February Favourites - 2020

I haven't really done much over the month of February to create a full favourites list, but I have created two fantastic new designs for mouse ears, so here they are! To see my other favourites lists, see the links below:

January Favourites 2020 - Click Here
Other Favourites Posts - Click Here

Peter Pan Mouse Ears

This month I received a request to make a pair of mouse ears themed around Peter Pan, which I was very happy to do! I had been waiting for a while for a request for Peter Pan, so I had the exact fabric in mind for creating them. This is my favourite pair of ears that I have made so far and I was very excited when I received this request. To keep updated with my Mouse Ears Business, you can follow on our social media accounts:

Twitter - @WishingUponANat

Instagram - @Wishing_Upon_A_Natalie

Mulan Mouse Ears

Also related to WishingUponANatalie, I made a pair of Mulan inspired Mouse ears! Mulan has always been one of my favourite Disney Movies, and when I came across this fabric I decided that I had to make a pair of Mouse Ears with that design! I cannot wait to take these with me to Walt Disney World!

Thank you for reading today's post, and keep an eye out for the next update!

An Update: 30 before 30

In February 2019, I made a post called "30 before 30", which was basically me listing 30 things that I wanted to do before my 30th Birthday. I have been thinking about this post a lot and I really wanted to do a bit of an update post on it, since it has been over a year since I initially posted it now.  I have sorted them all into 6 categories - Personal Goals, Career Goals, Financial Goals, Home Goals, Fun Goals and Travel Goals. They can probably all fit into more than one category, but this is just how I have organised them. I will not be going into detail about each thing here since I did that last year - you can read the original post here. I have also completed certain goals, so those will be written in italics. Without further ado, here are the updates:

Personal Goals:

• Dye my hair a fun color
• Grow out my hair and get it cut to donate to charity
• Spend a week of my life without internet
• Manage to read 50 books in a year
• Read Les Miserables
• Go to a Book Singing
• Get better at Eye Makeup
• Go to a Gay Bar

Career Goals:

• Be on TV
• Be in a professional Production of a show
• Work a Summer in Disney 
• Get a Masters Degree
• Write a Book

Financial Goals:

• Start my own Business

Home Goals:

• Adopt a Dog
• Get a decent gaming PC

Fun Goals:

• Meet a Celebrity
• Get a selfie with an alpaca
• Make my own Halloween Costume and wear it
• Go on a night out and stay out later than 12am 
• Go Sky Diving
• Have a non-stop Harry Potter Marathon
• Go Horse Riding
• Play all of the Legend of Zelda Games

Travel Goals:

• Visit at least two other Disney Parks
• Go to New York City
• See a Broadway Show
• Go to Japan
• Live in another country for a year

What do I want to change this year?

This year has been very challenging for me in many different ways - but I have managed to get through the first year in my twenties! There have been difficulties that could have been avoided, and some that were completely out of my control, and I would like to be better prepared so I can avoid things happening in the future, or so that when I do encounter difficulties that come my way they do not affect me as much at the things that happened in the last year affected me. 

The year ahead of me is definitley looking to be a successful one, with me working at my dream job! I want to focus on being happy with what I am doing and appreciate what I am doing in the moment. The issues with having a bucket list like this is that I think people can get too caught up in "I need to cross this off my list to I can achieve everything", when they just need to step back and appreciate what they are doing in the moment. A focus for this year is that I want to make the most of my situation now; it is nice to know what will happen in the future, but there was always a point in time where I really wanted to be where I am today. 

Where am I living?

The majority of the time I will be living in my University accommodation, and I will only be visiting my hometown fro a total of four weeks this year. This is absolutely terrifying to me, but it is a sacrifice that has to be made due to career commitments this year. This will probably make communicating and seeing my family very difficult. 

I will also be living in Walt Disney World for 3 months which is very exciting, but again, scary as it is another country. It will be a chance to experience a whole new culture and I am so grateful to have been given this opportunity!

What steps do I need to make for Financial Security?

For the first time since I was 16 years old, I am unemployed. I worked as a Disney Character back at home for 4 years, but due to other commitments and the fact that I will be in the North East for 4 weeks this year, it was not possible to stay employed with this company, especially when I will not be able to take on any work over the summer period. I did leave my position with the company, but be assured it was all on very good terms and I was advised if I am ever in need of work I can let them know and they will be happy to hire me again. 

So, with that out of the way, I do not have a job now, meaning that I am solely relying on my student loan. The way I worked this last year is that I budgeted with my student loan for each week and money I earned from work was put into a savings account. To make sure that I don't die, I need to continue budgeting, and I may need to make cuts as I do like having some savings there just in case. 

Also, if you were paying attention to what was written above, I now run my own business. It is not as good financially as having a 9-5 job, but I can choose my hours and still get a bit of money from it. I need to organise how much money I make is going to go back into the business funds and how much I am going to keep putting into my savings account.

