Holiday Post 1: Vegas to the Grand Canyon

29th June 2019

It’s been just over two weeks since we got back from our holiday of a lifetime, and despite being desperate to share what we did and what we saw I’ve been struggling to put it in to words.

We started our adventure on the 31st of May when we headed up to The Hilton at Heathrow Terminal 5- we had booked a park and fly package which worked out brilliantly for us. It was only about £30 more to do it that way than it was to drive up in the early hours of the Saturday morning and park at Terminal 2 and it was a fantastic, luxury start to our holiday. Getting to Terminal 2 was a doddle in the morning and we were far more relaxed than if we’d had to leave our house at 3am!

We flew with United Airlines who were fantastic, we missed our connection to Las Vegas from Chicago due to a delay in London, but once we landed we found we only actually lost an hour and had been booked on to the next flight.

Landing in Las Vegas was insane- straight away you’re greeted with Slot Machines, and as first time visitors to the USA everything was larger than life. We were exhausted at this point and were desperate to get to our hotel. A short Uber ride later and we arrived at The Four Seasons where Bob had booked us a suite.

The Four Seasons is above the Mandalay Bay hotel and has it’s own private entrance, making it one of the few hotels on the strip where you don’t have to walk through a Casino. This was much welcomed after our first full day, and whilst we technically didn’t need a suite, it was a beautiful sanctuary after the heat and madness that is the strip!
The hotel is located at the far end of the strip (near the Luxor) making it a little quieter than some we saw. It’s so easy to get anywhere you want in Vegas- either using the monorail or Uber so we didn’t feel we had missed out by not being more central.

We only had two full days in Vegas, but it felt like enough. Evidently we took very few photos as we were just flat out overwhelmed by the sheer enormity of the place, and it felt like by whipping out the camera we were constantly in someone’s way.
Mostly we spent our days walking around various hotels and casinos, but we did take a short trip to the Las Vegas North Premium Outlets which we highly recommend for designer bargains. I picked up the Kate Spade bag and wallet you see above for a mere £103!

With so little time we didn’t get chance to really explore the culinary scene, and the restaurants within casinos were very pricey. We mostly stuck to chains- PF Changs was a hit, however we had an excellent meal in Citizens within the Mandalay Bay- the New York Strip steak and Fish Tacos were divine!

On our last morning in Vegas we picked up our rental car (highly recommend Sixt) and headed to our next destination- Flagstaff in Arizona.
Obviously we had to stop at the Hoover Dam on the way, although it was 40 degrees out so we limited our time there to an hour of very sweaty walking.
The Dam itself is a breathtaking sight, it’s entirely man made and mind-boggling to think about how it was achieved.

Driving in America was something we didn’t tire of the entire trip. 12 hours in the car was no big deal when there was so much to take in. We were blown away by the sheer amount of open space and just how much you can see!
The drive to Flagstaff was our first time on the road and the rules of the road took some getting used to. Once we settled in and got the music blaring we just enjoyed the crazy scenery.

We spent about four hours driving that day before we hit our home for the night- the Twin Arrows resort just outside of Flagstaff. We had already dined on the road – why is Chick-Fil-A not a thing in the UK? Their waffle fries are insane! We were exhausted at this point and after a brief explore turned in for the night ready to be up early the next day for a drive to see the Grand Canyon and then make the epic trek back down through Arizona and in to California.

The Grand Canyon is one of the most insane things I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s just breathtaking. We weren’t really prepared for how busy it would be though, and by the time we had parked and walk to the viewing point it was lunch time and heaving. We had to cut our visit short, with a ten hour drive ahead of us, but it was well worth the heat and the crowds. If we’d had more time in Vegas I think we’d definitely have done an organised trip to see more of it, but just the snippet we did see left us blow away.

We then hopped back in to our car and started driving. And driving, and driving. We spent much of the day going through Mojave desert which is somewhere I have wanted to see for the longest time. It was a balmy 44 degrees when the above photo was taken and I had just made the mistake of googling local wildlife (pro tip- don’t!)
After a USA sized bucket of icy cold drink it was back in the car and on to Ventura, California.

Stay tuned for the next installment!

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Your Lips But Better- Code Beautiful review and giveaway

26th June 2019

[post contains gifted items]

It’s been a little while since I last ran a giveaway on the blog so I’m delighted to be teaming up with Code Beautiful to review two of their products and offer the chance to win them to one of my readers.

Code Beautiful is a is a vegan-friendly beauty brand that focuses on the basics and getting them right. They kindly sent me out two of their products to try and share my thoughts on, and based on looks alone I was excited to test them out.

Lip Intense lip plumper*
Soft Smooth lip liner*

I instantly loved how sleek these products look. The lip plumper especially with it’s matte black packaging and graphic design.

I tried the Soft Smooth lip liner (£18) first- it’s a fantastic nude/pink colour that works with the majority of the lipsticks in my collection. One of it’s top selling points to me is the self sharpening technology making it perfect to keep in my handbag without worrying about it going blunt. This claims to be a long-lasting product and I can report it lives up to it’s claim. I got a good 8 hours out of this and during that time nothing budged. It also works as a lip plumper giving more definition without the need for needles. Pricey for a lip liner, I agree, but I can’t fault the product.

