As I mentioned in my previous post, 2017 has been an amazing year and I've achieved so much more than I thought I could when I made my 2017 goals.

I didn't manage all of them, but some of them I smashed out of the park so that makes up for it ;)

Money Goals

1. Replenish our savings

As I'm sure you can imagine buying our house has taken its toll on our savings so this year I want to try and help them recover a bit so we have a more adequate rainy day fund. 

2. Repay Kiera

My sister very kindly lent me some money to buy my new carriage when I had none. I have paid her back more than half now but this year I want the debt to be finally wiped out. 

3. Save enough for some sort of mini break

We might manage this or we might not as we have other priorities for our money but it would be good if we could manage a weekend away somewhere this year. 

Travel

4. Visit Rome

This was actually one of my 2016 goals and this year we are definitely making it happen because it's all already booked! 

Jared and I are going to Rome in late April for our five year anniversary. 

I've always wanted to go back and explore more and I'm really excited about it. Jared's Mum very kindly bought me a guide book for Christmas so looking forward to putting that to good use.

5.  Visit more local attractions on our doorstep

We made a good start on this in 2017 but there are lots more places to see in the immediate area that we live in. I want to make an effort to visit these before we head further afield. 

Development

6. Pass my first financial exam

This is a big one for me this year as I am back to studying. I am officially a student again and have a NUS card to prove it. 

I am sitting my first CII qualification and have started studying for the first module. I am aiming to pass this as soon as possible so hopefully I can get back to studying in the New Year.

Blogging

7. Sort out my domain name

I have actually owned the domain name for this blog for years but because I'm not very good with computers I haven't managed to successfully set it up.

This year I want to get this sorted as I think it will make my blog a little nicer, plus I am currently paying for something I'm not using which is daft.

8. Create some categories

I want to change the layout of my blog a little and make it easier to navigate. As I'm not the most tech savvy person in the world I'm not sure if I'll be able to manage this but I want to give it a go!

Home and Lifestyle

9. Spruce up the outside of the house

Now that we have redecorated the inside of our house, I want to give a bit of attention to the exterior. 

Our windows and fascias need repainting and I'd like to improve the garden a bit.

I've thought of a few small and easily achievable ideas that I'd like to try, more on that at a later date!

10. Grow more stuff

I've always loved growing things and I spend many happy hours in the garden with my mum and grandmothers as a child. 

As I've got older I always try and grow something at home, but I'm always a bit half hearted with it. 

Now that Jared and I have our own house I want to try and grow a few new things I haven't tried before. Thanks to Cider With Rosie for sharing her veg growing excitement and inspiring me to continue with my old lady hobbies ;)

Exploring Wiltshire - Visiting Old Sarum

The August bank holiday weekend already feels like it was years ago rather than just a few weekends back. The Friday before the bank holiday was such a great day. First off, it was payday, which is always a great start to any Friday. The forecast for the weekend was fab and it was already sunny on Friday. My work treated us to bacon sandwiches and let us go home at 4pm! To top it all I had the whole following week off work. I was practically skipping by the end of the day.

We spent the Sunday of the bank holiday visiting Old Sarum to watch the medieval joust. For those who aren't familiar with Wiltshire, Old Sarum is the earliest settlement in Salisbury and lies about 2 miles north of the current city. The site itself has been settled since prehistoric times and the fort dates from the Iron Age. 

It was later controlled by the Romans and the Saxons where it was used as a stronghold against the Vikings. The Normans built the Motte and Bailey castle and the cathedral, the remains of which can still be seen today.

When construction began for the new (and current) cathedral in Salisbury during the 13th century Old Sarum began to decline and many of the buildings were used to provide stone for the newer buildings. 

If you have any interest in history this is well worth a visit and isn't as packed as some of Wiltshire's more popular sites (and by that I mean Stonehenge). It's really cool to walk around it and imagine what it must have been like to live there. 

My parents used to take me to visit when I was little as it's a great day out for small children, plenty of room to run around safely and history that is actually tangible enough for even little kids to understand.

Jared has never been and what better day to go then when the fort is playing host to a medieval joust? The sunshine was glorious, we packed a picnic and spent a day enjoying the sunshine.

There was plenty to watch with the falconry display and the knights displaying their skill at arms.

Finally at the end of the day there was the joust itself, which was action packed and great to watch!

