Looking Back At: January 2016

What's Been Going On?

For me, January is always a month that's slow to go by and it's never the happiest of months after the high energy of Christmas quickly come crashing down. Heading back to school does nothing to help that either and after finishing my first term in sixth form the school thought that it would be a great time to start mock exams off. So, heading back to school was exactly a cheerful experience at the beginning of the month. Thankfully, I only had four mocks to sit: two maths, one economics and one for physics. And respectively I ended up getting 2 As, a B and a C which I was definitely pleased with. 
Other than that, it's been a pretty quiet month. I've seen the arrival of my new bookcase which I was extremely excited for. My room had been painted in August and since then my books have been residing in boxes in my parents' room since I haven't been able to find a bookcase that I've liked and would fit in my room since I haven't got much space. But I finally found one and nothing has brought me greater joy than to see my book all lined up on shelves. 
I've been slowly getting myself back into blogging and it's been helping me find a balance between school work and just having me time again. It's been so nice to just be able to write since all of my subjects are maths based. Hopefully, I'm going to be able to keep this up for now, even if I'm just posting twice a month to start of with until I get back into the swing of things again. 

Books?

I'm so glad that this has been a month that I've slowly been able to get back into reading. I set my reading challenge a lot lower than previous years, down to 15 books but I had to make it realistic. I've been so busy with sixth form, I wasn't sure how much time I would have to read when summer came along and towards the end of the year when I'll hopefully be applying to Uni. But, whilst it's been quiet I thought I would get a head start. 
So, here's what I've managed to read:  

• Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo 
• Binge by Tyler Oakley 
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J.K Rowling 

And I'm currently reading: 

• The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 
• The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen 

Instagram

Who needs A Levels when I could bake my way to success? { #baking #redvelevet #cupcakes #food }

A photo posted by Saira Ahmed (@sai_498) on Jan 24, 2016 at 12:00pm PST

Nothing will beat the beauty of words lying gracefully across a page, especially after a bad day. Slowly but surely making some progress with Sherlock. It might be a long book but it's so beautifully written, the words seem to flow so nicely. I really am hoping that I can make so more progress once mock exams are done. { #bibliophile #books #bookworm #bookblogger #igreads #bookstagram #theadventuresofsherlockholmes #sherlockholmes #sherlock #johnwatson #reading #currentlyreading #sixthform #alevels #mockexams #goodreads #goodreadschallenge }

A photo posted by Saira (@growingxwings) on Jan 18, 2016 at 2:09pm PST

Currently reading: Beginners Guide - Engineering by Natasha McCarthy. One of the most interesting books that I've dread and it's definitely made me fall in love with engineering so much more. { #igreads #bookstagram #bookwork #bibliophile #begineersguide #engineer #engineering }

A photo posted by Saira (@growingxwings) on Jan 29, 2016 at 2:36am PST

I've been working on filling this bookshelf this evening. Since I've had my room repainted all of my books have been residing in my parents' room. It's funny how empty it's felt in there until I've had my gorgeous book back with me again. { #bibliophile #booklover #bookblogger #bookshelf #roomdecoration #inprogress #ya }

A photo posted by Saira (@growingxwings) on Jan 29, 2016 at 11:53am PST

I'm absolutely in love with this book and I still have another half left to go! It's been so long since a book has captivated me in the way that this one has. Major book love right now. ❤️ { #queenofthetearling #erikajohansen #booklove #bookbloggers #bibliophile #books #bookworm #fantasy #dystopia #currentlyreading #igreads }

A photo posted by Saira (@growingxwings) on Jan 31, 2016 at 2:41pm PST

I hope you all have had a good start to the year! 

