11 things I get way too excited about now I'm an adult

I never thought I'd see the day that I get a sense of pride and relief over getting all of my ironing done, but sadly, the reality of that day has come everybody.

Yeah sure, hearing the twinkly tones of an ice-cream van and making it to a bar just in time for happy hour are still things that make my absolute day, but coming home to fresh bedding and fresh flowers are also now things in my life that make my heart flutter.

And that, my friends, is because with every day, I'm becoming more and more of an adult and apparently I get kicks from the tiny, silly things in life.

1.) Getting a new glasses prescription

Yes - you need to get your eyes tested where your opticians gets uncomfortably close in your personal space. Yes - you'll have to fork out for essentially some magnifying glasses. But my god, all of a sudden, you'll be seeing the world in HD vision. Well, until the next time your eyesight declines again.

2.) Bounding into a freshly made bed

If you're anything like me, you still won't know the best of most efficient way of putting your bedsheets onto your duvet but wrestling with your bedding will most definitely be worth it when you snuggle up at the end of the day and it feels like a warm marshmallow that smells like spring. 

3.) Enough to feed a small army

Gone are the days of dry pasta with whatever veg and sauce you had in your fridge. Cooking in bulk is now the norm, because as well having a banging dinner, you also want to have a lunch at work that's NOT a Pret sandwich, as well as a back-up meal in the freezer for when you work late and get home with no energy to even make a meal, nevermind whip up something a la Nigella.

4.) Fresh Flowers

Like Sweet Female Attitude once said: "I'll bring you flowers, in the pouring rain". A little pang of joy sets off in my heart whenever I'm cutting fresh flowers and have a variety of vases out ready to arrange them all in. They get dotted around the house and every time I walk past one of them, that pang of joy returns. I don't think more than 3 days have gone by without there being fresh flowers in my room, which is world away from when I smashed the pot of plastic flowers at uni.

5.) Tetris kitchen
There's just something about doing a big ol' food shop and having your fridge so well stocked that you have to slot everything in so it fits oh-so-perfectly. Content at it's finest.

6.) Pinterest as fuck

Yes I do have multiple pillows and cushions on my bed now, and some of them are (dare I say it) just for aesthetic purposes. Also, making my bed is the first thing I do now when I roll out of it, well, while the kettle's boiling for tea because who can even function before caffeine eh? YOU TELL ME WHO. I just want my space to look on point so when I see it, I know at least one small componant of my life to not be a mess.

7.)Clean & serene

Once upon a time there was a floordrobe living in my room 90% of the time. But oh how those times have changed - now if coats aren't hung up and clothes aren't folded away, I just can't sleep easy. 16-year-old Amy? You better believe it.

8.) Going green

I have a potted plants of different herbs on my windowsill ok. Not only do they look cute but boy, do that pack a punchful of flavour to my meals. It's all about being functional kiddos.

9.) Stuff in jars

You can take your packaging and recycle those bad boys because I, my friend, have got multiple containers, jars and bottles to decanter all your sauces, your pastas and your oats into. You want thingamabobs? I've got plenty of 'em.

10.) Fold it up
I'll hold my hands up and admit that I've spent more than one Friday night in going through my pile of laungry, ironing it, and folding it into one neat and concise pile. And for a gal that used to hate ironing so much that she ended up eating food on her ironing board instead of actually, y'know, ironing on it - I'd say this was a pretty big turnaround don't you?

11.) Walkies?

They're not just for your four-legged furry friends! Honestly, can you beat a long ol' walk to...NOWHERE of a Sunday afternoon with your rabble of a family or friends? After stuffing yoruself with a massive Sunday roast that is of course. No destination to get to. No time period to finish by. Just wandering aimlessly in the outdoors. Music to my ears that.

And you know what? Even though most of the time you feel like you haven't got a clue what's going on and just like a big kid in disguise just winging it as and adult, it's these little things that make you realise that actually, you've kinda got it down kiddo.

Until next time,

A.x

18 times the The Powerpuff Girls was way too real

The Powerpuff Girls were my jam back in the day. That theme song. The striped dress. THOSE GIRLS.

And what with the freelance lifestyle I'm living and the Netflix subscription I'm repping, I'm not gonna lie - I've been reliving my childhood and indulginging in some PPG marathons. And oh my, has it been glorious. 

If you thought the cartoon was pretty fab when you were 6-years-old and watching it on a Saturday morning in your pjs, then get ready to have your mind blown as an adult over the innuendos, cheeky jokes and actual life lessons it contains. Honestly. It's a bit TOO real.

Don't believe me? Just take a look for yourself...

1.) First thing's first, TRUTH.

No further comments needed.... (LOL)

2.) Confrontation is awkward as FUCK

Coming from someone who notoriously shies away from confrontation, you can go from mumbling idiot to blurting out your feelings in about 0 to 60.

