Healthy Eating Wishlist

Dear Readers, I am on yet another health kick... this time though I have made the plunge and started taking protein shakes, which considering my daily intake of protein is less than a third of what it should be can't be a bad thing. Lots of other bloggers and Facebook friends seem to be on a pre holiday health kick however sadly I am not going away this year and so I am trying to be healthier just because it is the right thing to do! My close friends and C have lost count of the amount of health kicks I have been on and so we shall see how long it lasts this time! 

Hopefully it will last long enough for me to use the whopping 1.25kg of protein powder I just received from The Protein Works anyway! 

Ordering protein was the first step in becoming healthier and so here my dear friends is the wishlist that I have been developing whilst looking for inspiration for a healthier lifestyle!

1. Chia seeds: I have read numerous articles about the health benefits of these seeds and every Instagrammer under the sun seems to have some on their breakfast so I am intrigued to try some out and see what happens!

2. Agave Syrup: This is like a healthier version of honey from what I can gather and I think it will be great on my porridge... although I am currently loving the Zero Syrup from TPW. 

3. Meridian Almond Butter: Almond butter seems to have been popping up all over the blogosphere in the last month or so and as I am the kind of girl who is easily influenced I have been itching to try some... 

4. Meridian Peanut Butter: I eat a reasonable amount of peanut butter anyway but it seems that the value stuff I have been getting as a healthy snack might not be as good for me as I first thought! oops!

5. Yo Yo Fruit Rolls: These have been on my Instagram feed lately (probably because of their super cute packaging!) and I really am awful at eating enough fruit and veg so these may be a good way to up my intake.

6. Urban Fruit: The lovely Rachel mentioned this product on her blog last week and made them look so yummy... I can't wait to get my hands on some! 

7. Nakd bars I am probably a really bad blogger for admiting to this but I have never actually had a Nakd bar! 

Do you have any favourite healthy snacks? What would you recommend? 

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The Disney Tag

I first saw this tag over on Michelle's lovely blog (Life Outside London) and being the big kid and heart and uber Disney fan that I am, I couldn't resist giving it a go!

(Photo from the last time I was at Disney in 2012)

Snow White - Do you consider yourself beautiful?  Not really no. I have THE worst body image and self confidence at the moment. It is something that I am really going to try and work on this Summer.

Sleeping Beauty - How many hours do you sleep at night? It varies. Doing shift work during the summer really messes up my sleeping pattern as some days I need to be up at 5.30am (ouch!) and then others I don't need to get up until 

Cinderella - Do you have a curfew?   Officially no. But if I am out at night you can guarantee at 10 on the dot one of my parents will text me asking when I will be home.

Rapunzel - Do you love being outside?  I do! My Field Trip to Andalucia made me realise that I need to spend more time outside. It truly is good for the soul. 

Red Riding Hood - Do you trust strangers easily?   No. I am a completely paranoid, anxiety mad nutter when it comes to strangers. 

Beauty and the Beast - What makes someone beautiful in your eyes? If they make me laugh over absolutely nothing. 

The Little Mermaid - What would you sacrifice for love? I agree with Michelle on this one... I don't think you should have to sacrifice anything major for the one you love. 

The Frog Prince - What do you find disgusting?  I really don't like people who are full of themselves. Nothing worse.

Jack and the Beanstalk - What plants do you have?  I'm guessing dead and shrivelled ones don't count?

Puss in Boots - Do you have pets? If not, do you want them?  I have an Axolotl and my parents have two dogs. AND NEWS! C might be getting a PUPPY when he moves to his new flat. EXCITEMENT OVERLOAD. 

Pinocchio - What is your biggest wish? Right now it is to get a First class degree, have a place on a Primary PGCE and live happily ever after (well this is a Disney tag after all).

Peter Pan - What is your mental age? Probably about 5 years old.

The Snow Queen - Who is your best friend and what would you do for him/her?  My best friend is R. We met in Year 7 and we are still inseperable despite going to Universities which are a 4 hour train journey apart. I think she knows that I would do pretty much anything she needed me to. 

The Princess and the Pea - Are you sensitive?   Far too sensitive. I really need to toughen up and get thicker skin!

The Brave Little Tailor - Do you consider yourself brave? No. I wish I was braver to be honest.

I have had SO much fun doing this tag so all of you lovely people are now tagged! Go on, live a little!

