Reading Again With Paper Cut Outs

It’s been such a long time since I last read a book - our ‘Readers’ book club has died a sad little death, and when it comes to relaxing once the kids are in bed, escaping with a book is usually the last thing on my mind! Saying all this though, I’ve found myself getting increasingly sucked into the black hole of social media comparison, and beating myself up about my imagined flaws etc, so it’s probably about time I switched off and enjoyed a treat from the literary world!

 

Guess That Sound With Soundiculous!

Man, I’d forgotten what it was like to look after a newborn – the constant feeding, the lack of sleep and the specific cry all babies seem to have (which nature has programmed us to drop everything for) has really been challenging for us this past couple of weeks. Even this blog post, which would normally take me a couple of hours, has been dragging out for days! Despite these new commitments, we’ve still been trying to have fun as a family, even though activities are interrupted a little more often than usual. As such, when I was contacted by Gamely Ltd, creators of the hilarious card game Randomise, to review another of their recently launched products, I saw this as an excellent opportunity to have a laugh at a recent big family birthday.

Birthday Treats at Smashburger, Glasgow!

For those of you who are regular readers of my blog, you will know I’ve been absent for a wee while, trying to get my life together in the run up to the end of my PhD. In fact, I only re-joined the blogging scene about a week ago when I finally decided to get back in the saddle again after a six month break! No sooner had I returned to the blogosphere, an email popped up in my inbox announcing some new additions to the menu of my local Smashburger, and asking if I’d like to bring a guest along to sample the latest in gourmet burger goodies – with Friday being my birthday, I couldn’t resist!

Luxury Cinema Experiences with Odeon Luxe

With advances in home technology, and the increasing amount of various streaming services available to us, relaxing with snacks and a movie has never been easier. We have the ability stay in our own comfortable surroundings (usually while wearing jammies) and are spoilt with a huge choice of viewing entertainment, especially when companies such as Sky have movies in their store, sometimes within a couple of months of their big screen debuts – what is there to encourage cinema trips anymore?

 

Picture courtesy of Mischief PR and Odeon Cinemas

Fun Lunch Friday – Topolabamba, Glasgow

Since starting a blog, I’ve had so many brilliant opportunities to discover new things and visit a whole host of exciting new places, but my favourite thing to come out of the blogging world is definitely the wonderful people I’ve been able to interact with! As such, I wanted to include the lovely Lis (from Last Year’s Girl) in mine and Sarahjane’s semi-regular ‘Fun Lunch Friday’ exploration of the Glasgow food scene!

 

This week has not been a particularly good one for general health – Sarahjane was off ill and I’d had a churning stomach all morning – but I was determined not to cancel when it was Lis’ first choice of lunch destination. The original location was Chaakoo Bombay Café on St Vincent Street, but we arrived to find it fully booked out for lunch! Luckily, their Mexican sister restaurant was only a few doors down on the same street, so we opted for a stop at Topolabamba instead, with a view to returning to Chaakoo at a later date.

Smashburger Arrives in Glasgow

These days, when I think of burgers, I automatically associate them with the streets of Glasgow and the ever-expanding list of gourmet burger restaurants which serve them. I’ve even started a semi-regular ‘Glasgow Burger Tour’ with a couple of friends, with the aim of trying to discover even more varieties of this glorious American dinner option! When an email arrived in my inbox a couple of weeks ago, inviting me to the upcoming VIP launch of Smashburger in Glasgow, I jumped at the chance to expand my inventory of burger experiences, and (since he’s just started a new job near me) I dragged Scott along for the ride!

Link It! – A Fun Game For All The Family

In our household, we love a good card game, but it’s often the adult themed favourites (Cards Against Humanity, Never Have I Ever…) which are first on the table, meaning my kids are always excluded from the fun. When an email arrived in my inbox, asking if I wanted to try the new, fast-paced, family card game ‘Link It’ from PikyKwiky, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to include my children in one of our favourite pastimes!

 

The Readers - #7 Magenta Opium

It really has been a struggle to keep up with The Readers recently. With all the stress of my miscarriages, and then moving house, I’ve had so much on my plate that I’ve not been able to concentrate on reading. Top that off with the imminent conclusion of my PhD and the general decline in our mutual love of Book Club (we lost a member in the shape of Nikki), and it’s now six months down the road again. I also feel particularly bad, as this one was my choice, but I was the one holding everything up! Anyway, now that I’m finally finished, I present to you our latest slice of fun fiction – ‘Magenta Opium’ by Sharon Baillie.

