TGI Saturday.

This week has been a really tough week only made better by the thought of spending the whole weekend with Jonathan and the Pugs. I'm so glad it's Saturday!

I have been busy making lists of all the house things that I need and so far I have bought kitchen things like a bin, bin bags, pans, cooking tools and a kettle. I wanted something ridiculously silly like this:

Source

But I opted for a sensible one instead :)

I have been searching through some of my old favourites like Dotcomgiftshop, Bombay Duck and Emma Bridgewater. If any of you know of other similarly pretty interior websites do let me know! Not that I can afford to go mad, but it's nice to have a look.

What are you up to this weekend? After a quick trip to Meadowhall this morning we plan to take the dogs out on a nice long walk this afternoon, followed by an M&S 'Dine in for £10' tea, a lovely glass of wine, dvds and telly! Perfect.

Tomorrow we're going to play squash and then go to the cinema - followed by eating the leftover sweets that the trick of treaters didn't have!

Happy Saturday!

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GEARING UP FOR MY FUTURE TRAVELS

Today I got online and signed up for every "pay online" bill I could find in order to make my life paperless while on the road. Some of my bills will have to be paid on the phone with a credit card, some bills will be automatically deducted from my checking account, some bills I will have to phone in and get my balance and then mail the payment in and my home and autos will be paid in full for the year. I won't have to have my mail forwarded to me wherever I am in the country. So that takes care of that.

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Worry wart.

Source

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Project 365 - week five

29. Pug eye view

30. Struggling

 31. Lord Sugar

32. Out with the boy

33. Peekaboo
 

34. Alcohol

35. Rise n shine

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NEW SEAT COVERS

Received my beautiful blue seat covers today. A little darker than the website photos but really nice to cover that horrible brown. They cost $75.00.

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Home is where the heart is

I got some good news today.. remember I told you about the little house I had seen that was perfect. Well, I put my application in and I have waited patiently for almost a week. I chased and chased and chased and finally heard today that I have been accepted and I can move in whenever I like!

I am now very nervous and scared at the reality of getting my own place. It's all very grown up. But it's exciting at the same time. I have been googling home interiors all afternoon and eyeing up perfect pads on weheartit. It's going to take me a while to get it looking right because I have a list as long as my arm of things I need to buy, but I'll get there eventually! Who's coming round for a brew? :)

All photos - www.weheartit.com

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MBT giveaway winner

A couple of weeks ago I did an introductory post on the MBT footwear I had been sent to review which I'm still busy testing out, but I also held a giveaway for one lucky person to receive their own pair!

The lucky winner is Joy - please get in touch to give me your details! And well done :)

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Boots & LilylovesLola contest - final week! (NOW CLOSED)

This is the fourth and final week for my Boots contests and this is your last chance to win a hamper featuring all of the goodies in the picture below. Also, as this is the final week, there is an extra special prize of a Boots Smooth Skin machine worth almost £300 which I'm sure you will agree is a truly awesome prize! Keep on reading for further deets. Congratulations to une tasse for winning last week's hamper. Check your emails! :)

Don't forget to visit Boots and www.boots.com from 6th October to 2nd November 2010 as you can get 3 for 2 mix and match on skincare, haircare and indulgent bathing. Find out more at http://www.boots.com/en/Beauty/Autumn-Indulgence/

So, to win a hamper with the lovely products pictured above leave a comment on this blog post telling me what is at the top of your Christmas list because hey, it's nearly November! :) One entry per person, and you must live in the UK. The winner will be picked using random.org once the contest closes at midnight on Sunday 31 October 2010.

The winner of the Boots Smooth Skin machine will be picked using random.org using ALL of the comments from the Boots contest blog posts.

Good luck!! x

T&Cs:
- LilylovesLola is the promoter

- Employees of Boots UK Ltd, anyone associated with the promotion and members of their close family may not enter this competition.

- Winners will be drawn at random from all correct entries received before the closing date.

- Winners will be notified within 5 working days after the closing date.

- All details received will not be used for any Boots databases.

- Prizes will be delivered within 24 days of notification.

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My hair.

When I first started blogging back in June 2009 my hair was completely different to how it is now. It was kind of like this:

Short, bobbed and blonde with a bit of a side fringe. And I miss it dearly. I was blonde for about 6 years but my natural hair colour is a medium/dark brown. I took the plunge and went back to my roots, so to speak, at the beginning of this year as it was costing me a small fortune having my hair cut and coloured every month and quite frankly I could find better ways to use that money.

I have had my hair in all manner of ways over the past few years; 'pob'bed, bobbed, extensions, side fringe, full fringe, layers, inbetween, a variation of the above! And now it is just very long and very straight with a grown out full fringe that is slowly getting to a length where I can think about doing something with it.

