The year started off a bit shitty for me because mother nature decided the best birthday present for me would be a really bad cold! I always book my birthday week off so I can treat myself, do things with friends and family to celebrate my birthday and just make it a good week all around because having a birthday in January sucks. Everyone is skint from Christmas and everyone is on the winddown and chilling out after the stresses of the past month so my birthday gets forgotten (not by close family and friends though) and I usually end up feeling like no-one gives a crap. I decided to make a big deal of it and throw an afternoon tea party: games, cake, sandwiches with the crusts cut off, dressing up pretty... the works. I invited all my friends and about 90% turned around and said they couldn't come. I was very disappointed because my mum had also bought me a new, flowery, pretty dress back in November when I'd decided that I wanted the party and needed something to wear for it. Well, that was that then and I needed to quickly change the plans. Sarah was coming to stay for the weekend anyway so at least whatever I decided to do, definitely involved my best friend. I messaged her to tell her that basically everyone had bailed and said they weren't coming and I asked her if she had any ideas for me. She suggested we go to Nottingham for the day, do some shopping and have afternoon tea at Patisserie Valerie... perfect!
On the 8th of January, 5 days before my week off started, the cold hit me. I carried on at work the best I could for the rest of the week and then it hit me at full force on Monday. I was pretty much bedridden all week. I managed to get to the pharmacy across the road and bought anything that would get rid of the cold and make me feel better.
My birthday came around and I did my very best to make myself look presentable instead of looking like a walking corpse and had a wander to Tesco for something to do. Aiden was at work, my family were at work, Sarah wasn't due to arrive till the weekend and the rest of my friends were working or busy so I was alone for the day. Yay. I went for a meal with Mum, Dad, Aiden, and Ryan in the evening but even that wasn't great: it was ridiculously warm in the restaurant, they put us on a tiny table that definitely wasn't big enough for the 5 of us and there was a large, very loud table of people right next to us. Needless to say, my birthday sucked but Saturday made up for it when me and Sarah started off with Frankie and Bennie's breakfast and then caught the train to Nottingham where we met my Aunty Sukes. We shopped and then decided that instead of the afternoon tea at Patisserie Valerie, we'd eat at Malt Cross where we had a delicious lunch. More shopping and then we caught the train home, nipped to Tesco for a few supplies and then went home to prepare for Serena, Fern, Laura and Charlie coming over for takeaway and Mamma Mia 2 (which we completely ignored in the background and chatted all night instead).
The rest of January went by uneventfully apart from me finding my first grey hair :(
February saw a trip to Ikea with Mum and Dad, a visit down to Weston, Pokemon hunting with Aiden, catch-ups with friends, a meal out for Ryan's birthday at the Snooker Centre, an indoor picnic and films with Aiden for Valentine's day, and putting some furniture together with Aiden.
In March I had a cooking lesson with Julie, making Cottage Pie, catch-ups with friends, cinema date with Aiden to see How to train your dragon: Hidden world, time with family, meals with friends, day out with Grandma and Grandad and Aiden to RHS Harlow Carr Gardens, and a trip to Beeston to see Sukes which consisted of lots of films and some shopping.
April consisted of spending a lot of time with family and friends- nights out around cross, meals out, breakfasts, Sunday dinner at Julie's for Easter Sunday, D&D nights with mum, dad, Ryan and Aiden, and a work night out to the cinema to see Dumbo and a McDonald's beforehand.
May was basically the same... cinema dates with Aiden (Endgame and Detective Pikachu), night out around cross a couple times, a day out with Sarah, Amy and Dex to Bakewell, date night at Six Halts with Aiden and also breakfasts and meals out with friends.
Earlier on in the year, I made a new friend called Kirstie. She worked as one of the managers in Tesco and I'd got friendly with her by learning that she used to work in the cafe and just got talking more and more each time I had to call her to come and check our shopping for us in the cafe. I also learned that she knew Aiden and was related to him as well (I can't remember how, something to do with Aiden's Nanna). One day at work I noticed she was really upset/stressed about something and found out that she was basically going to lose her job very soon because the position she was being trained for, was being offered to someone else. To take her mind off it and make her feel better, I told her we were going out that night and that she should come too. It was a great night! She got to meet Sarah and Dean and found out that she went to the same school as Dean and they had quite a few friends in common. She text me the next day and thanked me for inviting her and that she'd had a great night and that was that really, we became fast friends!
At the end of May she got a job in Doncaster Tesco so on the 1st of June she had a leaving do around cross and invited me out. She made me promise that I'd stay in touch even though she didn't work at my Tesco anymore and it turns out, I'm one of very few who actually have stayed in touch with her and still sees her. Just goes to show who your true friends are when you leave a job.
