Megan Time!

We reach the end of another year. It's kind of crazy because it only seems like yesterday we were in this position where we were waiting for 2023 to begin and now we're waiting for 2024 to begin.  I feel like this year has definitely been one of those years that just flew by. A lot happened this year. A lot of good things and some bad but overall it was a really enjoyable year.  I'm currently spending my new years down at my dads, trying to figure out my new year's resolutions. You think I would have thought about them now but honestly, I'm a bit stumped about what I want my goals to be for 2024. Let me know what new year resolutions are, I would love to hear them.  This is actually my final post of 2023 but don't worry, I'll be back in 2024 with even more posts. I know one of my goals is to grow my blog more and be more consistent with my posting. I know this year I took a very long blogging hiatus but next year that won't be the case. I'm determine...

As we come to the penultimate post of 2023, it only seemed right to include a December favourite post and share what I've been loving in December.  Let's get started! Wonka This was a surprise because I didn't expect to go to the cinema this month then I realised Wonka was out and as someone who grew up watching Willy Wonka then Charlie and the Chocolate Factory I knew I had to watch this. It was nice to watch it in the cinema because there is something magical watching a film on the big screen. I honestly really enjoyed this movie and it was a feel good movie that filled me with joy, made me laugh and at one point even made me cry. It was a charming film that I didn't know where it would take us and honestly I was pleasantly surprised. Plus it has musical numbers which was a nice touch back to the original and honestly I found myself listening to the album as soon as I got home. Honestly, this is a feel good film and would highly recommend it if you just want to escape...

2023. What a year you were with so many ups and a couple of downs. It all began when I decided to take the plunge and started online dating again. It went really well, I ended up meeting this guy that we eventually became boyfriend and girlfriend. It was really nice for a while but now I end the year single so obviously things didn't go that well. Oh well, at least I'm consistent. I'm not sure if I'll go back into online dating in 2024. I'm not sure if my heart could take another heartbreak. I'll have to see though as you never know. It might actually happen. Who knows? Another thing that happened was I went on a night out to Liverpool twice in March. Once for my mother's retirement party and once for my best friend's hen party. That was an exciting month. Then of course I was the bridesmaid at my best friend's wedding. That was very emotional because it had been a long time coming and it was a beautiful day.  One goal of mine this year was learning ...

I've actually read quite a few books this year. In fact, as I'm writing this, I've read 25 books. I currently have three books on the go at the moment so that may go up by the time this post goes out but who knows. Either way, I thought I'd share my top five reads of 2023 with you. Don't worry there will be no spoilers to any of the books in this post. Let's get started. A Good Girl's Guide To Murder by Holly Jackson This was one of the first books I read in 2023 but I remember really enjoying it. I've been really into watching True Crime on YouTube so this one sounded right up my street. I actually listened to the audiobook version which was really effective for this book. It's about a girl called Pippa who chooses to cover a closed murder case for her final-year project but ends up uncovering a lot more that she bargained for and someone is trying to stop her from finding out the real truth. The audiobook works because it has recordings as if Pippa...

Does anyone find the days between Christmas and New Years really weird? It's like we've had the festive period and now it's like we're waiting for the new year to arrive. For many of us after Boxing Day, it's back to reality and going back to work. For some people who have the week off it's a time to go shopping and enjoy the Boxing Day sales plus enjoy the Christmas presents.  For me, I'm going back to work today which means an early start and just going back to normal. At least I'm only in three days, then I have three days off as it's a Bank Holiday on Monday. This I'm excited for as I'm going to be travelling down to visit my Dad's for New Years which is something I haven't done in a long time so I'm looking forward to it. It just means I have to deal with travelling during the busy weekend but it's worth it to spend time with my family.  Anyway, I hope you all have a lovely day whatever it is you're doing. Whether you...

Surprise! I'm still posting everyday right up until the end of December. I always find Boxing Day to be a weird day as it's the day after Christmas and these days most places are closed on Boxing Day which I think is a good thing because retail workers and people who are in customer service have those two days because all they get. I was lucky enough that I don't work weekends and I get four days off which is very nice.  I'm actually spending this day travelling back home from Manchester after spending two nights there so that's pretty much all I'm doing on this day and opening the presents I left at home. As soon as I get home, I'm just going to have a relaxing day and not do a lot. Maybe browse the Boxing Day sales online but that's pretty much all I'm doing today.  Let me know what your plans are for Boxing Day in the comments below. I would love to hear it.  Thank you for reading my blog and I'll be back tomorrow with another post for you.  S...

