Weight Shaming.

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If I had a £ for every person that's said me 'why are you at Slimming World?' 'Why do you go to Slimming World', 'If I was your size i'd be ecstatic, not weighing myself every week.' i'd be bloody rich. 

I think they think it's a compliment, but it isn't. I can't help the way I feel about myself and my body. I don't like my body and I don't feel good about myself. Whether i'm 2st or 20st, if you aren't happy in yourself, no matter what other people say, that isn't going to change. I'm sick to death of feeling scrutinized every time I go to group. My group leader overheard a group of women commenting on my weight, and he said 'how do you know she didn't start out being heavier? How do you know she hasn't lost 20st and stuck to it and got down to where she is now?. Don't judge someone for something you have no idea about. 

I know i'm not the heaviest there, but that doesn't give them a right to judge my decision to join a weight loss group. They have no idea the feelings and thoughts I have about myself. 

Recently, Cheryl Cole was horribly abused online for pictures that were put up during the X Factor auditions. 'Omg, eat something, she's disgusting, how horrible, calls herself a role model'. I couldn't believe the vile things that people were writing. If that was an ordinary person's pictures put up there, would they write such nasty things? No, probably not! But because it's someone famous, it's allowed? Words hurt, no matter how famous, successful or rich you are.

'Real Women Have Curves' 'Strong Is The New Sexy' is a bunch of bullshit. You're sexy, however you damn well feel sexy. I'm no less of a woman because I don't have a Beyonce ass! Quotes like these are what make girls and women feel like they do. You can't win no matter what size you are. I don't have curves in 'all the right places' so i'm not real?...no way in hell am I strong, so I can't be sexy? 

I don't know what gives people a right to say such negative things. Who are they to define what shape or size is sexy? 

Research has found more 11-13 year old British girls than ever have emotional issues linked to body confidence. How bad is that? And it's body shamers, weight shamers and quotes like the ones above that are encouraging this. 

Since when did everyone become so judgemental? To quote one of the greatest movies EVER. 'I just want to make a cake out of rainbows and smiles and everyone would eat and be happy.' 

Slimming World | The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

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What Makes Me Happy.

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It's so easy to forget to be happy. I know that probably sounds stupid but it is. You get so caught up in life; paying bills, working full time. You forget all the things that make you happy. I am a really positive person, and extremely optimistic..maybe a little too much. I thought i'd write this post as a way to look back and remember all the things that make me happy! The majority of these will probably be food...#greedygirlproblems. Clearly my family and friends make me happy in an instant so they won't be on the list. More room for food that way ;)

1. Being in my happy place.

2. Fresh flowers.

3. Cakes. All kinds of cakes.

4. Fresh bedding.

5. Holidays!

6. Finding money in your pocket that you didn't know you had, SCORE.

7. Netflix.

8. Gus, the cutest cat in the whole world.

9. Sunny days.

10. Being able to peg my washing out. Yes, really.

11. Eating out.

12. Discovering something new.

13. Reading a good book.

14. F.R.I.E.N.D.S

15. Payday!

16. Special occasions.

17. Looking through my memory box. 

18. Not having to set an alarm.

19. Travelling.

20. Hugs!

21. Pizza.

22. Ben & Jerry's.

23. Waking up earlier than my alarm.

24. Lighting a new candle.

25. Hearing a song that instantly explains how you're feeling. 

What makes you instantly happy? Are any of these on your list? 

23.

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"I don't know about you, but i'm feeling..twenty-three...?" Today is my 23rd birthday and i'm so excited. I love birthdays! Not just my own, but everybody's. I love celebrating their special day that's just for them. Seeing them open their presents, blowing out their candles..it makes me feel all warm and mushy inside. 

I am so lucky to be spending the day with my favourite people. I'm going into Manchester with Aaron for shopping and lunch, then i'm coming home and having a little get together with all my family and a couple of my closest friends. It won't be doing anything fancy, just some pizzas and cake. Winning combination right there I tell thee'.

Looking back over my 23 years, i've achieved so much and experienced so many things. Travelling to different places, buying my own home and getting Gus, plus so many more! There are so many things I still want to do and places I still want to see, and i'm sure i'll get round to them all eventually!

x

Poolside Essentials.

Summer is well and truly upon us and most of us will be getting ready for our Summer holidays. I go to Egypt on the 30th June for 2 weeks and i'm so frickin' excited, it's unbelievable. As I go in just over two weeks i've started giving some thought to what I will be taking with me. 

I spend a lot of my holiday by the pool or on the beach so the items I take with me, are essentials. 

June Reading List.

I am a huge book lover and probably spend more money on books than I do on anything else. I have my priorities down, i'm tellin' ya! 

