Plan for my goals

Falling Pregnant

Unfortunately, the only thing that I can do is keep trying, so every month, ill keep going.

Wedding plans

I've found lots of ways to incorporate Penelope into the wedding. (You'll have to wait and see)

I've put a deposit on my dress, decided on a venue (deposit going down next Thursday) and I'm itching to make my save the date cards!

Everything is going to plan though and ahead of schedule! This one is the easy one! :)

'Bintage' and Penelope's Vintage World.

I have just booked myself in to do my first Vintage Fair and I haven't got long to plan for it.

It is on 4th August. I will have a stall at the Firle Vintage Fair. I am a mixture between very excited and very nervous. I am on a mission to get myself the best, beautiful and best selling stock to show everyone how awesome Penelope's Vintage World and the term 'Bintage'. Might need some more lovely signage. Maybe drawn up on my vintage typewriter? :)

Watch this space :)

My Most Favourite Dessert in the whole world!

My most favourite pudding that I ever had in my whole life was an Eton Mess.

Not just any Eton Mess, but a Mango and Passionfruit Eton Mess!

And so simple to make.

What you REALLY need to do is go to any 'cook' shop. You know the ones, the ones that sell beautiful, yummy, hand,add freezer meals! :) buy their mango and Passionfruit coulis.

Go to M&S and buy their small meringue nests and double (naughty) whipping cream and a couple of passionfruits.

Crush meringue nests in a bowl, whip the cream, once whipped, stir in with the meringue.

Gets some small serving glasses, drizzle the insides of the glasses with the coulis, spoon a large dollop of the meringue mix in, drizzle some more coulis over the top and empty the contents of a small Passionfruit over the top. (You can probably decorate 2 desserts with one fruit) get a spoon and eat immediately after serving!

My shop!!!

I honestly love vintage. 

I'm happily in the vintage business. 

Visit my online Facebook shop

Www.facebook.com/penelopesvintageworld

Please remember to like my page with all the lovely updates of dear little vintage bits :) 

Can't wait to meet you all!!!! 

Xxxxxxxxx

Time to take it easy.....

Now, we all know that people have totally different ways that they like to relax and calm down and I was trying to think about something exciting that you would all want to know about that will inspire you all. 

Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people who bake cakes to relax, or paint beautiful art or do a stretching exercise to wind down. 

There's lots of things I enjoy doing that bring me back to ME like visiting charity shops or visiting family or even getting my hands dirty and involved in cleaning and making house for my wonderful other half but they aren't things I use to wind down. 

I love taking my puppy for walks. I don't listen to music, I just walk, talk to my Angel Penelope, chat away to my puppy, admire the beauty of Sussex which I have utterly fallen in love with since moving here 3 years ago and listening to the sound of my flip flops, clip clopping underneath me. 

What I really do to utterly relax and wind down is lay on my bed, propped up with extra pillows, star fished on top of the duvet, watching the TV that I love and Ben hates!! It's like my guilty pleasure which I really don't do enough of. 

I watched the brand new Ray Donovan on TV the other day. This was so awesome, I can't wait for the next one next week. I love Mad Men. I love Bones. I love Stella. I love Downton Abbey. I utterly love Supernatural. 

I love just doing nothing and immersing myself in the lives of other people. 

Besides, I need to know the fate of Lady Mary!!!!! 

My Life's Motto

'We have all suffered some hardship in life. Mine might just be different to yours. So don't judge other people until you know theirs' 

This is so true. 

If you think to that woman in the office. Right sour old grapes isn't she? Doesn't get involved in any conversation at work. Scowls at most people. Grasses you up for wearing flip flops at work maybe? 

Just take a second to think. 

She might have something going on at home, currently or in the past, that has really turned her into this person. Your past can really mould a person into what you are today. 

Hopefully, it has made you into a stronger, more compassionate, easy going person. But, it can also make you quite resentful, almost angry or extremely timid, so much so that you can seem quite stand offish. 

Sometimes it can be not having the most nurturing upbringing, a horrific past, or current, relationship. It could even have been an experience that happened in the flash of a second that left an imprint on your life forever! 

So, before you judge that person, please spare a thought, and have some compassion for that person. And if you really can't tolerate their behaviour, then by all means, give that person a wide berth. 

I always think when you get to know someone, your opinion of that person can dramatically change. On the other hand, it might not? 

Have you ever experienced this or even been mid judged for some things you do as a result of a life changing event? 

My most cherished belonging

This, is my nan's necklace that she gave to me on my 16th birthday. 

I remember getting it and knowing how beautiful it was. It's a pearl which is my birth stone too and there is a tiny diamond on the bow where the 'ribbons' cross over. 

I also remember thinking that I couldn't wear it. I had nowhere to wear it. I was still 'hanging out' with my mates, as kids do, so I wasn't keen on wearing it to get damaged. 

I remember my sister being given a necklace too, it was also one of my nan's old ones but it had a gold necklace and my sister (also my twin) instantly changed the chain on it but still wears that pendant almost every single day and has done since, which was 11 years ago. 

This is the necklace that I wear the most. I don't wear it everyday as I don't want it damaged and I wear quite a bit of dress jewellery, but this is the necklace I will wear while walking down the aisle, just to ensure that she is with me, holding my hand, as I do this. 

She did meet Ben a couple of times before she passed away, and she thought he was wonderful for me. She really liked him! So I know that I will be making her proud when I marry him. 

I know this blog kind of has a theme running through, but I have always lived my life in awe of my nan. I have completely admired her. Even her perceived flaws, I think they are the most perfect flaws in the world!

My nan is the person that I strive to be like, the one influential person in my life that I will consider in every decision I make. Her recipe folder is treated like the Holy Grail. Her Slow Cooker has pride of place in my kitchen. Her Oat Krunchie recipe is only ever made in the dish that my nan used to make it in. Her headscarves are hanging delicately in my bedroom where I can look at them often. 

I can't help but go to my Grandad's house, knowing there is lots of lovely bits of my nan's still in the wardrobes and just wanting to go and touch them. Wanting to collect all the things in the kitchen that remind me of her, including the awesome retro silver dishes she used to serve my favourite in, Butterscotch Angel Delight. 

You have no idea how awesome and inspirational and inspiring and utterly magical my nan was. She never had any large, public achievements but her motives in life were always pure, her family were the most important people to her and she worked hard, alongside my grandad, to carve out a life for our family to give us the best future possible. 

All I can do now is follow suit for the sake of my children! 

Thank you for reading about how much I love my nan, again. 

Xxxxxxxxx

My most favouritest place in the whole wide world!

Petworth House 

Petworth House, Petworth, Sussex

I love this place from the bottom of my heart. 

When I think about this place I genuinely get a warm feeling. 

When I visit this place I turn into a small child and start whizzing around and literally spinning! 

I have always desperately wanted to get married at Petworth House BUT they don't do weddings! 

It is the most beautiful building. 

With a stunning chapel. 

With fabulous art. 

With such passionate staff and volunteers who love sharing the stories of the place. 

To the contrasting kitchens that have been renovated back to pre war. 

To the fact that it was turned into a hospital for armed forces in The Great War. 

To the Capability Brown landscaping including the Great Lake and the nature park with their own Deer. 

To the romance of the whole place.

To the fact that this place could never be tainted by anything, ever, in my heart. 

And all because my Nan and Grandad took us there one Summer Holiday when I was a lot younger. 

All because I so desperately want to be close to my Grandparents high expectation of me. 

All because I have always shared in their passion for History, including our own history as a family. 

All because it is always sunny when I visit there. 

Thank you for letting me share my most favourite place in the world with you.