My 2019

Recap of my year

Has another year already past? 2018 had a lot of huge milestones for me and so did 2019 . This post is a refection on each month of my 2019, what I got up to and what I wrote about. I hope to look back on these posts one day and reminisce in my journey.

Every month I have sat down to write a few words about what I had been up to. By the end of the year, I have quite a tale to tell. My 2019 has had its highs and lows. It will always be a significant one though, as it’s the year I said ‘I do!’ to my amazing husband. Let’s dive in…

Click Here to read about my 2018 diary post

January

There was no exciting holiday this year, unlike last January. In fact it was a pretty quiet month all told. I felt unwell on and off for most of it, it seemed the winter bug didn’t pass me by this time around. We had a little scare with our pup Rossi which resulted in a hefty bill and late night trip to the emergency vet as well. Luckily she’s all fine now and we both soldiered on together.

Click Here to read about our Wedding Day Plans

Wedding Planning

The wedding planning was getting into its final stages, I had my wedding dress picked out but it needed to be resized. We had our guest list but still needed to choose a restaurant, and my groom still needed his suit. Otherwise I would say everything else was planned and accounted for. As we are eloping, there are perhaps less things to organise then normal. Don’t be fooled, we still spent a lot of time organising the details and making sure the day was personal to us. I designed my own invitations as I’m a full time graphic designer, but oh boy did I drag my heels about it. Having it all written down really made it sink in that we would be married in just a few months!

Decluttering

Otherwise my new year cleaning was really in full swing. I have had the ‘Magic Of Tiding Up’ book for years and referred to Marie Kondo’s decluttering tips many times, but only ever in small sections. Something about her new Netflix show really lit a fire underneath me and motivated me to clean and declutter like never before. I reorganised the kitchen, did a massive declutter of my beauty stash (114 items!) and tackled my jewellery. There was still more to do but for most of January I really got rid of so many things that were going unloved by me. It felt amazing, like a weight had been lifted. Coupled with my on going no-buy that I started at the latter half of last year, I could really feel some organisation and clear air coming into my life.

February

February may only be a day or two shorter then every other month but somehow it feels like if you blink you miss it. I continued to suffer with my sinuses which made me feel dreadful and exercising was a right off. I didn’t feel great, but at least the days were starting to get lighter. The difference it makes to my mood when I leave work and it’s light outside is astounding.

Valentines Day

We decided to not do anything for valentines this year with our wedding on the horizon. Little did I know he snuck off to buy a delicious fancy dinner for us complete with Macaroons, I told him not to, but I’m glad he didn’t listen.

Click Here to read about my Lush Valentines Day Haul

My First AD and end of the No-Buy

I had my first paid ad on Instagram. It felt surreal but validating that my hard work and dedication was paying off. I have been working on my Instagram daily for 3 years at this point, and although I felt like giving up many times, I didn’t. And I’m glad I didn’t because someone saw the value in me and that really lifted me up. I ended my 4 month no-buy with a little Glossier haul, as a reward for my efforts. Since starting to plan my wedding I haven’t really allowed my self any non-essentials, but I needed the boost.

Something to cut through the constants worries about savings and how I was going to afford my dream day. It’s amazing the effect a little treat can have, I felt more inspired, content with my purchase and ready to get my head down once again.

Click Here to read my about my first Glossier Haul

March

March was a tough one. I went from struggling with my sinus to struggling with my skin. At the start of the month my eczema flared up and spread like wild fire. It was difficult to not let it overshadow everything, and I was feeling pretty miserable as a result. Weeks later it started to clear up so I could breath a sign of relief for that. My fingers were crossed it was the end of my rocky health for awhile. I just wanted to focus on preparing for my wedding which was only two months away.

Even More Wedding Planning

Great Segway Sam. The wedding! Our day was getting closer and the final plans were in-place. We sorted our travel visas and ordered some dollars to cover us for the trip. We decided on The Robert for our wedding meal and even found the perfect tie for my husband’s suit. Done and done, everything was pretty much in place with weeks to spare. It was a great feeling to just be able to focus on our wedding which has become such a big topic in our lives.

Click Here to read about Topshops Relaunched Makeup Line

April

Brighton

April was off to a great start and I’m pleased to report it continued throughout the Month. For my fiancé’s birthday we decided to take an impromptu road trip to Brighton. It was quite a drive for a short 24 hours mini break but I’m so glad we made the effort to go. Taking Rossi made the whole trip more enjoyable and although the weather was a mixed bag we still managed to sit on the beach in the sunshine. What more could we ask for.

Click Here to read 24 hours in Brighton

Easter

Nice seg way to Easter, I spent the 4 days just with my fiancé and puppy. The weather was hot and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Sandwiched between rainy days it was almost to perfect to be true. I will be honest, I’m a stranger to relaxing, so I don’t think I sat still for more then a few minutes but I loved every minute of it.

Getting My Braces Removed

On the 30th April was the most exciting day off all. After a long 30 months of treatment I had my braces removed. It felt surreal but very exciting. As our wedding was so close it was always my goal to have them removed before the big day. Unfortunately, I had to end my treatment early to make this happen but I think it was worth the sacrifice. To be able to smile with confidence has really had a massive impact on me.

May

Hen/Stag = Hag Do

May, the month we had been waiting for. Our wedding day was just around the corner. The whole month felt a bit like one long celebration which I’m not complaining about. My fiancé and I decided to have a joint stag/hen do = hag do. We went to Sheffield with our close friends and did an escape room followed by an totally indulgent hot chocolate at the Godiva cafe and a bigger celebration once we got home with all of our friends and colleagues. It was a fab day even if my head hurt abit the following morning.

