Holidays are coming!.....

I heard the Coca Cola trucks were in town so thought I'd take the kids and check them out!

It wasn't raining when we left but of course by the time we arrived in town it was pouring *rolls eyes*
We got the opportunity to have our picture taken with the truck and were given a card to allow us to view it online.
I was a little disappointed that these are not as glamorous as the trucks in the advert - which are covered in sparkly lights, but delighted to see Santa's personalised number plate:

Feeling festive x

Wispa Gold.....It's back!

Ooh I've missed this one! 

Wispa Gold is back for good - as part of Keep Team GB Pumped

When I saw them sitting in the local shop I just had to have one - I kept it til the kids were in bed, made a cup of coffee and made a special 'me time' moment of it! and boy...was it worth it! Melty milk chocolate with the bubbles that burst on your tongue combined with the fabulous caramel, chewy and not too sweet made for a delightful evening pick me up :)


Happy mummy x

L'Oreal EverPure

I was recently selected to take part in L'Oreal's hair care trial for this new shampoo & conditioner. 

EverPure - "Specifically designed for coloured and dry hair, the EverPure range combines a Colour Care System with no sulphates and gentle moisturising care. The formulae leave hair feeling nourished."

 "Especially designed for the most delicate hair. The luxurious experience, with botanical oils. Respects the hair"





I have been colouring my hair for many years now, and find that it is quite dry and becomes dull quickly after my trip to the salon so I was very excited to try these products.


Having used 'SLS' free products in the past I found them to leave my hair dry and not to lather well so I was surprised and delighted when I used this product, it lathered with a fabulous foam and gorgeous scent - smelled like mint, but is apparently rosemary & juniper.  I felt my hair was moisturised as well as clean.


I have only used the product several times but already my hair feels softer, more manageable and looks shinier. Hopefully my colour will last longer now :)


Because I'm worth it! x

Party Nails!

As I had a girlie night out on Friday I decided to try out the new Gosh Nail Glitter I won from a fellow blogger - http://dragonsandfairydust.co.uk

The glitters come in a variety of colours, I chose the purple one to try out first.

I prepared the are before starting - fearing an avalanche of sparkly glitter I placed a sheet of paper under the pot to catch any mess.

Then coated one nail at a time with a nude base coat, then dipping each one in turn into the pot of glitter - my nails were a little too long for this to work completely successfully, but with a bit of wiggling we were good :)
I brushed off any excess with a cotton bud and there we had it - Gorgeous glittery nails!

They lasted the night perfectly, but by the next day my thumbs had lost a good lot of sparkle (probably in my trouser pockets every time I put my hand in!) and to be honest the rough feeling was irritating me.
So I decided to remove the glitter - It proved a bit trickier than usual, I used twice the amount of varnish remover as the glitter stopped the solution dissolving the base coat, but I got there in the end!

All said, I would use the glitters again on my next night out as they make a fabulous statement and everyone was jealous of my sparkles!

You can get your own Gosh Nail Glitter exclusively at Superdrug for just £3.99!

Twinkling x

Pink day!

So this week I have been baking cupcakes to sell in work to raise funds for Breast Cancer Research.

We have had chocolate rocky road, vanilla, raspberry and white chocolate and spiced pumpkin muffins, all freshly baked the night before and carefully iced before being packed up and taken into work.

The final total raised over the 4 days was £85 - Thanks ladies, the diet starts next week!

In the pink   x

Britney Baby!

Britney @The Odyssey Arena

Neon intro sign

Big Fat Bass - 'Britney in a box'

Baby One More Time

Don't Let Me Be The Last To Know

Til The World Ends (I think she has a broken wing!)

To be honest I didn't really get the whole 'Femme Fatale' storyline thing through the show until I read what it was all about later (oops). The performance was enjoyable there were certainly plenty of costume changes and a whole lot of stage props to keep your attention.
I did feel there was a degree of lip syncing and the dance routines were a bit blah - a lot of skipping up and down the stage whilst smiling inanely! But it was good to see Britney on a come back after the horrible time she has had in the past. Hopefully this will be a fresh chapter for her.


 Set List

Hold It Against Me, Up N' Down, 3, Piece of Me, Big Fat Bass, How I Roll, Lace and Leather, If U Seek Amy, Gimme More, (Drop Dead) Beautiful,  He About to Lose Me, Boys, Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know,
...Baby One More Time/ S&M, Trouble for Me, I'm a Slave 4 U, Burning Up, I Wanna GoWomanizer, 

Encore

Toxic, Till the World Ends

x

Rihanna Rules!

Oh My Gosh!

Rihanna @Odyssey Arena - absolutely fantastic!

Supported by Calvin Harris who did a fantastic job of warming everyone up before Rihanna's arrival on stage.
She arrived in a whirl on neon brights and looking gorgeous with her toned body n' fabulous legs!

