All Systems Go! (Again)

Ok.
I owe Dan a trip to Betty's.

I haven't gotten all of my Christmas shopping done yet; my excuse is that I've had a ton of work to do and not enough time to complete it. I have been ill over the past couple of weeks and it's hindered my ability to work (yes, it really happened!) so I've had a lot of catching up to do.

Thankfully I've managed to get my first assignment and a presentation out of the way! I passed the presentation (I haven't got the marks yet, only did it today) and I got a 2:1 for my first Education Studies assignment! WOOHOO!!! So pleased with that!
I have 2 pieces of work left to do now - both are meant to be due this week, but I applied for mitigating circumstances on one of them due to my illness.

Speaking of which, I've been a brave girl! (Not for the squeamish!) I had a blood test last Thursday, and although I was scared at first, I had 6 vials taken out of me! 4 regular ones and 2 HUGE ones! I couldn't tell because I was looking away whilst my ever-understanding boyfriend held my shaking hand (in case you haven't guessed, I hate needles with a passion). 

I can't tell you at the moment what it was for as I don't know the results yet. But before some of you jump to conclusions, let's get 3 things straight:

1. I'm NOT pregnant.
2. I'm NOT dying.
3. I DO NOT have a life-threatening condition.

I am alright - I'm taking part in research and finding out something in the process. I'll no doubt let you know what happens :)

Right, I'd best be off to finish some more of my work so I'm not leaving it to the last minute...
Again...

Eating week...I Mean Reading Week!

Hey peeps! Hope you're all enjoying your day (whatever you happen to be doing)! :3

So I'm in Nottingham now, having a productive reading week :) As you'll probably hear mentioned in the vlog, Dan came to my hometown with me to meet the rest of my family (well, some of them anyway) - he met my twin sister and her husband, plus a LOT of people at my church! He told me he had a fun weekend and he's looking forward to spending more time with my (self-proclaimed crazy) family! My parents and my twin quite like him, so that's definitely good news!

We had a little adventure to Easingwold last week. Easingwold was the setting for my placement last year, so I was looking forward to showing Dan around. There's an amazing sweet shop and café called Sugar Mouse, which was, and still is, very popular with the children I worked with! It was very quiet when we popped in though - it was lunchtime and the kids had just come off their half-term holiday!
We both had a couple of tasty sandwiches with locally-sourced ingredients from around Easingwold and I had an AMAZING hot chocolate!

 

 Us with our yummy goodies! (Sorry Dan) :3

 

 

Speaking of culinary adventures, while we were waiting at York Station for our train to Nottingham, we stumbled across a brand new café on Platform 3. It was very different to all the others, mainly because of the grassy area in front of it, in addition to crates of fresh fruit and vegetables. Our curiosity led us to the counter, where two young entrepreneurs greeted us and persuaded us to have what happened to be the tastiest pea and ham soup we've ever had! (It was also the last one - sorry to the man who came a couple of minutes after us wanting the same thing!)

 

The company the men had set up is called ÜGOT, and can be found either at Platform 3 at York Station, Facebook (just type in UGOT in the search bar), Twitter (@UGOTUK) or at their website: www.ugotone.com

 

Now peeps.

When I next write in, my target is to have done most, if not all, of my Christmas shopping.

I know it's a little early, but it beats queuing up for what seems like hours on end.

 

He doesn't know yet, but if I haven't reached my target, I owe Dan a trip to Betty's café.

 

...Although we might go at some point anyway. :3

 

Right, gotta go now peeps. PowerPoint assembling awaits...

 

 

P.S. New Vlog Post! Find it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axNpemHkseM



A Dust-Free Weekend!

I probably need to do some work, but I think I need to type first. Much more fun :3

Today, York St John were host to an open day (there's another one next Wednesday), so a few people would have been wondering around the accommodations. I didn't encounter anyone from the outside world today as I was cleaning my room, just in case my flat was needed to show off to the masses. Well, they didn't need me today, but at least I'm a happy Cathy - I have a clean room! :3

It's my weekend as an RSA this time around - so far it's been relatively quiet all in all :) (Yay!) It's not so bad as everyone's starting to stay in and chill out, however I'm not looking forward to next week very much; it's Halloween next Thursday. I'm not keen on Halloween.

