Small Haul! -

~ Superdrug, The Works, Wilkinson's, Tesco ~ 

On Tuesday, there were a few things I needed to get (hardly none, of which, I had bought) and I was bored just sitting around the house all day so instead of studying for my upcoming exam like I should have been doing, and really what I should have been doing now, I went out instead and ended up spending literally all the money that I had - and I think I actually got quite a lot considering I didn't have much on me.

I'm going to start with the items I didn't have individual photos for, my new shower gels from Original Source! If you didn't already know, they're one of my favorite brands (vegan, environmentally friendly, tested on humans and made in the UK) so you can probably imagine my delight seeing these on sale for £1 each. They're not on the online version of Superdrug, so you can get them on their website here. I got the scents in "raspberry and cocoa" as well as "vanilla and raspberry" - yes, they do smell divine and yes I did indeed smell them as I typed that.

This strawberry lace hand sanitizer was indeed an impulse buy, mostly because it was on sale in the store for 99p but also because I had never seen a good smelling hand gel before - it might compel me to actually use it, you never know! I'm just not a huge fan of these and prefer washing with soap and water. Plus, it's pink! It smells like candy mixed with alcohol and some may hate that kind of smell, but I personally adore it.

 You may have heard me talk about this in a previous blog post about how I needed a new bottle and so I got it on sale at Superdrug for under £2. They usually do smell funky anyway, but when I compare how much better this bottle smells to my previous bottle, I can see that there was certainly something up with that! This one is in rich instead of light so I might do a first impressions post on how well I thought it did and how much it compared to my last bottle of Simple.

Kind of an impulse buy, but kind of not. I have gone into this store a lot, usually with my mother, and I constantly find myself sampling the lip balms from MUA. They're only £2 so even if they don't work very well, it wouldn't be a huge loss. I got the Sweet Sheen lip balm in 'coral reef'. Also, does anyone else have way too many lip balms that they don't even use? I know I do.

My next buy were these seeds from Wilkinson's, which...I don't know if they'll be amazing quality, because they are very, very cheap but if they're not, it's not a huge loss because next time I get some money, I will be buying some more good quality seeds I hope (I found a couple of cat related seeds, so even though they're £2.05 each...cats. My cat would probably poop on them anyway but it's worth a try). They were 90p, and then I bought a tray of fifteen cells for £1 which you can find here for a slightly different colour.

Probably my personal favourite of the haul was finding these books in The Works. It was £7 for all of them, can you believe that? Because it's a discount store, it's unlikely that you will be able to find them online but Amazon will be sure to have them!

You may know, you may not know, but I am a huge fan of anything Alice in Wonderland relating, I also really love zombies - yep, these books sound perfect! A couple friends of mine on Goodreads recently read these books, actually, and therefore my fear that these books will not live up to their expectations isn't as strong as it was. Book one is "Alice in Zombieland" (with that really cool quote from the original underneath, "Off with their heads"!), book two is "Alice through the zombie glass" (Curiouser and curiouser!), and then the what I think is the final one, book three is "The Queen of Zombie Hearts" (We're all mad here), by Gena Showalter. 

 

Then, the books I adored in my younger teenage years, the diaries of Georgia Nicoleson (sorry if I spelt that wrong)! I got "...then he ate my boy entrancers" and "...and that's when they fell off in my hand" by Louise Renninson!

 

My mother got me the water bottle from a local store in town for £10, but because they were buy one get one free, my sister also has one in green. I already have a cheap plastic bottle at home, but the problem with them is that I keep hearing about how re-using them is bad for you and I still haven't made my mind on whether I believe that or not, but this water bottle was really cool so why not. I'm using it today and I like it a lot. You don't have to tilt the bottle to get water out, because of the handy straw, and when you shut the bit at the top, it doesn't spill out like I thought it would. Unfortunately, you can't have much water in it when you add the ice pack but hey, it's not too hard to refill the bottle anyway.

I didn't buy this yesterday, I bought it about two weeks ago and I am over halfway through (if you want to see my progress and my current thoughts on this book, you can do so here, and yes I am shamelessly promoting) for about £4 from Tesco. It's a pretty good book so far, so if you haven't read it and you were thinking about it, go right ahead, you won't regret it.

Lastly, I thought I would show you some unhealthy snacks I bought. If you're thinking of doing a British taste test soon, by the way, the crisps are Monster Munch in roast beef flavor, and one of those chocolate bars is called Dairy Milk Oreo, the other one is a toffee crisp. The Tesco own probably isn't available online and the Reese's are obviously American and not British - which, by the way, I am very exited about. £3 for them is quite expensive but they are delicious. 

Anyway, that's all I got, sorry it was super long, I think my next post is going to be the second half of my nail polish collection or a review on the book I am currently reading, so thank you for reading and I'll see you next time!

Couples Tag

When was the first time you became aware of me?

Loz - I was in a Skype call with a bunch of his friends and they said "Let's add Lanxs (his nickname) to the call" and they all agreed, and a couple went to bother him so he would say yes and that's when I knew he existed.

Austin- When I joined the call and I heard two things. One, her friend with a high-pitched voice eugh, and the other was a really sweet and soft voice, followed up by her mother's horrific roar.

