25 Things I've learnt before 25!

On Monday (June 3rd) I had the best day of turning 25. That's quarter of a century old, I can't quite believe it. Makes me wonder how fast life is going but I've learnt so much over my 25 years on this planet so I'm joining the bandwagon and sharing what I've been lucky enough to learn. 

1. Love Yourself. Comparing yourself to other people isn't worth it. Learn to love your flaws and know they don't make you a shitty person. Embrace your body; your love handles, your belly, your pancake botty or even your uneven boobies. Nobody really cares at the end of the day so love what makes you, you.

2. Work isn't and shouldn't be your first priority. I've learnt when to take time off and say no to work. Don't to make it all about work. You miss out on so much working 24/7 for people who don't even care about you. If no one is willing to put you as a priority within your job, don't do it either.

3. Mums are ALWAYS right. If my mum is reading this she will be like "hell yeah I am" lol, no matter what, always listen to your mum whether its about friendships, relationships or life in general. She's never wrong.

4. Friendships come and go. Probably learnt more over the last year and the true meaning behind the word 'friend'. I've accepted that it's better to have a few true friends that support and love you than having fake ones who don't give a crap about you.

5. It's okay to ask for help. No matter how little, don't be ashamed to ask for help. Whether it's to put a washing line up or it's because you need someone to talk to. At some point in life, we've all been in that same boat.

6. Not everyone will like you & that's absolutely fine. I'm often surrounded by people who don't like me every single day, who act fake as the next to my face and if we're being honest... I really don't care who likes me or not anymore as it's not my problem :) 

7. Know your worth. Don't stand for anything less to what you want/don't want. I'm still learning and implementing this into my life and I'm happy to finally be practising what I preach. 

8. Prioritise your health. Never take it for granted, look after yourself. You only have one life.

9. There is no timeline for your life. If you're not where you want to be right now, that's fine! You will get to where you need to be in your own time. Forget what everyone else is doing and focus on yourself.

10. It's okay to walk away from toxic people/ situations. Whether it's a boy or girl you love, friends who you think you can't live without or a job that sucks the life out of you. IF IT DOESN'T MAKE YOU HAPPY, WALK AWAY. 

11. Live in the moment. See life away from the screens, it's better that way and doesn't hurt your neck as much.

12. You can't please everyone. Don't waste your time trying to please others, it's an endless game of Tom and Jerry but less cute.

13. Social Media is a highlight reel, not real life. Don't get caught up in it, not everything is as it seems nor is everything 'behind the scenes' revealed. 

14. Binge watching Greys Anatomy is a must. It will honestly change you and show emotions you didn't even know you had. Not even kidding.

15. Therapy isn't a bad thing. Speaking about how you feel to a complete stranger shouldn't be frowned upon. If anything it will help you become a better version of yourself and you see yourself/your struggles through a stranger's eyes. 

16. Not everyone wants you to fail. Can't stress this enough. There are many supportive people in the world who want you to win in life. There's more wanting you to achieve your goals than fail them, so aim high and you will get there.

17. Always listen to your gut feeling. It's never wrong. If you feel uneasy about something, someplace or someone, don't ignore it. It's probably protecting you more than you think. 

18. Everybody you meet knows something you don't. The best people to be around are those who you can chat to for hours and who have some epic stories to tell. 

19. Finding who you are isn't a bad thing. Whether you break from a relationship/friendship or decide to have a spa weekend for one, finding yourself isn't a bad thing. Learn about yourself as it's so exciting and insightful. 

20. Appreciate the little things. Appreciate the roof over your head, how lucky you are to still be breathing, how you can still tell someone you love them because life is too short. We never know when our last day will be.

21. Be the person you want to attract. I've always thought I attracted arseholes because at one point in my life I was one. What you put into the universe, you get back. Why not reinforce it into the people you want around you? :) 

22. The best memories don't have to involve alcohol. Since leaving university, I've realised how crap drinking made me feel for days after, how I couldn't really remember things and how it triggered my anxiety, recently this happened and it just made me wake up. You can still enjoy life sober and to be honest, from personal experience, you create the best memories <3 

23. You'll get broody for either a dog/cat or a baby at some point in your early 20s. Fact. 

24. Not everything you lose is a loss. Everything happens for a reason, right? 

25. Smiling makes the world a happy place. Smiling at strangers is the best feeling, you can see how much it makes their day. Especially with the elder folk, it's probably the only interaction they get once a day, so smile at people :) 

So there you have it! What have you learnt in life so far?

Thanks for reading!

