleasant surprise to see that the lovely Katherine from Another Dreamer had nominated me for this little award. I had no idea what this award was for or what it was even about so I adapted what Katherine had put on her post.

The Liebster Award is to help get newer blogs noticed and is passed on to other bloggers, so it's a nice way of discovering new blogs to read and supporting other bloggers.

The rules:1. Each blogger should answer the questions the tagger has set for you.

2. Choose 11 new bloggers to pass the award onto and link them in your post.

3. Create 11 new questions for the chosen bloggers.

4. Go back to their page and tell them about the award.

5. Each blogger should post 11 Random facts about themselves.

6. No tag-backs!

Katherine's questions:

1. What trend do you dislike at the moment?
   I'm not a fashion person really, but I'm not keen on these short shorts. I thought of so many things the other day walking through town but have completely forgot them.
2. What posts do you love writing?
3. I love writing about what I've been up to because I get to relive the memories and think wow actually that was really good. 
4. Do your friends/family know about your blog? How did you tell them?
5. A few friends know but my family don't know about it but I think I may tell them so that they can then see what I've been up to whilst away at university.
6. What’s your must have product?
7. I don't really know...
8. What brand of nail varnish do you like the most?
9. I have no idea on brands at all, I never really wear nail varnish and if I do it's normally one that someone else brought for me.
10. What’s your top hair tip?
11. I'm definitely not a very hair stylish person. I just wash it, brush it, tie it up or have it down or occasionally straighten it.
12. How long have you been blogging?
13. I started to post on a frequent basis in January this year.
14. Is there anything you dislike about blogging?
15. I don't think I've been blogging regularly to have found anything yet.
16. What’s your favourite mascara?
17. I don't wear any make up.
18. How do you like to relax after a stressful/busy day?
19. Hang out with my friends talking, laughing, having a drink or catching up on things I've missed in bed or listen to music and sing my heart out though I have no singing voice aha.
20. Why did you set up your blog?
    I'd tried it before but wasn't sure on how to do it but started reading blogs around Christmas time and thought maybe I could do this and then that was it. No looking back now.

11 Random Facts About Me:

1. I love love love Disney
2. I absolutely love tigers, they are my favourite animal
3. I work in a pet store and have done for the past 3 years
4. I played football for 5 years in a girls team, I loved it!
5. I love 80s music
6. I have only ever been outside of the UK once and that was to Paris when I was in Year 8 on a school trip
7. I prefer to be in the countryside or by the sea than in the middle of a city
8. I have 2 piercings, I got my first a year ago
9. I miss P.E., like really miss it!
10. I don't eat salad, only a little bit of lettuce
11. I have a slight obsession with tuna, mmm

My questions:

What/who was your inspiration to start blogging?

What kind of posts do you enjoy reading the most and why?

If you could travel to anywhere right now and money wasn't an object, where would you go?

What is the one thing you couldn't be without?

What is you favourite book to read?

If you could see any musical, what would it be and why?

Are you a city lover or a country bumpkin?

What is your top tip for fashion?

Is there a motto or a saying that you love?

What type of blog posts do you enjoy writing the most?

What are you passionate about?

My 11 blogs:

Nnedi http://iamncxo.blogspot.co.uk/

Alicia http://aliciajadex.blogspot.co.uk/

Charlotte http://blotandreapply.blogspot.co.uk/

Ashley http://www.jaimeombre.com/

Abbey http://www.abbeylovesbeauty1.blogspot.co.uk/

Laura http://beauty2couture.blogspot.co.uk/

Hannah http://www.hannahroyall.blogspot.co.uk/

Ashley http://privateschoolprepster.blogspot.co.uk/

Gemma http://lipsticksandlashes.blogspot.co.uk/

Abbi http://www.simply-abbi.blogspot.co.uk/

Margaret http://www.roaringtwentiesblog.blogspot.co.uk/

'I'll be there someday, I can go the distance'

So I am now officially free from essays and exams until October onwards and I could not be happier! I have worked so hard the past complete weeks slaving away at either an essay, project proposal or exam revision and now it's all done and dusted for a while. Finishing my last exam this morning was the biggest relief ever, I walked out of the building and felt this massive weight just lift right off my shoulders and this happiness coming back to me. Things had started to kept on top of me but I managed to keep my head above the water and I'm hoping all the hard work has paid off but only time will tell.

This is my song of inspiration so whenever I feel like I'm not good enough or just can't see past the struggle I put this on and listen to the lyrics and suddenly feel like anything is possible. I bloody love Disney and their songs! 

Now that I have all this free time I shall get into blogging more and get better at it!

Hope you're all doing okay and surviving any exams or work you've currently got! Just think once it's done you can just relax with some tunes and alcohol which is precisely what I am going to be doing for the next 3-4 months yay! :)

Is there a song that you listen to and it gives you the belief you need to get through situations?