Weekly Update | Blogtober Week 2

Well, my plan for WMHD didn't go ahead. At all. Well, I tell a lie, I did manage to do some housework. But I did end up spending almost the whole day with my friend. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining! I love spending time with her. But it's not how my day was supposed to go. 

World Mental Health Day

It's World Mental Health day today! As someone who does suffer with depression and anxiety, this is an important day for me. I feel like it's giving me permission to just relax, and I love that it's fallen on my day off this year.

Birthday Beau Basket

Boo Baskets are really popular this year! Josh and I were going to do one for each other this year too, but as we both have lots of birthdays and Christmas coming up, we've decided to save money and not do it. However, I have decided to do one for his birthday instead! I'm calling it a Birthday Beau Basket. Which is basically a glorified hamper but with a much cuter name.

My Current Favourite Hair Products for Curls

I am definitely late to the Cantu party bus but I've been using it for 1-2 months now and I'm loving what it's been doing to my hair! My curls are looking and feeling so much more nourished and bouncy since going sulphate-free. Admittedly I still have split ends and a bit of dryness but that's why I've booked in for a hair cut this month, and then hopefully I can keep it looking fresh afterwards!

Weekly Catch Up | Week 1 of Blogtober

The first week of blogtober is officially done! Well okay, technically it's tomorrow but it feels wrong to do a weekly catch up on a Tuesday. To be honest, I'm already running out of post ideas so I'm getting a little bit stressed about it. But it's supposed to be a bit of fun so I'm going to try not to worry about it too much!

An Interview with Charlie | 2024

I interviewed Charlie back in 2021, and I'm so excited to see if his answers have changed! This was originally a blogmas post, so I have changed the last two questions to fit around Halloween instead of Christmas. 

2024 Birthday Wishlist

It's my birthday this month! I'll be 29 (on the 29th!) which is sounding like a very serious age. I'm so not ready. As per tradition, I thought I'd share my wishlist for this year.

Save the Dates & Wedding Invitations for less than £10

Is it time for wedding content? With just seven months to go, I believe it is! I feel like Save the Dates are a very American thing, but it seems to be getting more popular in the UK. I couldn't think of a better way to announce our wedding - especially as we're only having a small one - so Save the Dates it was! We're getting married in May, and many people tend to go on holiday in May, so I wanted to get the word out ASAP but we weren't ready to get the invitations out.

A Week of Decluttering

I've been in a really decluttering mood lately, so I decided to challenge myself to do 30 minutes to an hour of decluttering every day for a week, Monday-Friday in September.

I started on Monday, in my bedroom. I've got plenty to go through. My wardrobe, a box of toiletries, a drawer of toiletries, a random sh*t drawer, my bedside table, and the under-bed storage. Seriously, there's tons. I decided to start with my toiletries drawer. I go in it every day and always struggle to find what I'm actually looking for, so I emptied the entire drawer and started from scratch. 

My October Watchlist

It's officially time to hunker down on the sofa, with a hot drink and a blanket, and watch everything and anything! I've set myself a little watchlist for October, so I'm not looking for something to watch all the time.

October Goals | Chapter 10 of 12

It's officially the best month of the year! My birthday month and Halloween time! I'm absolutely buzzing for October - as I am every year - and can't wait for the spooky times. I'm going to a Halloween event at Dreamland and I can't wait. My costume is ready and I can't wait to party all night.

Autumn Bucket List

Today is officially Autumn! My favourite time of year. I wanted to create a little mini bucket list for the autumn season, so here goes.

Weekly Catch Up | September Week 2

I broke my spending ban this week! A lot of it was useful stuff though. I started with a binder for 99p! I was setting up my journal for the rest of the year, and it got me thinking about my journal for 2025. I spent a while looking around at diaries. I was torn between getting another Go Girl planner, a normal diary or a blank notebook. Eventually, binders started coming up, and I remembered how much I loved having a binder and having the freedom to move things around in it and add to it. So, binder it was. My old one is ruined, so I found this gorgeous black one that's definitely a bit of me! It was £10.99 and lucky me had a £10 Amazon gift card, so I thought for only paying 99p, it was worth it! 