How do I want to better myself this year?

A huge flaw in my personality is that I focus on making other people happy way too much. This year, to make sure I can stay happy and healthy, I should probably be a little bit more selfish and focus on me more. I went out of my way to help so many people last year and none of it really worked in my favour. Although it is nice to be nice sometimes, I shouldn't be tearing myself apart to please other people. 

Something that I want to do this year

I have been to Walt Disney World so many times in my life, and I really want to find something that I have never done before and do that while I am working there in the Summer!

And there you have it, this is an update to my 30 before 30 post, I hope that you enjoyed reading my updates! Thank you for reading and I will see you in the next post!

The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag

March seems to be turning into the month for book tags, so here is another one, The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag! It is another tag that I have never heard of before but thought would be interesting to include on my blog. So without further ado, lets get started.

Flagrate (Writing Charm)

A book that you found interesting but would like to rewrite

Photo Credit: @LorraineAmbers

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

The world and politics in this story was something that really interested me when reading this book, and it had a set of fantastic characters and a twist that I was not expecting. However, I felt like it was poorly written, and that there would have been a better way of writing this story. It sort of felt like I was reading a draft and not a finalized version of a book. It really is a shame, because I did enjoy elements of the story, but the writing really put me off reading the rest of the books in the series. Or maybe it was just meant for a younger audience than me. Either way, if given the chance there are certainly things I would change about the writing in this story. 

Alohamora (Unlocking Charm)

A first book in a series that got you hooked

Photo Credit: @TwoBookTheives

Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas

I did not realise that I would be hooked on a series of eight books when I first picked up Throne of Glass, but there we go. I was truly hooked on the series, finishing the first two books in the space of a week. I first began the series when Empire of Storms came out, so I had to wait for Tower of Dawn and Kingdom of Ash, and wow it was painful to wait and see what happened after the end of Empire of Storms. I binged through all the books in the series when I first read the series, and I binged the last two when they came out. It is a series I wish I could go back and read again without knowing anything, because there are just so many twists that you do not expect. Although it is great to reread and realise what characters are going to become. 

Accio (Summoning Charm)

A book that you wish you could have right now

Photo Credit: @TheBookReviewer

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson 

I am a lover of a good murder mystery; this book was a delightful read. I loved the formatting of the story, and that between chapters we got to read through Pippa's work for her EPQ Project only adding to the world and making it truly feel like we were watching an 18 year old solve a mystery, not an experienced "child genius" flawless character that can be seen sometimes in stories like this. 

Avada Kerdava (Killing Curse)

A Killer Book

Photo Credit: @BookBookOwl

The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neill

Ever wanted a new version of the Little Mermaid that was closer to being like the original Hans Christian Anderson Tale and not sugar coated like the Disney Movie? This is the book for you! The Surface Breaks was a hard book to read, and not because of it being overly complicated, but because of what we watch our main character go through. I really enjoyed this book, and there were moments where I thought "Surely not, surely it can't go wrong now". It was such a good read and I highly recommend it to anyone who isn't necessarily looking for a cheery read. 

Confundus (Confusion Charm)

A book that you found confusing

Photo Credit: @GreaterManchesterFringe

The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter

Technically this is a play and not a book, but I read it so I am including it! I am not really one to get confused by stories, but the ending of this play really confused me. I don't really want to go into it as spoilers (and it is quite a good read if you get the chance to read it), but I was told to read it at the beginning of the academic year for university and when I went to class the next week I was not the only one who didn't really understand what had happened. One of the (slightly) annoying things about it is that the ending is open, so you ultimately decide what happens and there's no right or wrong answer, but it's just how we got there. It is such a good read, and if you are not studying a performance subject you should definitley check it out!

Expecto Partonum (Guarding Spell)

A Childhood book connected to good memories

Photo Credit: @HettyFeatherPhotos

Hetty Feather by Jacqueline Wilson

The only answer to go here would have been a Jacqueline Wilson Book, I feel like they shaped the childhoods of many British Children. The challenge was trying to think which one in particular do I have the fondest memories of, and then I remembered when I got Hetty Feather. I was going on a school trip, it was going to be for a week and I would not have any contact with my family. Sounds like and easy thing to do now, but I was eleven when I went on this trip, and there was no texting of Facebook to keep in touch with them so it was hard. It was one of the worst weeks of my life, going with no friends and pretty much being at my teacher's side the entire time, but my mum bought me this book to read while I was there and I was hooked. I finished it within the week - which was an achievement then since I did not read a lot. I fully blame this book for my obsession with history now. Although that trip was not the nicest thing to remember, I found a lot of happiness in reading this book, and the original trilogy remains to be one of my favourite book series of all time (I have not read any of the other books in the series so I can't say what they are like).  

