Four balloons & the gang

Perhaps they are not stars in the sky, but openings where our loved ones shine down to let us know they are happy

This year, on the four year anniversary of my dad passing away, we decided to release four balloons. One for each year. Usually we do lanterns, on dad's first birthday after his passing we did a huge balloon release, but this year lanterns were out of the question what with the big fire that occurred. The words we chose this year for our newspaper memorial are an Eskimo proverb - such a lovely idea.

Our closest friends & family gathered at my mum's house on the evening of Thursday the 18th July to celebrate and remember my dad. I'll take you through the two photos, but there is one person missing from them and that is Phil. Phil was a good friend of my dad's and they shared many a happy time together (many times have I heard the story about my dad and the grenade? in the garden! Though I obviously need to hear it again - I have an awful memory!).

Photo 1 L-R: my boyfriend Mark, myself, sister Willow, littlest sister Indigo, dear family friend Bronwen, nephew McKenzie, sister Zenobia, mumma bear, littlest brother Phoenix, brother Josh, sister Phoebe (twin to Phoenix), niece Caitlin, brother Zach and his labrador Prim, friend and Josh's partner Gemma, friend Maxine.

Photo 2 L-R: Gemma, myself, Indigo, Willow, Bronwen, Zenobia, McKenzie, mumma bear, Phoenix, Josh, Phoebe, dear family friend Lynn (hidden behind) Caitlin, Zach and Maxine.

We had a lovely, fun and laughter filled evening with old friends and all of our large but wonderful family. I love all of these people very much, and I am missing them already!

Our holiday in Leicestershire

Hello lovelies, oh how I've missed all of you and your blogs this last couple of weeks! Mark & I went to stay in Leicestershire with my family for our holidays this year. We planned the dates around my dad's four year anniversary. We had such a lovely time, and the two weeks flew by! We spent time with family and friends, and I especially enjoyed seeing my friends.

We had lots of fun playing on the bouncy castle with the children, especially when we added all the bears into the mix! We made coca cola ice pole slushies (so good!), and ate far too much tasty Summer time food. We had a lot of fun playing Frustration with everyone, sat in the garden enjoying the sweltering hot sunshine (a far cry from the rain on the Wirral right now!). We took the children to see Despicable Me 2, and Mark & I went to see World War Z the following Wednesday (scary! Zombies don't make you jump in a book!). I had a wonderful time catching up with Suzanne and Stacey (left) in Costa, when I finally made it after getting the week wrong!! I spent a day shopping with my best friends Nicola & Leah (who I'm already missing!). Lynn, mum, Mark, Willow, Zenobia & I spent a day clearing out our loft (mammoth task!) and found some real gems. We also enjoyed spending time with Fluffy the house rabbit!


I hope you've enjoyed my photos, and there are more to come, including some lovely ones from our Cadbury World trip :)

Monthly: July pt 1

1. A rose from the flowers Mark bought me 2. Drinking hot chocolate from Rubens & playing Crash Team Racing on the Xbox 3. Vanilla coke & vanilla wafers - yum! 4. Chasing the supermoon & watching sunrise (post here) 5. Gingerbread cupcakes that Joanne bought Mark for his birthday 6. A cheeky lunchtime selfie at work 7. Wearing Summery accessories! 8 & 9. A very nautical themed OOTD (post here) 10. The sign for Wirral Country Park 11. Pink houses along Parkgate 12. Nicholls ice-cream shop - so delicious! 13. My birthday present for December!!! 14. A pretty floral pink playsuit from George at Asda (sadly my long body made this too short for me, boo!) 15. Foxy slippers 16. A questions & answers post

17 & 18. Ticking off one of my 25 by 25s - flying a kite! 19. Phoebe, Phoenix, Indigo & the bears on the bouncy castle 20. Our makeshift bedroom in mum's conservatory - so cosy! 21. Waking up to the sunshine (except today!!!) 22 & 23. Mark & I took Phoebe, Phoenix & Indigo to see Despicable Me 2 24, 25 & 26. Remembering my dad on the four year anniversary of his passing away (post here & more posts to come on what we did on the day) 27. Dad's blue and white china 28. Mark & I bought Fluffy the house rabbit a new bed... today it is a collapsed heap (I don't know if he likes it!) 29. Fluffy hiding behind the curtains 30. Indigo wearing my sunnies on the bouncy castle 31. Thinking up ideas a lot lately, but lacking the motivation to carry them out at the moment 32. A vintage black & white photobooth strip of my mum & dad, one of the treasures we found when clearing out the loft.

Hello lovelies, sorry I've not been around as much this week! Thank you for all your sweet comments & thoughts on my last post. Mark & I are on our 'holiday' at my mum's house, we've been here since Tuesday and will be here until Friday. I will catch up with all of you better when we are home, but for now here are some of the things I've been upto lately. Today we are off to Cadbury World, can't wait! Has anyone else been having the massive thunder storms all through the night and today? A little bit glad for a bit of rain :)

You can find me on Instagram here.