The Lip Intense lip plumper (£20) contains an exclusive blend of ingredients to help redefine your lips natural contours making them look fuller.
Again it’s a great suits all shade, and, plumping properties aside one of my favourite clear lipglosses I’ve tried for it’s longevity (a good few hours) and non-sticky formula.
In terms of plumping, don’t expect anything drastic (100% a good thing in my book). Instead of artificially inflated lips this actually makes your mouth look more hydrated with a longer term gentle plumping effect thanks to hyaluronic acid and the magic ingredient Hilurlip.
There is a gentle minty tingle when you apply this which I loved, and on the whole I was just hands down impressed with how much better my lips looked.

You can pick up both of these products on Amazon (linked above) and for your chance to win simply follow the steps below.

Win The Fabulous Lip Duo From Code Beautiful #17

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The Dr Botanicals Skin-care Miracle

23rd June 2019

[post contains gifted item]

We arrived home from America to find a cold, damp and dismal landscape awaiting us. I instantly missed the brightness and warmth of the Californian Sunshine and craved anything that could bring that back.

Happily for me there was just the thing sitting in my post pile- I’d been sent a brand new product from Dr Botanicals, their Lemon Superfood all-in-one Rescue Butter* (quite a mouthful) to try out.

My first impression was that this look like sunshine in a tube. I love the bold, bright packaging!

This is a multi-use product that promises to moisturise and treat skin problems and can be used literally anywhere on your body. It’s made from 96% natural ingredients, including lemongrass oil, coconut oil, almond oil, grapeseed oil and sea buckthorn fruit oil.

As you would expect, this has the most incredible lemony-fresh scent, I couldn’t help but smile as soon as I squeezed some out.

It’s a nice and thick consistency and rubs in well. I’ve mostly been using it as a hand treatment (as my left hand is subject of a lot of attention right now) and as a general all over soother when hay-fever itches get too much.

It’s the perfect size for keeping in my handbag, and despite my concerns that something so scented may actually irritate my skin ,I’m delighted to say it doesn’t.

All in all this is a fantastic all rounder product that costs a reasonable £14.90 (currently £9.90 on the Dr Botanicals website). You will also find it on many of the well known online beauty retailers.

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I’m Engaged!

16th June 2019

Just when I thought our dream holiday couldn’t get any more perfect (and rest assured, there are a few holiday re-cap posts in the works), Bob asked me to marry him in a secluded nook by the Lower Yosemite Fall Trail.

I didn’t hesitate in accepting. Tears (of joy) were shed.

It was the most perfect proposal, and a complete bolt out of the blue for me. He filled me on how he made it happen, which made some little bits of oour holiday suddenly make sense, but I honestly didn’t see this one coming (although it seems most of my friends and family had an inkling). He did such an amazing job pulling it off and for picking such a beautiful ring- you can’t see but it has a sapphire nestled under the diamond so I already have my “something blue”.

It happened almost ten days ago and it still feels very surreal, partly, I suspect to the four day jet-lag marathon we seem to be running.

I’m so excited to spend the rest of my life with this man.

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Why Can’t You Seem To Escape Your Financial Nightmare? *

14th June 2019

Very few things in this life cause stress and worry quite like financial problems. Tragically, millions of people are caught in the vicious cycle of paying off one creditor only to fall behind with another. If you are one of them, now is the time to finally regain control of the situation. To do this successfully, though, you must first learn to appreciate the reasons why you’re facing these issues in the first place.

Here are five of the most common reasons why you’re struggling to escape those nightmares, hopefully this will help you feel able to begin to tackle the problem sooner rather than later.

1| Hidden Fees

Organising your finances in relation to what you think you’re spending is a good starting point. However, analysing the full picture is essential if you want to plot your escape from debt. These hidden costs are draining your finances while several of them are avoidable. Reorganising yourself to ensure that you prevent those needless costs will make an immediate impact. Moreover, the improvements will follow you for many years to come.

2| Not Knowing Your Worth

Even if you adore your job, you should realise that the main motivation for working revolves around money. Unfortunately, bosses aren’t going to increase wages unless they need to, which is why millions are getting underpaid. Visit https://www.adzuna.co.uk/jobs/value-my-cv to gain a deeper insight into what you should be getting paid. Use this data to negotiate a pay rise. Or if that fails, don’t be afraid to start looking for a new job at another company.

3| Living In An Excessively Large House

Most people dream of living in the huge family home. Whether you’re a homeowner or a tenant, though, it’s important to be realistic about your needs. A big house costs more to heat, insure, and furnish. While it’s crucial to have enough space to live, downsizing to a more appropriate size can work wonders. As long as you learn to maximise the storage space, you should find that you will be just as happy. Besides, having more money will allow you to enjoy the home with greater results.

House, Keys, Key, The Door, Castle, The Background

Source Downsizing could be the key to happiness

4| Poor Consumer Decisions

It’s important to focus on maximising your revenue and organising your bills. Nonetheless, it’s equally crucial to make your money work harder when making big consumer decisions. Buying a car is a great example where looking at used cars and considering finance agreements can pay dividends. Visit CH Render to learn more. You could save thousands overall. Meanwhile, renting an outfit you’ll only wear once can save cash too.

5| Allowing Others To Hold You Back

We all want to help our loved ones on a financial front. This is all well and good when your finances are in good health, but you should never put yourself at financial danger to aid someone else. The harsh reality is that we all have our issues and responsibilities. If a friend cannot accept that you’re not in a position to help, perhaps they weren’t as close as you thought. It’s OK to put your needs first, especially when dealing with finances. Do not forget it.