Life. Lately.

Happy New Year!

I can't believe that it is already 2013! How crazy is that??

Life has been good lately. Hectic but incredible. Here is a quick summary of what has been happening in my life recently!

So I turned 28... I spent my birthday with my boyfriend and we had a London tourist day! Can you believe I've lived here for 4 1/2 years and yet still hadn't been on the London Eye or visited the London Dungeons?? Well, now I have! ;)

We were unable to take photos at the London Dungeon so I can't show you how good it is but wowza! It was good. In fact it was really good. Although it is a little pricey, the whole experience lasts for around 90 minutes, being led from creepy room to even creepier room and I was loving every minute of it! I'm not going to tell you anything as I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise but if you ever get the chance, I urge you to go! Like now, if you can!

My second treat was FINALLY going on the London Eye! We chose to go in the evening as I think the London lights look magical in the dark and I was not let down. The city looked beautiful :)

Last month we both finally got some time to concentrate on making our flat feel more homely as well as making it look pretty for Christmas! What a difference our efforts made! We unpacked most of the boxes (yes, we still hadn't unpacked...) and moved a few pieces of furniture around to make room for our lovely Christmas tree. Home sweet home!

And... I'm saving the best for last here... We have a new addition to our home. We got a kitten!!! Funnily enough, I'd been planning on buying guinea pigs for weeks. I'd even almost bought two the weekend before but there was no suitable cage at the time so I had to let them go. So take two of buying guinea pigs and we tried a different pet shop. This one had an adorable little kitten in a cage who shyly crept up to us and watched us with the most beautiful blue eyes. I think it was love at first sight. We both fell for her! We looked around the rest of the pet shop but we couldn't get interested in anything else. So we went back to her and started discussing whether we could actually look after a cat in our home properly. I couldn't even believe we were having this chat as my boyfriend has told me many times that he is not a cat person. But he was as in love with her as I was! We chatted to the store owner and asked everything we needed to ask (which was a lot as we knew nothing about caring for cats!). In the meantime, our little cat was sick and my rescuing instincts kicked in and I knew there was no going back. So we bought her. I still can't believe it!

So, I introduce you to our new little friend, Polly! Isn't she the cutest??

We called her Polly because she sits on your shoulder like a parrot. It's her favourite place :) She has settled in fast and already struts around like she owns the place. She stopped being sick after a couple of days and she's now eating like there's no tomorrow! She's already growing so quickly!!!

Here's a little video of her playing with her first toy :)

I expect you'll be hearing a lot more about Polly in the future ;)

Hannah xo

Phew!

Hello. Hi. How are you?

The last few weeks have been mighty busy over here! We've moved house, celebrated our second anniversary, my man started his new job and I spent a week with my family :) Phew indeed! I'm still waiting for our new internet connection to be set up and I hope to post some photos soon!

I'm sure things will calm down and return to normal soon enough!

But in the meantime, I thought I'd check in on my 28 before I'm 28 list and see how I'm doing. I suspect I'm failing miserably ;) I can't believe how quickly this year is passing by...

1) Get a new job. Hasn't happened yet... I have to admit I have applied for very few as of yet. I'm struggling to find a new direction as I feel like I need a completely new career!

2) Plan out the perfect second anniversary trip. Done! I had to scrap my original plan because of financial restrictions (moving house ain't cheap, people!) but we had a lovely weekend away together nonetheless :)

3) Discover a fitness activity I actually enjoy.  Done twice over! I found love in the trees :) I tried this thing called Go Ape and had so much fun! I am definitely planning to check out other courses and dragging my friends along too. I also tried out the swimming pool in the basement of our new apartment block and I can see myself spending a lot of time there :)

4) Make my outfit photo debut. Still haven't got around to doing this despite having bought a few cool pieces lately. Coming soon...

5) Customise an old bike. Still do not have said bike. But I know what I'm planning for the bike when I do eventually get it! :)

6) Perform a full digital clearout! Started it but I haven't dedicated nearly enough time to it. Maybe it will become more appealing now that the weather is turning colder...

7) Buy a polaroid camera. Nope! I'd feel too guilty spending that kind of money on myself at the moment...

8) Make something involving a vase, twigs and fairy lights. See No. 7.

9) Board the London Eye. See No. 7.

10) Finish Star Trek original series. I've almost finished the second series, hurray!

11) Find something I'm truly passionate about. I'm still far from it, though I have a few clues now :)

12) Sort out my vast collection of stuff. Having just moved house again, this has just jumped way up my priorities list! Hauling all my junk around made me realise that I NEED to clear out my stuff ASAP.

13) Study web design. I'm so keen to learn about this, I just need to find the time to explore it!

14) Read a Spanish language book. I recently started one but then it went missing during the move... I'm sure it will turn up soon!

15) Read 6 books. Two done, halfway through two more... This should be a blast with my new reading-friendly commute :)

16) Spend a week with my family.  I have just done this and had the best time! It had been far too long since I had spent a decent amount of time with the fam.