Remembering

14.02.65 - 18.07.09
~ never forget ~

Today marks the four year anniversary of my dad passing away (last year's post is here). Every year we put a memorial article into the local newspaper. I help my mum with finding the right words, but this year it was harder in different ways. In previous years the words have been undoubtedly of overwhelming sadness, but this year I felt like something a little more positive was needed. The sadness and the hurt never goes away, and sometimes it hits you when you're least expecting it and it could once again be that day. But it is true what they say, and it does get easier. Not easy in the way people perhaps say it might, but you find yourself starting to remember happier times as well as the hard and very sad ones. I find myself remembering random things about my dad, about the times our family had together, and funny little things sometimes that make me laugh at the thought.

So here are some happier times, I was rummaging through family photo albums at 7am looking for these. Last year my post was scheduled, but this year with not knowing quite what I wanted to say until now, I woke up early in a moment of clarity. My dad was the best husband, and the best dad (to eight of us, no less!). My dad was caring, he would do anything for anyone at any time they asked for help. He was also fun, he would tickle our feet until we couldn't take anymore and play fight with us until someone inevitably started sulking because they lost! You can see in the last three photos, my dad made the most of his life until he couldn't anymore. He came on family days out, he took his photographs, and he rode his motorbike with slippers on his feet and a tea towel on his head (he was always one to overcome any obstacle). So today my family and our friends will be remembering, not only the sad times, but the happy times too.

25 by 25: Flying a kite

The first thing on my 25 by 25 list was to fly a kite. I've wanted to for so long, and Mark bought me my very own kite for Easter. So last Sunday, Mark finished work at 2pm and we made the short journey to Parkgate. We parked the car up near a little pub, and took my kite to a grassy area. I had so much fun!! It was instantly successful, which only made our later failed attempts to get it off the ground more disappointing! There was the perfect amount of wind for the first twenty minutes or so, and then it dropped and we decided to call it a day. Since we were in Parkgate, we couldn't go home without a visit to Nicholls for their famous ice cream. Nicholls has been open since 1937 - 75 years! And it doesn't take long to figure out why, the ice cream was absolutely delicious! I opted for my old favourite chocolate flavoured, and Mark chose banana chocolate chip (which tasted so good).

Since I hadn't visited Parkgate before, this kind of counted as one of the adventures to be had as part of no.8 on my list. It was such a wonderful afternoon, the sun was so hot and it was a lazy, hazy kind of Sunday. There were lots and lots of people along the walk to the ice cream shop, sitting on the wall enjoying fish & chips or the famous ice cream. Have you ever been to Parkgate? It reminded me so much of being at the seaside.

Questions & Answers x3

Recently, I was tagged by both Chloe and Jemimah for the Liebster Award. The rules seem to change but it's an award that gives recognition to bloggers with not so many followers. It's a great way to find out more about your favourite bloggers, and to discover new blogs.

Chloe's questions:
Favourite holiday memory?
I have so many, but I'm going to pick one that reflects how I feel lately and that is nostalgic. One of my
favourite holiday memories, my whole family was on holiday on the English coast and my dad woke
me up super early to go down to the beach. He wanted to take photos of the sunrise, click here to see one.
Have you lived in another country?
No - and I wouldn't want to leave my family/friends behind!
Dive to the deepest parts of the sea or explore space?
Space exploration please :)
Show me your favourite cup/mug
Click here to see it on my Instagram.
Mac or PC?
Laptop
Books or a film?
Books, followed by the film so I can complain how unlike the book it is haha.
What's your regional dish?
I come from Leicestershire and after a quick Google, apparently our regional dish is curry. However,
living on the Wirral I'd say the regional dish here must be scouse!
Flats or heels?
It used to be heels but I'm a flats girl all the way now, I choose comfort and being steady (my balance
issues don't really allow for heels unless I want to sit down)
Favourite smell?
Is it really bad to say the smell of food I like cooking? haha, but if you mean perfumes, then Naughty
Alice by Vivienne Westwood is a firm favourite.
Favourite tradition?
Visiting Bradgate Park every New Years Day with my family. Last year's photos here and here.
Online shopping or being out and about?
Both!!

Jemimah's questions:
You're allowed one item of make-up. What do you choose?
Tinted moisturiser, a bit of moisture and a bit of coverage
What is your earliest fashion memory?
I'm having a mental block, but one thing that comes to mind is a pair of absolutely shocking (-ly horrendous)
hot pink parachute pants, you know with the strips hanging off... shoot me now?! What can I say, I was 'alternative'
If you could travel to any place in the world, where would you go? Why?
New York, because there wasn't enough time for all the exploring needed on my first trip! Take me back :)
When did you first experiment with make-up?
When I was younger, me and my friends used to go to a disco on Friday nights at a place called "Matt's place",
I used to stick shiny stars in the corner of my eyes haha
What TV show could you watch, rewatch, then watch again?
Gossip Girl!
What inspired you to start blogging?
I wanted to somewhere to keep a kind of diary, as I'm useless at keeping actual diaries
Who has influenced your personal style the most?
I don't think there is any one person, just a combination of everyone who's worn something I've loved
What would you like to do more of on your blog?
More arty posts - I've been slacking
What is your dream job?
Something arty that I could do mostly from home
If you could, what colour would you dye your hair? Would you?

