Music Crush #4

Hello!

As some of you may know, I went on a rather adventurous (if that's what you want to call it... possibly more disastrous, actually) road trip with my brother the other day - don't worry though, I documented the whole thing HERE, just for you!

Anyway, a road trip with my brother means some of the best, old-school music of our lives, that we both stupidly sing along too, and it's that road trip CD that has inspired this weeks music crush...

This deserves an epic drum roll, with a guitar riff and maybe even a bit of bass...

Fall Out Boy

~~~

Sugar, We're Goin Down

I remember when this song came out and I loved it straight away - I think it's one of those timeless rock songs that never gets old... In fact, I think most of Fall Out Boy's songs are timeless!

This song just gives me so many good memories, mainly of my brother and I rocking out to it on our many road trips; it's a classic!

What do you think?

Katie x

Have you read the previous music crushes?

Music Crush #1

Music Crush #2

Music Crush #3

Sleeping Problems

Hello!

I have had the problem lately of frequently 'sleeping in'. Not necessarily missing anything important, or missing anything at all, because of these extra long lie-ins but it's definitely turning into a bad habit.

The feeling of not having to set an alarm for the morning is blissful! Nothing will ever beat that feeling when you can go to sleep and you don't have to count how many hours of sleep you can get before you have to wake up to go out to a class or a meeting. 

The only problem is, because I haven't been setting any alarms, I've not been waking up until the late hours of the morning... sometimes even the early hours of the afternoon. Although this sounds amazing (and is at the time) you start to realise it's a problem when you go to bed at, let's saaaay, 11pm and you. Can't. Sleep. Then you spend the next hour tossing and turning knowing you have something important that you have to be up early for. Then you spend the next hour counting how many hours of sleep you're going to get if you go to sleep at the precise minute. The next hour you spend frustrated which only makes your chances of sleep even less because you're waking yourself up more by thinking of how much you wish you could just sleep. And so it goes on, in that exact same cycle.

Even when you know you don't have anything to do the next day so it doesn't really matter how late you're up and what time you go to sleep, you stay up later either reading or on the internet, social networking, writing, something that's stopping you from sleeping. This something means that, when you do eventually get to sleep in the early hours of the morning, you wake up even later in the day and the whole thing is repeated again the next night. It never ends. 

So, when I've had to get up early the past few days I've felt like a zombified version of myself, more socially inept than normal, walking around thinking shop floors look like comfy places to sleep - what does it matter if people stare at you or you get trampled on, at least you'd be sleeping...?

It's been a tired few days, in case you can't tell, and yet once again, I'm sitting writing this post and watching countless YouTube videos at the same time and it's nearly half-eleven at night, so the chances of me going to sleep anytime soon are slim. I need help!

Katie x

Memory Lane

Hello!

I'm making a new scrapbook so I was sorting through some pictures today and I found some really cute, old pictures that I thought I'd share with you!

This is my niece and nephew who are now 11 and 13 years old, needless to say this was a hell of a long time ago! I really wish I could remember how long ago but I'm guessing maybe about five or so years.

This wee pup had an obsession with the bottom of this cupboard. She took all the books out, apart from the dictionary, and slept in there for as long as she could. The bigger she grew the more books she took out, until eventually she couldn't fit in there at all - if only she was still so little!

Christmas 2006 - I look soooo young in this photo... too young! But look at Kate! The same little girl from the first photo but even younger!

This was my grandma and grandpa's doggy, Heidi. She was the most gentle dog ever. She was scared of her own shadow most of the time and followed my grandpa everywhere he went (including the bathroom), she was super cute though.

Here are Megan and Sophie when we went camping three or four years ago. In other words these are Daisy's big sisters! As you can see, they were excited for our camping trip.

And, finally, this is Daisy only a few days after she was born. She was so tiny - if anybody tried to hold her like that now, she'd wriggle her way out of it!

I think that's enough of a trip down memory lane for today... It's even made me a little teary.

Katie x

A Bit Too Much Adventure

Hello!

Yesterday was just one of those days! My brother, his wife and one of my nephew's, James, decided to go to the Newcastle Metro Centre and I decided to tag along!

We had big plans for the day and it was supposed to be super relaxed... Not quite the way it turned out. No. We broke down. We could see the "Welcome to Newcastle Upon Tyne" sign and then the car started to judder along the road. We pulled into a lay-by to try and figure out the problem but, after figuring out we didn't have any breakdown cover, we spoke to a mechanic and decided it was going to be just as well to chug it along to the Metro Centre.

We eventually got there, and there was definitely no way we were ruining the rest of our day by constantly worrying about!

Lunch at Pizza Hut then led to a good shop - and we came away with a lot of Primark bags... Actually, I didn't get that much, just a top and some socks (I live on the edge, obviously) but no one else skimped on the clothes.

I spent a lot of my time drooling when we went into Paperchase, I couldn't help it! I managed to stop myself from buying anything though - I did see a notebook I already own in the sale though, I didn't look to see how much it was; I didn't  want to depress myself over how much I could have saved!

Once we managed to get hold of the RAC we treated ourselves to a nice little Starbucks and a Krispy Kreme each. Yummy! Did you know Newcastle has a drive thru Starbucks?! Not that we could use it seen as the car had decided to go into hibernation, but still! They should have more drive thru Starbucks!

Anyway, the lovely RAC man came and fixed the car and we were back on a very slow and extremely cautious journey home - we didn't want to cause the little car to want to take a break again!

