Living with a boy: (almost) six months on

Outfit:

White longline shirt: H&M (similar)
Pink blazer: ASOS (similar)
Blue denim skinny jeans: George at ASDA (similar)
Silver pointed loafers: Next (similar)

It's been nearly six months since I took the plunge and moved out of my parents home and into a house with my boyfriend. Honestly? I was dreading it a bit and I wasn't quite ready to leave home. I wasn't ready to take on the responsibly and cried in the first few weeks every time I went back to my parents.

Living with someone else is hard. We've bickered about who cleans the bathroom, gone to bed angry after falling out over a stain on the sofa and got far too angry with each other over how we both choose to stack the dishwasher. We have credit card debt more than out house deposit thanks to buying a doer-upper and money has been the tightest it has ever been. Our bathroom currently looks like squatters have been residing in it for months and we have a massive hole in the plaster by the front door. Looking back I think we bought a house together with rose-tinted glasses on and didn't quite realise just how bloody difficult it would be.

Despite having been going out with each other for a decade, we learnt so much more about each other during these last six months then we have in ten years. He annoys me when he puts the glasses in the cupboard and doesn't shut the door. His laid back nature now frustrates me when he doesn't spend the whole weekend doing jobs around the house and instead chooses to 'chill out'. I've been asking to have my fireplace tiled since January... Sometimes when I'm in bed and hear him playing Call of Duty downstairs, I want to march downstairs and throw things at him. I hear that theme tune in my head.

Equally I annoy him when I take to the kitchen and use every single pan in the house. When he braves it and wanders in, he's greeted with flour on the cabinets, oil all over the cooker and chocolate on the tiles. I think he's struggling to cope with my floordrobe all over my side of the bed. In fact I know he's struggling with all my messy ways. I seem to be allergic to putting things away until it becomes an absolute joke.

Yet despite all that, its been the best decision I've ever made. I've stopped calling my parents house 'home' and when I visit over the weekend, after a few hours I'm itching to come back to my house. My own home where I can get my PJs on, leave my shoes on the stairs without being told off and raid the fridge to eat whatever I want without permission.  It's funny how sometimes I can barely remember life without living with Connor. It feels like we've always co-exisiting together in this little house. As I sit on the tube on my commute home, I feel excited when I'm two stops from home as I know I'm going to see my very own house. I relish sitting down for dinner, chatting for a while about our day and then going about our business - him on his xbox and me on my laptop. I feel so content and happy knowing he is there in the house even if we sit in different rooms or barely talk for hours.

Turns out living with a boy is pretty good indeed.

Read more

When your friends have babies - and you don't want one

Outfit:

Burgundy polka dot shirt: ASOS

Distressed skinny jeans: George at ASDA (similar)

White plimsol trainers: Converse
Red leather backpack: Michael Kors (similar)

When one of my closest friends announced she was pregnant I cried. Part of me cried because I was in shock and about five gins down, another part she looked so excited at her news and the final part cried because I was upset that the dynamics in our 13 year friendship was about to change and I wasn't ready for that happen. Selfish eh? I honestly though I had at least another five years before any babies made an appearance.

It's no surprise that I'm not a very maternal person. I can't pretend I am and I'm so awkward when I'm around babies. I'm just not interested in having any of my own at this moment in time. I'm not sure if I will ever be interested in having my own.

As my friend's pregnancy went on it slightly freaked me out. She was the first one and I was beyond happy for her because you know she was going to be a mum. But all I kept thinking about was how there was just going to be a baby. Just there. For the rest of time. Things would never be as carefree again. Are you getting the picture that I'm not that keen on change? There when we had our summer BBQs, there when we met up for brunch and there when we all got together around each other's houses. Then as her due date drew closer, I found myself on the edge of my seat every time my phone pinged. When baby 'I' finally arrived, I thought she was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen. Even now six months down the line, I find myself in Primark picking up things that I think she'll look cute in. I've surprised myself with just how much I'm taken with her and really didn't expect to be this involved. Sorry 'S'! We have a group Whatapp group and I get weekly pictures of what 'I' is doing and those messages make my day. I'm still fairly awkward around her and still find myself petrified that I'm going to drop her on her head six months down the line. But it feels like she's always been here.