Merry Christmas Everyone! I hope you all have a lovely day, however you're celebrating the day I hope it brings you joy and that you're happy. Even if you don't celebrate Christmas or aren't really doing much today, I still hope you have a lovely day.  Merry Christmas to you all and I shall see you all again soon.  Thank you! Megan x  *This is not a sponsored post* For business enquiries or just a chat email: megantimeblog@gmail.com

Twas the night before the big day and everyone was excited for the festive day.  Oh Christmas Eve, how quickly you've come this year. Honestly, I'm quite shocked this day has arrived because it feels like yesterday I was opening the first door to my advent calendar and now I'm opening the last door. Tell me when did they stop giving out chocolate on Christmas Day or even save the biggest piece of chocolate for Christmas Eve. No such luck this year. I remember one year when I was a teenager that my advent calendar went on to New Year's Eve. That was a great advent calendar. I sometimes wonder if I'll ever stop buying advent calendars for myself and honestly I can't ever imagine not having an advent calendar every year. It's a piece of chocolate everyday for 24 days. It's the most exciting thing in my life which really says a lot. Either way it's the last day of my advent calendar and I won't be having an advent calendar again until next year.  Cur...

I wish I was someone who had a daily skincare routine with lots of products but honestly, I don't. It doesn't stop me from using a few products from time to time so here is my winter skincare.  The most consistent thing I use on a daily basis is my micellar water and sadly I don't have a fancy one. Just this one from Tesco which I've been using for a while. It feels nice on my skin because it's for sensitive skin which is what I have. I use it mainly in the mornings to cleanse my face but sometimes I'll use it to wipe my makeup off as well. It's just something I've had a habit of using for a while and I like it.  When I went on holiday back in October, I treated myself to a Clinique Moisture Surge Intense moisturiser and I honestly love it. It's so moisturising on the skin. I don't use it often but when I do it feels so soft and smooth on my skin. Plus I feel like it makes my skin moisturised for hours which is perfect for the winter time where y...

This is a reminder that sometimes the festive season isn't always jolly and happy. It can sometimes be overwhelming and stressful to some people. Don't worry if you're feeling like this because this is perfectly normal. It is a lot of pressure especially when it comes to buying presents and if you're hosting Christmas dinner at your house, it can be stressful at times. It's okay to feel this way and remind yourself that you're not alone.  If it's too much, ask your partner, sibling, parent or even a friend to help you out. This will definitely take some weight off you especially if you ask them to do the puddings or just even give them a few jobs to do on Christmas Day. Remind yourself that it doesn't always have to be perfect, some of the best Christmas Days I've had have been far from perfect. The nicer ones are where everyone opens their presents, watches movies all day and just chill out. Remember for some it's nice to have a day off for the ...

Travelling around this time of year can be very stressful especially if you're going by bus or train. It can be very stressful and overwhelming at times but I'm here to give you a few tips to help you through it when you're travelling home for Christmas.  Leave as early as you can Honestly, travelling in the morning really helps because it's quieter and it's better to get the journey over and done with. This also relates to when you go home. Try to leave on a weekday so that you can leave on the Friday or earlier in the week because more people tend to travel on the weekend so if you can try to travel during the week. However, if you can then try to leave as early as possible because you might get lucky and miss the busy crowds.  Pack Light I cannot stress this enough but packing light makes travelling so much easier. I always like to travel with my carry-on suitcase and a rucksack on my back. It just makes life easier if you have a free hand but also the luggage ra...

I thought as I'm doing Blogmas one thing I could do is a tag post as it's an old school blog post and I thought it would be fun to answer some questions. Plus it's The Christmas Tag post so it makes perfect sense. I did not create this tag myself and will leave a link to the blog where I found the questions at the bottom of this post so be sure to check it out. This is all just a bit of fun and a chance to get to know me a little bit better.  Let's get started! 1. What is your favourite Christmas film? My favourite Christmas film would have to be A Muppets Christmas Carol. Honestly it's one of my favourite Christmas films to watch every year as it has such a good telling of the story. Michael Caine is such a good Scrooge and I like the fact he treats the Muppets as if they are real people. It's such a feel good film to watch with some musical numbers thrown in. Honestly, I think it's one of the best versions of A Christmas Carol to date and it's one that...

