How to save cash for travel - Part 1

1. Stop buying CRAP

Like this:



Oh yes, at first glance I'm like "want! want! want!" and could talk myself into buying it... then I think about what that cash could go towards if I was abroad... is it better to pay £100 for a table? or £100 on a week or more of accommodation, or a few excursions or a few slap up meals?

Exactly. Switch off the computer and stop buying crap you don't need.

Look around your house, I'll bet you already have everything you need for a comfortable home. Keep buying groceries of course, you still have to EAT after all.

Look at your wardrobe. When was the last time you wore that thing you keep meaning to throw out? When was the last time you bought something new?

Exactly. Why don't you bloody well WEAR that old thing and not buy that new dress you saw the other day and just have to have?

You'll easily save a couple of hundred quid over a month or so (if you're anything like me anyway) which will go towards a flight to a sunny destination - that's better than a new dress isn't it?

P.S. I'm more than happy if anyone wants to buy me that table as a gift, by the way.

5 City Breaks I Want To Do

I'm coming around to the idea of a weekend city break. I want to cram in as much travel in my life but sadly the whole full-time-job thing doesn't allow as many opportunities for travel as I'd like (or my bank balance allows)...

Having popped to Barcelona for a weekend a few months ago, I loved how you could be sat in an airport freezing your socks off, then be sitting at a bar sipping sangria a few hours later! I felt so smug at work on Monday when my colleagues asked what I did at the weekend... they hate me.

Here's a few destinations I've got my eye on for a weekend break:

1. Paris

Pinned from http://pinterest.com/pin/564849978234850759/

Slightly cliched perhaps, but I can't believe I've never been to Paris and it's so close! I've been to Disneyland Paris twice but I guess that doesn't count because you can't see the Eiffel Tower from Davy Crockett's Ranch...

I'd love to wander around the streets of Paris, stopping for a chocolat chaud or a macaroon or just to hear a man playing an accordion... I'm all out of stereotypes.

Naturally I would spend the entire weekend riding a bicycle wearing a stripey jumper with a beret atop my head.





2. Prague

Pinned from http://pinterest.com/pin/432627107924648114/

How have I not been to Prague yet?? Surely I'm the only person left who hasn't been.

I know it's got a bit of a reputation now for lads and stags, but it's still a beautiful place and I'd love to visit on a cold winter and be all bundled up and popping in to warm bars (you're getting an idea of how I behave on weekend breaks...)

Plus, while the beer is super cheap I've GOT to get myself over there!








3. Iceland

Pinned from http://pinterest.com/pin/549861435724921060/

I know Iceland isn't a city by the way. I'm so fascinated by Iceland. I'm desperate to go and visit for a weekend. I'd take a dip in one of the lagoons, I'd go and visit the geysers, party all night, trek on a glacier...

Best of all... I WANT TO SEE THE NORTHERN LIGHTS! I remember reading about them in a book when I was little and being so in awe of them. I was also in awe of the book as it was personalised about me and had my name in it and everything, I was Santa's helper!

So yeah, Iceland is on the list.





4. Cities and towns in Ireland

Pinned from http://pinterest.com/pin/84161086756052982/

One thing I've wanted to do for a while is travel to Ireland, hire a car and road trip around a few places along the coast and inland.

Maybe I've watched too many chick flicks that involve road trips around Ireland, but I want to dance Irish jigs in bars and have the craic and listen to live music!

You won't catch me drinking Guinness though, I just cannot stomach it, it HATES me.

5. Dusseldorf

OK I'll admit that I'd never really considered Dusseldorf as a weekend destination before... but browsing online showed that weekend flights were going cheap, so we're giving it a try in October! Watch this space! I'm off to my favourite website www.airbnb.com and find a nice apartment!

This.

You Can Grow Your Own Wayyyyyyy

I'm still growing things in the garden and I'm managing to not kill them!

My little garden patch is coming along nicely, pretty soon I'll have things to pick that I can eat... and that makes me VERY happy. Last year's garden attempt was a complete failure, but it seems to be a different story this year. Maybe I'm growing up?!

Growing strawberries! Get the cream!

Growing yellow African carnations (I think) Blatantly purchased because they were called African something...

Growing courgettes! Oh my!

Attempting to grow blackberries! Mmmm crumble...

Growing teacups!

