Tag: lockdown

Happy Mothers Day 2021 πŸ’

I used to share snap shots of my life on her, things we had done to celebrate different occasions, fun days out, holidays, however, obviously this last year has been quite an unpresidented one.

I feel like I haven’t really shared much of what I have been doing because really we’ve all been doing the same haven’t we! Staying home, Locked down, on and off since Summer, working and just trying to stay safe.

But I thought to myself, why not share the celebrations we are still having, as wierd as they may seem in comparison to how it used to be, because it’s all we’ve got at the moment and we should still be grateful for what we can do during such a mad time.

Today is Mothers day and I have shared on here, for several years, our tradition of our Mothers Day, homemade afternoon tea.

This year was a very 2020/21 affair, via Skype, but it still involved Afternoon Tea so no complaints here.

We ordered the individual Afternoon Teas from a small local business (All Covid safe) and enjoyed them at our own homes via Skype.

They were delicious and it was nice to be able to continue the tradition, even if it was a little different to usual.

Most of our ‘Usuals’ seem a distant memory right now don’t they 😣 but, it’s also so important to embrace what we can do, communicate and spend time together however we can, whilst staying safe, because we can still stay in touch and stay connected, and we will all be back together properly one day.

It gets to everybody at some point, this wierd time we are a part of, but I’m so very conscious that there are people in such a worse situation than me, who have experienced some of the worst times during this pandemic.

If the worst part of this whole situation, for me is that I can only speak to people through a computer then I’ll be forever grateful. I know some people have it much worse.

It’s still ok to find it hard though and I hope you’ve had a little bit of light and joy come your way today!

β€’ Happy Mothers Day Everyone β€’

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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World Book Day 2021!

World Book Day snuck in just in time, before the first Lockdown last year, this year wasn’t to be… so, how does your lockdown World Book Day look??

It’s such a shame that we haven’t been able to fully immerse ourselves, as we usually would, at work but it was lovely seeing all the children sharing books, picking them out, listening to stories and writing.

I love watching children enjoying and getting involved with reading a book, it is one of my favourite parts of my job!

So, that was part of my lockdown World Book Day.

I’ve also been sharing a few of my book favourites over on my blogs Instagram (Roseannes Blog)

I also took the opportunity (via Skype πŸ˜₯) to read my nephews a few stories for World Book Day

We read ‘I need a new bum’ and ‘The Dinosaur that pooped the past’ some silly & fun books!!

And of course I’m going to make sure that I do one of my most favourite things tonight… cosy down with a good book and just relax and enjoy it.

Whatever you are doing, I really hope that you are getting a moment to read a page or two of a book and you are able to forget about anything else that is happening, just for a moment, whilst you do.

Happy World Book Day Everybody!

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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Autumn fun πŸπŸ‚πŸŽƒ

As I have said many times, Autumn/Winter are my favourite seasons!

I know its chilly but hey, its England, we were made for this weather.

Plus, it’s so pretty 😍

Theres nothing like a crisp autumn walk, frosty, leaves crunching under foot, trees fire bright against a pale sky, wrapped up in cosy jumpers, a hot beverage in hand.

Now tell me that isn’t a delight!?!

Here are some of the ways I’ve been enjoying the Autumn so far!

β€’ P U M P K I N β€’ P I C K I N G β€’

Me, my sister and my nephews had a great time pumpkin picking, at a local patch πŸŽƒ

We went early Oct to get the most out of our Pumpkins.

I’ve used them to dot around the lounge to create a cosy, autumn vibe. Some will of course be carved on Halloween.

β€’ A U T U M N β€’ W A L K S β€’

I definitely have a new appreciation for walks since the lockdowns and the pandemic in general.

Theres alot of enjoyment to be had in the fresh air, amongst the trees and pretty plants. I loved our sunny summer walks but in Autumn it’s an even more beautiful experience.

β€’ C O S Y β€’ R E A D S β€’

…because I could read anywhere… but, theres nothing better than in my little reading corner, in autumn and winter, because it just feels even more cosy.