Looking Back At: 2015

I just want to start off with saying that I'm extremely sorry about the extended break that I've taken from this blog. As soon as exam season came around in May I was so busy and I didn't end up getting back into blogging once it was over. But I'm back and hoping that I can stay around for a little while longer again. 
2015 has been an absolutely amazing year for me! It's been one of my best years with so far with so much going on, a lot of good news and new adventures. I can't begin to tell you how much joy this year ended up bringing me and I'm so sad to see the end of it. 
January kicked off the start of this brilliant year since I brought 2015 in with my sister in New York! I still can't believe that I had the chance to do that and it definitely made sure that my year got off on the right foot. With musicals and sight seeing around the city, I couldn't have asked for anything more. 
There were a few exams to sit when I got back home though. However, January also become the month that got offered my very first job! There was a new store opening in the city centre and I applied with the thought that I may not get it but it doesn't hurt to try. I got a call towards the end of January after my interview offering me the job and I'm still working there now. 
May and June were both extremely stressful and emotional. Exams were in full swing and it was just crazy. It was the last hurdle to jump before I was able to completely finish school and I don't know how I managed to get out of it with my sanity. June also meant me saying goodbye to secondary school which was slightly upsetting. Unlike the majority of my year group, I was heading to sixth form with one other person in my year going with me. So, June was a time of goodbyes for me. 
My last day had me in near tears and I was doing everything I could not to cry like a baby. My leavers' assembly left me in fits of laughter though as we sat in the main hall as a year group for the last time. I couldn't believe I had made it through five years of secondary school and was finally saying goodbye. Prom night left me with a huge smile on my face and it was the perfect way to end five years and say goodbye to everyone. I danced and screamed songs at the top of my lungs and knew that I was leaving with a new adventure waiting for me. 
Exams were finished, prom was done and summer started for me a month earlier than everyone and I loved it. Three months off to spend with my family with the looming thought of school in the back of my mind. We did day trips to Liverpool and Chester Zoo, I did workshops in Lush. It was a holiday that I was actually able to enjoy and the weather could have been a lot worse! 

As well as some amazing days spent with my family in August, I knew that it also meant that GCSE results would be coming out and I was anxious to have that brown envelope in my hand. Results day had been far from what I had expected and it was truly memorable. I ended up having to open my results on Welsh radio which I hoped meant that they were okay. The shock I felt that day when I saw that day was astounding and I nearly cried when I saw my maths mark. I walked out of school a few hours later with 3 A*s and 8 As. 

Those results meant that I was able to move on to another exciting part in my life and one that made 2015 even better. I was joining sixth form which was a part of a school that I had never gone to. September was extremely exciting but also nerve wracking for me. Thankfully, I settled into sixth form life pretty well. I adore the subjects that I've taken and found a group of friends that I really get along with. Even though the work is a lot harder. I love the challenge of it all. 

December has been a brilliant month. I've managed to survive my first term in sixth form and also took a trip to Bath with my sister and my mother to have a look around at the Christmas markets which was a present for my results from my sister. Even though it was extremely busy, it was brilliant. The city was so gorgeous and the markets were lovely to have a look around in.  
Overall, 2015 has been a really good year for me. Especially academically. I feel like I've finally found my feet and for the first time in a long time I've looked forward to going to school. I can't wait to see what 2016 will hold for me and my family and I can only hope that it'll be ten times better! 
Happy new year my lovelies and I hope 2015 gave you everything that you hoped for and 2016 will too! 

Looking Back At: February 2015

Waaaap! The thought of being in yet another month is slightly scary and didn't at all remind me that I had a wrap up that I needed to write. I don't think I took that long to remember though. However, the thought normally strikes me in the last few days of the month. 

What's Been Going On?

February for me wasn't a particularly busy month. However, there were a few important dates on the calendar that I was sure I wasn't going to forget. Both my mam and sister's birthday were this month and were only three days apart. Both were really great days and they both seemed to be happy by the end of them. So, I couldn't really complain. 
I also had yet another Duke of Edinburgh walk this month. A good chunk of our walk made up walk opposite some waterfalls which were absolutely stunning and it made the walk that little bit nicer to walk alongside. It was nice to actually have a walk for once where I didn't need to be bundled up in four layers. About twenty minutes into the walk, I had to take my scarf, coat and hoodie off and was left in my t-shirt. The walks just become a little bit more enjoyable when you aren't trying to keep warm at the same time. 
This was literally my month though since not much else happened. I was just plodding along with the days and getting my school work done.

