10 Things I am Thankful For

1. My Family

I'm fortunate enough to come from a big family, and my immediate family in particular are very close. I am very thankful for every single one of them.

2. My Boyfriend

I am lucky enough to have found love at such a young age, I met Chris almost 7 years ago and we got on straight away, we got closer and closer over the years and around 3 years ago we started dating. I couldn't imagine a more loving, kind person to spend my time with.

3. My Friends

Moving to a new city is difficult, especially a city as big as London. Finding and making friends is even more difficult, especially genuine friends, I haven't found a lot, but I am so grateful for the ones I do have.

4. My Home

I am 21 and living in Central London with my boyfriend, something I never thought possible but always dreamed of. I am so thankful to always have my own place to come home to. A roof over my head is something I try to be thankful for every single day.

5. Mine and my loved ones health

Another thing I cherish every day is my health and my loved ones' health. 

I see and hear of sick people all of the time and my heart breaks for them, I am so thankful that everybody that I love is in good health.

6. The place I grew up

As much as I love London, sometimes it's nice to get away, I am lucky enough to still have all of my family living where I grew up. A small town surrounded in country side, I love visiting home, I fall in love with the place more and more now that I am older. 

7. London

A strange one to add I know. But I am very grateful for this chapter of my life. I don't know how long I will live in London but I know that when I do move away, it will be a place I look back at fondly. I'm grateful to have this experience, to be living in a city that many people would love to live in. To experience all that London has to offer, it's a dream.

8. The material things 

Another strange one I know, and I don't mean to sound shallow or materialistic. But in my life I feel I work hard to earn a few luxury's in life that I know others can't. I will say that nothing has ever been handed to me, my parents never spoilt me or anything like that, and I've worked for everything that I own. But I am lucky enough to have everything I need and sometimes want and I am thankful for that.

9. The little things

Sometimes it's not the big things that make me happy, I so happy for the little things in life, an extra hour in bed, the sun shining through my window, advent calenders at Christmas when you're an adult, coming home to a clean house. There's so many little things in life that I'm so grateful for and that make me so happy to be alive.

10. You

For every single person that has ever read the rubbish that I have to say. Sometimes I just come here to rant and don't expect anybody to read it, but I'm thankful for those of you who do, so thank you!

I wanted to do this post in honor of thanksgiving, I know us Brits don't celebrate it, but it's nice to sometimes take a step back and look around you and be grateful for what you have.

Feel free to share what you're thankful for, I would love to have a read.

An update in pictures...

As I have mentioned, I've been super busy lately... I thought I'd compile a bunch of pictures into a post to show you all where I've been and what I've been getting up to.

Indian food with Chris . Exploring Selfridges and hunting down giant tubs of Nutella . Pinkberry . Walks in Hyde Park. Cycling in Hyde Park

Chocolate covered strawberry snacks. Partying with work friends. Hyde Park fun and taking boats on the river. Receiving flowers. Working at fun celebrity events.

Visiting home, spending quality time with my family.

Country walks at home. Goodbye cocktails and dinner for my friend leaving London.

And on top of all of that, me and Chris have moved into our own flat! 

We finally made it happen and I'm so happy.

Post coming soon.

Hope you're all well!

My (Late) Valentine

My third Valentine's with my lovely boyfriend, Chris. The guy who puts up with me no matter what. Cares for me unconditionally. Holds open any door, pulls out my chair, watches any show I am into at the time no matter how girly and massages my feet after a long day of work. My best friend. This year we didn't really celebrate Valentine's day, knowing we are still very happy together after being joint at the hip for the past two And a half years was enough. I feel like every day is kind of like Valentine's day with him, he takes me on dates regularly, sometimes randomly surprises me with breakfast in bed or flowers and treats me like a princess every day of the week. I'm so grateful to have such a perfect person beside me and I don't feature him on my blog enough considering he is a huge part of my life.

Excuse the soppiness, Valentine's day is one of the only days of the year where it's acceptable, I just wanted to do a little dedicated post to him because without him I wouldn't be where I am today. 

21st Birthday

Another year another birthday.

I seriously can't believe I've had this blog since I was 16! Crazy!

So Saturday 1st February saw me turn 21 and of course I took full advantage and celebrated the whole day!

