Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside….

I took a little trip to see my friend & her lovely boy on Friday. She lives in Musselburgh, which is a seaside town outside Edinburgh. I love any excuse to get close to the sea & Lisa (and James) is a fabulous reason to go anywhere.

  
It was chilly & wet when I set off so I employed my new beret to keep my head warm. I don’t wear many hats as I don’t usually look great in them. Thus, I was surprised to discover that berets are totally my thing. 

  
I was also chuffed with the new dress I donned. I’ve had my eye on this for ages and finally snapped it up in the sale a few weeks ago. The cat print is purrfect & the colour matches my eyes. 

  
Dress – Voodoo Vixen

Cardigan – Monsoon

Beret – House of Bruar (gift)

I really love the neckline on this dress. The fit is superb & the large pockets are a dream. 

I can only share the mirror selfie as I had so much fun with my east coast chums that I forget to get any pictures. However, I did remember to snap some photos of our escapades. 

  
(That feline beauty is Bronan’s sister, Mena)

My week (ish) in pictures…

I have been having a lazy, slouchy time of it clothes wise. As such I haven’t snapped too many outfit pics. That doesn’t mean I haven’t been galavanting. It seems a shame not to share some of the moments I’ve captured solely because I didn’t look glam that day. So, here we are, embarking on another week in pictures post. I hope you enjoy a wee nosey into my going ons.

I know a lot of folk find them tacky, but I loves me a mirror selfie. I snap one any time I feel cute or sometimes even when I look amusingly rough. Sushi & Ringo are also always wins.

  
  
I can’t recommend Jonathann Coe enough. If you are new to him I’d start with The Rotters Club & it’s follow up The Closed Circle. Once you have digested those melancholy triumphs, mosey on to this mysterious tale.

  
Drinks with Aidan, hotels with neon stags & my amazing little crazy face pulling niece are all things that bring me glee. 

   
If you haven’t tried Lush’s Intergalactic bath bomb, you need to. Not only does it turn your bath into a blue bliss, but your skin continues to sparkle for hours. Strawberry gloss at Krispy Kreme are also a big hit. 

   
Sometime’s you have to be prepared to do battle. Sabre tooth Tigers will step right out of line if you don’t show them who’s boss. 

  

My week in pictures….

It’s been a busy week. There’s been Xmas prep, nights out & some special birthdays. My perfect niece was 6yrs old on Sunday, which is hard to believe. Why do the little ones need to grow do fast? My little muffin will be leaving school & driving cars before I know. Also celebrating their big day was my bestest friend Pamela. I’ll not mention which birthday, but it was older 6. 

So, in lieu of a more in depth post I  thought I’d give you a wee look st my week in pictures. There have been cocktails, silly selfies, sparkly shoes, an ewok dog, sushi & other pretty things I snapped along the way. 

  

  
  
  
  

  

My week in pictures… 

I’ve had a rather lovely week. It’s been filled with a beach, a birthday, some beer & a burning sky. So, I thought I’d share some of the photographs I’ve snapped along the way.

Autumn is absolutely my favourite season & an out of season beach is probably my favourite place to be. So, last Friday I combined two loves & embarked on a wee road trip with my sister (& her fur baby). I am so lucky to live in Glasgow as there is so much beautiful countryside so close by. Both my sis & I both enjoy finding new, slightly less obvious places to visit & Lauren came up trumps on this trip. We headed to Ayr, but bypassed the main beach in favour of Heads of Ayr. There we found a stunning deserted beach complete with a crumbling castle perched on a cliff. Like I said I prefer a beach outside of summer, they always feel more atmospheric with wilder weather. Aside from a little map reading bickering (my skills are poor) it was a gorgeous day. 

  

I opted for low key birthday celebrations this year. Mainly because I haven’t been terribly well, but also because I’m so bloody old. I’ll be honest the numbers are getting a little scarier every year. Having said that, the actual birthdays are always a delight. I kicked off my birthday with a family lunch. My family proved once again how much they know & love me by gifting exactly the right things. They even refrained from singing when my cake came out, which I appreciated. I followed up lunch with drinks & my favourite man. We enjoyed some delicious cherry beer & a stunning sunset. No birthday would be complete without a FaceTime with my niece, my incredible little muffin sang happy birthday & told me some very imaginative stories. Finally, my best friend rounded off my day with  another spot on present. I am a very lucky girl. 