If you're ever in Wiltshire and you're looking for things to do that showcase the history of the area, then Old Sarum is a must see.

We have so much history right on our doorstep here in the UK, that sometimes I think we don't make enough of an effort to get out there and actually see it. 

Plus the view from the top, overlooking the modern city is pretty cool as well.

Have you ever visited? Or do you have something awesome near your home town worth seeing? Let me know! I'm always looking for new things to see and do!

Visiting Oxford

One of my goals for this year was to go and visit my best friend Ann in Exeter before she graduated. Sadly, we were both too busy to manage it and the time just flew by this year. Before I knew it, she was prancing across the stage looking fabulous in her gown so I would have to take my trip there some other time. To be honest I've been to Exeter several times, the goal was more about making time to visit Ann this year.

Luckily though another goal was to take a day trip to Oxford which happens to be pretty close to where Ann lives... So I've switched it up a bit and jumped in the car a few weeks ago to go and visit her. 

First off getting there was not straight forward as the road into her village was closed. I ended up driving around in circles for about 25 minutes trying to follow the really poorly signed diversion, which kept bringing me out at dead ends because the roads were shut. Eventually I found myself in a village I recognised and figured it out from there, but it was pretty stressful! Don't you just adore living in England with our crap tiny roads and love of shutting important things (like ROADS) on Sundays?

The village Ann lives in is lucky enough to have it's own station so we jumped straight on the train to Oxford. I've always wanted to visit and I've got no idea why I haven't already when it really isn't that far from where I live. 

We were also so lucky with the weather and had glorious sunshine for the whole day. The forecast had said it was going to rain so I was totally not dressed for the sun, but isn't that the fun of a day trip to somewhere in Britain, being unprepared for the weather?

So we spent most of our trip just wandering about and looking at all the spires and listening to the bells tolling. When I got home and looked at my phone we had walked nearly 12km! No wonder it felt like we did a fair chunk of walking. Top tip, if you're planning a trip to Oxford, where flat and comfortable shoes. The city is small and flat and every thing is in walking distance so you will do a lot of walking about.

We went to visit Brasenose College which is where one of best friends is at uni. It is quite literally a whole world away from the gross pebbledashed building (that used to be a hostel) next door to the city crematorium that I lived in when I was in halls at uni. Shout out to any Bencraft people who might read this (you know you'd rather be from Bencraft). Our halls may have been rank to look at it but the people in there made up for it <3

For real though, it actually looks like a magical place to live and study with all the amazing old buildings. With the one exception of the Earth Science building which is this horrible new modern construction, that does not jive with the rest of the city in my opinion. Thankfully I'm not clever enough to get into Oxford because imagine being SO DISAPPOINTED when you arrived and then found out your lectures were in the only ugly building in the whole damn city. 

For lunch we went to M&S and grabbed some picnic food before heading to Christ Church meadow to sit under a shady tree. We sat here for ages chatting and watching the world go by. If you take a trip here and it's a nice day I would highly recommend doing this. Heck be more organised than us and pack yourself a picnic because the meadow is gorgeous and it's a great spot to really soak up the atmosphere.

We spent most of the afternoon exploring the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. This was rather like visiting an excellent, scaled down version of the Natural History Museum, which I love but there is SO much to see, it's hard to squeeze everything in. 

My favorite part was looking at their fossil and mineral collections as it was pretty extensive and they had some really cool exhibits (geology nerd over here). The best part was that it was free as I'm really trying to watch my spending at the moment so it was kind on the wallet too. 

It was such a lovely day and so nice to just spend so many hours wandering about with one of my oldest friends and have a chance for a really great catch up.

Oxford, I love you. I'll be coming back! Let me know if you have any tips of places that I should visit or eat at on my next trip there!
 

Weekend away in Devon and visiting Beer

So a few weekends ago things were just getting a bit hectic and life was feeling a little full on so Jared and I booked Friday off work and we headed to Devon for the weekend to escape from everything for a bit.

It felt good to be just the two of us, even if it was only for a few days and to not have any sort of schedule or to do list to get through. As much as I love my family and I am grateful for my parents allowing us to share their home with them, sometimes we just need a break where we can be alone without interruptions. 

When we go away to Devon we tend to do nothing but relax, watch films and drink lots of tea as we're only there for a few days and we just love to soak up the peace and quiet. We're lucky enough to be able to stay in my Nan's holiday caravan so we don't feel pressured to do things as we're not paying for the accommodation.