Sectumsempra (Dark Curse)

A Dark Twisted Book

Photo Credit: @Gramho

I am not one for reading dark stories, but I will say one of the most messed up concepts I have read is the first book in the Uglies series. Waiting until your 16th birthday, then you are given a makeover which involves a lot of plastic surgery to make you beautiful. The thought of this happening is absolutely terrifying, and although I am yet to finish the series the thought of this happening in real life is messed up!

Expelliarmus (Disarming Spell)

A book that took you by surpise

Photo Credit: @HappyPiranha

I read the Hunger Games Trilogy as part of a reading project my school was doing in 2011 (wow before the first movie came out!) and as a whole the trilogy surprised me and encouraged me to read more books in the YA category. I was very unprepared for the ending of the second book however, and it still remains to be my favourite book in the series to this day. The first book was brilliant, don't get me wrong, but the second book builds so much on the world and characters that we have already met. Mockingjay was a disappointing follow up, but that does not take away from Catching Fire being one of my all time favourite books. 

Prior Incantato (Reverse Spell)

The Last Book you Read 

Photo Credit: @LunasLittleLibrary

By the time this is posted on my blog, it is probably a different book, but as of writing this the last book that I read was A Girl Called Shameless by Laura Steven (sequel to The Exact Opposite of Okay). This is a series that I love very much, and I have written a review of both books in the series. You can catch my review for A Girl Called Shameless here. 

Sonorus (Amplifying Charm)

A book you think everybody should know about

Photo Credit: @The_Book_Aesthetic

A Book that I always bring up that I think is truly underrated - Of Fire and Stars. A fantasy story where two princesses fall in love. I absolutely love the world and the characters in this story, not to mention the fact that there is a Lesbian Romance! Some representation for us Lesbian Princesses out there! I have not yet read the sequel, but this was one of my favourite reads of 2018!

Obliviate (Memory Charm)

A book or spoiler you would like to forget having read

Photo Credit: @MelToTheAny

The Wicked Deep was a book that I really enjoyed, and I really did not see the twist in the third act of the story coming. When I read it I wondered why I didn't think of it sooner (it is hard to talk about without saying what it is so apologies in advance!) and I imagine reading it a second time with that thought in mind would make the story very interesting. But I would like to experience reading it again for the first time!

Imperio (Controlling Curse)

A book you had to read for school

Photo Credit: @ObjectLiberty

I almost put Of Mice and Men here, but since nearly every person who has done a GCSE in English has looked at that book, I decided to pick To Kill A Mockingbird instead. Our school decided to give our class this book to look at rather than Of Mice and Men since we had been studying that book since year 8 and by the time we got to Year 11 we wanted to read something different. Hence To Kill A Mockingbird made its way onto my bookshelf. It was a truly refreshing read, and we even got to go and see the show on tour in a local theatre before our exam which was amazing! Most people never want tto thin about their GCSE exams again after completing them, but my English Literature exam was a paper that I was fond of, and I am still proud of my A* to this day!

Crucio (Torture Curse)

A book that was painful to read

Photo Credit: @BloggedByHope

The Divergent Series is a bit of a bad book series anyway, but a book that I absolutely despise is the second book in the series - Insurgent. I actually wish this book didn't exist. I really did not like it and it made me want to discontinue the series. It took a while for me to pick up Allegiant after finishing Insurgent. 

And that is is for The Harry Potter Spells Book Tag! Thank you so much for reading, and check back next week for another blog post!

The Zombie Apocalypse Book Tag

I came across this book tag and was intregued by the title. The Zombie Apocalypse Book Tag - What is that, I thought, but when I actually read a couple of posts and thought I really wanted to give it a go! So here we go, this is my version of The Zombie Apocalypse Book Tag. First things first, here is what you need to do:

1.  Pick Five Books
2. Turn to a Random Page
3. The First Name you see gets to be on your Zombie Survival Team 
4. Apply the characters to the 10 Situations and types of people in order that you got them 
5. Fret over how doomed you are. 

Here we go. The Five books I picked are:

• Let It Go: A Twisted Frozen Tale by Jen Calonita
• Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
• Cinder by Merissa Meyer
• The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
• HotDog Girl by Jennifer Dugan 

And now the results:

Let It Go: A Twisted Frozen Tale by Jen Calonita

1) The First Person to Die: Anna

I am so sorry, probably shouldn't have picked a Disney Book for this tag but there we go! 

2) The Person you trip to get away from the Zombies: Kristoff

Oh dear, I have just killed off the main couple in the Frozen Franchise...Sorry Disney!

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

3) The First Person to turn into a Zombie: Cath

I am so sorry Cath, all you wanted to do was to read the final book in your favourite series! Maybe that is something you can do in the afterlife!

4) The Person that trips YOU to get away from the Zombies: Wren 

Well, she ditched Cath when they moved to university together, so I can't say it is not expected that she would trip me to save herself.