Kirstie's leaving do was the start of a very busy month. Early June, Mum and I went down to Weston to see Grandma and we popped to see Grandpa in the care home. Sue Green had asked me to do another painting with a quote in the middle so we went to deliver that to her while we were down there as well and had a catch up with her and her husband Mark. Me, Mum and Grandma had a day out to Cadbury garden centre and popped to see Cadbury House where I was to photograph a wedding the next day; just so I could get some ideas. The 9th of June had come around so quickly! I think it was about 2 years previously that Rhiannon messaged me on Facebook and asked if I'd do the photos for her wedding and suddenly the day had arrived. I was up early and quickly packed up my things and got ready and set off about 8am to get to Cadbury House for half-past. It was a very long day but thankfully I got to go and chill out in the conference room for a couple hours while the wedding party had food. Unfortunately, it absolutely chucked it down so I couldn't do some of the photos I had planned to but we did our best with the space we had indoors and I was very pleased with the results. It was a beautiful wedding despite the rain and Rhiannon and Justin were wonderful clients! They were just so chilled and let me have free rein with my camera. My job finished at 9.20pm and then Mum and I had to drive back home to Chesterfield so we didn't actually get home until 1am the next morning! See what I mean about the long day? But it was definitely worth it to get the photos that I did.
The rest of the month saw some shopping, more cinema dates, family time, Soccer Aid, meals out and Mum's dance show at the Pomegranate Theatre.
On the 2nd of July, I had tattoo number 3. I'd watched the live-action Cinderella the previous month while I was editing the wedding photos and one of the quotes from the film is 'Have courage and be kind' which I've loved since I first watched it in 2015. This time when I watched it I made the decision and thought 'right, that's it, I'm having it done!' and decided to have a blue butterfly with it as well as they're all over Cinderella's dress and it would make the tattoo look more interesting instead of just having the words.
I made my way to Ghost Ink to be there for 1.30pm, absolutely bricking it, even though this was going to be my 3rd time and I knew for a fact it wouldn't be as painful as the one on my ankle! Danny did my last one as well so knowing it was him doing this one made it easier because I knew he'd make me feel at ease and keep me talking through the pain, which is exactly what he did! It was over before I knew it. Yes, it hurt, which it always does but once it's done you forget the pain and how much it actually hurt... it's a strange experience.
On the 8th of July, I had an interview at Waterstones. The dream job! Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. It was only a weekend job though plus cover during the week which would mess up things at the cafe and it would be too complicated sorting both jobs out. I also couldn't live off just a weekend job so as gutted as I was that I didn't get it, it was probably also a blessing in disguise.
For Christmas 2018, Aiden's Dad got us a 2-night stay and dinner experience so we used that for our 4-year anniversary and stayed at The Manifold Inn in Buxton. With us not being able to drive, the location sucked a bit but we caught the bus and had a day trip to Hartington, had a wander about, a bit of shopping and sat by the duck pond for a while, watching the world go by, which resulted in getting very badly sunburnt. His Dad came to fetch us the day after, with Aiden's brother Tristan and we had a family day out in Hartington again and then went to Cromford Canal.
The rest of July was filled with me getting a new do and my nails done...
A day out in Matlock and Lumsdale with Kirstie and then towards the end of the month I went back to Beeston for the last time.
Around Easter time I had some news that had me instantly in tears... Sukes and Levi had decided to move to Holland. I was happy for them and knew it would be a great experience and a good move for them both, especially with Brexit: Levi is originally from Holland so he wasn't feeling very welcome in our country anymore. The other part of me was absolutely gutted though. Sukes is my Dad's sister, my aunty, and with her only being 12 years older than me, she's more like my big sister than my aunty and with her only being in Beeston, she's always been the perfect getaway excuse for me... half an hour on the train (roughly) and her and Levi always feed me awesome food, as well as junk food. Me and Sukes watch as many films as we can and try to fit in a shopping trip or 2 when we can. She's always there when I need her and she honestly just means the world to me so you can imagine how I felt when she broke the news to me that she was moving to another country. I needed to get one last trip in before she left and with her being in Beeston on her own because Levi had already gone ahead to Holland and started his new job, July was the perfect excuse for me to go and see her. We had a fab weekend as usual: she cooked for me, we watched 7 films altogether over the 2 days I was there and we popped into Beeston for shopping and lunch. We went to the pub for a drink and sat outside in the beer garden but as it's England, we weren't out in the sunshine for long and it absolutely chucked it down! We were undercover though so it was actually quite cool being outside but dry while it poured down. The end of the weekend unfortunately came and I made it until I was actually on the train to start crying.
