A Break For Christmas

I cannot believe how quickly Christmas has crept up upon on us this year.  It does not seem two seconds since I was bemoaning the fact that I had just seen my first Christmas tree on the 1st November and yet suddenly here we are already on Christmas Eve.

This year has been a bit of a rollercoaster for me to say the least.

I am very happy that my blog has continued in the same path, forever moving forwards.  I am still constantly surprised when I receive a nice comment on something I have written and when someone tells me that they read my blog, I still get a little warm fuzz in my heart.

This year also saw the start of my writing for the Huffington Post.  After seeing a couple of other bloggers submitting pieces, I decided to work up the courage to submit my own piece and now I happily am able to write on my own little "Huff Post" blog whenever I feel the urge to discuss, ponder or rant (which is quite often).

This year has had many highs, but unfortunately, with the high points, you also get the lows.  The first of these came when my step dad fractured his spine back in September.  Writing this today finds him still in hospital, having physiotherapy with a hope that he will walk again.  That journey has been a long and arduous one, not least for my mum who has made so many trips to the hospital that she jokes that she knows every blade of grass on the way.

I remain optimistic for his eventual recovery but am not making any predictions.  All you can do in these situations is take each day as it comes and hope.  To borrow a line from "A Knights Tale" which I find especially true:

Hope guides me. It is what gets me through the day and especially the night.

The second low came when my mum had a fall in the kitchen and split her head open.  Seeing her fall, seemingly in slow motion yet I was unable to get to her in time, hearing the loud crack as she hit her head on the corner of the wall and the masses of blood that followed is something that will not fade in my mind for a long time. 

I always look at my mum and think that she will live forever.  She is the youngest 74 year old I have ever met, but lying on that kitchen floor she looked so incredibly small and thinking that I might have lost her that night does nasty things to my insides.

This year has certainly been eventful in many ways and at this point, I am just wanting to see the end of it.  I have hope that the New Year will bring better things and as they say, onwards and upwards!

I finish work today and won't be back in until the 5th January.  In order to give myself a break I don't plan to be doing anything on the blog until after this time either.  I think I need a bit of time to myself for a while just to relax and have a stress free (crosses fingers) Christmas break.

I wish you a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.  See you on the flip side xx

New Years Party Dress

When it comes to buying a new party dress,  I am not really one for wearing sparkle and glitz.  Every time I have bought a sparkly dress for Christmas it invariably ends up sitting in my wardrobe for a year until I get it out the next Christmas and decide I need something new.

This year for New Year's Eve I wanted to find a party dress that had a wow factor but that I would still be able to wear to other parties and functions throughout the year.  Enter the beautiful Briar Rose Dress from Taking Shape

The dress is true to size and is 43" in length.  The attention to detail with the finishing of this dress for me what takes it over the edge into special.  The mesh cowl neck insert with beading into the v neck  and the way that the belt is stitched in order to create a perfect bow without having to try; I love it.

I am wearing the dress with some sparkly heels from +Simply Be  (I did give in to sparkle a little) and my gorgeous rose quartz necklace from +Joshua James Jewellery which I reviewed here

I cannot wait to wear this dress when I go out for New Years Eve.  I feel elegant and sophisticated in it and with the lovely swoosh this dress gives when you do a twirl, I may even take to the dancefloor!

* This item was gifted to me, but all opinions are my own.