This week #2

Only really have one thing this week, but its a big-un!

My little sister graduated from university on tuesday morning! 

After some wobbles at the beginning,  a whole load of hard work, and everything the last year has thrown at us, she did it, and she has also been given a deferred entry position at UCL for 2015 doing a masters course. 

I am one proud big sister.

This Week #1

Howdy all, it seems every blog I have read in the past week has said something along these lines but I'm going to say it anyway, how is it already nearly half way through July? I had one of those moments earlier where I couldn't pin point what the date was at all and was quite shocked to find it was the twelfth. It felt like maybe half that, Oh well!



I don't feel like I have done a whole lot with the month so far, though I have actually achieved quite a bit. Lately I have been feeling like I haven't been getting weekends. You know when you just don't feel like you have had those days of rest? Work weeks have been pretty stressful, and then a lot of stress has been piled on by my family lately that I had just about got to breaking point with too. Add to that the never ending to-do list I have for household projects and I have been feeling really swamped.

Because things have been a bit manic lately and I have been struggling to keep on top and stay positive I have decided to borrow what appears to be becoming quite a popular regular post on a fair few other  blogs, and just give myself a reminder of some positive moments from the past week.

•  I finally managed to complete two decorative projects that I have been wanting to do for years, and I mean years. I have had a fan that was given to me when I went to see To Kill a Mockingbird on stage at the age of 16 that I had an idea for framing and never got around to. Now I have walls to hang things on it is complete and I felt so damn satisfied, it was incredibly relaxing to take the time and exacto cut my favourite quotes into birds to go alongside it too.

• Room temperature watermelon for breakfast and snacks. I am an impatient person, but waiting a couple of minutes for it to warm up really allows the sweetness to shine through.

• This weekend I should have shelves in one of the alcoves, this is going to be some serious progress towards tidying up the many piles of things that have no home in our new home. My mild OCD is being driven mad by these piles (I know I shouldn't really term it OCD as I am pretty certain it isn't so I apologise to anyone that offends, but I am not sure what it should be called, I am unable to sleep if there is too much mess and go all Monica on it). I do love James for all the hard work he is putting in to try and make my ideas a reality.

• I pooch-sat Katie today (James's sister's Cocker Spaniel) for the first time in the new house, and she was good as gold, which means she can visit again! I miss the waggy balls of fluff being around and can't wait for us to get our own dog.

• I treated myself to a subscription to BBC Good Food magazine as a pay day treat last month (mainly to save some £££ on the shop price) and my freebie came in the post this week, I have been devouring Nigella's Summer cookbook. I love the redesign and am trying to resist replacing my copy of How To Be a Domestic Goddess to match.

• This is technically last week, as it was last Sunday, but I forgot to take any pictures so I will mention it here. James took me to a lovely little tea room in the Wolds as a surprise for brunch last weekend. I am not good with surprises, but he was determined and drove a good 15 miles out of our way just to keep me guessing about where we were going. The food was delicious, and I got to have chocolate cake with my breakfast, it was perfect.

I also thought I would tack on what I am reading this weekend, just in case you ever wonder what I am reading right there and then. This week it is The Truth about the Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker, it started off slow and I struggled to read the Hardback (think I was put off by the size) but since transferring to ebook I am steaming through it!

June

I thought I would have a little reminisce about June to keep things going while I slave away trying to get this blog shifted to Wordpress (SO not as simple as anticipated. It isn't just the moving of it, bright spark over here decided that if she was going to move it she might as well re-design the whole thing too, as my blogger layout just wouldn't work over there, if you want to monitor the progress, it is at the same domain just without the w's)

I finally replaced my very battered and bruised cream Toms with some lovely grey ones, my old ones were the best fitting shoes I have ever had, but I have to confess that they fit so well because they once got completely soaked at a Harry Potter premiere in the rain (remember the year when Emma's dress was almost see through, that one, LOVED that damn dress, so pretty!) and so were completely moulded to the shape of my dodgy arches. I adore those shoes but they had no grip left and had to go.

I am very tempted to wear my new ones in the bath... kidding (sort of not really).

I bought some rugs for the house, we have wood floors = cold even when it is boiling outside. Had to soften this place up a bit so got a bargain rug for £15 from B&Q. It is already a bit filthy but i like how it provides a bit of contrast and reduces the echoes.

I have cooked a million different things, and attempted to photograph them only to take half the pictures I needed, doh! Especially annoying when I made brioche buns from scratch and by hand this weekend, I was suitably damn well chuffed with myself for that one.

Lincolnshire show was an OK visit, but I got more out of Brocklesby Country Fair, I snapped pics at both so maybe I will do a bit of a piccy post. Suffice it to say there was an awful lot of moolah spent in the Joules tent at Lincs show, and I was oh so grateful for the chairs and posh loos that a vice presidential membership pass got me. Also ate quite possibly the best sausage sandwich I have ever had in my life at Brocklesby from Boston Sausage.

Must pause here for the Mr Whippy van, parked right outside my house!

James didn't want one, boo!

I went on a Lush spree (photos ago come) and subsequently sliced my hand open trying to chop a bath bomb in half. It needed butterfly stitches, was not good let me tell you. A lesson has been learnt.

I was bought some very pretty posies by my other half, and caved to blogger hype and bought myself some peonies when they died.

I am pretty sure there were many more things of note that occurred last month, but I will save those for another day, must get back to the grind stone and try and get my snazzy new layout fixed.