Do you remember the first thing we said to one another?

Loz - "I like your voice" 

Austin- That's a really cool name! Is your name actually Loz?

What was your first impression of me? Did you ever dislike me?

Loz - Yes, when he started talking about his ex-girlfriend in the group call until I realized "Wait, she was an asshole, so oh well". I thought he was really nice, he'd talk to me when I was being quiet and he would message me every night and he was super awesome. Now he's just a loser :p

Austin- Not dislike, but I was very unsure of you, this answers both questions. I was just unsure if you were a person I could trust, which is saying something because I don't trust most people.

What’s your favorite memory of me?

Loz - My memory is terrible! Probably when we met two years ago and we said we were going to create a Lanxs' condom factory and have neon light one's and flashing one's (giggle) and awesome flavoured one's and it was an eventful conversation. 

Austin- One of our late nights where we NEVER stopped talking. We talked about the condom factory that night too, coincidentally.

What do you like best about me?

Loz - Kindness and sense of humour. 

Austin- She can always make me happy even when I feel the worst ever.

What is your favorite way of spending time with me?

Loz - Well, we're long distance. I'm in the UK and Austin lives in Ohio in America so our resources are limited. We like to play games together and watch really bad movies so we can make fun of them on Skype, I think. 

Austin- Agreed, video games and moves! Mostly video games on my part. I like them a bit too much at times.

If you were asked to give yourself a nickname, what would it be?

Loz - Technically already did, Loz was a name I created for myself after my sister's friend Stacy called me that and I really liked it, although I didn't officially call myself for a really long time afterwards. 

Austin- Lord Austin IV. Cause it sounds fancy.

If you were asked to give me a nickname, what would it be?

Loz - I recently have called him Mooshroom, the weird cows that live on mushroom biomes in Minecraft. 

Austin- I call her buttmunch and Missy Moo Moo.

Would you mind if your partner making more money than you?

 Loz - I'm going to be 100% honest here and say it would. Right now, I have no job and he does so it doesn't bother me now but if we were doing a really similar job or he worked less then I did (both in hours and physically/mentally less challenging), then yes it would bother me. 

Austin- Frankly, if she made more money than me, it'd be deserved more money, I have no issues with her making more, but then again, it's not like her and I are in the same situation when it comes to money making.

If you were stranded on an island and allowed one luxury item, what would it be?

Loz - What counts as a luxury? If you are including standard things that are nice to have but you don't need them to survive, then period pads, obviously. A lifetime supply because I don't want to walk around with blood everywhere (sorry xP). 

Austin- Video games, with a way to play them online and stuff.

What’s the first thing you would do if you won $50,000?

Loz - I would probably save it up so it can go towards the time when I move out with into a proper house or flat instead of renting. 

Austin- Small nice house, visiting Loz. V I D E O   G A M E S, and saving most of it to be honest.

What would you do if you had one day left to live?
 
Loz - I would take out a loan to try and meet Austin for the first time and tell him I loved him, spend time with dogs and eat all the food!

Austin- Same, I wouldn't tell anyone, and surprise visit her, then, with the rest of my time, eat RAW COOKIE DOUGH BECAUSE SCREW YOU WARNING LABELS.

What is your favorite memory of dating me?

Loz - When we played games together on Minecraft. 

Austin- All the nights we spent together and yes, playing Minecraft! Hours and hours on end.

What food reminds you of me?

Loz - Does ranch count as a food? That always reminds me of him. 

Austin- Chocolate and now Cupcakes.

When was the last time you thought about me in a positive way?

Loz - This morning, he was asleep and I was wondering when he was going to wake up. 

Austin- About three seconds ago, thinking about how beautiful you are.

What is your favorite thing that I do for you?

Loz - He stays up for me at night so that when I have nightmares or that freaky sleep paralysis thing or something, he's there to make me feel better. I'm also terrified of the dark. 

Austin- She always knows just how to make me feel better!

What movie reminds you of us?

Loz - "Coraline", I don't know why.

Austin- Harry Potter, becuase how I made fun of everything ever, but still liked it.

What’s my best physical feature?

Loz - His nose, I think, I like his nose. Or his eyes. 

Austin- Facial? L I P S

Do you like kissing or hugging more?

Loz - Hugging, probably.

Austin- I would have to guess hugging, because it leads to cuddles in bed.

If you got sick, do you think I would be there to care for you?

Loz - I don't know, I like to think he would.

Austin- I know she would! Sadly for her, though.

What is something I could do to make you trust me even more?

Loz - In that situation, nothing, because I don't trust easily. 

Austin- You could always morph into me I guess?

When do you feel the most protected and taken care of?

Loz - Most of the time. :p

Austin- I know EXACTLY what you meant by that! Anyways, nearly all the time too. You... butt!

Thanks for reading, I tag all of you. 

This was pre-written from a short while ago, so I am sorry for any mistakes, I don't have much time to proof-read, and also sorry about the differences in fonts, I tried to fix that but it springs back to the way it is now!