Even though I love her, I don't want her to always be there. I can't tell you how selfish that makes me feel. Seeing her little face makes me smile but sometimes I just want things to go back to being how they were when we were sixteen and I relish spending time with her mum on her own, without any distractions. I didn't sign up for having a baby in my life all the time. If I did I'd have my own sprog at my side. I feel there is a time and a place and I want to spend time with my friends, with who they were BB (before baby). For me that's the mindset I'm in. My world at the minute isn't about nipple cream or breast pads. It's about going out on a Saturday night to try out the local gin bar that's just opened or booking a weekend away even though I really can't afford it.

If I don't ask about your baby or don't make a fuss, it's because for me babies just aren't my world. I don't think it's fair to force any baby on someone or make anyone feel guilty as people are at such different times in their lives. We all move at different paces. Myself? I'm moving at a snail pace when it comes to accepting I'm a fully fledged adult! It took me ten years to take the plunge to move in with my boyfriend... I can completely understand that they are your world - as they should be if you ever have a baby. It's not that I'm not interested, it's that I have other things on my mind that I'm dealing with. Other things that I want to do that at this moment in time are more important to me that babies. But I am so happy for my friends because they themselves are happy. That's all I want. I just want my friends to be happy in whatever they do. They're absolutely bossing it and it makes me proud that I know such kick-ass women.

The one main thing friends having babies has taught me though? My BFF definitely can't have a baby without me being pregnant at the same time because this needy girl will not one able to cope with the lack of attention if she has a baby and I don't!

How do you feel about your friends starting to have babies?

Read more

A catch up: March 2018

Learning to budget
Since February I've been on a strict £40 a week as we try to pay off our insane credit cards bills. It's been difficult, especially as I'm someone who loves spending my hard earned cash. But it has made me really think about everything I'm buying. I've realised I really don't need to buy my lunch from Pret twice a week as it means I can then go out for dinner with friends at the weekend. I paid a good amount off my credit card last month and put aside half of what is needed to pay for my accommodation in NYC - and my account still looks pretty healthy. Usually by 11 days before payday I'm in single figures. So I'm feeling pretty smug but I am having daily browses on ASOS wishing I could splurge on all the pretty dresses for my summer holiday. That it killing me but yet I can't seem to bring myself away from my screen! Do you have any tips on how to make saving money seem fun?!

Going to NYC
I can't believe it's been a whole year ago since we booked our flights to NYC. It's gone so fast! We flight out on 16th March for a week in the second greatest city in the world. I've made our itinerary and am really excited to tick things off that I didn't manage to do in 2014. But if you have any suggests for restaurants and bars then I'd love to hear them. You can never have too many on your list!

Mother's Day gifting
Biscuiteers got in touch to see if they could send my mum a special gift for Mother's Day. Who says no to a box of delicious biscuits? Especially when they look as delicious as this! I've been lucky enough to nibble of a fair few of their biscuits so knew my mum was in for a treat. I went for the 'Time for Tea' gift box as we are both huge fans of going to afternoon tea together and I thought it was very apt. Presented in a pretty tin, you'll receive up to 12 biscuits with the option to have one on the top layer personalised, helping to add a lovely touch. I know my mum will be thrilled to receive them!

Read more

Welcome to my new kitchen

It's official. We finally have one room completely finished in the house. The kitchen was the most important thing to me in the house. I love to cook and wanted a space I could really lose myself in and one that became the hub of the house. You can often find me on a Sunday with flour in my hair and every utensil filthy as I spend the day working through my never ending supply of cookbooks. Thanks to my dad who did a spectacular job fitting it, a family friend who look time out to do our work tops and thanks to Connor who planned every last detail, I got the kitchen I always dreamed of. Scroll down to the bottom to see where everything is from. So what did it look like before?

The layout was the first thing that struck me. It's pretty small but it didn't seem like they were making the most of the space. I also didn't like the fact you had to go through the living in order to get into the kitchen. It was pretty bland and painted this awful yellow colour which gave me a headache. It looked like hadn't been updated quite a few years, the flimsy cupboards had seen better days and the cooker was disgusting. That was the first thing we threw out.