Neon brights

A little bit of S&M :)

Stunning flowing gown, gorgeous boots!

A little gold dress - the new LBD

She was non stop - hit after hit, and numerous quick change outfit changes, a real action concert, you really got your moneys worth!


Setlist:
Only Girl (In the World), Disturbia, Shut Up and Drive, Man Down, Darling Nikki, S&M, Let Me, Skin, Raining Men, Hard, Breakin' Dishes, The Glamorous Life, Medley: Run This Town/Live Your Life, Unfaithful, Hate That I Love You, California King Bed, What's My Name?, Rude Boy, Cheers (Drink to That), Don't Stop the Music, Take a Bow

Encore:
Love the Way You Lie (Part II), Umbrella, We Found Love


Girl crush x

Dolly forever!

So Dolly Parton came to the Odyssey Arena in Belfast for one night only! I was a little apprehensive to what it would be like, would there be hundreds of people in cowboy outfits, glittering in rhinestones? Would it be all older people?
Well I was surprised - there were folks of all ages, all waving their 'We love Dolly' signs!

The show itself was fabulous, Dolly is a great entertainer and talented performer, she played easily 10-12 different instruments - some I'd never seen before! There were tales of the 'good old days' and how Dolly became who she is.
We got to hear the new single from her new album as well as a range of her older songs.

Just like a little barbie doll!

She is in fantastic shape and while there were no acrobatic performances she sure could stand in skyscraper heels for longer than I could!



Setlist:
Light of a Clear Blue Morning - Instrumental, Walking on Sunshine, Better Get to Livin', Jolene, Rocky Top, Dueling Banjos" - Instrumental, Mule Skinner Blues, Help!, Shine, Stairway to Heaven, My Tennessee Mountain Home, Precious Memories, Coat of Many Colors, Smoky Mountain Memories, Son of a Preacher Man, Better Day, Together You and I, Holding Everything, Joyful Noise, Queen Latifah Rap, He Will Take You Higher, He's Everything, White Limozeen, The Best of Both Worlds, The Sacrifice, In the Meantime, Little Sparrow, River Deep – Mountain High, Here You Come Again, Islands in the Stream, 9 to 5

Encore:
I Will Always Love You, Light of a Clear Blue Morning

A new Dolly fan x

Seaforde Butterfly House

When a friend reminded me about Seaforde Gardens I couldn't wait to revisit and see how it had changed.

As a child I remember going to the fantastic place where it was warm and balmy where beautiful butterflies landed on your arm if you stood still!

On arrival we parked the car and were accosted by cheeky peacocks looking for any picnic leftovers! The kids had a great time playing chase the peacock!
We decided to pay for the joint butterfly house & garden entry and make the most of the day.

As we entered the butterfly house we noticed the increase in temperature and realised there were butterflies everywhere! Hiding in the trees, resting on the roof top or snacking on the carefully placed bowls of sugar syrup they like to eat.

The butterflies were gorgeous - the place was just like I remembered all those years ago :)

After spending plenty of time with the butterflies - trying to count the different species with the kids we carried on through the parrot & reptile area, we enjoyed trying to encourage the parrot to talk to us.

Outside in the gardens we made our way to the maze and promptly got lost. After many twists, turns and dead ends we reached the centre! Then it was just a matter of trying to remember how we got there in the first place to get back out again!

View of maze from Moghul Tower

Once we found our way out we climbed the Moghul Tower - to view the maze from above. The kids wanted to play in the children's play area and did just that until closing time!

We had an interesting day and enjoyed doing something a little bit different.

x

Cheep, cheep

Blackbird has been sitting on 3 eggs for the past 3wks, she has been very dedicated only leaving the nest box for a short time to get water, food and stretch her legs.

Unfortunately over the time one of the eggs has disappeared - we think it was an unfertile one which burst in the nest box (which we had to clean up). So there are 2 remaining eggs.

Today when Roy went out to check on her he heard a small peeping noise coming from her nest box, so he took a closer look and there was a little beak poking out from under her!

Awww

 x

Little Wing Pizzeria..

It's C's birthday - he decided he wanted to go to a movie and have pizza with some friends as at the age of 10 he's getting 'too old' for parties!

As we have just had a new branch of Little Wing Pizzeria open locally we thought this was the ideal opportunity to try it out.

So after the movie the 7 of us descended on the restaurant. We were seated in a cosy booth and the kids given menus with activities printed on and a tub of crayons - excellent idea to keep them occupied!

The kids menu offered a single price for 3 course meal - they chose to start with doughballs, which were soft & squishy with a separate serving of garlic butter. Yummy!

For main course the kids opted for pizzas as did Roy, whereas I opted for the Cannelloni. The food arrived promptly and was delicious! Clean plates all over.