Book Review: The Worst Thing About My Sister by Jacqueline Wilson. (contains spoilers)

Yes, I know, this is a child's book and I'm an eighteen year old adult but hey, things meant for children often help me with my extreme anxiety so I thought I would give this book a go. In case you are considering getting this for your niece/nephew, daughter/son, etc, then please do read on! 

THE WORST THING ABOUT MY SISTER. 

 

1. She's super-duper girlie and prissy and pink. YUCK! 

2. She always tells on me when we have a fight. 

3. She stole my special night with Dad, even though everyone knows Toy Story 3 and chips are MY favourites. 

4. She laughs at my animals - even though she can't go to sleep without her Baba! 

5 - She NEVER sticks up for me. 

 

 It's quite unusual, I feel, for Wilson to write about a book where siblings are not the best of friends and instead are written as the worst enemies. This is about a girl called Marty, who I'm guessing is about nine or ten, and her older sister, Melissa, who I'm guessing is twelve although they appear to go to the same school, so maybe younger, it was never specified. When Marty attends a party in her mothers' homemade dress, she becomes popular meaning she needs a room for where she sows and keeps the dresses - Marty loses her Marty Den and moves in with Melissa.

Speaking of their mother, she was the worst kind of person I would ever have the misfortune to meet. She often does something I am strongly against, and that's gender role-ing. She stays firm on the idea that girls should wear dresses, smell of roses and sweets and be covered in pink, and that girls have to be a good role model for everyone else and always behave well and not act like themselves just to please other people and that girls can't have a job that is not traditional...she also cared way too much about what other people thought of her and that was often more important then her own daughters' feelings. Boys, though, they could do whatever they wanted. Even though people like her exist in the universe, I like to think they're a rare kind of parent and it made her situation worse then what it could have been.

It also hits other topics like bullying as well as feminism, and how you should tackle them. Like Wilson, I am a firm believer in that you can't ignore people who hurt you or make you feel like less of a person or make your life much harder then it should be. Marty, instead of ignoring them like most people would tell you to do, threw eggs at her bullies (don't worry, it's followed by a rant by how this is dangerous and harmful but it has a good message). 

It also says that even though the relationship with your sister is a rough one, you wouldn't be without them as the harsh ending had explained. 

As always, Wilson has written yet another (although short) quality book that I recommend if you wanted to buy for a child you know or even yourself if you're anything like me and find a guilty pleasure in enjoying these kinds of things. I'll give this a five out of five as I can't really fault it, and I'll see you next time!

Awesome People #1 - Stacy Hinojosa!

Stacy Hinojosa is not a woman I have actually met, but I thought I would include her in my awesome people series anyway. Stacy is a gaming YouTuber - most popular for The Cube, Dogcraft and the work she has done with Joey - known as StacyPlays, StacyVlogs or @StacySays. 

The reason why she's awesome? Firstly, she's unique. She calls us "Potato Flakes" because of where she used to live in Idaho, the factory that made her favorite chocolate milk uses potato flakes to thicken the mixture. In her Cube series, she let the viewers have a say in some of the things that she did, and in Dogcraft she shows viewers the fanart people have drawn for her, and names dogs after people who she has taken a particular shine to. My favourite thing about her is her excitement and how much work she puts into every video she uploads.

We're also very similar! We both love dogs, books, chocolate milk, animals in general, Minecraft, we both screw up a lot despite our good intentions, we're also both a little bit chubby! Similar things have also happened in both out lives and even though I'm eighteen and she's thirty-three, she's the YouTuber who I feel the most "connection" with. 

I was in England at the same time she was and I never got the chance to meet her, which I'm a little sad about but hey social anxiety would have never let me meet her anyway! 

I uploaded this photo: 

And she favourited and replied to me!!!!: 

So, I guess that was second best. She also has two very adorable dogs, Page and Molly! Watching her videos have actually helped my anxiety and depression, she just gives me a sense of comfort and happiness and never really talks about anything that makes me feel worse (that topic is for an autism talk post...), so for that, I thank her for all the work she puts into uploading twice a day almost everyday.

Stacy and her favourite person in a #typicalstacy moment

I got here!

Hello! So...that car ride was an eventful one. We left at 11am. We were meant to leave at ten, but with a four year old, that took longer then expected. We stopped at Curries first to get an IPad charger because mine annoyingly broke, then we travelled about two and a half hours before needing to stop at Subway. We travelled another two/three hours before my sister wanted a Burger King and we finally got there at about 7pm. 

If you don't know, England travelling is about a four hour car journey. It took twice the time it was supposed to take, and the time that it usually takes. Because I have a cold, I can't sleep - I can never sleep when I have a cold. Last night was not a fun one! 

Today we have done nothing because my sister said she wanted to stay in and do work but I would really love to go out so I'll see about that later. 

This April, I want to do something a bit different. The photo a day challenge! The first post will be up later today but here's the photo I got from Facebook (not the greatest photo, but it's the idea that counts) 

Also, my mother got me these leggings from The Factory Shop for £10 and they have pockets and are SO comfortable, a lot more girly to what I am used to wearing but change is good! 

I will see you soon for my first POD (photo of the day) post ... Thank you for reading!