I've always wanted a red and grey kitchen. It's one of my favourite colour combinations. I'd been collected small red appliances for a few years and we decided to go for the full statement of investing in a matching fridge and dishwasher. Best decision ever! Once we had our colour scheme confirmed, we drew up some plans to decide the layout. Like I mentioned earlier, the space wasn't utilised very well so we decided to block up the existing door and reopen the door in the dining room (the kitchen is originally an extension.) After it was plastered and our spotlights were fitted, it was time to tile the floor.

I wanted a white tiled floor to help brighten it up as I was afraid to many dark colours could make it seem smaller than it was. We opted for grey grout as we didn't want to spend all our time scrubbing the floor. I'm a very messy cook so it really would be very time consuming. For the wall tiles, I wanted a lighter grey and fell in love with these flecked hexagon tiles from Topps Tiles*. After seeing a honeycomb pattern on Pinterest, I immediately knew I wanted to recreate this at home. We used white grout to help make the grey stand out. They create a great contrast with the charcoal grey units and I couldn't be happier with the end result.

Despite knowing they would be a nightmare too keep looking spick and span, I had my heart set on light oak worktops. We bought our from DIY Kitchens and oiled them three times before we used them. I feel they create a 'country' style kitchen but yet still help it feel modern. We live in a 1950's house and I didn't want to go too traditional. The Belfast sink has been my dream and is a great talking point. Every one always comments on it when they walk through the door. I was adamant I didn't want traditional kitchen door handles so spent a good few weeks scouring the internet. The octagonal handles caught my eye and I love them so much. I feel they really help jazz the kitchen up.

Thanks to the size, we are pretty limited on cupboard space. I have a lot of crockery and a lot of cookbooks. This is where shelves came in handy! I've always loved the idea of having crockery on display as I feel it helps to make a kitchen feel homely. I've got my favourite cookbooks on the top shelf and will rotate them. After all I do have 156 books to thumb through! We ordered some brackets from Ebay and my dad made us some shelves from an old scaffolding board - which will match our dining room table eventually.

I love an accessory but didn't want to make the worktops seem to cluttered. Believe it or not, this is me being a minimalist! I love anything Orla Kiely as you can tell by my cake tins and utensil pot*. I've tried to pick patterns with a hint of red or grey in them to help them tie into the kitchen.

Finally, I once again always knew I wanted to have a range cooker but we wasn't sure if it would look a bit too large for the space. In the end I managed to get my way and we went for black. I felt that stainless steel just looked to industrial and black was going to age a lot better than any other colour. I didn't anticipate how much of an effort it is to keep black cookers looking spotless!

Let me know if you have any questions - would be more than glad to answer it. Renovating a house is tough business!

Grey kitchen units:  DIY Kitchens
Belfast sink: DIY Kitchens
Solid oak work tops: DIY Kitchens
Silver octagonal door handles: Bombay Duck
Solid oak draining board: Amazon
Utensil pot: Orla Kiely via Hurn and Hurn*
Copper jars: H&M and Homesense
DIY shelves: Brackets from eBay/ shelf made from scaffolding boards
Silver taps: Victoria Plumbing
Grey hexagon wall tiles: Topps Tiles*
Grey wall radiator: Soak
Red fridge: Swan
Red dishwasher: Swan
Red microwave: Swan
Black range cooker: Leisure
Red kettle: Kitchenaid
Red stand mixer: Kitchenaid
Red blender: Kitchenaid

Read more

The pressure to do it all - it's ok to say no

Outfit:
Hot pink coat: ASOS (similar)
Black ruffle shirt: Zara (similar)
Distressed blue denim skinny jeans: George at ASDA (similar)
Gold pointed midi heels: ASOS (similar)

As much as times have changed over the years, there's still the age-old expectation of being a women and what it entails. It's something that I've been thinking a lot about since I've entered the last year of my twenties. Social pressures increase and people start implying and making comments about issues that I really have no interest in talking about with them. Everyone and their uncle Jack seems to have an opinion about everything you should be doing. The pressure almost becomes unbearable.

As a woman I do feel there is the pressure to absolutely boss it at work, give our all to both family and friend relationships, keep our homes ticking over as well as be independent and do the things that matter to us. We're expected to literally be superwoman and there's something wrong with us if we don't fulfil it. But there are only 24 hours in a day. And sometimes, this really just isn't possible. I feel like the pressure society puts us under makes me do a half-arsed job. I feel like I'm not actually giving anything my full attention and as a result I find myself running around like a headless chicken.  Then I feel like even more of a failure because nothing is being done to the best of a ability. It's so hard to hold your hands up and admit that you really can't do everything.

