VEDA Day 13 - Crazy About Mini Golf

Why hello there my happy little peoples,

A big hobby of my Dad and I is playing mini golf. Whenever we go on holiday we always scout around for the best, most interesting mini golf places we can find. Our favourite courses are outdoor courses. However, you can only really get them in Florida and Bermuda (they will do them other places we have just been to these places already aha). But thankfully, a couple of years ago Dad found this amazing outdoor mini golf course up in Fife. You can only really go on a good day though which means it gets super busy. We had to wait ages to get around the course. But, it was great fun. 

Mini golf courses began to appear in the USA around the early 20th century and the earliest a mini golf course had been documented was in 1912 on the 8th of June in an edition of The Illustrated London News in which it introduced a mini golf course called Gofstacle. By the end of the 1920's mini golf courses could be found everywhere and there was over 150 rooftop courses just in New York alone! However it wasn't all good news. In the 1930's the economic depression hit and almost all of the mini golf courses were closed and/or demolished.

In Europe the first documented course was built in the 1926 by a German called Fr. Schröder. He had been inspired by his recent visit to the USA to recreate the "mini-golf boom" in Europe. By 1930 a Swedish pair returned from the USA after stayed over there for a couple of years. Edwin O. Norrman and Eskil Norman had seen just how popular these miniature golf courses were in America and decided to found the company, "Norman och Norrmans Miniatyrgolf". They began to manufacture standardised mini golf courses and within the following years the golf courses spread into parks, leisure areas and anywhere else that was appropriate for their mini golf courses. 

We have played on quite a few mini golf courses so I thought I would list them below incase anyone was looking around for some :)

Scotland

• http://www.adventure-golf-island.com/
• http://www.paradiseislandgolf.com/Livingston
• http://www.paradiseislandgolf.com/Glasgow
• https://www.facebook.com/pages/Funtastic-fantasy-Golf-Limited/164058443657744

England

• https://www.visitsealife.com/blackpool/plan-your-visit/default/pirate-adventure-golf/
• https://www.altontowers.com/things-to-do/extraordinary-golf/

Florida 

• http://www.piratescove.net/orlando
• http://www.hollywooddriveingolf.com/
• http://www.lostcavernsgolf.com/

We have also done Mini golf courses in Bermuda but they shut down and change every year so I can't actually link them in this. 

I hope you enjoyed a very brief history to mini golf and if you have never tried it, I would strongly recommend it. Unless you and your family is highly competitive because then it can get messy. Anyhoo I hope you're having a fantastic day,

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76gsC42_8nI

VEDA Day 12 - Sibling Tag

Hello little happy people,

Today I bring you, the Sibling Tag!

Now I couldn't find an official set of questions so I found two different ones and mooshed the questions into one tag. 

1. Who is the oldest?

I am the oldest at my grand age of 17 years young where as Keir will be 13 this year.

2. What do you like/dislike about each other?

Apparently I am unsociable because I don't talk to him much, but he lies when I am happy and being friendly. Keir is quite messy and lazy but he often buys me food which is always a good thing :) 

3. What do you and your sibling have in common?

I would say that we are equally as geeky. We love Doctor Who, Sherlock, LOTR, GOT, Disney and Studio Ghibli. We also both have quite a big passion for art and animals. 

4. Funniest memory?

My funniest memory is when we were younger and Keir thought that Ferrets could fly. I had mentioned that one day I would like a ferret and Keir was very confused at where I would keep my pet ferret as surely it would be able to fly off. Keir couldn't think of any particularly funny story about me but said I have a lot of funny moments.

5. Most memorable argument?

Keir was once being a pain so I told him to go to his room. When he refused he locked himself in the bathroom instead. When I tried to reason with him through the door he had a tantrum and flung a brush at the window above the door, smashing the glass right next to my face. I then had scratches over my face and everyone thought I had been attacked by a cat.

6. What do you and your siblings do for fun?

We don't spend that much time together but when we do were probably playing a video game or are in town eating McDonalds.

7. Describe each other in one word?

Keir says I am hilarious, which I guess is a good thing. I said lazy in the video but the word I thought of now which suits better is sedentary. 

8. Do you like their friends?

Keir has alright friends. His two best friends are really funny and well behaved so we all get on quite well if they are over. Keir said he likes all of my friends too which is good.

9. Favourite inside joke?

We don't really have any main inside jokes but we frequently make jokes surrounding Game of Thrones or just making fun of each other in general, that's what siblings are for right?

10. Post the earliest photo you have of you and your sibling?

This is a photo of myself and Keir in Cardiff when we went on holiday to the Doctor Who exhibition. Keir would have been turning 5 and I would have been 9. My mum probably has older photos of us but this is the earliest one on my computer. 