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My Week #26

This week has been quite a busy week and very plain decoration wise (perhaps that is why this is the least blurry picture my phone would take!) Most of my days have been focussed on work and driving really but I am going to stay with a friend in Southend on Sea for 2 weeks on Sunday so I can get some Primary School work experience in London and I am SO excited about this! It will be so nice to see my friend from uni and be able to get some much needed break from the 'norm' my summer life has become!

My boyfriend also bought his first flat this week and is now officially on the property market so we spent Saturday night celebrating that (how grown up is that though seriously?!) 

I also read The Fault in Our Stars in anticipation of seeing the movie this Thursday and it was SO good, I finished it in 2 days (around my shifts) and I cannot remember the last time that I read a book THAT quickly. I've heard the movie is as equally spectacular and tear jerking so I shall have my kleenex at the ready this Thursday.

How has your week been? 

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PS. I finally uploaded my A5 Patent Pink video!... go take a look? 

Thoughts on 100!

This week a rather exciting email pinged its way into my inbox... I had reached 100 followers on Bloglovin! I am truly overwhelmed as I know I am not the best blogger out there but everytime I get a new follower it really does give me a little confidence boost! So thank you all very much!

I didn't share my Filofax weekly pages this week as they were faaaar too messy to do so (trialed a new pen which bled everywhere!) so I thought I would use this post to update you all on what I got up to last week! I have been slightly overwhelmed by starting to work full time hours again, although I work hard at University I am still missing being able to manage my own time a bit more and not have to deal with varying shift work. I have been thoroughly enjoying being closer to my boyfriend whilst being at home and we have been using the opportunity to have some old fashioned date nights which is music to my ears!

I picked this image because yesterday I failed my theory test by 1 mark on the hazard perception and after immediately being really annoyed because I couldn't review the clips I went home, had a cup of tea and a nap and booked myself in to take the test again. I think Maura had the right idea about naps!

So thank you all for sticking with my blog and following my ups and downs along the way! You lovely lot make me smile more than you will ever know!

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Hazard Perception

(Found Here)

Most of you know that I am currently in the process of learning to drive and with that comes the dreaded theory test which I am sitting for the first time next week and I am super nervous about it! When I was trying to sleep the other night and worrying about whether or not I will be able to pass it first time I got thinking about the whole concept of perceiving hazards before they become a danger or a threat and I started thinking about how this applies to life in general. 

If there was a hazard stimulator for real life what kind of things would it contain? How quickly would you be able to spot them? Would you be able to pass a life hazard perception test?

Here are some of the things that I thought of. 

1. That drink on a night out which turns you from hangover free the next day to clinging to your duvet and refusing to move. 

2. That boy that your Dad says is bad for you but you ignore anyway. 

3. Picking the wrong A-Levels and limiting your career path too much.

4. Overspending on a luxury item resulting in living on beans on toast for the rest of the month. 

5. Leaving all of your work to the night before the deadline resulting in staying up all night finishing it

What would your hazards be?

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REVIEW: Filofax A5 Patent Pink Domino*

A few months ago I contacted Filofax because I fell in love with their Willow design and really wanted it in A5 size, only to discover that they did not make it in that size. After a little more snooping I discovered that they didn't make any of their patterned designs in A5 size and so I emailed them to ask why and the ever lovely people of Filofax said that they would pass my request onto the design team. 

Last week an email from the lovely Nike at Filofax pinged into my inbox asking if I would like to review the A5 Patent Pink Domino and I jumped at the chance! I had been moments away from ordering the organiser on a few occasions as I decided that I would like a 'fun' looking planner for my teacher training application. 

A few days later it arrived and was wrapped in a lovely gold tissue paper. Not going to lie it felt a little like Christmas! 

When I opened up the tissue paper I was blown away by just how pink the colour was but I have been really liking all things pink lately so that is by no means a bad thing!

The organiser retails for £35 on Filofax UK here and I was pleasantly surprised by how cheap it was! Definitely looks like it is worth a little more than that! The Domino is such a simple yet effective design and I have written previously about my love for the Domino here. I often see it crop up in the Facebook groups as a lot of peoples' first planner simply because it is such good value.

I like how the elastic is pink and matches the binder as often on the Domino there is a white elastic which I find can sometimes get a little dirty with frequent use but in this case it doesn't matter! 

When you open up the binder there are no  credit card slots, but since I rarely use these it doesn't really bother me and the large letter pocket is more than ample for my needs! Currently it is storing the card that the lovely Nike from Filofax sent me. The inside of the letter pocket is not the same shiny patent material but is instead more of a cotton like material which means that paper is not likely to slip out when you are opening and closing the binder. 