It was a very giggly journey home thanks to Jj! He's going through his copy-cat phase, needless to say when his mama coughed he copied, we all laughed and, because he thought it was funny, he didn't stop, which just made us laugh more!

There was no better way to end my day than a bath, an episode of Suits and a piece of Malteser cake.

All in all, although a little bit more adventurous than we were hoping for, it was a great, little day out!

Katie x

An Unlawful Obsession

Hello!

Before anybody gets the wrong idea, I'm not into anything like drugs or something that is actually illegal! Promise!

No, I have a new found obsession in an American TV show, Suits.

Anybody who lives in America will probably know that 'Suits' is a common term used for lawyers but not so much here in England - however, I'm not going to say no to a man in a suit. Who doesn't love a man who scrubs up well in a suit; it just makes them look so much tidier and more appealing... In my opinion... Anyway, let's get back to the actual show and off the topic of how hot a man in a suit looks!

The show is about a guy, Mike Ross, who gets caught up in the wrong thing with a friend and somehow ends up getting a job in one of New York's biggest law firms, Pearson Hardman. He has the ability to remember anything he looks at, no matter what it is, making him pretty much brilliant at everything - I have seriously spent most of my time watching this show wishing I had his brain. He gets to work with, arguably, the best lawyer in New York, Harvey Specter, whilst he tries to hide his secret from everyone around him.

It's one of the best TV series I've ever seen. I'm hooked. Completely. My infatuation with the TV show and its characters should probably be illegal.

Most people probably think that some show to do with lawyers is going to be either boring or too serious but it's actually funny as hell at times as well, as managing to deal with the more serious aspects of being a lawyer. 

The relationship between Mike and Harvey deals with lots of twists but they always manage to keep it serious and humorous at the same time, which I love... And they both wear suits nearly all the time, just saying. I also love Donna's character - she is just freaking, amazingly hilarious. Her ability to gossip astounds me! She's just awesome. But she doesn't wear a suit. 

It's very kindly available for us English folk on Netflix too (which is where I found it), which, of course, means endless watching of each series!

It really is something else. I love it. A lot. Like, a lot a lot. Go watch it. You'll love it. Seriously. Love it.

Katie x

A Mid Week Pick-Me-Up #3

Hello!

I'm back with the 'Mid Week Pick-Me-Up' series! I have fallen in love with writing this weekly post... I think it's got something to do with it helping me motivate myself for the remainder of the week!

"Always believe something wonderful is about to happen." - Anonymous

This quote speaks so much truth. I think life would get really boring if you were just plodding along never believing that anything special was going to happen to you. 

I have a lot of big dreams and I know that there are a large majority of them that will never come true - for example, the chances of me owning my own giraffe and it living in my back garden are very unlikely, unless I decide to move houses and countries! But I also know that I have some wonderful little dreams, nothing big, not even anything particularly special to anyone else but me, that I always believe might happen.

You have to go through life hoping and believing that one day you're going to turn a corner and see something miraculous and wonderful that you never expected. Even if it's something as small as seeing someone you miss and haven't seen in a long time. To me, that would be something wonderful. Or you can dream on the bigger side! Always believe that something wonderful is going to happen in your future, no matter how much crap you have to go through to get there, there's still something wonderful waiting to happen.

Always believe!

Katie x

The Best Chocolate-y Pudding Ever!

Hello!

I spent yesterday evening making Malteser Cake - the best chocolate-pudding-snack-thing you will ever taste. I promise you, if you like chocolate as much as I do, this is the thing for you.

It may be extremely fattening but it's worth it seen as it's the best thing you will ever taste!

Here is my recipe, in case you would like to recreate it!

Makes 18 pieces

You will need:

4oz Butter

4oz Plain milk chocolate

9oz Crushed digestive biscuits

8oz Maltesers

4 Dessert spoons of golden syrup

For the topping:

270g Cadbury's dairy milk chocolate

(It doesn't necessarily have to be Cadbury's but I use a better chocolate for the topping because I think it's a bit nicer than using the value chocolate that I use in the actual mixture)

Plus:
1 Large tray OR 2 square silicone trays

1.

Chop the Maltesers in half (being extremely careful not to chop your fingers too, I've found they don't add much to enhance the taste).

2.

Melt the butter, chocolate and golden syrup together, in a bowl over a pan of boiling water.

3.

When the ingredients has all melted and is a smooth mixture, take off the heat.

4.

Add the crushed digestive biscuits to the mixture and mix well, until all of the biscuits are covered by the mixture.

5.

Add the chopped maltesers and mix them in, doing this as quickly as possible so there is less time for the chocolate on the Maltesers to melt.

6.

Spoon the mixture into a tin or a silicone tray (like the one shown in the picture below), making sure the mixture is spread evenly.

7.

Melt the Cadbury's milk chocolate.

8.

Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the Malteser cake base.

9.

Put in the fridge to set. I recommend at least 3-4 hours before you try to eat it, although it may be tempting it will be worth the wait.

10.

After the cake has set it needs to be cut. Due to the fact it's mainly made up of chocolate, it can be difficult to cut so I have a little tip for you. Take the cake out of the fridge about 20-30 minutes before you want to cut it. This gives it time to soften a little but not too much and will make it easier to cut (I normally cut it into 9 square pieces per tray).

And there you have it! There is your Malteser cake! Try not to eat it all at once...

Katie x

Music Crush #3

Hello!

A new week, a new Music Crush!

This week, I'm completely and utterly in love with...

5 Seconds Of Summer