β€’ H A L L O W E E N β€’ F U N β€’

I am a big horror film fan so I enjoy the spookiness of Halloween.

Lockdown no 2 was announced this Halloween (Horror!) So I wanted to make it even more fun, because if you can’t enjoy the little things, (even when stuck at home) during a global pandemic, when can you!?

Over the weekend I ended up watching eight different horror films!

β€’Nightmare on Elm St (New) β€’Friday the 13th β€’ Psycho (New) β€’Anabelle β€’ Freddy Vs Jason β€’Nightmare Before Christmas β€’IT (The Original) β€’Hocus Pocus

We like to carve a pumpkin each year, because its just some harmless seasonal fun, and since I had a few from our picking spree, I carved a few.

As well as the films and pumpkin carving, we also listened to some Halloween tuness (until the X-Files theme freaked me out 🀣😱) we had Spooky, mummy sausages and jacket potatoes for dinner (because why should kids have all the fun) and Halloween Hot chocolates to round off the evening.

And a spot of Halloween Animal Crossing!

It was really good fun and it made us forget about the pandemic a bit, a fun weekend/evening spent together.

β€’ P U M P K I N β€’ C A R V I N G β€’

Because you have to do one of these every year! Come on now.

‘Parry’ By me & Tim
My slight fail, HP lightening scar and glasses attempt
This was really flippin’ hard 🀣 Yes, I’m that cool.

… and yes I am indeed wearing a Bat onesie in this picture, my traditional Halloween costume/pumpkin carving outfit! πŸ¦‡

Don’t hate me cause you ain’t me!

β€’ A U T U M N β€’ N A T U R E β€’

β€’ H U N T β€’

As a fun little pre lockdown 2.0 activity with my nephews, we went on a Nature Hunt.

They love running about in the park and exploring and they enjoyed it even more than I thought they would (so did I!!)

β€’ B A K I N G β€’

I spent another lovely pre lockdown day with my niece 😊

What’s more cosy (and delicious) than baking!?!

We had a lovely time together β™‘

Gotta love a Unicorn Cupcake πŸ¦„πŸ§

& finally…

β€’ B O N F I R E β€’ N I G H T β€’

Again, due to Lockdown (thanks Rona!) we won’t be seeing people for a bit, but its timing did coincide with Bonfire Night and so we resurrected a Byford tradition, and got together to celebrate.

Outside, wrapped up, enjoying other peoples fireworks, sparklers, s’mores, soup, jackets, bangers, log burners and catching up!

A great evening! We missed this tradition last year as there was alot going on, so it was great to do it again.

It’s been a little while (probably the Summer hols) since I’ve done a little ‘life’ update and I love capturing memories on here. I think I forget to use my blog this way sometimes when I get carried away sharing about my hobbies.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Stay safe everyone β™‘

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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My Harry Potter Marathon βš‘

So, one good thing to come from being ‘locked down’ is that I can finally tick something off my bucket list, something I’ve wanted to do forever… a full Harry Potter marathon. All 8 films, back to back.

Lets do this.

26th April 2020 – 5.15am – 11.45pm

I popped my HP themed, comfy clothes on, made my self a HP themed breakfast 🀣 (Yet, I went all in!) And I made sure I had plenty of snacks for the duration, inc homemade flapjack πŸ‘ŒπŸ»

All set.

I made notes about my favourite parts of each film, as I watched, which I thought I would share here too.

