I've been desperate to write this blog post from the moment the idea came to mind but didn't want to fully commit to something that was still very much up in the air (no pun intended...). Now that it's all finally set in stone, i can let you guys in on my very exciting/tad nerve racking news! EEEEEP.

When I do something, I do it well. I'm no half a job Rob if ya hearing what i'm saying (no disrespect to all you Robs out there). For as long as I can remember, I have always put an enormous amount of pressure on myself to succeed. When my year 7 geography teacher asked the class to make a volcano from scratch as a homework task, I spent my whole weekend indoors creating an absolute masterpiece. I then cried on the Monday morning because I didn't think it was good enough and was embarrassed to bring it into school. I am also super self critical. After putting my heart and soul into something, I have the ability of pulling it apart so I can stand back and scrutinise every aspect. Talk abut being my own worst enemy, I know. After worrying all day, fifth period came along and it was time for the big reveal...I was rewarded with a chupa chups lollipop and five stamps in my planner for the 'best volcano he had ever seen' (his words not mine ;)). Confidence and self belief in my own efforts would have saved me a bucket full of tears and three whole days of telling myself I just couldn't do it.

The real question is: are you really in Yorkshire if you’re not offered a sweet treat alongside a cracking cup of tea (freshly poured from a teapot, of course) when you first arrive at someone's house? My mum thrives off being a hostess with the mostess when people visit, feeding them up with homemade treats and then sending them on their way five stone heavier. When we were younger and ipads didn't exist (how on earth did the poor parents cope), my mum would often dig out her Be-Ro recipe books and send us on a baking mission to keep us four kids entertained. Back then, I was never really enthused by it (the only thing I cared about was the bowl that needed licking clean at the end) but now I love nothing more than baking up a storm in the kitchen - times have well and truly changed! I also find baking a great distraction in those moments when my brain goes into overdrive and I need to chill the f out!

I'm forever searching the web for new baking challenges and this week, came across this recipe from the Tesco real food website - BEE CUPCAKES! They straight away made me think of Manchester (the city of busy bees and hard workers) and the amount of innocent lives lost in the attack that took place there last month. I knew then I had to give them a go! I won't lie, they did take a whole lot of patience but a perfect recipe if you're stuck indoors due to the crappy, English summer and have some time on your hands! And I mean, how flippin CUTE! They were super fun to make and everyone loved eating them too...I couldn't recommended enough!

If you follow me on Twitter, you will have seen that last Monday I took part in my first ever Twitter rant! It was sparked from a tweet I saw earlier on in that day that pushed my extra sensitive buttons (fyi - time of the month). To get straight to the point, someone posted a tweet that was pretty harsh and very clearly written about me. Anyone would think we were still in high school! A few months ago this would have sent me flying into a massive heap of self doubt and panic but luckily, I'm in a stronger position now with a more rational head on my shoulders. This time, instead of convincing myself that they were right (that i am a shitty excuse for a human), i tried really hard to look at their actions as a fault in their character instead of mine.

When it comes to my skin, I've always been super lucky. I've never had to deal with any majorly bad breakouts and even missed the stage throughout the wicked teenage years where spots can make us look like peperoni pizzas. Sometimes, during that time of the month or when I'm drunk and pass out before I've had time to grab a make up wipe, the occasional spot or two do like to make their appearance (my mum likes to tell me it's karma for being irresponsible). I really can't complain though, with a trusty concealer at hand, I can make those bad boys disappear within seconds.

Yesterday I celebrated my 21st birthday! My mum and sisters went above and beyond to make sure I had the dreamiest of days and I can't thank them enough for all their efforts. I was showered in presents, lots and lots of love and plenty of champers!! I fell to sleep last night feeling extremely lucky (and a tad tipsy).

Friendship is the glue that keeps me together. Up until my babe of a bestie came to visit last week, I’ve been feeling all kinds of upside down, topsy turvy feelings. We spent the day sat by a river on a picnic rug, stuffing our faces with all things chocolate (a lie down was needed after)! It was the dreamiest lunch date I have ever been on and the medicine I needed to lift my spirits! I think we're all in need of someone, now and again, just to reassure us that we're doing a good job. Cat, if you're reading this - thanks buddy, you're one in a million!

This time last year my life looked very different. I won't bore you with the ins and outs, but around October time I reached a point where change needed to happen whether I liked it or not. During this time there were several people who made me feel like I was not capable of making these alterations. Despite me being resistant to change, I grabbed my walking boots from under the cupboard and set out on this journey. Mission: prove people wrong. Because nothing beats that feeling, right?

Hi, I'm Beth, I'm 20 and I'm an Instagram addict.
I've always been a visual thinker, a self-confessed perfectionist and have a love for photography, so of course, Instagram has always been right up my street! I post regularly, can scroll down my feed aimlessly for hours and forever keeping up to date with my favourite accounts. In this post, I thought I'd share with you some of my personal favs so you can scroll away for hours too and be at awe at their amazingness. Sorry for encouraging you guys who actually have lives and prefer to spend your time, ya know, socialising and all that jazz. I'm also a self-confessed saddo!