~~~

Don't Stop

It's so catchy! As soon as it comes on all I want to do is dance around the room and sing along... Okay, never mind want, I do dance around the room and sing. I pray for anyone who is in hearing distance because I'm definitely not the best of singers!

5 Seconds Of Summer sure can sing though! I've loved them for a heck of a long time but their music just keeps maturing and getting better every song they release! I can't wait for their new album to be released; it's going to be amazing.

What song are you loving the most this week?

Katie x

Have you read the previous Music Crushes?

Music Crush #1

Music Crush #2

A Lovely Few Weeks!

Hello!

I'm back!

Sorry for my notably long absence but, as I'm sure any frequent readers know, I've been on my holidays and to say the wi-fi there was awful would be an understatement - they may as well have not had any, it was that bad. My brother also got married this week so when we came back off holiday a lot of my time was thrown into helping them get organised for the big day.

I'm back now though, so you can expect a lot more blog posts to be coming your way!

I figured since it's been a while since I've blogged I'd ease myself back into it with a general little chat and life update for y'all.

Despite the lack of decent wi-fi, our holiday was still incredible. In fact, maybe the lack of wi-fi made it better, it meant you weren't stressing so much about what was happening at home. It definitely made it more relaxing.

We went to this quaint little hotel in Ovacik, Turkey, called Hotel Leytur and it was positively adorable.

This is the second time we've been to this particular hotel and I just love how quiet and relaxed it is. It's not right in the middle of an enormous, lively city but it's not far away from a little bustling one known as Hisaronu (there's supposed to be some accent-y things over certain letters in 'Hisaronu' too but that's just too complicated to try and add). If you wanted to go out for a night or have a change of scenery it's easy to just jump on a doormush (minibus) and it's only five minutes away. We went there a couple of times and I can definitely see why people describe it as the 'Turkish Blackpool' because that's exactly what it reminds me of. It has all of the lights and activity that Blackpool has - it even has a miniature fun fair!

There was a Turkish Night whilst we were staying there too, where they had a BBQ Grill type-thing outside - there was sooooo much yummy food, I was completely and utterly stuffed! They had a belly dancer too after all of the food, who was not only an amazing dancer but she was hilarious too! She got loads of the people staying at the hotel up to dance with her and it's safe to say that a lot of them had the dancing abilities of an awkward giraffe!