On the plus side, a couple of people have suggested I go around with angel wings handing out sweets! A great idea compared to being stuck in my flat and only patrolling the corridors a couple of times a night! Something tells me I need to go to the fancy dress shop...

I looked at my timetable for the next couple of weeks and I was rather pleased to find I have a reading week!! At last!! I'll be heading back to Nottingham for it, however it won't be a holiday - most of it will consist of work and looking after someone. I won't say who, just in case, but this person's going for an operation, so prayers will be appreciated :)

Ooh, by the way, I'm thinking of putting more stuff on my vlog and my Soundcloud soon! If you want to see my stuff so far, click on one of these (or both if you prefer!):

Vlog: http://www.youtube.com/user/Katylizzie1804
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/katylizzie1804

Right. I'm going to go now - I need a good cuppa...

Autumn, Chips and Knitting...

*Phew* It's been really busy here in York over the past few weeks!

My course is going great - we now have the first deadlines, so no doubt I will be working my butt off to try and meet them! Thankfully I now fully understand what I'm supposed to be doing, so no last minute rushing for me (...hopefully)! :P

Me and Dan went to Scarborough on the 5th October! We decided to have an adventure so we thought it would be a good idea seeing as though it was sunny at the time and we hadn't been before (well, I hadn't - it's been a long while since Dan has, so he's got an excuse :P).
We went to the Sea Life centre after having a lovely walk on the beach - and yes, we made sure the obligatory fish & chips and ice-cream were consumed before the day was out!

It's gotten very chilly and blustery up North now, already typical of a British autumn (although on the bright side, not as much rain as I expected! :D). I've fetched my long purple hand-knitted-Doctor-Who-Tom-Baker-length scarf out of the depths of my wardrobe and I've started wearing it to Uni. Some of the looks I get from the public are hilarious - one particularly cool morning I saw two elderly women chatting to each other; as I walked past, I overheard one of them say: "Goodness, that's a long scarf! I want to knit now! I should have brought it on the bus!"

Sounds like me whenever I was in the Emmanuel School library when I had a free lesson in 6th form. :3

*Gah. I want to knit another one now.* :P

Righty then, I'd best be off. I'm meeting my boyfriend from lecture soon - I've got to remember what room he's in.

Yes, I'm typing this at Uni.
We worked with WordPress in lecture today and I need blogging therapy...

National Cupcake Week!

Yes, I know - late again!

I thought I would share a few pics of the cakes I made a week last Saturday before I realised it was in fact the start of National Cupcake Week!

These were made for my new flatmates!

Toppings included chocolate chips, raspberry sherbet, and edible ball bearings!

There was just enough mixture left to make 4 tiny ones! :3

 

This one's my favourite :) I finally figured out piping icing from the middle!

I even bought boxes for them!

Neat and tidy :3

 

 

Of course, National Cupcake Week could never be complete without a cupcake from Crumbs! My wonderful boyfriend Dan bought me these as a little surprise! (Yes, I have a boyfriend now! If you want to see what he looks like, see "Cupcakes And More!" on my YouTube channel!)

On the left is Raspberry Cheesecake and on the right is good ol' Chocolate!

...We kinda wanted to share them between us!

 



Hope you all had a great week guys! I've been settling into my second year at Uni well and my lectures have started too :) My timetable's fixed in place, so it's a little easier, but I'm missing my previous coursemates! A special hello to AT5 (you know who you are)! :D

I'll write in soon peeps - in the meantime, check out my new vlog video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ihcSZfi3YM

Mmmm, cupcakes... *nomnomnom*

All Set For Round 2!

I'm back in York now peeps! Well, I have been since the 8th September, but I'm getting into the swing of things now :)

I've been very busy recently, helping a LOT of people move into the new York St John residence; I've got a special job alongside 3 others helping to look after them all (basically). We have to live there too - I have some brilliant new flatmates and I can't wait to get started on my new course!

