The Christmas Tag...

I saw this tag last week and as it's officially Christmas time I knew I had to do it too. I've got all the decorations up, the tree lights are on and Mariah Carey is playing so I am feeling very christmassy while writing this! Anyone can take part so if you love Christmas too then feel free to steal the questions and give it a go on your blog!

1. What is your favourite thing about Christmas?

I'm not gonna lie I love the food. It's acceptable to eat all the pigs in blankets, cake, chocolate, turkey, roast potatoes, just EVERYTHING! I suppose really my favourite thing is spending Christmas Day with George and opening our presents together, drinking Bucks Fizz but you know the food is amazing.

2. What is your favourite makeup look for the festive season?

I never really change up my makeup so I can't really say I go for a red lip or things like that, but for me I always go for a bold red and glittery nail polish at Christmas. My absolute favourite at the moment which I will be wearing on Christmas Day is Toggle To The Top by Essie.

3. Real tree or artificial tree?

It has to be an artificial tree for me. I love the one we have and it means as soon as we want to put up the decorations we don't have to think about going and getting a real one. Also I hate mess and just don't think I could cope with pine needles all over the floor and constantly having to hoover!

4. Do you open your presents on Christmas morning or evening?

Always in the morning. We like to get up early, put on a Christmas film that's on the TV and open all our presents. 

5. What is your favourite Christmas film?

This is such a difficult one! I think it's probably Elf. I just love it and it's not Christmas without it. One of my favourites is also Love Actually though, you know it's Christmas when that starts getting played on ITV2. I've watched it so many times but it's such a lovely, heartwarming film. 

6. What is your favourite festive food?

PIGS IN BLANKETS! I can't get enough of them at Christmas. I always get a few packs so we can have some with christmas dinner and then we'll have some with snacky bits on Boxing day and just throughout all of December basically. I also love leftover turkey with stuffing in a sandwich. The best.

7. What tops your tree? 

We don't really have a star or anything but we do have a set of angel wings near the top. We found a hanging decoration in Primark last year for like £2.50 and it's gold, glittery and actually really heavy so we just position that near the top.

8. Do you have any Christmas Eve traditions?

Not really as such, we like to get cosy with a film or something on TV and there is usually lots of snacks involved. We also usually open a present on Christmas Eve. 

9. Giving or receiving presents?

Of course it's nice to receive presents but I absolutely love buying for other people. I love planning what to get others and I like to think that people can tell I put a lot of effort into their presents, I just love the whole process of buying for someone and wrapping it nicely and just everything about it. 

10. What is your favourite Christmas song?

I have so many! I love Michael Bubles christmas album, I love all the songs on that. Also, a bit random but I really like Step into Christmas by Elton John, I got a bit obsessed with it last year and now it's one of my fave christmas songs. Another two I really like are Underneath The Tree by Kelly Clarkson and One More Sleep by Leona Lewis.

I really enjoyed doing this post, I've not been feeling that christmassy compared to last year but this has definitely got me feeling a bit more festive and I am actually starting to get excited about it! Let me know if you do this tag too so I can read yours!

Did you see my last post? It's Okay To Not Look Forward To Your Birthday..

Follow Me - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest & Bloglovin!

It's Okay To Not Look Forward To Your Birthday...

I was in two minds over whether to talk about this on my blog or not, I'm almost a bit embarrassed by how I feel at the moment and I'm not sure if it's a good thing to talk about it and put it out there or whether I should have just kept it to myself. I've been feeling quite down and anxious over the last few weeks. My birthdays coming up and even though birthdays should be a happy thing, for me I just really don't look forward to them anymore and to be honest it's been making me feel crap, it's even been affecting my sleep and at the moment I'm really struggling to just switch off. Writing and talking about things that make me feel like this really helps so that's why I've decided to do this and also in the hope that maybe other people feel the way I do sometimes.

I know as you grow up birthdays change and of course there never going to be like they were when you were younger but I dreaded my last birthday and at the moment I'm feeling the same sort of feelings about turning 22 in January. My last birthday should have been a big one to look forward to, 21 is one of those birthdays that everyone says is special, but to me it was the exact same as any other and I don't think I'll look back and think my 21st was a big deal. No one at work remembered, they didn't realise until it came up on Facebook that day, very little people got in touch to say Happy Birthday and as I don't have a relationship with my family, it was all just a bit sad. I imagine if you have a great family and loads of friends, birthdays just get better and better, but I don't. George does everything he can to make my birthdays special and none of this is a reflection on him in any way, I imagine I'm driving him mad at the moment as I'm just putting a downer on it all before it's even here but it's just really hard to think positive about it sometimes.