Cinder by Merissa Meyer

5) The Idiot of the Team: Prince Kai 

Sounds about right to me, sorry Kai. 

6) The "Brains" of the Team: Cinder

I mean, I guess it could have been a lot worse, and she helped herself get out of a lot of sticky situations so maybe we are not in as much trouble as we initially thought?

The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde

7) The Team's Medic: Dorian 

We could be in trouble. 

8) The Weapons Expert: Basil

Not what I expected, but okay....

HotDog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

9) The Brawler: Lou

This could be a problem. Lou does not seem to be the most confrontational person in the world and she is extremely awkward, so I don't see her being great at fighting Zombies. She will probably apologise to them for biting her. 

10) The Team Captain: Nick

He seems to know what he is doing, so it may not be the worst choice for team leader...

Well, everything could have been a lot worse, but it could have been a lot better too so, maybe I have a 40% of surviving the Zombie Apocalypse with this team? I really enjoyed doing this tag, and if you have any other fun book tags to do please let me know! Thank you so much for reading! 

My Life In Books Tag

I came across this tag when looking for some writing inspiration and it was a tag that I have never came across before, so I thought it would be something very interesting to write about this week. So here we go, this is the My life in Books Tag!

Pick a Book for each of your Initials

N - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Photo Credit: @SamanthaReads

A -  Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Photo Credit: @PaperFury

T - Things a Bright Girl can do by Sally Nicholls

Photo Credit: @bookaddict24-7

A - Alex in Wonderland by Simon James Green

Photo Credit: @SimonJamesGreen

L - Lost at Sea by Bryan Lee O'Malley

Photo Credit: @LoveCharlieW

I - I, Eliza Hamilton by Susan Holloway Scott

Photo Credit: @stjernfallbooks

E - Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas

Photo Credit: @WeeReaderBlog

Count your age along your bookshelf, what book is it?

Photo Credit: @BNTeen

I don't even have enough books at my university accommodation to do this properly, I have 20 books on my bookshelf, so I guess book 21 will be the one I am currently reading -  HotDog Girl by Jennifer Dugan.

Pick a book set in your city/country 

Photo Credit:@TheUncorkedLibrarian

I don't think my hometown is exciting enough to be the setting of a book, all I could find when looking was information about the steel industry which was not very exciting, so I have picked possibly the most famous british book for this part of the post - Harry Potter. Technically Hogwarts is in Scotland which is about an hour away from where I live so it is still pretty close!

Pick a Book that represents a Destination you would love to travel to 

Photo Credit: @CarollinaRuiz

I would absolutely love to visit New York City one day, and the first book I can think of set there is They Both Die in the End by Adam Silvera. Not the happiest of books to choose from, but still a story that I really loved! 

Pick a Book that's your Favourite Colour

Photo Credit: @Pinterest

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli. I absolutely love the colour of this book! 

Which Book do you have the fondest memories of?

Photo Credit: @TheHonestBookClub

Sounds strange, but I would probably say the Hunger Games Series since they were my gateway into reading new things and looking for other books that I may not have picked up to read previously. Also, I read them while I was still in school which was a weird time in my life and I got a lot of happiness from reading! 

Which Book did you have the most difficulty reading?

Photo Credit: @OliviaCatastrophe

I would probably say Twelfth Night or anything else by Shakespeare just due to the Old English Language that they use. I do have a children's book filled with simplified versions of Shakespeare's Plays, so usually I flick between that and the play when reading something to help me fully understand what is going on at that moment. 

Which Book in your TBR pile will give you the biggest accomplishment when you finish it?

Photo Credit: @AWonderingReader

Has to be The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien. I have had the trilogy on my bookshelf for years and even attempted to get through The Fellowship of the Ring when I was 14. However, I think a massive issue with this series is just finding the time to sit down and read it. My Scheduel has always been pretty full, so it has been hard to dedicate time to myself for reading a hardcore fantasy series. I would absolutely love to, but this might be one that I need an audio book to help me get through, since I will be able to listen to it while doing everyday things, rather than focus all my energy into reading. I do know that I will be so satisfied when I do finish The Lord of the Rings though!

And that is it for the My Life In Books Tag. Thank you so much for reading and check back for next weeks post! If you want to see more of my book related blog posts, click here. 

January Favourites 2020

We are at it again. It has been a year since I posted my first favourites post, and here we are with the first favourites post of 2020. Since eventually half of the post is going to be links to my previous favourites post, I decided to make a page listing them all just to keep everything organized. Although saying that, I will keep listing my 2020 favourites links in other posts.

To see my 2019 favourites posts, click here.

