Scrapbook Loves April & May 21

I can’t work out if the past two months have dragged or flown by, feels like a bit of both! My last blog post was before we moved house, and I continued to have a break from everything, more or less till we were a bit more up to date with things like unpacking, settling in at new school and so on. Anyway, here I am with a bumper edition of what I loved, and loathed these past two months.

[This post contains gifted items]

What I read this month

Only four books, and none of them were particularly great either. I really hoped for more in ‘Britt-Marie Was Here’ but it just didn’t do it for me, and I put it down and picked it up a few times before finally deciding to get it over with, which is a shame as I loved Bear Town and its sequel.  The Spring Girls was an easy chick-lit read focussing on a set of sisters and theirs ups and downs, but the ending was rather abrupt.

What I watched this month

Way too much basically, I should have read more! But for a lot of April I was just so exhausted with packing boxes, moving, unpacking, making furniture, moving furniture etc that I just wanted to collapse into bed and stick something on TV! I have watched all four seasons of The Bold Type in the past three weeks and I loved it, it’s like Sex and the City with less cocktails, younger characters and more up-to-date story lines.  I also loved Your Honour, and am a couple of episodes into Mare of Easttown – both of which are a bit slow to get going but worth it. Oh, also Ginny & Georgia was a great watch, lots of teen/mum/friendship drama!

What I listened to this month

I found a spotify playlist of hits from 2003 which is worth a listen if you’re a similar age to me. I’m still listening to my usual true crime podcasts too, never can get enough of them!

What I made this month

I turned a house into a home! Well, it’s getting that way but we still have a lot to do. I made a start on the garden and have planted various flowers and plants there as well as starting a little collection of house plants for inside. I’ve never had anywhere with my own garden in my adult life, so I am relishing being able to sit outside with a cup of tea on a sunny morning and want to make the garden a bright and colourful place to be.

This month I worked with Fab Finds who let me choose a selection if items from their website to help me on my ‘green fingered’ journey. Two rose plants, some planters, solar powered fairy lights, seeds, indoor hanging planters all helped me get going with turning the garden into a fun and floral place to be! I’d not heard of Fab Finds before but have actually made another order myself after my review order arrived, as the prices are unbeatable. As well as garden and homeware they have a big selection of cleaning products, health and beauty products, food and toys. Delivery is free on orders of £30 or more with SHIP30 and delivery is super fast, both my orders came in 2 days, with a free gift too. Definitely a site to bookmark and sign up to their emails so you know when new ranges have been added. It’s a great way to pick up branded products at super low prices, I was amazed to find some of my favourite toiletry brands way cheaper than in the supermarket.

Sam has also absolutely attacked the overgrown garden which is bigger than we first thought due to all the vines and ivy that had taken over. Our back garden gate wasn’t actually attached to any posts, is was being kept upright (unable to be opened) by vines and tree branches. Then the wind took down a tree that was growing about 20 feet high in the alleyway behind the garden which we were going to have to get chopped down anyway so that was a bit of luck!

Talking of making, together Sam and I have made about ten flatpack bits of furniture, along with wallpapering in the living room and making and putting up fitted shelves in an alcove. I never want to see another allen key again!

What I wore this month

Everything in a size up from what I was – I am the heaviest I’ve ever been so I’ve also ordered some running leggings that will fit and am going to attempt couch to 5k YET AGAIN, as well as joining WW to attempt to get some sort of fitness and start to have a body shape I don’t actively detest and can learn to love.

However it was a solely sandal month from May onwards, no socks round these parts!

What I loved this month

Rambo thankfully has settled very well, he’s loving the long hallways to hurtle down, the extra spiders to pounce on and of course the outdoors to explore! When we got him we were living in a flat so he was a house-cat. Now we have a garden we’ve been letting him out every so often to get him used to some freedom. He is a big bird watcher, and loves attempting to catch flies! He may be a big pussy cat but he only turned one last month so he’s still pretty kitten-like in spirit. This month he was a lucky cat and got to play with toys from the Gus & Bella box which were sent to us to review.

A Subscription box is always a lovely surprise but the Gus and Bella box is a treat for me AND Rambo! Each box has a different theme and is full of feline-related surprises! This box had two cat toys, two packets of healthy cat food to try, hand sanitizer (cute & refillable!) A lunch box, insulated cool bag and a very cute little cat print case for keeping tiny things safe in your bag! I was really impressed at the thought that has gone into the ‘staycation’ box. You can subscribe (but cancel anytime) or order a one off box for you or a friend. I reckon this would be a really lovely gift for someone adopting a cat 😻
Use SCRAPBOOK20 for 20% off a subscription or SCRAPBOOK10 for 10% off a one off box at Gus and Bella

What I loathed this month

Being the ‘new mum’ at school. Thankfully the kids have settled in incredibly well and all the parents seem really friendly but it’s just not quite the same as seeing faces that I’d seen twice daily for the last four years (or more actually if we include preschool!) I also am not a fan of driving on the school run, it’s only about 6 or 7 minutes but the walk would be about 35, with the majority of it walking along a road that doesn’t have a footpath because the school is really rural. I’m hoping in the summer we can do it, perhaps on bikes – we shall see! The drop off and pick up times are later though which I am definitely thankful for!