My birthday haul

I haven't done a 'What I had for my birthday/Christmas' post for a few years... probably not since the crushing stress of planning a wedding. Yes, it really is that bad, but the end result is totally worth it. I thought it was time to rectify this delay as I received so many lovely presents for my 29th birthday a few days ago.

I asked my parents for money for my birthday this year so that I could spend it on a Pandora bracelet which I've been coveting for a long time. I specifically booked a day off work last Friday so that I could go into town to buy my new bracelet. I love it! I bought the bracelet and the 'B' charm with my birthday money from my parents and my grandmother, then Neil bought me another charm over the weekend as a late birthday present. I think the Pandora shop might become an expensive habit over the next few months!

As well as my Pandora bracelet, I also had more jewellery for my birthday... a Jon Richard necklace and bracelet from Neil and a beautiful homemade bracelet from Sarah, my lovely colleague. I've already worn all these unique pieces in the last few days and they'll definitely be coming on holiday with me in September. 

A girl can never have enough toiletries (just ask my overflowing bathroom toiletry rack), and I had more than my fair share for my birthday from my in laws, Sian and Amy. I'm very excited about using the Body Shop bath jelly as I'm currently using the Frosted Cranberry shower gel which I had from Sian for Christmas, and it smells amazing. The Ted Baker goodies from Sian also smell really lovely... everything made by Ted Baker seems to smell divine. Last but not least, I can't wait to try out my in-shower gradual tanning lotion from my in laws. I'm ridiculously pale/transparent at the moment so it's a very welcome solution! 

No birthday would be complete without a few entertainment presents. I have a well populated Amazon wishlist which influenced certain purchases from Neil and my sister... Big Hero 6 and The Theory of Everything are two of the best films I've seen in the cinema this year. I also loved Delivery Man last year, and who doesn't (secretly) love Taylor Swift? Shake it off! 

I've never ever bought a pair of sunglasses worth more than £5, so I was very excited when Neil's parents bought me this lovely pair for my birthday. They definitely look more classy than my Primark specials! Another definite item for my holiday list. 

It definitely wouldn't be a real birthday without some new Disney pyjamas. Neil is well aware of this as he started the Disney pyjamas tradition so he now has to continue with it until the end of time. This resulted in some lovely new summer pyjamas with Eeyore emblazoned all over them... how cute are these?! 

Neil also bought a lovely Animal hoodie for my birthday as he knows I'm partial to that kind of thing. He's a good one! 

I've been banging on about discovering the amazing Limoncello Fever since our recent holiday to Amalfi so it's no surprise that I received the two key ingredients for my birthday from Edwina and my in laws. I've had two Limoncello Fevers today and I can confirm that they're delicious (and quite potent) in this country too. 

Neil's parents' pets are also very generous when it comes to my birthday and they bought me some lovely candles this year. They're very clever!

Although I managed to wait until my birthday to open most of my presents, I actually opened Sarah's presents two days early this year. I had a very stressful day on Tuesday and I'd arranged to meet Sarah at the cinema in the evening. She had my birthday presents with her, and I'm sure you'd agree that it would have been very rude not to open them in front of her. I'll be honest with you here... the Tangfastics are nearly all gone already. However, I haven't tried the hot chocolate sachets, marshmallows or the mug yet so I'm looking forward to those! I really love the inscription on the mug: 'Friends are like stars, you don't always see them  but you know they are there.'

As well as my bottle of Prosecco, Edwina bought some lovely flowers for my birthday which brightened up the office on Thursday. They're also doing a great job of brightening up my kitchen windowsill with their yellows, pinks, purples and greens. 

Another purchase from my Amazon wish list... my sister and my nephews bought me a heat guard for my precious GHD straighteners which will be very useful when I go on holiday. I also had some pretty Cath Kidston earrings from Amy which I can't wait to try out. 

Nicola bought me a New Look gift card for my birthday so I merrily spent it in town the following day. Here's what I spent it on... look at these beautiful colours! 

Last but not least, who doesn't love having chocolate for their birthday? If you don't love having chocolate for your birthday, I don't think we can be friends. Thanks, Neil :) 

So there's my birthday haul for this year... I've been very lucky! Have you written any haul posts lately? I'd love to read them if so, I'm very nosey when it comes to other people's gifts! 

My new sunglasses... thanks, Poundland!

Yes, you read the title correctly... I recently bought some sunglasses from Poundland. Before you judge and wonder what on earth possessed me, look how pretty they are!

Aren't they beautiful?! I've been looking for mint sunglasses for months so I was very excited when I stumbled across these in Ebbw Vale Festival Park last weekend. They're a lovely bright mint colour with white polka dots, and they cost £1! I'd have hoped you'd already grasped the price from the title, but I thought I'd emphasise it just in case. Coincidentally, this pair of sunglasses is a perfect match for the mint vest top I bought in H&M a few weeks ago.