Without further ado, here are my favourites for January 2020:

A Girl Called Shameless by Laura Steven

Photo Credit: @egmont

"It’s been two months since a leaked explicit photo got Izzy involved in a political sex scandal – and the aftershock is far from over. The Bitches Bite Back movement is gathering momentum as a forum for teenage feminists, and when a girl at another school has a sex tape shared online, once again Izzy leads the charge against the slut-shamer. This time she wants to change the state law on revenge porn.

Izzy and her best friend Ajita are as hilarious as ever, using comedy to fight back against whatever the world throws at them, but Izzy is still reeling from her slut-shaming ordeal, feeling angry beyond belief and wondering – can they really make a change?"

Izzy O'Neill returns in full force, with her ridiculous humour, inappropriate comments and fierce attitude. she is easily one of the best characters in the YA genre. She is put through hell in the first book, but she comes back stronger than she was before. In this book, we see her juggling mid terms, a job in the diner, breaking into te writing industry and also trying to make a huge political change which would make the world a better place. If that's not inspirational, I don't know what is.

I had such a fantastic time reading this book; I wrote a full review for it at the beginning of this month. If you would like to read the full review, Click Here.

Fire Emblem Three Houses - Golden Deer Path 

Photo Credit: @NintendoUK

After completing the Blue Lions path in December for the game Fire Emblem Three Houses, I decided I wanted to complete another path. With completing one side of the story, I could sort of understand what the Black Eagles Path would entail, but was curious about what the Golden Deer house story would be. This is why I chose to go with this house for my second play-through. 

I may have not had much of a Christmas break (since I'm not sure when I actually let go of my Nintendo Switch) but I definitely enjoyed this route. It had some parts of the story that improved upon what the Blue Lions left hanging, although saying that, there were parts of the Blue Lions story that were much better than the Golden Deer path. 

Both were definitley worth while playing through and I am looking forward to playing through the Black Eagles house routes. That probably won't be in the next favourites post though, I don't have another two weeks of my life to dedicate to Fire Emblem! But if you are hesitant about playing this game, know that I have 110 hours, which was on just two of the routes offered (and I am aware that some people have spent that amount of time on just one campaign), so considering the amount of content that you get in the game, it is so worth the price. Not to mention the new DLC that is coming out (probably has come out by the time this is posted).

Thomas Kinkade Disney Calendar 2020

Everybody has a calendar somewhere in their house, and each year it is very important for me to have a calendar to help me keep organized and up to date with everything going on! And also, the other important thing is that it looks pretty. Fitting what is seemingly going to be the theme of my life for the year of 2020, I purchased the Thomas Kinkade Disney 2020 calendar and I absolutely love it! Each month I get to look at a beautiful piece of Disney Art and it makes me so happy! Plus I think this is going to look absolutely fabulous in my room when I move to Walt Disney World in the Summer!

Five Year Diary

As some of you may know, I kept a bullet journal throughout 2019 and I absolutely loved it. The only issue is since now that my schedule is so busy, I do not have the time to dedicate myself to drawing out each design for every month, so I am not continuing with that for the time being.

However, I have bought myself a new diary, and it is something I have always wanted to do. I have bought a five year diary, which means I can keep adding notes to the same notebook across five years. Although not quite as extravagant as my bullet journal, it is exactly what I need right now, and i think it will be fantastic to look through it when I am 3-4 years into it and look back to see what I was doing in the previous years. I may continue my bullet journal across certain months if I find the time to, but I will definitley use it alongside this diary.


And that is it for my January Favourites. Let me know what your favourites were during the month of January! Thank you for reading, and I will see you in the next post!

50 things I want to do while working at Walt Disney World

If you are new to this blog, then you may not be aware that in June 2020 I will be working at Walt Disney World. This is a place that I have visited many times as a guest, but surprise, there is still so much there that I haven't done there! I do plan to make a video going more into depth about each of these items on the list, but for now here are 50 things I would like to try while working at Walt Disney World:

1. Eat (and Drink) around the world in Epcot
2. 4 parks, 1 day challenge (including 1 ride, 1 snack and 1 meet and greet in each park)
3. Get a photo in front of all the Disney Walls
4. Ride Space Mountain with the lights on 
5. Take a photo a the casting door (with traditions ears/name badge)
6. Get an extra name badge with my hometown on it
7. Attend an after hours event
8. Do the Keys to the Kingdom tour
9. Solo park day
10. Rope drop to close at every park
11. Do a Voluntears event
12. See all shows and parades
13. Go to a Backstage Cast Members event
14. Get my graduation photo with Minnie and Mickey
15. Send a postcard from the Mainstreet Postbox
16. Eat a Dole Whip
17. Eat a Mickey Pretzel
18. Eat a Mickey Bar
19. Have a picture on an empty Mainstreet
20. Complete World Showcase Passport
21. Ride the Monorail
22. Watch the Fireworks from the Grand Floridian
23. Get a Spirit Jersey
24. Have my Graduation Ears Embroidered 
25. Visit Cast Connections
26. Have an evening at Broadwalk
27. Get a photo with every Disney Princess (Original 11 and any others!)
28. Take a photo in my work costume
29. Get a pressed penny from every country in Epcot
30. Visit Blizzard Beach
31. Visit Typhoon Lagoon
32. Attend at least one Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party
33. Ride all rides in Magic Kingdom in one day
34. Ride Disney's Character Flight in Disney Springs
35. Meet a Rare Character
36. Buy a Christmas Ornament 
37. Eat a Turkey Leg
38. Go to a housing event
39. Take a photo with Rapunzel's Lantern
40. Get a cupcake from the Sprinkles ATM
41. Take a Photo in front of all the Park Icons
42. Buy Photopass / Memory Maker
43. Ride every ride in Walt Disney World
44. Go to a Character Breakfast
45. Dedicate a full day to Character Hunting
46. Watch a Movie at the Outdoor Cinema
47. Meet the Fab Five in their original costume 
48. Get a Mainstreet Balloon Photo
49. Disneybound in each of the parks
50. Find at least 25 Hidden Mickeys