Books?

I think I managed to get through a good chunk of books this month. Especially since one of them was quite thick and it did take me a little while to get through. This month, I read:

• When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
• The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 
• Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli 

I started reading a few other books which I'm still getting through and hopefully I'll finish them this month. They are:

• Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews 
• Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Looking Back At: January 2015

The first month of 2015 as gone by in a blink of an eye It's crazy and I can't believe it. Though I'll be honest, it's been a month that has been packed full of different things. Both enjoyable and stressful.

What's Been Going On?

The beginning of this year was spent in New York City which was an amazing adventure and such a great way to kick start the year. I've posted about the trip on here for anyone who wants to know what I got up to while I was out there. 
After landing back in the UK I had that day to rest before going back into school the next day. And that day, which was a Tuesday, was spent doing revision for my January exams that were going to kick off on the Wednesday of that week. I had six exams that would start on that Wednesday and would finish on the following Thursday. I ended up sitting: 

• Biology - Additional Science 
• English Literature 
• English Language Unit 1 (resit) 
• ICT Unit 1 
• English Language Unit 2 (resit) 
• Physics - Additional Science

And they were sat in that order. I don't think there was a day that we were in school during that week of exams that we didn't have some kind of revision going on. The exams that I was most worried about were ICT and physics but I got through them. Results come on on March 5th and I'm happily going to be pushing that date out of my mind. 

The weekend I finished exams, I was out on a Duke of Edinburgh walk on the Sunday.It was freezing cold and we almost got lost quite a few times but yet again, I am always in awe of the beauty that Wales holds and this was yet again one of those things. A mountain centre may not sound like the most beautiful of places to some people but I loved it there even though I did end up slipping on a log. My one accomplishment that day was the fact I was able to cross a river on a few stones with no help and I didn't even slip. I'm probably never going to be able to do that again though...

I had some extremely good news this month that ended up being the highlight of my month.

Source

Towards the beginning of the month I knew that there was a new Saltrock opening up where I live and I was pretty interested in it. One of my friends ended up applying and sent me the email for a job there. So, that evening I sent them my CV and a cover note and I didn't really expect to hear anything back. Instead, I got a phone call from the store manager asking for an interview with them. So, five days later, I went to 'Costa' to have my interview with the area manager and store manager and they told me I would either find out that evening or tomorrow if I had a job there or not since the store was opening that Saturday. Whilst watching 'Hollyoaks' with my sister and mam I had a phone call which I was pretty nervous to pick up and as the manager spoke to me I heard the words "I just rang to tell you that you've got the job." I think he heard how excited I was down the phone since he asked me if I was happy. 

I was in that Wednesday and Thursday to help set the shop up and I got along with the whole team really quickly and really well. Everyone is so nice there and laid back. Saturday was then opening day and it was absolutely hectic in there! I wasn't entirely sure what to do for the first fifteen minutes since I was just on the shop floor for general customer service but after that I found my feet and I got into the swing of things. So, I now have my very first job and it's in such a great place!

Books? 

I decided to put my reading goal a little lower this year to 35 books since I know I'm in for a lot of exams and revision in the spring and summer term and hopefully I'll be starting my A-Levels in September.

I was pretty surprised at the amount of books that I managed to finish in January but I'm really happy with it. I've pretty much enjoyed all of the books that I've read. I've finished: 

• Pride an Prejudice by Jane Austen 
• Wither by Lauren DeStefano 
• Fever by Lauren DeStefano 
• Sever by Lauren DeStefano 
• Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
• Breaking Nova by Jessica Sorensen 

I'm three books ahead of schedule which I was more than happy with. I haven't got a clue what I'll be reading this month. 