This time though we made an effort to get our butts out of the door and explore a little better. We headed off to Beer which is about an hours drive from where we were staying. 

Jared and I have actually been here before during a weekend visit for a friends 21st. However we didn't really get time to look around and it was November so the weather was a bit grim. 

This time though the weather was glorious and we had a lovely time.

We ate lunch in a pub garden on the cliff top overlooking the beach before going for a walk down by the sea. As we're at the seaside we both had an icecream to finish and ate them walking along the beach looking at all the different beach huts.

We took a walk along the cliff path which we didn't notice on our first visit here and the view from the top is pretty awesome. Apparently it goes all the way to the next village but we were too short on time to walk that far. 

The best thing about Beer though it the cute little shops which line the road and these are well worth looking into as they sell a whole range of things including lots of locally made produce.

If you're ever in the area, definitely give Beer a visit!

10 Reasons why you should visit Norway in the Winter

1. Northern lights

It goes without saying that you need to visit in Winter in order to have a chance of catching a glimpse of the elusive Northern Lights. You will also need to travel far enough North to be within the Arctic Circle for the best chance to see them. They are truly a bucket list moment and we were lucky enough to see some really good Auroras during our trip to Norway.

2. Snow

There's something so magical about snow. Especially when you're from the UK and it snows so rarely here. When it does the whole country shuts down and it makes life quite difficult. The Norwegians don't get stressed about it because they are totally prepared and can just enjoy how beautiful it makes everything look.

3. Snowmobiling

With all the snow there are unique activities on offer that you just cannot do back home. If you love all things outdoors and adventure then you have to try snowmobiling. Its so much fun and so long as you are properly kitted out you won't feel the cold.

4. Dog sledding

If there was one thing I dreamed of doing when I visited Norway it was going Dog sledding. There is no better way to experience the landscape then racing through with a pack of happy dogs. Again, you need snow to do this properly so no good visiting in June!

5. You feel like the only visitors there

Not only was every Norwegian we came across exceptionally welcoming and friendly but during the winter there are a lot fewer tourists. Considering the population is only 5 million and only 2% of those live in Northern Norway I can imagine it feeling quite crowded. Go in the winter and you practically have the place to yourself.

6. Ice hotel

Visit during the winter months and you can visit (or even stay!) in one of the Ice hotels that are built entirely out of snow and ice. We went to have a look round one and they really are incredible. The owner told me that rooms start at around £230 a night which includes dinner and breakfast which was a lot more reasonable than I was expecting. If I ever get the chance to go back I definitely want to spend the night in one.

7. Its not actually that cold

Thanks to the Gulf stream the west coast of Norway is far milder than other places of a similar latitude (such as Finland). The further inland you travel the colder it gets but along the coast the coldest temperatures we experienced were around -10⁰C. It can get colder than that of course but as long as you have the proper clothes you will be fine. It can easily get that cold if you live in a rural area of the UK so its nothing most people can't handle. In some of the more southern places we visited it was no different to the temperatures we had back home.

8. Nor is it that dark

Almost everyone who found out that we were going to Norway in winter asked me if it would be dark all the time. Norway does experience the Polar Night but if you go when we did in mid February the sunrise/sunset times are similar to what we experience in the UK during November/December. The sun rises at around 8am and sets at around 4pm. If you are further south then you obviously get more daylight. There's plenty of daylight hours to see and do everything. 

9. People sled everywhere

They have special sleds to carry your shopping in and ones that have a seat for children to sit on. Absolutely awesome.

10. It feels like Christmas all the time

Even though we visited in February with all the snow, and the cold you really get the cosy feeling that I always associate with Christmas. After a long day out in the cold soaking up the magical landscape and all the mountain views you can come back into the warm and get all snuggly again.  

You can read all about my trip to Norway here

11 Things I've learnt from my first cruise

On Tuesday I returned from the trip of a lifetime to Norway. I've always wanted to visit somewhere in Scandinavia and this certainly ticked all the right boxes.

I went with my parents, 3 sisters, my Grandma and Jared on a 16 night Land of the Northern Lights cruise aboard the Marco Polo with Cruise Maritime Voyages. Apart from my Grandma who has been on a few cruises, none of us had ever considered setting foot on board a cruise ship. It seems such an old lady past time and its certainly expensive.