3.) Diets are a fad

Kinda wanna look like a Victoria's Secret model. Kinda wanna eat burgers and fries. The struggle is so very real.

4.) Just you do you babes, and that's all that matters

That only person that is allowed an opinion on your life, what you do with it and how you live it is, well, YOU.

5.) Sometimes your hair will just have a life of it's own

No amount of serum of twists around your curler will sort out that sitch. You've just gotta put it down as a bad hair day and move on. 

6.) Never judge a book by it's cover

You wouldn't want someone to do that to you right? So don't do that to others! Everyone's living their own life their own way.

7.) You don't have to prove yourself to anyone

 If you being you isn't good enough for them, well, that just means they're definitely not worth your time.

8.) The internet has the answer for everything

Google that shit.

9.) Gender equality is a tough ol' thing

It's getting better, but it's oh boy, is it still a bit of a struggle. 

10.) Admit to your flaws

We all have them and the best thing you can do is embrace them and explore ways you can improve on them.

11.) Some people are just dicks, and you'll never know why

If only we would just nice to one another, the world would be such a better place! It's so simple it hurts.

12.) Don't let people kill your vibe

YOU'RE AN UNIQUE, SPARKLY, BADASS UNICORN WHO IS LOVED AND SPECIAL IN THIS WORLD AND DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU OTHERWISE.

12.) Early mornings never get easier

Caffeine please, PRONTO.

13.) Zzz is oh-so-important

It's more than just beauty sleep. It's essential and keeps-you-sane sleep.

14.) You should embrace your feelings - even when they're shit ones

With the fab times, comes the shit times, and when those times roll around, just allow yourself to feel down in the dumps for a bit. It'll get better again in no time.

15.) And whatever you do, DON'T bottle those feelings up!

Vent, baby, vent.

16.) It's important to make time to take care of yourself

Treat yo'self and love yo'self.

17.) You'll never please everyone

Not everyone's your cup of tea, so you're not gonna be everyone's. There's plenty of people who love you and those who don't? They can just slide on by.

18.) And you can never go wrong with being nice

BE NICE OK.

Until next time,

A.x

14 things I'll never EVER understand

There's some things in life that I've learned to love or love to learn about - coriander, the taste of beer, how to make pasta - but there's just some things that I don't think I'll ever be able to grasp. 

I feel like I'm failing at life by not knowing these things but I just don't think I'll ever understand. At all. And that's just something I'm gonna have to live with, sigh.

1.) How to do the monkey bars

Or a hand-stand or cartwheel for that matter. Upper arm strength has never been and never will be my strong point, so please, never challenge me to an arm wrestle. It'll just end in me crying and with broken muscles.

2.) People looking fabulous when they leave the airport

You've just been suspended in a metal tin in the sky for hours, where the recycled air is not your skin's best friend. HOW on earth is your make-up flawless, your hair on point and are you strutting through airport security like a Victoria's Secret angel in stilettos, while I look like a shrivelled-up jacket potato?

3.) Why I like tequila so much

I honestly and whole-heartedly enjoy drinking tequila, not just to shot down as a quick-fix way to get drunk (and definitely without salt and lime please). 

NO, I DON'T KNOW WHY EITHER BUT I DO K.

4.) How people don't like Disney/Breakfast Club/Friends

I mean...just..how?! Sorry. Get out. We can't co-exist like this.

5.) How Cher Horowitz managed to pull off THIS all-time fave look

If you know me, you'll know my infinite love for Cher and all things fluffy and Clueless related. On paper, a long sheer shirt, worn over a argyle miniskirt with a cropped knitted tank top on top...sounds like absolute madness and believe me, I've tried it - and I looked like a golfer who'd stolen a blouse off their mum, who's a teacher and shrunken their jumper in the wash. But on screen? Oh baby, it's an outfit of dreams.

6.) Why some people are such dicks

JUST DON'T. Let's all just be nice humans y'all!

7.) Why people dislike pop music

It's pop music because it's popular, and if that's the only reason you're hating on it, then quit being such a hipster spoilsport - it's just some fun! I know you dance along to Carly Rae Jepson alone in your room like the rest of us.

8.) Why I can never cook Chinese food as well as my dad

He's taught me just how he does it, but when I leave the Lo household and try to recreate it back in my own abode, following the instructions to the tee, it just doesn't taste anywhere near as good. It's aiiiight, but IT'S JUST NOT THE SAME. Whyyyy.

9.) How Adele talks like this...

and sings like THIS

It's one of the most beautiful mysteries of the world.

10.) The most efficient way to pee with a jumpsuit on

Basically, there isn't one. You're either completely naked in a cubicle trying not to let your playsuit touch the sticky floor. Or if you're wearing shorts, you decide for once you're just going to manoeuvre your outfit strategically and you'll have finally have cracked this conundrum once and for all.

All it means is that you end up peeing on yourself and you wonder why you ever thought this was a good idea.