It is fair to say it has grown a massive amount in the past year or so, and I have had lots of fun trying out treatments and such to keep it looking its best, such as this and this. I've also cut down on straightener use and, *hangs head in shame*, I have been going months and months between trims! I am well overdue for a hair cut and I think a bit of a tidy up on the ends and a side fringe would look nice and perhaps give it a bit more volume. Currently loving Zoe's amazing hair - it always looks so pretty!

I'll post some pictures as soon as I go for the chop!

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How.excited.am.I.

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Bad blogger.

I'm still alive! I've been a bad blogger of late. No regular Monday summaries. Sporadic updates. Lack of Lily and Lola photos! I have also been terribly rubbish at posting out contest prizes so I'm very very sorry if you're waiting for me to post something. I just need 5 minutes to sit down and get organised! It doesn't help that I'm still living out of boxes as I'm still at my parents house so I constantly feel disorganised. I can never find anything and I'm wearing the same 4 outfits in rotation because I don't know where anything else is!

I thought a little update would be nice and get me back in the swing of things!

House hunting
The hunt has been going on for weeks and weeks now and I have been so unlucky. I found 2 lovely little places and booked viewings only to be told on the day that the owners wanted to sell instead of renting them out. I have viewed a couple of places that haven't been decorated since 1974 and I have seen lovely places that were over my budget and just wouldn't be sensible.

But then last night I viewed a little house and it was perfect. I loved it instantly and even though it's at the top end of my budget I know I would compare everything else to that one so... this afternoon I put an application in and only time will tell if I've been successful! 

The boy
Things are still going incredibly well with my new boyfriend - he is perfect! I have to pinch myself sometimes because I can't believe I've been so lucky :) 

Lily and Lola
They're still as naughty as ever. Little terrors! 

Everything else
Work is still as manic as ever! I'm really busy and it's only going to get busier. I do enjoy it though - every day is different and it's never boring. The Apprentice is back on the telly and it's my favourite! My hair is in urgent need of a trim. I have a list as long as my arm for house things I need (I don't even have a kettle!) I fully intend to start my Christmas shopping next week to spread the cost a little bit.

I hope you all have fun plans for the weekend. Mine involves bowling, dinner with friends, Saturday night telly, shopping for birthday presents, playing squash, and plenty of kisses I should imagine! :)

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GPS

Purchased a Garmin-Nuvi GPS today and hope that it will always get me to where I'm going safely. It cost $200.00.

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GYPSY BOHO'S FIRST DECALS

I said I wasn't going to do it. I feared that it might hinder a future trade in or resale. However, today I put some really cool decals on my coach. I could no longer look at those black streaks across the body. It needed some color so now it has some.

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Boots & LilylovesLola contest - week three! (NOW CLOSED)

Thank you for all of your entries in week two's Boots/LilylovesLola contest - I'm back again with the same fabulous prize to win in week three. A big congrats to Chloe for winning last week's goodies - I have emailed you! :)

Don't forget to visit Boots and www.boots.com from 6th October to 2nd November 2010 as you can get 3 for 2 mix and match on skincare, haircare and indulgent bathing. Find out more at http://www.boots.com/en/Beauty/Autumn-Indulgence/

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment on this blog post telling me the best thing you've ever won. You must be a subscriber of LilylovesLola and live in the UK. One entry per person folks! This contest will close at midnight on Sunday 24 October 2010.

T&Cs:
- LilylovesLola is the promoter

- Employees of Boots UK Ltd, anyone associated with the promotion and members of their close family may not enter this competition.

- Winners will be drawn at random from all correct entries received before the closing date.

- Winners will be notified within 5 working days after the closing date.

- All details received will not be used for any Boots databases.

- Prizes will be delivered within 24 days of notification.

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ANOTHER REPAIR JOB

Today I replaced 6 tires that had dry rot - for a total of $1500.

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I am poorly. And fed up! I knew it was too good to be true managing to avoid all colds and germs since April. I have caught the dreaded lurgy and for the past 3 days I have struggled on like a trooper!

I am heading to bed in the hopes that I'll wake up in the morning feeling human again!

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ANOTHER MAJOR REPAIR

Yesterday I had the generator fixed at a cost of $535.06.

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ONE LESS THING TO WORRY ABOUT

Today I had the oil leak fixed at a cost of $200.

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Anti-Slavery Day Monday 18th October

If you thought slavery was abolished in the UK in 1834 you are very much mistaken! With more than 2.5 million people trafficked every year, human trafficking is the world's third-largest criminal industry after illegal drugs and guns, with a staggering 1.2 million children and young people are estimated to be trafficked each year and sexually abused.