However, I spend more time choosing a book, than I do actually reading it. Only a true bookworm will understand the time and deliberation it takes when choosing what to read next. Book or kindle? Romance or mystery? So many questions and far too many books...

I FINALLY managed to compile a list of books I want to read this month and it wasn't an easy decision. Some of the books are new purchases and others have been on my bookshelf for a while and i'm only just getting round to reading them. I'm a little bugger for buying new books every month and forgetting to read the ones I already own. I really need to start working on my 'To Be Read' books...

My Summer Bucket List.

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Summer is absolutely my favourite time of year! Everyone is in such a good mood, more laid back and relaxed, it's just perfect. I have decided to come up with a bucket list of all the things I want to try/learn/do this year during the warmer (hopefully) months.. I might do a separate post at the end of Summer, ticking off all the things i've managed to do!

• Go Camping- I love a Summer holiday as much as the next person, but i'm also a HUGE fan of camping. There are so many gorgeous places to stay and i'm determined i'm going to do it more.
• Go for Picnics- Nothing screams Summer like picnics in the park. I love the chilled out vibe you get, picking at delicious foods and enjoying the sun.
• Row a Boat on a Lake- Myself and Aaron did this last year and LOVED it. I want to do it again definitely. It was so much fun and reminded me of the scene out of Bridget Jones Diary, although we didn't recite limericks to each other...
• Go for Evenings Walks- I'm the definition of lazy, but in Summer when it's still light at 9o'clock an evening walk is just what I fancy. I need to turn off netflix, get off my ass' and go for a walk. There's no excuse not too really...
• Breakfast Outside- I always see this on films or on the television and it just looks so romantic and relaxed. I need to buy a patio table first but when I do, eating inside will be a thing of the past.
• Drive In Movie- Fancy re-enacting the iconic scene out of Grease? 'Stranded at the Drive-In, branded a fool...' Danny Zuko *Swoon* we have a great cinema in Manchester, just behind the Trafford Centre and they always have great offers on!
• Go To A Food Festival- Food lover? Check. Festival lover? Check.
• Go Strawberry Picking- Strawberries are my ultimate favourite fruit, so I can honestly not think of anything better than going picking my own.
• Eat Fish & Chips On The Beach- St Anne's is one of my favourite beach locations in Summer and there's just something I find really comforting about eating fish and chips on the beach..must be the old lady in me..
• Write A Book- I am a huge book lover!! I love reading books and even have dreams of becoming a best selling author. Chances are..that aint' gonna' happen any time soon but I can still give it a bash...right?
• Learn A New Language- I love different languages and I alway try and learn the basics of different ones when I go to certain countries. I'd love to learn another language properly and be able to say more than hello, thank you and goodbye.
• Travel Somewhere New- Discovering new places is my favourite thing to do, whether it's a new town or a completely new country. I love it!

Those are some of my wishes for the Summer, I'd love to know what yours are? Is there anything this Summer you would love to do or learn? Let me know.  xx

Short Hairstyle Inspiration.

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I spent months and months growing my hair! I was obsessed with having long, thick hair that I could style in whatever way I wanted, life would be great and I would FINALLY be happy with my hair. Nah. As soon as I grew my hair to the length I wanted, I decided to cut it all off. It had grown well past my boobs, and I decided to have it cut to about shoulder length. I know REBEL, but i'm just never happy with what I got'. Hair wise I mean..

Right now, at this moment in my life I LOVE having short hair, it's so easy to manage. I was determined that although I wanted it cutting short, I still wanted it long enough to put up and get out of my face if I wanted too. So far i've managed to shove it in a ponytail, messy bun...and that's about it. I have had no inspiration when it comes to styling my hair and i'm completely crap at it which doesn't help but recently i've been browsing Pinterest and found so many styles that I love. I've also been watching tutorials on youtube, I didn't realise how easy the styles would be to do myself! I've given some a bash, and they've actually turned out pretty decent! Even if I do say so myself...

Who is your hair inspiration? What is your favourite way to style your hair?

A Guide To | Bullying.

"Bullying may be defined as the activity of repeated, aggressive behavior intended to hurt another individual, physically, mentally or emotionally. Bullying is characterized by an individual behaving in a certain way to gain power over another person. It can be classified into four types: 

1. Physical (hitting, punching, or kicking)
2. Verbal (name-calling or taunting)
3. Relational (destroying peer acceptance and friendships)
4. Cyber-bullying (using electronic means to harm others)"

Garden Inspiration | House to Home #1

Now that the weather is getting nicer (ish) my thoughts have turned to the garden. Our garden is one of the main reason I bought our house, it's huge! You come out of our back door and you overlook our garden path with flowerbeds down either side, at the bottom of the path is a gate which leads to our back garden. The house was empty for some time before we bought it, and the garden had been slightly neglected. Plants had died, weeds have taken over and what once was a paved area, the grass has overgrown. 

