What I have loved this week! Week 33. #FridayFavourites

Happy Friday! I hope you've had a good week. I have had a quiet week but it has been a good one with lots of nice things happening and plans being made. I am of course linking up with Erika and Andrea to share all the things that I have loved this week.

Being over the cold!

I am back to being as fit as a fiddle! Hooray! We are all over the cold that Stu brought home from work and it feels good to be well again and have all my energy back. I have got back on top of the housework, enjoyed being back in the kitchen cooking and have been out and about more this week. I think being stuck inside made me feel worse than I actually was.

Decorating the bathroom!

The bathroom has been getting some attention this week with Stu cracking on with the decorating. I have been letting him just get on with it and not interfering because he has a plan. So far, he has covered half of the wood on the walls with vinyl roll. It looks like wood but is washable, which is going to be much better for a bathroom. He has also put the waterproof wall panels up around the shower and has been using all the filler and sealant stuff to make sure everything is properly watertight. It sounds simple but of course nothing in our house is ever as straightforward as it should be. Our walls aren't straight. It would have been so much easier if Stu could have just put the panels up and been done with them, he's had to measure, cut and adjust everything to fit our slightly wonky walls. It's looking really good so far and I will share photos soon.

Exciting news!

I have some exciting news that I can't share yet! I'm not pregnant, Ellie doesn't have a job and Becky hasn't moved out or has a place to rent. lol I know it's very annoying when someone writes something like this on their blog but I wanted to write a little note here because when everything does happen and I can finally share it, I will be able to look back at this post and say this was the week when everything started. Without being dramatic, this little thing could be life changing for my family.

2 more interviews!

Ellie has two more job interviews lined up! I keep saying it but I really am so proud of my girl. She has probably applied for around 50 jobs in the last month and has heard back from at least half of them but got the dreaded "we've had an overwhelming response to this vacancy and have decided to progress with other applicants" message. Ugh! It is frustrating because she's doing everything right but people live closer to the workplace, have more experience or are just a better fit. I keep telling her that this is probably one of the worst times of the year to be applying, because everyone who has left school, college and university is also looking for work but she hasn't given up and that makes me so proud. I'm now hoping one of these interviews turns into a job offer because she deserves that chance.

Parcels being delivered!

All the girls birthday presents that I ordered have arrived. I am not going overboard with presents this year because they have everything they need. If they want something these days, they tend to just buy it themselves and when I've asked what they want for their birthdays, the answer has mostly been I don't know. So I have picked a few things for them to open on their birthdays and then we are going to have a day out together.

The solar eclipse!

We saw the solar eclipse here in North Lincolnshire and we were not prepared for it. I hadn't even thought about needing special glasses to watch it, then Stu came up with the idea of using the welders' masks we had in the garage and it worked. It was safe. I checked online and the glass in it was strong enough so our eyes weren't damaged. It was quite strange watching the moon move across the sun and apparently 90% of the sun was covered where we were and it did get darker but not as much as I expected. The last solar eclipse back in 1999. I was on the bus on the way to work and completely missed it. I'm glad I got to see it properly this time.

What have you loved this week?

What I listened to in July!

At the start of the year, I started listening to audiobooks. I always wanted to be a reader but couldn't/wouldn't make the time, so audiobooks were a way around it. I could be busy doing something while still listening to a book. Anyway, I thought I would share what I have been listening to. All of my audiobooks come from my local library through the app BorrowBox. I know lots of what I listen to might be considered old but they are all new to me!

This is what I listened to in July:

You Sent Me a Letter by Lucy Dawson!

At 2 a.m. on the morning of her fortieth birthday, Sophie wakes to find an intruder in her bedroom. The stranger hands Sophie a letter and issues a threat: open the letter at her party that evening, in front of family and friends, at exactly 8 p.m., or those she loves will be in grave danger. What can the letter possibly contain? This will be no ordinary party; Sophie is not the only person keeping a secret about the evening ahead. When the clock strikes eight, the course of several people's lives will be altered forever.

This had psychological, thriller, romance, comedy and mystery all rolled into one! I was hooked from the first chapter because I immediately wanted to know what was in the letter. I did enjoy listening to this and it kept me wanting to find out what happened but I didn’t find it quite as thrilling as I expected it to be. The plot was quite basic and I felt like I could see where the story was heading fairly early on. I had a theory about who was behind the letter and I was right for the first time ever! Even though I had worked out who sent the letter, I still wanted to keep listening because I wanted to know how everything would play out. I think this would be a good book if you’re just getting into psychological thrillers because it wasn’t too complicated and was easy listen to.

The Saturday Night Sauvignon Sisterhood by Gill Sims!

