This post is part of my 12 Days of Christmas campaign where I share a Christmassy blog post every day for 12 days! It involves giveaways, competitions and more – so keep your eyes peeled!
I love these types of post! I always think it’s so nice to find out more about fellow bloggers and it adds a bit of a personal touch. Also, it allows me to reflect back on the year. Going through pictures I realise what a great year I’ve actually had – something I may have not appreciated if I didn’t do this post!
So what I’m going to do is show you a picture I took in every month of this year with a short explanation of what I did this month. Hopefully this gives you a bit of insight about me and what I do. I’d love you to do the same! Let me know via Twitter or Instagram if you’ve done it too 😊
January
For me the new year always starts at my family home. It’s my mum’s birthday on New Years Day so we love to celebrate it all together! My mum, dad, sister and other family members have a fun evening together drinking a couple of bubbly drinks, playing some games and chatting away. This is one of my favourite nights of the year!
I usually fly back to the UK a couple days after New Years and that’s when we get back to normal life. Work, the gym and regular walks with our pupper – the everyday life stuff!
February
February is usually a bit of a happier month than January, as it starts to get slighty warmer, lighter and the post-holiday blues has kind of faded away. It’s my sisters’ birthday early February too! I try to come over to see her, but if I can’t make it I send usually send a small gift and funny card.
In February 2019 I actually went to my family home in the Netherlands again! This time not to see my parents, but to wave them goodbye on their holiday. They went to Cuba for two weeks and asked me to look after their two gorgeous Beagles (yes, please!). Dogsitting is the best and most relaxing thing ever!
This is one of them, Senna, posing by the spring flowers coming out.
March
Oh do I love it when March comes around again! It’s my birthday month (15th) and it’s usually pretty glorious in the UK. Lighter jackets, sometimes even just a long sleeve top will do. In our house the spring decorations come out again, cushions with lighter colours and candles with fresh scents.
I love being outdoors so on the weekends we often do things like going to Painswick Rococo Gardens as pictured. Long countryside walks and warming up in the nearby pub, these are my favourite days.
I never really celebrate my birthday to extravagantly, maybe just a nice dinner with my boyfriend or relaxing in the pub with a drink!
April
Nothing too special happens for us in April, no birthdays, celebrations or antyhing like that. This April was just a working month, getting into the gym regularly and doing fun things on the weekend.
I’d never been to Bath before (I know! Ridiculous!) so one random weekend we decided to go for the day. We live in the Cotswolds so are just a short train ride away from this lovely city. I adored it! We’ve been back to Bath frequently since that weekend and I love it more every time.
If you have any suggestions for nice pubs or restaurants let me know in the comments.
May
The start of May is always special for us, as it’s my boyfriends’ birthday. He never likes to make a fuss though, so always has a hard time thinking of what he wants to do! Most years we do the same as my birthday, go to our favourite pub or restaurant for a nice meal and some drinks.
This year towards the end of May my parents came to visit me! As you know they live in the Netherlands and every so often they fly over to the UK for a couple days. It was so nice to spend time with them and show them where we live (they hadn’t been since we moved). The weather was absolutely glorious so this called for the first Pimm’s of the year.
June
In June we took a pretty impromptu trip to: Greece! Good friends of mine recently moved to Thessaloniki so we spent a week and a bit around the area relaxing by the beach and partying in the beach clubs. Catching up with friends, lots of tasty Greek food (and drink!) and soaking up the sunshine – what a treat. Because our bedroom had view of the sea, we would wake up really early and watch the dolphins swim past which was absolutely amazing to see.
I used to go to Greek islands a lot on family holidays, but had never been to the mainland before. What a gorgeous part of the country. With a pool ánd beach next to our house our holiday couldn’t be any better. I’m planning another visit soon and am curious to see what it’s like in the spring.
July
As I was scrolling through my photos I found lots for every month and had a hard time choosing which one to use! But I struggled a bit in July..
As much as the summer is meant to be a time to party, relax and enjoy the sunshine, we mainly just worked and spent time around where we live. If I’m being honest I’m more of an autumn/winter person and when it gets to the end of July I start getting excited for the leaves falling (apologies to all the summer people reading this)!
This photo of us drinking wine is the most exciting I could find! I guess it could be a good resolution for 2020 to make July a bit more special! Do you have any events going in July that you always go to? Let me know and maybe I can plan it for next year!
August
August is one of my favourite months of the year! I always go home around the first week of August as there is a massive sailing event around where my parents are. The warmer weather, cold Dutch beers and spending time with family – what’s not to love!
My boyfriend came this year and we decided to spend a couple of days in Utrecht, a large city in the Netherlands. This picture shows the canalside café, where we love to have a drink and just watch the boats go by.
September
September 2019 was a special month for me. I quit my full time job for my blog! Super scary and a big decision to make, but my job was not making me happy at all.
So what did I do in September? Worked hard on this blog! Writing, creating relationships with bloggers and brands, optimising the website and so much more. A few months in, am I happy with the decision to go full time on my blog? ABSOLUTELY! I love every single day, wake up so much happier and love the website.
October
October is great around where we live because it’s the month of the The Times and The Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival. They always have an impressive line up, with interesting artists, writers, documentary makers, politicians and more. And the atmosphere is so nice! Cheltenham is a lovely town in general and the festivals really add to the buzz.
We hang around the festival most days, even if we haven’t booked tickets for something. Grab a drink and some food, see if there any last minute tickets for sale. Often you end up finding an interesting talk you hadn’t considered going to!
November
Although November only ended a couple days ago, it seems like ages away! We did só much this month and I’m excited to tell you about it.
Firstly and most importantly, we adopted a little dog. This gorgeous boy is called Monty, he’s 4,5 years old and a terrier mix. He’s a bit nervous about some things like meeting other dogs and us leaving the house, but other than that he has settled in very well and has instantly become part of our family. We love him!
My sister came to stay for a couple days in November as well. It was amazing having her around for a while and spending time together. As you can see we enjoy going to the pub and exploring different beers. Cheers!
December
I mean, were only 5 days in! What can I say about this month. The most noteworthy thing that has happend so far is that my driving licence arrived! This is super exciting, but I’m also a bit scared that I can now go on the road without the instructur next to me giving advice. We’ve rented a car for this weekend, to drive to the Welsh Brecon Beacons and explore the area.
Christmas is on our doorstep and we are spending this with Will’s family, a proper British Christmas with a big dinner and watching Christmas specials on the tv. For New Years I will be back at my family home and cheers with my mum for her birthday.
What are you up to this Christmas and New Years?