Find me here: 

Instagram: @jaydeekelly 

Twitter: @crashl0nelystar

Life Update | Post-surgery & New Beginnings

Let's get real... The past month has been, exhausting, to say the least. I knew surgery would drain me, just didn't cross my mind with how much. Quick story short...

September 2015 - I fell downstairs at University (completely sober) and more or less face-planted the brick wall at the bottom of the stairs. I went to the hospital a few days after and they booked me in for a manipulation. I genuinely thought nothing of it... one way to go into the final year, right? Anyways, long story short, the manipulation was a waste of time for both me and my doctor back then. 

This year (2017) I began to go downhill... next thing I know I'm being told I need septoplasty surgery to straighten the wall within my nose, as my breathing was very restricted. 6 weeks ago I had my surgery, now I feel so much better being able to have my breathing back to normal. I have my check up on the 31st October, so hopefully, I get the all clear from my surgeon!! (another update to follow)
See below for the aftermath photo's ha... not much to see but funny to look back on.

A week or so during recovery, my body took a turn for hell... literally. One night I was fine, eating and drinking with no issues. Next day, I woke up finding myself running for the toilet to be sick. In that moment you think it must have been something you ate... wrong. 6 hours later after being unwell, over my temperature and still being sick, I was rushed to the hospital.
They say that if you gain a fever fresh after surgery to go in and be assessed. First, they thought it was my appendix (it wasn't) but it was a 50/50 chance. 5 days went by, being restricted to a hospital bed/ward, I was slowly going insane. The end diagnosis was Mesenteric Adenitis which is more common in children than adults. This means your lymph nodes around your tummy are inflamed and can cause a lot of pain. Which it did. I went from not eating waiting for scans etc, to eating and being sick more... my body has definitely turned against me lol. I also had to have several cannulas put in my hands/arms which has damaged my blood donor arm, very upsetting as I was due to give blood again on 19th Nov.17

A few weeks on, I'm still in recovery and unfortunately not getting as much rest as I should be getting due to working so much, which fits with my next update.

After a year and a half working as a care assistant, I am finally moving up in the world and leaving my full-time job, moving onto better things. Although it's a very sad time leaving behind the amazing clients I have bonded with, I am ready for the next adventure. I have been working two jobs since July 2017 and it is exhausting. I will have more time for my blog and to spend time with family and friends instead of saying the words "I'm working", it'll be nice to just have free time.
After leaving my job, I will be moving to the city of Sheffield too. Hopefully, I'll be going back to University in 2018, but also because of my job, partner and some of my friends are there. I'll finally be able to have my own place & not have the worries of a shared house again. The only good shared accommodation is at Uni, but even then it can get chaotic.

Thanks for reading!

Find me here: 

Instagram: @jaydeekelly 

Twitter: @crashl0nelystar 

xo

Sprotbrough Falls Day Trip | 2017

Hola, everyone!

After having a break from my blog, again, I have decided to come back and hit harder than ever. I will do more of a life update post further through the month. 

At the beginning of June, I had the weekend off work & spent it with my partner by exploring parts of my hometown (Doncaster) as he's from Sheffield. If you don't know of these places, they're in South Yorkshire, England. 

The photo's more or less speak for themselves, the place we went to is called Sprotbrough Falls and is so beautiful. I'd not been here in years, think the last time my family and I came here was back in 2005, I think. How beautiful is it though?! Better to go when the sun is shining as it's so admirable, as you can see. 

England is known for the crappy weather, whatever that may entail. So to get heat-wave weather back in June was lovely and suited well for a beautiful, fun day out.

How handsome is he though?! Man crush every day <3 

I didn't actually gain 6lbs ha, was worth it either way! 

Before we went exploring we treated ourselves to a lovely meal and drink at the local restaurant just around the corner. All in all, it was a great day & I wanted to share the beauty of it on here. 

Days out with this one are always fun and exciting. This year I've been more places around the Doncaster/Sheffield area than I had throughout my lifetime, I think haha. It's nice to be back posting, hoping to share more days out on my blog as they are exciting to write about :)

Thanks for reading!

Find me here: 

Instagram: @jaydeekelly 

Twitter: @crashl0nelystar 

xo

All photos are my own unless stated otherwise.
Do not use/take without my permission.
email: jaydeekelly94@gmail.com for further info.

Top 10 New Year Resolutions | 2017

Hiya everyone!
Long time no post... Firstly, HAPPY NEW YEAR!! :) I have been quite absent recently over the last two months and I feel like due to being so busy I have neglected my blog, but now I am focused and ready for what this year will be like.  So, I tried this New year's resolution thing last year and the year before that etc. and I have neve really had any serious goals that I wanted to achieve whilst studying at University, so entering this new year I have been going crazy to share these resolutions/goals that I want to achieve this year. 

