Almost Thirty

For the best part of this year, whenever someone has asked me my age my response has always been "I'll be turning 30 in December" or "Nearly 30" Never have I answered with my actually age of 29. For someone who has been dreading turning 30 all year, I am ever so quick to put myself into that age bracket before I have even hit it. Having spent lots of time in a state of "pre-thirty" devastation I have come to the conclusion that although my age is ever increasing and out of my control, this is not the case with my life. I still have control over it so why on earth is an age bracket going to make a difference to that. So instead of focusing on all the things I will have not achieved before reaching this milestone age I am focusing all my positive energy into all of the wonderful things i "am" going to achieve in the next stage of my life. They say that life begins at 40 but for me I reckon its 30. This is going to be my decade. I can feel it. Work, study, learning to drive, new friends and experiences are all part of my achievements I am aiming for in my thirties. 

Now don't get me wrong.. I am not getting out the slippers and knitting needles just yet. I am still a young, vibrant thing and have every intention of raving on well into the next decade and beyond. I may well relive some of my "twenties youth" while I still can, maybe grab some Basement Jaxx tickets and throw down some shapes at the concert?, go on a "twenties only" weekend? or even hit the local foam party at the weekend? Ok maybe not the foam party, I didn't even enjoy this when I was 16! 

Did any of you dread turning 30? Or did you like me go over things you wish you had done before hitting a certain age? One thing's for sure. I am going to embrace my birthday and welcome it with open arms. I plan to celebrate with all the people I love. Here's to the next decade!

*This post was written in Collaboration with 02

My Big Night In

The X-factor has recently returned to our screens which for me means one thing.. Christmas is well and truly on the way. With the sub zero temperatures outside, the nights drawing in at 4 o'clock and the return of some great Saturday night TV many of us are ditching the girls night out plans and making do with a night in front of the goggle box. Since becoming a parent I find that I don't necessarily go out as much as some of my friends who don't have children, but surprisingly that doesn't bother me in the slightest. People (without children) always ask me how I cope without going out all the time! Quite easily actually as I can still find happiness and fulfilment without going out every single weekend. It’s so annoying when people assume because you have children and commitments and choose not to spend every free night hitting the town that you are somehow missing out. I love a night out with the girls, granted it doesn't happen very often but its makes it much more enjoyable when we do meet up and go out together.

Now as much as I love a good night out, I love nothing more than my home comforts. Whether it’s getting the girls round for a catch up with some good food and a bottle of fizz or simply vegging out with Aalliyah and catching up with some latest movies. I must admit the latter seems to happen the most regular!  We are always back and forth from Blockbuster, popcorn and DVD's in hand.

I am a huge movie buff so when it comes to choosing between going out on the town and fighting frostbite or staying indoors with the heating on, some good comfort food and the latest movie release I know what I would prefer (Most of the time anyway) .. and it seems I am not alone in this as a whopping 70% of ladies prefer a night in. Nights out can also prove to be very expensive and although there is lots of fun and excitement to be had hitting the latest clubs there is no reason why a night in has to be a sombre event. Here are some top tips to have the best girls night "IN" ever!

• Have a pamper session - Dig out the towels and indulge in some DIY spa treatments. Manicures, facials, pedicures... Have fun relaxing and socialising while treating each other to some much needed TLC.
• Play Games - Games are not just for children. Some of the funniest nights I have ever had included playing games. From the bog standard board games to some truth or dare. Let out your adolescent side and have some fun playing games.
• Movie Marathons - You can't beat a good movie. Weather it’s a chick flick or a good action movie (purely for the eye candy) All bring a movie and have a movie marathon. You could go from watching Harry Potter to Die hard! Just don't forget the munchies!
• Theme nights - Why not make a theme for the evening. Maybe you could dig out your leg warmers and hair crimpers and have an eighties night. Just don't forget the music!
  
  

There are so many ways to have fun without having to leave the house and a night in is most definitely the new night out! What do you like to do to have fun when staying in? I'd love to hear your girls night in essentials. I have a feeling wine is going to be top of most peoples lists.

*This post is in collaboration with Ladbrokes Bingo

** Survey conducted on over 2000 women in UK

An Ode To Emma Louise

The wonderful Emma Louise
Made blogging seem like a breeze
She helped me get started
Because she's so kind hearted
And always aims to please

This is an ode to my brilliant blogger friend Emma over at theminimesandme . She not only inspired me to start my own blog but is always on hand to help me :)

I am linking this up over at Grumpyishmum.co.uk

The Gallery - Play

So the theme for this week is "PLAY".. Something me and Aalliyah seemed to have done all summer holiday so far! With a recent trip to Gulliver's you can imagine the abundance of photos I know I have of Aalliyah playing, running, jumping, skipping and hand standing over EVERYTHING! But there is one particular photo which I just had to share.

