The Christmas TAG

I am so excited for Christmas - you'd think it only came every ten years not every year! So in keeping with my festive mood, I thought I'd do this Christmas TAG, put together by the lovely Poppy

1. What is your favourite Christmas movie? 

Believe it or not, I've never actually seen Elf, which I know is a lot of people's favourites. I love The Grinch, Aurthur Christmas, The Polar Express, The Nativity films and I love Christmassy rom-coms like Love Actually and The Holiday too. 

2. Do you open your Christmas presents on Christmas Eve or morning? 

Christmas Morning

3. Do you have a favourite Christmas memory? 

There isn't a specific Christmas memory that stands out but I do remember always being in the school choir and learning Christmas songs for the productions/carol services. One year we sang at the local lights-switching-on and that night my mum and dad told me, my brother and sister that we were going to Lapland UK the next day. Going to Lapland UK was super magical and amazing. 

I was also chosen/I volunteered to read out part of the nativity story at church one year - that was a proud moment! 

4. Favourite Festive food? 

Does it sound bad to say that there are too many to chose from? Obviously I love Christmas dinner, especially the pigs in blankets, Yorkshire puddings and the stuffing. I love the tins of chocolates too like the Cadburys Roses, Quality Street etc - the strawberry and orange creams are my favourites. I really like Terry's Chocolate Oranges too.  

5. Favourite Christmas gift? 

There's not really anything that stands out but getting my first mobile phone was quite exciting at the time. I think when you're little, every year the presents get 'better' than the year before and are your new favourites. 

Last year I got my first pair of GHDs which was amazing because I've wanted some for 5/6 years! And they are something I'll keep for a long time. 

6. Favourite Christmas scent?

I do like cinnamony smells but sometimes they can be a bit too strong. Is it weird to say that I love that kinda dusty smell when you get the decorations down from the loft and the smell of tinsel? 

And the smell of Christmas dinner cooking. And the smell of clementines always reminds me of Christmas too! 

7. What tops your tree? 

Our theme for our decorations is gold so we have a gold star on the top of our tree. 

8. Do you have any Christmas Eve traditions? 

We always watch the Polar Express on Christmas Eve, get the Christmas chocolates chocolates out and have a Chinese takeaway. Then we put out a glass of milk and a mince pie for Santa and a carrot for Rudolph and we lay out stockings by the fire. I usually have a Lush bath with something Christmassy like the melting snowman or cinders bath bomb. 

9. As a kid, what was one crazy present you wished for but never received? 

I don't think there was anything, maybe I'm just super spoilt? I'm sure there was probably something I asked for that was crazy expensive. 

I think I might of asked for a mobile phone when I was about 9 which was a year before I actually had one. 

10. What's the best part of Christmas for you? 

The Christmassy feeling and the excitement because it genuinely is the best time of the year. Everyone is so excited and happy and it's just something great to look forward to. 

It's magical and I love the fact that so many people in the world are celebrating the same thing at the same time. 

You also get to see friends and family that you might only see once a year and it's basically an excuse to catch up and bring everyone together. 

You also get to eat a tonne of food and no-one can judge you because hey, guess what!? It's Christmas! Hehe ;)

Thank you so much to Poppy for tagging me and i tag everyone who is reading this to do it too!

October/November Favourites and Update

Sorry I didn't manage to do an October favourites so thought I'd combine the last two months together. October was a pretty rubbish month for me, hence why I didn't write a favourites. I have been struggling with M.E, anxiety, not being able to sleep etc and didn't manage to get things done like in September. Some days in October were quite frankly awful and some of the worst days I've ever experienced. I felt partially bad around Halloween and November didn't start much better. As I said my anxiety has been really bad and I've been waking up in the night having panic attacks and struggling to sleep and eat because I am so anxious. It's so hard to know what to do when you've tried everything you can think of and you're exhausted and in pain. M.E and anxiety do not mix. I think I know the reason for my anxiety so I know I will be okay soon but it is still an awful thing to have to go through. 

November has been about the same with lots of panic attacks and struggling to sleep. At the end of the month I had a lot of really bad pain too which I struggled to deal with. If anyone has any tips on coping with pain, let me know. 

One thing that has been helping me is an app called BeatPanic. You do have to pay 69p for it but it honestly works really well when you're having a panic attack and the best way to describe it is as a set of flash cards that appear one after one on the screen with either things to do to help you calm down i.e. Repeating a calming word to yourself or taking deep breaths or reminding you that you are safe and that anxiety cannot hurt you. I'd definitely recommend it if you struggle with anxiety or panic attacks and would be great to use in public because no one would know what you were doing, they'd just think you were looking at your phone - which you are! I've also been using other meditation apps. 

I don't know if this goes alongside how bad I've been feeling but my skin has never ever been this dry. There was a point at the beginning of the month where it was flaking off and crumbling in my hands and the only thing I've found to help that is exfoliating my skin with a physical face scrub and applying argon oil. I've used Argon Oil for a long time in my hair but have never really had the need to use it on my face before now. I've since tried going back to my regular face serum but nothing is cutting it at the moment. 