I did have some other things that I would like to do while in Walt Disney World that didn't make the top 50 things that I wanted to do, so here are some bonuses that I would be interested in doing whilst living in Disney World:

• Visit Every Resort
• See Kiss Goodbye at Magic Kingdom
• Visit Mickey's Retreat
• Get Afternoon tea at the Grand Floridian 
• Make a Wish in the Blue Fairy's book
• Become a wilderness explorer at Animal Kingdom
• Resort Hop
• Be one of the last people in Magic Kingdom
• Go to Chef Mickey's
• Play Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom
• Wear an "I'm Celebrating" pin
• Eat a Mickey Shaped Waffle
• Celebrate 4th July

So there you have it, the top 50 things that I would like to do while working at Walt Disney World, with some added bonus things on the end! As you can tell, some of the things in this list are probably things I will only be able to do whle being a Cast Member, so I will take advantage of the 3 months I have working there and will try to do as much as I can! Thank you for reading today's post!

A Girl Called Shameless by Laura Steven - A Review

Here it is, the review of A Girl Called Shameless by Laura Steven, the first read of 2020! In case you didn't know, this is actually a sequel to The Exact Opposite of Okay, which I reviewed last week. If you would like to read that review click here.

Photo Credit: @egmont

"It’s been two months since a leaked explicit photo got Izzy involved in a political sex scandal – and the aftershock is far from over. The Bitches Bite Back movement is gathering momentum as a forum for teenage feminists, and when a girl at another school has a sex tape shared online, once again Izzy leads the charge against the slut-shamer. This time she wants to change the state law on revenge porn.

Izzy and her best friend Ajita are as hilarious as ever, using comedy to fight back against whatever the world throws at them, but Izzy is still reeling from her slut-shaming ordeal, feeling angry beyond belief and wondering – can they really make a change?"

Izzy O'Neill returns in full force, with her ridiculous humour, inappropriate comments and fierce attitude. she is easily one of the best characters in the YA genre. She is put through hell in the first book, but she comes back stronger than she was before. In this book, we see her juggling mid terms, a job in the diner, breaking into te writing industry and also trying to make a huge political change which would make the world a better place. If that's not inspirational, I don't know what is.

The story still deals with issues that Izzy encountered in the first book, but things were on a much grander scale as Izzy and her friends try to prevent other girls from going through the same thing. The book takes us right from the planning and it is full of heartfelt moments that will really get you thinking about injustice.

A great thing about both books in this series is the emotion that Laura invokes through them. Both have moments where you laugh, smile, feel angry and moments where you even cry. She has made a character that young people can look up to, but also someone who is real. It is not only a work of fiction, as so many women go through what Izzy has been through. It isn't just women who have had their nudes shared between groups of people who they may know, celebrities also go through the same type of thing. The situation Izzy goes through can truly affect anyone.  People can learn so much about feminism (real feminism I have to say, not the extreme things that the media portrays as feminism) from this series. It is really refreshing to read about Izzys experiences and to feel empowered, justified and vindicated.

I should also mention that the central cast of characters in this book are socio-economically, racially, sexually and ably diverse.  It doesn't feel unnatural or forced, and there are certainly no token gay, black or any other token character trait you may think of. Other YA authors need to take note!

A Girl Called Shameless was everything I could have hoped for from a sequel to The Exact Opposite of Okay, and more. I was grateful that the first book was recapped in the first couple of chapters, but it didn't feel like a summary, it really worked with the story. 

The Exact Opposite Of Okay by Laura Steven - A Review

I read this book back in 2018, but never officially made a review! This year, I read the sequel - A Girl Called Shameless - so I decided that now was the best time to go back and write a review for the first book before releasing my thoughts on its sequel! Hope you enjoy!