This is Aalliyah and her friend Caoimhe enjoying some play time in the ball pit. What amazes me about these two is that even though there is a 9 year age gap they always play so beautifully together. I try for ages to get Caoimhe to smile, Aalliyah comes along and Caoimhe is instantly in fits of giggles. These two young ladies also share their birthday and I always call them birth date buddies. I think this is why they have such a beautiful bond :)

Head over to Sticky Fingers to view the rest of the Gallery entries for this week,

The Gallery - The Eighties

OK, So the theme this week is "The Eighties", but being born in 84 meant I only had 6 years of the eighties to endure, so no perm pics here lol.

I think this picture was taken in around 89, so just in the "Eighties" bracket.

I am on the left in the "nice" lime green costume. Needless to say I have never had a photo taken in a costume since! In the middle is my very good friend Siobhan who I lost contact with for many years and in the past few years have got back in contact with each other. She is also a mummy now, so we can share in our experiences as parents together too. Not only that, but her beautiful little girl was born on Aalliyahs birthday :-)

On the right is a girl called Jade, who I will only ever remember for the biting and pinching that she did and the constant temper tantrum screams coming from her flat lol.

Head over to Sticky Fingers Blog and check out the other entries :-)

Knowing Me Knowing You Meme

For those of you that don't know me, My name is Emma and I am a complete newbie to the "blogging" world. I have been blogging on and on for the past month or so, but I would say it has only started to gain momentum in the past few weeks. 

The purpose of this meme was to bring bloggers together, to learn about the person behind the computer screen. I myself know how hard it is to form new friendships as a new blogger so to me this is a great idea!


The Rules:

• Nominate five other blogs in your post ( All must have less than 250 subscribers)
• Post five random facts about yourself.
• Answer the five questions that the "tagger" has asked you, and then list your own five questions to ask others.
• Let your five friends know you have tagged them by commenting on there blog/tweeting them.

My five random facts:

1. My confirmation name is Monica and was only chosen as a group of us all chose names from the show "Friends" (Great religious meaning there lol)
2. I still have an irrational fear of the dark. (Have to have hallway or bathroom light on when I'm in bed lol)
3. I'm a bit of a Call Of Duty addict. Granted I can't play half as well as the guys on there.. But I give it my all and get very angry in the process lol
4. I have 2 tattoos. One of my lower spine and one on my shoulder (Both wording)
5. I am a massive Dr Who fan! But can't stand the new episodes with Matt smith lol

Here is the five questions I was asked to answer:

1. What is the most embarrassing experience you have ever had?

Hmmm.. How do I choose? I am the most clumsiest person ever so have taken an embarrassing tumble more times than I can remember, but I would say the most embarrassing thing to happen to me was being in labour and having to have the normal "dilation checks" as you do and being escorted to a ward with zero power, so having a friendly little helper having to hold a huge JCB builders torch over me while I was examined.

    2.  What is your most treasured childhood memory?

The number one thing that stands out for me is sharing a room with my sister. I remember we had everything matching, and I believe at one point it was a Pierro Clown theme. (No wonder I have a fear of them now) I remember constantly making up dances and performances with my sister and one that sticks out in particular was a dance we did to Shakespears Sister's Stay. We practised for hours and them performed it for our parents.

   3.   What is your favourite meal?

That's easy.. Boiled gammon joint, potatoes and cabbage. Proper comfort food!! Haven't had it for so long (Following pro points plan and trying to be good) 

   4.   If you could go to any destination in the world, where would it be an why?

OK, So it's not a far away land or exotic location, but I would love to go to New York. Having struggled with work and finances, I have not been in a position to be able to go on a holiday like this and so Aalliyah is yet to experience her first plane holiday. She would absolutely love New York more than me. So now I have quit smoking (Nearly a year now) Hopefully back in employment very very soon! This is definitely our first holiday :-)

  5.   If you could wish for just one thing for your child, what would it be?

This is by far the hardest question of the lot. How do I choose just one?? I guess one of the main ones, is that I wish that she is happy in whatever she chooses to do. Many people can have big bank balances, big cars and even bigger houses and be the loneliest people in the world.

I am tagging the following five people to take part:

http://glitzygleam.blogspot.co.uk/
http://themumstodolist.blogspot.co.uk/
http://mumtales.wordpress.com/
http://theoliversmadhouse.wordpress.com/
http://teacakeandmyboy.blogspot.co.uk/

Your five questions to answer:

What one thing (material object) could you not live without?
What is your favourite blog post?
If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go and why?
If you could go back in time what one thing would you change and why?
If you had one wish right now( at time of writing post) what would it be for and why?

Let me know when you have done your post and I'll check it out :-)