This week has been a bit of a strange one as half of me has been trying to enjoy a relaxing week off work while the other half of me has been frantically writing an essay that's due on Monday. All in all, I'd say I managed a pretty good balance between work and relaxation and, above all else, I was just grateful for a week of no 5:30am alarms! In between catching up on sleep and essay writing, here are some of the things that have been making me smile this week:
Christmas movie day. Every October half term, my mum, siblings and I get together for a Christmas movie day. We're all massive Christmas lovers and it's always one of my favourite days of the year. There was Christmas music, festive candles, movies and, (of course) lots of good food, what's not to love?!
New bedding. I picked up a new duvet cover for Jay and I this week as our old covers were looking a little tatty. It's never a struggle for me to get an early night because I just love to sleep, but there's just something about fresh bedding that makes an early night seem even more attractive.
Vegan marshmallows. Sometimes, a plain old hot chocolate just doesn't cut it, so I make sure to have some vegan marshmallows on hand for when I need a sugary cup of decadence. As the weather has been feeling much colder this week, hot chocolates were definitely in order and a mugful of creamy cashew milk hot chocolate topped with an obscene amount of marshmallows definitely hit the spot.
Succulents. Sarah from The V Nice Life has been sharing her epic house plant collection over on Instagram lately and, all of a sudden, my very small collection of cacti started looking a little lonely. Although I don't have a whole house to fill, there's definitely some more room for plants in our bedroom, so we picked up a couple of new succulents this week. Sarah's collection has definitely inspired me to pick up some more greenery but for now, my succulents are brightening up my desk nicely.
Baking. Although it's only October, I made use of my week off work as a chance to get started on some festive baking for Blogmas. There were chocolate orange cookies, mince pies and filled croissants and I am now so ready for the season of good food to arrive.
Anthropologie. I indulged in a little window shopping this week and I couldn't resist a little trip to Anthropologie. Every time I go in the shop, I spot a million and one things I'd love to buy, but as it's almost Christmas, a few of their beautiful candles, mugs and bowls definitely made their way on to my Christmas list.
Chai tea. As a large proportion of my week has been spent reading critics and writing my essay, I've naturally been drinking even more tea than normal. My tea of choice recently has been chai and copious mugs of cinnamon-y goodness have definitely made essay writing a little more bearable.
It's back to work and normality this week, but as my essay deadline has passed, it's not all doom and gloom! What's been making you smile this week?