Sunday Snippets - 8th January 2017

This week it’s been back to reality with a bit of a bump. I had to go into hospital for an operation on Friday, which has thrown my plans up in the air quite a bit. So I apologise in advance if blog content is a bit all over the place for the next few weeks (and if this post doesn’t make any sense at all!) as it’s going to take me a while to recover. I’m also meant to be back at Uni next week, and have work experience the week after, but I think I’m just going to have to play it by ear and listen to my body (which, believe me, is easier said than done when your brain wants you to do ‘normal’ person stuff but your body doesn’t quite work like that!)

I needed a good lie-in last Sunday morning after staying up so late on New Year’s Eve. My morning was pretty lazy really, just sorting out my medication for the week ahead, watching TV and organising a few photos. We had our roast at lunchtime, as Rosiie wasn’t working, and David and Emma (my brother and sister-in-law) came over, which was nice. I chatted to them for a bit after lunch and then spent some time writing and uploading a double Sunday Snippets post. I spent the rest of the afternoon curled up in front of the fire watching YouTube videos and opening some of my Christmas presents from friends. I also started planning a Happiness Project, inspired by Gretchen Rubin, which I’d like to try and do this year.

I had a pretty boring day on Monday, but managed to get some things done, which is always good. I got up quite late, so a lot of the morning had already gone – oops! I spent most of the day on the sofa with my laptop doing a piece of Uni work. I knew it was going to take me a while, as I had to collate lots of emails together before I could write my article, but it seemed to take a lot longer than I’d hoped it would. I did watch a bit of TV as well though, which probably didn’t help! I also read through my sister’s essay for college. I was hoping to open the rest of my Christmas presents from friends, but just ran out of time so planned to hopefully do them the following day. I decided to treat myself to a gingerbread treat in the afternoon – these adorable mini cupcakes are from Waitrose and the tea from Bluebird Tea Co is seriously amazing. Especially in my wintery mug from Jilly Jilly Design.

I got up earlier than I’d planned on Tuesday morning, but unfortunately had a pounding headache. I find if I wake up with a headache like that, then it lasts all day, so I didn’t expect to have a very productive day. But actually I did pretty well. I opened the rest of my Christmas presents from my lovely friends, who spoilt me rotten this year. I then spent a while filming my ‘What I got for Christmas’ video. After I’d finished filming, I tidied away a few of my presents. I then spent the rest of the afternoon editing my video and uploading it onto my YouTube channel. It’s got to be the first time I’ve ever managed to film, edit and upload a video all in the same day! I felt pretty shattered by the end of it though and still had my headache, so snuggled on the sofa with a cup of tea in my new Disney Cheshire Cat mug. These English Tea Shop Christmas teas were from my friend Emma, and I’m so excited to try them all!

On Wednesday I had a fairly quiet morning watching This Morning and doing a few odd jobs. My Dad then took me over to Frimley Park Hospital for my pre-op appointment. I saw a nurse first (who recognised me from other pre-op’s) who went through my medication list and various other checks, and then saw another lady (who also recognised me!) to have a load of blood taken. She managed to get it first time, which is unusual for my rubbish veins! I didn’t feel brilliant when I got home, so snuggled under a blanket and watched a programme I’d recorded over Christmas. I spent the rest of the afternoon doing Uni work followed by some paperwork I’d been meaning to sort out since before Christmas. I popped to Waitrose with my Mum, as I needed a couple of essentials. I’ve started feeling very low over the last week – January blues are definitely starting to sink in. In the evening I couldn’t find Freddie anywhere, so went to look for him upstairs (where he’s not meant to be) and found him sitting on the landing in front of the radiator. He refused to come when I called him, and when I went to pick him up he just rolled over and waited for me to rub his tummy. He’s always good at making me laugh.

Thursday was a fairly quiet one, which was just what I needed before my operation on Friday. I did a bit of blog related work on my computer after I was up and dressed. Then I had a reflexology session, which was lovely and relaxing and I got to use my new cat eye mask from the Velvet Ghost Primark range. I was definitely dropping off towards the end! After lunch, I took my little Christmas tree and the rest of my decorations down. Everything looks so bare and dark now. For the rest of the afternoon I watched Friends and wrote a few thank you letters. I was feeling quite nervous about my operation, so tried to keep myself distracted during the evening.