A Quote? 

I hope everyone had a great start to the year!

Looking Back At: October 2014

Another month has gone by so quickly and I'm really finding it hard to believe that October has come to an end and we're just over a month away from Christmas. It feels absolutely crazy but there isn't anything I can do about it. 
Compared to September, October has been a relatively quiet month but I've appreciated that if I'm honest with you. Every once in a while, it's nice to have a month which isn't so packed with different things to do and is just a little more relaxing. It gave me so me much needed time to sort myself out. 
Looking back at October, it really was a month where I finally felt like I had a routine back with school. I sorted out some after school revision sessions and organised my school work. Controlled Assessments were started, finished and are in the midst of being planned. School wise, it was a pretty productive month and it's surprising how much, as a class, we managed to get things done. 
Duke of Edinburgh has started up again as we've now officially had two meetings. Admittedly one meeting was to decided when we were going to have all our other meetings. The second meeting I wasn't really sure what we were supposed to be doing. What I have managed to talk to my teacher about is doing a little bit of a film whilst we're on DofE. A lot of things go on during our training, practice and qualifying expedition. More than just learning how to read a map or do first aid. We have such an a amazing time with so many laughs on the way that I wanted to document it all and then compile it into one video. So, my leader has given me the go ahead for that, he even has a water and shockproof camera that he's letting me borrow for when we're out training. It's one thing that I really can't wait to do! 
Other than that though, my month was quite quiet and was spent just doing homework and assessment preparation. 
Book wise wasn't really a busy month either but I thought I'd only be able to finish one book with the rate that I was going. In the end, I managed to finish: 

• A World Without Princes by Soman Chainani 
• Looking For Alaska by John Green 
• Paper Swans by Jessica Thompson 

And I'm currently reading: 

• 1984 by George Orwell 

I'm still managing to be two books ahead of schedule, so I'm somehow hoping that I'll be able to keep that up or at least stay on track so I can finish my challenge for this year. 

Quote of the Month: 

Looking Back At: September 2014

September has been a pretty busy month as I've been trying to find my feet back in school. I came off of summer on the second and was thrown straight into the swing of things. Slowly, I've been getting used to going back to school and making sure that I'm ready for my lessons. Nothing could prepare though for the strange feeling that has come along with my being in my last year of secondary school. It's strange knowing that a lot of things this year will be my last things that I'll get the chance to do in that school but I'll be making the most of this. 

This was also the month where I turned sixteen, which was another strange feeling all in itself. It was a birthday that I was extremely excited about and it was such a fantastic day. Even though it was a school day, it was just lovely to have all the family down and go out for a meal. It was a birthday that I'm 100% sure that I won't forget! The cake was just fantastic. It was a chocolate cake with the Hufflepuff crest. Such a beautiful cake and it tasted amazing too! One of my presents for my birthday from my sister was to go to the Harry Potter Studio Tour which led to an amazing day out a London and you can read more about that here! 
My college application was started this month. Our courses don't open up to be picked until October 1st so at the moment we're filling things like our personal statement, personal details and qualifications out. The application process was something that I had been dreading but there's a lot of resources that the school has put online to help us out with our personal statement and sheets to help us with the qualification sections and everything. So, some of our Welsh Baccalaureate lessons are dedicated to filling that out.

September proved to be a month where I pushed myself to limits I didn't even know that I had and did the Admiral Swansea Bay 10K. It was a killer and I didn't think I'd be able to get through the whole thing at some points but alongside my sister we managed to make it to the finish line in a pretty good time of 1:39:38. I was pretty proud of myself and I'm hoping to do more races like this one. So, the next one that I want to sign up to in Swnasea's 5K Race For Life.  I got through more books than I though I would this month. I thought at the very most I would be able to get through two. I just haven't felt like I've had that much time to read. I ended up being able to get through three books, I'm pretty happy with that. Those books were: 

• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin 
• The 100 by Kass Morgan 
• If I Stay by Gayle Foreman

At the moment, I'm getting through: 

• 1984 by George Orwell 
• Naomi & Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan 
• A World Without Princes by Soman Chainani 

I've read 38 books out of the 50 that I've set myself to complete this year and somehow I've managed to stay two books ahead of schedule. I'm not even sure how that managed to stay like that but I think it's got to do with the amount that I managed to read last month. So, well done past Saira! 
This month has been a god one and I'm so glad that my initial nerves about starting the school year have gone away and now I've just been enjoying my last school year. 
I hope everyone else has had a good start to the academic year if you've already started back. For those starting Uni in October, good luck! And to those of you who aren't in education any more, I hope September was a great month and held a lot of happy memories.

Looking Back At: August 2014

So, August seemed to start of with me having a doctor's appointment which then lead to me having a blood test. I hate needles. It's something that I still haven't seem to have gotten over, even having my jabs in school and my MMR just last year. So, I ended up taking my sister in with me to hold my hand. The nurse was lovely though which is always an upside and when I get nervous I tend to laugh and you can guess what happened whilst she was taking my blood. I just started to laugh and she asked me whether I was laughing or crying. I had to try and stop moving because the needle was still in my arm. I can safely say that I am still not over my fear of needles after that blood test and hurt my sister's hand pretty badly. Thankfully though, the tests came back all okay.

My sister had her graduation party earlier on in August. We were fasting when she had graduated so we didn't get the chance to do anything. So, my Dad ended up throwing a party for her and invited a lot f friends and family down. It was a really nice day to be honest, if not a little bit tiring. 
August saw me getting my National Insurance number so I can now start applying for jobs. I started and finished my CV which was an interesting experience after hunting a while for a template. But it's al sorted now and I'm going to be keeping an eye out for some Christmas jobs. 
My parents went away to Istanbul on a four day holiday, a present from my sister after her graduation as a thank you. So,for four days it was just me and her in the house! We ended up taking a trip down to Cardiff where we both ended up buying some more books and went to 'Ruby Tuesdays' for food, which was amazing as usual. As well as that, we watched a lot of movies. It was a really nice and relaxing time to spend with my sister. 
The day that my parents were on the way home was also my results day. More than anything, I was anxious. Year 10s weren't allowed in until 12 so when I woke up I had a lot of time on my hands. I ended up looking on twitter at the year 11s tweets and was so happy to see so many of them get the results that they had wanted and exceed their expectations. Half past 12 rolled around and I went to meet two of my friends at school. I opened my envelope without hesitating and was over the moon to see what was on there. For this year I ended up getting: 
Science: A Foundation Tier Maths: CEnglish Language: A Welsh Short Course: B History - Medicine and Health: AResistant Materials Controlled Assessment: A Those results were so much better than I could hope for! I still have another two papers to sit for history and I have higher tier maths to sit in November which isn't far away but at least I know that these ones are behind me and done and dusted with. 
After results though I started preparing myself to go back to school. Falling back into a good sleeping patten and making sure I had everything I needed to start year 11. Getting ready also meant me having my annual eye test and my haircut. The eye test lead to me needing new lenses, which I'm waiting on, because there's a small change in my eye sight. My haircut left me not looking so much of a mess, my hair's a lot more tame now and I can actually tell where my fringe starts and ends since I got it cut back in. 
I have been making some slow and steady progress with my robotic mechanical arm and I'm really enjoying making it. It's pretty relaxing to be honest, expect when I think that I've nearly lost a bolt and I've lost a screw. It's be really relaxing and enjoyable to make.There will be more updates on that, with a lot more picture posted 
I've been in the progress of incorporating some more lifestyle posts into my blog as I am a lifestyle and book blogger. I've got a few features in my mind for it, which I'm really looking forward to posting! 
Reading wise it hasn't been too much of a bad month and I finished four more books than I
usually do, since I normally average out about four books per month. I read: 

• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 
• Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan 
• Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver (Reread) 
• An Elephant in the Garden by Michael Mopurgo 
• Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard (Reread)
• Eragon by Christopher Paolini 
• Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
• The Manifesto on How To Be Interesting by Holly Bourne 

I'm currently in the midst of reading: 

• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer 

Quote of the Month: 

Looking Back At: July 2014

It's been an amazing month for so many reasons! It's been both relaxing and exciting and sometimes very tiring! 