1) Be happy
Over the last two years I have been learning who I am, why I used to feel like I did, why people would leave, Why I was like I was... etc. & I realised that I just wasn't happy. With myself, or what I studied/where I lived and so on. THIS YEAR that changes, for the better. My biggest goal for this year is to be happy. Happy with my body shape, my personality, my interests, my job, academic career, relationships/friendships etc. You get the point. All I want is a good year full of positivity and happiness so I will be making that my top goal for sure!! :)

2) Post on my blog more
I am so guilty of neglecting my blog once or twice... oops. If you check what I've posted in the past, you'll see I didn't really post much last year due to personal issues, but when I did they were super long haha. I want to be posting more content based on lifestyle, health and fitness, beauty, fashion etc. Although I don't really know much about beauty or fashion, I want to collaborate with awesome brands and try new things.
I also want to update my photo quality for this blog and maybe move onto posting video's for a haul to describe what I want to say better... there's just so much but for now, I want to concentrate on my blog and even create a new layout for it to make it cosier.

3) Take 2 whole days a week off Social Media
I have already gone 3 weeks without my Facebook account as I deleted that. Long story short, people were getting extremely annoying by posting rubbish for attention or acting like they're a politician or "facebook famous", like I'm sorry but those types of people are the worst. I removed myself from the website and I couldn't be happier! I feel more at peace without it for sure.
I decided on this resolution to just relax and have more "me time" as it's a good way for the brain to stay healthy without being stunned by a phone/tablet/laptop light. & It helps you sleep better which makes you feel more relaxed and happier the next morning! 

4) Graduate University 
So I didn't have the best final year at University, I tried my absolute best and my tutors marked me down for whatever their reasoning was, which led into a resit and my University didn't allow me to walk the stage in my September graduation due to my results "not being released" BUT... got released the day after my actual graduation, so my anger towards that was the highest it's been as I felt it was unfair. Which it was, but I'll discuss that at a later date. So that's why I'm graduating on 18th January 2017, but I'm glad I still get to walk across stage and collect my degree paper thingy ha! Happy ending in the long run :) 

5) Travel 
I've never travelled abroad, so I need to change that as soon as my passport arrives. My family couldn't afford it, but we still went away in summer, which is just as good right? :) 

6) Lose Weight 
This for me is a personal matter, which I will discuss in the near future within a separate post BUT I just feel like I need to get my health back on track, tone up my body, eat the correct foods and then lose the extra weight that is tied to me. It's not because of the society we live in as I don't let it define me. Like I say it's for more personal reasoning. 

7) Pass my driving test & buy a car 
Everyone's dream right? I started my lessons at 19, I went to university which revoked the chances of my lessons taking place. It was on/off since 2013 until late 2014 and I just wasn't confident. I began again last year (2016) and now I'm so close to finishing which is UNREAL. I've achieved so much within my driving lessons such as; A relay drive for Children in Need & A two hour drive to Sheffield and back (excluding motorway) which is close to where I live. So happy I had the opportunity to do that :) 

8) Read more books 
I think it's important to read, no matter what it is. I say that because it helps relax you, gives you some enjoyment in losing yourself in someone else's story and lets you escape real life for a while. Which is great :) 

9) Do more activities 
My aim with this is to either do Tough Mudder which takes place throughout the UK, take part in The Great Northern run etc. It's keeping active, healthy and in shape whilst achieving something great, raising money for the less fortunate.

10) Get my Mental Health better
It's not been the best over the last few years and It stops me from so so much! This should be at the top of my list but oh well. I just feel as soon as my head is in a better place and I ain't feeling like I do, I'll find my happiness :) That's a big step for this year and I'm excited to see a difference :) 

So there are my top 10, I have waaaaaay more but I'll be here all day, writing a very long post. Let me know if you have the same or similar resolutions as I'd love to hear some. :) 

Find me here:

Twitter: @Crashl0nelystar 

Instagram: @jaydeekelly 

xo

December Favourites | 2015

I genuinely thought I would get potentially better at posting on here, but turns out I haven't at all. Sorry for the delay, "better late than never", right? ;-) I love writing long favourites like this, long but fun to write!

