Yesterday was World Mental Health day and it made me reflect on the past year.
It was a cold morning in December. We got ready for Ethan’s routine health check at the clinic with a health visitor. We arrived on time at the centre and everything was going well until Miss G, the health visitor asked me, “Ethan’s mum, how are you doing?”. I froze.
It was a challenging time back then, where sleep was neglected and I had forgotten what it was like to snore. Tough times. Miss G’s question hit me like an arrow straight through my chest. I could feel my eyes welling up, my body sweating and my heart pounding.
I faked a smile and gave her the usual statement. I think Miss G knew something that I didn’t at the time and she kept asking me questions about myself and being empathetic instead of checking on Ethan. The more she kept being empathatic, my smile faded and were replaced by tears streaming down my face. The flood gates had been opened. I couldn’t stop myself. I started to sob and couldn’t get a breath in. The room which was filled with other mothers and their kids went eerily quiet and I could feel that I became the kid in that room.
I’m thankful for Miss G and the NHS for asking me the question, showing empathy and allowing myself to face my emotions. Thank you for putting a name to the nimbus clouds that were hovering over me – postpartum anxiety. My mental health was not given any importance and I was too afraid to speak up and talk about my emotions even though I had the best support system around me. I have learnt lots over the year and things are so good now but the most important lesson I have learnt is to look after myself and be a little selfish which is work in progress.
I love this photo of Ethan and I from when he was baptised. The smile on my face, that was real.
Gosh, I cannot believe it has been exactly 9 months since my last blog post! I have very good reason as to why I was MIA for the last 9 months. It’s definitely not what you are thinking, given that it has been 9 months! Haha!
2015 was a pretty great year for me because I got married to my one and only in December and so I was busy planning a wedding, shopping for the wedding and tackling all the craziness that comes with a BIG INDIAN WEDDING!
Happy to report, our wedding day was just perfect and it’s great being married to my best friend! I still need to get used to being called a Mrs though! Also, figuring out what to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner takes a lot more time than usual!
I have missed blogging and I cannot to write about EVERYTHING! 😀 I have some great blog posts coming up so do look out for them!
PS. Choosing a single wedding picture is hard because it is really hard to choose the best one, so here is a candid one from our pre-wedding shoot which I love very much!
There is a word that gets me every time when it comes to shopping. There is nothing extraordinary about this word, it a 5 letter word which makes my feet very happy. I have a feeling you might have already guessed what the word is by now (or not, the title of the blog post gives most of it away!).
Shoes.
Simple as that. I mean there isn’t any other 5 letter word that would make feet happy, right? 😉
As soon as I heard that Deichmann was collaborating with the fashionable blogger Hanneli Mustaparta on a capsule collection for AW15, it’s safe to say I was excited! The collection features 10 chic styles perfect for this autumn season. This collection has something for everyone, whether you are still in school or if you are out working full time, this collection has got your back. The Slip on Casual Skate Shoes is perfect for those casual days and the sparkly Court Shoes is the ideal accessory to vamp up any outfit for the upcoming party season.
Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition
Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta EditionI have a special love towards ankle boots and these boots give me no reason not to love them. Just look at them! Let me first start off by acknowledging how much my feet are thankful for these boots. Why, you wonder? Well, heels and I don’t see eye to eye. They mostly go out of their way to try and hurt me (not intentionally, of course!) whenever I give them a chance. I’m still learning and training myself to walk in heels. I’ll be honest; I was a little nervous about the heel height which was 6.3cm but, once I wore them and walked around with them, I had nothing to be nervous about. If you love heels and ankle boots, you are in for a treat with a very affordable price tag of £24.99.
Ankle Boots [Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition]Ankle Boots [Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition]Here is an outfit featuring these cute booties. How would you rate it out of 10?
Elated, surprised and (very) grateful. These words accurately describe my emotions as I’m writing this blog post. I started this blog (with Tinu) 7 months ago as an outlet to rekindle my creative side as I spent weekdays at my desk coding away or in very important meetings. Also, my younger sister nudged me to just do it and for once I listened to her. It was the best thing I did! I am genuinely blown away by the support and positive response I have had from every corner of the world. This is mind-blowing! One thing was for sure, I was not expecting any of it! This has motivated me to keep consistent and produce quality blog posts to you, my lovely readers!