August started with my second and last wedding of the year: Leanne and Scott's. I got to go to Pilsley for the morning, photographing Leanne getting ready, which was also nice for me as I'd not been back to Pilsley for a while so I got to have a walk through the village and reminisce about my childhood and teenage years. The wedding was all at Ringwood Hall so while the wedding party were having their meal, I nipped into town on the bus and got to chill for a couple of hours before heading back and finishing off my job.
We had Spiderman 2 (the Tom Holland Spiderman) and also Lion King, out at the cinema in August so I went to see them.
I had a nice day out just in Chesterfield with Sarah, Dean, and Amy as they had a day at the beach thing in the town centre, and then we also met Mum and Dad for lunch which was lovely too!
Aiden's birthday was a great day/night as always. We had a party at one of the local pubs during the day and then we stayed out with friends and family and had a drink after. It's always a great night for Aiden's birthday- we end up having such a good laugh and just a genuinely awesome time!
The day finally came to say goodbye to Sukes and Levi and wish them well with their new life in Holland. It was a lovely afternoon, just round at Grandma and Grandad's, out in the garden in the summer heat, having a chat, nibbles and a drink. Unfortunately, Aiden got an abscess in his mouth and was in a lot of pain so I couldn't leave him at home for too long so I had to cut my time short and had a teary goodbye in the kitchen with Sukes and a big bear hug from Levi.
Also in August my Mum turned 50!! She definitely doesn't look her age though so she's pulling it off perfectly! We celebrated with a meal at Cosmo's in Derby and then a house party (not a party party, just a chilled afternoon with friends and family popping round) on the 1st of September. I made her a printed photo album on Vistaprint with photos of her through the years, which she loves and has shown a lot of people who also complimented me on it.
(Taken at Mum's party)
Not much happened in September but the first weekend we went to Aylesbury to a 'cousin's meet' that we do with Mum's side of the family every few years or so. My Great Grandma was one of 13 children so the cousin's meet is the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of those original 13. It's dwindled down a lot over the years... the original cousin's meet was something like 150 people! But this year there were only about 30 of us I think. The 'meet' is basically everyone getting together at a chosen hotel and having a 3-course meal, reminiscing about past meets and updating the records if anyone has had any children since the last one. We stay over-night as well and have breakfast together the next morning before we all head home. It was a lovely weekend! Seeing members of the family that we don't see very often and the hotel also had a swimming pool so a few of us took advantage of that too!
October is always a busy month for me and tends to be filled with days out and making memories with my nearest and dearest. This year, me and Aiden decided to bring his brother Tristan on holiday with us. Tristan had not long passed his driving test so he didn't want to drive too far so we decided to just go and stay in a cottage in Matlock. We had a great time! Trips out to Bakewell, Chatsworth Gardens, Matlock, Matlock Bath and we had a very amusing games night too!
I also had a work meal out for Laura's leaving do, catch-ups with friends, viewed a house which we applied for but unfortunately didn't get, had a trip to Meadowhall with Laura and Jamie-Lee and had a day out with Sarah, Dean, and Amy for Sarah's birthday. I'd messaged Sarah a month or so before and asked her if I could plan something for her birthday, she said yes. Originally I thought it would just be me and her so I thought spa day, shopping, maybe squeeze a film in and food but she'd asked if I could include Dean and Amy in my plans as well so it was back to square one. What could I do that a 3-year-old would enjoy? Where could we go? I racked my brain and then came up with the idea of the Tropical Butterfly House in Sheffield. There were lots of animals there as well as the butterfly house so I knew Sarah would enjoy this for her birthday and it would also be fun for Amy and Dean too. The Tropical Butterfly House also does experiences so I booked for me and Sarah to have the Meerkat experience. It was so good!! We went into the Meerkat section where it was all open and sandy and they run around digging holes and bugging the Porcupines that are also in there. The keeper had me and Sarah sit down on some rocks and she chucked mealworms onto our laps so that the Meerkats would come onto us and sit and nibble on us. I was lucky enough to have one come and sit on my shoulder too!!
Before the Tropical Butterfly House, we went for breakfast at Harvester and then afterward we met Dean's Mum, Dad and Brother Ben for a meal at Six Halts. It was a lovely day!!