The rings are always one of the things that I check out initially whenever I receive a new Filofax and I am pleased to say that they are perfect! The rings are also a fabulously large 30mm which will be more than ample for me, especially because the Domino is such a stuffable model!

I should note that I am showing you the Filofax exactly as I received it and this is not my set up of the binder, once I have had a chance to decide exactly what I want in each section I will bring you an update of my set-up!

Moving onto the inserts the binder came with: there was a good selection of to do inserts, white lined paper, quadrile paper, plain paper and pastel lined paper. Plenty to get me started off with!

It was also a pleasant surprise that the diary came with an 18 month diary which conveniently starts when I start my placement in a Primary school and will take me right through my application process and will also hopefully be ample for when I start my PGCE *fingers crossed*.  

The diary format is my favourite column format for the A5 size and I have used these before and found them very effective at mapping out my time.

Another favourite of mine are the clear plastic rulers and so I was pleased that the Domino came with one.

There was also a top opening envelope which I find really useful for quickly placing things in my binder that I don't have time to file straight away.

There is another full length pocket at the back as well as a slot where it looks like a notepad could easily slide into should you need it. 

I can't wait to sit down and set this binder up for my teaching application and I feel like it is going to be such a versatile binder and I am over the moon to have received it. I have also filmed a video review of the Domino which will be up later this week when I have had a chance to edit it. 

*Although I received this binder for free all opinions are honest and the same as they would be if I had purchased the binder myself. 

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My Week #23

This week I have been in my Crimson Malden again and I cannot see myself wanting to move out of it anytime soon! I have had a pretty packed week this week and I experimented using thin washi to colour code what was happening in my week but I am not sure whether or not I am keen on it as I feel that it made my pages too busy! I might keep it in for certain elements but I can see myself getting fed up of it quickly!

I have had a fair few hours of work this week and I have also managed to sneak in 4 hours of driving lessons, seeing the Lion King live (look out for my review soon!) as well as viewing a flat with my boyfriend who is currently in the process of getting a mortgae and buying his first home (how grown up is that?!). 

Conveniently I had a weekend off this weekend and for those of you who work in retail you will know how much of a luxury this is, especially when it is not the school holidays! This also coincided with the release of the new series of Orange is the New Black on Netflix... excellent!

How has your week been? 

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Mini Etsy Haul

For almost a year now I have stalked Etsy looking at all of the beautiful things for sale but last week I managed to pluck up the courage and place an order with two wonderful sellers as I was loving my Crimson Malden so much I wanted to pimp it out a little. 

First up I ordered some dividers, washi cards and the red and pink ribbon paper clips (the ones in the ziplock bag) from the lovely seller XILE creations who sent me the cute little floral card as well as the Three Little pigs notebook, a bookmark and some additional paperclips for free! Which really was a lovely surprise... those of you who know me know that I would never say no to free stationery! 

The quality of all of the products from XILE creations has completely surpassed my expectations as her prices were some of the lowest on Etsy, especially for dividers (PSSSST... there is currently a 50% off sale, go and check her out here) 

Next up I ordered from CharlottesWeb86 who I have long followed over on Instagram (btw she has one of the most pretty accounts for stationery lovers I have ever seen so I would recommend taking a look!). From this seller I ordered some pre-punched envelopes for my Personal Filofaxes as I have been debating starting the spendelope system and these would be perfect for it! Some adorable leaf shaped paperclips and page flags may well have also found their way to my basket... oops!

Both of the sellers sent their orders in really beautifully packaged parcels and it truly was a 'Happy Mail' day when they arrived. Unfortunately I was a tad too impatient to photograph this and quickly opened up my parcels to reveal the stationery goodness that lay within! 

I am really pleased that I took the plunge and ordered from Etsy and I am already drawing up a mental wishlist of other things that I would like... sorry bank balance!

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My Week #22

This week was my first proper week of being at home and not having university and exams to deal with! I started back at my retail job on Wednesday and I am glad that I have that to keep me busy for now as I genuinely don't think that I would know what to do with all my time otherwise. 

I've also carried on with my driving lessons at home and the aim is to hopefully pass my test by the end of summer so that I don't have to try and juggle lessons as well as third year University. 

It isn't clear from the picture but I am using my Crimson malden and I am incredibly smitten with it. I can see why this planner is in such high demand!  How has your week been? 

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