I had to be up very early on Friday so I could have some breakfast before 7am, which wasn’t much fun. I had a pretty quiet morning watching TV and doing some bits on my laptop. My Dad took me over to Frimley Park Hospital and dropped me off in the Day Surgery Unit. After a while I was taken to my bed, got into my gown and was admitted. The Urologist came round to see me, followed by the anaesthetist, who took one look at my file and said, “Right, I think we’ll have to start from the beginning with you!” I was fourth on the list, so had to wait around for a while, which meant I was able to finish my book and doze a bit. I was taken down to theatre around 4pm, feeling quite nervous, but the staff were all lovely and chatted to me to put me at ease. Next thing I remember was waking up in recovery feeling very sore and groggy, as well as feeling boiling hot. I had a temperature and it took me a long time to come round from the anaesthetic and get my observations stable. But once they’d calmed down, they took me back to the ward to recover a bit more. They’d put a catheter back in until things settled down. The lady looking after me on the ward said they’d have to bring me back in to remove it, but then the urology nurse came over and told her I was an expert with catheters and could do it myself! So I’ll keep it in until the pain dies down a bit. They weren’t sure about letting me home, as I was still very wobbly and my temperature wasn’t great, but thankfully I managed to persuade them, as I just wanted to be in my own bed. My Dad brought me home at about 9pm and my Mum helped me get into my pyjamas. I then cuddled my Dad on the sofa for a while before going to bed.

I didn’t have a great night on Friday night – pain kept waking me up and I was feeling very anxious and tearful, which always seems to happen after I’ve had an operation. I woke up very late on Saturday morning still feeling very sore, dizzy and sick. I managed to have a bit of breakfast and then my Mum helped me to get myself dressed. I then curled up on the sofa and fell asleep. My Dad woke me up at 3pm so I could try and get a Fortisip down me, as I’m really struggling to eat, more so than usual. I spent the rest of the afternoon snuggled under a blanket with Freddie watching TV.

You can check out my YouTube channel here, where I have recently uploaded a few new videos (and hope to continue doing!)

I’m also trying to post on Snapchat a bit more, so if you fancy following me, my username is Jennycole44.

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What have you been up to this week? I always enjoy hearing about your news and adventures!

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Sunday Snippets - 4th September 2016

How is it September already?! This year is just flying past! I can't believe it's only a month until my birthday! It’s really starting to feel more autumnal now, with chilly, darker mornings and misty days. I’ve actually started feeling a little bit Christmassy (I know, a little early!) and have enjoyed curling up on the sofa with a hot cup of tea. Saying that, I’ve seen the forecast for next week and it looks like it’s going to heat up again! I always find it hard to know how to dress at this time of year. One minute I’m shivering, then the next I’m boiling hot! I am looking forward to autumn fashion though – snuggling up in cosy jumpers, bobble hats and boots.

Last Sunday my Dad asked if I wanted to go to church with him and my Mum in the morning, but I thought sitting through a service would be hard with my pain as it was, so I declined. I didn’t sleep that well on Saturday night, so it was probably good that I said no so I could have a lie in. I had a fairly quiet morning pottering around and doing my medications for the week ahead. I also managed to do some blogging and watched a bit of TV. In the afternoon I decided to try and chill out as much as I could. Despicable Me was on the TV, so I popped that on and sorted through a load of old magazines. I’m one of those people who like to cut up old magazines to use for crafts, but my pile was getting a bit crazy! Thankfully I managed to get through the whole lot, which was a job well done. I felt absolutely exhausted though, which seems to be an everyday occurrence these days. I had a Lush bath in the evening to try and relax, which was nice.

As I mentioned in the previous couple of week’s Sunday Snippets, in August I was joining in with the Crown and Glory Glitterati 2^nd birthday celebrations, which included a photo challenge on Instagram! If you want to see everyone else’s, simply search the hashtag #CGGlitteratiTurns2. Day 28 is ‘Everyday’ – I find the majority of pieces can be worn as an everyday piece, but I find hairbands like this one particularly easy to throw on.