17) Organise a girls get-together. Done! We tried and failed to go to an Ice Cream festival but by the time we got there the ice cream had sold out, d'oh! Instead we went to a favourite bar of ours and had tea and cake. The ultimate girly hang out!

18) Create a piece of artwork for our flat. Almost! I've been working on a little something ;)

19) Learn how to play keyboard (again!). Failing miserably, I haven't even got my keyboard out of its case yet...

20) Start sending postcards all over the world! I'm spending so much time looking for the perfect postcard, maybe I should just send one already!!!

21) Dye my hair bright red. Still haven't been to the hairdressers... Hoping to book it this week though! :D

22) Go swim in the sea. Well it wasn't the sea, but I did go swimming in the pool :) It feels like it's getting too cold for this now...

23) Get a new pet. I've decided to hold off on finding my new little friend for now as we're waiting to see if we may be moving again due to some very exciting developments!

24) Add six new recipes to my limited repertoire. I've added another two... I've got another four to go so I'd best get cooking! ;)

25) Visit Madame Tussauds! I don't seem to be able to bribe anybody to come with me... A work in progress!

26) Bargain hunting at a thrift store. Done! I had so much fun I may have to do it again! :)

27) Go to the cinema every month. I'm just about on target with this. Unfortunately there never seems to be anything good on when we decide to go...

28) Go to a gig once a month.  Fail!!! I've barely been to any!

Hmmm... Not as bad as I thought it would be! Still got a lot to do though... GO!\

Hannah xo

London Diversion: Geffrye Museum

I recently had a day off and decided to visit the Geffrye Museum. This is a really cool museum of the home housed within 18th Century almshouses, which used to be a home for the elderly built with money donated by Sir Robert Geffrye. It's a two minute walk from Hoxton station and I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance to visit :)

The museum is an exhibition of English middle class living rooms from the 1600s right through until the present day. Visiting the museum is like taking a walk through time!

The beautiful exterior

One of the almshouses

A parlour in 1695

A sunny reading room, how lovely is this?!

A drawing room in 1830

This is an Edwardian Period room, love that light!

A beautiful 1930s Period room

Mid-century living room

I fell in love with this pedestal table from about 1845 :) what a beauty!

1900 Japanese parasol - eventually declared unsafe for decorating fireplaces!

A super cool retro TV from the 1950s

Did you know that...?

• Downing Street became the official London residence of the Prime Minister in 1732.
• In 1765 an 8-year-old Mozart wrote his first symphony.
• The World’s first underground railway opened in London in 1863.
• In London, in 1870, the postal service was so efficient that you could invite your friend to afternoon tea by sending an invitation that same morning!

Hannah xo

Postcrossing!

Source

Hands up if you love receiving real post? Yes, me too! I was thrilled to discover Postcrossing. It's a project which encourages people all over the world to continue sending real mail instead of all these email things. So impersonal and let's face it, emails really do all look the same!

So, I just signed up and my profile is here. Now I just need to go out and find some cool postcards to send so I can join this beautiful post party! Get involved ;)

I'll let you know how it goes!

Hannah xo

A Walk Through Leafy London

Yesterday was beautiful and I had nothing planned so I took myself and my camera for a walk. I really like the area in which I currently live in North London. It's leafy and green and away from all the hustle and bustle of the city. I love Hampstead Heath because it feels never-ending and I always discover something new every time I visit :)

View of London from Parliament Hill

A stern crow!

A secret garden?

Hannah xo

28 before I'm 28!

Hi there :)

So, I got a little freaked out when I realised that I'm 28 in only 6 months time. Massive eek! I really don't know where the years have gone... One thing I do know is that somewhere along the line I got stuck in a big ol' rut and I need a little change in my life. I feel like all I do is work, clean and sleep. How lame! In an effort to improve things and get myself motivated I've come up with a few (well, 28!) goals for me to complete before I turn another year older. I'm going to be a very busy girl but bring. it. on.

