WHAT I WORE DURING WEDDING SEASON

I was reflecting back on this summer and I think it has been a very eventful summer despite having a newborn baby! I've been very lucky that I got to attend not one but THREE weddings, this makes me very happy because the last wedding I went to believe it or not was SIX years ago. As a result of my reflection I've put together some of the outfits I wore... The third wedding I was extremely late and couldn't get a picture (sorry) so I've added loads of pictures of the other outfits instead. 

   Dress: Pretty Little Thing

     Shoes: New Look             

 Headpiece: Necklace       

Second wedding outfit below 

   Dress : Pretty Little Thing

       Slippers: Ghana                

Hair: Peckham Hair Shop 

The second wedding took place at the registry so it was very casual which I loved because I didn't really fancy wearing heels. This off-shoulder dress did the trick, I really loved this dress and I would wear again perhaps with trainers. 

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IN A WORLD FULL OF KARDASHIANS BE AN ALICIA KEYS :)

Hi friends, recently I've been loving my face without make-up and my hair without weave. We live in a society were people are afraid to come out without masking their faces with make up and hiding their hair underneath weave, sometimes what we have to remember is NATURAL is the best. It allows your face to breath and your hair to grow accordingly. I was watching an Alicia Keys interview were she encouraged the anchors to remove their make-up and it was great because like she said it allows you to get to know yourself better.

Also, since having my daughter I want to set an example for her that it is good to love how you naturally look after all this is the face God blessed us with. 'Be the change you want to see in the world' and that's exactly what I plan to do with my blogging platform. Please let me know what you think about this blog post in the comments xo

Thank you for reading my blog post... please don't forget to share/like/follow to keep up with me, Also don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube Channel and follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest xx Don't forget to check out Gem Kids as well for all your latest thrift baby gear and toys // Photos taken by @visualsbyesther Find her on Instagram and Facebook xo

EIGHT WEEKS POST-PARTUM

I can't believe it's been eight week since I've given birth to Gemini. I regularly evaluate how my life and body has changed since Gem's birth and I thought I will blog about what the last eight weeks has been like. 

Body

My body has changed so much since I became pregnant, I remember telling my friends "omg I haven't got stretch marks,I'm so lucky lol" OK THEN. That dream ended quickly... Towards the end just before I gave birth guess what appeared on my body? Stretch marks!! I thought I'd be really insecure about them but to be honest with you I love them. I embrace them and I show them off by wearing my crops lol. Asides, this I feel like I've slowed down, I'm more tired and I can't walk for long. Additionally, my blemishes on my face has gotten worse I can see the skin under the blemishes is clear but it's actually an enemy of progress. I'm gonna do a one-month get rid of blemishes by trying out DIY creams (also for the stretch marks) and different cleansers.

  

Mind

I know everyone says you can develop depression after giving birth, but I think where I have had a lot of support from everyone I didn't feel depressed at all. What I can say is a lot of emotions that I was holding back came rushing in and I cried for like two days lol. After this I was fine. 

Gemini

Gemini is now eight weeks old, she can laugh, smile and coo. All the cute stuff, she is still only breast fed and she has not been sick at all. She had her first injection yesterday and I think I cried way more than her lol. Her colic phase is fading out really nicely and she is still sleeping through the night, sits in her bouncer and recognises me from a mile a way. I love her so much I will take a bullet and everything for her. I've put her in routine already - she sleeps around 10pm and wakes up around 5am to feed, she's responded so well I'm proud. Gemini has been holding her head up and turns it from side to side. 

Life

My has changed I wouldn't say dramatically but it has changed, it used to take me less than an hour to leave the house now it takes me FOREVER. It takes a lot of planning and preparation to leave the house with Gem but I still wouldn't change this for the world. It has helped me become more organised and prepared for anything. I don't go out as much because I don't want to leave Gem as I feel she is too young to be left all the time, If I can't go with her I don't go at all. Also, because she is just breastfed it makes it harder as she hasn't yet taken formula, I can't honestly be bothered to express lol the machine is too loud. Having a child has motivated me more to be successful, I want Gem to grow up and look up to me. I want to be the one to create opportunities for her and give her the best possible start to life. Let's just say she has fuelled the fire into getting up early and smashing my goals, just for my babes x 

If you've had a baby let me know what how you got on eight weeks after having your baby. Leave a comment below x  

Thank you for reading my blog post... please don't forget to share/like/follow to keep up with me, Also don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube Channel and follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest xx Don't forget to check out Gem Kids as well for all your latest baby gear x

SIX THINGS I LEARNED FROM GOING TO UNIVERSITY

It's been a long four years for me but I can finally say I've graduated from University ( whoop whoop ) I feel like my life has been a big celebration since having my baby girl - double celebration. This is a huge achievement for me to finally complete my degree in BA Joint (Hons) Health Studies and Social Care, I didn't really see the end when I was pregnant but phewwww I'm Done Lol. I want to share a few things I've learnt from studying a degree.