The day started with breakfast at Bill's Retaurant in High Street Kensington with Chris and my sister, I'd never been before but heard a lot about it so we popped down. I opted for pancakes they had Eggs. It was delicious.

After breakfast Chris had booked me in for an hour and a half massage at the Lush Spa (post here!) Which was absolutely perfect.

After the relaxation I headed home to meet my sister and a friend who had came from Essex, we picked up a bottle of my favourite champagne and got ready.

We then headed to my friends house to meet everybody and for pre drinks. We took lots of pictures, got very drunk and partied.

After pre drinks we headed to a club in Kings Cross to party more before heading home and having the best sleep ever. Perfect.

Another by lovely birthday made even better by great people. 

What I'm Thankful for...

Seems we don't celebrate Thanksgiving over in England (I wish we did, just for the family get together, feast and Black Friday shopping!) I thought I'd compile a list of what I'm thankful for anyway, it's nice to sometimes stop dwelling on the negatives and realise just how lucky you are sometimes, and I can't resist a good list as you may be able to tell... so here goes.... Cheesy post alert commencing...

1. My boyfriend

He is the most wonderful person I've ever met, I could go on about him for hours but that would get pretty boring. But basically he is amazing, patient, kind and caring and I couldn't ask for a better person to have in my life when things get bad. I'm glad I met him early on in life.

2. My family

A super old and horrible picture, but I'm so thankful to have a very big and close family. Of course being one of 5 girls can sometimes have it's moments, but I wouldn't change them for anything. Also my mom and the rest of the people that support and love me daily.

3. To be living my dream

I've wanted to live in London for as long as I can remember, and to be living here, surrounded by some of the best people I've ever met, doing exciting things constantly is pretty amazing and I feel so lucky. 

Of course I'm thankful for much more, but this post could be very long if I proceeded. 

But thank you to everybody that has supported me and left comments and followed my blog and just for everything. Hope all of you have a lovely Thanksgiving (if you celebrate it)!

10 ways to a happier you...

We all have goals in life, things we wanna achieve and do. But in old one sense I think we all share one goal in particular. We all want to be happy.

But what is happiness? 

Finding the perfect partner? A huge slab of dairy milk and a glass of cold milk? Being cuddled to sleep?

We all have different ideas of happiness. 

In life I think we all have ups and downs no matter what. But I wanted to write a post on steps I have taken in the past or that I take when I'm feeling sad, that have made a difference in how I feel and ultimately made me a happier person in general.

They may not all work for you, and of course some may be easier said than done, but I assure you, if you're in a bad place or having a bad day, this could help you. (I hope).

1. If someone is making you unhappy, kick them out of your life.

I know for sure that this step is way easier said than done. Trust me.

But if you can do it, then do it.

In terms of partners... I've had boyfriends in the past who I wasn't exactly happy with, who I stayed with for the pure comfort of having them. Eventually I realised that I didn't want to be sad or crying everyday, why be with a person who doesn't make you feel great? Why put yourself through that? Why let yourself suffer? In the grand scheme of things you will be okay without that person! If somebody doesn't make you happy, there really is no point in moving forward with that person. It's the exact same with friendships and other relationships. 

"Surround yourself with people that lift you higher"

It takes time and its not easy, but if you want to be happy, don't waste your life surrounding yourself with people who bring you down.

2. Spring clean

If you're anything like me you will hate cleaning, there is always something so much better to do than cleaning. However, there is no better feeling than waking up to a clean and organised space. 

This step is proven to make you happy.

Clear your mind or clutter and things you don't need or use, make space. Take things to your local charity shop or pass them on to a sibling or a friend. 

Clear space, clear mind. 

3. Make a 'to do' list, and do it!

There's nothing more satisfying than getting things done. And nothing brings me down like having a bunch of things to do - solution: write down everything you need to do and sort out and slowly do them. Lists can get overwhelming sometimes, but there is nothing quite like seeing your own progress and taking things off your mind one by one. 

4. Pamper yourself

So cliche but so necessary. 

I'm not saying you have to spend hundreds on spa treatments, just the little things like painting your nails, having a glass of chilled wine in a hot bubble bath, catching up on your TV shows. Sometimes work and your social life get in the way and you lose track of yourself and doing the small things that satisfy you. Take an hour or two a week to yourself and do something that YOU want to do.