1. Get a new job. I've been working in my current position for about 18 months now and I'm in desperate need of a change. I work long 12 hour shifts and often work all through the night. I barely get to see my friends, not to my mention my man. My health is suffering. Did I mention that it's dull?! I didn't work super hard at uni and for the last four years for this, hell no! 
2. Plan out the perfect second anniversary trip. Come September I'll have been with my man for two years and this year it's my turn to plan something special. I'm really excited about this and have already set the wheels in motion ;)
3. Discover a fitness activity I actually enjoy. Exercise? Bleurgh! I am yet to find something I can stick to though I'll admit I have tried little. Running is horrible, I've decided, and I need something less... intense. It's time to shape up and get healthy!
4. Make my outfit photo debut. I have outfits I want to show you but I'm so self-conscious that I can't bring myself to even take any photos. I despise photos of myself! I need to overcome my fear of cameras!
5. Customise an old bike. I don't have said bike yet but I love the idea of fixing one up and making it pretty :) Plus maybe this could be my answer for number 3 ;)
6. Perform a full digital clearout! I am soooooo bad at keeping my laptop and computers clutter-free. I even have a super old laptop which I need to deal with. And my inboxes? Stuffed to the brim! I need to digitally sweep it all clean and organise it all up. Who knows what I may find on my hard drives? I'll let you know if I find anything good :)
7. Buy a polaroid camera. I've always wanted one, why wait any longer? 
8. Make something involving a vase, twigs and fairy lights. I've been threatening to make something along these lines for 6 months now. I'm going to make good on those threats. 
9. Board the London Eye. I've lived here for almost 4 years now and still haven't checked this off. It's time. 
10. Finish Star Trek original series. Incredibly geeky I know, but I love studying television history! I started this about two years ago and I'm still only halfway through the second season out of three. 
11. Find something I'm truly passionate about. The problem I have with finding a new job is that I've never figured out what it is I actually want to dedicate myself to. In the meantime, I'm just looking for something with conventional hours that I already have the experience to do. But I'd love to work out what makes me tick and make a career out of it. 
12. Sort out my vast collection of stuff. My boyfriend was horrified when he discovered how much stuff I own as we moved into our very own first flat together. Up until that point I'd kept a lot of my valued possessions at my parents' house (they had their own room...) but he got a shock watching my Dad gleefully piling up our rental van with all of my stuff. Said stuff is now cluttering our small flat and I most definitely need a ruthless clearout!
13. Study web design. I love being a geek and I need to bring out my own creativity so this could be a match made in heaven for me. Plus it can only be beneficial for this blog :) Possible new career? We'll see!
14. Read a Spanish language book. I have a Spanish degree and a pile of Spanish books so... 
15. Read 6 books. Well, I'll already have a head-start with number 14 ;) I love reading and escaping into another world but I don't make enough time for it.
16. Spend a week with my family. I visit home about once every 3 months but it's usually only for a day or two. I'm going to spend a week there so I can catch up with old friends, hang out with the fam and of course take Little Chicken on lots of picnics and long walkies :)
17. Organise a girls get-together. As I said earlier, I barely get to see my friends due to my long and often unsociable hours at work. I want to arrange something fun where I can spend some good quality time with my neglected but awesome friends. 
18. Create a piece of artwork for our flat. Our flat is currently lacking the personal touch so we need some things to make it more 'us' and not 'generic flat'. We're both kicking some ideas around but neither of us has made anything yet!
19. Learn how to play keyboard (again!). I learnt to play keyboard when I was in primary school and I loved it! My parents bought me this high-tech keyboard but it fell by the wayside after a year or so. I'd love to learn to play my now retro keyboard again. Plus I can do a Ross from Friends (the keyboard has some super cool effects!). 
20. Start sending postcards all over the world! I just found this amazing site where you can send and receive postcards from ALL over the world. How cool is that?! I'm very keen to get involved! Snail mail rules!
21. Dye my hair bright red. I used to have bright red hair and I loved it. I now want it again. I should maybe wait until after I have a new job though... Not sure what they'll make of it in interviews, ha!
22. Go swim in the sea. I haven't done this for a long time. And paddling doesn't count! 
23. Get a new pet. It has now been a year since I lost my dear hamster, Domino. I'm trying to convince my man that we need some new animals in our lives but he is very hesitant due to my complete breakdown over Domino's untimely death. Understandable but I miss having a cool furry sidekick. 
24. Add six new recipes to my limited repertoire. Thinking of something to cook each night is both difficult and exhausting. I need new recipes, particularly the quick and easy kind. 
25. Visit Madame Tussauds! I haven't been since I was 7 years old and I quite fancy a pic with the Biebs ;)
26. Bargain hunting at a thrift store. To replace the stuff after I've completed number 12 :)
27. Go to the cinema every month. This is one of my favourite things to do yet I never do it! This is going to change. 
28. And last but not least, go to a gig once a month. The perfect excuse for a date night :) 

So, there you have it! My 28 before 28 list. This is pretty epic, especially for me as I'm so used to just working and sleeping. I'll keep you updated every month :)

Do you have a list of goals? Good luck if you do!

I'll leave you with this wonderful masterpiece of artistic genius ;)

Hannah xo

Camping! in the Lake District

Hello!

We've not long got back from a lovely short break in the Lake District :) We hired a car, a ridiculous little thing called a Chevy Spark, and drove the 5 hours North to Duddon Valley picking up Little Chicken on the way. It really was beautiful!

We pitched our tent (an adventure in itself) and went hiking along the river and up into the fells. 

We highly recommend the Turner Hall Farm  camp site :)

The tent beast!

A cool monster tree :)

Barbecuing in the dark!

Little Chicken checking out her conquered mountain :)

Gorgeous!

This sheep had a red mohawk!

I wish I could stay here forever :)

Little Chicken is all tired out.

On the early drive home.

I'm very sad to have had to come home and can't wait to plan our next little trip!

Welcome to my new little corner of the web!

I am very excited about starting this new adventure. 

Hannah xo