Cannelloni

 The kids had ice cream and hot chocolate for dessert, I chose tiramisu & cappuccino. The boys loved they grown up feel to their menu and I liked the dessert combo option.

Yummy!

  We had a delicious meal, the kids were happy - we will be back again soon!

Hangover 2

After the first hilarious Hangover movie I was excited to see the next in the franchise - The Hangover 2.

Lucky enough to be invited to attend an exclusive screening held by Budweiser NI at Moviehouse Cinemas my sister and I went along to see what it was all about!

The movie follows the same formula as the first one. The group travels to Thailand to celebrate Stu's upcoming wedding. You just know they are going to lose someone!
Yup........after a drunken night the boys wake up in a hotel room only problem being they have lost the brides younger brother! Over the remainder of the movie they are trying to unravel the exploits of the previous night with vague recollection and various clues with hilarious consequences.

I enjoyed the movie despite not having the originality that made the first movie a hit, it still made me laugh!

Bangkok has him now........x

So it comes full circle....

Our baby chicks which hatched in the incubator in this post are now all grown up and have begun laying their own eggs.

One of the hens - Blackbird has become broody, she wants to sit on her eggs and is reluctant to leave the nest box. Rather than persuade her to become 'unbroody' we have decided to let her sit. We got a few eggs from mum and have popped them under her.

Now we just have to wait and see......

x

Appletiser Speed Style

My sister and I attended this event held at The Apartment, Belfast in association with Smirnoff Vodka & The Style Academy and hosted by Citybeat DJ Stephen Clements.

It is the first time an event of this sort has been held in Northern Ireland so it was very exciting and the atmosphere was fabulous. On arrival we were treated to a Smirnoff Vodka Green apple or Lime cocktail and divided into 2 groups (Upstairs/Downstairs)

Cheers!

We started upstairs and were told our body shape and then guided through the current fashions which would flatter our shape, whether we were 'apple', 'hour glass' or 'pear' - I'm a 'pear' btw.

Downstairs the concept was based on speed dating meaning each person had 5 minutes with various stylists - hair, make up and fashion.

The evening was fun and informative, it gave me lots of ideas although it would have been nice to have a little longer with the stylists!

x

Tights!

Remember those tights? Yup the butterfly tattoo ones?

Well my fabby sister managed to get some - which she wore with a nude plain T and a teeny denim skirt, looking super hot!

Even better she got me a pair too - bestest sister in the world!

x

Meet Biscuit....

Lady K has been going on for a while about wanting a bunny (well any furry animal to be honest) so we had persuaded her to save her pocket money so she could afford one and to teach her a bit of responsibility too.

So today is the day - we have the hutch, hay & food - all we need is our bunny :)

And here he is!

Biscuit

His mum was a chocolate lop and dad a mini lion head - so he is a bit of a mix up! K is delighted with him and so are we!

Nibbling x

Earth Hour

So Earth Hour - What is it?

Earth Hour is a global event organized by WWF, asking households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances for one hour to raise awareness towards the need to take action on climate change.

So off we went to Stormont  where we were going to join in Earth hour and have a torch lit tour of the building.

We were given wind up torches on arrival and Cool FM were on hand to provide music and information about the evening. At 8.30pm the non essential lights were switched off, and we split into groups for our tour.

As we were guided round the building by torchlight we were told a little of the history of the building:

 The children were delighted as some of the performers from Cahoots NI were on hand to entertain with short 5 minute performances.

At 9.30pm the lights came back on - it was amazing to be part of such an event, it certainly made us think about how many lights & appliances we leave on without needing to.

In the dark x

Belfast Fashion Week

I was lucky enough to get a couple of front row tickets to attend High Street Heaven at Belfast Fashion Week in the Europa Hotel.

We had complimentary bottles of West Coast Cooler on the way in and we our pictures taken by the Style spotter team from Sugahfix.
It was a fabulous night sponsored by West Coast Cooler and hosted by Katie Larmour, local model & television presenter.

With male & female models all wearing outfits from local high street stores such as Debenhams, Dorothy Perkins, Internacionale and Warehouse - I loved the fact that these outfits were readily available to anyone and not going to cost a fortune!

I want those tights!

I loved a lot of the looks and made notes when anything I particularly wanted came onto the catwalk! These butterfly tights are stunning - I'm a big fan of tights and love the current tattoo style.

Goody bags!

Everyone got a lovely goody bag filled with fashionable treats from West Coast Cooler, Benefit, Schwartzkopf and Warehouse amongst others.

This was a fun evening and my head was buzzing with ideas on the way home - although I think the highlight of the evening was 'the boys' (male models) getting their tops off on stage to Rihanna's S&M - certainly whipped up a frenzy in the room!

Buzzin x

Geocaching...