It's ok to re-evaluate, take a step back and say no. It doesn't make you lazy, it doesn't make you unappreciative and it doesn't make you a failure.  Think about what is important to you and not about what is important for society. If you don't want to do the washing up for a week and would prefer to go out to the pub with friends, then that's your decision. Who cares if your house is a little messy when you're living your best life enjoying the two for one bottles of prosecco on a Monday night?  It's ok to prioritise one thing above the other. It's also ok to ask for help if you need it. We all need a little helping hand at one point or another. It's what makes us human.

Read more

How to do a gallery wall in your living room

Corner sofa: DFS*, Grey floor lamp: IKEA, Custard Cream cushion: Nikki McWilliams, Wire lampshade: IKEA, Mustard throw: H&M, Grey, navy and mustard cushion: Sainsbury's, Gin cushion:  Matalan

We first came up with the idea in Copenhagen two years to start collecting prints from every city we visit with the view to create a gallery wall when we moved out. We haven't managed to pick up a print in every city but we've got a great collection so far. I love having a mementos from trips we've been on as I'm a sucker for picking up a souvenir. They catch my eye and I'm immediately taken back to that walk along the river in Derry or the music festival we went to in Budapest. Here are my tips on how to create a gallery wall in your living room.

1. Choose a theme
We went for travel as it is something we're both so passionate about. If I'm honest, I never stop thinking about where to go on holiday! By choosing a theme I feel it helps to inject some of your personality into your house. Everyone always comments in the gallery wall when they visit and it's an immediate conversation starter. My friend Hannah has a music wall filled with posters from her favourite bands and gigs. It looks great and really does sum up her personality.

2. Pick different sizes
We've gone for a variety of sizes in prints in different colour frames. It helps to make it so much more interesting and much more of a statement. You want your gallery wall to make an impact as soon as you enter the room. Our frames come from both IKEA and Wilko. As we have white walls, we opted for a trio of colours to help make the prints stand out.

3. Lay them out on the floor
Before you take the plunge, make sure you lay them all out on the floor. Take pictures of different combinations so you can really study them before making up your mind. It's a big commitment to put a hole in the wall so make sure you 100% know what you want.

4. Leave room to add
If you choose a big space, arrange the prints so that it looks finished but also has room to add some more. I feel like a gallery wall is an ongoing project that can be added to as and when you fancy. We arranged our prints in the middle so we have enough room at the sides and below to add some more. We going to keep an eye out for some postcards on our next trips to try and fill some of the smaller spaces.

Read more

Not being a Girl boss doesn't make you a failure

Outfit:
Beige oversize mac: ASOS (similar)
Skinny jeans: George at ASDA (similar)
Red gazelles: Adidas (similar)
Red checked scarf: Accessorize (similar)
Burgandy rucksack: Fjallraven kanken via ASOS

Girl boss is one of those buzz words at the minute. Women all over my social media timeline and in real life seem to be absolutely bossing at life. They're setting up businesses, choosing to work for themselves and climbing to the top of the career ladder. Without seeming to take a breath, they're at the top of their game and doing it with ease. I love seeing women do well, it gives me such a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

But I'm not a girl boss. Most days I feel like I can barely keep my head above water and I'm drowning thanks to poor time management skills. I don't really have any side hustles unless you count making an extra £30 a month on eBay selling my old clothes. After working 9-5 every week I just don't have the capacity in my brain to think about anything else. I can barely sometimes find enough energy to write on this blog even though once I settle down, it's one of my favourite things to do. I'm not an over-achiever, in fact it could be said that I'm probably a little bit of an underachiever because all I long for is a quiet life. Working to the point of exhaustion tends to be a badge of honour. I don't get enough gratification from working that I feel the need to own this badge.

But most of all, I don't want to to be a girl boss. Work really isn't the be all and end for me. I don't think I really want to climb to the very top of my career ladder. It may be lack of ambition but all I ever wanted was to have a job that I enjoy going into work every day in the career that I always dreamed off. That's always been enough for me. I've never been motivated by money and never wanted the insane responsibility that came with a large wage packet. I work hard, I try to do everything I can to the best of my ability so I know I gave it my all but I don't want work to define me.

