I decided to stay overnight in Central London, at the Landmark Hotel in Marylebone, and indulge in 2 of my favourite things: shopping and eating!

The day started with a taxi ride into Central London, to visit my namesake and one of my favourite brands, YSL, for a little retail therapy. One of my favourite things to do is buy my own birthday presents, and I certainly ticked this off my to do list. My favourite purchase was this amazing takeaway box, which I am fully obsessed with!

After exercising a mammoth amount of restraint, we arrived at the Landmark. The Landmark lobby is a real highlight of the hotel, and is absolutely breathtaking with its palm trees and tons of natural light.

We checked into our room, and it was so nice to have a lovely bottle of champagne and some chocolate covered strawberries waiting for us!

After a little relaxation time in our room (and indulging in the aforementioned champagne and strawberries), it was time to get ready for drinks and dinner.

Drinks were at The American Bar, one of our favourite haunts. I tried a cocktail that I’ve always wanted to try but not done so because its a whole sorbet treat as well. But as it was my birthday, I decided to indulge

Then onto dinner! We had booked to go to Frog, a Adam Handling restaurant, and I was so excited thanks to the rave reviews I had heard. The restaurant itself was stunning, with some very interesting artwork, and the chefs were out on show, which I always enjoy because you get to see them at work.

Frog did not disappoint. Each dish was not only beautifully presented but there was a good dollop of theatrics and performance involved in every aspect of the tasting menu. And of course, the food was absolutely delicious.

Here are some pictures of some of the dishes we tasted – aren’t they all stunning:

There was also the cutest after dinner Sweets tray that came out, where you could pick anything you liked!

I was SO full after this tasting menu, and actually really couldn’t recommend Frog more – the food, the service, the theatrics + performance, the little touches for my birthday … all 10 out of 10!

Lastly, if you can believe there was more food involved, the next morning we had the most delicious breakfast at the Landmark, sitting underneath the palm trees pretending we were actually abroad!

I had a seriously yummy avocado toast and orange juice:

And thats a wrap on my birthday for 2023. A seriously decadent and indulgent one, and I can’t wait for a new year to begin!

Here are some photos from the night he was born:

Of course, we needed some decorations.. and food for humans… and doggy treats galore!

We invited a bunch of Zola’s most favourite humans and doggies to come round to eat, drink and play in our garden (the playing bit was mostly reserved for the dogs!)

Zola had the best afternoon surrounded by everyone she loves, and got the biggest fuss made of her all day! She also got to eat a dog-friendly birthday cake treat – although TO BE FAIR I think she would have preferred a piece of chicken

All in all, we had the loveliest day celebrating our baby. She continues to make our life so much better in every single way, and I couldn’t imagine what life would be like without her. Her second year of life has been so full of beautiful, joyous moments and I can’t wait to see what her third year brings!

We had a great day celebrating his wedding with family and friends and it was even more special because my Grandma who had been very unwell was able to make it for the ceremony.

I was also asked to make a speech, where I took every opportunity to make fun of my brother (OF COURSE!)

Here are some pictures of the day!

To make it feel special, I hired in a bartender for the evening to serve both signature and classic cocktails, and I also had the evening catered so that people had a great savoury and sweet selection of yummy things.

I had THE BEST time celebrating with friends and family and couldn’t have asked for a better birthday to set the tone for the year to come.

Here are some photos of the night!

Over the last few months, planning this party has basically consumed me. From figuring out how to keep it as a surprise for my parents, organising guest list, catering, decorations, managing the logistics of turning my house into a space to entertain 22 people.. oh and of course doing all this with the imminent, looming threat of covid hanging over our heads.

I’m so thankful though, that everything actually turned out perfectly! The main things for me were that my parents were surprised (tick!), that everyone had a great time (tick!) and that the people who meant most to my parent could be there (although we unfortunately had a couple of cancellations, I’m still saying this was a tick!)

I’m really pleased we were able to pull it off – it was so incredible to see how surprised and touched my parents were at all the people who had come together to celebrate their love.

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The other cool thing about hosting this party by the way was that we got to see the full power of this house as an amazing entertaining spot. We used the lower ground floor as a ‘reception’ area – we had a bar set up, seating, and people were able to mingle there with canapes while we waited for my parents to arrive.

Once they arrived, we brought everyone up the stairs into the lounge / dining area where we had set up a sit-down meal for 22. Having both of these spaces was really great as it allowed much more flexibility for the event.

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Here are some photos from the event!

A few weeks ago, we saw a plea for help from a lady who’s mother had Alzheimers and was going to be moved into a home. They had arranged for her mother’s 13 year old border collie, Bertie, to be rehomed, but it had fallen through at the last minute, and they were desperate for a loving home for Bertie.

Seeing the accompanying pictures of Bertie melted our hearts. We instantly knew that he was an amazingly loving dog, and within the hour, we had arranged to go round to meet Bertie with Zola.

The next day, we met the family and Bertie, and as soon as Bertie saw us he came straight in for tummy rubs. We were smitten and knew that we wanted to give Bertie an amazing retirement with us.

It was already on Day One of watching his floofy bottom make its way down our stairs, that I knew he had my whole entire heart.

This next bit is hard to write.

Almost immediately, Bertie started having tummy problems. We put it down to a change of environment and introducing him to a couple new treats. We went to a strict diet of chicken and rice, and assumed his tummy would settle shortly.

It didn’t.

What followed was 4 weeks of Bertie not being able to keep food down, and becoming increasingly uncomfortable. We spent hours with him at the vets and ran a series of tests, until finally the vet came back to tell us that Bertie had cancer and at his age, palliative care was the only the real option left.