I've been enjoying reading and have read the whole Confessions of a Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella which I tried to read a few years ago but found super boring. Tried it again and loved it. Couldn't get enough. Also been loving christmas books by Carole Matthews - The Christmas Party and Calling Mrs Christmas. 

I've been out a few times over the past two months but not as much as usual or as I would like. I have been shopping a couple of times but felt quite ill during both times and had to sit down/go back to the car. I've been out for lunch a couple of times too and have been going for a little stroll down our road with my mum every evening which I am really proud of. 

I've managed to write all my Christmas cards but am struggling to get things done in time for Christmas and I'm feeling anxious that I won't be well enough to enjoy it as much as I would like. I forgot how exhausting small things like writing cards can be when you feeling extra poorly. 

Goals for December are:

- Put Christmas Decorations Up

-Bake something 

-Wrap and send presents 

-Go shopping at least once and get eyebrows done before Christmas 

-Get a festive drink from both Starbucks and Costa 

-Enjoy Christmas 

Chloe xxx 

P.S sorry if this is badly written, I didn't want to not post but pain/brain fog are not on my side today. 

Positivity

It's sometimes hard to stay positive especially when being a spoonie means there is so much you can't do. Something I like to do when I feel down is to go onto Pinterest and either look at some of my favourite quotes and sayings or to try and find some new ones. 

Here are a few of my favourites, I hope they brighten your day and bring you happiness and positivity. 

Chloe xx 

Autumn Nail Polish Picks 2014

Today I'm going to share with you my top autumn nail polish picks. In the autumn I like to wear quite dark colours on my nails with a few grey-iege nudes and greens thrown in. 

Essie Penny Talk

I love rose gold in the autumn, it's warm and metallic and totally appropriate for this time of year.

MUA Khaki Green

MUA have since changed their packaging but I love this polish. It's a classic khaki green which is great for if you want something autumnal but not too dark. 

Essie Merino Cool 

This polish is fairly new to me and I have to say I think i may love it even more than my beloved Barry M Mushroom. It's a grey-iege nude but it's warm with slight purple undertones. I also think it looks really chic and grown-up. 

Avon Tweed

This polish is a very very very dark red that looks almost black/brown in some lights. It's more interesting than just plain black and I think is slightly mysterious too. Perfect for if you're feeling in a vampy mood. 

Essie Bahama Mama

Another favourite, this is a classic berry red-wine shade and it's such a gorgeous colour! I have already worn it multiple times this season and can see myself wearing it again which is very rare for me! 

Rimmel 60 Seconds in Pompous

I hate the name of this polish but I love the colour. I love dark purple nail polish and Barry M do another great one called Vivid Purple. It's not too dark so you can still tell it is a colour and I think shades like this never go out of style or clash with anything. 

Butter London Wallis

I can understand that a lot of people hate this polish because it's not the prettiest but I quite like those ugly-pretty shades. This is such a unique colour and I don't think I've ever seen anything similar from any other brands. 

Avon Cherry Jubilee 

This polish is quite similar to Bahama Mama but much more of a true red shade. This colour never goes out of fashion for autumn and I love wearing it on my toes as well as my fingers. I also like to wear a similar shade on my lips. I love matching lips and nails! 

China Glaze Agro

An olive-y green looks great at this time of year. It's not dark but not bright either and I love the shimmer in this polish. 

What are your favourite nail polishes for autumn? Are there any you think I should try? 

The Unpredictable Side of M.E

M.E is a fluctuating illness and aside from suffering from payback after activity, good days and bad days tend to come as they please. 

It's hard to plan ahead because you never know how you will be but at the same time, you have to plan ahead so that you can rest beforehand. Even then, resting before an activity doesn't guarantee you'll be well enough to do it. This often leads to suffers having to cancel plans last minute or stop what they are doing to rest, sit down or take time out.

As an ME sufferer I think something that really helps is having an understanding family and friends. If the people around you understand that you could suddenly feel very ill, it can help to make you feel more relaxed and comfortable. It's always good to have a plan B incase you are not well enough to do the original activity. 

It is important to remember that if you are around an ME sufferer who has to sit down or stop an activity that it is not their fault and that they cannot predict or control this. It is important for family and friends to be able to accept changes in plans and be flexible. 

I think I can speak for all sufferers when I say that the last thing we want is to have to change or plans because of how we are feeling. 

It's scary to think that you could feel really ill when you are out or if you are alone and that you don't know how you are going to feel in a few minutes, hours, days, weeks etc. 

One minute I can be fine (well not fine but okay) then the next I feel awful. 

I'm not talking about payback because feeling bad after doing something is expected and means that you have had fun rather than feeling rubbish for no reason. Payback is expected but you can't see all bad spells coming which is why suffers can find it hard to hold down a job or have a regular college/school/uni attendance. Pacing obviously helps but it cannot guarantee than you won't feel ill for no reason. 

How do you cope with the unpredictable side of M.E? Is there anything you like to have to hand for when a bad spell strikes?