When we first moved in the garden took a back seat as we decided to get our priorities right and sort out the inside first. However now Summer is upon us I can't help but think of my dream garden. I have plans for Summer parties and BBQ's with family & friends, laughing over a pitcher of Pimms and tucking into delicious homemade burgers...a girl can dream right?

I don't want a modern garden with sophisticated looking furniture, we live in a terraced cottage and I am determined to stick to the cottage theme. I want wild flowers, rustic furniture and fairy lights. I've never really taken an interest in gardening until I owned my own house, now i get a thrill out of visiting garden centres. Oh the life of a 22 year old.

Are you a garden lover? Where you do you find your inspiration?

My Heart & Other Black Holes | By Jasmine Warga

Goodreads Link.

"Sixteen-year-old physics nerd Aysel is obsessed with plotting her own death. With a mother who can barely look at her without wincing, classmates who whisper behind her back, and a father whose violent crime rocked her small town, Aysel is ready to turn her potential energy into nothingness.

There’s only one problem: she’s not sure she has the courage to do it alone. But once she discovers a website with a section called Suicide Partners, Aysel’s convinced she’s found her solution: a teen boy with the username FrozenRobot (aka Roman) who’s haunted by a family tragedy is looking for a partner. 

Even though Aysel and Roman have nothing in common, they slowly start to fill in each other’s broken lives. But as their suicide pact becomes more concrete, Aysel begins to question whether she really wants to go through with it. Ultimately, she must choose between wanting to die or trying to convince Roman to live so they can discover the potential of their energy together. Except that Roman may not be so easy to convince."

FanGirl | by Rainbow Rowell

"Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan...
But for Cath, being a fan is her life—and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.
Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.
Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words... And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.
For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?"

Book Haul | April

April has been the months for buying books. I blame the endless hours purusing GoodReads, which you should totally follow me on..Link.
Also my new found obsession has been watching Booktubers on Youtube. I get so many great recommendations for books, and my 'to-read' list on Goodreads is growing by the second.
I've recently been loving lots of Young Adult books,so you'll notice a theme within this haul.

My Heart And Other Black Holes | By Jasmine Warga: Amazon.
"I'm getting higher and higher and I feel the swing set creak.

'Be careful,' he says.

'Why?' I'm not thinking about being careful. I'm thinking about one last push, of letting go, of flying, and of falling.

'You aren't allowed to die without me,' he whispers.

Aysel and Roman are practically strangers, but they've been drawn into an unthinkable partnership. In a month's time, they plan to commit suicide - together.

Aysel knows why she wants to die: being the daughter of a murderer doesn't equal normal, well-adjusted teenager. But she can't figure out why handsome, popular Roman wants to end it all....and why he's even more determined than she is.

With the deadline getting closer, something starts to grow between Aysel and Roman - a feeling she never thought she would experience. It seems there might be something to live for, after all - but is Aysel in so deep she can't turn back?"

Ways To Live Forever | By Sally Nicholls: Amazon.

"My name is Sam. I am eleven years old. I collect stories and fantastic facts. By the time you read this, I will probably be dead. Sam loves facts. He wants to know about UFOs and horror movies and airships and ghosts and scientists, and how it feels to kiss a girl. And because he has leukaemia he wants to know the facts about dying. Sam needs answers to the questions nobody will answer."

Wonder | By R.J.Palacio: Amazon.
"My name is August. I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse.'

Auggie wants to be an ordinary ten-year-old. He does ordinary things - eating ice cream, playing on his Xbox. He feels ordinary - inside. But ordinary kids don't make other ordinary kids run away screaming in playgrounds. Ordinary kids aren't stared at wherever they go.

Born with a terrible facial abnormality, Auggie has been home-schooled by his parents his whole life. Now, for the first time, he's being sent to a real school - and he's dreading it. All he wants is to be accepted - but can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, underneath it all?

All The Bright Places | By Jennifer Niven: Amazon.

"Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.

Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's recent death.

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it's unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the 'natural wonders' of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It's only with Violet that Finch can be himself - a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who's not such a freak after all. And it's only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet's world grows, Finch's begins to shrink. How far will Violet go to save the boy she has come to love?

All I Know Now | By Carrie Hope Fletcher: Amazon.

"We all know that growing up is hard to do, and sometimes the only thing that makes it better are the reassuring words of someone who has walked that bumpy road just a few steps ahead of you and somehow ended up as a fully-functioning adult. Carrie Hope Fletcher is that person. Thanks to her phenomenally popular YouTube videos, Carrie has become an 'honorary big sister' to hundreds of thousands of young people who turn to her for advice, friendship and, most of all, the knowledge that things will get better.