Harry Potter and the Philosphers Stone

  • Its just so sweet and (mostly) innocent and magical.
  • Its our introduction to the magical world.
  • That shot of Hogwarts over the lake, as the first years sail across in the little boats. The music, the panorama, the first shot of that magical place. Don’t tell me it doesn’t choke you up, because I wont believe you.
  • Hagrid telling them everything he shouldn’t; ‘should not have said that’
  • Christmas at Hogwarts ❀
  • and just the general nostalgia it brings of when me and my twin sister used to play Harry Potter. A lot of it was focused on the first book. We made Daily Prophets and everything y’all! It was very serious.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

  • The Weasleys! And being introduced the magical yet so human and normal Burrow.
  • Dobby!
  • Ron freaking out because of the spiders; ‘Follow the spiders? Why couldn’t it be follow the butterflies?’
  • The blind Basilisk- poor boy. (Disclaimer, no I’m not a Slytherin I just feel bad for the corrupted, injured creature)

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

(Disclaimer: This is my least favourite film, sorry)

  • Remus Lupin & Sirius Black
  • The back story of the Marauders (Which is even better in the book… obv)
  • Beaky, the little sweatheart.
  • The time travel aspect is cool and clever.
  • HERMIONE PUNCHES MALFOY (See, told you I’m not a Slytherin)
  • But, as I said, not my favourite as the directorial change sees a lot of changes to this film that to me makes it stand out and not flow as well within the series, in terms of appearance and layout continuity, as others.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

(One of my absolute favourites and the first one me and my twin sister went to see on our won 7 + times #sorrynotsorry)

  • THE HAIR. If Harry Potter and the goblet of Fire was a Friends episode it would be; ‘The One where none had a haircut’.
  • The Tasks!
  • OH THE ANGST.
  • That scene… any avid HP fans will totally get the crazy, hilarity of this…

HP GOBLET OF FIRE

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

(Disclaimer…..)

The award for the worst character goes to…

HP

‘Hate is a strong word, but I really, really, really don’t like you.’ (I also hate you Umbridge)

  • Getting a little bit more of the Wizarding World history and back story via the Order of the Phoenix.
  • Seeing inside the Ministry of Magic for the first time. What at set! #tilegoals
  • Dumbledore’s (badass) Army
  • Fred and Georges epic, ‘in your face bitch’ style exit from Hogwarts.
  • My favourite quote courtesy of Kingsley Shacklebolt… ‘You may not like him, Minister, but you can’t deny, Dumbledore’s got style.’

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

  • Finding out about the horcruxes. These are one of my favourite bits if the book. I love the Gaunt family history toooo (Suddenly Chapter One of the Goblet of Fire makes perfect sense, AM I RIGHT!!)
  • Harry on Liquid luck is one of the best Harry Potter scenes, period.
  • Aragog’s funeral, classic; ‘ Here lies Aragog, King of the Arachnids… His body will decaayyyyyyyy but his spirit will live onnnnnnn.’

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Pt1 & Pt2

They are basically just one REALLY long film because they are the same book.

  • Part 2 is better than Part 1 (Just sayin’)
  • Shit gets REALLLL DARK.
  • My favourite parts of part one are them collecting the horcruxes.
  • My favourite part of part two is most of it.
  • I love Christmas at Godrics Hollow.
  • The Battle of Hogwarts… ‘I’ve always wanted to do that spell’ (Badass Maggie G)
  • ‘NOT MY DAUGHTER YOU BITCH.’
  • And then there’s… FRED. HEDWIG. DOBBY. and so many others 😦 
  • 19 years later. I can still remember seeing this film so clearly in the cinema and when this came on I wanted to cry because the final line of the book….’All was well’ is awesome, they did it! But also, its the end.Β 
  • I just have to mention… The Harry & Hermione dancing in the tent scene… MEGA CRINGE, CAN’T WATCH. COVERS EYES. FAST FORWARDS. Ok, lets move on.

[FYI: Fave books 1 &7 Fave Films 1, 7 and 4]

 

Yay! I finally got it done. I’m so chuffed I finally managed to do this. You’ve got to make the most of the situation you are in. Nailed it.

Do you agree with my notes? (Be nice) Or have you got anything to add?

What are your favourite moments from theΒ  film?

 

Until Next Time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

 

 

by Categories: books, harry potter, Life, UncategorizedTags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

My Lockdown Faves

Its day 38 of social distancing for me and another 3 weeks of lockdown has been announced.