So why did we go? First off we were really excited by the itinerary with 8 ports of call along the West coast of Norway with amazing excursions being offered, and of course the opportunity to glimpse the Northern Lights. Second, the dates fell over my Dad's 50th birthday so it was pretty perfect for us to all be together and celebrate such a big milestone. Finally, it was something different. Like a lot of people on a budget our holidays tend to be about relaxing on a nice hot beach somewhere in Spain so this seemed like a totally new experience.

So first off a couple of reasons why you might not enjoy a cruise:

1. Being at sea is not that exciting on a ship that is adult only and definitely aimed at older people.  The couple of days we had at sea were ok because I quite like just reading and watching TV on my laptop but a lot of the onboard activities were definitely planned with an older audience in mind (eg. bridge, knitting, line dancing etc). In fact my youngest sister at 17 was the youngest person to have ever been on board the Marco Polo! So if crafting and card playing are things you enjoy then there certainly is a lot going on, but otherwise think ahead and plan your own things to do

2. Our room was basic because we opted for the cheapest room which meant we had no porthole or window. This was absolutely fine because you get what you pay for and everything was clean, functional and comfortable but it can feel a little claustrophobic.

3. I was quite sea sick on a few occasions (the North Sea is ROUGH) which I was not expecting as I have been on some scary ferry crossings and done some seriously choppy boat work on our uni's research ship but I was not prepared for this. We had swells of 14 feet which isn't that big but it was enough! Crawling to the bathroom on my hands and kneed was definitely a low point. Turns out I'm ok with the ship going side to side but not good with us rising up and dropping down. It feels like you're on a rollercoaster 24 hours a day and there's no way to get away from it. Hats off the crew who carry on performing/cooking/serving drinks like nothing is happening!

However, there are also some excellent reasons to consider going on a cruise:

4. It's very relaxing not having to worry about cooking or organising anything as once you've picked the excursions you wanted its all organised for you. As I am normally tasked with organising everything having someone else work out all the logistics for our group of 8 people was lovely.

5. There's no internet on board so it forces you to actually switch off and relax. I've read more books on board then I have in the past 6 months! Its a slower pace of life and I didn't feel that frantic rush to get stuff done all the time like I do when I'm at home.

6. Our fellow passengers were all very friendly and keen to chat to us, even though we were some of the youngest people on the ship and the crew were all exceptionally helpful and friendly.

7. As we were out at sea with very little light pollution and crew up on the bridge all night they were able to keep a close eye out for any Aurora's developing and make announcements so that you could go out and watch. This was great as you could relax and enjoy drinking in the lounge knowing that if there was something worth seeing outside, they would let you know. Otherwise you could have been sat inside oblivious because its pretty cold outside!

8. Going on holiday with anyone can be stressful and tensions can flare. We're a big family already but with Jared and my Grandma added to the mix we were a pretty large group. Conflict is almost inevitable if people spend enough time together. But being on a ship meant we could spend as much or as little time together as people wanted to. Everyone can choose how to spend their leisure time and how they want to spend their day. As a result we didn't have any arguments which is virtually unheard of for us.

9. Day drinking is absolutely a thing. You don't have to drive anywhere, you don't have to go to work. So if you want a glass of wine, or a predinner cocktail go right ahead. The drinks on board were not as expensive as I had feared (£2.40 for a medium glass of white wine, £3-4 for a really nice cocktail). Although we didn't opt for the all inclusive drinks package we did get a couple of cocktail packages which were good value. After uni I didn't think I'd ever be surrounded by people as keen on drinking all the time!

10. Like all Scandinavian countries Norway is pricey. Like £9 just for a McDonalds kind of pricey. A main meal in a restaurant can easily be £30 per person without any starters, puddings or drinks. Everything seems to be twice the price it is here in the UK so actually as it turned out our cruise was really good value for money and even with excursions worked out to be around £100 per day which is what you could spend just on a hotel.When you consider your bed, food, travel between destinations and all activities (and we did A LOT) are paid for with that money its actually one of the cheapest ways of visiting lots of places within Norway.

11. However, the best thing was waking up everyday, going up for breakfast and we would be somewhere brand new with spectacular scenery to go with it. It really seemed like a massive adventure and it was really exciting to head ashore to somewhere different each day.