11.) Putting on mascara without pulling a face
I've tried. Oh man, have I tried.

12.) How much pasta to cook

It's always either the amount you would feed a small child, or enough for an army (which you'll envietably end up eating all of it anyway, cus, y'know...PASTA). 

13.) Just how much to filling to put inside a fajita
Maybe I'm just greedy. Maybe I've got bad perception. But I always fill my fajitas and it ends up overspilling, but I still think I can eat it, and before you know it, there's guacamole in my lap and everyone else at the dinner table has left me and my mess.

14.) How to NOT have wispy baby hairs when I put my hair up

I can't put up my hair up in a ponytail without at least a dozen kirby grips in it to stop my looking like Albert Einstein after an electric shock. ARIANA GRANDE TEACH ME YOUR WAYS.

Until next time...

A.x

The Five.

You know how each one of us is attracted to certain qualities in a person? Qualities that make our heart flutter and fancy the pants off them?

And I'm not talking about having blonde hair and blue eyes.

No, stuff that's much more deeper and meanigful than that.

I've wanted to make a post like this ever since I watched Will Darbyshire's video, where he writes a letter to his future wife. I'm not really a video person, and more a writing type of gal, but I decided to give it a shot. But after attempting a video, complete with horrendous bloopers, I couldn't put across what I wanted to say down in words, and it ended up seeming as superficial as I tried to avoid it from being.

That was until I read a post on the Man Repeller, about the top 5 criteria.

This is a list of 5 criteria that are most important to you when it comes to someone you mgiht approach into a relationship with. And as she puts it, it's important to be specific and positive, rather an negative. Because no-one wants an unkind, mean, stupid and horrible partner.

It's about stuff that really matters. Not just listing the thing physical attributes of your teenage heartthrrob that you plastered posters of around your room.

So, without further ado, here's mine...

1.) Love their food.

I love my food. Like, you will find me talking about how amazing food is, whilst I'm eating amazing food. Food and I have had a bit of a rollercoaster relationship, after having a rather chubby exterior while growing up. But I love the healthy stuff as much as the naughty stuff (and it's just as delicious most of the time!), whether it's cooking or dining out, food is more than just something to keep me alive. And I love so many different aspects of it - a world of traditional British grub, sophisticated sushi and endless mountains of pasta, wouldn't be enough! Dinner and good food is a big part of my family as well. It brings us together - whether through happiness or sadness. So dining out on McDonalds every night just isn't gonna cut it soz.

2.) Be Passionate.

About something. Anything.  I've been out with people who don't really have an opinion on anything. And it starts getting a bit tiresome trying to drag out some interest for a conversation. Anime, cooking, 1950s detective movies - anything! Have something that you love, not only for yourself, but then I don't feel as bad when I spend hours going on and on about why Elie Saab is the designer to make all girl's princess dreams come true. And just be passionate about it! 

(As well as being passionate in some other aspects in a relationship too...)

3.) Family-mad

I'm a proper family girl. Nothing fills my heart with as much joy as when my whole family gets together. I'd want you to get involved when my brothers challenge a duel on MarioKart, or my dad wants to share a tipple of cognac. And I'd want to feel like part of your family too. I've been in relationships where this has happened before, and it become so much more meaningful and homely.
The same goes with friends. As the Spice Girls once so poignantly said, 'if you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends'. Truth girls, truth.

4.) Not scared of intimacy or their feelings

Not necessarily proclaiming your love via a poem on MSN (yes, this has actually happened to me...), but also, I don't want to be guessing or trying to suss out how you feel about me or what you think about us. I've been in the situation before where I spend every second worrying and analysing, and it's not fun I can tell you..

5.) A big kid at heart

This doesn't mean immature. They're 2 completely different things. I care and work hard at my career and life, but also, I'm a massively young at heart. I'm a big believer in work hard, play hard, and when it comes to playtime, anything goes. I've been in a relationship where all fun and ridiculous ideas were thrown out of the windows and it made me feel like an idiot who needed to grow up. Surely being with someone where you can't fully be yourself, can't be healthy. So, please don't completely write it off when I suggest we go hunting for all the Paddington bear sculptures with marmalade sandwiches in our hands. When I get excited about a night out where there's a bouncy castle and a dance machine, I'd love it if you already had your Pac-man socks on ready to bounce (this is an actual event I've been to. It was amazing. Obviously).

One of the best present I've ever received is a box filled with Haribo heart sweets.

People say they don't know where all the single people are anymore, and I just think, 'Look around! They're everywhere!'

Could it be that people are so used to seeking and talking via the screens that they stare out, that they don't know how to talk to people in person anymore?

So go on - go talk to that person you've been looking at all night, and if there's a spark there, be nice & go for it! 

What have you got to lose?!

But most of well, just be yourself and don't worry!

 Things will happen when they're meant to.

Stay happy!

Until next time...

A.x