It's ok to not want to do it all. It doesn't mean you're a failure.

Read more

The skincare products I always repurchase

Thanks to my job I get to raid beauty sales pretty often which is heaven for this product junkie. I'm often trialling lots of products because I can't stop myself for picking them up for a couple of quid. So I know when I actually buy something full price after it has run out that I'm on to a skincare winner. These are the products I have bought time and time again with my hard earned cash.

Philosophy Purity 3 in 1 cleanser
I swear by this and have been buying it for years. It's gentle on my skin, removes every inch of make up and a little goes a long way, meaning the bottle seems to last forever. Good news for my bank balance. Thanks to working in the city, my skin needs all the help it can to stop it from drying out. That commuter life! I use it every morning and it really does keep my skin feeling soft. That's all I want from a cleanser!

Garnier Skinactive Micellar Cleansing Water
I switched over to this a couple of years ago when I was having a bit of a poor month and couldn't afford my usual Bioderma Micellar water. I've never looked back. It great for my sensitive skin and I can use it whilst I have contact lenses in too. I only need to gentle sweep it across my face to remove make up - even stubborn mascara. My skin always feels so fresh and clean.

Origins Clear Improvement Charcoal Mask
This is my holy grail. I suffer from blackheads which I blame on commuting into London. But this beauty really helps to keep them at bay. I try to use it about twice a week and find a medium thick layer really works its magic. Let it dry completely for it to have maximum impact, I know how easy it is to get bored and wash it off when not quite all of it has hardened. I notice the effect almost immediately the next day.

No7 Early Defence Day Cream
I always think No 7 is an unsung hero. The range is always so gentle on my skin and I feel like it really works. I've been using this moisturiser for a good couple of years and despite trying other ones, I keep coming back to it.  When I don't use it for a few days I really notice tightness in my face. Which proves to me it does what it says on the tin!

Pixi Glow Tonic
Admittedly this is a very new addition to my skincare collection. I finally took the plunge after giving in to all the hype. I'm wishing I did it sooner! I'll definitely be buying this time and time again. Glycolic acid is said to be great for combating blackheads, which is something I mentioned above I suffer with, and with scarring.

Read more

Four tips on how to style your kitchen shelves

Since I've moved out I've discovered I REALLY like rearranging shelves. I love giving all my useless but pretty trinkets a place and seeing it all come together. A couple of weeks ago my dad very kindly made me some shelves out of scaffold boards with the handmade brackets from eBay for my kitchen. It's probably my favourite corner of the house. Here are some tips on how to style kitchen shelves, in my very humble opinion of course!

Use colour
Originally I wanted to have all my glasses on the shelves but it didn't look right. It was too monotone against the white wall. It really needed some colour to help make it pop. I found that cookbooks are a great option for this as they're naturally colourful. Try not to put too many block colours together and break up any white products.

Store things you need
We've popped our coffee cups and our jar full of coffee pods on the shelf. It makes a lot of sense as the coffee machine is underneath it so we won't have to keep walking to opposite end of the kitchen to use it. You want it too look pretty yet practical. Otherwise what's the point? I did want to put all my grains and pulses on it but it makes much more sense to display these bits and bobs near the cooker.

Put the least used things on top
There's nothing worse if you're a lazy girl like me then having to keep stretching up to the top shelf for the things you use the most. So you'll want to put infrequently used bits on the very top. I decided to put my favourite cookbooks on top as they're something I only dig out at the weekend. The sugar, flour, cups and coffee pods are often used everyday in some capacity.

Improvise with bookends
Need somewhere to put those random decorative pieces you bought because you thought they looked nice? They work great as bookends. I treated myself to this gorgeous copper pineapple ice bucket from Oliver Bona with a birthday voucher from last year. I won't ever use it as an ice bucket but it looks really nice on display, it's pretty heavy to keep books up straight too.

What's on my shelves?

Red retro scales: Wilko (similar), copper pineapple: Oliver Bonas, gold and glass jars: H&M (similar), grey handleless coffee mugs: H&M (similar), Linen small candle: The White Company*,  selection of cookbooks: Amazon, brown glass candle: Earl of East*, swan measuring spoons: birthday gift

Do you have any tips on how to style kitchen shelves?

