Happy New Year! I hope you are all keeping well and enjoyed the festive period if you celebrate. 2020 was a wild year and I think everybody is happy to see the back of it. Here’s to a safe and healthy 2021 for us all. For the first post of 2021 on Simply Emma, I thought I’d share what I’ve been loving lately. However, since I was, and still am shielding, all my favourites are things I’ve been enjoying whilst at home.
Making Christmas Treats
Have you ever watched our Youtube baking video when we try and fail miserably at making vegan banana bread? It was a disaster from beginning to end, and as much as we’d love to attempt baking again we haven’t quite plucked up the courage to do it yet. But, on Christmas Eve we decided to make some bake-less Christmas treats. Absolutely no baking or fancy techniques required.
It was simple but tasty Rice Krispie treats made into little Christmas Puddings and Snowballs. We made them under the watchful (cat) eye of our two kittens, Arlo and Willow. Arlo even helped stabilise the tray table from tipping off my lap by placing her paw on it. She was such a great help and the Christmas goodies went down a treat.
We followed the recipes below, but added our own vegan twist to them:
Relaxation
Despite being at home for most of the year, 2020 was a busy year for Simply Emma. I feel grateful that I was able to continue to work, grow my blog and freelance writing opportunities. Like many self-employed, especially when your work is online, it can be incredibly difficult to know when the workday ends and when to ‘switch off’.
Although I didn’t give myself the full festive period off, I did cut back on many commitments and allowed myself to enjoy some downtime consisting of doing whatever or as little as I wanted. And it felt good! I’ve enjoyed the break away from my computer and less time on my phone. It’s given me time to recharge and get ready to enjoy another year of doing what I love.
TV Show
We haven’t been watching many TV series lately apart from ‘The Undoing’. It is a ‘mystery psychological thriller’ starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant. Based on the novel called ‘You Should Have Known’ by Jean Hanff Korelitz the story follows a husband and wife as their lives and marriage falls apart when he is accused of killing someone.
It was a gripping ‘who done it’ series with many twists, turns and possible suspects that not only kept us guessing but also kept us wanting to watch episode after episode.
Gaming
Another thing I enjoyed doing during my mini-break was playing Xbox. We treated ourselves to an Xbox for Christmas and it’s been great fun getting back into gaming again after many years of being away from it. So far we’ve only got a handful of games, but I’m already looking forward to exploring more.
There are a few games we’ve played together like car racing and SEGA Mega Drive Classics (a childhood favourite for Allan). Solo games I’ve enjoyed playing so far are Tom Clancy’s The Division. It was really cheap, but I’m liking it. If you enjoy gaming, please leave me a comment below with your game recommendations.
Movie
Movie nights are my favourite way to relax and there is nothing we love more than a good movie. Lately, we’ve been struggling to find one that catches and keeps our interest. Then we stumbled across ‘Wish Man’ and decided to give it a try. It’s based on a true story about a Highway Patrol motorcycle officer with a tough childhood who has a life-changing road accident while on duty.
The events that follow including meeting a terminally ill little boy with a wish to be a Highway Patrol motorcycle officer inspires Frank to change his life, leading him to create the Make-A-Wish foundation. It’s a brilliant film that we thoroughly enjoyed. We recommended it to my Mum who loved it too. Have the tissues ready!
Motability Scheme
If you follow me on social media then you might have read the articles I’ve written recently for The Motability Scheme. I always enjoy sharing my experiences and writing about different topics on their website over the past few years. Most recently I wrote about My Kwik Fit Mobile Service Experience, Driving with Muscular Dystrophy and my Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle breakdown experience. I also got festive and shared Tips for an accessible Christmas at home.
If you want to keep up with my other writing work you can check out my Press page where I share all my freelance writing, features and interviews.
Music
While watching the new series of Virgin River on Netflix a beautiful song began to accompany a particular scene and we instantly googled the song to find out who it was. It was called ‘Where it Stays’ by Charlotte OC, a singer-songwriter from Blackburn, England. I have been listening to it almost non-stop ever since as well as some of her other songs especially ‘Satellite’ which I absolutely love.
Another favourite is the new album ‘Evermore’ from Taylor Swift. This is the second album released in 2020 from Taylor and both are amazing. Can Taylor Swift ever do wrong? Her musical talent never disappoints.
So that’s a snippet of what I’ve been loving lately. I’d love to know what you’ve been enjoying or doing recently. Leave a comment below and I’ll get back to you.
Again, I’d like to wish you all a Happy New Year! I also wanted to take the time to thank you all so much for your support in 2020. I can’t wait to share new posts with you this year. Here’s to a safe and healthy 2021 for us all. ❤️
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Things I’ve Been Loving Lately Whilst Shielding
