Good bye 2008, Hello 2009

Not sure what to make of 2008 really. I began the year with a new born son. Well he was born end of 2007 but was due 2008. He has grown to be such a blessed addition to my family and I can see him and his older brother being so close as they grow.

I have seen certain friendships blossom. You guys know who you are. I just wanted to say that I am thankful and appreciate everything you have done for me. I truly believe God introduces people to each other for a reason.

As for other friendships. What can I say. I am glad to see the back of you and you to see the back of me. I had one friend accuse me of chatting her and wouldn't give me any info. No information as to who said what or what was said. Obviously the years we had known each other did not mean enough to her to discuss and resolve if need be. There are other friends too. I can only try to call you for so long. I have taken the hint. You do not wish to know me anymore. That's fine. If you do wish to keep in touch text me, call or send an email. I will not hold my breath.

Haters. Yes I have those. Not going to indulge their ego here. Just carry on hating. You have the time on your hands to do so. Keep watching me. Anything you feel you need to or would like to say to me. Come talk to me when you see me in the flesh or are you too scared to do that.

I wrote and read a poem at church for the Christmas carol service. I talk about it in my other blog. After the event I was asked a lot about my poems and why I no longer write. Which got me thinking I do really need to get back into my groove.

Part of the problem is that I have not concentrated on my happiness and interests as much as I should. I do believe my marriage plays a part too. But change is on the horizon in all aspects of my life.

I am thankful for what I have and that 2008 is ending with me re-igniting my ambitions. God has been trying to tell me something. I am starting to hear you Lord.

2009 begins with my birthday. Then it is all about trying to set up my own business. Yes for that financial freedom, but also that my sons will grow up seeing me achieve great things. It will fill them with ambition seeing. I might even write a book. Just know that I intend to live the life I want and ensure my children are happy.

I am not setting any new years resolutions. The only thing I will be sure to concentrate on besides the above is my health. Need to take this eating and living healthy to whole new level. It is not about various levels of commitment. Got to do a complete overhaul. Mind Body and Soul!!!!

Blessings to you all for 2009.

Smoke gets in your eyes

I am one person who always felt that achieving a smokey eye look was beyond me. However thanks to Iman's book The Colour of Beauty and countless YouTube videos I have been improving.

This is a picture of a look I wore this past weekend. I am quite proud of it which is why I am sharing. All products used were by Sleek and MAC. I will post pictures of the products later.

Tell me what you think. If you have any tips on blending let me know.

December Hols 2008

I hope and pray that you all had a wonderful Christmas and were able to catch up with family and friends a like. This christmas 2008 has taught me a lot of things about me and my relationships. Also where I am now in life and where I would like to be. Before the new year I aim to sum up my thoughts.

As for christmas it was fine. My son was more excited as he finally has a Nintendo DS Lite. He has been playing on it constantly and loves having it in the car. He will soon become a pro. Now just to find games for him to play that he will engage him well. I have DS also. I love that little mini notebook game handheld game..

My 2nd son has just turned 1yrs old. He is growing so well. I love watching him when he stands up and lets go. He beams with delight. I owe him a present. As I think a nice toy that he can play while sitting or standing will be useful

X Factor final

Ok I know I am a little late with my thoughts on X factor. I used to do a lot of singing and that just trailed off. But I do love listening to and watching people sing. This years X-Factor seems like the best ever.

The girls were the superior group, they could all sing. Though that Diana ...hmm... I don't know about her. Her voice was just different and she too came across as different. One girl left the competition, cannot remember her name, and she had a wonderful voice.

Anyway cannot be bothered to get into a full critique. But my thoughts in general are as follows. This was the best final ever. When Leona won that was just cut and dry. She was simply the best. Fast forward to 2008. You have Eoghan, JLS and Alexandra Burke. All really good singers.

I was rooting for JLS and Rachel Hylton throughout the show. When Rachel left it was like what now. Alexandra got great reviews but I didn't quite get her. I thought her voice did this hoarse thing. Her voice reminds me of Brandy. According to Wiki Brandy is a contralto. Anyways she sang Toni Braxton Unbreak my heart and I started warming to her but then she does Beyonce.

You have to be very brave to do a Beyonce ballad. She nailed it with "Listen". So you know when me and my sistren Tan was watching the final what our reaction was like. Alex starts singing Listen in the final and I am thinking there is no way Bey is coming on. But oh my days she did and the duet was awesome. My favourite part is when the song reaches ....."you don't know what". Somewhere in the climax. I loved the way it ended.

Alexandra during the performance was so real. She was in shock awe and I could see her say "wow" as she took a deep breath. It looked like Beyonce gave her a confident nudge. She even gave her some encouraging words.

By the way I am not a rock chick but I loved the way rocked out "If I were a boy". That man in the audience must have been so blessed when she caressed his face. He looked it.

So yeah when they announced Alexandra as the winner, that was a classis Kodak moment. She was speechless and so thankful. If only I had a freeze shot.

I pray that Simon Cowell does her justice and gets real songs and music in place and keep her young. Could tell Simon was rooting for her. His compliments speak volumes.

