72. Lifestyle // August Round-Up

Summer is over and autumn has arrived.

August has zoomed by so quickly that I've actually had to look back through my diary, Facebook and Twitter to remind myself of what the month consisted of and it turns out it was a pretty good month!

August marked my 2nd month in my new job (can I still call it my 'new job' or is it just my job now?!) which has been incredible so far. I honestly have loved every minute of it and I'm already dreading having to leave when this maternity cover is over. I've had lots of new features to work on and I'm really coming into my own; developing relationships with clients, making my mark and achieving my targets. I feel like I've settled in and I had a lovely night out with everybody towards the end of the month which consisted of Italian food, wine and fun.

August also saw Shane and I book our flights to Amsterdam, finishing saving up our spending money and I finally got round to renewing my passport which means we're all set for our long weekend in Holland now.

I also started a Spending Ban, which you can see the posts about here and here, which lasted a  grand total of 20 days before I caved and bought a sculpting palette and a vest - oops! At least I've spent a lot less than money on clothes and make-up than usual, so I'm pretty proud.

I had a chance to catch up with on of my oldest childhood friends before she jetted off to New York for a year of studying abroad this month. We had the loveliest time; filling each other in on everything and anything before an very-nearly-teary farewell. I'm in the process (and by 'in the process' I mean 'I'm going to at some point...') of setting up Skype so we can keep in touch. 

Shane and I had a great night celebrating my best-friend's 20th birthday in the middle of August too, with a big barbecue followed by a trip to the pub and lots of local bands (and ciders) in the sunshine. It was fab.

The next day I headed down to Leeds to celebrate my cousins wedding. It was an incredible day and very emotional as she's had such a hard time in recent years, it was lovely to see her so happy and it was great to catch up with my family.

August also saw me start driving lessons again after an 8 month break! I also got round to booking my theory test and, as soon as that is passed, I'll be getting ready for my practical. Lessons are going well so far and I really can't wait for my next one! It's very liberating.

I set myself some blogging goals in August too, which you can see here, as my blog is quickly becoming a big part of my life and I'd love to see it grow. I'll be letting you all know how I've got on in a few months, so fingers crossed I can reach my targets.

The last weekend in August was probably the best (and not just because it was payday!) Shane and I went out for drinks on the Saturday and ended up at his grandparents old pub, playing bingo! It was very different from our usual nights out but it was honestly so much fun and who can complain when a pint is only £2.25? Sunday was spent sleeping, having a lovely long walk in the park, eating Sunday dinner and watching Dexter in bed.

All in all, August has been brilliant but I'm so glad it's September now. I'm looking forwards to getting wrapped up in a big coat, ankle boots and pretty scarves, spending more cosy nights in and the leaves beginning to change colour.

What was your favourite part of August?

Are you happy that summer is over, and autumn is upon us?

Lots of Love,

Becci

49. Lifestyle // What have I been up to?

Hello lovelies.

I'm really missing blogging at the moment. Since I start working full-time and staying at my boyfriend's more often, I've lagged a bit with updating my blog, as I've either not had the energy or not had my laptop with me, which is a shame. 

Blogging gives me a real buzz. I feel like I've achieved something when I blog and I feel like I'm connecting with my readers because, at the end of the day, you're not going to read a blog if the blogger never updates, are you?! So, I'm really sorry that I've been so naff lately. I'm hoping that once I've settled into a routine my blogging will pick up a bit and I'll be able to do more. So bare with.

I thought I'd do a nice little easy-reading post about what I've been up to lately, as I love reading these kind of posts on other girls' blogs. So, here goes! 

Last week, I worked my second week at my new job which is an office-based advertising job. I'm enjoying it so much as it's much more challenging than I'd expected, yet it's not stressful and I don't have to 'take my work home with me,' which is lovely. Everybody that I work with have made me feel so welcome and I'm looking forwards to getting more responsibility and building up a rapport with clients. I'm also *super* excited for payday. *cough* shopping spree *cough*

I've also been spending a ridiculous amount of time (when I'm not stuck in the office!) in the sunshine but struggling to develop even the slightest tan. So far, I've gained about 20 freckles but no colour, hmmph. I'm contemplating starting to usual some gradual tanner so I'd love it if a beauty blogger could suggest a good one for me... Hint, hint.

These last few weeks have seen a huge improvement in my 'social life,' which, for the last couple of months, has been pretty naff as I've not been feeling myself and I've kind of kept myself to myself really. But now that the sunshine is out and friends are back from university, and given the confidence I've gained from my new job, things are really picking up. I've spent a couple of evenings chatting over a pint (or two, or three...) of cider with my lovely best friend, and I caught up with one of oldest friends (who moves to Maryland for 12 months in August - *sob*) on Saturday; we spent the whole afternoon sat in her beautiful garden, drinking white wine and catching up. It was perfect. Saturday night was another great night in with Shane and his family; we watched films, ate kebabs and drank Kopparberg. 

On Sunday, I spent some time with my Mum at the local carnival which was also brilliant, especially given the fact that the sun was still shining. I got some pretty good snaps of the day, which are below, and we had a nice wander around the carnival field too which - for once - wasn't muddy!