I woke up on Monday morning with a really awful pain in my head and neck area. I’m guessing it was an after effect of the injections, but it doesn’t make it any easier to deal with. I had hoped to get a lot done in the morning, but it took me a long time to get round to doing anything. I did manage to get one blog post written though, despite being in tears because of the pain. On Sunday one of our neighbours brought round a huge punnet of blackberries she’d picked, so on Monday afternoon I somehow managed to make a blackberry and apple crumble. I was actually quite pleased with myself, as I’m not the best at cooking! But it was probably a mistake, as my pain was even worse afterwards.

Day 29 of the August Crown and Glory photo challenge is ‘Advice’ – I’m terrible at giving (or following!) advice, but I thought this quote, beautifully drawn by Jilly Jilly was pretty good. It’s one of my favourites – a good Disney quote!

I had a fairly quiet morning on Tuesday doing some YouTube video editing and watching TV. Around lunchtime I rested on the sofa for a while and caught up on a few emails. Then my Dad drove me to the hospital for my appointment with my local gastroenterologist. When we got there they said that my actual consultant wasn’t there and that the wait to see the person covering her was over an hour, so I was a bit worried that it was going to be a waste of time. But after about 15 minutes I was called through to see a different consultant who had finished his clinic and came down to help out. He was really helpful and thorough. He is referring me for a gastroscopy because he’s concerned I may have a stomach ulcer. My acid reflux and pain has been getting so much worse, so I’m glad he took it seriously. He also wanted me to have some bloods done and to go back to the Dietician as well, to see if we can get to the bottom of why my blood sugar levels keep dropping. We came home and I rested for a while, then Richard and Lisa came over for dinner, which was nice.

Day 30 of the August Crown and Glory photo challenge is ‘Giving Thanks’ – I have so much to give thanks for. Life might be incredibly hard trying to fight chronic illnesses every day, but I have a loving family, beautiful friends and a roof over my head. I am able to push myself to do things, and although I constantly feel unwell and in pain, I can still do these things. I have access to (mainly) free medical care and support, which keeps me alive and as comfortable as possible. It’s very easy to see the negatives every day, which is why I always make a point of posting my happy photo each day. Because no matter how crappy life is, there is always something to be thankful for.

I was up quite early on Wednesday morning for my first session with my new counsellor. I was feeling pretty nervous about it but she was really nice. My Dad brought me home and I spent the rest of the morning sorting out some of my clothes drawers. After lunch, my Mum and I went round to my friend Katy’s. I caught up on some emails on my laptop while my Mum had her nails done. Then I had my eyebrows waxed and had a massage. When we got home I set up this little 30^th birthday spread. It’s to help my friend, Karen, celebrate her birthday, as she’s very poorly and unable to leave the house. So she’s asked all her friends to take photos of us celebrating virtually with her.

Day 31 of the August Crown and Glory photo challenge is ‘Party Time’ – I can’t believe I actually completed the whole challenge! It’s been so much fun being creative with the prompts we were given, and also so lovely to see what all the other girls have posted. I feel very lucky to be part of such a supportive community.

So I finally gave Richard and Lisa and David and Emma their wedding presents, which means I can now share them with you all, as I think they’re awesome! The lovely Amy Rose Studios drew this beautiful wedding portrait of David and Emma. I’m so pleased with how it turned out and hopefully they like it as much as I do!

On Thursday morning I woke up not feeling too brilliant. My POTS seems to be playing up a lot at the moment and it’s making me feel really rubbish. I did a little bit of clothes sorting, and then had a reflexology session. It definitely helped me to relax and I actually had a little doze after she’d gone. The rest of my family went out for lunch, but I stayed at home and rested. I watched TV, snuggled up with Freddie and browsed ASOS for a while. David and Emma popped over, so I had a quick chat with them and gave them their wedding present. I didn’t do a huge amount else apart from resting, but I did open some post. My driving license finally arrived! It’s been over a year since I had my seizure (I was meant to be seizure free for six months) so to have it back feels amazing. It only lasts for three years, and then I have to reapply again, but at least it’s something. Now I just need to re-learn to drive!