Overall I would definitely consider going on another cruise, especially if I wanted to go back to Norway as I do think it was the best way to travel around. Its a particularly excellent way to visit the fjords (as you can sail up them and really appreciate them) and to travel to the far north of the country as its a long way to drive. As a young person if the itinerary grabs you and it works out cheaper than flying and staying in a hotel then absolutely go for it!

Looking ahead to the New Year 2017

2016 according to most (or at least the people I follow on social media) has been an awful year.
My timeline on every channel is full of 'Good riddance 2016' type posts and statuses.

However I'm feeling sad that this year is over. While it's been challenging it's also been one of the best years yet for me.

I started 2016 feeling stressed, anxious and panicked and as we begin the New Year a lot has changed for me. I made 8 goals back at the beginning of 2016 and I've surprised myself by achieving most of them.

I've completed my masters project and received a mark I'm really proud of. My bound copy of it now proudly sits on my bookshelf along with my 3rd year mapping project as a constant reminder that although it seemed impossible at the time, I still managed it.

2016 also saw me graduating from the University of Southampton with a 2:1 MSci in Geology. It only seems a few moments ago I went to look round the campus for the first time and now I have finished my masters degree. My 3rd year at uni was tough for me and I struggled all the way through my final year feeling like I wasn't good enough and that I didn't deserve a place on the course.  But I proved everyone wrong and I think it is fair to say that I am really proud of myself.

My plans for life post graduation were fairly simple. Move home, get a job and then regroup from there. What I didn't expect was to be made redundant from my job (along with the rest of the team)  just weeks before I graduated. I hadn't even received my degree certificate yet and I was already being made redundant. Not the plan I had in mind.

I signed up to a temping agency and a few days later they contacted me asking if I could start a temping job in 3 days time. I had no idea what I was letting myself in for but I said yes. 3 weeks of temping later and the company offered me a full time role with them. It turned out that finding a job post uni was not as hard or as scary as I had feared. Now I am settled into my full time job and have learnt a huge amount about the new industry I am working in.

While all of this happened without as much difficulty as I had feared it has been a huge period of change in my life. On top of that my family dynamic has changed massively. When I graduated and moved home my parents also invited Jared to move back home with me so that we can try and get our own place together. I absolutely love him living here and how well he gets on with everyone, although it was a big change to get used to. We now have to share quite a small space together but coming home every day and getting to spend time with him is just the best.

Looking ahead to 2017 I want to make some new goals to help challenge and focus me throughout the coming year. I didn't achieve all of my goals in 2016 and some of them I have put on hold for a while, but hopefully the New Year will be as good as the last.

Money Goals:
1. Reach my saving goal for our house deposit. This is the biggest goal for the year, Jared and I are trying to save enough money and while we have made a pretty good start already the next 12 months are crucial if we want to stay on target. Money is tight for me while I'm saving so its going to have to be quite a frugal year but having a house of our own has got to be worth a few years of scrimping.

2. Pay into my pension. Now that I work for a pension company I feel I actually understand what a pension is now. Don't laugh I know most of us have no clue either. The one thing I have had impressed upon me is the importance of small but regular contributions throughout your life. Over the course of a working lifetime it can really add up but the key is to start right away, not leave it until you're older. Although as I've previously said I could really do with the extra money I am trying to look at it as additional saving that I am doing for my future.

3. Donate to some charities that mean something to me. While I have been at uni (without the reliability of a steady wage) I have not been as generous as I would like to be with my money. This year I would like to choose three charities and make a small donation. Not because someone is waving a collection tin in my face, but because I think their cause is worth helping. Sometime we can feel pressured by others into donating and I would like to take the time to support charities that matter to me, as well as those that matter to other people.

Travel Goals:
4. Visit Norway. Going to Scandinavia has been high on my bucket list for ever. This year we are going on a cruise to Norway and I cannot wait! Luckily this was already paid for by working overtime from my old job while I was at uni so it shouldn't affect my saving plans.

5. Visit Bath. Considering this is pretty close to me I have only ever been there on a couple of nights out that feel like a lifetime away now. I'd really like to take a day trip there and actually explore the city. There is no excuse really as it is only an hour away.

6. Visit Ann in Exeter. My best friend is graduating from the University of Exeter this year and I've been trying to go and see her since she was a fresher. Now that I don't have deadlines and exams to fill my weekends I am hoping to make it down there soon!

7. Visit Oxford. On a similar note to Bath this isn't very far from me and I've never visited. I'd like to have a wander about and see what's what. As I haven't got a huge amount of spare cash at the moment a proper European city break is out of the question so I'd like to visit places on my doorstep instead as a compromise.