I just want to say before I carry on that this post is in no way me trying to get sympathy or make people feel sorry for me in any way, I just wanted to talk about it because maybe others feel like this sometimes and it's nice to know your not alone. I have a bit of a fear of getting older and even though I know early 20's are SO young, for me I am really aware of where I am in life at almost 22 and and I'm not doing what I imagined and I don't feel any closer to getting the things I desperately want. I'm worried before I know it I'll be 30, in the exact same place I am now still not knowing what I want to do with my life, still with no kids and I know that's a really pessimistic way to look at life but it's how I think a lot of the time and it really worries me that that might might be the case one day. I'm still trying to figure out what I want to do with my life and it scares me I'm going into a new year with no idea what's going to happen. Even though I know it was the right decision to leave my job this year, I still get sad that this is how it's all worked out and I feel for the first time I really have no clue what the next year will be like and that's scary. I don't want to be writing the same post next year before turning 23 and still feeling the same but I'm worried I will. I always sort of think about life and where it's going when my birthdays coming up, but this is the second year in a row where I really just don't want it to arrive. I feel like I've achieved nothing since last year. 

Something else about birthdays that gets me is that I always worry people will forget about it and it makes me really anxious in the run up to it. It's not that I expect loads of messages or presents or anything, it really isn't but sometimes there are people you hope or expect to put some effort in. A lot of the time though the people I really put thought and effort into when it comes to christmas and birthdays, don't give that effort back and it really gets me down. I always know it's going to happen so it's not like it's a surprise on my actual birthday but it's still pretty crap. I just have this need to be liked and a lot of the time I don't feel that many people do like me so when it comes to my birthday and then there are people who clearly haven't put any thought in or haven't got in touch, it's just a bit like oh okay people really don't like me do they? and I'm not sure why. 

There's just something about birthdays that makes my anxiety go wild and I just re-assess my whole life and start worrying that everyone just forgets about me. I know deep down that's probably not the case but when the same sort of things happen every birthday it's hard to look forward to the next one and feel positive about it. I know I'm probably being a bit harsh on myself saying I've achieved nothing this year, I know the decisions I've made have been the right ones and hopefully I'll be leaving a bad year behind and going into something great, it's just difficult sometimes. I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets like this about birthdays, or I hope not. I suppose I just wanted to reassure myself and any others who feel like this that it's okay to not look forward to birthdays and it's okay to do things differently to other people. I just wanted to get all of this out as keeping it bottled up isn't helping and this is sort of my release and a place for me to say whatever I want. I'm not sure what I'll be doing on my actual birthday, I might just choose to sit in and eat cake rather than celebrating and if I do then that's fine.

Do you ever feel anxious about birthdays? Do you ever not look forward to your birthday?

Relevant posts you might want to read - Why I Had To Leave My Job // Why Being A Nurse Wasn't For Me

Follow Me - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest & Bloglovin!

Foodies Gift Guide...

So my second Gift Guide today is for the foodies. I did one of these a few years ago and as there are so many great food and drink gifts available at this time of year, I thought I would do another one for those who love to bake, cook and eat!

I think personalised gifts are always so thoughtful and to me shows some real effort has gone into the present, so I love these Personalised Star Baker Wooden Spoons from Not On The High Street. If you know someone who loves baking then this is a fab present for them. I love to bake and I know if someone bought me this I would be so, so happy, and it's nice to pretend you're star baker on bake off! Next have some really great food gifts this year, the first one I saw was this Heart Shaped Crumble Dish Set for £16. Again, another great one for someone who loves to bake, aswell as the dish this includes a custard jug and crumble spice mix. I think all of that for £16 is brilliant to be honest. Next do some great chocolate gift boxes, my personal favourites been the Daim Gift Box and the Toblerone Gift Box. These are really good if someone likes a specific type of chocolate and your not sure what to get them, just get a box full of their favourite chocolate! I think most people would appreciate a load of chocolate. I saw these in Manchester last month and was very tempted! The last thing I loved the look of from Next was the Nando's Sauce and Salt Set. This is great for people who love to cook and like spicy food, I think this is also a good present for those on Slimming World as the sauces are quite low syn and they just spice up any plain meal. 

