Bucket List Dreams

First things first, I apologise for not blogging for a horrendous amount of time (I'm too scared to count the number of months)! I don't really have any reason for this except that over summer I was just chilling and going on holiday, and now I'm back at uni it's crazy what with having a dissertation, etc!

Anyway, this post is a little different to my usual but I thought it would be an interesting read. Whilst on holiday in Portugal with my family, we went swimming with dolphins. This has been an dream of mine for yearssss and it got me thinking...I should write a bucket list. Bucket lists tend to be associated with dying, where people write one once they have been given a certain about of time left to live; however, why limit it to such a negative moment? I may as well start young, keep adding things to my list, and live life to the absolute full.

1. See the Northern Lights - I'M GOING!!!!! I had my 21st birthday last month and because I have the best parents in the world, they got me a trip to Iceland to see the Northern Lights in March!

2. Visit the Norwegian Fjords - I love walking and amazing scenery so I think a summer and winter trip to Norway is on the cards!

3. Go skydiving - not a difficult one to complete, particularly as heights don't bother me! This is one that I should plan immediately.

4. Visit Auchwitz - I know this is unusual, but I think it would be hugely interesting, especially having learnt so much about WW2 at school. My mum, however, thinks I'm mad for wanting to visit!

5. Visit New York - a city with incredible culture, shopping and people!

6. See Taylor Swift live - such a guilty pleasure, but Taylor is so great.

7. Do a Colour Run - can I be honest about this one? I want the cool colour-stained clothing instagram pic.

8. Stay in a bungalow on stilts - you know what I mean by these, like the ones in Bora Bora or the Maldives. The perfect honeymoon destination!

11. Visit Australia - with a lot of saving, this one is definitely an option in the future! I don't know what appeals about it so much, but anywhere with sun and sea sounds good to me!

12. See orcas in the ocean - orcas/killer whales are my absolute favourite animals and have been since I was tiny (I even sponsored one back in the day) so seeing them in their natural habitat would be incredible.

9. Go to the Cheerleading Worlds - I currently cheer for my university cheerleading team, and have become super keen. Worlds are like the cheer equivalent of the Olympics and I couldn't imagine anything better than watching all my favourite teams compete.

10. Be able to back handspring - another cheer-related one! I was close to getting this last year, but had an ankle injury. Being able to flip upside down is pretty cool, you have to agree.

13. See the Grand Canyon - one I will hopefully be doing next year! My cousin is getting married in California so this is being incorporated into a month-long trip to the US, eeeee!

14. Visit the Arctic - I want to see polar bears and just to see such a vast space of ice and snow must be breath-taking.

15. Give blood - another super simple one. These are happening constantly and are so beneficial. I'm actually going to go and find when the next one is in my area and I recommend all of you do the same!

16. Go to the Ellen DeGeneres show - everyone loves her and her show looks like so much fun! Now to somehow get tickets and travel there...

And that's it so far! Most of these involve travelling, but I love exploring new places! I will continually add to this as life continues, but I love having a place to go to when booking a holiday now, or if I want to plan something fun! What's on your bucket list? If you don't have one, then go grab some friends, discuss plans and all create one!

Love from Roxy x

Prepping for Portugal

Woo I'm off to Portugal tomorrow! I literally cannot wait for some sun and to be able to come home with nice glowing tanned skin! Everyone has their favourite necessities they need for their holidays, including myself, so I thought I'd show you all my new bits that I bought for my holiday :)

Firstly, the trainers. These are there to show the exercise I have been doing in preparation for the dreaded day of putting on a bikini. I was recently told about a girl in Australia called Kayla Itsines who is a personal trainer and has just released an ebook called 'The Bikini Body Guide Workouts' and is absolutely amazing. It is a 12 week programme involving circuit training, along with low-intensity training which is just a 45 minute walk. NO RUNNING. I hate running, and these workouts mean I can do a half an hour gym session of circuits and be done for the day! They are hard (you have to 'earn your body' as Kayla says) but the workouts can be adapted for any ability and you don't even need a gym membership to do them. Kayla is also really inspirational, and regularly posts on her blog, Facebook and Instagram about healthy living. This is the first exercise regime I've ever actually stuck to and I'd highly recommend it. Click HERE for a link to her website. 

I gave in to the current bblogger obsession of the Revlon Colour Burst Matte Balm because I love a bright lip, particularly in summer when I have a tan. I think it's far more casual and fun than red and suits my colouring. Although I haven't tried this yet, I trust all you bloggers and expect it to be a worthwhile purchase! I went for the colour 235 'Mischievous' which you can buy HERE.

Now this little piece is the cutest hair scrunchie from Topshop. I've been trying to avoid buying a scrunchie for so long because they have become super 'hipster' and 'edgy' and I am neither of those things, haha. This, however, is more girly and pretty so I thought I could pull it off. They come in loads of different colours and patterns and just make a ponytail look much more interesting. I hardly ever wear my hair up but it's much more comfortable to do so on holiday so decided this would be a handy little item to spruce up my holiday outfits! You can buy this HERE

This may seem like an odd purchase because most of you will remember using this when you were about 6. Well, I absolutely loved it back then, and I still love it now! As much as I love how my hair goes all wavy in from the sea, I hateee the feeling of it. My hair gets ridiculously knotty in general life, so you can imagine how bad it gets once it's full of salt! This detangling spray works just as well now as it did all those years ago, and the smell of 'sweet pear' is just amazing, so it is definitely a holiday necessity for me! You can buy this HERE.

 Finally, I bought a tinted moisturiser. I've never really worn one before as I've just stuck to trusty foundation, but it's such a hassle once your face gets tanned on holiday and your foundation is too light. So, I decided to be brave and ditch the foundation. I asked around on Twitter for advice on the best to buy, and Laura Mercier came out top. However, as I've not used tinted moisturiser before, I thought I should try a cheaper one just in case it didn't become a regular for me. No7 was also suggested a fair bit so I went with that and I am hoping for great things! It also has an SPF 15 which is very important! You can buy this HERE.

Well, that's it for my pre-holiday purchases! I think all of these are complete necessities for a holiday (along with plenty of other things of course!) and I'm excited to put them all to use! What are your holiday necessities? Have you tried any of these products? Let me know in the comments :)

Love from Roxy x