Reacquainting myself with the city of York has been rather fun too! I've been visiting all the usual shops (you might want to delve into my other posts a bit if you want to find out more!) and I've also rediscovered the Castle Museum, which I last visited when I was about 11 years old. It has its own "Victorian-style street" with shops that you can wander into! (You can't buy anything though, you'll have to find the gift shop for that :P)

I've also been back to my favourite café, Crumbs Cupcakery! I took a trip there with my friend Dan; we both had a cupcake each and a pot of tea between us to celebrate National Cupcake Week! In fact, it was today that I discovered I have a (very close) second-favourite cupcake - chocolate orange!! :D *nomnomnomnomnom*

Great. I feel the need to bake something now! I'm on duty tonight though. Hope it stays quiet.

By the way peeps, I have some exciting news for you all!
Unfortunately for you, it will have to wait till next time... :3

A Letter To Sam

Dear Sam,

You are so brave.

I think it was your Auntie who stood up in my Gran's church in Newark about a year and a half ago. She told the congregation that they needed to raise money somehow to support your treatment in Belgium. They were stuck for ideas and asked for prayer to help them get going.

I felt that I wanted to do something to help you in whatever way I could, so although I couldn't donate much at the time, I was assured by your relative that this small amount would still go a long way.

I kept praying for you and checking up on your progress after that through my Gran. I saw you in the newspaper my Gran sent me about you carrying the Olympic torch through part of Newark - I sifted through BBC iPlayer to find you so I could tell her I saw you run!

I remember Gran telling me that your condition was improving and the tumour had stopped growing. I looked through articles on the Newark Advertiser saying that you had sailed with Dame Ellen MacArthur and had spoken to the Belgian Parliament to highlight the importance of research for your condition.

I won't be able to make it to your service next Tuesday. I promise to pray for your family and friends though, and at least you're not in pain any more.

I didn't know you, but it still makes me sad.

I've said it once and I'll say it again.

Cancer is monstrous.

Sam White, aged 16 from Newark, you are quite possibly the bravest young man I never got the opportunity to meet.
Have fun up there. God's got you safe now.


Sam White was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumour at the age of 12 and a half.
With the help of pioneering treatment in Belgium which began in April 2012, mostly paid for with the help of donations, the cancerous growth stopped expanding by around Christmas 2012.
However, his immune system became weak and he died from an infection on Tuesday 3rd September 2013.

Rest in Peace Sam x



(I found out some of the factual information from the Newark Advertiser [Internet: 5th September 2013] to give you all a bit of context after my Gran had texted me the news. He was so brave and as I had been praying for him and thinking of him often, I thought it would be right to create a small tribute to his life. Again, it's not much, but I hope people will know how brave Sam had been.)

By The Way...

Sorry peeps, just a quick one to remind you all of the ways you can keep up to date on my blog and vlogs!

If you want to check out my YouTube channel where I chat to you lovely lot (a.k.a. the camera), you can check it out at this little link here: http://www.youtube.com/Katylizzie1804

Don't forget the blog also has Twitter... @PinkPurpleDinky

...and Facebook (Type in "Pink, Purple and Dinky - The Official Group" into the search bar).

Oh! I put a vlog post up on YouTube just yesterday (2nd September) so if you want to have a looky, click on the link I've provided and it will take you to my channel :)

*Hey, I need to plug my own stuff too, you know!* :P

Thanks peeps!
Now back to prep for Uni...

Does My Holiday Time Own A Ferrari?!?

Seriously though. Where has all my holiday gone??

As you may know already, I have only a week to go before I head back to Uni! Ack! :P

Just to point out, I have to be back well before most other people because I'm going to be a Residential Support Assistant at one of the halls for York St. John (ooh, a fancy job title! :3).

Basically I have to train in order to move people into their flats, get people out of the building during fire alarms at 4:30am (those who were at Gray's Wharf last year know which one I mean!), plus I have to be the spoilsport who says "turn that music down or you're not getting cake tomorrow".
Yup.

But it isn't all bad! I get to meet lots of lovely new people (and bake for some of them), help people out and hey! It looks great on a CV, so that's a bonus! :D

Anyways, I can safely say that overall my 2-month(ish) holiday has been great, despite the obvious rocky start (see the post "Downs and Ups..." if you're not filled in).

