bee's photobomb: #xmasbloggermeet

Lyzi's cute little squashed face / Kim the drunk, haha! / Myself and Abby looking like absolute stunners / Annoying Lyzi is one of my favourite past times / 1 cubicle 2 toilets = mind blown! / Stunners fo lyf. Having fun with Abby / Forget about these drunk snaps on my camera - oh, the hilarity! / Lipsticks!

What an absolute whirlwind! I keep getting sweeps of fresh nostalgia *hello oxymoron* every time I look at snaps from the #xmasbloggermeet. It was definitely one of those nights that was so insanely surreal that it makes you question whether or not it truly happened! Although, that may be down to the consumption of a bottle of fruit cider followed by numerous cocktails and a glass of wine....Woops!!

*courtesy of MyStreetChic

The day started out pretty horrendously when my bank would only let me withdraw £10 from my account meaning I've spent over 200 smackeroonies on Christmas presents (BIG FAT FML!). This was then followed by a missed train, much to mine and Sammy's dismay, which was then followed by a wait in the rain soaked car park! We eventually got there after about a million rants on my behalf (sorry Sammy!) and took off to Park Street's Nandos for some much needed chicken. Honestly, we were starved! We were greeted by the ever lovely Lyzi, Leanne, Gemma and Vicky and indulged in a good natter over our food. I'd met the majority before but it was lovely to see Vicky as I'd read her blog for a rather long time. I wish I'd got the chance to natter to her more but surprisingly, I am actually quite shy when it comes to new people! Saying that, naturally, I spoke too much and attempted to fill any silence that tried to creep up on the table! I need some sort of therapy, granted. A quick cuddle with the gorgeous and immensely awesome Ayden (I LOVE YOU!) and we were headed to the hotel for a chill out sesh with our alcohol stash before getting ready for the night ahead.

*courtesy of JK.

It was awesome to finally meet Abby of Abbbbbzwaaa fame and to meet the beautiful Steph who is as lovely as she seems! We all sat about in our hotel room chatting about various things and we also messed about creating quite a hilarious vlog where I perfectly impersonated my bed partner for the evening, Lyzi. Honestly, I don't think I will ever stop loving that girl. She is a gem. All of the girls looked bloody gorgeous in their party gear and definitely made me want to just lock the door and weep! Definitely not the place to bring your insecurities, haha. After god knows how many mirror minutes we headed to Java in search of other bloggers and the MyStreetChic angels! I was surprised at just how many people were there and it was so awesome to look around a room and see so many faces that you're used to seeing. Admittedly, I didn't talk to as many new people as I could because I was mega scared :/ I get really worried that I come off a little mental to start with so I just mulled around hoping people would come up to me! I did, however, grab JK for a chat because I did feel as if it was my duty to save one of the few males from a sea of unruly women, haha. It was also lovely to relieve Cherry of her duties for a moment to hijack MyStreetChic's twitter and to chat to her. She only lives down the road from me so hopefully I'll be able to meet up with her again for a longer discussion in the new year. After being grabbed for a horrendously cringe worthy chat (on my behalf) with the spectacular Gina it was time to head onto the dancefloor for a fashion show from Boohoo.com. 

*photos above courtesy of Steph - don't you think the second one looks like the cover of a blogger's Christmas single?

 I managed to chat to Emma for a little bit who was looking gorgeous in her dress! I wish we'd been able to natter more but the fashion show began! Hopefully, I'll be able to meet her again at some point. It was bloody lovely to get a long natter in with the gorgeous Ayden. I love that girl so bloody much! Honestly, if they ever decide to clone humans, they need to clone her first so that I can have my very own Ayden 24/7. She is a diamond. The fashion show showcased a selection of different looks and there were a few pieces in there that I definitely wouldn't have minded to find in my wardrobe. Massive congrats to Lyzihead for winning her flowers. She puts clothes on nearly seven days a week so she truly deserved that award. (I'm only messing by the way). The event soon came to an end (why does time fly when you're having fun?!) so we headed back to the hotel with a poorly Ayden for a few hours of hotel chats. I sat in the bathroom looking after my wee nipper Ay because she was rather poorly - we now know it was food poisoning!! Admittedly, I was a little sneaky because I used her state to sit and cuddle her for a long time - haha. Taking advantage of a situation? Yes, slightly. The night ended with a mass of cheesy chips consumed in the bath (I LOVE YOU LYZI), hotel room chats, a confused self, double bed fun, a rather drunken Kim and a sick Abby. 

*courtesy of MyStreetChic

MyStreetChic, boohoo.com, all the companies that helped, that man that bought us a bottle of wine and to all of the bloggers I had the pleasure of messing about with for a couple of days. You girls are amazing! I'm spending the next couple of days over at Luke's to escape the last bit of wrapping that I need to complete before that Christmas thing or something or nothing. Hope you're all well! 

live fast die fun #3: bee photographs the animal kingdom

'Live Fast Die Fun' is a weekly feature that sees me tackling a new skill/re-visiting old ones in order to broaden my horizons and experience lots of different things.This feature could take me anywhere, from culinary attempts to trying my hands at languages to just about anything! This week sees me at one with nature and the wildlife around me! I'll be rating my experience at the end of the post and discussing the ins and outs of this skill! If you've got any ideas for future posts then please feel free to comment. Let me know what you think!