I've heard people talking about this hobby 'Geocaching' and decided to check it out!

Geocaching is modern day treasure hunting. Caches are hidden and the GPS Co-ordinates of the site logged on a website to allow other geocachers to search for them.
I used Geocaching.com to look for a local treasure we could hunt for. I was surprised how many there were that I had walked past every day.

We put some new batteries in Roy's GPS device (although apparently it's easier with an Iphone or similar device) and set off with Lady K, Little R and our coordinates.

On the hunt

Working with older equipment it was tricky to know if we were getting closer or further away, but we persevered and after a short hunt knew we were getting closer...There were clues along with the given co-ordinates to help narrow the search.

Up the hill

Ah ha the treasure!

We found the treasure and making sure the were no onlookers who could spoil the hunt for others by not knowing what it was and moving the box, opened the tab lock box found a selection of items and a log book. We filled in the date of our find and the name of our caching team, resealed the box and hid it in it's hidey hole again.

So that was our first find - perhaps we will have another go in the warmer weather or maybe even when we are on holiday somewhere, an interesting way to see the countryside or even city!

On the hunt x

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding - Hot or Not?

Shown on Channel 4 Tuesdays @9pm, My big fat Gypsy Wedding  has certainly caught peoples attention!

Billed as a:

Revealing documentary series that offers a window into the secretive, extravagant and surprising world of gypsies and travellers in Britain today...

 I had to watch just to see what the fuss was about......and boy was it revealing!

Although the Gypsy traditions are strict on the girls not being alone with boys, not kissing, dating, & having chaperones the programme last night showed a very conflicting side of these 'traditions'.

Photo from Channel 4

Girls as young as 6 years old having spray tans for their first communions, with glitter spray & dresses with yards of tulle and lace that were heavy and uncomfortable, who then changed into more comfortable bikinis and scraps of garish lycra to gyrate to pop music as they were having a party to celebrate their traditions!

Now - I'm sure many years ago there were no spray tans, glitter sprays and lycra did not exist, nor was there easy access to television to allow these children to emulate their favourite pop stars. So I'm left baffled as to where these 'traditions' are coming from?

Then on to the wedding - Sam (17) & Pat (20), the scandal being Sam was a 'non-traveller'. Fantastic that these two cultures can accept each other and allow the marriage - but it certainly takes a special person to fit into the others culture!

Sam's dress was a jellyfish extravaganza of pink taffeta, lace, lights & butterflies - weighing an estimated 14st it would have floored me so congrats to her for even being able to stand up in it! She arrived in a Jordanesque carriage leading me to believe the traditions they are following are those of Jordan and the Chavnation - and where the cash for these fantastic spectacles comes from who knows, but I know I couldn't afford it!

Photo from Channel 4

Definitely not my cup of tea, but each to their own - and secretly I can't wait to see what they will be up to next! ;)

x

Gongs 2010

On 26th November we were lucky enough to get to the 4th annual Belfast Go Awards aka 'The Gongs!', this years event sponsored by Coors Light and held in the Europa Hotel, Belfast.

All dressed up (l-r my sis, her partner, my OH & me)

This is one of the red carpet events in Belfast social calendar - fab frocks and celebs to be seen everywhere!

Hosted by Keith Lemon there was innuendo galore, all taken in good humour of course! Other celebs spotted were Christine Bleakley, Frank Lampard, Michelle Heaton, Michelle Bass, Dane Bowers, Jamie Archer, Corrie's Brooke Vincent & Sacha Parkinson, Emmerdales Sophie Powles and Hollyoaks Glenn Wallace.

Glenn Wallace & me

Christine Bleakley & a my very delighted OH!

25,000 votes were counted and the winners were:

Hotel of the Year Winner: The Merchant Hotel
Visitor Attraction of the Year Winner: Ulster Museum
Media Personality of the Year Winner: Christine Bleakley
Club of the Year Winner: 21 Social
Café of the Year Winner: Swanton’s
Festival/Event of the Year Winner: Belsonic
Pub of the Year Winner: Laverys
Fashion Retailer of the Year Winner: House of Fraser
Restaurant of the Year Winner: Nick’s Warehouse
Live Music Venue of the Year Winner: The Empire
Newcomer of the Year Winner: Horatio Todds
Sports Personality of the Year Winner: Graeme McDowell
The Golden Gong Winner: 21 Social

 Congrats to all the winners! 

The aftershow party was at Eivissa with an exclusive DJ set performed by Dane Bowers. Where we partied the night away with champagne and fab tunes, before retiring for the night to the Europa.

Fantastic experience - looking forward to the 2011 awards!

xx





 

Welcome 2011!

Ok ok, after a 2mth hiatus can I really pick up again?

I say....Hellz yeah!

New year, new determination - I need to get up and get out there!