Carrie has created a safe and positive space for young people to connect and share their hopes and concerns online, and now she will share her most personal thoughts and experiences in her first book, ALL I KNOW NOW. It includes Carrie's thoughts on some of the topics she's asked about most regularly: bullying, body image, relationships and perhaps the scariest question of all: what does the future hold for me? With warmth, wit and a sprinkling of hard-won wisdom, Carrie will provide the essential tools for growing up gracefully . . . most of the time."

These are all the books I have picked up in April. I did buy quite a few new books for my kindle, but there are too many to list and i'm trying to save as many as I can for my holiday in June, so I will have plenty to read without having to take too many physical books..i'll obviously still take two..or three. 

I'd love to know what books you've picked up this month? Which authors are you currently loving? Are you a fan of YA? 

Monthly Favourites | April.

Life

This month has been one of my favourites so far! I've been a real social butterfly, which hasn't been any good for Slimming World but we'll get to that..

A Guide To | Heartbreak.

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Noun: Heartbreak- Overwhelming mental anguish or grief, especially that caused by loss or disappointment."

TV Shows To Marathon.

I am a binge watcher. On my days off I love nothing more than staying in my pj's, getting cosy on the sofa with my blanket and watching my favourite tv shows back to back, mainly on Netflix. Some that I have watched thousands of times before, and others that I am currently watching and trying my hardest to catch up on! 

F.R.I.E.N.D.S (Netflix) - Holy hell. I have watched every episode of the series, at least 5 times. Easily. Some i've seen even more than that! The whole Rachel and Ross drama never gets old. 'I didn't get on the plane' WAHHHHH!

Grey's Anatomy (Netflix) - I'd heard about this series for so long and watched a few episodes on tv when it was first released, but eventually forgot about it. HOW?! How did I forget about this series?! It's so addictive, dramatic and just..YES. I'm currently on season 4 and obsessed. I don't think i've ever cried so much over a tv programme!

Once Upon A Time (Netflix) - This is my dream tv series. Disney films with a slightly dark twist..how could you not love it?! The disney obsessive in me fangirls every time a new character is added..here's looking at you Belle! Also..Captain Hook..hubba hubba.. 

House (Netflix) - This is one of the funniest series i've watched. Hugh Laurie is just hilarious..and I have a slightly strange crush on him..he got the older guy thang' down!

One Tree Hill (Netflix and DVD Boxset) - Nayley.. that's all i'm going to say. This series never gets old. 

Sex And The City (DVD Boxset) - I remember my older sister watching this on TV years ago and I was always obsessed. They were glamorous and gorgeous. As I grew up I realised they were just kinda' slutty. In a good way. I love all the girls and each of their personalities. It is my dream to live in NYC, sipping cosmo's with my best girl friends.

Footballers Wives (DVD Boxset) - This is one for all my British readers..I think. I'm not sure this was ever a thing anywhere else.. It was so bad it was brilliant. So much drama shoved into one tv series. I always watch this if I need some easy watching and Lol's. 

Neverland | by Anna Katmore | Free Ebook.

Goodreads, Kindle Book Link.

"“Any last words?”

“Go to hell, you freaking…filthy…godforsaken…”

Our noses almost touch as he dips his head and brushes a strand of my hair behind my ear. “Angel, the word you’re looking for is pirate.”

Why is there a boy who doesn’t want to grow up?

How can an apple start the sweetest romance in fairytale history?

And what does a ruthless pirate have to do with it all?

Rachael Dreams..

Hello and welcome to my brand new blog 'Rachael Dreams'!

For those of you who don't know, I previously ran a beauty blog 'From Rachael Claire' which I used to love and felt really passionate about. However over the last 6 months or so, things changed. I blogged because I felt I had to. I blogged for other people and not for myself.

I put this huge pressure on myself to please other people and constantly compared myself to other bloggers and their blogs. My writing wasn't as good, my pictures weren't as good, my content was rubbish...

I completely forgot why I started blogging in the first place. After taking a few months off from blogging i've finally managed to take a step back and gather my thoughts and ideas on what I wanted from my own blog.

I love beauty and I am still a beauty obsessive, but i've always found myself more drawn to lifestyle posts, both reading and writing them. I could sit and read travel, recipe, general life posts all damn day. 

That is why I decided to start a fresh blog with a fresh mindset. I am so excited for the posts I have planned and all the ideas roaming around in my little noggin'

What can you expect from Rachael Dreams?

Lots of travel, recipes, life updates, wishlists, favourites, book reviews and also with a few beauty or fashion posts thrown in for good measure. Got to keep you on your toes now don't I!?

I really hope you are as excited as I am for the brand new blog.

Whole Lotta' Love xx