Claire’s family has gone nuclear. Her precious moppets keep calling Childline when she feeds them broccoli, and her darling husband is having an affair with her best friend. The question isn’t whether she needs a glass of wine, but is there one big enough? Enter the Sauvignon Sisterhood, a new set of friends brought together by a shared love of liquid therapy. Together they might just be able to convince Claire that, like a good bottle of red, life really can get better with age. Or at least there’s more to it than the joy of an M&S non-iron school uniform.

This was brilliant and had me laughing out loud several times. There were so many moments where I found myself thinking Yes, I can totally imagine someone saying that!” It had that very British humour that just works. Claire’s situation is obviously awful and there are some really difficult subjects covered, including betrayal, grief, loneliness and dealing with huge life changes but the humour always stood out above everything else. I loved the idea of the Sauvignon Sisterhood and the friendships that formed between these women. It was a lovely reminder that friendships don’t always happen when you’re young. I think this is one of those books that wouldn’t translate as well to other countries because so much of the humour is very British. The references, the sarcasm and even some of the situations are things that I think many UK readers will instantly understand.

Just Got Real by Jane Fallon!

He's not who he says he is. Then again, neither is she. When Joni finds Ant via a dating app, neither is entirely honest about who they are. But when they meet in real life, they fall for each other. Soon they are a happy, steady item. Until Joni discovers Ant is still on the app, still dating other women. Having secret rivals devastates Joni. So she decides to take revenge. But not on them. Can she turn these rivals into allies to get back at the real enemy, Ant?

I went into this expecting a fun revenge story and that is exactly what it was! I loved hearing the women come up with their plans and seeing Ant get what he deserved. hehehe One of my favourite things about this book was that the characters were a bit older and have already lived a bit of life instead of it focusing on people in their 20s. I loved the friendship side of the story just as much as the revenge. The only downside for me was that it was just too long. I did really enjoy the story but it seemed to drag at the end.

The Flower Girls by Alice Clark-Platts!

The Flower Girls. Laurel and Primrose. One convicted of murder, the other given a new identity. Now, nineteen years later, another child has gone missing. And the Flower Girls are about to hit the headlines all over again.

This is a tense, chilling story and a lot darker than the rest of the books that I read this month. The murder of the two year old girl really made me think it was a lot like what happened to James Bulger which is still horrifying all these years later. I enjoyed hearing the story from different characters and different sides to each bit of the story with different emotions being shown. It discusses the debate between being born evil or learning it and explores the age of criminal responsibility. It doesn't go into gory details about the 1997 murder, it lets you fill in the blanks for yourself, which in a way is worse. The ending, the last couple of chapters were shocking, I did not see that ending coming! 

What have you been reading or listening to lately?

The Wednesday Hodgepodge #68

I hope you are all having a good week. It's Wednesday, which means it's time to join in with the Wednesday Hodgepodge with Joyce who blogs at From This Side of the Pond! Each week there are 6 questions, we answer and then link up. Simple!

1. I saw a meme on Instagram that went like this-'The movie Dirty Dancing came out in 1987 and was set in 1963, so if remade in 2026 it would be set in 2002. Now I need a little lie down in a dark room for a while." Time is crazy isn't it? So...what were you up to in the year 2002?

2002 was a massive year for me and I spent most of it pregnant! It was the year I became a mother! Becky, my eldest was born in September! The last six weeks of my pregnancy were terrible. I suffered from sciatica and my feet and legs swelled up really badly, so I spent a lot of time sitting in bed. I went for a routine check-up with my midwife on the Thursday before Becky's due date the following Wednesday. The midwife was a bit concerned that Becky's heartbeat was too fast and also said she might be breech. By the time I got to the hospital for a scan, her heartbeat was fine but yes, she was breech. The doctors said I needed a c-section and Becky was born a day early! It all seemed rushed and crazy but all was good and I settled into motherhood!

2. "Me? I'm scared of everything..." What's something that scares you that you'd like to try anyway?

The first thing that came to mind was skydiving! You really can't get much scarier than that. Just the thought of even going up in a tiny plane terrifies me, so throwing myself out of the plane is just a whole other level of terrifying. That said, I know that the adrenaline rush afterwards would be completely unreal. I know I'd need someone with me the whole time encouraging me, holding my hand, telling me that the plane isn't going to crash and I am not going to die but how cool would it be to be able to say that I had jumped out of a plane!

3. Watermelon-yay or nay? Which melon is your favorite-watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew. Of the watermelon food/beverages listed which would you say yes to... watermelon salsa ~ watermelon feta salad ~ watermelon sorbet ~ a watermelon Jolly Rancher ~ a watermelon margarita.