It was a fantastic little get away for my mama and I and I'd recommend it to anyone, especially if you like to just sunbathe by the cleanest pool you've ever seen and relax for the duration. It's perfect.

We only arrived back two days before the wedding so there wasn't much time to do anything else, although I did manage to squeeze in an afternoon with Daisy, which was just super cute, as always!

Then it was the wedding my whole family had been waiting for! 

My big brother finally tied the knot! It was something that, although him and his partner had been together for over ten years, we never actually thought would happen. I always remember when I was little and I'd play with my dress up dolls and read books about Cinderella getting married to her Prince Charming, my brother would tell me he didn't see the point in marriage, it was just a posh piece of paper after all. None of us ever thought someone would manage to change his stubborn mind but they did and I couldn't be happier for them! 

It was a truly wonderful and stunning day and the weather managed to stay amazing for the whole day, too! I would say welcome to the family to his new wife but she's always really been part of the family to me, so there's not much point!

And that's everything. That has been my life up to now... Aside from the part where I left my kindle in Starbucks on Friday - that wasn't fun. I'm pretty sure my heart still hasn't returned to the correct rhythm after that wee heart attack. Don't worry, my kindle and I have been reunited and we've been spending a lot of time together in our attempt to put the mistake behind us and continue with our relationship...

Katie x

Holiday TBR List!

Hello!

One of the best things about going on holiday is that you can sit and read and not think about having to do anything else... Aside from the obvious things the body needs to survive... Books are definitely included in that survival.

In fact, chances are, by the time you read this I will already be on holiday, probably sitting by the pool right now, paddling my feet! Eeeek! I'm so excited!

I read a lot when I'm on holiday, so here are a list of books that I'm planning on reading in the lovely sunshine - my TBR list!

Fangirl (Rainbow Rowell)

You're the One That I Want (Giovanna Fletcher)

Billy and Me (Giovanna Fletcher)

On Dublin Street (Samantha Young)

Flat-Out Love (Jessica Park)

On the Island (Tracey Garvis Graves)

Attachements (Rainbow Rowell)

The Edge of Never (J. A. Redmerski)

Breathe (Abbi Glines)

So you know what I'm going to be doing on my hols!

Luckily I have a Kindle  now, life was always so much more difficult before their invention - I could never manage to fit the abundance of books that I wanted to take in my case! The amount of telling-off's I got from my mum for taking something of hers out without her knowledge so that I could fit an extra book in!

Nearly all, if not all, of them will get read too - I read more when I'm on the plane than I do when I sit by a pool I think, because I can't sleep on planes, or even relax properly, I hate being stuck in such a confined space so to take my mind off it, I just read... In fact, forget the plane thing, I just read all the time!

Katie x

Music Crush #2

Hello!

It's that time of week again where I have to make a decision on what my favourite song of the week has been... It's never an easy decision.

I decided (after a very long deliberation) to choose the song I've been listening to most this week and that is...

*drum rollllll*

Hunter Hayes

~~~

Wanted

It is such a cute song! The lyrics are what really catch me, I think.

I don''t know whether it's the literature student in me or the creative writing one, or maybe it's just a me thing, but I'm the kind of person that listens to the lyrics more than the song itself and the melody (although it has to be good to a certain extent if I'm going to listen to a song at all, it is the tune that catches you before the lyrics, after all). 

I wanna wrap you up,

Wanna kiss your lips,

I wanna make you feel wanted

How can you not love someone who is singing lyrics like that? Maybe I'm just too soppy and sentimental but I love them.

Surprisingly, I quite like the underlying country tone to it, too... 

Overall, this song gets a ten out of ten from me on the cuteness scale!

What do you think?

Katie x

Holiday Tradition

Hello!

I go on my jolly hols on Monday! It's safe to say, I cannot wait! A lovely, relaxing week with my mama!

We have certain little traditions when we go on holiday, one of those is that we take DVD's (quite a lot, actually) and we watch one, either on a night or in our little afternoon chill!

About Time,
We're the Millers,
Now You See Me,
That Awkward Moment,
Red 2,
Identity Thief

This is our holiday DVD collection, plus a few that we both know we love. We've been collecting these since about Christmas, I think, and trying not to watch them so we can watch them whilst we're on our hols!

As you can tell, most of them are comedies or rom-coms because what's the point in watching something that's going to make you depressed and cry your eyes out when you're supposed to be enjoying your holidays!

Holiday traditions are awesome, especially for once the sun goes down and you have to occupy yourself some other way than relaxing in the blazing heat by the pool.

Katie x