5. Ask yourself where you want to be in 5 years and figure out how to get there.

This is something I'm currently working on myself. 

What do you want out of life? 

What would make you proud of yourself?

Make a five year plan and take steps to reach your goals.

6. Spend time with your loved ones.

For me, nothing makes me happier than visiting my family. Seeing how much my nieces and nephews have grown makes me so happy. It's hard not to be happy when you're around people who you love and who love you.

7. What're you thankful for?
Too often we take the people we love or the things we love for granted. Take time to think over everything you have as opposed to what you don't have. Stop wishing for things that you want and start appreciating what you have. You may be luckier than you think.

8. Learn something new..
Teaching myself something or finding out a new fact always makes me happy. I think we can never have enough knowledge. I recently baked a batch of triple chocolate cookies all by myself (which I have never done) and seeing the outcome (and tasting them) made me so happy. I love learning new things, even the little facts you get on Cheesestrings interest me.

9. Do a good deed!
I know most of these are so basic and cliche but they are hugely effective. I'm not saying you have to adopt an animal or go grocery shopping for an elderly person to fee  happy. Just small things, like letting someone on the bus before you, offering your seat on the tube, complimenting someone, smiling at a stranger. Anything that makes somebody else's day that tiny bit better will surely have an effect on the way you feel too.

10. "Be the best version of yourself"
Lastly is a quote that will hopefully make you feel better within yourself. Whether it's taking an hour to get ready to just pop to the shop, or taking on some hours at your local charity shop. Do what makes you happy and be the best you can be within yourself.
You are one person, don't rely on others to make yourself happy, you are the key go your own happiness and it is ultimately YOU that decides what person you want to be.

Life in pictures - update!

(1) & (2) cocktail date night with Chris (3) flowers from the boyfriend (4) BBQ selfie

(5) Jason Manford in Bournemouth (6) drunken BBQ (7) our favourite place to eat at the beach - Harry Ramsden's (8) another selfie with Chris

(9) margaritas and martinis at work (10) my baby posing (11) yet again... (12) Bournemouth beach in the sun!

(13) drunken sister selfie (14) a very American lunch (15) where we had our 'very American lunch' (16) a margarita in a takeaway cup

I'm not an alcoholic I promise, I just enjoy cocktails lots, especially in this heat ;)

Hi July!

Ahh July, we are now in full swing of summer, well not so much here in the UK, it's hot but you never know what might happen with the weather here!

I love July though, I love summer in general! 

Tanned skin, picnics, floaty dresses, neon colours, and any excuse to throw a BBQ and drink cocktails :)

June was quite hectic and I didn't make enough time to blog as regularly, so I'm aiming to hopefully blog a lot more this month.

I have quite a busy month ahead, especially towards the end of the month, I have so many plans I'm already over-planned! Why does everybody make their plans on the same days?!

So hopefully some fun blogs will be heading your way soon :)

In the meantime, you'll find me in a summer dress on Hyde Park trying my best to catch some Sun and maybe eating ice cream!

Enjoy it while it's here! 

happy happy mood.

i don't know why really,
probably because i've not had to do anything all day.
i've lazed around the majority of the day and began to clean my room.
things are slowly getting ticked off my 'to do list' which also makes me very happy.
on monday it's my anniversary also! eeek. not that we're doing anything but i'm excited anyway :)
i shall fill you all in on whatever happens.

i'm waiting for sixth form to fully send off my university applications and i can't wait to find out if i've got in or not.
sixth form is a drag as always but i'm trying to get on with it so i can get out of there as soon as possible :D

also, it's NOVEMBER! which means only a month till DECEMBER!
where the hell has this year gone!?

i've literally done nothing this year, i feel like i've got really lazy also. definatley needs to change next year!
i'm being rather pessimistic today and i don't actually know why.
you can probably tell i'm in a good mood just by the way i'm babbling on about points that make no sense or have no relevance what so ever.

at six i'm off to work at the indian restaurant i used to work at, i really need the money and as i don't have actually have any proper work for 2 weeks i guess i need to.