I see JLS having a career. Not sure if it wil be international though. I so would love one of their hoodies. They are beautiful

Anyway here is a link for the single Hallelujah. Catch it while you can. Doesnt she look like a star.

Here are some links if you wish to listen to her sing or follow her career

http://www.alexandraburkeofficial.com/

http://www.youtube.com/user/Alexandraofficialuk

Dublin what a city

It was my good friends birthday towards the end of last week. So since K likes to do things different instead of just the usual meal and drinks a group of us went for a city break. Well we did do the meal the week before though as not all could make it.

It is way too cold to be travelling on a ferry boat or any sea journey at all. Plus given how far we would have needed to drive to get to said ferry is unthinkable. Our flights were with RyanAir. Booked advanced as far as possible and only paid about £35 for our tickets. The Hotel was similar in price.

Only problem was we could not check in the hotel till late in the afternoon. So the three of us that arrived early took a stroll through the city to get some breakfast and have a look round. Breakfast on the Friday was at a lovely Italian restaurant. Dublin is heaving with people. The city is very much alive.

I read about problems facing immigrants especially those from non EU countries. Having mentioned that though there were loads of cultures there. The two that stood out for me were the Africans (mainly Nigerian) and the Polish. I was so eagerly anticipating a black person with an Irish accent but I was not able to experience that. Next time I might get to see Samantha Mumba, unless of course I needed to travel to a different part of Ireland.

Unfortunately we did not have a enough time to go on a tour bus. We simply ran out of time. Which meant we couldn't be the tourist we wished for lol. The tour bus takes you to the Guinness Factory , Christ church and many many more places of interest.

Dublin night life is so lively. People seriously can drink and making drinking look like a skill and fashion. The pubs were heaving. One of the pubs we went to was called the Temple Bar , in the Temple Bar area. It was heaving with people. Drinks were expensive - 3 came to £35. A lovely guy as drunk as can be, hovered around us and kept us entertained with his dancing skills and chat.

We ended the night in The Academy. This place had 3 clubs inside and we made a b-line to the RnB room. The DJ was rubbish but played various music from dancehall to grimy HipHop. The guys were a let down. There were some cuties and some men with manners. My girls know who I mean. One guy had the worst chat up line ever. I told him I was not interested and he comes out with this line '' ...you don't have to be scared because we are the same colour''....LMAO. If only he knew he got jokes.

Saturday there was a teacher protest about cuts taking place. All I could hear was ''No ifs no buts, no more cuts''. I hope they achieve what it is they wish to achieve. If you do not know about Primark then you are not a bargain hunter. Years ago before Coleen Rooney helped to make the place trendy, people would secretly shop in there and hide their carrier bags. Now it is one trendy fast fashion place to shop. In Ireland it is called Penny's. I was in awe Penny's was huge and they just had some different type of stuff in there. Primark fans need to go to Dublin.

Dawson's Lounge is the smallest pub in Dublin. You have to walk down narrow steps to get there. It is beautiful inside and everyone was so nice down there. Our nights out ended in Café en Seine. It is like a a big bar with two levels that goes on forever. The vibe in there was amazing.

Dublin is more expensive than London. You pay double for everything. I did myself proud and just let my money stretch best it could. Could never live there as far colder than where I live now.

I will go again one day maybe a day trip in the summer.

PS. I ate an an organic restaurant but cannot say if I truly enjoyed the food because my belly was running after. My friends reckon it was because I am not used to organic food. mmmmm

December snow and Xmas prep

If you did not know it was winter you must have the best insulation and central heating in the UK. Plus you must surely not leave your yard at all.

I woke up to a blanket of snow....Well I didn't actually. I woke up to look outside and everything was covered in frost. Within 10 minutes or so it started snowing thick fluffy snow. It was settling like it had no intention of leaving. I was not thinking it was a beautiful sight to see. I was actually more concerned with if I could drive in the snow filled road. I have had my license for one year and a bit now and have never had to drive in snow.

My husband didn't seem concerned. As I set off for work I went slow and each time I got a little confidence with lickle bit more speed but not too much the tyres began spinning and skidding and the car started to edge sideways. Thankfully the main streets were just slush and snow well trodden. Phew. Always in life there is a time to experience something new.

The pictures look pretty. The picture above was taken outside my bathroom window. I like the way I actually captured the snow falling. Winter mornings do not look inviting.

Well for the 1st time in years I have bought a Christmas Tree. I usually let husband decide when to get one and we always end up 2 days before empty handed as they have all been sold. This time I made it my mission. After all I have 2 boys now and the oldest is 3yrs old. He will appreciate the decor.

I bought a 6ft black and silver dressed tree. It comes with 50 decorations and 60 clear fairy lights and 519 dipped tips. I have know idea what dipped tips mean. So I am guessing it means the ends gave a colour tinge or something. What is even more better is that the original price for the tree was £39.99 and I snapped it up for a mere £9.99 from Argos. That is a credit crunching bargain. Pity they couldn't add on the extra VAT discount that the government is issued to all. Hey it is still a bargain.

Now all I have to do is buy presents. If I could £150 only on presents and do something creative for gifts I would love that. Any Christmas shopping tips and gift ideas welcomed.