The sunglasses do look quite small and could initially be mistaken for children's sunglasses... however, they fit me perfectly and I definitely don't have a particularly small head, so I'm assuming they are supposed to be for adults!

It was lovely and sunny the day after I bought these so I was able to wear them the very next day. I kept looking at my reflection in the car mirror and grinning... I think Neil thought I'd lost my mind. 

Have you ever bought sunglasses from Poundland? I think I might be in the minority here! 

Summer bargains

You all probably know by now that I'm off to Florida in September. I've lost weight and gone down a clothes size or two since I went last April, so I needed to buy a brand new holiday wardrobe ready for this year's trip. I love it when I have an actual legitimate excuse to go shopping. especially if it's because most of my clothes are too big for me!

I've been purchasing items steadily since the beginning of the year rather than buying them all at once just before going away. This means I get to spread the expense between a few pay packets and I can also keep an eye out for spontaneous bargains. I've trawled a lot of internet sites and charity shops... I love a bargain.

I think I've nearly finished shopping for holiday clothes now, and I've managed to do it pretty cheaply considering I had to re-buy nearly everything. I thought I'd share some of my favourite new summer clothes with you in this post, and I've provided links to the items where I can and where the items are still available. Enjoy!

Dresses

£14 from Primark

£13 from New Look

£5 from Primark

Playsuits

See previous blog post for details

£23.60 in the Debenhams sale. See my Duffy the Disney Bear 

blog post if you want to know why I'm holding a bear!

Shorts

Absolute bargain from Play at £6.99 each. I'd have paid over £30 

if I'd have bought these from a proper surf shop!

Skirts

£3 from a charity shop, originally from New Look

Vests

£3 each from Peacocks. These are a lovely fit, even if they do look creased!

Shoes

Trainers - £6.99 from Primark

White flip flops - £4 from Tesco

Blue flip flops - £3 from Tesco

Swimwear

In the sale in Debenhams. Got to love Mantaray!

Accessories

Minnie Mouse sunglasses case - £3.75 in the Disney Store sale

Sunglasses - £4 in a random shop in Cardiff's Queen's Arcade

Black bag - £2 in a charity shop

White bag - £5 from Tesco

Spread over seven months, I've managed to buy a new holiday wardrobe without breaking the bank. I've even managed to wear some of these clothes in this country in the last few weeks as it's been so hot. Bonus! 

Has anyone else been shopping for summer clothes? Any last minute bargain ideas for me?

Date day :)

I love date days. I've been with my boyfriend for nearly two years and I'm a firm believer in going on frequent dates, however long you've been together for. We hadn't spent much quality time together recently due to our busy lives, so we scheduled in a date day for Easter Sunday.

All ready and smiley!

Date days always seem so much more appealing when the weather is nice. It was a bit cold which meant it was the perfect weather to wear my Ugg boots, but sunny enough for my new sunglasses from New York!

Scarf and sunglasses... that works, right?

First of all, we took a trip to Wellfield Road to the brand new Joe's Ice Cream parlour. We're big fans of Joe's and usually drive all the way to Swansea for it, so it's pretty exciting that the real thing is now being sold in Cardiff. For those of you who have never tasted Joe's Ice Cream, you really need to. As their slogan rightly states, everything else is just ice cream!

It might sound dull, but you can't beat their vanilla ice cream!

After enjoying our ice cream in the flashy new parlour, we drove into town and parked by the museum. I wish every Sunday was like Easter Sunday... it was blissfully quiet. Not many of the shops were open, but it was still nice to have a wander without being accosted by various people and/or random novelty acts every five minutes.

After buying some Haribo Jelly Babies (a cinema essential), we went to see the 3:15pm showing of The Croods in Cineworld. We're big fans of childish films, and this one was no exception. I won't write a review of it here, but it was a lovely film with some very funny moments.

We then went for a sneaky hot chocolate in Caffe Nero, then went back to the cinema to watch Trance at 6:30pm. We have Cineworld Unlimited cards, so it makes sense to see as many films as we can when we have the opportunity. It was a pretty traumatising film, but very clever. However, I did think of numerous plot holes after having some time to piece it all together. I won't mention them on here in case any of you decide to see it. I would definitely recommend it, despite the apparent plot holes, and I'd be very interested in hearing other people's views on it. Thankfully I was able to anticipate the overly gory bits and closed my eyes in time... I suggest that you do the same if you're a bit squeamish.

Our double cinema date had worked up an appetite, so we went to Pizza Express in St Davids 2 for our Easter meal. Pizza Express never disappoints! I had the Pollo ad Astra romana pizza, which was deliciously scrumptious. Garlic oil is just amazing.

Feeling very full, we drove back to my flat to watch some Outnumbered. This has to be one of my favourite sitcoms, ever.

Perfect date day :)