Weekly Catch Up | September Week 1

Well...September has been pretty rough so far. Our invitations to our wedding officially went out, and then we had a family member on Josh's side trying to tell us that we shouldn't have my best friend there and just generally trying to cause trouble. In the end, Josh banned his sister and my best friend which broke my heart as she was my maid of honour. But he respected that I didn't want his youngest brother there, so I have had to respect his wish not to have my friend there. It sucks, but it is what it is and we are still firm friends.

September Goals | Chapter 9 of 12

August has been really lovely! Not nearly as fun as I'd wanted but it's still been a really good month. My Mum made a comment last week. "Are you happier or are you just better at pretending that you are?" Wow. That's when it hit me that I haven't had a proper depressive episode for quite a few weeks! Obviously July had been a difficult month, but these last few weeks I've felt much better. I still have general life stresses but I have genuinely been so much happier lately. I feel good. 

August Goals | Chapter 8 of 12

Anybody else in shock that it's August in the next few days? I sure am! This year is flying by and I don't like it. This month is an exciting one for me though, I'm getting a nose piercing and getting my hair coloured! This is definitely the year of treating myself and I'm loving it. 

Weekly Catch-up & Weekly Goals | Week 3

Well last week was understandably crap. I was so emotional all week, I even ended up crying at work on Monday. I definitely gave myself too many goals for last week and now I feel rubbish for not achieving any of them. Except getting my hair cut, I did do that, and I'm booked in next month to get it coloured.
I did actually get some more reading done this week which I'm pleased about. Plus more wedding planning! I might share a post about our progress, I'm not sure yet. 

Weekly Catch-up & Weekly Goals | Week 2

Hello folks! Happy Monday. Another week is done and a new one is upon us. Lets see how I did last week, eh?

Weekly Catch-up & Weekly Goals | Week 1

The first week of July is officially done! It's been a bit of a mixed bag to be honest. I've been really emotional, what with stress of wanting a new job but not finding anything, Charlie's birthday coming up and also my dearly departed dad's birthday this month too. It's hit me in the feels a lot earlier this month than it usually does, and I'm definitely struggling. 

Botanical Bliss | Home Improvement

We have finally made some real progress in our bedroom! If you want to catch up on previous posts, you can read them under Home & Living. 

The room was officially clear of crap and it was time to get serious. We headed over to Homebase and spent forever picking out a colour for the walls. Originally we were going in for a dark blue but ended up getting a gorgeous dark green - Botanical Noir by Elle Decoration. We also picked up Absolute Granite. 

July Goals

Well, June was a bit of a bust. Jury Service was a trip but thankfully only lasted one week instead of two. I ended up pulling away from everyone instead of spending more time with them and was desperately trying to escape reality by spending all my time playing games and scrolling TikTok. Honestly the only thing I did achieve this month was the DIY in the bedroom.

We have just had a lovely weekend though, going to our local Pride festival and then Viking Fest at Betteshanger Park. Pride was a bit tamer than I had hoped but at least I can officially cross it off my bucket list! Josh has promised me we can go to Brighton Pride or somewhere similar another time! Viking Fest was also pretty tame but for £5 a ticket, the entertainment was pretty good and Charlie loved it, so money well spent I'd say!

7 Things You Need to Know About Jury Service (UK)

Been summoned for jury service and not sure what to expect? Then this is the blog post for you. I recently did jury service and thought I'd share everything I now know so you can be prepared! Don't worry too much though, you will receive a booklet in the post closer to the time of your summons to cover everything, including the best way to get to the court you specifically will be going to.

I did my jury service at Maidstone Crown Court and overall it was a pleasant experience, all the staff I met were really friendly - even the super tall, buff, gruff security guard!

Creating Space | Home Improvement

The wardrobe has been built, next on the list was a big old declutter! I have done a fair bit of decluttering over the last few months but it's all been piled up in the corner, still making the bedroom look messy.

June Goals

May has actually been quite an eventful month! We've celebrated our 5 year anniversary, done a load of DIY, celebrated a first birthday, and looked after 4 crazy dogs for two weeks. No wonder I'm tired! This month I have jury service! I am absolutely dreading it and do not want to go, at all. Sitting in a room full of strangers and having to listen intently to something? Literally my worst nightmare.

Temu Haul

As I said in my Shein haul, I'm probably going to get judged for shopping on Temu as well but the bargains are just too hard to resist! 

Shein Haul

I know I'm going to get judged heavily for shopping from Shein but I just can't help it! High street shops just don't do it for me anymore. As the warmer weather is coming, I wanted some new spring/summer clothes but in my new alt. aesthetic. I'm officially done wearing clothes I don't like! 