It's time to spill the tea on all the worst gifts I've ever been given. Watch out family and friends, I'm coming for you all.  Just kidding. Even though I've had a few questionable gifts where I couldn't help but wonder what they were thinking when they bought me this. This post is not about spilling the tea but rather going over some of the gifts that might be a little too cliched and maybe you should avoid giving people especially if you don't want them to think that your gift is a little boring. Here is what I think are some of the worst gift ideas to give to people.  The 'letter' gifts How original? You bought something for someone because it had their initials on it. Boring. Honestly, it's cute the first few times but now it seems to be constant whether it's a mug, a makeup bag or even a piece of jewellery. At least if you're going to buy someone a gift that has their letter on it then at least make it something original or bought from a...

I honestly love the festive season and all the things that surround it. I thought I'd share all my favourite things about Xmas.  Let's get started. The Decorations It's just so nice to be able to decorate your home with festive decorations because it just feels so cosy. Especially at night when you can turn on the lights on the tree and around the house and even more so when it gets dark around 5pm it's just so nice. It always makes me feel so warm and fuzzy in the evenings. It's just nice to see the decorations around the house and it gets you really excited for Christmas.  Opening Presents Call me a big kid at heart but I actually love the present opening because I'm always curious at what people get for me and I just like opening presents. I only do it twice a year so it's nice to have an opportunity to do it. I know it may seem a bit big headed and selfish of me but I like opening my presents on Xmas day. I'm sure many of you feel the same way.  Chri...

Most people usually spend Xmas with family and friends but what about the ones that would prefer to spend Xmas day alone. I thought I'd share a few ideas on what you can do if you're spending Xmas alone or even if you find yourself alone in the build up to the festive season. Here's a few ideas on what you can do. 1. Have a movie day Honestly, you can treat yourself to a whole movie day and go all out. Setting the right atmosphere with the fairy lights, candles, lots of blankets. Have some of your favourite snacks at hand to enjoy. Then of course there's the movies. You can really get into the festive spirit by watching all your favourite Christmas films or binge watching a tv series or your favourite movie series like Harry Potter. Have a movie marathon because honestly it's a great distraction watching films that you love. This is definitely something I'd recommend if you're spending Xmas alone.  2. Cook your favourite meal Honestly, you don't have to ...

Do you ever remember when you're a kid and you'd write a list to Santa every year hoping he'll bring you everything on the list? I remember my list consisted of things from the Argos catalogue that I'd circle in the hopes Santa would bring me the right wrong.  As I get older though, I suddenly realise that I no longer crave lots of different things as I did as a kid. In all honesty you hardly get many presents when you're an adult. You'd even be lucky if you get at least one. Even so, I can't help but think about what I want for Christmas and I thought I'd share it with you. Honestly, I'm not expecting any of these for Christmas nor do I expect I will get them for Christmas but one can hope and dream. Plus this is just a bit of fun and doesn't need to be taken too seriously. Let's get started.  1. A Boyfriend Honestly, I'd love to have a boyfriend. Mainly just to have someone to hang out with, go on dates and just have a laugh with. Plus ...

One of my favourite places to travel to in the UK is Manchester. It's a city I love so much and always get excited for the opportunity to go whenever I can. It was an interesting travel experience as we had a bus replacement on half the journey but the train ride was still lovely. There's always lots of nice views to see on the journey from Wales to Manchester. It was raining a lot in Manchester so I made lots of good use of the Arndale to keep myself dry. Of course it's not ideal but as the typical British weather hits us we just have to keep calm and carry on as they say. Just put our coats on and deal with it.  Stayed in the Travelodge in Salford Quays and it was very comfortable. Honestly this is the comfiest bed I've slept on for the longest time. I had a room to myself so it meant I had the whole king size bed to myself and it was honestly great. Ended up watching the I'm Celebrity finale on Sunday so it was very nice. Especially when the rain was pouring outs...