This was the second portrait Amy Rose Studios did for me – this time of Richard and Lisa on their wedding day. How beautiful is it!!

I didn’t get up as early as I’d hoped to on Friday morning, but spent the rest of the morning editing some photos and writing a blog post. My Mum, sister and I popped over to Homesense to pick something up. The car park was crazy busy though and as we were trying to reverse into a disabled bay, the car behind us drove up so close that it nearly went into the back of us! I don’t understand why people can’t just be patient and give people room to park, especially when trying to get into a disabled bay! When we got home I rested for a while and caught up on some emails. My Mum then took me down to the doctors’ surgery for a blood test. I had a different nurse to the one I usually go to, so was a little worried as I’m so difficult to get blood out of. But she managed to get some on her first attempt, which is unheard of for me! For some reason though I felt a bit lightheaded, so when we got home I lay down for a bit. In the evening I opened my September Crown and Glory Glitterati box, which has a 90’s theme. It brought back so many childhood memories!

I had a lie-in on Saturday morning, which was much needed. I managed to get my blog post up and then sorted through another drawer full of clothes. I’m trying to do a little bit of sorting/tidying here and there in the hope at some point it will make a difference! My Mum and I popped round to my neighbour’s with her birthday present, then my friend Lilli picked me up with her boyfriend. We went to Starbucks and I had my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the year. I had it made with coconut milk, but probably shouldn’t have had the cream. We had a nice catch up, but when I got home I wasn’t well. I was a bit of an idiot and totally forgot to ask for a decaf latte, which I think was the main reason I felt so bad, although the cream probably didn’t help. I spent the rest of the afternoon lying on the sofa resting.

You can check out my YouTube channel here, where I have recently uploaded a few new videos (and hope to continue doing!)

I’m also trying to post on Snapchat a bit more, so if you fancy following me, my username is Jennycole44.

What have you been up to this week? I always enjoy hearing about your news and adventures!

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South East Bloggers Circle Meet Up - The Raffle and Goody Bags!

Before Christmas I wrote this post about the blogger event I organised. For anyone that doesn’t know, I run a group called the South East Bloggers Circle, which is made up of bloggers (of all genres) from the South East of England. Our main hub is our Facebook group where we chat about all things blogging, post links to our posts/videos and generally just support each other. We also sometimes organise little meet-ups, but last November I held the first ‘official’ meet up for the group. It took place at Pizza Express in Festival Place, Basingstoke, and was attended by nine bloggers (after a few had to drop out unfortunately). We had a fantastic time, which you can read all about in my previous post, but I promised you I would talk to you about the raffle and the goody bags!

I’ll start with the raffle, which went down really well with the other girls. We had a number of prizes donated to us by some really lovely companies and all the money raised was for the charity Mind, who support people all over the UK with mental health problems.

The following prizes were donated for our raffle and we made an amazing £50 for Mind:

·      Bill’s - A hamper of edible goodies

·      Illamasqua - Mystery selection box

·      Pacific World Cosmetics – Sensationail starter kit and 2 LAB2 brush sets

·      Paul’s Boutique - £100 credit to spend on their website

·      Jilly Jilly - £20 Gift voucher

·      Bee Good - Box of goodies

Our goody bag tote bags were kindly donated by Life Tonics and came with this awesome slogan on them, perfect for the event!

I also had a bag of Lush goodies that I bought separately

Inside each goody bag were the following items (some items were slightly different in each bag, but all from the same brands):

·      Life Tonics - 2 bottles of Hydration Plus Coconut Water in different flavours

·      Bee Good - Cream Cleanser sample

·      Lush - A couple of Christmas bath bombs

·      Witch Skincare - Overnight Clearing Serum and Gentle Exfoliating Face Wash

·      Bill’s - Jam (variety of flavours)

·      Champney’s Guildford - Each blogger received a full-sized product from their range

·      Dream Dots - Discount voucher

·      Cheerz - Voucher to create one of their products

I just want to take this opportunity to thank all the companies that helped us make the event such a success, and for all the bloggers who came along and joined in!