The picture below perfectly captures how I’m feeling right now (#fbf to the time I had long hair!).
Thank you! 🙂
This blog post is really in essence, a long-winded way of saying Thank You to each and every one of you who has supported me in any way.
I would like to end this blog post with this quote from a brilliant movie, PS I Love you.
Holly Kennedy: “All I know is, if you don’t figure out this something, you’ll just stay ordinary, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a work of art, or a taco, or a pair of socks! Just create something… new, and there it is, and it’s you, out in the world, outside of you, and you can look at it, or hear it, or read it, or feel it… and you know a little more about… you. A little bit more than anyone else does… Does that make any sense at all?”
Hope this encourages any one of you to create something that is totally You with your stamp on it for the world to see 🙂
Last week was pretty exciting for me mainly because of three things. I found out that that I have been nominated not for one, but three awards! I will be combining all of the 3 award nominations into this single post and I hope that this is okay!
Naomi from chiquessence nominated me for the Creative Bloggers Award
Fiona from fislittleblog nominated me for the Very Inspirational Blogger Award
And last but certainly not the least, Dena from thestylecoordi nominated me for the Sisterhood of the World Blogger Award. I just found out about this nomination last night!
Naomi, Fiona and Dena are such beautiful ladies whose blog is a dedicated space for all things fashion and beauty. Dena also loves K-pop, something I love too. I encourage you to explore their blogs and I’m sure you will love it too.
Thanking each one of you for the nomination and I’m very grateful for it.
This was my facial reaction when I found out about the first award nomination and it was something like this:
(Source: Giphy.com)
So imagine the excitement when I found out I was nominated for a second time for a different award?! It was something like this:
(Source: images.virgula.uol.com)
Let’s not forget how I reacted to my third nomination, it was something like this:
(Source: Reddit.com)
I’m genuinely thankful for these award nominations and this encourages me a lot to write more too. I can’t put into words the support and encouragement that I have been receiving from just starting my blog only nearly two months ago and I very truly appreciate it. A lot!
Thank you to my lovely readers!
(Source: the-house-of-anubis.wikia.com)
A little shout out and thank you to my little sister who was really the one who pushed me to start a blog. Any of you guys thinking of starting a blog but not sure as to what to write about? I’d say write about anything and everything. It is very therapeutic and I think of it as an accomplishment because we creating something unique. This reminds of this quote from one of my all-time favourite Rom-Com movies: PS. I Love You.
All I know is, if you don’t figure out the “something,” you’ll just stay ordinary.
And it doesn’t matter if it’s a work of art, or a taco, or a pair of socks.
Just create something new and there it is.
And it’s you, out in the world, outside of you.
And you can look at it, or hear it, or read it, or feel it…
…and you know
a little bit more about you.
A little bit more than anybody else does.
Now onto the important stuff which are the rules for the award.
Thank the blogger who nominated you & link back to their site.
Put the award logo on your blog.
Answer the ten questions sent to you.
Make up ten new questions for your nominees to answer.
Nominate seven bloggers who you feel deserve the award.
What’s the story behind the name of your blog?
There isn’t a story as such. I wanted to pick a name that’s simple but still wanted to convey what my blog is about. My blog is a space I share my adventures with you. With Tinu, you will find out my journey whether it be anything from fashion to cooking (I still need practice in this area!).
What’s one clothing/beauty item you can’t live without?
A comfortable pair of jeans. I get mine from New Look. Decent price and good quality.
List three things you like about yourself and why (physically or characteristically).
This question is actually quite hard! If I have to pick then it would be
– My hair. I had a love/hate relationship with it because of its curly frizzy nature. However, now I think I understand my hair a lot more (as strange as that may sound!) and I have learnt to love the curly/frizzy nature of my hair.