Because the palliative care measures didn’t help, we made the decision to put him to sleep. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. We were both there to make sure he drifted off peacefully, having his tummy rubbed and his head tickled. I hope he went to sleep feeling like he was the most loved dog that ever lived.

But I don’t want this post to just be about Bertie’s illness, because that was only a tiny part of our story with Bertie. He was an amazing addition to our family, even if our time with him was only short.

To make sure I didn’t forget my favourite memories of him, I have written them down:

Things I love about Bertie

• How excitedly he gets up when you ask him if he wants to go for walkies. He’ll jump up so quickly and even start barking out of excitement! This is no mean feat because Bertie has arthritis, and sores on his skin, and is generally more of a slow ambler. But as soon as walkies come on the menu, its like he is a little puppy again.

• His little old man bark. He’s going a little bit hoarse but that doesn’t him stop from barking. Actually its more like honking! It is a great, deep honk, that is unmistakeably Bertie.

• The way he looks up at you when you scratch his head. His eyes just say “I love you”.

• When he’s sooooooo excited about his food and tries so hard to get every last drop of food out of his bowl. You hear this metal clank clank clank, and its Bertie vigorously licking the bowl to within an inch of its life.

• When you go in for a stroke and he immediately puts himself into the tummy rub position because that’s the best thing he enjoys in life. For a 13 year old, Bertie is adept at quickly flipping himself onto his back so that you are able to definitely understand what he is requesting. For Bertie, a day without tummy rubs, is a day not worth living.

• When he wags his tail so much, it makes a thump thump thump on the floor or wall. With Bertie, you can truly hear his happiness a mile off.

• When he lies next to me when I’m working, and I just look down and see him there, keeping me company. Bertie loved to stick by my side in the mornings. I would come downstairs, wake him up, and then we’d go for our walk. When we returned, we’d have breakfast and then he’d just stick to my side all day – his favourite position to lie and snooze was in my office while I took calls.

• When we first leave the house on a walk, he’s so excited and motivated to get going that he’s almost running! Bertie would jog down our street at the start of each walk; by the time we reached the main road, he was usually more sedate and tired, but always 10000% effort at the start.

• When Bertie wants more tummy rubs or affection, he’ll paw at you while staring into your eyes until you capitulate. Bertie definitely knew how to ask for things, and he wasn’t backwards in coming forwards. And of course, capitulation was inevitable because who wouldn’t want to give him every single thing in the universe?

• How he is so patient with Zola, especially when she is all in his face trying to give him a thousand kisses, or when she’s mere centimetres away from his food while he’s trying to eat. I don’t know how he managed it.

• How, as soon as he sees a ball, he lowers his head in preparation for running and if you go to throw it, he’ll start running after it already. Bertie doesn’t have time to wait to see if you’ve actually thrown it. Lets go!

• How cuddly and snuggly he is. When all his reassuring weight is pressed into you and you feel safe and warm because he’s there.

• How much he loves finding a good corner to go and nap in, often facing the wall. The amount of times I’d look over to check if he was okay during a call, and he’d just be snoozing right up against the corner of the office. I think it makes him feel safe.

• Most of all, how Bertie loves being told he is a good boy and wants to do anything to make you happy. The actual goodest boy in the whole universe.

Thank you Bertie for bringing so much joy, love and light into our family. We all miss you so very much.

We had a lil birthday tea situation for her at home, and of course I had to go a bit extra on my decorations. The pastel balloon arch is honestly my favourite thing ever.

We also a few added extras, including a Zola cake (for the humans) and personalised doggy treats for all of Zola’s friends, and their own little pawsome doggy bags to take home!

Zola absolutely loved running around the garden and playing with her friends (shout-outs to Roxie and Roly who couldn’t make it on the day ) as well as getting lots of attention and snuggles from her grandmas and grandpas and other friends + family.

Here’s to another incredible year of being your mummies ZoZo, we all love you so very much!

The house had been lived in by only one other family for decades, so, whilst it was definitely livable and able to be moved into from day one, there are a million things we want to do to the property to bring it up to date and in keeping with our aesthetic.

Here are some pics from our very first viewing of the place, which should give a flavour of what we will be working with:

I’m so excited to go on a journey of home renovation and interior design. I think this house is going to be my all-consuming obsession for the next decade, and I can’t wait to make it our own!

Here are a couple more photos from our move-in day!

Join me over the next few months as we embark on the first wave of renovation work: completely gutting and redoing the kitchen and the family bathroom!

We bought our flat back in 2016, and it was the dream purchase then. Here’s a pic of us on our completion day when we had picked up the keys – we were so happy that we finally had a place to call our own, and near to both our families, in the area we wanted, and enough room for us at that stage of our lives.

We had some great times in that flat! From doing some light renovation work, to celebrating birthdays, seeing me through working from home during the bulk of the first lockdowns, and of course, being the first place that Zola called home – we’ve done really well.

Over the years though, we had outgrown the flat considerably. We had stuff everywhere, weren’t able to host more than a couple more people at a time, and we had no private outdoor space.

We also didn’t really want to invest much money in making it ‘our own’ because we always knew this was going to be a starter home. So, as the years went on, we grew more and more dissatisfied with elements that needed changing that we didn’t want to, like the very worn carpets, the outdated bathroom and the fireplace in the living room.

So, we put our flat on the market in 2019, after three lovely years, and hoped that we would have a quick sale.

We weren’t so lucky – a mixture of pandemic, and just bad luck with buyers meant that is has taken us until this year, 2021, to be able to sell it.

We finally completed at the end of April 2021, and also moved into our new house (later post incoming on this!), only 5 minutes away from this flat but a world away from it in all other respects!

Here are some final shots of the flat as we prepared to depart it for the last time. Thank you flat for being so good to us!