Photo Credit: @RaeNovels&Notions

I read this book back in 2018, but never officially made a review! This year, I read the sequel - A Girl Called Shameless - so I decided that now was the best time to go back and write a review for the first book before releasing my thoughts on its sequel! Hope you enjoy!

‘Look, you probably bought this book because you read the blurb about how I’m an impoverished orphan and also at the heart of a national slut-shaming scandal, and you thought, oh great, this is just the kind of hart-wrenching tale I need to feel better about my own life, but seriously, you have to relax. I’m not some pitiful Oliver-Twist-meets-Kim-Kardashian-type figure. If you’re seeking a nice cathartic cry, I’m not your girl.’

Izzy O'Neill has a pretty sweet life, even though she has been raised by her Grandmother due to loosing her parents at the age of five. She won't be able to afford to go to college, but she does have two of her best friends - Ajita and Danny - to get her through it, as well as her love for comedy. 

Izzy doesn't think anything of sleeping with two guys at a party. It was her choice and she doesn't regret it. Until someone creates a website titled, "Izzy O'Neill: World Class Whore", featuring tales of her sexploits. Details which nobody should know. An a picture of her having sex on a bench with the senator's son...

Oh no...

If there was an award for the Most Quotable Book Ever Published, The Exact Opposite of Okay would easily win it! There are so many brilliant quotes in this book, and Laura Steven's writing style is utterly relatable! It could also win an award for Most Relatable Book Ever Published, since there were moments where the story really strikes you and you feel deeply connected to Izzy. 

Izzy O'Neill is a fantastic protagonist in the story. She is not your typical Mary Sue, she is far from a perfect character. There are even times when you feel like screaming "No Izzy! Don't do that!" at your book. But despite her flaws, anything she does that turns out badly isn't done with malicious intentions in my opinion.

The Exact Opposite of Okay is set in an American State where revenge porn is still legal; this book couldn't have come out at a more appropriate time. It is fantastic that there is a book out there targeting a YA Audience covering this taboo topic, and it is something probably everyone can relate to. Everyone can probably think of a girl in their life who went through what Izzy O'Neill went through, and it is awful but it is the reality of the world that we are in! Books that cover topics like this is how conversations happen, and then that can eventually lead to people wanting to do something about it. Hopefully there will be a day where we do not need this book, not because it is bad by any means, but because we will live in a world where revenge porn is no longer legalised and we will read the story knowing that the culprit would face consequences for their actions.

A fantastic thing about this book is that Steven emphasises that Izzy is not to blame for what happens to her! This is crucial for people to know. When nude photos leak, people say it is the victims fault for taking those photos, but this is absolutely wrong! They are sending those photos to somebody they trusted and it is a violation of that trust. If this sort of thing ever happens to you, know that it is not your fault. And if this happens to a friend or somebody you know, support them! It is easy to pass judgement on somebody, but it is not right! 

This book is a story that everyone should read, teenagers, young adults, parents, anyone. I read it when I was 19 (I was just a little slow writing the review, leave me alone okay) and it was such a good age to read a book like this. As well as tackling slut shaming and revenge pron, it also debunks the myth that you need to know what you are doing with your life at such a young age. Although I am somebody who has planned ahead and knows exactly where I want to be in life, I have a lot of friends who have no idea what they want  to do, and that is completely okay. As long as you are doing things that you enjoy and keep your friends close, that is all that matters.  

And that is it for this review, what did you think of The Exact Opposite of Okay? Let me know, and keep your eyes out for the next book review! 

December Favourites - 2019

We have made it! I have officially made a favourites post for every month of the year, and I am proud to get this far! Apologies that this is a rather short post, I have sort of made a summary of some of my favourites since I did not have time to write about each and every thing, but everything will hopefully be back to normal next month! Please find my other favourites posts listed below!

• January Favourites - Click Here
• February Favourites - Click Here
• March Favourites - Click Here
• April Favourites - Click Here
• May Favourites - Click Here
• June Favourites - Click Here
• July Favourites - Click Here
• August Favourites - Click Here
• September Favourites - Click Here
• October Favourites - Click Here
• November Favourites - Click Here

Games

Fire Emblem: Three Houses (Blue Lions Route) 

Photo Credit: @NintendoUK

Fire Emblem is one of my all time favourite game franchises, so when I head that they were creating a game for the Nintendo Switch I was very excited! I unfortunately did not have enough student loan to by the game at launch, and even if I did, December is the only month that it would have been possible to play this game due to how crazy life has been! The game has been likened to a Harry Potter meets Game of Thrones type story, with you becoming a professor at what seems to be a boarding school and having to pick a house to mentor. You can choose between the Blue Lions, Black Eagles and Golden Deers, all of which have a very colourful cast of characters that are full of life and not always what they seem! You follow these characters over the course of a year, and then skip to see what happens to them five years later (it is not a spoiler, they literally show one of the main battles in the second half of the game in the trailer!). 

