The Easy Life?

We all want an easy life, but what exactly is that and is it really a thing? Does an easy life really exist? It's something I've been pondering on for a while now. This is in part down to a phrase my Mum uses regularly, and partly down to the fact that I am a self confessed over thinker! I really wish I weren't. It drives me quite mad at times (literally on occasion), but it can also give me an insight into things I don't understand (make sure you learn something new everyday) or more often, it gives me an insight into me, who I am and how I process things. However, as always and true to myself, I have gone completely off-track. 

Celebrating Wednesday's #38

Good morning everyone and welcome to the middle of another week. I'm never sure whether I'm nearer to the end of the week, or just a little further away from Monday, if that makes any sense, which it probably doesn't. Either way, it's Wednesday and on Wednesday, we do like to give you a little something to celebrate, or at the very least, ponder upon and this week is no exception.

I have to say, this Wednesday is very spoilt with not one, but four things to celebrate. You could have had Coast Guard Day (very apt for the summer break), Single Working Women's Day or (and I was very tempted by this one) Assistance Dog Day. It wasn't an easy decision to make, but in the end I settled for the fourth option, which I think you'll love.

Celebrating Wednesday's #37

It's been a very long time since last we posted, and even longer since we actually celebrated a Wednesday! What can I say, the past couple of years have been a journey and a half, which I will expand upon in another, more appropriate post; for now, let's just say, it's been a stressful time.

However, we're back now and easing our way back into the blogging world. Forgive me for being a little rusty. I had been pondering, somewhat on what might be the best way to get back into things and after a wee bit of research (ok, research is a bit of a lie, I actually stumbled across something) I discovered that today, Wednesday 28th July is a really rather special day indeed and one which frankly, should be very easy to celebrate, for most of us.

What can I say, here in Blighty (at least in the East) it is currently grey and wet. It is a day for staying indoors, watching TV, reading a book, sipping a hot drink and celebrating...

Milk Chocolate Day!

Now, I do have some of the gorgeous sweet stuff in the house, but how I wish I'd done my research before I ventured into town and walked straight past Hotel Chocolat, not once, but four times (not my fault, I moved during lockdown and still don't know where everything is yet). At the time, I thought I was being very self disciplined and was feeling a little smug at how strong I was being, in hindsight, I can see I made a massive faux pas! Today of all days requires a little more than a Freddo and yet here I am, with only a Freddo to raise in honour of Milk Chocolate Day.

I would venture out to the local shop and get something a little more substantial and worthy of such a special day, but like I said, it's grey and wet out and I really don't fancy get caught in a downpour. However, I will make sure that I absolutely make a huge, belated effort tomorrow and maybe the day after too, just to be certain I've done today proud.

So the question is, how are you going to celebrate Milk Chocolate Day? Will you brave the Great British Summer and stock up on your favourite bar, or box of chocolates, or will you bake a cake? Maybe you're more of a chocolate ice cream person, or perhaps you'd rather cosy up on the sofa with a hot chocolate.

However you choose to celebrate this sweet day, enjoy and try not to over indulge too much. As for me, I shall be raising not one, but two Freddo's to the day!

The Matchmaker - A Book Review

I absolutely love the idea of matchmaking. I also love Fred from ‘First Dates,’ I mean who can resist a smart man with a gorgeous French accent? Honestly, I could quite happily listen to him chat away in French or English, all day long. Anyway, as usual I have digressed, but  there is a point to my slight aside, since I have been very fortunate to be gifted a copy of The Matchmaker to read in exchange for an honest and unbiased review; and given that it is inspired by the aforementioned show, I was suitably excited and extremely happy to have the opportunity to do so.

Since Innes works for Cosmopolitan as their Features Director, I had very high hopes for the standard of writing and story construction (back in the day, I was a huge Cosmo fan) and I can say hand on heart, I was not disappointed. From the very first paragraph, she draws you into the story, endearing you to the central character, Caitlin Carter, who disillusioned with her career in PR, sets up her own business as a Matchmaker. She is inspired to follow this path having met and married the love of her love Harry, and having a natural ability to know, just who will click with whom. These two things make Catlin very successful and her business, goes from strength to strength, with people eager to sign up and an Instagram account aspiring bloggers would give their right arm for! However, as we read on, it becomes clear, all is not as it seems to be.

I really enjoyed this book. Actually, I enjoyed it so much, I really didn't want to finish it and found myself missing Caitlin, her friends and her story; which makes writing a review horrendously difficult. What I want to do is blurt out the entire story to you, but obviously I can’t do that because that would completely ruin it for you. What I can do, is tell you that this is a well written book; the story flows effortlessly, the characters are well thought out and are easy to relate to (worryingly, I found I related most to Caitlin during a visit to the zoo - you'll need to read the book to find out what I mean). I particularly loved the way Innes cleverly drops breadcrumbs, letting the reader know that something is off, giving clues the further into the story we go, but without ruining the twist once it is finally revealed in full.

This isn’t the rom com I thought it was going to be, this is a journey of self discovery, friendship, support, family and change. There are highs and lows, laughter and tears, and holding it all together is love in all it's forms. If you are looking for a story to inspire you and remind you that even in the darkest times, hope's light still shines, then this is for you. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

The Matchmaker is now available in paperback RRP £8.99.

Alternative Christmas Gift Guide - Part 2

We made an early start on the Christmas gift guide this year, with some ideas which will help benefit our climate. If you missed it you can catch up here. That post was inspired by my sixteen year old daughter, Miss. D, who was concerned about the destruction of the rainforest and now wants to gift everyone a tree planted in the rainforest. Her idea made me wonder what else could be gifted to people, which ultimately would benefit our planet. However, there are other gifts you can give to the folk who have it all, which benefit communities.

Gifts which benefit communities are a great idea for those hard to buy for people. As you can often match them up to interests or professions. As a family, we have used these in the past and I would highly recommend them.

Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend

Everyone needs a best friend. It doesn't really matter who that friend is, just so long as they're kind, loyal, listen, make you laugh and you have each others backs, because that's what friends do. I am really lucky to have some amazing friends. People who have got me through the toughest of times, people who are always there for me and who I hope, I am always there for too. They are everything friends should be, even though I've never met many of them. They are my Tweeps. A community of friends on Twitter. Some are other bloggers, others are authors, others are just fabulous people who like to socialise with like-minded folk!

As 'real-life' friends go, I have few and that suits me just fine. Quality rather than quantity; and those I do have are the best of the best. Which given the way things are going at the moment is a flipping good thing. Yes, a true friend is worth their weight in gold and one or two of mine really have been absolute diamonds this past week.

Beauty Sleep - A Review

It’s no secret, my favourite animal is a sloth. I adore them. They are so cute and friendly looking; they don’t rush to do anything, and they do like to sleep. Perhaps that is why I like them so much, because I do like my sleep. My bed is one of my favourite places to be. It’s warm, it’s cosy and it’s comfy. The perfect recipe for a good night’s sleep; which is good, because much as I love sloths, sleeping hanging from a tree is not an option for me and even if it were, let’s face it, I wouldn’t last five seconds before falling to the ground in a big heap. I’d need a very big crash mat beneath my tree, or at the very list a nice soft, comfy bunch of pillows.

Speaking of pillows, it is so important to have a good one on which to rest your weary head at the end of a busy day. There is nothing worse than tossing and turning all night because your pillow isn’t right and then waking up with a pain in the neck (and no, I am not referring to your other half). Yes, the right pillow really can make all the difference.