Rhinos in The Cotswolds.

...and I'm talking about actual rhinos, not just me visiting the Cotswolds - though that is something I did just do without going to Cotswold Wildlife Park the day before my birthday too.


What I Wore:
Cardigan: H&M // Vest: H&M // Belt: ASOS // Skirt: Charity Shop
For my birthday (last Sunday, I'm behind I know), I spent the third weekend in a row hanging out with animals, I honestly think I might be zooed/farmed out, so I'm clutching at straws to figure out what we're going to get up to with our guests this weekend but I'm not complaining.

I had absolutely no idea what Moon's plans for my birthday were so I was really excited and surprised when he told me we were off to Cotswold Wildlife Park for the day. Do not even start on me that I turned 26, it's totally cool, okay?

Cotswold Wildlife Park is just on the outskirts of the market town of Burford - right next to my favourite garden centre in the world - and it's advertised everywhere. On the leaflets it always says something along the lines of 'get closer to the animals' 'get closer than you've been before' and that's not just a marketing ploy to get you through the gate, you genuinely do. I can't express how impressed I was with this place, particularly after having mixed thoughts on a zoo as popular and large as Longleat Safari a couple of years ago.



I know zoos aren't necessarily everyone's cup of tea and there are definitely some bad ones but when they're doing good work and the animals are happy, well, there are worse ways to spend an afternoon in the sunshine. Cotswold Wildlife Park was actually voted one of the best zoos in Europe too so... All the enclosures were a really good size and none of the animals seemed stressed or annoyed and were actually really relaxed.

One thing that struck me was how trusting they seem to be, there's no electric fences or razorwire here, I actually had my lunch sat less than 10 feet away from a white rhinoceros. Thing is, the few ruin it for the many don't they, so I can be trusted to sit and admire these animals, while someone stupid could take a dive over that fence for a rhino party. It's not quite the same set up for the lions but you get the idea — I hope no one does do that, just because, well, judge for yourself how nice it is...

Happy 21st, Little Sister.

Today my sister turns 21. Currently she's half way round the world, and over half way through her birthday, in Hong Kong. She's actually had the flu for the last few days so she's in her sick-bed but I think she's having a really great HK adventure and I'm proud of her for making it over there and having the confidence to do so many neat things on her own.

Happy Birthday, Lucy J!

Here's to yet another medium I can communicate to you through (we're on Facetime, Facebook, Skype, Instagram, WhatApp - it's ridiculous how many ways you can stay in touch with people nowadays)!

Dolly @ 3.

If my calculations are correct, Dolly turns 3 this month. It's a bit lame that I can only guess her birthday rather than know it but I figured she deserved another update all the same.

At 3, Dolly now enjoys making herself less white and sleeping on the sofa. She still loves playing with paper bags and string, trying to steal donuts and following me into the bathroom every morning.

She's now really affectionate and as needy as she can be for her, especially if you're first home from work - not something that's going to happen for a little while. Our biggest milestone in our relationship is that she now purrs and comes when she's called (sometimes). She's still breaking Moon's heart by ignoring him when I'm around but I'm now so much more tuned in to her selective hearing.

I wouldn't be without her and it's great to see that she's still maturing and what she's like as a grown up.

What a Great Day to Have a Great Birthday.

My first proper day of being 25 was wonderful, and while the birthday effect has worn off a bit, making these memories with Moon, who was an absolute sweetheart, was just the best and I had such a great time.





Don't get me wrong, one of the best parts of the day was scrubbing off London once I got home, but wandering around and being a bit of a tourist was pretty fun. I shared breakfast with cats, got to see a play I'd been dying to see, and in a box no less, ate at the fanciest Mexican restaurant and walked around London at gone 9pm and didn't feel like I was going to be robbed - winner.










Sitting in a box was so fancy, we might have had to share with a few people but we got first refusal at the bar so...
My favourite part of the play was just before intermission, have you seen it? I thought it was so clever!


Covent Gardening.


If only these weren't like £2.50 a bag. Love a fizzy pug head.


Always ask for what's warm.


Meeting Jack 'Humble Eyebrows' Lucas because birthday and Masterchef.




It was a long day but a good one and we really crammed it all in. Turns out Moon and I are a little uncool for La Bodega Negra, the birthday restaurant of choice, but that's okay because our waiter was super-cute and nice and we just laughed about how ridiculous sitting in the near-dark with the loudest music was - it was amazingly delicious and some of the best food I've ever eaten though.


La Bodega Negra :: Exterior.





Discovering a new favourite cocktail - a Watermelon Lush, so good.


Couldn't stop thinking about those prawn tacos, dayum. ♥


We went for the Pollo Al Sarten, Habanero Soft Shell Crab and the Roasted Corn Salad. Oh my!






The whole day just lifted me up when I needed it most and I'm hoping that it's a sign of starting as I mean to go on...
♥

Cat Lady Mecca.

As soon as I heard about it way back in April, I knew that I had to go and tying Lady Dinah's Cat Emporium into my birthday was just so easy.


After having to slightly rearrange my booking due to the first one clashing with Moon's birthday surprise (the staff were super-accommodating about it), we popped over to Shoreditch for around 11am and were delighted to see two cute cats sprawled out in the main shop window (I might have been a bit more delighted than Moon).

Having read the mixed reviews on Trip Advisor (never a good idea) and hearing first hand from Moon's brother that maybe it wasn't as good as it could be, I went in to Lady Dinah's with an open mind and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised.




I feel like maybe the cats weren't as in to me as I wanted them to be but knowing how cats are and being the owner of a fairly nonchalant kitty already, I kind of expected it. It was probably because I was quite excited and there were already quite a few people in the cafe fussing over them, and hey, they're used to it so probably aren't overly bothered anyway.

There are quite a few rules about not picking up or feeding the cats, and I completely understand, in fact the whole process of opening a cat cafe must have been a logistical nightmare. The cats seems very happy living cat life though and are pretty harmonious given that there are 11 of them living together. It's great that they have so much space, with an upstairs and downstairs as well as shelves providing the ultimate cat climbing-frame, Doll would love it. ♥



Even Moon was fishing for cats!

'Time spent with cats is never wasted.'

My favourite cat was probably Wookie, mainly for his face, but also for his ballsiness when it came to begging for food and seeing him cooling himself by sitting on one of the fans.

Speaking of food, it was actually delicious. There's quite a range to choose from, including filled croissants and sandwiches as well as a range of different cakes. Moon and I opted for a cream tea, knowing that it would fill us up and also because it's the ultimate decadence, it was my birthday after all. We also got a cronut to try and are total converts, should you visit, their pistachio and salted caramel cronut is devine. Price-wise it's really reasonable too, even when taking into account the £5 entry fee, I'm alright with that as it's for cat maintenance.




Getting rejected :(








I think if I'd gone expecting to be overloaded with kitty affection, I would have been disappointed but I got to stroke a few cats and it was quite a relaxing, chilled out place to eat, with great music. The food being so good made all the difference and the staff were super-friendly. I'm not sure how likely it is that I'd go back again soon but it would be nice to take the time to visit on a quieter day.
Still, it's completely worth the cat-lady pilgrimage, even if it's a bit weird trying to explain what it is to people.