New York

The days flew by and it was time to pack for New York. We dropped off Rossi with family, and headed to the Airport ready to fly on the 17th May. It was our first time in New York and a trip of a lifetime. I can honestly say I am so happy that we chose Central Park as our wedding location. It couldn’t have been a more beautiful backdrop to say ‘I do’ on our 10 year anniversary. On the 23rd of May we made our way to Bow Bridge to declare our love and take our next step together as husband and wife.

Click Here to read about our time in New York

Our Wedding

Our wedding and a our first time in New York, it was an action packed two weeks, sadly we both came down with the flu (and most of our wedding party) so when we landed in the UK I was quite relieved to be home. I have so many amazing memories from the trip but it was exhausting, so the rest of the month we just spent trying to get better and back in the swing of things.

Click Here to read about our wedding

June

Rain, rain and some more rain. The complete opposite to the year prior. In one week we experience two months worth of rain fall. Many houses in our county were evacuated but luckily we were okay and didn’t experience any server flooding.

I was starting to feel a bit more like myself again, in the run up the the wedding, it was all I could think about. I had kind of let everything else fall to the way side. So I wanted to take some time and recharge, relax and most importantly enjoy my days with my new husband. As I took his last name, there was quite a bit of paper work to do and some photo albums to plan that took up most of my evenings.

Rossi’s First Birthday

June was also a significant one as it was little Rossi’s first birthday. Our little pup is the light in our lives. Marking the day she was no longer a puppy was a bittersweet one. Remembering what it was like to hold her in my arms at 8 weeks old and watching her grow up into such a sweet and beautiful dog has been unbelievable rewarding. Still I was sad that she was no longer the little bundle of fluff she once was, where she could fit in single shoe.

Click Here to read about Rossi growing up

July

2,000 Honey Bee’s

July started off unexpectedly with 2,000 honey bees. Not kidding, one day I came home to work to find my husband standing in the kitchen staring at our shed, a shed covered in bees. One we had identified them as honey bees (after a brief Googling) we were able to find a bee keeper to come and take them away for free, turns out they are very valuable. I learned a lot about bees in a very short time from our friendly neighbourhood bee keeper, for instant they are mostly lady bees as boys are messy and not very efficient, sorry lads. He opened the door to find a huge clump of bees, approx 2,000, who had taken up residence over night. We were both to afraid to get to close but he did snap a picture for me as proof! ( I won’t include it as it may be triggering). It still makes me nervous to think about the whole ordeal. A few bees returned briefly the following morning but all are relocated now. I’m glad we were able to find someone to help and although it was unexpected and a bit peculiar it turned into quite the tale.

The rest of the month was relatively quite in comparison. Which was by no means a bad thing. The weather was a mixed bag and I realised we weren’t going to have a repeat of the epic sunshine we did last year. I went to work and came home and that was pretty much it.

August

I had a few days off in August which was much needed and much appreciated. My mum has come to visit and we spent a few days together shopping and having fun. The weather was hot and rainy but pleasant in parts. Work was just the right amount of busy and I felt like I was able to get back into the swing of things a little better as a result.

September

The best season of them all, Autumn had arrived! I noticed the change come quickly, almost as though the leaves switches colour over night. The cooler temp helped me concentrate too.

Follow Train

In September I took part in my first follow train on instagram which gained me 200 followers in one day, it was surreal. I haven’t had growth like that since I first started over three years ago. It really gave me a renewed love for Instagram, a platform I have been struggling with for a while. Things have gone back to the way they were now, with the algorithm making my content disappear, but for a few days It felt like the glory days. My goal of hitting 5k suddenly seemed possible (which I did hit!). I was grateful and excited.

October

Now that Autumn was in full swing it was time to celebrate the spookiest month of them all, year-on-year my love for Halloween grows. Being in a family neighbourhood means we get a lot of trick or treaters and many of the houses make an effort with decorations too. It’s the little things that really put you in the spirit of the season. With a bucket of sweets and chocolate at the ready and the new Luigi’s Mansion 3 loaded on the Switch we settled in for a great Halloween night. One of these days I want to get some Halloween content on the blog, but I did manage my annual spooky Lush haul!

Click Here to read about my Lush Halloween Haul

November

Rossi Unwell

November was not a great month. Rossi was due to be spayed and what should have been a similar procedure resulted in a lot of tears and fear. A student nurse administered a second dose of anti-inflammatory in error which resulted in her having to go on a drip for 48 hours followed by a cocktail of medication when she eventually came home. She had stomach ulcers as a result and was very lethargic. It was so scary to see her so unwell. My dog means the world to me and I honestly felt like my heart shattered.

Especially initially when we didn’t know what was going on the the full effects of what had happened. Thankfully there was no long term damage to her liver and after about 3 weeks she was back to her normal self. It was really hard to see my bouncy happy dog so unwell, and for it to all be for nothing (they weren’t able to operate as a result) was just all-in-all sucky.

December

Feeling festive? Oh yes. This year I made a real effort to go out and see as many people as I could and get some festive fun under my belt. By the time December rolls around I am always shattered to the core, so my blogging and Instagram game really takes a hit. But it’s okay as everyone needs a break at least once a year and working full time while blogging really takes it out of me, so I was excited to spend two weeks with my feet up.

Christmas

We had Christmas at home with my mum and then on the 27^th of December we drove to Dorset to spend a few days with my husbands family. Rossi won for the most spoilt member of the family over the Christmas period. I did very well myself, with a whole host of beautiful and thoughtful gifts. I just feel really lucky and ready for the new year!

Into The New Decade

My 2019 speed by, and already we are in a new decade. Getting Married in New York was of course the highlight of my 2019. Its been a week of a lot of reflection for me, what I have achieved, what I’m doing, and where I’m going. All I can say for certain is I’m so grateful for you coming along for the ride. Happy New Year!

What was your favourite thing about 2019?

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