On Friday, Catherine (my sister from another mister) and I boarded the mega bus down to Landon town. Yep, you heard correct. I know what you're all thinking...Beth Lee, a MEGA BUS...is that some sort of sick joke? Trust me, this was no laughing matter! ;) Quite frankly, attempting to wee in a dingy toilet on the back of a moving bus is my idea of a living nightmare....but here I am... I live to tell the tale. Stop being dramatic Beth. It wasn't actually that bad and for a tenner you really can't go wrong. I would definitely recommend it to anyone else with a down in the dumps bank account balance, very much like my own. An experience like that is just what you make of it - with good company and a few gins, any long journey can be fun (this time I am joking, I didn't drink - although I won't lie, I did contemplate taking a bottle just in case things really did take a turn for the worst).

Dear my younger self,

You are a beauty - your chubby cheeks and mushroom inspired hair cut just adds to the cuteness. You're rockin it. Your hair will eventually grow out and you will lose your baby fat but you will always be just as beautiful.

I hope you've had a lovely day, setting you up for a good, productive week ahead!

Spring is well on its way now and this has got me super excited for the next few months! I spent this weekend baking hot cross buns, buying daffodils, drinking endless amounts of tea, starting a new book and playing outside with my niece in the sunshine...apart from ageing twenty years in the space of two days (what on earth happened to those wild Saturday nights where I drank endless amounts of GIN!?) I had the best weekend that put me well into the spring spirit!

Even though it seemed to whiz by, February was made up of fairly quiet weeks for me with a few really happy highlights thrown into the mix. All in all, it's been a good 'un! Spring is definitely in the air now and this makes me so excited! The daffodils are beginning to bloom, Easter eggs are back on the supermarket shelves and the sunglasses have escaped from the back of the drawer, due to make their first appearance of the year.

This week has been a bit of a shitty week. I say a bit…I take it back. This week has been a shitty week. I want this blog to be a space where people can escape from the chaos that comes hand in hand with life sometimes and I always will try my best to spread positivity and hope. However, I never want to set this false perception that life is always sunshine, rainbows and anything else sprinkled in glitter, because, well, it’s not.

Last week consisted of one of the most dangerous days of the month for me; pay day. I always find myself online shopping for the majority of the day whilst convincing myself that a whole new wardrobe update is a necessity.

As we are all probably aware due to the amount of giant teddy bears and bunches of red roses that have been shoved in our faces for the past month (I’m not bitter or anything), Valentine’s Day is tomorrow!

Well that's it! Chapter 1 out of 12, done and dusted! I hope it was a good one for you!

I feel like January is a very hit and miss month for some people. A take it or leave it kind of thing. There is either a come down from the celebrations of Christmas or a sooner than anticipated realisation that the goals we have set ourselves for the year are simply unfeasible. Then to make matters worse, we've had the whole Trump drama to add to the mix of our January blues. I'm going to save myself the embarrassment and not go all political on you, but I can say that without even having a lot of knowledge about the government and all that jazz, Donald's Trump’s presidency so far has been very controversial! With that and Brexit, it's like we've been living in a political meltdown for the past month!

As I lay in bed writing this week’s blog post, the sun is beaming through my window and the blue skies are making it difficult for me to concentrate on my laptop screen. I know days like these are very rare for those of us living in the UK, but even having a glimpse of the sunshine is making me so giddy for spring/summer already!

If you’re currently reading this, a teenager yourself, I hope this post can not only teach you some valuable life lessons about growing up, but also stop you from making similar mistakes that I happened to fall right in the trap of. As I look back on my teenage years I can think of many moments where my actions were questionable and I think to myself now 'what the hell possessed me to do that!?'...but in hindsight, I can now (in my twenties and supposedly a whole lot wiser) find a lesson within every single mistake I made and have definitely learnt from them.
Sooooo here goes, if someone super brainy created a time machine and I could go back and talk to the teenage version of myself, here is a few things I would tell her…

I want to start this post by saying the BIGGEST thank you for all the incredible responses I have received since sharing my first blog post. I hand on heart wasn’t expecting such kind, supporting messages from so many of you. Before posting the link on my social media accounts I was nervous to say the least. Nervous to air my thoughts, nervous to touch on my own personal experiences and nervous that knowing me, I was bound to make an embarrassing spelling mistake somewhere! Because of all you lovely people, those feelings didn’t last long and instead I fell to sleep that night feeling incredibly lucky and thankful that fear didn’t stop me.

So here we are again…January and the start of a whole new year…2017. As cliché as it is to say, where has the past year gone!? It doesn’t feel like two minutes since I was downing the G&Ts last New Year’s Eve and trying to pull myself through the most hideous hangover the following day. Along with the over consumption of alcohol, another popular concept that many of us find ourselves participating in, is setting ourselves New Year’s resolutions that we aspire to aim for and succeed in throughout the year ahead.