Fun Lunch Friday – Steak, Cattle and Roll, Merchant Square

As the PhD reaches its conclusion, I’m finding it increasingly difficult to set time aside for blog posts. I fully intended to write this post up last night but, by the time I’d got home from the office, I was just too exhausted to sit still and think. Nevertheless, I’m determined to keep up some sort of semi-regular blog schedule, so I’m typing this up from my Saturday morning position of comfort on the couch, in my jammies!

Choosing the Perfect Wedding Photographer

It’s a huge decision… who are you going to be comfortable with while they snap you in your dressing gown, getting ready? Are the children going to like them, or run away from every photo op? Is the work going to be any good, or am I going to be stuck with a set of posed group shots, similar to the school photos of old? I’m sure every couple would have similar questions when looking for a wedding photographer, but I present you with the perfect solution… Jenni Browne Photography!

 

Fun Lunch Friday – Café Andaluz, Glasgow City Centre

It seems like such a long time since our last ‘Fun Lunch Friday’, but with all the crap going on in my life, I’ve not felt much like doing anything fun. Regardless of this, I didn’t want Sarahjane to go off on her work placement without catching up beforehand, especially as I’m going to miss her birthday! So yesterday, I brought in her birthday presents, and we resumed our lunchtime tours of Glasgow with ‘Fun Lunch Friday’… on a Thursday!

A Sneak Peek of Domina

When we first started our ‘Readers’ book club, I was delighted with the opening choice of novel – Maestra, by L. S. Hilton, was a fantastically sexy thriller, which played with the idea of the traditional heroine figure and lead the reader on a fast-paced tour of Europe, filled with intrigue, blackmail and murder. This April (today in fact), we are once again treated to a further instalment of this world in the form of Maestra’s sequel – Domina.

 

The Readers - #6 I Let You Go

It seems like ages since my last ‘Readers’ post, but with my wedding and Lesley’s work commitments, it has proved difficult for us all to get together and discuss our latest choice. Given recent upheavals in my own life, I’m also glad I finished this one a couple of weeks ago, as I’d have hated to hold up the proceedings any further. So, without further ado, I present you with Lesley’s latest choice - ‘I Let You Go’ by Clare Mackintosh.

 

An Evening of Tasty Treats from Browns, Glasgow

I’ve never thought of myself as a food blogger specifically, but it seems my last couple of posts have taken me further in that direction – who doesn’t love sampling delicious dishes whenever the opportunity arises? When I was contacted to try out the new menu being launched at Browns, on George Square, I jumped at the chance to see what tasty goodies they had to offer!

 

Fun Lunch Friday – Mercado, Merchant Square

‘Fun Lunch Friday’ seems to have fallen a bit by the wayside since Christmas and my wedding, but today, Sarahjane and I resurrected our semi-regular lunch date with a trip to Mercado in the beautiful Merchant Square, Glasgow.

Hard Rock Café – Seattle Visit

Most of you now know, I recently got married and spent a fantastic honeymoon in rainy Seattle! An odd choice for a romantic getaway, but a place both of us wanted to visit and neither of us had been before. With my current ‘Hard Rock’ obsession, it was also obvious I would pick somewhere that was home to one of their cafes, so luckily Seattle fit the bill nicely!

Saturday in the City with Social and Cocktail

Who doesn’t love a good cocktail?! When I opened my inbox, just before New Year, to find an invite to an evening of ‘cocktails and cabaret’ in Glasgow’s city centre, I just couldn’t resist! Social and Cocktail, a mobile drinks company who specialise in cocktail making master classes, teamed up with The Riding Room, in Glasgow, and invited a bunch of lovely bloggers along to sample their cocktails and enjoy a snippet of the regular entertainment on offer – how could I turn this down?!

Hard Rock Café – Manchester Visit

I’d been meaning to write this post last week, before my house descended into Christmas madness, but work and other commitments piled up, so I’m only just getting around to it now. The weekend before Christmas was supposed to be the date of our wedding, but the original venue cancelled and we suddenly had a free weekend on our schedule. Rather than sitting around thinking about how we could already be married, we decided to book a weekend mini break away together, and Manchester seemed like the perfect escape. We didn’t get much opportunity to explore, given the Christmas craziness, but I did get the chance to visit another Hard Rock, so here is an account of my latest café visit!

Why is the Rum Gone?!

Ah, that age old question made famous by the Pirates of the Caribbean movies! Not something I thought I’d ever ask, but now at the forefront of my mind since my visit to the new Revolución de Cuba restaurant in Glasgow last Wednesday!

 

Fun Lunch Friday – Taste Buchanan

It’s that time of the month again – the first Friday after pay day, when you can push the boat out and live a little bit more luxuriously for one or two days! Forever on a budget, my idea of luxury is spending £10 on lunch, rather than £1, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity to fit in another ‘Fun Lunch Friday’! With this one being my choice, I dragged Sarahjane along to the recently opened Taste Buchanan.