I came back from a trip to both Lyndhurst and the Isle of Wight last Monday (26th August), a fantastic trip spent with my wonderful parents and a whole lot of family down on the island itself!
After some much-needed catching up over the 3 island days, a few hours before getting our ferry back to the mainland we drove across the island to Shanklin so we could dip our toes in the sea! Happy Cathy is happy :3

Apart from Uni stuff, Dad and Mum's birthdays, New Wine and other exciting events, I'm not overly sure where my time has gone! I hope to see a few Nottingham people before I go back to York, although they'll probably have to come up North to see me anyway! :3 *hint hint*

(By the way, I will be removing my old blog (Why I'm Called Katyliz) over the next few days. Just so you know. It won't affect this blog in any way! :3)

That's it for now peeps - I better get some sleep if I'm singing at church tomorrow.
Then it's back to seemingly endless packing...

Right Down To The Last Tent!

I'm back from the field that is the Newark Showground! Well, actually I've been back for about a week, but you know what I'm like!

I've been at the Christian conference that is New Wine, quite possibly for the last time. I've been going to it for the past 12 years now, so certainly for me anyway, it's time for a change. Maybe I'll go to a different camp, like Momentum, or maybe stop altogether - I don't know yet.

But it doesn't stop my experience at New Wine from being totally awesome.

I've seen people healed, I've seen people changed by God's love for them, I've seen people give their lives to Christ. 
I've seen my friends grow in confidence, patience and love and I have been privileged to grow with them over the years I've known them. 
I've made friends from all over the country at New Wine and built on some friendships that were forged at secondary school. 
I've experienced God's love for me and He has given me gifts to use to let others know of His mercy and grace. 
I have been healed myself and I take joy in the fact that no matter how hard I fall, He is always there to pick me right back up again.

But above all else, New Wine was where I made my own decision to become a follower of Christ. 

I was 8 years old.
And it was the best decision I ever made.

A 50th, a Thank You and a Rather Large Hello!

Hi Peeps!

On Saturday (27th July) my Dad had a party to celebrate his 50th Birthday! We all had a fantastic time and, judging by the size of his grin throughout the whole event, Dad had a brilliant day!

Me, my Mum and my twin sister Gemma all helped to make his birthday cake the biggest and best we've ever made - check it out!

 The cake took 3 days to make in total...

 Photos of Dad were printed onto icing sheets professionally...

 



 We even bought a miniature train to move around the cake!

 This cake was worth every second of making!

 Needless to say, he was very happy with it!

 

I would like to thank everyone who came to Dad's party on Saturday - it was a wonderful day and it was a more fun with lots of people. (To those who were not informed: once we had already invited 80 people, we decided the house probably couldn't take more than that! And to those who couldn't make it: hope you're all feeling better soon!)

I would also like to take the opportunity to say a big hello to my blog readers in other countries! The UK is a great place with lots of fabulous people, but it's always brilliant when people from far away lands such as America/Russia/Australia/etc. take an interest in a small, slightly inconsistent but hopefully somewhat mildly entertaining life blog! So thank you for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy it as much as you seem to be!

If you are from a far away land, or even from the UK and want to say hello, send me a little tweet on twitter via @PinkPurpleDinky, or even check out the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/249485701847464/ (Pink, Purple and Dinky - The Official Group)

There, obligatory plug over.

By the way, you may have seen on a post I did last year about a camping trip I go on called New Wine. Well, I go again soon, so no doubt you will be reading about it in the coming weeks. However, the days leading up to it will be hectic, so I may not have enough time to post. Just to warn you in advance this time! :)

Right. Time for bed now. I know students traditionally stay up later, but I like my sleep, thank you very much.

And looking at the family schedule for the next few days in particular, I'm probably going to need it...

 



Life's Little Reminders...

Yesterday I had a short but very firm reminder of how the basic models in life should be adhered to at all times, however simple, easy and obvious they may seem.

For example.

I had just finished straightening my hair in preparation for going to church. Having unplugged the straighteners from the extension cable, I thought I'd better unplug the bedside lamp as well, even though it was already switched off. Just to be sure.