July was the month my sister graduated from University! If you saw my last wrap-up you may have seen me talk about her getting her results but on the 14th she finally graduated and it was such and amazing day. I was so proud of her and so happy. I became an amateur photographer for the day while I went around taking photos of her and her friends. It was a fantastic day though and I was so glad to see her enjoy! 

Summer finally started! Year 10 has gone by so quickly that it's actually kind of scary. I have no idea where it went but the year is done and over with and now I have a six week break where I don't have to worry about anything and can just enjoy time with my family! Which is something I fully intend to do since I go back in September to a very hectic year! 

Ramadan finished this month and Eid was celebrated. After a month of fasting, I was getting used to not having to wake up and two o'clock in the morning and eating during the day. The month went by pretty fast, faster than most years! 

Other than that it has been a pretty quiet month. I started building a mechanical robot arm that I had from my sister for Christmas. There will be more on that! I haven't really done a lot to it to be honest. But hopefully I shall get more done in August! 

I'm doing a little add-on when I look back at my month, where I just show you my month on instagram. So, here it is! 

It's been a really good month book wise, I've started books I've been dying to pick up and finished books that have seemingly been taking me ages to read. So, in July I read: 

• An Inspector Calls by J.B Priestly 
• Far From You by Tess Sharpe 
• Outshine by Nola Decker 
• The Runaway Queen by Cassandra Clare & Maureen Johnson

I'm in the middle of reading: 

• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare 
• Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver
• Love... Under Different Skies by Nick Spalding

I'm about a book behind in my goodreads challenge but hopefully that shouldn't take me too long to catch up with since I'm really enjoying these books.

August is going to be a month where I don't plan on doing all too much but just enjoying my Summer before heading back to school. I know that I need to start training for a 10K and I'm going to be a lot more active over the course of the month hopefully. 

I hope you all had a good July and good luck to everyone who are picking up A-Level and GCSE results in August! I hope you get the results that you were working for! 

Looking Back At: June 2014

June has very much been a month that has sort of just merged into May, I really didn't know when the month had begun or where the days went. Especially during the beginning of the month, which was partially a good thing and I finished my last five exams at the beginning of June. They were extremely nice to get done and over with so I shall just be waiting on the results of those. 

Thankfully, it's been a more exciting month that May has been which is always good since I didn't feel like anything really happened in May. My sister @pagex394 has finally finished her degree after three years of extremely hard work. You guys might have seen my little freak out on twitter, which went a little something like this: 

If you didn't guess I'm extremely proud of her and cannot wait to see her graduate! 

I also finished my practice expedition and my actual expedition for my Bronze Duke of Edinburgh.. My practice expedition was absolutely amazing. That's not to say that it wasn't hard, I felt like I was dying but the views and that sense of accomplishment was phenomenal. My group did get lost a fair few times but we got there in the end. The expedition was a lot better. We all knew what to expect and what we were heading into this time but I don't think anything could prepare us for the heat that weekend. We didn't get that lost on the first day and got to camp in one piece. We ended up playing  few games before we decided that it was probably best to settle down for the night. The second day was a little more problematic... My group ended up being lost... for five hours... But the good news is that we got home in the end! And I've passed my expedition. All I have to do now is just upload pictures of all the otehr parts that go towards my DofE and I should hopefully get my certificate!