Everything listed below is a size 16/XL.

Half Term Activities

Half term has begun and I'm determined to fill it with fun things for little man and I. I thought I'd share a little list of everything we want to get up to over the next week. Unfortunately I do still have to work so he'll be with the childminder for a couple of hours but we can still do fun things in-between!

Bedroom Wishlist

For some reason we decided to go for a bright blue in the bedroom when we first moved in. We immediately knew it was a mistake but we carried on regardless and the plan always was to redecorate anyway. Josh's brother made his bedroom black and dark green and I absolutely love it. I find it so calming and peaceful in there so when Josh said I had free range in the bedroom, I immediately knew what I wanted to do. Obviously I went straight onto Pinterest for more ideas!

Our New Wardrobe | Home Improvement

We're finally cracking on with redecorating our bedroom and I'm absolutely loving it! Over the bank holiday, Josh took 3 full days to knock down both wardrobes and build our own from scratch. 

May Goals

This month I'm cracking down on my health and fitness. I've laid out a plan, I've got a friend to keep me motivated and I'm going to make it the main thing I focus on this month.

Llyn Mair | Photo Diary

As well as Swallow Falls, we also checked out Llyn Mair. It was around 5pm at this time and the lighting was absolutely perfect for photos.

Swallow Falls | Photo Diary

Day three was lots of shopping, then we found Swallow Falls. It was £2 per person to get in - no idea why - but it was lovely.

Aber Falls | Photo Diary

Another day, another trek! Day two, we decided to check out Aber Falls which meant another uphill walk. Thankfully this one only took an hour.

Mount Snowdon | Photo Diary

I'm still in shock that we climbed Snowdon on our first full day of the holiday but at the same time, it's just as well we did because that was the best weather for it! I unfortunately did not make it to the summit but the family said it was the clearest view they've ever had!

April Goals

I know it's almost a week late, but a holiday to Wales with absolutely no signal will do that. I did try to think of some goals before I went but my mind was totally blank. But clearly the Welsh mountain air did something for me because I'm totally spurred on now.

A Week in Wales | A Page in Our Adventure Book

Our first holiday in over a year was a bloody good one. We decided to do a family holiday in Wales, with Josh, Charlie, Josh's younger brother and sister, and their dad. We stayed in the Beddgelart camp site for a week and it was bloody beautiful. Our camp was right on a fast flowing river and it was so lovely to fall asleep listening to it.

March Goals

Hello, my loves! Welcome to March! I'm so stinking excited for this month; Spring begins which hopefully means warmer weather with it. 

I've got a Glam Rock gig to go to with my Mum and one of my sisters this month, which I'm so looking forward to! I've been waiting for an excuse to dress up and this will be perfect. We're going to dinner first at a lovely looking cafe that also offers some yummy looking cocktails. 

Josh, Charlie and I are also going away this month with Josh's dad, and two of his siblings. We're going camping in Wales and we're going to walk up Mount. Snowdon! I'm literally so damn excited - I should probably start planning what clothes I want to take!

March Goals 

I'm actually not sure what I want to achieve this month. Apart from going to the gym twice a week, I did really well with my goals last month! I read three books and started a fourth, and I did a massive decluttering of my wardrobe. 

I definitely want to try and get my finances in check this month, I need to go through all of my bills again and figure out if there's anything I don't really need to be paying for. I also need to figure out some extra income as I've been a tad irresponsible with my credit card lately and the number it's at is starting to scare me. I might do overtime at work but I'm not keen, as they never pay me on time...

I'll be checking at least two things off my 30 by 30 bucket list this month, I'm tempted to see what else I can tick off!

Other than that, it might just be a winging it month.

What are your goals for March? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time,

Saph xx

February Photo Diary

You know what guys, February has been a bloody good month. Okay, sure, it got rocky towards the end where my mental health plummeted and I ignored everyone for a week and wanted to quit my job and life in general, but other than that? It's been amazing.

February Goals | 2024

Chapter 2 of 12

2024 Goals

Well, it's been a while again hasn't it! I've still been seriously thinking about deleting my blog entirely, but now I'm tempted by a complete makeover instead. Change of theme, change of name, maybe scrap the whole blog entirely and start from scratch. Maybe.