Images from Not On The High Street & Next.

You can't go wrong with a recipe book for someone at Christmas. I'm not sure when it was but I bought George The Lean Machines book and he loved that! It's full of recipes and exercise tips and we've tried a few of the recipes so far and they've all turned out perfect! A few new recipe books out this year are the Lean in 15 - The Sustain Plan which is only £8! This is Joe Wicks third book and if you know someone who has liked his previous ones or just likes cooking and eating healthy then this is a perfect present for them. A recipe book perfect for someone cooking the Christmas dinner this year is Jamie Oliver's Christmas Cookbook. This is brand new and is supposed to be basically the bible for all Christmas food including the main event, christmas parties and leftovers. I think this would be a real traditional cookbook that comes out every year and is passed onto kids for years and years. I'll definitely be getting one of these for myself one year. 

Images from Amazon & John Lewis.

The last few things I have picked are from John Lewis and these go well with the cookbook I just mentioned as they'd be perfect for the actual day. The Copper Mini Roaster would be perfect for the turkey and roast potatoes and everyone just loves copper at the moment don't they? They also have a Copper Mini Casserole Dish which would be great for leftovers to make stews and of course casseroles. 

If you're struggling to buy for someone you know is into cooking or baking or just food in general then I hope this gift guide has helped you. I really enjoyed putting this one together as anything to do with food makes me happy! and I think all of these would make lovely gifts.

Don't forget to check out my 3 other gift guides this year if you want a few more ideas! - Gift Guide For Her // Gift Guide For Him // Etsy Gift Guide

Follow Me - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest & Bloglovin!

Christmas Gift Guide - For Him...

Today I have TWO more gift guides for you! I decided after doing my Gift Guide For Her and my Etsy Gift Guide last week that I really wanted to do one for men and also one for all the foodies. Men are so difficult to buy for aren't they? So I thought I would do a little gift guide for those who might be struggling with ideas this year, and my Gift Guide For Foodies will be up after this one!

You can't really go wrong with aftershave for men. They all use it and there are so many out there to choose from, they are spoilt for choice! My personal favourite for George is the Diesel Only The Brave. Our first christmas together we both spent loads, he bought me a perfume and I bought him this aftershave but as they're so expensive we've not bought them again since! It can be pricey but if you want to treat someone at Christmas time and you know there is one they like then you're sorted. If you want some cheaper options of aftershave, Next do some great ones for really reasonable prices and honestly they smell just as good as branded ones. Sticking with this sort of theme, you also can't really go wrong with something like a Lynx Men's Gift Set. Every man needs shower gels and deodorants and this set is actually a really good price I think for what's included. Boots and Superdrug both have loads on offer so if there is a certain one your partner/brother/dad likes then you'll definitely be able to find it in one of these stores. Something I wanted to feature that is a bit different is for the people who are into their technology. I really wanted to include the ROKU Streaming Stick which I think could be a good present. This allows for you to stream online content on your TV, it has built in wifi and gives you access to things like BBC iPlayer, 40D, Youtube, Netflix etc. We got one of these a few weeks ago so now we can watch loads of different things when we go to bed rather than only been able to access Netflix and Youtube etc in the living room. They are really worth getting.

Images from Superdrug, Next and Currys.

There are some really brilliant boxsets on Amazon that would be perfect gifts. The Game of Thrones box set is quite pricey but if you know someone who loves the show or they've recentely got into it then this would make a great present. This has series 1-6 so they can catch up before the next series starts! Another box set which is much cheaper is the Breaking Bad one. This was really expensive when it was first released but now you can get the complete collection for £25.99. Moving onto Clothing, I've found two lovely jumpers from Next, the Basket Weave Crew Jumper and the Taupe Honeycomb Crew Jumper. These both look so perfect for winter, Next are a brilliant store to go to for clothes, always good quality. The last thing I have picked is a Sekonda Leather Strap Watch from Asos. I got George a watch a few years ago and until it somehow broke he wore it everyday and really loved it and it would definitely be something I would get him again one day. Asos have a really great selection and a lot are really good prices too!

Images from Asos, Next and Amazon.

I hope this gift guide gave you some inspiration, I always look to gift guides for ideas as men are so tricky to buy for so I hope this one has helped some of you!

Did you see my other gift guides this year? Gift Guide For Her // Etsy Gift Guide

Follow Me - Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest & Bloglovin!