#LITTLELOVES December

Christmas is over for another year already which is crazy. I hope you all had a wonderful time. We had such a wonderful December filled with all things festive. We've had Pip our elf join us for the month causing all kinds of mischief. Blake turned 5 this month and it's been so lovely to see Blake understanding alot more about both his Birthday and Christmas. He adores the Christmas decorations especially the tree with its colourful lights. We popped to a Christmas market in town and the tea cup ride was a hit with him.

Now lets get on with my little loves for December.

READ

I've read 4 books this month and I also completed my 2019 challenge of reading 60 books this year and am currently on book number 64 which I hope to finish by the end of December.

All the wrong places by Joy Fielding

I really enjoyed this gripping read. It was for my last blog book tour of the year and you can read more about the book here.

An Island Christmas by Jenny Colgan

I have to read at least one Christmas themed book in December. This is one was a lovely festive read cuddled up under a blanket with a mug of hot chocolate.

The women in the dark by Vanessa Savage

Another thrilling and suspenseful read. I fully reccomend picking this one up.

The suspect by Fiona Barton

I love fiona Barton's thrillers and this one was just as thrilling as The Child which I read in 2018.

Dear Mrs Bird by AJ Pearce

I do love reading novels based in world war 2 and Dear Mrs Bird is a light hearted one which I'm currently reading.

Every night I've also been reading Blake a book from his Disney Storybook advent calendar we got him this year. I love the mixture of stories featured and will be using it again next year.

Watched 

You can see my bumper list of Christmas films as we've been making our way through the ones mentioned. 

Blake has also had quite a few videos from Santa via Portable North Pole  thanks to the magic pass we were gifted. 

Heard

Christmas songs have been played quite a bit this month and Blake has been singing Jingle Bells alot.

WORE

Blake and I have been loving wearing match Christmas Pjs. He was so thrilled to see that I have the same pair as him. These were from B&M and we will be saving them for next year too.

Blake's been wearing a few of his Christmas themed tops and we especially love the jumper I picked up for him from Aldi. He's worn it both for Christmas jumper day and on the last day of school before the Christmas holiday.

MADE

Stuart let me have one of my Christmas presents early..The new Pinch of Nom book! and so we made a couple of recipes from it. The oven baked Risotto with smoked salmon and peas was a favourite along with the ploughmans platter which we had Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve was the only time we got to do crafts and it was a The snowman set that I had picked up at poundland. Blake loved the colouring and painting and he wanted to me to do the scratch art which I feel turned out well.

AND LASTLY...

Here are some photos from Blake's birthday.

#Littleloves November

November has certainly been a mixed month. We had to cancel going to visit family for my sister in laws 30th birthday party due to the flood alerts in the area. There were train cancellations and warnings not to travel unfortunately. Then I also found out this month that I have type 2 diabetes which means a complete change to my eating habits. We have had some great christmas related stuff happen though which has totally made the month enjoyable. I'm so excited for December tomorrow and putting up our tree.

Let's now jump into the little loves for November.

READ

I've managed to get through 4 books this month and 2 are for upcoming book tours I'm involved in.  The first 2 I'd been meaning to read for awhile and have been in my tbr pile on our bedroom shelf.

The Brighton Mermaid By Dorothy Koomson

Confession I've read 2 of Koomsons books before and didn't enjoy them but this one I was really drawn to and I'm glad I decided to give it a go as I ended up really enjoying it. I'd say it's a mix of Romance and mystery/crime.

Pieces Of Her By Karin Slaughter

This one is a slow starter for me. Definitely not the most gripping of thrillers but still an ok read.

The Sound Of Her Voice By Nathan Blackwell 

A brilliantly written crime thriller that kept me gripped. My full review will be live on December 6th. 

A Portrait Of Death By Rhen Garland 

Loved, loved, loved this one. Can safely say this was my favourite of the month and my full review will be live on December 9th.

WATCHED

I've been slacking with watching anything on TV, Netflix or films this month. I've only seen two films bad moms and Bad moms Christmas which I loved. 

Fireworks 

We don't go to see the fireworks as the noise really effects Blake and we are struggling to get him to wear ear defenders. However we got to watch some from Blake's room where the bangs weren't so loud and Blake loved them.