November had lots of ups and then a very bad 'down'! It started with some ups- went Christmas shopping with Kirstie and saw Maleficent 2 with Aiden. Then it was the BAD 'DOWN'... on the 8th we had Aiden's Grandad's funeral (his Dad's Dad), not only was it a sad day saying goodbye to a family member but me and Aiden also broke up. I won't go into details because it's in the past and we're obviously back together and we've sorted it all out but we stayed broken up for about a week and my life started to fall apart. Aiden's my first proper boyfriend and we've been together 4 years now and are also engaged. I didn't really know what my life was without him. The morning after we broke up, he came over to pack up his things and we actually sat down and had a cuppa and a chat and it was all very civilised... I mean, what couple breaks up and then sits and has a cuppa together!? I think that was my first inkling that it wasn't over. We spent the next few days trying to keep our distance so that it wouldn't be so hard but it was impossible. He was texting me, I was texting him... we missed each other and we both knew that we needed to sort our problems out because we just couldn't imagine our lives without each other. After a lot of talking and then a moment of weakness when I bought Spiderman 2 (which we saw together at the cinema) and inviting him over to watch it for old times sake, we sorted everything out and agreed to get back together.
The rest of the month was great. I had my hair done (the... I've had a bad break up and need a new do so I'm gonna dye my hair red, kind), meal out with the family, Chesterfield Christmas light switch on which was my first time and I really enjoyed it, Ikea with Mum and Dad, met up with my college friend Jess who I'd not seen in about 3 years, and then I finished the month off going to see my Bestie in Catterick.
I got to go with her to the Military Wives Choir practice which was an honour! They were very welcoming, thinking I was a new member but unfortunately I had to break the news that I was only there for a visit. I got to sing lots of Christmas songs with them and got to experience being part of a choir! Me and Sarah also went to Manchester Christmas Market for the day which wasn't as great as I thought it was going to be but I think that's because we went too early and it was a 2-hour drive there so I don't think that helped the situation! It was a nice day shopping with her though and we went to the Central Perk cafe in Primark and we still got the lovely Christmasey feeling you get at Christmas Markets simply from walking around. On the day that I left to go back home, we popped into Amy's nursery and I got to witness Amy seeing Santa and writing him a letter which was lovely.
Finally, we've reached December... what a month!
In November, me and Aiden went to view a house in Danesmoor. We didn't exactly fall in love with it, but I could see us living there and I was absolutely dying to get out of my flat so we went for it. Early December, we found out that it was ours for the taking and after the paperwork was signed and payments were made, we'd have the keys by the 13th, so that was a good start to the month.
Unfortunately, a few days after this news, we got some bad news that my Grandpa (Mum's Dad) had passed away. We knew it was coming because he'd been in and out of the hospital and had been in the care home since last year but it was still a shock and doesn't really sink in for a long time after you hear about it.
There wasn't really much time to grieve though as the move-in date quickly came around and suddenly there was an enormous amount of packing to do!! From getting the keys to moving in, it took us 3 days and we were suddenly in our new house on the 15th... 10 days before Christmas. Yes, we are crazy. The unpacking got put on hold and the panic of Christmas took over. I had to try and find the box labeled 'Christmas Presents', get them wrapped, get them delivered and find the decorations and put them up! I had my priorities straight though... I'd put the Christmas tree up on day 1 of getting the keys so at least that was taken care of.
Christmas morning I got up with Aiden at the break of dawn and we put The Snowman on while we opened presents. Aiden got picked up at 8am to go to his Grandad's so I had a nice chill morning, watching The Beauty and The Beast Enchanted Christmas and then I put the Christmas bedding on, tidied up the wrapping paper, had a cup of tea, listened to some music and then finally set off for Mum and Dad's. I had Christmas dinner with them (Ryan was in America), opened presents and then we watched some videos on YouTube before we all had a walk to Julie's where I went in and they walked back home again. I opened some more presents with Aiden and Julie and then me and Aiden walked home, watched Polar Express, had some hot chocolate and then had an early night. It was a lovely Christmas!
The plan for New Year's Eve was a chilled night in with me, Aiden, Fern, Ryan and Mark, playing some games, having some nibbles and a drink. It all changed about an hour in when we had some unexpected guests in the form of Julie, Christa from work and her family. We all chatted for a while at our's and then Christa's Mum, Mandy, persuaded us to go to their house instead. It was a fun-filled evening and even though things didn't go to plan, we still enjoyed our night and started off the New Year with friends!
So... 2019 was a year of many challenges and accomplishments. All I'd wanted all year was to be in a house by Christmas and low and behold, my wish came true. 2020 will be the year I really get my life together and work out what I really want my future to look like. I want a new job, I want to learn how to play the acoustic guitar that I got for Christmas and hopefully make something of my singing voice again, I want a nice hot holiday abroad somewhere and I want to make lots of happy memories with my loved ones. I will say yes to experiences and not second guess my choices. I will live and do things that scare me (with the exception of horror and thriller films). 2020 will be the year of Becks! Let's start the new decade off with a bang.
Have a good one guys. Make memories, laugh, smile and have fun! I hope the year is filled with good health and happiness for you all.