  

I’ve also had some quiet little moments with my city & myself. Here’s a little insight into what keeps me ticking over. 

  
  
To cap things off I have received some really interesting writing offers that I can’t wait to sink my teeth into. I’ll keep you posted on where you can read the finished results. 

And they’ll come true, impossible not to do…

I was inspired by my darling sister’s 35 before 35 post to get some goals down in black & white. However, as I’m only 3 months from the mid 30’s point I had to raise the age bar. So, here it is, the 40 things I really must get done before I enter middle age.

1 Finish my tattoo collection. I have three more designs that need to get out of my head & onto my body. 

2 Develop my stigma fighting business plan.

3 Have babies.

4 Take a ride in a hot air balloon. 

  
5 Learn to drive. Yes, I am a 34yr old woman who is terrified of driving.

6 Buy all the Irregular Choice shoes.

  
7 Rescue animals from factory farming.

8 Perform in a burlesque show. Chorus line would cool.

9 Visit Jenna in Philadelphia.

10 Master Japenese cooking. I need to know I can have yasai gyoza whenever I feel the urge.

11 Visit Tagalooma with Athena.

12 Adopt a retired greyhound.

13 Lots & lots of surface piercings.

14 Execute the cutest pregnancy announcement ever.

15 Cook Xmas dinner for my entire family.

16 Take a break in one of those beach huts on stilts in the ocean. 

  
17 Write for Skorch.

18 Mix my own perfume. 

19 Teach Billy to swim properly.

20 Get a book deal.

21 Check out those big heads on Easter Island.

22 Send the perfect family xmas cards. 

23 Make Danilo go on the big romantic xmas wheel. 

  
25 Perfect one ballroom dance & trot it out at every single occasion.

26 Take a romantic break in a Scottish castle.

27 Learn Sign language.

28 Fall utterly in love with more nieces & nephews. Get to it, siblings!

29 Get a professional portrait painted of my beautiful Bronan. 

  
30 Rock the Big Apple with my girls.

31 Find miraculous cure for all my health issues. 

32 Take my little ones to Disney World.

33 See Morrissey live.

34 Finish Athena’s books before she gets too old for them.

35 Try synchronised swimming. 

36 Finally see Much Ado About Nothing performed at Bard in the Botanics. 

37 Send random mystery flowers to folk who would appreciate them. 

  
38 Learn to code (at least well enough to snazz my blog).

39 Take my Mum to Austria to do the Sound of Music tour. 

40 Be the best Mummy ever!

Any advice or suggestions on who to achieve my goals is most welcome. Wish my luck. 

I get by with a little help from my friends…

Chronic illness can be overwhelming. When every little thing is a struggle it’s hard to remain stoic. In the midst of a severe flare I really have to fight not slip into a morose frame of mind. 

When life is just too hard what keeps me going are all my wonderful people. My incredible friends & family are so supportive. I really couldn’t do it without them. I am a big believer in saying how you feel out loud, so I’m taking a moment to say thank you. Thanks for all the chats, the midnight drives to a&e, advocating for me when I am unable to do it myself, the cuddles, the laughs, the understanding; thank you for the love. 

Not only are my people the best people, they are also a bunch of lookers. Big love, darlings. 

  
   
     

Sending out flares…..

I’m in the midst of quite a bad flare. Please excuse my scarce blogging. New posts coming soon. In the mean time you can enjoy my writing over at The Swag Guide.

I’ll leave you with some pics of some of the family pets. I love these wee faces, I defy you not to. 

  
My sister’s boy Seb giving me a soulful look. 

 My brother’s boy ringo having a wee snooze.

  
And my darling boy refusing to get out of bed. 
 

Thank you for the days….

Saying goodbye to my wonderful little muffin has been very difficult. It’s impossible to say how much I miss the girl. Normal blog service will be resumed, but in the mean time here’s another week in pictures. Night’s out with my favourite man, selfies with girl, my family, my city & my puss cat. I hope you see as much beauty in these images as I do. 

   
           

If you enjoy these snaps of my life you can catch more on my Insta.

You can also see more of my writing on a variety of topics in the excellent Swag Guide.