Christmas light switch on 

We went to the local light switch on. They had it two days in a row which we were able to go to as the second day wasn't so busy and was without the bangs.

Santas Christmas Countdown

We also went to see a wonderful Christmas show locally which Blake loved he even got to meet santa after and get a present.

Heard

Not going to lie the last week or so I've been playing Christmas music. Christmas is my favourite time of year so why not prolong it.

Now 100 hits Christmas has a mix of the traditional songs we all know and more modern ones too.

WORE

Yep I totally decided to get into the Christmas spirit this month and have been wearing both Christmas pj bottoms and socks. I'm totally loving the cute gingerbread characters on both.

MADE

I made a simple card bauble craft that you can read about here. I've also made a list of ideas for our elf ready for when he arrives tomorrow.

AND LASTLY...

Meet Pip McJingles who will be arriving tomorrow ready for lots of fun, adventures and  mischief in the lead up to Christmas. 

He is from Elf for christmas and we were sent him with a reward kit, 24 advent letters and a new book.

#LittleLoves October

What a month October has been! Stuart ended up in hospital within the first week of the month with heart problems which was such a worrying time. Luckily he was only in for around 36 hours before he was allowed home.  On the plus side this month we found an extra storage room in our attic after being intrigued in what was behind a wooden panel. We are also currently on half term til Tuesday so Stuart's mum and her husband were up for a few days. Our favourite day out together  was when we headed to Farmer Copleys in Pontefract for their pumpkin festival.

Let's move onto my #littleloves for October.

READ
Another quiet reading month. This is mainly as I was struggling to get through one of my reads before giving up so I've left that one out of this post.

The House Across The Street by Lesley Pearse 
I've been a fan of Lesley's books for awhile now. This story is based in Britain in the 60s with 23 year old Katy Speed as the main character who is intrigued with what's going on at the house across the street. Then one night the house burns down killing 2 people inside and Katy's Dad gets the blame. Katy is determined to prove her fathers innocence . Can Katy find the truth before it's too late?

Ghoster by Jason Arnopp
I was gifted this book for a book tour which you can read about tomorrow and it's such a thrilling and twisty read. Definitely perfect spooky read for this time of year.

Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce
This is my current read which is a debut thriller. A disturbing, toxic and compelling novel that explores the power of fear and desire, jealousy and betrayal, love and hate.

WATCHED

I've been watching a good few films this month.

I'll start with Netflix:

In the Tall Grass

A brother and sister enter a field of tall grass to rescue a boy, but they soon realize they cannot escape and something evil lurks in the grass.

Fractured

After his wife and injured daughter disappear from the emergency room, a man becomes convinced the hospital is hiding something.

Eli

A boy becomes trapped in a haunted house while undergoing treatment for a rare disease.

Veronica 

During a solar eclipse, young Verónica and her friends want to summon the spirit of Verónica's father using an Ouija board. However, during the session she loses consciousness and soon it becomes clear that evil demons have arrived.

DVDs:

Toy Story  4

Absolutely loved the fourth film fully reccomend  seeing it if you haven't yet.

Hocus Pocus 

My all time favourite Halloween film. I watched this as a child and still love it now.

Other:

As Halloween is next week I'll be making my through my list of Halloween and horror films.

Heard
Not really been listening to any new music this month.


WORE

New Boots - These ankle boots are from Yours clothing and are so comfortable.

Cute Hedgehog socks - These are from Tesco and don't just look cute they definitely keep my feet warm.

MADE

Apple crumble - It's a must for this time of year.

Autumn wreath/ scarecrow - Blake and I did these together they were such fun to make and very simple to do.

And lASTLY...

We took part in a tweet-along for the release of Toy Story 4 on DVD and Blueray. You can check out my review and giveaway here.

September #littleloves

What a stressful month September has been and I can safely say I'm glad it's coming to an end. We started the month with a flooded kitchen, a broken drain in the bathroom and then the toilet flooding. We've also had the stress of Blake starting school and his struggles with anxiety of being away from us. I've attended meetings with school regarding Blake and getting an EHCP sorted one of which was a  very draining two hours long. 

Anyway here is my #littleloves for September.

 READ

I've been a bit slower on the reading front this month and only managed to fit in reading 3 books.

The Mister by E.L.James
This is a stand alone novel from the author of 50 shades of grey. If you enjoyed that trilogy than you may like The Mister. It starts off really slowly and drags abit but then picks up pace.