Development Goals:
8. Read 3 'classic' books. One of my goals from 2016 was to read more and now that I've left uni I am actually relaxed enough to find the time to read. I've always been someone that reads what I enjoy, not necessarily what challenges me. There are so many books that I should have read but haven't got round to it. So I'm going to start small with some of the books many people read at GCSE (Animal Farm anyone?) that my school didn't cover.

9. Practise my German. Since I've left school the amount I've forgotten is shocking. I was by no means fluent (lol) but I could get by on trips to Germany and Austria (where is the toilet, how much is this etc). I want to get my butt back on Duolingo and get practicing again.

10. Become competent in all processes at work. As I've only been working there for a few months there is still a lot of stuff I don't know how to do. Over the next 12 months I'm hoping to learn new things and keep improving.

We'll see this time next year how many I've managed!

Exploring Wiltshire - Trip to Avebury

Ah Wiltshire. The glorious county that I am lucky enough to call home. After 4 long years in urban Southampton I am so relieved to be back in the countryside where I can actually breathe.
At the same time that I moved back here my boyfriend Jared also moved in with my family, which was a huge change but I have to admit I am surprised how well its going so far.

Despite being a country boy at heart Jared has grown up in the suburbs and is entirely new to Wiltshire and the many hidden delights it has to offer.

When most people think of Wiltshire's landmarks (and the UK as a whole) they often immediately think of Stonehenge. However as a local I find Stonehenge to be a tourist nightmare that I have seen so many times that it kind of makes me want to claw my eyes out.

So for Jared's first trip round Wiltshire we jumped in the car and drove the 45min to Avebury.
Less well known than Stonehenge and much larger, I've always preferred the freedom to explore at your own pace offered at Avebury.

The stone circle is not fully complete (but then neither is Stonehenge) as a lot of the stones have been pilfered to build the gorgeous old stone houses that are nearby. It is also free to visit and there are numerous walks you can do that connect Avebury to nearby attractions such as Silbury Hill and the East Kennet Long Barrow.

After merrily sailing past the car park and having to find somewhere to turn around a very kind Australian tourist gave us his all day parking ticket. The National Trust car park is free for members or £7 for a whole day. This seems steep  but contributes towards the maintenance of the site.

We wandered around the stones for an hour marvel ling at how ENORMOUS they are and how on earth anyone managed to move them in the first place.

The best thing about Avebury is that there are no tour guides, just signs that you can read at your leisure. As we went on a pretty overcast weekend at the beginning of October there was hardly anyone else there which is always pretty magical.

My parents used to take us to Avebury a lot when we were small as its a great day out for kids. There's lots of space for them to run around and let off steam and most of the other visitors were young families out for a cheap day out in the fresh air.

The village itself is actually set in the heart of the stone henge and after a chilly walk we headed to the local pub, the Red Lion for lunch. Warm and cosy with friendly staff we filled up on fish and chips and a toastie for less than £20 with drinks for both of us. The pub is considered to be the most haunted pub in Britain with an ancient well in its centre that has been converted into a table. There is said to be a female ghost that is seen entering and leaving from the well... Spooky.

It was such a lovely day out and it was really nice to revisit a place that I used to go often as a child.
If you're ever in Wiltshire and don't fancy forking out a fortune to visit Stonehenge then Avebury is well worth the trip as an alternative. 

New year... new goals 2016

Ok, so I realise this post is about a million years too late and that I haven't blogged for ages. I'm aware its pretty much March already and this sort of post had its day about 2 months ago. But gotta get back on the horse at some point and today I just feel like everything I want to get done is jostling about in my head and won't be quiet so I can focus on things.

The best cure for that is writing so here I am, back at my laptop and typing my thoughts on the internet. Then once they're written down I can start putting them into action. 

2016 is going to see my life turning upside down as I prepare to leave uni and take my first steps into the world so I think I need to have some realistic goals in place to stop me losing sight of where I'm trying to go. 

1. Finish my dissertation. 

Hang on a minute I hear you say, wasn't that your goal for 2015? Well yes it was but because I was daft enough to study for an integrated masters degree I get the joy of not one but TWO dissertations. Ain't life a bitch. So here I am in almost exactly the same position I was in this time last year in science hell questioning all my life decisions. But, I really want to do a good job and get it done so I can move on and finish my degree.