11. Any nicknames?

When Keir was little he used to call me Heddy and we would call him Keekeepoo. Now my nickname has evolved in Hev but his has stuck :P

12. Most cherished moment?

A couple of years ago we had a fantastic start to the summer when our Granny took us on a surprise holiday with her around Scotland and we visited loads of beaches and sea towns and the Falkirk Wheel and little petting farms. The best thing was that Keir and I stayed friends for the majority of the holiday 

13. Are you close?

Even though we don't talk that often I would say in general we are quite close. Although I would never tell Keir any kind of secret as he is the type of person who thinks after he talks and would just blurt out stuff.

14. One thing you can do that your sibling can't?

I can sit still. I don't get as bored so quickly. I can sew. I can make a fantastic raspberry and white chocolate sponge cake. 

He can eat lots and lots and lots of food and still be hungry. He can make a good banana bread. 

15. who is the best looking?

I will let you guys decide but clearly it is my beautiful face ;)

16. Who is the most creative?

This was quite a difficult question as we are both quite creative. We both draw and do art alot although he does more sketching where as I take ages to make everything perfect in my drawings. We both love singing and writing stories in school. Keir actually used to go to drama classes so he is more confident in that respect. However, this year I built up the confidence to audition for our school show and now have 3 parts and am Head of Scenery Development which is pretty awesome. 

Anyways this was just a fun little tag video to introduce you all to my crazy little brother. I hope you enjoyed and please do check out my videos and check out my other blog posts. I hope you are having a wonderful day,

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhYKesttWnQ

VEDA Day 11 - Happy Ratties

Hello there happy little people,

So todays video was quite a short video just as I haven't had much time to film anything more exciting today. It is a video of me cleaning my ratties. Whiiiiccch I know could be very boring to some people but like I said, it was all I had time to film.

Because I haven't got very much to say I'm just gonna talk about my ratties :)

The first rattie I'm gonna talk about is Luna. Luna means moon in Latin. I chose that name because of her white fur which is like the moon, because you can always see her exploring her cage and the fact that rats are (generally) nocturnal so come out at night. Also, I'm a fan of Harry Potter and Luna is one of my favourite characters. She is an albino fancy rat which mean shes has pale white/grey markings and red eyes. Which most people would be afraid of but I actually find albino animals super adorable. I have in the past also had an albino gerbil and an albino guinea pig. Anyway, she will be around 3ish this year and we have had her around 2 years which seems literally like yesterday. Unfortunately, she is a Pets at Home rattie so she has no rescue sorry but I would always advise rescuing your pets rather than buying them. She is quite a character to say the least. She is not afraid of anything and will defend her territory like no other. I guess she is the more courageous of the two.  She has given me a number of not so nice bites over the years but she is still the most adorable rattie. She loves to explore and jump around the cage checking everything out. And she is most definitely the boss rat.

My second rattie is called Nox. Nox means night in Latin. I chose that name as she is the darker of the two, she hides a lot more often and the fact that, again, rats are nocturnal. And again, there is a spell in Harry Potter called Nox. She is quite a shy rattie but will come out if treats are nearby. She is a brown fancy rat with little white paws and a white belly. She is so much more gentle compared to Luna and has only ever nipped me once. She takes treats so carefully and cautiously compared to Luna who just grabs them, hides them and then comes back for more. I have always loved the more natural looking pets so when I was planning on getting rats I knew my perfect rats would be one albino and one natural "brown rat". And one day when I went into Pets at Home they had these two lovely little ladies and it wasn't just a spur of the moment decision because I had been thinking about it for quite some time but when I saw these two I couldn't help but fall for them and have to take them home :)

They actually had a series of names for a while before finally deciding on Nox and Luna. Lunas original names were Elmo, Magenta and Mischief. Nox was originally Cookie, Columbia and Rascal. Elmo and Cookie were because me and my best friend call each other those names as insipred by Elmo and the Cookie monster. I was the cookie monster and she was Elmo. Magenta and Columbia was because at the time of getting my ratties I had just discovered the wonder that is The Rocky Horror Picture Show and was (and still am) obsessed with it. However, I didn't quite feel that the names fitted my dainty little ratties so looked around for ideas when one night I was watching Harry Potter and the names fitted my ratties perfectly so that was that. 

I love my rats and I know a lot of people hate their tails or are afraid of them but I think they are the cutest little things and I could honestly watch them explore their cage for hours. I would love to know if any of you guys have pets so feel free to comment below.

