A Penny For Them - Lifestyle blogger living in Essex and working in London. Writing about life, love, fun and frolics.

Penny March 7, 2019 APFT Book Club

My Recent Reads – January & February 2019

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As I’ve mentioned in a few of my posts recently, at the beginning of the year I decided that I wanted to take more time out for reading. It’s such a good way of switching off and clearing the mind, and I wanted to stop wasting so much time online scrolling social media endlessly. So, I set myself a Goodreads challenge – albeit a slightly ambitious one of reading 52 books this year – and I also set up my online book club. You can read more about that here, and if it sounds up your street, you can join here.

When I’m looking for something new to read I tend to base it on recommendations. I have a whole folder of screenshots on my phone from where friends have shared the books they’ve loved and I’m adding them all to my To Be Read list. So, with this in mind, I thought it made sense to share my Recent Reads each month, and let you know what I have thought of each of them – the good, the bad and the ugly. Hopefully one of you may find a new book for your list!

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Penny March 1, 2019 Lifestyle

Dear Diary… February 2019: Recovery, Mindfulness and An Anniversary

Happy March everyone! Spring doesn’t arrive for another few weeks but with the way the weather has been recently you would think it was already here! (Not that I’ve any idea what the weather is like as I’m still stuck indoors). That said, as lovely as it is to have clear blue skies, a gentle breeze and the temperature in the high-teens and early-twenties, I can’t help but be slightly worried about what this all means. Global Warming is happening right before our eyes.

So far this year life has been pretty quiet as I’ve been on bed/sofa rest but I went to the hospital earlier this week and I have completed stage 1 of healing and am now embarking on stage 2 which is all about the quality of the final heal. I’m allowed to put my foot down on the floor now but can’t bear weight on it yet – that’s something I’ll be working on over the next 6 weeks or so and hopefully in a couple of months I’ll be able to walk without the need for crutches. Fingers crossed! To be honest, I didn’t realise it was such a long process; I think I thought it would be a few weeks and I’d be up and about, but that’s not the case. It’ll all be worth it in the end though if it’s worked.

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Penny February 17, 2019 Fashion & Beauty

Smashing Preconceptions & Getting Kitted Out With Jacamo {AD-GIFTED}

Smashing Preconceptions & Getting Kitted Out With Jacamo <font size="3">{AD-GIFTED}</font>

Jacamo very kindly sent us these items free of charge in return for our thoughts. All opinions are, as always, 100% honest and our own.

Isn’t it strange how you can sometimes find yourself with a preconception of what a brand, place or event is and then find out that you had it wrong all along? Well, that’s exactly what’s happened to me, having had the opportunity to collaborate with Jacamo on this post.

When I was approached by Jacamo to ask if they could send a couple of items out for Ben to wear, I was pleased because – 1) A brand wanting to work with little ol’ me, after all this time of being off the blogging wagon and desperately wanting 2019 to be the year I get back on it, and 2) I thought it would be nice for Ben to have a little treat as he’s always so supportive of my writing and blog, and he’s been an absolute angel waiting on me hand and foot while I’m still on sofa/bed rest after surgery.

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Penny February 7, 2019 APFT Book Club

Introducing The APFT Book Club

I’m a little bit excited about this today because I’m here to tell you all about something I’ve wanted to do for ages and – finally – I’ve got it kicked off. My online book club!

In a busy, busy world it’s so important to slow down and take some time out for your own peace of mind, and – for me – reading is one of the best ways I’ve found to do that. Whether it’s an afternoon with endless cups of tea on the sofa as you lose yourself in a story, or a quick 15-minutes grabbed deep in the pages of your latest read on your commute home, reading is a great way to both exercise your mind and relax it.

Now, one reason I’ve never got on with book clubs before is that life happens and so I can’t always dedicate the time needed to keep up with the rest of the group. Or, I’ve struggled with the book that has been chosen and so lose interest. So, I’ve taken that mindset and decided that my book club is going to be different.

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Penny February 1, 2019 Lifestyle

Life Update – January 2019

Note: This post includes a discount code. I don’t earn anything from this, I’m just sharing so you can save some pennies!

What a month it has been! I started this year with all the grand plans to blog more and I have a list of things I want to share with you, but that all fell by the wayside when I was booked in last minute for knee surgery. I had just a few days to get everything sorted for it and now I’ve had it done, I’m not allowed to stand on it for 6-weeks, so I’ve been stuck on the sofa/in bed since then.

Luckily my employers have let me work from home for this time period, so I’ve had no time to get bored but after spending a day staring at the laptop, by the time the end of my working day comes, the last thing I’ve wanted to do is spend more time on it working on the blog. So, I’ve been logging off and filling my eyeballs with watching films and reading books instead.

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