2. Graduate.

Speaking of which I can't wait to graduate this year. When you do a four year degree you spend most of your summer of third year watching most of year friends graduate (and abandoning you) while also feeling smug you don't have to stress about getting a job just yet. I'm not quite sure where the past year has gone but suddenly I find myself in their shoes and I am both excited and relieved that uni is almost done for me. Four years of studying is a long time and looking forward to spreading my wings.

3. Get a job.

While this once seems very vague I'm not actually sure what I want to do yet. I'm really looking forward to a new challenge and being able to start shaping my life in the direction I want. Having full time employment and a reliable wage opens lots of doors. Being financially stable and independent is my overall goal and to do that I need that paycheque coming in every month. 

4. Pass my trailer test. 

This might seem like an odd one. I learnt to drive when I was still in 6th form and as the oldest of four children (three of which can drive) I am lucky to be insured on several of our family cars so have always had access to a car. Unless you are a country bumpkin like me learning to tow will probably never cross your mind but when you live in a rural area its a life skill. Now that I have a car that is a good tow vehicle I want to get that skill under my belt before too many bad driving habits can creep in and other life stresses start getting in the way.

5. Go on a girls holiday. 

This goal is already very much underway as my friends and I are going on a long weekend to Devon after we finish uni. I am already super excited about this one as it will be so lovely to just relax and have fun together. I plan to get moderately sloshed on prosecco virtually every night. Warning you now. 

6. Continue being a *bit* healthier.

One of last years goals was to try and eat more fruit and veg and just generally be a little healthier. I've tried really hard to stick to that one and have made really good progress. At the end of 2015 I even joined a gym and started going properly and I feel so much better about myself. So I want to continue rolling with that and seeing how much further I can push myself this year. 

7. Go to Rome.

I went on a school trip to Rome when I was in Year 10 and started what I suspect might be a lifelong love affair with the city. When my boyfriend Jared told me he really wanted to go there this year I felt like I might do a little wee with excitement. I've totally downplayed it to him about how happy I am about this. I'm not sure how we'll afford it, what with both of us graduating and needing to get a job but I'm determined that this year we are going there. 

8. Read more.

Before I went to uni I was an avid reader. I was never without a book I was engrossed in. Then I went to uni and discovered Netflix and binge watching a whole TV season in one day. There's always a distraction at uni and I find it hard to unwind enough to sit down and get lost in a book. I've got a big pile ready as well as an extensive list on Amazon so I can't wait to get stuck in.

Bronze Holiday Make Up

I always find packing for trips really stressful. No matter how good a list I make I always agonize over what to take and what to leave behind. This time for my trip to Crete I decided I was going to take as little make up as possible for minimal fuss. However since I got home I've been using the same products all the time to recreate that holiday feeling.

The look I was going for was a natural, glowing gold look as I tan very easily and I wanted to take products that would work with this.

For my base I wanted something light but with as a high an SPF as I could find so that I wouldn't have to layer too many products on my face. I went for the Clinique Anti Blemish solutions BB cream as its specifically designed for use on oily skin and has SPF 40. The formula of this is very thin and runny so you only need to use a small amount of product and it gives a lovely even coverage. My only issue with this is due to its thin consistency it can be quite messy and the inside lid of mine is covered in product. I have the colour medium and I find it to be an excellent match but the shade range is limited and could be too orange for those on the paler side. I am a massive Clinique fan and have always found their products to work well for me. If you are olive skin toned with oily or spot prone skin then this is well worth a try.

For my cheeks I used my Max Factor Creme puff blush in Seductive Pink combined with my Mac Mineralize Skinfinish in Soft and Gentle. This gave a really soft golden glow and was perfect with a tan.

I get really bad bags under my eyes so used my Benefit Puff Off as a lighter alternative to concealer. This stuff is great because the gel is cooling but also has a slight pink shimmer to counteract the purple tones. The cool feel of the product combined with the salmon tint really does help to hide them. Most of the time the only other eye make up I wore was my Maybelline lash sensational mascara. When this first launched everyone was going on about how it was a dupe for Benefits Roller Lash and having tried both I have to say it is a pretty close match. If you're a fan of roller lash this is definitely worth a try as its so much cheaper.