I hope you are all having a fabulous day,

Hev xx 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRsSHv-yKsg

VEDA Day 10 - Alpaca Avenue

Hello little happy people,

Today I bring you a little video of my trip to an Alpaca farm today! 

Well it wasn't really an alpaca farm rather than a countryside place with lots of alpaca. And donkeys. And chickens. And loooooaaaads of doggies. And so naturally I filmed and took a load of pretty photos which of course I will share with you all :)

Basically my Uncle was up with his partner to visit the family and his partner likes to knit. My gran had bought her some alpaca wool from the lady who owned all these alpaca but it wasn't enough for my uncles partner to complete her jumper. So when they came up to visit, my gran decided to take us all a trip to the place where the lady keeps the alpaca. And whilst we were there we found out quite alot.

Most of the animals she has are more rare breeds. The first animals we were introduced to (apart from all the doggies who couldn't wait to meet new people) were these two mahoosive but gorgeous Poitou Donkeys. They are the only two of this breed in Scotland which was really cool to see. In 1977 there were only 44 registered pure bred Poitou Donkeys left in the world but conservation efforts managed to boost their numbers up to 450 pure bred donkeys by 2005. 

We then moved onto see the ordinary donkeys but along the way we saw a couple of Falabella horses. And the really interesting thing is that they can't actually be classed as Falabella horses unless they are directly related to the original horses from Falabella Farm in Argentina. I remember being obsessed with these miniature cuties when I was younger :3

We finally managed to prise ourselves away from the pinsized ponies and met the super friendly donkeys. They were honestly THE most friendly donkeys I have ever met. When we walked into their paddock they instantly came trotting over to say hello. This one lovely grey mare decided that I was exactly the kind of friend she had always wanted and kept giving me donkey eskimo kisses and booping her muzzle to me :3

And after getting the nicest of donkey kisses we moved on to see the main event. The alpaca. They were all so adorable and fluffy and cute and had silly little pouty faces. An interesting fact that I learnt about alpaca is that alpaca hum to each other and if an alpaca doesn't hum back, they can die from stress. So it is always advised that you keep a minimum of three alpaca so that they can all keep each other company. Another weird thing that the lady had found out is that the alpaca (or at least the ones she keeps) will never, ever give birth in the rain. Which must be difficult for them living in Scotland since it rains most days.

Following around the whole day was this lovely pack of various variations of sheepdogs who constantly wanted to have a game of fetch with us. What was really interesting though was that not all the dogs wanted to catch the ball. Some of the dogs watched other dogs to chase them, some chased after & caught the ball and then there was one who would always return the ball and start the game all over again. The lady who owned them all actually takes them to Kennel Club agility shows and so in her garden she had all the agility apparatus out. I have always thought that my dog, Moss, would be great at agility. But maybe he would be too interested in the food you use to train/encourage them round the course and would never leave my side which is a great possibility. However, the dogs here were gorgeous collies and Australian sheepdogs who were very advanced in their level of agility.

So all in all I had a wonderful day out in the sun taking pretty photos of pretty animals and being cuddled by a donkey has to have been one of the best experiences ever. That and being hugged by a baby kangaroo. But that is a story for another day perhaps. :)

I hope you are having a wonderful day,

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUVe8RtZHX4

VEDA Day 9 - Resolutions

Hello there happy little people,

So I am fully aware that it is now the middle of April but I have only just got back into vlogging and blogging and shtuff so I have decided that I should make a really late Resolutions blog/vlog.

Im going to be doing this in a slightly different way as I was originally inspired to do my video in the kind of way I did by TheKingBeth (https://www.youtube.com/user/TheKingBeth) as I thought it was such a lovely way to do a resolutions video. She talked about her highlights from 2014 and then went on to talk about her resolutions for 2015 so, thats kinda what I'm gonna do now, in no particular order might I add :)

Highlights from 2014:

• I spent the February and Easter holidays exploring around where I used to live as I was moving house at the end of Easter so I felt like it was my last chance to really do it.
• Which kinda relates to this one, when I was leaving my old town I wanted to do something really special for my last night there so I decided to have a picnic. Not just anyone, one at night, up by the caste so I could watch the stars with my friends. Oh, and I managed to bring and have dominoes pizza for the last time because where I live now they don't deliver to :(
• And I guess moving house was also a highlight. I have never properly moved houses before so it was an experience at least. 
• Built up the courage to finally dye my hair purple - I had been wanting to do it for about a year and I actually really really loved it, might do it again this summer
• I never thought I would be able to say this but I was actually a bridesmaid last year! It was such a lovely experience to be able to watch my dad get married to the woman he loved (and being on a Florida beach also helped aha)
• I got the chance to see one of my most favourite people in two of my most favourite musicals. I got to see Carrie Hope Fletcher in both Les Mis in London and War of the Worlds in Glasgow which was amazing.
• Everytime I happen to drive past a mountain (or munro as they're called in Scotland) I have always wished I was fit enough to climb one, but last year I actually did it! I climbed to the top of Ben Lomond and although we couldn't see much from the top due to the clouds it was one of the proudest feelings I have ever felt.
• Got to spend almost every moment of the year with the person I love the most. He really does mean everything to me and it was fantastic just being able to spend so much time getting to know him and just living life with him beside me.
• Which leaves me onto my next highlight, I had my first ever one year anniversary with my gorgeously amazing boyfriend, Gary. I can't wait till the next one dearie.

Resolutions for 2015:

• Restart my YouTube channel - which I can tick off :)
• Start writing a blog - which I can definitely tick off aha
• Pass my exams, I have really hard exams this year and I'm so nervous for them, way more nervous than any other years because I think I'm really gonna struggle to pass so actually passing would be a great achievement
• Save more and spend less - I always fall for pretty and more importantly cheap clothes from Primark but I really need to stop spending and start saving for Uni 
• Do more of what makes me happy like reading, singing and drawing. I have had to really put all these things aside as I did all my exams and I really want to do more of it.
• Do some gardening before I move out. I will be moving out of my new house to go to uni soon but I love gardening and I really want to help my mum make our garden loo pretty before I leave.
• Be more self-confident. I have lost a lot of the confidence I have gained over the past 5 years, this year. Gary says I'm getting better but I feel like I'm getting more anxious in crowds of strangers - even in crowds of people I know to be honest.  So I'm hoping that when I go to uni that I will meet "my people". I'm planning to join the Harry Potter society for one so that should help me aha
• And finally just be happier. Take care of myself more. Smile more. Worry less. 

If I think of any more things I will probably add them to this list. But this will do for now. I just want to say thank you to everyone who taught me things this year. Good or bad. I learn from everything.

I hope you are having a wonderful day and that you have stuck to a few of your resolutions. 

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKlaJUUh220

VEDA Day 8 - First Spring Walk

Hello there happy little people,

So today I bring another artyfarty VEDA video of sheep (mostly)!

I was staying with my boyfriend last night and because it was such a gorgeous day today he decided to take me a lovely walk through some fields. I had never walked around the country(ish)side around his house so it was a really nice experience to explore more of where he lives. 

We ended up walking through fields with lots and lots of sheep who had lots of baby lambs who were the cutest little things ever. However the mummy and daddy sheep were actually quite intimidating as I didn't know if the were gonna charge or not. They were all lying in the sun or shade of little trees and enjoying the glorious sunshine. Also I had never realised how silly Sheeps baaing is, it honestly sounds like a mans deep voice laughing. 

Halfway along the path we found a skeleton which was actually quite interesting. Being in a field with sheep Gary assumed it was a lamb. But on closer inspection it had a very long tail bone and sharp canine teeth so it would have been a pretty terrifying sheep if it was one. So we decided it was a cat. Until I began to think of how large the skeleton was and that it must of been a huge cat. And so it was changed to a dog. However when we started to think about how a dog would have ended up in the middle of a field, dead and skeletoned we assumed it must of been a fox instead. It still had some fur on it's paws and ears which were dark grey so it could well have been a fox.

When we finally reached the end of the path I cane face to face with the stilts (not quite sure what their called) of an old railway bridge that use to go over the river. And I could just imagine little steam trains rolling across the water in the sunshine and it made me very happy. We sat down for a while and enjoyed the sun before heading back the way we came. 

However before we could return home Gary just had to find an appropriate tree to swing himself up on. And just like the little monkey he is he scurried up this massive tree in no time as I filmed worriedly hoping I wouldn't catch his death on camera. But I can say that, thankfully, he made it down with no broken arms or legs and pretty face still in tact. 

It was so lovely to be able to just go a wander around the nearby area and end up in the full on countryside where swans, sheep and horses were all enjoying the sun. Birds flittering from tree to tree singing to each other. Butterflies and bees buzzing all around finding pretty flowers on which to perch. Just being able to finally walk around in just a top and be in the warmth. 

If you haven't got out and enjoyed a nice little walk in the sun, please do! You will thank me for it. Go alone, go with your dog, go for a run, go for a picnic or go with your whole family. Just go and get outside in the sun because, frankly, Scotland doesn't see enough of it.