My favourite thing about December, was finding this quote. It set my mood for the month and made me so much more excited for 2016. This speaks to me in so many ways, because 2015 was indeed one of the worst years I've experienced and this post gave me so much hope to remain focused on the important things and set goals to achieve! Safe to say, I'm getting there, I hope ;)

 One thing that annoys me more is rough feeling feet! It actually makes my stomach turn. Throughout December I had to use this a lot as my feet were so dry and icky... I've not looked back since. Heel Genius, is by far one of the BEST foot creams I've used. If you have dry feet/skin do use this, it sends your feet so soft and removes dead skin and bumps (you'll know what I'm on about, if you walk a lot like I do) I highly recommend it :) 

So for Christmas, My brother's girlfriend bought me a Lush gift set and this shower gel was in it. I won't lie it is amazing BUT I wouldn't rate it all that much, as the smell kind of gives me a bit of a dizzy spell, however.. It does leave my skin remarkably soft! I'd love to try other Lush shower gels within the near future, for sure :)

I say this a lot in most of my posts, I suffer from having VERY dry skin. Which for me, sucks really bad. Simple face wash, has been my saviour all throughout December and has actually cleared my skin from dirt and blackheads and unclogged my pores. I am OBSESSED! Definitely need to purchase some more as it's my go-to facial wash. I also picked up the Mitchum roll on deodorant, and it smells like baby powder. Is that weird? I love the smell of it ha, and it stops you sweating and being smelly better than most products If I'm honest. I also have many people tell me I smell like baby powder when I wear it, makes me laugh every time ha!! If you want a new facial wash or deodorant  then check these out! You won't regret it!

 My mum was teasing me about a Christmas present and she found these. I think they're replica's and tbh they are AMAZING. Unfortunately I don't actually have them...yet. BUT my mum is still on the hunt for me. She loves to tease me about shoes aha. I definitely fell inlove with these because of the heel, I'm not a feel lover but these... WOW. It doesn't matter to me if they are 'real' or not, I was raised to appreciate what I had and I most certainly do! It's not about the price tag, or the brand, it's all about comfort for me :P 

Throughout December Starbucks was my go-to as it was super cold! My favourite christmas drink by far was the Honey and Almond hot chocolate, like O M G. If you've not tried it, In December, check it out! I'm already excited again haha.

Whilst being at university, Lincoln opens their own christmas market. IT IS AMAZING and I love going to it. In december I went with some friends and we went on the Ferris Wheel. Safe to say I was SO scared... :( and my housemate kept spinning it which made me more scared. The weather was such a let down though, as it was blistering cold & rainy! But that didn't stop us. These are literally the only two photo's I managed to capture & my friend bought £10 worth of sweet, such a funny memory :')

After a morning appointment at the hospital, me and my housemate managed to capture some pretty amazing photo's of the Lincoln Brayford. This was probably half 9 in the morning if not earlier and it was unbelievably beautiful :) 

Who doesn't love Ice-skating? I DO! if you read my posts, you'll know that I adore Ice-hockey. Myself, Andrew and Alex all went ice-skating and it was amazing, none of us fell and it was such a good way to have a laugh before leaving for Christmas Break! Really wish it was still here, as its cold enough..ha.

I finally get to announce that I'm going to be an aunty for the first time. This is my little nephew at 25weeks and 2 days! :) Definitely one of my favourite moments of December and I'm so excited for him to be here!! ahh just look at how little he is :)) so cute!

So my step-dad proposed (again) to my mum on Christmas eve and it was the cutest but funniest thing I have ever witnessed, I was most definitely crying with laughter! Don't ask about the outfit because I really can't explain why he's dressed like that... ha.

Christmas presents from my brother! :) 

The last lot of photo's were from when I went home from University for Christmas. I was re-united with my little princess pepsi (black cat) and my big ol' fluffy ginger man, sisco. They BOTH wouldn't leave my side lol and they cuddled me for hours! 

I also included a few photo's from christmas day, It was all about family for me, and my cats.. I got some AMAZING presents and I'm extremely thankful to have such great family to spoil me rotten! Lucky to say the least. Throughout the holidays I drank a lot of wine and ate a lot of junk! No shame at all.

I also dyed my hair (photo above) and it looks like I have highlights. I am planning on going a brown/blonde colour this year, as after all my natural hair colour is intact Blonde!

 (the colour is mystic purple and you can purchase it from boots for £4/5 :) 

Hope you enjoyed this post <3

Xo

(DO NOT TAKE MY PHOTO'S WITHOUT ASKING, ALL WERE TAKEN BY ME & ARE ALL MY OWN UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE!)

Swan-tastic

All above photo's taken by myself (Jade Kelly)

Summer is one of my favourite times of the year. After finishing second year of University, i decided to spend summer in Lincoln to work and be with my friends, with of course, the occasional visits back home to my family.

In June, I was with a friend walking about in the sun and we noticed that a mother swan was protecting her baby. Moments later, the cutest thing happened. It was like momma and daddy swan was teaching their baby the way of life. It made my whole day. 

Priceless moments like this are worth blogging about. 
Have a nice day!

Xo.