1.  When you are deciding on going to university please make sure that you are studying something that your are genuinely interested in otherwise you will get bored and start to lose interest. This never happened to me but after my first year I realised that I didn't want to continue with education but carried on because I had already started and I wanted to make my family proud.
2. Do your essays and work on time - I swear this was my biggest struggle and I don't know why because they literally give you all your assignments deadlines at the start of the course. But why do I still struggle to hand it on time LOL.
3. Choosing a University that is really good in your topic that you want to study and specialise in, don't just choose any University because you need to go that year with your friends. Also, if you can choose a University close to home because living alone can be financially difficult. 
4. I also learnt that if my grades don't seem right to me I should always contest it and request a meeting with the supervisor, this will help you a lot because if you know your writing is excellent and deserve better always do something about it.
5. Finally, University has taught me to be sooooooooo clever with money and how to manage with what I have been given. I fell into debt during my first year and I swore that would be the last time ever. Budgeting was never a strong point for me but after my debt issues I swear I became more focussed in saving and investing. I will write another post in how to save money.
6. Independence, I was always independent but living away from home made me mature quicker because I had a lot more responsibilities. In doing so it prepared me for living alone in the future because I know what to expect with paying bills on time and how to food shop properly without spending loads. 

I am so proud of myself for taking myself to University while I was pregnant with Gemini, It wasn't easy but taking pictures with her yesterday made me so grateful for getting through the year. No matter what grade you got the real achievement is getting through three years of hardship, tears and sleepless nights but it was all worth it in the end. We made it YO!!

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THE BLIND DATE

I didn't know love like this existed, It has been a long nine months of carrying my beautiful baby girl and I honestly didn't know what to expect once she had been born but once I finally held her in my arms I knew for sure I'll love her no matter what. Can you imagine falling in love with someone the moment you find out they exist? Nah me neither but it happened and I'm glad it did.

I call this the blind date because I honestly didn't think this kind of love even existed let alone to feel it. She has taught me many lessons right from the start and I don't know how. I am more patient, more loving, more understanding and even more forgiving. I say she has made me a better person in such a short space of time and for that I am forever grateful. 

It was almost weird how a gush of love just flew into me the moment they put her on my chest and how she just stared into my eyes( I honestly cried a little ) this was a human I grew in my stomach for 38 weeks and 2 days, made me fall in love in just a blink of an eye. It was truly a magical experience and I feel blessed that God chose me to be her mother and to guide her into becoming someone great. 

After I gave birth I took a moment to really think about how deep our connection was, I mean she is the only person who has heard blood rushing through my body, she has heard what my heart beat sounds like from deep within and we were physically connected through the umbilical cord. WOW. She has elevated me into the woman I was destined to become and for that I am thankful. Thank you God and Thank You Gemini, (Mummies little angel precious Gem)

Please visit the online store www.gemkids.co.uk to grab a bargain on baby clothes and toys, It's a great concept I have come up with and I need everyone to support the movement. 

Thank you for reading my blog post... please don't forget to share/like/follow to keep up with me, Also don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube Channel and follow me on Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest xx 

GEM KIDS

When you have an idea, you just have to bring it to life and that's exactly what happened with my new venture. - www.gemkids.co.uk

I always happen to have new business ideas and I never pursue them but this idea lingered around and it was like an urge to make sure it was done. So as many of you now know I have a beautiful baby girl and throughout my pregnancy I would buy bits and bobs for her and I found that baby clothes were so DAMN expensive.

After having a conversation with another mother to be I discovered that many people purchase second hand baby clothes for cheap and they are in very good condition for their children. Through extensive research I thought hmmmm this will be a good business idea to sell second hand/new baby clothes and toys for cheap!! From my research I discovered that many people in fact did not mind purchasing used baby clothes providing they are in good condition and for the right price also. I just knew in my soul I had to follow this idea through... 

TA DA .. I Present To You ...

Gem Kids - (named after my baby girl) is an online boutique that will be providing affordable new/old/used clothes and toys for babies in the UK(at the moment). New items will be added on a regular basis and I have worked very hard to bring you the best clothing/toys and customer service. I have also made an Instagram account that people can follow to keep up with us - new products, announcements, forums etc. So please share this post and tell a friend to tell a friend that the website will go live this Sunday. First time customers will get 10% coupon code to use on their orders. I am very excited to execute this new venture and to help many women/parents to provide the best for their children at a much lower price. Happy Friday !! 

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LATE LUNCH AT LUXFORD BAR

LATE LUNCH AT LUXFORD BAR 

Fancy breakfast, lunch or dinner in a fancy spot not too far from central London, especially if you live around Old Kent Road/Peckham/New Cross or Southwark. I discovered this chilled spot on Peckham Park Road and I must say I am really impressed by this diner. It was DELICIOUS I almost burst out my clothes and my baby loved it, stretching and summer saluting in my belly.  

  Interior 

 

 

 Starters and Drinks

 

 

For starters we had Marconi and Cheese with Bacon on top and Calamari. I must say I really enjoyed the Calamari and the sauce. It was fried to perfection, didn't get a chance to taste the Mac n Cheese but I can imagine it was delicious as well. I drank a mocktail (obviously) something with pineapple, mint and lime was very refreshing and tropical storm I think. 

Mains 

For the mains we ordered the 14 wings and normal fried chips and the classic beef burger and I told them to add plantain to the burger and sweet potatoes fries. The chicken wings were the BOMB I wish I could have eaten the whole bucket, not only was it BBQ but it was seasoned just right and just beautiful!! 

The beef burger with plantain was just a different experience lol, I'm normally not a burger person but I've been craving for so long I had to fulfil my needs and I LOVED it. I Loved it so much I couldn't even finish it. Every thing was amazing, the beef burger is freshly made and the fries as well.

Overall, I would say I enjoyed my first visit to this diner and I would totally recommend it to anyone looking for an inexpensive restaurant with big portions. The staff were really lovely and attentive and the whole atmosphere was relaxing ... playing 90's music and Michael Jackson. It is also child friendly and offer students and nurses 15% off their bill.  

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