That being so, I thought I would share a few of my ‘Lockdown’ faves that have been keeping me going and keeping me sane during this crazy time.

I’m not posting these to show off all the lovely things I’ve been doing, trust me there have been plenty of very unproductive days too.

Lets take a look!

 

Books, Books, Books

This is my ultimate, favourite hobby anyway but it is so nice to have the time to finally indulge in it. I do a reading challenge on my blog anyway and my aim is to read two books a month… I read two books last week… and I got so stuck into them I couldn’t put them down.

I know this is such a luxury, especially without having dependents, I have lot more time for me, but I’m taking full advantage because we are unlikely (fingers crossed) to be in a similar situation again.

Plus, I get alot of enjoyment out of immersing myself into stories, its a great way for me to relax, feel happy and less anxious about the current COVID situation.

 

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

I entirelly blame my friend Dan for this new obsession haha!

I was always a Harvest Moon gal, back in the day, and I loved playing that on my DS, so, whenever Animal crossing came out I never got it as they are quite similar games.

We’ve had a Switch for a little while and lockdown was the perfect time to get stuck into a game like Animal Crossing, and I have to say, I am really enjoying it. Its right up my street and its really getting me through the long days.

Plus, there’s a nice little community and me and my friend Dan have been playing together which is really nice when you are so disconnected (physically) from everybody at the moment.

 

TV

I have been re-watching Glee since it came onto Netflix in Oct/Nov time but I am very thankful for its familiarity and awesomeness right now. Its nice to be able to just pop it on and watch and enjoy something without having to think too much about it. The same goes for Friends too. I have also really been enjoying Disney + which we got at the start of lockdown, as well as Jamie’s ‘Keep calm and cook’ on program on channel 4. TV is probably one of the things I have been using the least but its great to have a few firm favourites to pop on if needed.

 

Learning Guitar

As part of my ‘Things I want to learn before I’m 30’Β I started to learn to play the guitar just before Christmas. I didn’t really have the time to properly do it then so it was a bit of a non starter, However, since I started social distancing I have been able to focus on it and have made lots of progress so far.

My brother in Law showed me a subscription website that does online guitar lessons (Fender Play) and it is really good. I feel like I’m learning so much and really understanding the basics, creating a good basis to really learn the guitar.

I’m trying to take my time and enjoy the learningΒ  aspect of it as I often get a bit impatient and skip ahead. I’ve got plenty of time anyway!!

I’ve enjoyed learning guitar tab in my last few lessons and have been learning the Harry Potter theme tune (Of course!) as well as nursery rhymes to play for my nephews.

 

Enjoying the little things

Although this situation is less than ideal it is nice that the extra time and the restrictions have given way to a appreciation of the little things. Taking 5 minutes to sit and be calm, sitting in the sunshine and fresh air, journaling, listening to a podcast, having a relaxing bath…

Β We are often rushing through our days soΒ being forced to slow down has really made me appreciate and enjoy them and they have become a great source of comfort and wellness in this strange time.

Yeah, we can do all of these things normally but maybe we will remember how they made us feel in lockdown and this will bring extra appreciation and comfort to them once we are back to ‘normal’ life.

I for one have enjoyed the sunshine and fresh air in particular… Being in a flat means we are stuck inside so I am really enjoying having the double doors ,in our lounge, the fresh air rolling in with the sunshine, at midday feels lovely.

Quizzes

At the start of the social distancing time it was my brother in laws birthday so we did a family skype quiz, which I wrote.

Since then we have made it our little Friday night activity, we take it in turns to write the quiz and the winners and/or losers choose a category for the nextΒ  weeks quiz.

This has been really fun and its so nice to see all the fam.

Me and my twin sister Sarah have also been doing some online quizzes that people have been posting online and Youtube. We have done a couple of Harry Potter ones, a Disney one and a Gavin & Stacey one.

I’ve always loved a quiz so I’m quite enjoying all of these being available.

 

Video chats

What would we do if this wasn’t an option!! These have been a god send.