My school also had their annual Orchestra Day towards the end of the month. We didn't end up having one last year because both of my music teachers were off on maternity leave. I was so excited for this one though because having a whole day of just playing violin is bliss for me. It was such an amazing feeling and the concert went pretty well. The highlight of that day was hearing our staff choir. 

I also ended up seeing off our year 11s to Prom. Our year group got asked if a few of us could help out with the mocktails in the hall before the year 11s got on the bus to go to Prom and I said that I would help out. We didn't really do much, majority of the time we were just saying hi to people and looking at their dresses. It's so weird to think that it's going to be me this time next year! 

I also finished my exams, which was a huge relief but at the moment, it felt like I finished them ages ago when it was only about two weeks ago! I'm not going to get the results to those exams until September so I'm just going to have to wait and see how they went! 

Caught up on some reading this month and there were some really, really good reads. This month I read: 

• The Pledge by Kimberly Derting 
• We Were Liars by E. Lockhart 
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck 
• Heroes by Robert Cormier 
• The Real Prom Queens of Westfield High by Laurie Boyle Crompton 

And I'm in the midst of reading: 

• Outshine by Nola Decker

I think I'm on track for my Goodreads reading challenge and hopefully I should be able to get through a good few more book in July. I am determined to finish Outshine since I've been reading it for a while now! 

Hope all of you have an awesome June!

Looking Back At: May 2014

This month has both dragged and gone extremely quickly at the same time. There have been a limited amount of things that have really gotten me excited. There were some times I wish time would go a little slower for me so I had more time to prepare for things and times where I wish things would just hurry up so I could get a lot of stuff just done and over with. 

May saw me kick-starting the first set of my exams. Within the space of six days I sat my Medicine and Treatment paper for history and all three of my science papers. I haven't got a clue what the results are going to come out like in September. So, I'm just going to have to wait and see what happens next. But that is four out of nine exams sat and done and there isn't anything I can do to change them now. I tried my best and gave it my all. So, a lot of May went towards me just anticipating exams and then four days of sitting them.

It's been a month that has been full of revision. exams and a lot of comfort eating. I've finally given my controlled assessments in for marking in resistant materials (RMT) and science. My RMT coursework was such a relief to give in, I was so worried what the mark would come out like since I can't draw for the life of me but I don't think it went too badly! I have learnt that I do need to spruce up my drawing skills a little before that exam next summer. 

The pretty awesome thing that happened was that I'm now a Deputy Head Girl in my school along with another one of my friends. We had to go through an application process where we either applied to be a Prefect or a Head. I applied for Head Girl, it then got narrowed down to five of us . We had to do a speech in front of our year group which I really enjoyed. They then voted for us and I ended up being in the top three and became a Deputy which I am more than happy with. It's a great way to kick off my last year of Secondary school and something that genuinely made me smile this month!

To say it's been a slow reading month is a huge understatement... I have only read two book. Personally, I think that's pretty good between revision and exams. I didn't even think that was going to get through that. But then again, I read one book at the beginning of the month before any of my exams had started and then read the other in half term where I had a lot more time and finished the book in two days 

So, I May I finished: 

• Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead 
• Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

But I have also started: 

• Outshine by Nola Decker 
• The Pledge by Kimberly Derting 

I've read 20 out of the 50 books on my Goodreads challenge and am just about on track but with the end of exams coming up I should hopefully be able to pick the pace up with reading which would be really nice. 

Hopefully June should have a lot more going on and won't be as packed with me going on about revision and comfort eating. There are quite a few things going on in that month that I'm really looking forward to!  

Hope everyone had a really good May and hope you all have an amazing June!

Looking Back At: April 2014

I would love to say that it's been an exciting month in April but there hasn't been a whole load going on. It's been a quiet month but still packed with revision. That has literally been most of my month. 

There was one really good thing that came out of April though. Wicked has been going on tour around the UK and they were in Cardiff, so me and my sister ended up booking tickets last year to go and see it. It was amazing! It's been and agonizing wait but it was completely worth it. There will be a post about that day soon though! So, keep our eyes peeled! 