The aim of Anti-Slavery Day is for people in the UK to acknowledge that despite the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade over 200 years ago men, women and children continue to be victims of the modern-day slavery. The day will help to raise awareness of the dangers of modern-day slavery, including human trafficking and exploitation, and encourage people to be proactive in the fight against it. ECPAT UK believes that Anti-Slavery Day provides a great opportunity to shine a light on the largely hidden yet brutal crime of human trafficking being committed against adults and children in the UK and overseas today.

The Body Shop launched a petition in July calling for the UK Government to offer safety and wellbeing to young victims of sex trafficking, in particular specifically calling for greater care and protection to child victims of trafficking by ensuring every child is provided with a guardian to look after them. The petition is part of the "Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People" campaign - if you haven't already signed up, please click here to sign the petition.

The Body Shop and ECPAT International believe that a key step towards stopping this modern-day slave trade is to raise public support and participation, which, in turn, encourages governments to take action and effect change.

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Boots & LilylovesLola contest - week two! (NOW CLOSED)

Thank you for all of your entries in last Monday's Boots/LilylovesLola contest - I wish more of you could win! Oh wait, actually, you can - because week two involves me giving away another hamper set featuring brands such as No7 (Protect & Perfect), Botanics and Ted Baker. Well done to Birmingham Lady for winning last week's goodies - I have emailed you! :)

As always Boots have some super generous special offers and treats for us as the cold weather creeps upon us! At Boots and on www.boots.com from 6th October to 2nd November 2010, you can get 3 for 2 mix and match on skincare, haircare and indulgent bathing. Find out more at http://www.boots.com/en/Beauty/Autumn-Indulgence/

One hamper is up for grabs again this week and each week of October, plus on the final week there is an ultimate prize of a Smooth Skin machine!

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment on this blog post telling me what your favourite beauty product of all time is, and don't forget to include your email address if it's not shown on your blog. You must live in the UK and be a subscriber of Lily loves Lola!

T&Cs:

- LilylovesLola is the promoter

- Employees of Boots UK Ltd, anyone associated with the promotion and members of their close family may not enter this competition.

- Winners will be drawn at random from all correct entries received before the closing date.

- Winners will be notified within 5 working days after the closing date.

- All details received will not be used for any Boots databases.

- Prizes will be delivered within 24 days of notification.

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Project 365 - week four

22. Banoffee cheesecake

23. Presents from Croatia

24. Tea break

25. Preparing for the weekend

26. Making Sangria

27. Sheffield Steelers

28. Yours truly

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Happy weekend

Afternoon all! I hope your week has been as wonderful as possible! The weather certainly isn't helping is it? I had to drive on the motorway last Sunday in the most torrential rain I have ever seen. I couldn't see a thing at one point. And lots of people were having bumps and accidents which doesn't help you to feel any safer!

My week has involved work / sleep / work / sleep / seeing the new boy / and a bit more work! It is so busy for me at the moment, but better to be busy than not! If you're not sure what I do I work in Human Resources and basically do a LOT. It's really varied and interesting but it can be quite testing on my multi-tasking skills sometimes. I sometimes feel there's not enough time in the day to do everything, but I do my best :) I find tea helps. And biscuits!

I have been massively slacking on the '5 good things' front which I usually do on a Monday. I always have 5 good things but I don't always have the time to post on a Monday but I promise to try harder from now on! *slaps wrist*

My 5 good things:

1. My new boy is just perfect. I am genuinely so happy. All.of.the.time. We're officially boyfriend/girlfriend now which is just tremendously exciting..

2. Trying new things. Today I am going to an ice hockey game! (I'm dreading it but hoping I will have some small clue as to what is going on!) I hope it's ok.. I once went to a football match but forgot my glasses so I literally could not see a thing and hated every minute of it. Hopefully today goes better!

3. I have rekindled my love of the 30 Day Shred! I'm getting back into trying to do it every day or every other day and I feel so much better already. It really is the best workout dvd I've tried. I didn't quite make it onto level 3 last time because level 2 killed me so much but I'm going to try and get there this time!

4. Christmas. Yes it's only October and yes I'm massively excited about it already.

5. House viewings! I'm viewing a little 1 bedroom cottage next week and I'm really excited about it. I'm still living with the rents but the house hunt continues and I shall keep you all updated!

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BRINGING HER HOME

On September 27th, I purchased a 26 foot 2008 Coachmen Freedom Express motorhome in Tallahassee, Florida (with 11,000 miles) and I drove her home to Houma, Louisiana the next day. I enjoy driving the unit but it is a bit daunting.