If you’re a blogger in the South East of England and fancy joining us, you can find our group on Facebook, Twitter (@SEBlogCircle) and Instagram (@SE_Bloggers) – it would be great to see you! If you’d like to be added to our database to hear about future events, please drop me an e-mail on jaffacat44@gmail.com

Have you been to any good blogger meet-ups? Are you in the South East and fancy joining us? What sort of meet-ups would you like to see?

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Jilly Jilly Christmas Goodie Bag*

I must admit I’m finding it quite difficult to get my head around Christmas this year with everything that’s happened recently. But when this gorgeous parcel arrived in the post from the very lovely Jilly Jilly Designs I felt a bit of Christmas spirit sprinkled on my house. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you will probably know that I’m a big fan of Jilly’s products, and Jilly herself is such a lovely lady who I’m really happy to be able to work with regularly. I felt I couldn’t write this post without first extending my huge congratulations to Jilly and David on their recent engagement! I hope you both have tons of fun planning the big day, and I for one cannot wait to see all the pretty accessories you make and buy.

I was very lucky to be sent some goodies to tell you all about from the new Christmas range, and I guarantee you are going to love them! A few weeks before the parcel arrived, Jilly contacted me and asked me to choose my favourite mug from the new collection. Now, this definitely wasn’t an easy task, I mean how was I meant to choose just one design from this fabulous collection?! In the end I decided to go for the ‘Marshmallow World’ design, although I was very tempted by the ‘Latte like Christmas’ with its cute red Starbucks-style cups and gingerbread men.

I was pleasantly surprised when the parcel arrived, as not only had Jilly sent me a cute Christmas mug, but she has also included a pink and white Christmas goodie bag! To say I was excited is an understatement, especially as my all time favourite colour is pink. It was beautifully presented with a silver bell attached to the paper bag – a simple but pretty festive touch. The mug was also beautifully wrapped in pink tissue paper and white and gold string – it would definitely make a perfect gift for someone at Christmas.

Inside the bag I found a selection of festive goodies, which all tied in with the Marshmallow World design on the mug. Along the same theme were a pocket mirror (£3.50), three mini badges (£1 each) and some gorgeous snowman earrings (£8). There was also an adorable Christmas card (£5 for pack of 4), some Galaxy hot chocolate, marshmallows, a PINK candy cane (!) and a Lindt Gold Bear. What more could you possibly want on a cold December evening?

The pocket mirror, earrings and badges would make great little stocking fillers, or could be part of a Secret Santa present. Or, like me, you may just want to hang onto them for yourself!

The card was also designed by Jilly – it has different coloured snowmen and a reindeer on the front, with the occasional diamanté to add a bit of sparkle. I’m just trying to decide now who to give it to.

The mug itself (£9) is covered in a scattering of Christmassy goodness. Cute little snowmen in blue top hats, gingerbread houses, marshmallows (hence the name), hot chocolates, plenty of sweets and even the odd snow globe. This is perfect for someone who loves Christmas, but particularly loves pastel, sweetie colours. To be honest, I’m pretty sure I will be using this mug all year round! Something I particularly like about the mugs from Jilly Jilly is the fact that their handles are quite big, which means I can fit several fingers round it. Now, this may just be personal preference and you could well be wondering what on earth I’m going on about, but with my illnesses come very shaky hands, and the fact I can get a good grip on the mug makes so much difference to me. I have quite a few mugs that I love, but the handles are so tiny that I just can’t use them!

I hope my post has given you a bit of an insight into Jilly Jilly Designs, and has perhaps given you some ideas for gifts (or for yourself) this Christmas. In the Christmas range, as well as the mugs (which can be personalised), you will also find earrings, pocket mirrors, badges, cards and even a limited edition Festive Goody Bundle. Just as a heads up, the last date to order if you want to receive something by Christmas is 17^th December, so you will need to get a wiggle on if there’s something you like! All orders are posted within 1-3 working days using Royal Mail 1^st class delivery. Postage starts at £1.50 and is FREE for orders over £35 (UK). They are incredibly accommodating and will always do whatever they can to help make sure customers are happy – I really can’t recommend them enough!

Have you heard of Jilly Jilly Designs before? Have you found any of their products that you think you might buy?

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