The Easter holiday and school has been packed with revision otherwise. I can't really say much else about that, it is what it is. It's been slightly stressful and slightly tiring and it'll probably stay like that until July. So my May and June wrap up will probably be the same sort of thing. 

I did have a mini training day this Easter, where I found out how to pack my bag properly, how to cook whilst we're on our expedition and how to put up a tent. It's was actually really interesting and pretty funny. Does this mean I'm prepared for my expedition? Not in the slightest! It's going to be very interesting...

Reading wise, it's been a pretty good month. I can't really complain! 

In April, I finished: 

• Undone by Cat Clarke 
• The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith 
• Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead 
• Unremembered by Jessica Brody

And I'm currently in the midst of reading 

• Delirium by Lauren Oliver

I've read 19 out of 50 books of my 2014 reading challenge and am three books ahead of schedule. We'll see how May goes with reading since with the start of my exams I don't really know how much time I'm going to have to read. I don't really have anything that I'm planning to read during May, just see what happens.

It's been a really short wrap up but there just hasn't been a lot going on. Hopefully in July (possibly June) I'll have some more exciting wrap ups. 

Until then though, good luck to everyone who has exams coming up. I hope you all had a really good April, and do you have any plans for May? 

Looking Back At: March 2014

So, this month meant me going back to school after half term which I was both happy about and slightly not looking forward to. I was looking forward to the fact that I would be more productive during the day but I wasn’t looking forward to controlled assessment deadlines coming in. As soon as I walking into my Resistant Materials class I was told that I had five weeks left until my assessment would be submitted for marking. I has gotten me to get my skates on through and I’m doing my best to make sure that I’m keeping on top of everything going on.

I’ve been throwing myself into a lot of revision and trying to make sure that I’m doing as much preparation as possible ready for May and June. That hasn’t been going to badly and I’ve been making sure I’m attending all after school revision classes which have been helping as well. So, school so far hasn’t been going too badly.

Earlier in the month my sister and I ended up signing up for the local 10K run which is slightly daunting but I’m really looking forward to. We decided that we’re going to try and run it in an hour and fifteen minutes so we’ve been going out on runs to train for that. I can say that it is helping my fitness a lot and I always feel pretty happy after going for a run.

I also finally got signed up for the eDofE. I’m doing the Duke of Edinburgh and have been training since November but we hadn’t enrolled online so that we can track all of our skill, physical, and volunteer work. So, we had a meeting where they gave us loads more paperwork and everyone has pretty much decided what they’re doing for each of the sections and the timescale for each one.

I posted up my first Women in Science and Engineering post this month and am looking forward to posting a more in the coming months. I was speaking to the head of technology in my school who said that he was more than happy to put up some of my posts on his display outside his room which made me extremely happy. The whole reason I’m doing this is to raise awareness of these amazing women and that it’s not unusual for women to go into this line of worse. So, t have him say that he wanted them up meant because hopefully people will start to realise that even though science and engineering is male dominated there are a lot of women in these two fields who have done a lot to contribute.

I’ve also done yet another training day for Duke of Edinburgh which was amazing. It was the first time that it was actually warm and wasn’t tipping down with rain which is always a nice surprise. It was a pretty short walk this time but I would have loved to walk for a little bit longer. We ended up having to draw our own maps and learning some first aid whilst we were out there. 

Book-wise, this month has been slightly slower than February but that books I’ve read or am in the midst of reading have been awesome!

I’ve finished:

• The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
• Soulmates by Holly Bourne
• Larby Lodge by G & P Gallacher

And I’m currently reading:

•  Undone by Cat Clarke

I’ve gotten 13 out of 50 books done for my 2014 reading challenge and am currently one book ahead of schedule! I’ve got a feeling that next month might be a little bit of a slow reading month since exams are going to be so close by but I shall have to wait and see!

So, what did you all get up to in March and what plans do you have for April?