As I was attempting to pull out the plug out, the cover for the lamp's plug came off in my hand while the rest of it was still wedged in the live extension cable.
"Oh dear," I thought. "I'd better try and fit it back on the plug again."

240 volts later, I can say for certain that my heart has no problems at all.

Thankfully, Dad had installed a safety switch before me and my twin sister were born so that if we did get electrocuted, the power would cut out; so I didn't need a hospital trip.

Unfortunately for me, after hearing of this seemingly hilarious incident, my sister will not let me live this down.

Cue a long line of electricity-related puns...

Trip to the Capital - The Touristy Bit!

Well, now I'm home and I've finally managed to get the photos loaded onto my computer, I thought it was about time I showed you these brilliant pics of when me and Gemma decided to be tourists when she wasn't at New Designers!

Be warned: There are 30 photos, all of which have a lovely caption to them. Only look through this if you have enough time on your hands/you are just incredibly bored/you actually want to look through these!

Oh and as much as I'd like to, I can't put New Designers on here! No pics were allowed :P

Here are the snaps...

Tea on the train!

 

 First class was getting almost TOO exciting...

Science Museum: Weather patterns on a suspended 'Earth'

 

Moon rock!

 

Google web lab drew my face in sand! (I think)

 

 The Butterfly Paradise at the Natural History Museum

 Pretty patterns :)

 These two looked like they were having a rather animated conversation!

 One butterfly flew over to investigate...

 My personal favourite picture!

 This one was looking for an opportunity to escape the room - it flew close to the exit and was waiting for an unsuspecting tourist!

 My 2nd personal favourite picture!

This one nearly landed on me! 

I fangirled slightly when I saw this! (Doctor Who geek :P)

 So shiny...

This is not fur - this is crystal. It looked too funny to not take a picture!

The weight of the world on one's shoulders...(more like the podium supporting it, Gem :P)

 Terribly unconvincing effort there...

 Eros! We both like techy stuff...

 ...and we hadn't actually seen it in person before, so we geeked out a little!

 I still can't believe I actually managed to climb up there! (Trafalgar Square)

I was worried she'd fall off at first, but the lion had her covered!

No, we didn't storm it...

This was taken by my parents via the live webcam in Trafalgar Square! They were still in Nottingham at the time! (We're on the bottom step, we're the 2nd and 3rd from the left)

 Fandoms! They're everywhere!! (King's Cross Station)

 Obligatory tourist shop (well received by me) :3

 Great view!

The London Eye! We didn't go on it this time, would have loved to though...

Action shot of Gemma :P

Obligatory tourist landmark :3 (Amateur photographer's angle)

 

 

So there we have it, me and my twin's trip to London in pictures! Hope you enjoyed looking through them, we had a great time :)

 

I think I need another trip somewhere. In fact, I need more holiday - I'm shattered after my first year of Uni! And it's only going to get busier...

 

 



 

Trip to the Capital!

Woohoo! Me and my twin sister are in London!

Although we have been slightly tourist-like, we're not here for the sights. We're at the New Designers Conference at the Business Design Centre with her college, New College Nottingham.

She's showing her brilliant work to be masses, to the public and editors-of-huge-companies alike. Meanwhile, I am probably cramping her style by sitting here, near her stall, writing this.

Don't get me wrong, that's not all I've been doing while I've been here! I've been doing a bit of exploring myself. I've seen tons of brilliant ideas and concepts, from mobile apps to physical aids to furniture to 3D and graphic design. As this is not normally my field, it absolutely astounds me how much time and effort has gone into all of the work here.

Business stuff aside, for those who love my tourist photos (and I know that there is as they have admitted it to me!), there will be another post soon with our trip in pictures!

I think I'd better make a move - there are a lot of people around now and I don't want to put them off...

Downs and Ups...

Hi there peeps :)

Sorry for another lack of postage, I've been a little busy lately - I have some good news and some bad news.

Bad news first so we can get it over and done with.
The main reason I haven't posted in a while is this:

On 23rd June 2013, my Grandma Betty passed away at the age of 94.

She was an absolutely amazing Grandma, even though she didn't really know it in the last 4 years of her life in particular due to the onset of vascular dementia. Despite this, she was brought home to heaven in high spirits, like God had just scooped her up and said "Time to go."