Read more

A letter to my 18 year old self as I turn 29.

29 huh? That seemed so old and yet here we are. Entering the final year of our twenties. It is going to fly by.

Life isn't exactly how you imagined it 11 years ago. But then in a way, I think it's better than you could ever have imagined.

That boy you plucked up the courage to ask out at Sixth Form? Well he's still around despite the fact you were so sure you were going to go your separate ways once you went off to Uni. You never did move away to Greenwich, instead you choose to stay at home and go to a local university. Now you own a house with that lanky, blond boy who used to make your heart flutter in his skinny jeans. You picked a good egg all those years ago. He's kind, thoughtful, ages like a fine wine and makes one heck of a spreadsheet which helps to keep your spending in check and allowed you to get on the property ladder.

There's a few dreams you still haven't ticked off your wishlist. All those dreams of travelling the world with only a backpack, two pairs of knickers and a pair of flips flops never materialised. And you've still never made it to Thailand. But you have been lucky enough to see some places other people only dream of. That travel bug has well and truly bitten you. I don't really think you were ever cut out to slum it if I'm honest.  New York was every bit as incredible as you imagined. In fact, you're taking mum to see it later this year. So you'll have been twice!

You never made it out of your home Essex town despite it being the thing you wanted most in the world. You haven't lived in London but there's still time yet. One thing you'll realise is that dreams don't always happen overnight.

You'll finally work in London on a newspaper! Not quite the Kate Adie you wanted but you've found your passion. It took a long time to get there but you found a job you don't dread going into every day. Just keep slogging away. Interiors make you happy and you get to see your name online. Believe me when I say you'll never tire of that.

You'll never quite shake that crippling self doubt over how you look. You'll grow more confident in time but there'll still be that little voice in your head that tells you your hips are too wide and your thighs are too thick. It's hard. And you'll feel like you're in a constant battle with yourself. But make the most of how you look now. You are hot! That three and a half stone you lose will all come back on when you hit 28. Enjoy it now. It's going to be a lot harder to lose weight when you get older. Trust me, I'm struggling.

Remember that time when you voted for the first time? You come from a Conservative background but at the moment in the voting booth you went for Labour at the last minute. You had no reason why other than thinking it was the right thing to do. It will take you ten years and a certain man to make you realise exactly why you voted Labour. Would you believe you even joined the Labour Party and went leafleting in the General Election?

Life is good. You're surrounded by family and friend who love you fiercely and unconditionally despite your faults. Despite your quick temper that always lands you in hot water, your strong opinions that seem to get you in to trouble and your sheer stubbornness that causes you no end of aggro. Trust me when I say you totally lucked out when they handed out families. You have a great group of girl friends who give you the strength and courage to make your voice heard. Because no matter how much people may belittle and mock you, your voice does matter. You should always be proud of your passionate beliefs. Sometimes this passion can make you come across as not listening to other people's opinions. You'll need to work on this. But don't ever be afraid of standing up or fighting for what you believe in.

But, you're doing alright girl.

Read more

My goals for 2018

Redo our bathroom

To put it bluntly, we have run out of money for our house. We ran out of money about three weeks into this two year project! Thankfully we managed to completely revamp and finish our kitchen and living room. So our goal for the upcoming year is to rip out our bathroom and start from scratch. I hate it. The shower is so weak, the bath never looks clean, it has a weird wooden dropped ceiling  and we lack any type of floor. We're giving us until the summer/early autumn to save - and pay off the house credit card -  and then hopefully the refit will be completed by Christmas! We've got someone coming round to give us a cost this week so we know exactly how much we need to save.

Get my savings mojo back
I saved for a house and then in rebellion, turned into the worst person ever when it came to keeping money in my bank account. 2019 sees my friendship group all turn 30 as we have had a plan for the past five years to go to Las Vegas. This will obviously not be cheap! Connor and I also want to visit our friends who have moved to Malaysia to teach. We missed them this year but hopefully they're staying for a second year. Then why not try and tag Singapore onto the end of the trip as it's only an hour plane journey away? I would also like to continue our anniversary tradition and go away for a few days to celebrate. 2019 has the potential to be an epic year for travel - as long as 2018 Sophie gets her savings mojo back.