Once home from Florida, she began to have issues. The generator would not start, the rear end was leaking oil all over my driveway, the bathroom light would not work, the water heater leaked, and the door to the water fill flew off coming home. I didn't panic but began making phone calls to find a Ford dealer who would work on the RV. Our local dealer is not equiped to work on motorhomes so I looked for help in New Orleans, an hour away.

I did find a local Onan generator technician who put me on a list and said he would call me when he got caught up. I found a local mechanic who does work on large trucks and said he would fix the oil leak for me next week. I was informed by Tallahassee's Camping World that there was a Service Department in Hammond, Louisiana that would work on my RV. I called the number and was told that Ford had to do the chassis work and they could do other types of service for me. I really did not want to drive out of town with oil leaking so I will take it here locally.


The first mechanic I took the RV to said that the under side of the RV was rusted pretty bad like it had been in salt water. He also said that the tires were cracked and dry rotted. He referred me to a local tire center and the workers there looked at the tires and said the same thing. I got an estimate of $1500 for 6 new tires.

I will have to take it to New Orleans for an undercoating to prevent the spread of rust. So my beautiful Freedom Express sits idle in my driveway, waiting for the RV doctors to fix her so she can take me onto the open road in search of exciting adventures that await us. However, I'm not sure there will be trips any time soon as the cost of these repairs will be about $3,000. A pretty big hit to my wallet, especially after paying $51,000 for the unit and $4,000 in taxes for Florida and Louisiana.

I'm trying not to have a negative attitude about all this, but I do feel that I got a bad deal on this unit. I feel sure that the technicians at Camping World knew about the tires and the rust. The generator was indeed working when we left Florida, however I don't know when the oil leak began as I did not pay any attention to any spots on the cement parking lot at Camping World. I'll just bite the bullet and fix everything I can. Perhaps some time next year I will consider selling it or trading it in on a camper trailer that I can pull. Life is a learning experience.

I've learned that people who care about you will tell you about things that can present a danger to your wellbeing. If I could have had the mechanic I deal with here at home - with me in Florida, I probably would not have purchased that unit... upon his recommendations. We live and learn, don't we?

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Paris plans / kisses / working hard / tea drinking / sweet treats / sleep / Pugs / driving / traffic / life.

Photos lovingly borrowed from www.weheartit.com

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Boots & LilylovesLola contest - NOW CLOSED

I am really excited to be offering you lovely ladies the chance to win some amazing products - some of which I have tried and I just know you will love! LilylovesLola and Boots have teamed up to offer you a month's worth of treats to indulge during the long Autumn evenings. Each week we will be offering you the chance to win a hamper of Boots pampering products, great for a spa night in at home or some much needed 'me me me time'.

I adore Boots (I used to work for them after all!) because they always have such amazing special offers and discounts. At Boots and on www.boots.com from the 6 October 2010 to 2 November 2010, you can get 3 for 2 mix and match on hair care, 3 for 2 mix and match on skin and body (cheapest item free) and 3 for 2 mix and match on indulging products (exclusions apply, see in -store for details). Also pop on over to www.boots.com to find out more about the special offers and deals, and to enter their Autumn giveaway!

One hamper is up for grabs this week and each week of October, plus on the final week (25th October) we will be giving away a fantastic mega prize of a Boots Smooth Skin machine - worth a whopping £300! I'm sure you will agree that is an amazing prize, and having tried out this machine myself I can guarantee it is worth winning! So please read on for your chance to win some amazing products.

To enter this week's contest to win all of the lovely products in the picture above including No 7's Protect & Perfect Hand Cream (which sits proudly on my desk at work), Protect & Perfect Beauty Serum and Botanic's Indulgent Moisturising Body Balm simply leave a comment on this blog post before midnight on Sunday 10 October 2010 telling me why you would love to win these yummy products. Don't forget to leave your name and email address if it's not listed on your blog/dashboard anywhere as I'll need this to obtain your address!

1 entry per person please. You must be a subscriber to LilylovesLola and you must live in the UK.

T&Cs:

- LilylovesLola is the promoter

- Employees of Boots UK Ltd, anyone associated with the promotion and members of their close family may not enter this competition.

- Winners will be drawn at random from all correct entries received before the closing date.

- Winners will be notified within 5 working days after the closing date.

- All details received will not be used for any Boots databases.

- Prizes will be delivered within 24 days of notification.

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Project 365 - week three

15. I want this

16. Healthy

17. Hipstamatic

18. Upset

19. My babies

20. Flight of the Conchords

21. End of the world weather

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