In terms of health, I still suck. You may have noticed the words 'kebab' 'cider' and 'wine' above, which kind of suggest how crappy I've been. But, in my defense, I've not been as bad as usual. And that is saying something. During the daytime I've been pretty good, but I've allowed myself a few treats in the evening, which isn't really that bad. Everything in moderation and all that? Except cider. Cider seems to have become a staple of my diet in the last couple of weeks... Oops. I'll blame it on the sunshine!

My studying has also been pretty lax lately. Uh-oh. I managed to (somehow, don't ask!) get 87% on my last assignment which was all about the art of Benin, but I'm not 'working' (but not actually doing any work...) on my next assignment which is about the history of medical knowledge in Europe and the Middle East. It's something I find interesting so I'm hjooping that, at the last minute when I eventually decide to get started, it won't be too much of a struggle.

I have also - FINALLY - got round to getting my passport photo taken so that I can renew my passport in time for Amsterdam! If you didn't already know (which you will if you follow me on Twitter, as I just can't seem to shut up about it...) I'm heading over to Holland for 3 days in October to celebrate my 21st birthday, with Shane. Who knows what it'll involve?! One thing I know for sure: it will be amazing. Oh, and there will definitely be a blog post on it. Obvs. 

Finally, despite the couple of minor issues I've mentioned above, I'm feeling really positive at the moment. Work is good, I've got my family and friends close by, Shane and I are doing really well and looking towards the future in a very positive light, and - generally - I haven't got that much to complain about (apart from the minor day-to-day irritations!). I feel like I'm finally establishing myself as the sort of person I want to be, surrounded by the right people, and I know where I'm headed and what I want out of life so, yeah, happy days?!

Apologies that this post is crazily long! Let me know what you've all been up to!

Lots of love,

Becci xo

25. Lifestyle // January to June

Happy Sunday everybody, I hope the bank holiday weekend is being good to you.

Although I've already blogged today, I felt like doing something a little bit different. I've been reading through my favourite blogs this weekend and one thing that I've loved is finding update posts, especially what people have been up to and what their year has been like so far, so that's exactly what I'm going to do.

January

January was a cold, quiet month. It snowed a lot and it was absolutely beautiful where I live. I used  this as a perfect opportunity to get back into photography and take some photographs. I didn't work much in January and I also didn't do much of any interest. Having said that, January was when I began to really think about what I was eating and, in that one month, I lost 13.2lbs!

 February

It's safe to say that February was a much more productive month. I began my BA (Hons) History degree with the Open University, saw much more of my friends and continued with the weight-loss (a further 10lbs). I submitted my first university level assignment for which I got a score of 68%. I had a make-up tutorial at Benefit and had some gorgeous lash inserts put in for weekend drinks with S. I had an interview at a local school and although I didn't get the job, I was shortlisted to the final two which was a brilliant feeling. S and I celebrated our third Valentine's day together with a delicious homemade meal of chicken in a tarragon, cream and white wine sauce followed by chocolate orange cheesecake. We also went out for a couple of lovely meals in February and cooked our own Thai curry.

March

March started off excellently; S got a new job, I went to a great gig with one of my best-friends and caught up with a few friends that I'd not seen for a while. I also started my work experience at a local school, helping out in the humanities department (I really want to be a teacher, that's why I did it). For the latter part of the month, I worked every shift I could get my hands on at work. The weather even picked up so I was able to take some nice photos.

April

Once again, April was a busy month. I took part in a fab fundraiser night organised by one of my best-friends, in aid of Because I'm a Girl, and we raised well over £100 between us. S and I also started seriously discussing moving in together this month and started looking at flats. My Grandparents visited and introduced me to an Italian girl called Ilaria who had just graduated from university in Northern Italy; she was lovely and we've remained in contact via email - I would love to go and visit her sometime. I also had some bad news in April; I found out that the cafe, which I'd worked at for two years, was closing down with immediate effect. I was really upset as I loved my job there and my colleagues and the customers too. I quickly found a job working in another cafe. This was also the month that I had 8" cut off my hair, and re-gained about 5lbs. But on the plus side, I got back into blogging!

May

So far, May has been quite a difficult month. I have continued to re-gain the weight that I'd lost; I have now lost 19lbs compared to the 25lbs I had lost at the start of March. I also quit my new job as the management was awful, pay was horrendous and I didn't enjoy it at all. I was so proud of myself for quitting but it's caused a lot of financial worry, so I don't feel quite so good about it now. We, as a family, celebrated my sisters 13th birthday and my brothers 23rd birthday. I baked muffins for both occasions, of course. I worked a lot this month and also had the opportunity to catch up with one of my best-friends who is studying in Scotland. We had a lovely few hours together in the sunshine and it was a brill surprise. I also decided to take part in Blog Everyday in May, which is a challenge set up by Rosalilium. I spent this bank holiday weekend relaxing in the sunshine, tidying up the garden with S and drinking copious amounts of cider. 

The rest of the year brings with it many more opportunities!

We're heading to Amsterdam for 3 days in October to celebrate my 21st birthday

We're *potentially* getting a new pup!

We've started saving for our very own flat

Attending my lovely cousins wedding, in Yorkshire, in August

I finish my first degree module in September

Looking for a fulfilling and interesting job

Getting back into healthy eating

Continuing with my blog, meeting new people & writing a lot more

I have a lot of new ideas for posts, once Blog Everyday in May is over. Ranging from make-up reviews, to travel posts, recipes, craft ideas and mental health awareness. 

I'm really excited.

Is there anything you'd like me to write about?

Love

Becci xox