anyway, not a lot has happened really, been spending plenty of time with dan and family as well as friends.
had far too many takeaways lately. went to see othello on tuesday which was good. applied to uni. that's about it really.
i'm a boring sod.

hope everybody is all good! :D

i'm ashamed of myself!

throughout june i've only blooged SEVEN times! (this is my eighth)

what the hell is wrong with me!?

i miss this place and i miss all the comments which i'm getting less of :( (probably as i never blog, but that's not the point! keep commenting anyway, i still read them) :)

well i have good news.

i am officially back with dan!

we have had such a rocky past few weeks with the stress of exams and everything but now we're finally at a very good stage and ready for summer so i'm very VERY happy right now.

tomorrow we're off camping with lots of people from sixth form which i'm excited for! my camera is dead though and i can't find my charger so i may not be able to report back with pictures but i'll try my best.

anyway, as i always tell you. i'll try and blog more!

thank you for still following me even though i sometimes am the worst blogger in the world!

things to be happy about...

• having SEVENTY followers!
• being paid and being able to buy a new dress
• being paid and going for an indian with daniel
• knowing that it's summer soon
• kate nash's new album (L)
• reduced bakery food including donuts and chocolate croissants
• things going perfectly with my boyfriend
• ribena
• getting the accessorize necklaces i wanted and lots of LUSH products

where would i be without you?

for making me smile when i'm down.
for sending me really long cute texts before bed, even after all this time.
for all the compliments and huge amounts of attention.
for all the hugs and kisses.

for being so darn PERFECT!

i love you!

xxxxxx

happy happy happy

after yet again, another perfect weekend with my favourite person in the whole world :)

saturday morning he came round mine, we had a lovely walk up town and i bought some lovely new comfy winter socks and some warmer shoes, i love winter as long as i'm warm, i also handed in my cv at wonderland, i think even though it'd be cold, i'd kinda enjoy working there as it wouldn't be the same thing each day, which i hate. who knows, i still like my job atm, but a bit of extra money never did any harm.

we then came back to mine, pigged out as per, ordered dominos (i have a voucher for 50% off, so we go all out quite a lot, then we watched paranormal activity, which i gotta admitt really freaked me out! i think i wanna see it at the cinema though, as the online version has a different ending apparantly.

new year is getting closer and closer!
i cannot believe it is almost 2010, it only feels like yesterday when i remember my dad getting me out of bed to watch the fireworks because it was year 2000, and that was almost 10 bleedin' years ago :
although i'm really excited as i always am for a new year, i'm also dreading that time of year as my boy is going to hong kong for 10 days over the new year, so i wont be spending another new year with him sadly :( however, i will be seeing him shortly after and i am very excited about spending yet another, even better year with him!

i always make new years resoultions, i never stick to them; well i try to, it usually works for about two weeks, then i forget as i seem to make too many and find it hard to keep track, but this year i'm making pretty simple, and fun ones. i haven't decided on them all, but here's the list so far..

1. try as many flavours as possible of ben and jerrys :)

2. try to spend less money on food and more on a new wardrobe (the clothes not the actual wardrobe)

3. make time for both friends and boyfriend as well as family.

4. complete all sixth form work and get a decent job!

that's all i can think of so far, although number four i don't think will be too easy to oblige. you never know though.


anyway, i just thought i'd post this as i'm in a very good mood and looking forward to what is coming up soon e.g. paramore, christmas, new years, john mayer etc.
although i do need to start christmas shopping very soon :
arghhhh!

welcome to jodie.

MY FIRST EVER BLOG!

hello, i'll probably find myself on here a lot, and i have decided now that i will stick to this and write in here about anything that is on my mind, well most things at least.


i will include as much as possible i guess, thoughts, dreams, ideas, memories, random thoughts and ideas, quotes i like, facts i've learnt, pictures maybe and just generally things that fascinate me or happen to be on my mind :)


i'm jodie btw, i hate using capital letters and my mood changes pretty quickly.


i'd like to post my first blog wishing my beautiful niece Keira (used a capital letter for that one) a happy second birthday tomorrow! (L) her mom, my sister, happens to be in hospital now, but is out tonight and i look forward to seeing them both tomorrow, so happy birthday angel xxx





i'll be on here often i'm sure, maybe even later as i'm new and have lots to say :)