I’m not a big fan of watermelon, it's one of those fruits that I could take or leave. I don’t dislike it but it’s never something I would see in the shops and I think I need to buy it. I haven’t tried any of the things on the list but Jolly Ranchers are a blast from the past! They were a big thing when I was at school but I don't think you can get them over here anymore. I might have tried a watermelon one without realising. If I had to pick one, I think I’d go for the watermelon margarita. I’m always willing to give something a try, especially if it comes with a little bit of alcohol!

My favourite melon is honeydew! When my girls were little, we used to go through two or three a week, especially in the summer because we all loved them so much and they were a healthy snack. They never lasted long in our house! It’s been ages since I last bought one and I hadn’t really thought about it until answering this question. Now I’m sitting here thinking about how nice a big piece of cold, juicy honeydew melon would be. I think I might have to pop one on the shopping list this week.

4. August 12th is National Middle Child Day. Are you a middle child? If not, where do you fall in the birth order in your family of origin? Do you think this has influenced your personality? Elaborate.

I’m the eldest, with a younger brother. Looking back, I do think that has shaped my personality. My parents were definitely stricter with me growing up. I was their first, so they were just figuring it all out as they went, which meant more rules and a lot more worrying. I remember having to be in at 7pm at a certain age while my brother got much more leeway and was allowed out later when he hit that age. At the time, I thought it was the most unfair thing in the world but now that I'm a parent myself I totally get it and I can admit I was way more relaxed with my youngest compared to my eldest too. Being the eldest also came with more responsibility. I had chores and expectations before my brother did and I was always the one who was supposed to set a good example. My brother and I spent a massive chunk of our childhood arguing over literally anything and everything but at the same time, I was protective of him. I could boss him around all day long but if anyone else dared to upset him they had me to answer to!

I think all of that just made me more independent and someone who takes charge. I'm so used to having things expected of me that I tend to just step up and handle responsibility rather than waiting around for someone else to do it and I can also be a bit bossy which I'm sure my brother would be very happy to say!

5. Would you rather talk to everyone at a crowded party for a short time, or have a significant conversation with two people? Explain.

I’ve been blogging for years and I connect with so many people online but in real life I’m not really a people person. I have a few close friends and I’m very happy chatting away to people I know but put me in a room full of people I hardly know and tell me to make small talk and I’d probably want to hide in a corner! I think I’d rather have a really good conversation with two friends than spend a whole evening going around a crowded party trying to make small talk with twenty different people.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

I am looking forward to the end of this week. It's Stu's birthday and as much as we don't have anything planned, we have lots of things that we might do and we're going to decide on the day. He has a few days off work and we are going to make the most of that time with maybe a day out.

Share Our Lives - Favourite current music!

It's that time of the month again to share some of my life and join in with the other Share Our Lives bloggers. This month the prompt is: Favourite current music.

I’ve realised something about myself over the years. I am not a music person in the way other people are music people. I don’t go hunting for new releases and I can’t tell you what’s number one in the charts unless the girls are playing it loudly but music still plays a big part in my life.

I always say I’m not into new music, which is mostly true. I do technically know current music thanks to TikTok but only the good bit, the catchy 30 seconds that everyone dances to or mouths at the camera. Most of the time I don't know who sings it or what the song is even called.

When I’m cleaning, cooking or doing anything around the house, music is happening and when it goes on it’s always the same stuff. My girls like to remind me that my music is old. My happy place is cheesy 90s pop. Proper sing it like you mean it pop, the kind of songs that come on and make you feel happy! Then there’s the rock side of my music taste, which feels very serious compared to pop but still ends up being equally dramatic. Classic rock is what I love. Bon Jovi is basically a household staple. Guns N’ Roses also make regular appearances, especially when I’m feeling a bit grumpy or need motivation and then there’s Meat Loaf. He was an absolute legend! I do dip into rock from the early 2000's like My Chemical Romance, Green Day and Limp Bizkit. A while ago, my youngest said she had found this great group but I probably wouldn't like them because of their bad language. She played me a Limp Bizkit song that I sang along to. That was a proud parenting moment for me which really shouldn't have been but the look on her face was priceless.

The songs from musicals have a big place in my heart too. You have to sing them loudly and I usually do when I am in the kitchen making tea. My family find it hilarious. I'll be halfway through cooking and suddenly realise I've got an audience watching me put on my own little performance. Then there are the big power ballads. If I've got a ton of housework to get through, I'll usually be listening to Celine Dion or Whitney Houston singing and dancing along. Folding clothes, mopping floors and hoovering is much more fun with good music.

I'm quite happy listening to the music I've always loved and I probably always will be. I think I always go back to the same music because it's comfortable and familiar. So many of the songs remind me of different times in my life, I don't feel like I have to keep up with every new artist or know what's in the charts.

What's your favourite music at the moment?

I am linking up with:

Adrienne from Mom Life with Adrienne.

Dara from Not In Jersey.

Jen from Show me & Sweet tea.

Joanne from Slices of Life.