She would have been 95 on the 27th July, which is amazing in itself as she has been battling illnesses left, right and centre over the past couple of years - though Dad still thought she'd make it to 100 because she was such a fighter!

She fought a brave battle and was strong in her own way until the very end.


Now for the good news...

In my last post, I told you all to pray extremely hard for something to do with uni. Here's why!
I failed my school experience which meant that I couldn't progress to the 2nd year of Primary Education, so I actually needed you guys to pray for a transfer to the 2nd year of Education Studies.

Guess what?

I'M IN!!! :D

I'm really pleased to have the opportunity to stay at university, especially in York - AND I'll be staying in education-related things! :D I'm looking forward to what this course will bring me and what opportunities will open up as a result of taking this route!

Thank you all so much for praying for me (if you did of course!) and a special thank you to those who have supported me, especially recently through the good times and the bad.

Grandma really wanted me to have the chance to go to university so that I could go and do whatever I wanted to do.
I just hope I can do her justice...

Music, Music...erm...Placement...

Hello again peeps!

On 30th May, me and my rather brilliant friend Jensen took a trip into Nottingham on my week off (before the 3 week placement - more on that later) to go and see a gig at Jongleurs Comedy Club.
The acts performing were Matt Humphries, The Fade, Josh Kemp and Prefontaine - and they were all fantastic!!

Matt, who is 14(!!), has such an original voice - I loved his covers and he's also written some original songs too; his song "Books" was particularly brilliant :) Looking forward to hearing more from him soon...

The Fade performed in a fashion I can only describe as true Nottingham rock. I don't usually prefer rock as a genre, though these guys may have changed my mind somewhat. Great to hear live and a band I would definitely love to hear again when I get the chance to go to another gig like this one!

A master of the loop pedal (at least I think that's what it's called), Josh Kemp was fabulous in his set at Jongleurs. I have only seen him perform at this gig, however I bought one of his EPs after his slot - Josh, if you happen to be reading this, it's on my iPod and I'm loving it! :D The song "Never drink again" (not on his EP but still great) came to mind when looking back on the (numerous) times my flatmates have stumbled through the kitchen door at 12 noon and stating those exact words! One to watch, BBC Introducing...

Always a pleasure to listen to, I can safely say that Prefontaine are one of my all-time favourite bands. I have mentioned in a blog post way back about their style of music - it's almost that of a mash-up of Fleetwood Mac and The Beatles with a dash of Coldplay. I went to one of their gigs in the first week of the Easter Holidays as well (which as it happens was supposed to form the second post of the Easter Adventures series - sorry guys!) which was brilliant. A joy to see live and one me and my buddy Jensen will definitely go and support again.

Of course, this line up would not be complete without mentioning the host of the evening, Mr Nottingham Radio himself, Steve Oliver of Trent Sound fame! All of these bands have been (or hopefully soon will be) played on Trent Sound or The Sound of Nottingham online radio stations, which I think is fabulous for promoting the great talent emitting from the Nottingham music scene. Keep up the good work, Mr Radio! :D

Bleh. Promo stint over. (Oh wait - check out the links at the bottom of the post for more on everyone mentioned :P)

Now for placement news...

I have been on a 3-week placement at my school (which I cannot name for legal reasons!) hard at work being a teaching assistant and also having a go at teaching a few of the lessons. I have taught three so far, two of which were appraised and I will be teaching two more lessons, one appraised and one not.

I can't say how they went at the moment, because there's a sort of balancing act going on that I can't confirm yet. It's a change that could be drastic in terms of my course, but positive for my teaching career in the future; watch this space for some very important news coming up in the next few weeks.

All I can say is pray.

Really. Really. Hard...