Get a hold on my finances again
My finances are atrocious. Considering 2017 was suppose to be the year that I became sensible, they seem to have gotten worse. My credit card bill makes me slightly nervous and I run out of money about one week into my wage packet. I need to get my finances in gear if I'm going to have a cracking 30th birthday year. I'm going to start selling much more on eBay, start bringing my lunch into work every day religiously  and only buy things I truly love.

Start using my cookbooks

I have a ridiculous number of cookbooks. Over 130 to be exact. Sickening I know. I love to flick through them, turn the pages over of things I want to make and make a mental list that I'll try it out at the weekend. Then I never do... Now I'm living in my own house and in charge of my weekly shop, I want to try out new recipes and become much more adventurous. I get in pretty late each nights at around 7.45 so I want to prefect those quick, simple yet delicious recipes so I don't just eat Spag Bol and Fajitas every single night. 

Read 15 books
I managed to read eight books in 2017 which to some isn't much at all but it was a great improvement to the three in 2016. This year I want to hit 15 books. I've got a beach holiday coming up which I'm hoping will provide the perfect opportunity to relax with my nose in a book. I'm also hoping to get back in the habit of reading during my commute, I kinda fell off the wagon in December thanks to feeling slightly hungover most mornings...

Stay in more
Finally 2018 will be the year of hermit Sophie. I really want to enjoy our house this year and I can't if  I'm never at home. We entertained friends and family from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day and although at time I wanted to pull my hair out, I absolutely loved it. I've always wanted a house that people feel at home in and pop in without a second thought. I'd like to organise a few more soirées instead of going to the pub on a Saturday night.

Read more

2017 goals: how did I get on?

That's it. We're now in 2018. As I do every year, I set myself some goals for 2017. Here's how I got on...

1. Read more books
I set myself a goal of reading ten books in order to get back into regular reading. I didn't hit this but I did manage to read eight books which I didn't think was too bad going. I've got a blog post coming up articulating my thoughts on the books I managed to read.

2. See the world
I knew that I wouldn't be able to venture outside Europe this year due to buying a house but I had some amazing trips. I know I harp on about this all the time, but we really are so much to have a diverse, vibrant and bloody great continent on our doorstep. I managed to take a trip over to Ireland to see family, visited the South of France on a girls trip to see Elodie, take an incredible two week trip touring Poland, show Paris to my mum and travel to Cardiff for Gem's wedding. Not bad for a year I was supposed to 'take it easy'.

3. Look after myself from the inside out
This didn't really get started. I started off with good intentions and now? I feel like I'm two steps away from a burn out. December was ridiculously busy and I'm suffering now. I've mentioned that I'm looking to take a step back and with this,  I'm hoping I can start putting self-care at the top of my list. It's a work in progress right?

4. Pay of my credit card.
LOL. This did not happen in the slightest. If anything, it's gotten worse. But it is still manageable and I've got every intention to start reducing it as soon as possible. I'm hoping to stay in more this year, so the money I usually use to go out will hopefully be used to pay it off. I'm off to New York in March and want to have cleared a big chunk off it by then. Just in case I see anything I like!

Read more

Thoughts on 2017

Hello? Yes I'm still alive! I fell off the radar a little this month thanks to a broken camera, moving house and a broken MacBook. But my camera is in the repair shop, I was lucky enough to get a shiny new MacBook for Christmas and now I'm all moved in. December has been one hell of a month and I'm slightly glad to see the back of it and finally get settled into a routine.

I'm still scratching my head at the fact we're nearing the end of 2017. As years go, 2017 was a lot better than 2016 which I was very glad to see the back of. As most people say, I'm not quite sure how we got here. It's been a funny old year and one that's been a bit of a rollercoaster. A lot of things have been going on behind the scenes but it's been full of not only lots of tears but also lots of laughs. I feel like I've hardly stopped and life has been an unbelievable whirlwind. Life is whizzing past and I feel like I can't find the handbreak to make it slow down.