I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iFaCUQHIOg

VEDA Day 7 - LUSH Blogger/Vlogger Night Review

Hello happy little people,

I am finally getting round to uploading my review/blog of the the LUSH blogger night! So sorry is taken so long to get up I have just been so busy.

First of all I never even intended to go along to the event. I had retweeted and liked their posts about it purely to share the event with bloggers/vloggers around Stirling. Then out of the blue LUSH sent me a tweet asking if I would like to be invited along. And how could anyone refuse! I told them I hadn't blogged/vlogged for years but I would be very happy to use their event as an excuse to start again. And obviously, I did :)

So on Wednesday evening I made my way into Stirling for the event. Whilst waiting on the bus I bumped into the other vlogger from my villiage who was also attending, Aidan. I had never actually spoken to him before but I have to say he was genuinely very lovely and friendly. Before the event we went for a small snack in McDonalds (I know how terribly unhealthy that is but I had no money aha) and bought some juice and then we were all ready for our lushious evening.

When we first arrived there must have been about 25-30 people there so after a quick welcome hello form the lovely lushies we got spilt up into three large groups. There was also fresh fruit available to peck at, wine to slurp and spa water (lime cucumber and mint I think) to drink. Being under age I just tried the spa water but found it quite an odd taste so I stuck with plain tap water. 

The first group we were in talked all about face masks, toners, face creams and all other types of face shtufs. First of all, the lovely Lauchlan and Iona asked each person in the group about their face type to determine what products would be best for our individual face types. Then they sampled two of the best matched face masks on our hands to see which we liked better. I tried Cosmetic Warrior and BB Seaweed and preferred the BB Seaweed. I had actually tried BB Seaweed before when I had gone in with 5 black pots (which you can exchange for a free face mask) looking for Love Lettuce and they had none - it was a disaster :P. But the lovely lushie suggested BB Seaweed and I might even love it even more than Love Lettuce now. 

After trying the face masks they also spent a little time talking about cleansers and toners. A really cute and interesting thing I found out about the Ultraband cleanser is that in the original shop people would just go into the shop and fill a small tub with however much they would want of it. And before finally buying they could add sprinkly things on the top to, for example, add more ex-foliation. Also, the recipe used to create the Ultraband hasn't changed since it was first created which I thought was lovely. It was so good to start it never needed improved.

The next group we moved onto was ran by the lovely spa treatment ladies. It was here we got given a little hand/arm massage with some chocolatey mixture (from The Comforter?) treatment) which was applied warm to the skin. I have never had a massage before but even just on my arm it was so lovely and relaxing! As she massaged she talked to us about how they preform the spa treatments in the spas. The main thing I took away from it was that when preforming full body massages, the body is covered all the time. Two covers are used, a duvet and a sheet. When they massage an arm only the arm is exposed. After doing that arm it is tucked back into the blankets and the next arm is removed and massaged, keeping the modesty and privacy of the customer at all times. Another thing that I found out that I didn't know before was that you can't actually have a deep tissue muscle until you are 18. However, when I finally become 18 I could have a joint massage session which I thought was quite a nice idea.

The last group we went to was talking all about what our favourite things about LUSH are. I think we were meant to be talking about the Gorilla Perfumes but our group got well and truly side tracked by discussing everything we love about LUSH. So some of the things our little group came up with were:

• There is no pressure to buy products there and then in the shop
• The products last a very, very long time which...
• Makes the LUSH products very worth the money
• When you go into LUSH you are almost guaranteed to have expert help to find exactly what you are looking for
• The staff are always friendly and happy to help
• The atmosphere is always friendly and relaxed 
• The inventors themselves love the products the are creating and love to experiment with new ideas
• Fresh flowers and ingredients are used in lots of LUSH products
• You can recycle all your black pots, black tops and metal tins at LUSH and can get a free face mask in return 
• They support lots of great charities and raise money for great causes
• Only two preservatives are ever used and even then only...
• Under 1% of preservatives are used in the products 

And then we had to leave the lovely event to catch the bus back home. However, before we could leave the lovely lushies gave us some lovely little LUSH gifts for attending the event. We got a free pot of whichever face mask we preferred from the face mask group which was very nice, we got a sugar scrub, a Golden Slumber bath bomb from the Hard Days Night Spa treatment and a little lip gloss too. I also purchase a small bottle of Yummy Mummy shower gel and a Pot 'o' Gold shower jelly. 

Thank you so much to all the lovely lushies in Stirling and the two lovely spa ladies that came from Edinburgh to talk about the spa. Thank you for giving me a fabulous excuse to start this all again. 

Hev xx

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFq0b7IBcWI