There was only a few nights where I wore anything other than mascara as most of our evenings were very relaxed. I wanted a really simple eye look to continue with the gold theme so used my Urban Decay Naked 2 palette focusing on Suspect or YDK combined with other various shades to create a soft shimmery smokey eye.

I decided to pass on wearing anything on my lips other than my nivea lip balm as it was just too hot for sticky lipgloss or to have lipstick sliding about everywhere.

The thing I love best about this look is it takes a few minutes to create which also makes it perfect for wearing to work now that I am back in the UK. Now I am home I'm teaming this with a nude lip and my hair in a french braid to continue with the relaxed feel.

Crete 2015

Hello everyone!

I'm sorry for my unexpected break from blogging but sometimes you just need to take a step back to regroup and feel refreshed with it.

I've recently come back from the trip of a lifetime to Crete with my boyfriend Jared and would love to share some of the pictures with you guys.

We started our trip by catching a late train to Gatwick in order to catch a 6am flight. The joy of being a poor student and getting cheap flights. After an hour delay of just sitting on the run way doing nothing we finally got going and 4 hours later we were arriving in Chania.

We were staying with my late Grandads fiance Audrey who kindly came to meet us at the air port. We collected our hire car and I had to learn very quickly how to drive on the wrong side of the road, on the wrong side of the car on absolutely INSANE roads.

Luckily I soon got to grips with it and we had an incredible time. We spent a day exploring Chania and enjoyed walking round the Venetian Harbour, eating lunch over looking the sea. We were staying in the mountains in the west of the island and I was a pro on the mountain roads by the time we left.
Other adventures included exploring the Aya Sofia church, spending lots of days at the idyllic Elafonisi beach snorkeling with loads of fish and relaxing with a book overlooking the mountains.

After an amazing 8 days living in a tiny undiscovered village where the rural way of live still survives it was sadly time to leave it behind. I drove our trusty car 300km to Heraklion which is the islands capital city. Here we spent two days visiting the archeological museum as well as Crete's most famous site: The Minoan Palace at Knossos. While not as pictursque as Chania the city was well worth the trip.

An 11.30pm flight meant we got back to the raining UK at an eyewatering 1.30am. Luckily I had managed to get a cheap deal at the Hilton hotel which is directly attached to the terminal so we were able to go straight to sleep.

Crete has totally captured my heart and I really hope I get to go back someday.

Things that have made me happy

So its been a while since I've posted and been even longer since I've done one of these posts. My bad. Its been a busy few weeks and I've been up to lots of stuff.

1. I finally booked my holiday! I'm off to Crete in July for 10 days in the sun with Jared. I've worked hard to save for this trip and it feels so good to finally have it all booked and sorted. I've just got the car hire left to organise and then all that's left to do is get excited! I've already bought a new bikini and I'm constantly thinking about new outfits I want to take with me. I can't wait!

2. My sister Ellie got me this adorably cute gift just because. Firstly isn't that just the nicest thing? A surprise present for no reason at all? And its from Paperchase which is where the stationary gods place their gifts for me to drool over. A big thank you to her, the notebook lives in my bag so I can jot down random things I need to remember. So not only is it pretty but its also useful.

3. During the Easter holidays I pretty much just worked (in order to pay for uni next year and for Crete) but I did manage a weekend back in Southampton to see Jared. We wanted to go to the beach but it was raining so went off to explore Winchester. Its such a cute little place and as I've previously mentioned on this blog reminds me so much of Salisbury. The main thing we had come to see was the cathedral which is stunning and I had no idea it was *quite* that old. After a cheeky McDonalds we spent most of the afternoon in a second hand book shop which sorta made me feel like we were in a Match.com advert or something. I got a book on watercolour painting as a gift for Ellie, to say thank you for my notebook.

4. As we are now in the start of the new tax year I got some holiday pay. I wasn't expecting to receive this and it made an excellent contribution towards paying for my trip. Nice to get a little unexpected something extra.

5. Last weekend was a special occasion so Jared and I went away for the weekend to Exmouth in Devon. Although the weather was rubbish we had a lovely few days and watched a lot of films and ate huge amounts of food. We made an excellent playlist so the drive down was pretty fun as well.  After a stressful week full of deadlines it was really nice to escape to some fresh sea air.

6. As mentioned above I had a big essay due to last week and I am relieved to see the back of it!

7. A quick shopping trip turned into damn I need more lipsticks. I got these on a 3 for 2 offer and I am just loving the purple shades for Spring!