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I am in no way claiming to be a photographer of any sort. In fact, I'm far from it. However, I've always been drawn to finishing off film with a few snaps of the local wildlife/my four legged furry feline friends. Hello 10 samey shots of the cat at the end of the disposable camera! The summer welcomes a whole new load of colourful characters coming out to play so I thought I'd take on the role of wildlife paparazzi and photograph them whilst they tried, and albeit failed, to go about their day in peace. I'm extremely lucky to live somewhere that is surrounded by vast amounts of countryside so I headed off with camera, keen eye and boyfriend in tow in search of some photogenic critters. Naturally, David Attenborough was narrating the journey in the depths of my mind. All the photographs you see in this post are mine and, therefore, I'd appreciate it if you notified me if you'd like to use them anywhere. 

(collection of some old wildlife photos I've taken!)

Like I said already, I'm no expert. I don't think that in order to learn a new skill you have to go in there knee deep in knowledge and equipped with expensive resources. With this in mind, my lowly point and shoot seemed to be all I needed, well, and some wildlife of course. There's that age old saying to 'never work with animals' and I can kind of understand why. The more awkward of the kingdom, hello Mr Butterfly, will make you work for your photograph. They watch you gleefully as you hop around the meadow in pursuit of them. Therefore, I'd remind any budding amateur wildlife photogs to attempt it with a shit load of patience. Whilst some wildlife like the limelight whilst you invade their dinner time, others don't. With this sentiment firmly in mind,  my second tip is to respect your subject. No one wants to come away with battle scars! If your subject starts grunting/mooing *etc* loudly...that's your time to run! You should also abuse that macro setting.

(I'm pretty taken by the Spotted Burnet Moths that I found)

It seems the insect world were the only ones inquisitive enough to brave the silly June weather and pose for some photographs. This was slightly disappointing because the spot we ventured to is renowned for its sightings of owls, otters, voles and birds. I guess that's the exciting thing about wildlife/nature photography; you never know what you'll stumble upon on a particular day! Since I first came across the Six Spot Burnet Moth the other week *pictured above* I've become pretty taken by them. I was gutted when my camera deleted all the photographs I had of them so I deliberately visited the flowers they frequent in order to capture a few new shots of them. They're extremely obedient when it comes to posing but I suppose that's only because I caught them during feeding time! I love their little curled tongues and gorgeous polka dots. They've definitely got some catwalk credentials! Luke and I have a habit of seeing things for the first time and believing they're rare creatures. We thought the exact same thing about these little buggers and now we see them everywhere.

(Some scary creature perched on a flower | Big juicy grasshoppers adorned the oversized daisies)

Luke was running around like a dog on heat trying to catch little grasshoppers in his hands; I didn't have the heart to tell him I'd caught a dozen on them hanging on these gorgeous large daisies. I think I might have to start reading up on the correlation between certain plants and animals in order to catch them. Oh god, what am I fast becoming?! I'm not entirely sure what the bug in the top photograph is but it looked like it could kick my ass so I didn't bother it for long! I've definitely fallen head over heels in love with photographing the critters of the animal kingdom so I definitely don't think this is the last you'll see of my wildlife paparazzi attempts. Don't worry though, little Viva won't be turning into some sort of Springwatch supplement! I don't own the anorak for that. I'm definitely going to make a habit of photographing the little things around me for the rest of my days. 

(Some sort of duck Mother's Union meeting | Pretty bug - think it might be Harlequin Ladybird larva?!)

There you have it! I'm off to go for an afternoon of shopping with my Mamabear. Have an awesome rest of the week and I'll see you on Friday. By the way, it was Little Viva's first birthday yesterday. She celebrated with a well earned rest! P.S I'm creating the ultimate holiday playlist at the moment and I need your music ideas. Please leave them in a comment ;)

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difficulty rating: 50% This depends on the particular animal and their behaviour on the day. Some will sit pretty for you - others will fly off into the distance laughing at your naivety.
laughter level: 70% Animals really do the funniest things sometimes.
encouraged a happy head?
recommended? Always! Just remember to respect the animal's private space. No one likes to have it invaded - especially cattle!

h is for happy: week 41

Good afternoon ladies and gents! Welcome to another 'H is for Happy' post - the series that showcases all the things in life that put a grin on my face. I'm spending the day wishing for brighter weather so that I can re-shoot a load of photos that I took of some pretty little moths. Yes, that's what my life has become! There's something so much nicer about photographing animals. They're less...posey. They don't have time to organise the gap in their fringe or smile widely for the camera; I think that makes for a fresher photograph. Once my holiday is out of the way (not long to go now folks!) I'm going to start saving for better cameras and for some film for my Mini Diana. I've now documented 200 things that make me happy! When I started this feature, I had no idea how long I would do it for. However, I've realised that there's really no need to put a use by date on it. It'll run its course when it wants to, but, whilst there's still multiple things that make me happy, I'll be posting these weekly! I have no idea what the rest of the week holds in store for me so I think it's going to be a case of waking up and deciding what to occupy my mind with! I quite like that about my lifestyle. I have the ability to make each day different. I'll see you soon! P.S Someone turns one year old tomorrow ;)

196-200;

 all images courtesy of: weheartit unless otherwise linked

By writing my blog address on the images I am in NO way taking credit for them or the idea of this list. All credit goes to their respective authors. 

It's merely to protect my little 'H is for Happy' series.