For me, I chose the Blue Lions just due to being drawn to the characters in the house (Mercedes and Byleth is endgame!!!) and not only did it have great game play but it explored themes that are relevant to today; a huge one being grief and mental health. The house was lead by Dimitri - who is one of the best lords in the Fire Emblem Series - although he does not have great hair. We all know that if we were picking our house based on hairstyles, we would all pick the Golden Deer house - there's something about the side braid Claude is rocking... 

Anyway, I do not want to get to spoilery here, it is a great game and you should definitley play it! It took me about 45 hours to complete the Blue Lions Path and there are three additional paths to chose from, so it is definitley worth the money and also the time! I am currently on a play through of the Golden Deer Path so I will let you know what I think of that and I also intend to play the Black Eagles house when I do eventually get round to it!

Beauty

Harry Potter Dark Arts Collectables Tin

Photo Credit: @PopSugar

I was given the Harry Potter Dark Arts gift set for Christmas and I have fallen absolutely in love with it! Not only does it come in a really pretty tin, but it has so many amazing things inside it!

First of all, there are face masks inside that are decorated like the Death Eaters Masks, so you can sit there for 15 minuets with Lucius Malfoy's mask in your face. It is weird, but it is a small thing that I appreciate! It is a bit of fun, smells great and also has left my skin feeling lovely and soft! You do get tow of these in the pack, the other one you get is Barty Crouch Jr.

You are also given a black bathbomb which I absolutely loved! I have never had a completely black bath bomb before, but seeing videos on social media I have always wanted to try them! As expected, it turned my bath water completely black and you were not able to see the bottom of the bath tub! As much as I love my colourful Lush Bathbombs, this one was great for my inner goth. 

There were also two nail varnish colours that came with this - sticking to the theme of the gift set, the colours were a sparkly black and a sparkly green. Green is my favourite colour so I really appreciated this nail varnish. 

There is so much more in the gift set, but these were just the things that I appreciated about it and have used so far. 

Films

Little Women 

Photo Credit: @DailyMotion

I am a huge fan of the story of Little Women - and even just the character of Jo March in general. I think - for the time that this book was written - it is a revolutionary story and represents women as being more than just a barganing tool to bring money into the family, and that women want more to life than to wait hand and foot on her husband. 

I went to see the new movie that has came out and it was such a wholesome movie! Yes, there were the ups and downs in the story, and the film is no where near perfect, but I just came out of it feeling really happy and good about myself. The colours in this movie are stunning and the acting is fantastic. The one thing I will complain about is Emma Watson's american accent, but hey, the girl gave it a good go! 

If you have not seen it yet, get yourself down to the cinema!

Fashion

Blue Jumper

I am a huge fan of oversized knitted jumpers, and my mum bought me this blue one for Christmas, which I have to say has quickly become a wardrobe favourite! Jumpers are a must in a winter wardrobe for me so I was very happy to add this to my knitted clothes collection.

Mickey Mouse Mini Skirt 

Another Christmas present! My mum also bought me this skirt and said it was for me to take with me to Orlando! Unfortunately I think that it is a bit too short for me to wear around in the sun but (with shorts or leggings underneath) it is great to wear around at home! It is such a cute skirt and I just appreciate that the Mickey's are embroidered on and not printed on.

Disney CEP 2020 Hoodie 

I found out that I would be on the Disney Cultural Exchange Program in the summer, so a group of us all ordered matching hoodies! I can't promise that I have not taken off this hoodie since I have bought it.... 

I love a hoodie anyway, there is just something so great about throwing on a hoodie with some leggings and lounging around the house! But yea, I really love my new Disney Hoodie and everything is now feeling more official!

Mary Poppins Pandora Charm 

Photo Credit: @Pandora

Anyone who knows me knows that one of my all time favourite movies is the original Mary Poppins, and if I could pick any Disney Park Character to play it would be her. I have had a Pandora Braclet since 2012, but since I only get charms for birthdays and Christmas (and since my birthday is right when the Christmas ranges get introduced) I have a very festive Pandora Bracelet. It is lovely, but means I can only really wear it December time. My sister has charms for each life event, so for graduation, wedding, getting a pet, and I really wanted to start something like this, so to start me off, my parents bought me this Mary Poppins charm for me getting the job at Walt Disney World. I absolutely love it and it is a great new addition to my bracelet!

Hogwarts Pandora Charm

Photo Credit: @Pandora

To go with the Mary Poppins Charm, my Nanna also bought me this Hogwarts Charm. There isn't a life event that really goes with this, I think it was just because the Harry Potter range came out when they were looking for my Christmas Presants, but it is a very pretty addition to my bracelet, and it isn't Christmassy!!

And that wraps it up for my 2019 favourites! Thank you so much for following and keep a look out for my favourites posts to continue in 2020!