 So there we are. I was thinking about why last year might have been such a garden disaster and here's my list of how to grow plants in a small garden without killing them:

1. Don't scrimp on the compost, yo. If like me, you have bad soil - mine is almost clay in places, I dug up a small paving slab the other day - then you NEED compost. Take advantage of multi-buy offers. Dig a hole twice the size of the plant (twice as deep, twice as wide) and fill with compost so it's level with the surrounding soil...

2. Wiggle the plant pot container in to the compost to make the shape of the plant. This saves throwing compost around the plant like a crazy woman and getting compost down your nails, ladies! HA! Like I care about that, I'm just lazy.

3. Before you wiggle the plant out of the pot and into its new home, dunk the plant base in water for ten seconds at the roots. This way I like to think that the plant is going into the soil satisfied and not feeling thirsty. It works for me.

4. Plant the plant in the ready made perfectly shaped hole in the compost and pat down then cover over with MORE COMPOST.

5. Throw slug pellets down to stop the little sluggy blighters munching on your new planty friends.

5. Water daily then after a week add some plant food to your watering can.

Ta daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

The perfect Hen Party Do Thing in York

I've been to York to celebrate the fact that my little sister Beth is getting married in less than three weeks!

YIKES! That is exciting!

It was so much fun to get the whole female side of the family together - there's a LOT of us - and reminisce about the GOOD OLD DAYS when we used to punch each other in the face and bully each other and steal each other's clothes and toys...ah those were the days.

I got a bit squiffy over the weekend and am ashamed to say I got the gin tears thinking that it really doesn't feel that long ago that we were all little kids, and now here we all are married, about to get married or grown up enough for full time employment. I love my sisters, all three of them (and my brother of course) but I can't believe we're all old enough for this now. It feels like we're playing grown ups.

So here's a few snapshots from the emotional weekend that was Beth's amazing hen do in York:

We stayed in a huge house with an indoor pool via https://www.airbnb.co.uk/ and had a fantastic boat cruise all to ourselves via http://mai617.wix.com/pinkmooncruises. I highly recommend both and would love to do it all over again!

Mum & Dad

I forgot to say, last Sunday was Fathers Day but it was also my Mum's Birthday.

I thought that was pretty weird. If I was any good at maths, I could figure out the probability of that happening.

But I'm not.

Happy Parents Day Of Some Sort!

Mum

Dad

Hanging out with Hilary Devey...

Oh it's just been another *regular* week of hobnobbing with the celeb world, I tell you. I've been to London on a day conference, and happened to meet HILARY DEVEY, from TV's Dragons Den fame and got a free copy of her 'Bold as Brass' book signed. Lovely lady and very inspirational.

Me and my new Bezzie mate Hilary. I'll wait for your call, Hilary!

'To Katie' That's me!

She had one of those 'hang on a a minute, I've had an idea and I can't believe no one else is doing it already' moments. Unlike many other people who might think 'oh this idea is SO obvious that there MUST be a reason that no one is doing it already' Hilary actually looked into it and built her haulage business from nothing. She wasn't born into a rich family, she didn't have a wealthy husband, she was a single mother with a nerve of steel and a vision.

It was pretty inspiring to meet her. Thank you London.

In other news, I always love going down to London, but I sure love leaving it again to come back to beautiful Yorkshire. I find London so stressful, I know my way around (roughly) but it's the tourists that drive me MAD. Yes, I understand that London NEEDS tourist to get by, but do they HAVE to spend so long at the top of the escalators wrestling with their suitcase handles? Do they not realise that by stopping suddenly at the top it causes the rest of us behind them to topple backwards like dominoes?

And why do the ticket barriers come as such a surprise to people? No, you're right, standing in front of the barrier is the perfect place to hunt for your ticket... I'll wait for you to figure it out because I have loads of time.

Plus, I was publicly humiliated because my new weekend bag got STUCK IN THE TICKET BARRIERS WAAAAAAAAAA and the ticket man was really slow to help me so everyone hated me in the queue behind and I just wanted to turn around and shout 'I'm here on business! I'm one of you but one that lives in the North!'

Anyway, a good time had by all (all of me anyway) and a swift gin-and-tonic-in-a-can sorted everything out on the way home. Thank you Gin.

YORKSHIRE! YORKSHIRE! YORKSHIRE!