I did!!! I tried to login to my old Myspace account so I could get a photo of my turquoise hair,
and terribly pink hair, but alas it wasn't to be haha. The turquoise hair cost my dad £70 at the
hairdressers, the rest I did myself, I even cut my own hair sometimes (pretty badly!).
Are you a cat person, or a dog person?
Both!

Lauren's questions:
What is your favourite book?
I'm going to choose two, Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, and Lazy Ways To
Make A Living by Abigail Bosanko. I recommend both, the second is my perfect escapist read.
What is your favourite film?
At the moment, Fantastic Mr Fox! Makes me laugh every time..!
When you were a child what job did you want to have when you grew up?
I honestly don't think I knew, and I still really don't!
What is your favourite item of clothing?
My Luella leather jacket, or my two favourite dresses.
What are your favourite clothing brands?
Luella (sadly no more, but watch this space as Luella Bartley is to be design director at Marc
by Marc Jacobs!), All Saints, tba, Maison Scotch, Cos and Oysho to name a few.
If you had £500, what would you spend it on?
I'd buy gifts!!! I love buying presents for people, especially when money isn't so limited as
it means I can buy the things I know they'd like best.
What is your favourite quote?
I don't have just one favourite, check out my Pinterest board for some that I really like though.
What is your favourite song?
I recorded it live last year...

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
All I hope is to be healthy, happy and the same for the people I love!
How did your blog name come about?
I took my tea with three sugars :)
Which country, other than your own, is your favourite?
I haven't explored enough to be able to say (yet!)

Now, I would like to tag anyone that wants to take part, and I would like you to tell us 11 completely random and unknown facts about yourself. Please let me know if you take part, and I'll come have a nosey :) please go check out the lovely ladies who tagged me in the Liebster award (thanks ladies!), and the other blogs they tagged too.

OOTD: Embroidered star collar blouse by Chicnova

Star lapel blouse Chicnova $30.40, used a gift voucher
Nautical navy shorts River Island around £25, old
Nautical ribbon bracelet River Island around £5, old
Daisy earrings Craft fair £1
Nails painted in Red Gelly Barry M at Boots £3.99

A while ago, Chicnova contacted me and kindly sent me a $30 voucher to use on anything from their website, in return for a review on my blog of the product/s I chose. After much perusing (they have lots of lovely things!), I finally settled on the chiffon blouse with embroidered star lapel in white and blue. I already knew that I wanted to style this up nautically, who could resist with white and blue? It was the perfect sunny and hot day for it today, so I finally got round to wearing this gorgeous Summer outfit.

The blouse is so gorgeous on, it feels so smooth and cool on the skin. It does up at the back with a zip, which is really handy because I could do my hair and make-up before I put it on (a must in this heat!). What drew me to this blouse was the embroidered collar with those gorgeous star tips. I have never seen a shaped collar like it, and I fell in love instantly. I hadn't realised when I bought it, but there are little blue stars embroidered all the way round the collar - it's so sweet! I love it and can't wait to wear it again!

I was a bit dubious about ordering anything from sites where the country of origin isn't the UK - but I'm glad I had the opportunity to try it as the quality is better than I could have expected and shipping was surprisingly quick! Have you ever bought anything from Chicnova?

Chasing the supermoon & watching sunrise

The weekend before last was the weekend of the supermoon. I get all excited about geeky stuff like this, one reason being that I am fascinated by the night sky and all that shines within it. The main reason I get so excited though, is because it's a great opportunity to take the big camera out, which was my dad's. Photography was one of my dad's greatest hobbies, and he took some amazing photos of the moon super close-up, of the like I could never hope to achieve. Maybe I will share them with you one day!

The prime time for us to see the supermoon was supposedly going to be 4am on Sunday morning. I checked before I went to bed at 11pm, and took the first photo of the moon up there surrounded by clouds. I woke up to my quiet alarm at 4am feeling very tired but then thinking this is going to be awesome! I woke my sister Willow up, as she'd agreed to come out with me. Out we went in our pjs and coats, only to be disappointed that the moon was nowhere to be seen as it was so cloudy.

So what did we do?

Did we go back to bed like any sane people would at 4am on Sunday morning? Nope. Like the dedicated troopers we are, we traipsed to our local park in hope of getting a sighting of the supermoon. The only glimpse we got was the photo of the semi circle between the tree and the house!! But as sunrise was on my 25 by 25, I checked what time it would be rising and we sat our bums on cold wet benches and waited for over an hour to watch the beautiful sunrise. The sky was so pretty in shades of pastel blue and pink.

But don't worry...

I did get to see my supermoon after all! Mark arrived on Sunday evening, and after a little research I found out that if I went outside at around 11pm on Sunday night, I should be able to see the supermoon. Those last three photos were taken on Sunday night, it was beautiful and bright and clear, and I was so happy to finally see it clearly! Doing things like this, things that I know my dad would have taken part in, makes me feel proud :)