– I’m a good listener. If you have a story to tell, I’m here. I’ll listen. J
– I have a lot of moles or beauty mark some call it. I have one on my chin, right bang in the middle and I think that’s unique.
Current song you’re obsessed with?
Mark Ronson – Uptown Funk ft. Bruno Mars
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
This time last year, I never imagined I would be blogging or even be nominated for awards. So, my honest answer would be that I really don’t have a clue.
What are some things on your bucket list?
Visit Japan. Bungee Jumping. Scuba Diving.
Name one resolution you have for 2015.
Read books. This might be a ‘meh’ resolution but when I read, I tend to skip chapters or read the end of the book to know if it is a happy or sad ending!
Tips for anyone starting a blog?
Write things that you like talking to your friends about. Write as if you are talking to your best friend.
Name one celebrity/idol/character you would trade closets with.
Taylor Swift ❤
Favorite quote/phrase/saying?
Writing this blog post reminded me of the quote from the movie PS.I Love you. Please scroll up to read it 🙂
It has been 18 days since I started my blog “withtinu” and yesterday, which was a windy Wednesday morning, at around 0530AM (Waking up early because, I have to catch the 0645AM bus/tube to work!) I found out that I had been nominated for an award! What a brilliant way to wake up to and also, I was all like, “wait…what! Is that really a nomination for me?!”.
This is how I felt:
(Source: Giphy.com)
It is true, the very lovely Amy from Vogue Infatuationhas nominated me for ‘The Very Inspiring Blogger Award’ and I’m flabbergasted. I am very grateful, pleased and immensely happy about the nomination, Thank you so much Amy! I just can’t begin to make sense of the love and encouragement that I have been getting from the few number of blogs I have written and to top it all up – this award! #feelinggrateful
***
The rules for this award:
Thank the person who nominated you and add their link to your blog
List the award rules so your nominees will know what to do.
State 7 things about yourself.
Nominate other bloggers.
Contact your nominees and provide a link to your post.
Display the award logo (button) on your blog, whether on your sidebar or about page, or special award page.
***
Now, I’m about to share 7 things about myself. My lovely readers: brace yourself!
1) I love Jesus!
2) I can speak 4 languages! (English, Hindi, Malayalam and Tamil). Also, know a little bit of German (learnt in school).
3) I love to watch Korean Dramas – the last one I watched was, ‘My Love from the Star’.
4) For a while I believed that Sherlock Holmes was real and was quite sad when I found out that in fact he was just a character from novels. It’s okay though because, Benedict Cumberbatch and Johnny Lee Miller are great at being Sherlock Holmes and I love it!
5) I can play the drums and can perform Happy Birthday and Jingle Bells on my guitar (still learning other songs and improving my skills)
6) I’m a clean freak. Yes, I could say I have my Monica Gellar moments!
7) I shed a tear at the end of the following movies: Frozen, The Notebook, Forrest Gump, Million Dollar Baby. There are more but I’ll stop here.
Now this is the best bit, I now get to nominate other bloggers for this very auspicious award:
1) Proclaim Union
The person behind Proclaim Union is special. This person writes/shares her thoughts and gives her perspective on faith, life and really anything and everything that she feels like she want to write about. I have to say, her blogs are very though provoking and definitely an interesting read.
Shhh, I will also let you in on a secret: The person behind Proclaim Union is also my little sister, Linu. Now you didn’t expect that did you?! 🙂 She was the one who inspired me to start my own blog and I’m very happy and proud to nominate her for this award!
2) ratherorganic
Radmila shares her vast knowledge and her impressions on all organic and natural beauty products in her blog: ratherorganic. She made the switch to organic products a few years ago and I think that’s amazing!
3) Views Through Surina
Surina captures her ‘Views’ in the most stunning ways possible and I love it!
Thank you again for your support and encouragement! I am very grateful for it!
![[Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition]](https://withtinu.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/img_3017.jpg)
![Ankle Boots [Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition]](https://withtinu.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/fullsizerender_1.jpg)
![Ankle Boots [Deichmann ft. Hanneli Mustaparta Edition]](https://withtinu.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/fullsizerender.jpg)
...with Tinu 