Its so nice to still be able to see peoples faces and chat! We are so lucky that there are so many different platforms to do this on too, I mean before this I only ever did the odd Whatsapp video call! Now its all skype, Zoom, Facebook, Houseparty and Whatsapp! Its all going on, but it is definaltyΒ  the thing keeping me sane the most.

As I am a Learning support assistant in a Primary school (Reception) I have been doing phonics lessons for my nephews via Skype so that has been nice, I feel like I am helping them and I really miss my job so its nice to have that each morning.

 

Baking

I love baking so I am enjoying having a bit more time to just do some random baking if the fancy takes me. Usually its for an occasion so its more time pressured, so its nice to just be able to enjoy it.

Thank goodness there is lots of extra exercise content available otherwise Im sure my waistline wouldnt be enjoying it all haha.

So far I have made Two banana breads, double choc chip cookies, chocolate orange cookies and mini cheese scones! YUM!

Craft

I’ve always enjoyed crafting anway but obviously now that I have a bit of extra time I can do a few projects.

I have started making cards again recently and I am trying to make a big batch so that when I can actually start giving them/posting them again, I have a load ready to go.

I was thinking about co ordinating with mt birthday book to sort out how many I need for each month and then maybe make a few extras too.

I also bought a little scrapbooking project for me and Tim to do, on our wedding anniversary in June, as I pretty sure this will still be going on then!

I’m going to do a post on this so keep your eyes peeled for that. Its a really cute idea and I thought it would be nice to have something to do together. We have loads of random photos and bits and bobs from when we were dating.

We usually go away for our anniversary whether that be on the day or the nearest weekend so I thought it would be nice to still have something special to do, to mark the occasion.

 

Extra content

As I said , I am loving all the quizzes online, but also there is loads of extra content on online platforms too. PE with Joe Wicks, Cooking with Jamie Oliver, Instagram lives, video interviews, workouts, online parties, just loads of fun extra things that you can do whilst staying at home. Its been great!

Podcasts are amazng too. Any fellow Gleeks out there, check out Kevin & Jenna’s Showmance Podcast Glee Recap Edition. They are still putting them out remotely so these have been great to listen to each week.

What are your quarantine faves?

Stay safe and stay home!

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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Easter Weekend 2020 πŸ£

I hope you had a nice weekend, it probably wasn’t the weekend we all planned or thought it would be.

So, we actually have a few traditions that we usually do at Easter but obviously this years a bit different (for now)

But, lets not dwell on what would have/should have been… So, what did we do to make the Easter weekend fun and what traditions did we manage to uphold in lockdown?!

Board games are a must!

We opted for LOTR Monopoly as we haven’t played it for a while and Monopoly is the Queen of board games, so it’s the perfect choice.

Plus, this one is great as you move the one ring along so you can either play a manageable length game or go the long haul.

We also got together on Good Friday night (on Skype) as we have been since this began, to do our weekly quiz night so that was good to get together that way.

Easter treats!

We also made the good old Easter tradition that is chocolate crispy cakes.

We made individual ones using shredded wheat, chocolate and Terry’s choc oranges mini eggs.

The large one was cornflakes, chocolate, cut up Creme eggs & lots of sprinkles.

Delicious!

Easter Sunday Breakfast 🍽

As a family, on Easter Sunday we usually get together, exchange Easter eggs, do craft with the kids and have a chinese takeaway for dinner (I know, traditional Easter food πŸ˜‚ but that’s just what we do, my Nana started it!)

Our Asda Chinese ‘Takeaway’

It was nice to play games together, just me and Tim, watch some TV and have a few treats. (Well, quite a few treats but it’s one weekend aye!)

Plus, I had a nice video/call from my niece and nephews so that was lovely as I am missing them alot and I love to spoil them on special occasions like this. But, most of all I just love to give them a big hug and have some fun with them!

Let’s hope we’ll all be together again soon!

How did you get through the isolation Easter weekend?

Until next time,

Roseanne πŸ™‚

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