Since March, the whole year has been all about getting our house ready. It's been a long hard slog and at times I wanted to ask if I could please give it back. But it all came to head on December 1st as we finally moved in. It's beginning to thankfully resemble a home now rather than a building site. It still has a very long way to go but I feel like there is now a light at the end of a tunnel. I don't think I quite realised just how hard it would be or how sad I would be at moving out from my parents house. I came home once and cried to Connor about how I didn't want to live with him anymore after I had been back to collect some things. I just felt so overwhelmed at the situation and homesick for the home I'd spent 28 years of my life now. But now those feelings are subsiding, it still feels sad but I get so excited to come home after a day at work and do mundane things such as food shopping and re-arranging the cushions on the sofa. I'm looking forward to things quieting down and really enjoy the house as I feel like we've hardly had time to enjoy it thanks to the festive period.

As I enter the last year of my 20s, I feel so content and at peace with my life. I don't think I've ever been happier if I'm honest. Sure it would be nice to have more disposable income, to travel the world more, to lose a bit of weight and live in a house that doesn't see you covered in dust after an hour. But I'm lucky enjoy to do a job that I love, have seen places that other people only dream about,  able to eat three meals a day when some struggle to put food on the table and get on the property ladder by the age of 30. We had around 16 friends round on Christmas Eve and as I looked around, after about 1/2 bottle of gin, I felt so lucky to have such amazing people in our lives. People who have stuck around for the past 12 years through thick and thin. Life is really about who you spend it with, not what you spend it with.

I also like to thank each and every one of you who read this little ramble on the internet. I feel like I've neglected this space this year and I haven't giving it the attention it deserves. I've often thought about pulling the plug but somehow I keep getting drawn back. It's the friendships I've made, the cheerleaders who I've never met and the community that keeps on giving that make me come back for me. Thank you. Thank you very much.  I feel like I've got some of my fire back so expect much more as we roll into next year.

I'm excited to enter 2018. We have some amazing holidays to look forward too, three weddings to enjoy, the honour of being Maid of Honour for my sister-in-law, the fun of living a two-minute walk from our best friends and a two-bedroom terraced house (that still blows my mind) to enjoy.

I'm ready for you 2018. Show me what you got.

Read more

Travel plans for 2018

Now that 2017 travel plans have official come to a halt, I'm now starting to plan where I'm off to next year. It's already set to be a busy year and all of my holiday at work has been accounted for. Best start saving my pennies!

Image from Girl in Florence

Bordeaux
We had put aside a few days to celebrate our anniversary in January with the hope of scoring some cheap flights. I've been keen to explore more of France since I went to Marseille so was over the moon to find flights for £20 to Bordeaux. We even managed to find accommodation for £105 which means we're going to go away for a grand total of £145 - £72.50 each. Our cheapest holiday yet! I've heard some great things about Bordeaux and am looking forward to spending a few lazy days eating cheese, drinking wine and experiencing the student-y vibe.

New York
This was completely irresponsible by my mum and I. But that's what makes life fun eh? Once again I stumbled across some cheap flights - story of my life -, mentioned it to my mum and before I knew it they were booked, leaving us both wondering how on earth we're going to pay for it. It's going to be tough but we're slowing building up our kitty so I think it'll be just fine. It'll be my mum's first time to NYC so we have a few sightseeing trips plans but mostly we want to pretend we're in SATC drinking overpriced cocktails and hanging out on rooftop bars. We'll be over there for St Partrick's day which will be exciting!

Photo taken from Little Miss Katy

Mallorca
Two of my schoolfriends are getting married in May so lots of us are heading over there to celebrate. We're staying in Palmanova near the Magaluf area which is tragic yet hilarious. I didn't think I'd be heading to Magaluf for the first time at the grand age of 29. But there's such a huge group of us going so it'll be fun to have a partying holiday. The actually wedding is at a gorgeous venue in Alaro, seriously it's so dreamy. We're not too far away from the capital of Palma so I'm hoping we can squeeze in a bus trip as we're there for a week.

Benidorm
Just three weeks after I come back from Mallorca, I'm off again to celebrate my sister-in-law's hen do. My poor liver! I can't say too much because she might be reading...

Northern Ireland
Finally we're be hopping over to Northern Ireland again in August for a week. So far the plan is to stay in Belfast for a few days as we've never actually visited except to drive through and then base ourselves back in Derry to spend time with family for the remainder. I'm hoping to finally visit the Giant's Causeway (fourth time lucky), spend a day on Portstewart Strand as it rained last time and see the Free Derry museum as it was closed back in January.

Read more