The Stranger by Kate Riordan
The stranger is a great written historical fiction based in the wild and beautiful landscape of Cornwall. This is the first book I've read by her and definitely would love to see what her other books are like.

A house of ghosts by W.C.Ryan
This is a wonderful book that I've read for a blog book tour ready for me to share on 7th October. I'd love you to come back to my blog then to find out more about the book as it's a good one.

WATCHED
Not watched much this month in all fairness. I've watched more of Workin Moms on Netflix and also getting through 13 reasons why.


HEARD
I've been listening to both Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swifts new albums.

WORE

I've been wearing some new bits that I purchased off ebay and charity shops recently. The black butterfly print top is from yours clothing and the blue tunic top with a stripe is from next. Both I managed to get for under a fiver and are great for throwing on with leggings for an everyday casual look.  I also got around to finally wearing my essential oil diffuser necklace for the first time today and the orange oil I've opted to use smells so good.

MADE

I put together a set of busy bags to help keep Blake occupied when out and about and they have been a hit with him.

I've also made a start on planning Christmas related content especially my gift guides.

AND LASTLY..

Ive been involved in #SecondHandSeptember and pledged to buy only second hand clothing during September which is a campaign held by Oxfam to raise awareness about fast fashion.

August #LittleLoves

August seems to have flown by. I think because we had just under a week visiting family and then this week we've had our garden done it's broken up the month a bit. So it's made it seem to have gone faster than usual. Next week Blake will be starting school so this weekend I need to start washing and then labeling all his uniform, shoes etc.

Right lets get into what I've been loving this month.

READ
I've just finished reading my 6th book of the month and I've had a good mix. One of my reading goals I've set recently is to read more classics so you will see one featured this month and mostly more soon too.

Something to tell you by Lucy Diamond 
An easy read which tells the story of frankie who's mother passed away.  She finds a letter that was hidden that reveals who her Dad is. So she decides to go and meet him.

I looked away by Jane Corey 
The story is about Ellie (grandmother to josh) and this tells her life story. From losing her mum as a child, her father remarrying , gaining a baby brother  and an accident that changes everything. Along with her meeting her husband and having her own family. The book also follows a homeless lady called Jo and their stories tie together. This is a book that takles both topics of homelessness and PTSD.


If you could go anywhere by Paige Toon
I picked this up as it's a summery read. Angie has always wanted to travel but at 29 she still hasn't left her small mineing town. Ready to go travelling after her mother has died Angie has a shock when finding a letter hidden addressed to the father she has never known. As Angie sets off on her journey to find the truth – about her family, her past and who she really is – will enigmatic stranger Alessandro help guide the way?

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
I've now got a list of classics I want to read and I decided to pick up Wuthering Heights  first. On reviews I've read there certainly seems to be a good mix of thoughts and I definitely feel it's a marmite of books with some loving it and others not so much. I am the former and really enjoyed this dark read.

The Mummy Bloggers by Holly Wainwright 
This is such a fun and easy read. The story tells of 3 bloggers and their fight to win a  blig award. Some of them do such crazy things to try and win. 


My last read is actually for a book tour I'm part of and isn't available until next week. All I'll reveal is that it's a great debut crime novel so if you are interested come back to my blog on wednesday to find out more on this new release.

WATCHED

Netflix:
 I've hardly watched anything on netflix this month. I'm definitely upping my game for September though.

Workin Mums season  2
The Letdown season 2 

Films:
Christopher Robin
If you love winnie the pooh than Christopher Robin is a must see. It's been out for awhile now and I've finally got around to watching it.

HEARD

This month my sister had a gender reveal party and I heard that she is team blue and having her own little boy. I'm so incredibly excited for 2020 and meeting him.

WORE

The summer outfits have been out and I've had a chance to wear maxi dresses quite a bit. 

MADE

Quite a few crafts this month. We were lucky to receive the crafty little learners box at the end of July. We've been doing a lot of rainbow themed crafts as that was the theme of the month. We also made our own carnivorous garden although I'm disappointed to say nothing has grown yet.

AND LASTLY..

We have had the garden done. It's mainly new concrete with a small grass area and we are going to get some planters and once we've got the garden how we want it I'll share a post but here is a sneak peek for now.