Links to Facebook pages:
Matt Humphries: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Matt-Humphries/206060722769553?fref=ts
The Fade: https://www.facebook.com/TheFadeBand?directed_target_id=0
Josh Kemp: https://www.facebook.com/joshkempmusic?fref=ts
Prefontaine: https://www.facebook.com/Prefontainetheband
Sound of Nottingham: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Sound-Of-Nottingham-UK/525983724100680?fref=ts
Trent Sound: https://www.facebook.com/trentsound?fref=ts

Twitter Pages:
Matt: https://twitter.com/MattHumphries6
The Fade: https://twitter.com/TheFadeBand
Josh: https://twitter.com/JoshKempMusic
Prefontaine: https://twitter.com/PrefontaineUK
Sound of Nottingham: https://twitter.com/SoundNottingham
Trent Sound: https://twitter.com/TrentSoundLtd

Follow the links to find more awesome stuff like YouTube channels and Soundcloud things too!

(Hope this helps, guys. Sorry it's late :3)

Easter Adventures - Part 2

The long-awaited sequel to the first Easter Adventures post is finally here! Sorry it took so long. So here's what happened during the rest of the holiday...

Oh my goodness.

*Insert excited squee here*
We did it. We actually went.

Want to know where I've been?

Only the Harry Potter Studio Tour!!!! :D

Me and my parents had such a fantastic time down in Leavesden (near London)! I won't spoil the beginning bit, because that's just too fun :3 but we spotted many awesome things that were in the Harry Potter movies - Dumbledore's office, some of the costumes, the MAHOOSIVE pendulum, Buckbeak, Aragog (I tried not to look at that one... *shudders*) - and of course, the amazing model of Hogwarts Castle!!

Here's a few of the pics we took whilst we were there...

 

 The Great Hall!

 Some of the Professors' costumes...

 



 The Yule Ball "drinks dispenser thingy"...

 

 The 'chocolate delight' dessert set (The chocolate phoenix cake is REAL and has survived for SEVEN years!!!)

 

 All the characters' wands

 

 The Gryffindor Boys' dormitories

 

 The tribute left by Warner Bros. Studios to the amazing Richard Griffiths (Vernon Dursley), who sadly passed away this year

 

 The Gryffindor Common Room

 

 The MAHOOSIVE pendulum

 

 Stephen Fry!! (Sleeping)

 

 Dumbledore's Office (with hidden Richard Harris costume at the top of the stairs)
 

 Various props, including: Slughorn's Hourglass, the Golden Snitch, the Philosopher's Stone, Sirius' prison number, the Deluminator, the Rememberall, Rita Skeeter's quill/notepad and the time-turner amongst others!
 

 "I am Snape, the Potions Master..."

 

 I found out that as Umbridge's power increased, her outfits turned pinker...

 

 *Chug chug chug*

 

 Dad seemed to like the butterbeer...

 

 Mum wasn't too sure! (Sorry Mum) 

 

 The Knight Bus!

 

 The bridge! (See the bottom of the post for a special video surprise!)

 

 Fawkes the Phoenix!

 

 Buckbeak! This actually moved along with the behind-the-scenes video behind it. Very clever! :)

 

 Diagon Alley!

 

And now, possibly the best part of the whole tour...

 



 Hogwarts Castle!!!

 

 This massive model actually switched from day to night! (And back again :P)

 

 Ground floor shot of the castle...

 

 My amazing Mum and Dad in front of Hogwarts!

 

 "Has the letter come through the post yet?"

 

 On our way out of the tour, we went through a room which had all of the handmade wand boxes fixed together. They had all the names of the cast and crew on them - and I happened to find one (near Rupert Grint's) with my name on it! Sure it was spelt with a 'K' and not a 'C', but wow! What are the chances?! :D

 

 Me trying on a Gryffindor robe. I couldn't resist :P

 

 

So there we have it, one of the best Easter holidays I've ever had! I wonder what I'm going to do in the Summer holidays to top that?

Well, whatever happens, I tell July and August this...

 

Bring it. :P

 

 

(Link to the surprise video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYR6xqQ6BlE&feature=youtu.be)

 

 

Thanks for sticking with me through the post delays, peeps! I really appreciate it! There'll be a new blog post soon; in the meantime, don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel to get your dose of Pink, Purple and Dinky vlogs!

 

YouTube Channel: Katylizzie1804

Facebook Group: Pink, Purple and Dinky - The Official Group

Twitter: @Katylizzie1804

 

See you soon, peeps! :3 x


Edit: Sorry, it's Richard HARRIS, not Attenborough! >.<