What To Do When Life Gives You Lemons...

...don't just make lemonade, MAKE A LEMON DRIZZLE. One of my favourite things to bake is a classic lemon drizzle cake and summer is the perfect time to do that! I was baking some brownies last week (I'll be uploading my fave recipe soon) and I spontaneously decided to bake a lemon drizzle cake for my grandparents because I thought they'd appreciate it. Whenever I bake, I either adjust recipes I have used before OR I'll almost always use Mary Berry's because she is the ultimate baking Queen, let's be honest. This recipe is super quick and easy to make plus it is SO delicious (if I do say myself). So, carry on reading if you're interested in finding out how I made it!

You will need:

• 225g (8 oz) butter, softened
• 225g (8 oz) caster sugar
• 275g (10 oz) self-raising flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 4 eggs
• 4 tablespoons milk
• finely grated rind of 2 lemons

Icing

• 175g (6 oz) granulated sugar
• juice of 2 lemons

Method:

1. Begin by greasing the tin and then line with the paper, pushing it neatly into the corners of the tin. Pre-heat the oven to 160°C/325°F/Gas 3.
2. Measure all the ingredients for the traybake into a large bowl and mix well until everything is blended. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin, scraping the sides of the bowl with a plastic spatula to remove all of the mixture. Make sure to level the mixture so it doesn't come out of the oven super uneven. 
3. Bake in the middle of the pre-heated oven for about 35-40 minutes or until the tray bake springs back when pressed lightly with a finger in the centre and is beginning to shrink away from the sides of the tin.
4. Allow the tray bake to cool in the tin for a few minutes and then carefully remove it from the tin by lifting the baking paper.
5.  To make the topping, mix the lemon juice and granulated sugar in a small bowl to give a runny consistency. Spoon this mixture evenly over the tray bake whilst it is still just warm. And there you have it!

There you have it! It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it and it's honestly one of my favourite things ever, even though I'm not that keen on citrus flavours. 

I hope you enjoyed this one and please feel free to give me some recommendations for new blog posts! I'd love to try something new.

Lots of Love,

Meg X

Is This Adulthood?

The prospect of growing up is so exciting when we're young. We get to wear what we want, eat what we want, stay up as late as we want (even though getting a good night's sleep is one of the many things that excites me as I've gotten older). And all without the burden of our parents yelling at us for something or another. What a wonderful life that would be. Only in reality, it ain't like that! 

Independence is scary, especially when you take that first step and you're left making difficult decisions about your future, career, finance and social life (if you're lucky enough to have one). The experience of standing on your own two feet when you'd rather close your eyes and hope the ground would swallow you up is a terrifying one. Having said that, independence is a reminder that we can also choose to make decisions regarding our happiness. Living up to our responsibilities may be scary but it gives us the chance to make our own successes as well as failures. 

There is also SO MUCH PRESSURE. I'd never say that facing pressure only comes about when you get older because everyone faces pressure at all different ages. I know I struggled so much during my GCSE exams and even before then I was faced with so much pressure from society to 'dress a certain way' and 'talk a certain way.' It's ridiculous. But I know over the last couple of years that the pressure I've experienced has tripled. It's currently such an important time in my life. I'm in college and I've got so many decisions to make and more options than I could have ever imagined. It's scary and the stress and pressure people of my age experience is often disregarded which frustrates me so much. I know that whenever I'm stressed or put under a lot of pressure, one of the first things my Mum will do is make out that I'm somehow overreacting or I'll get the "we've all been there" etc etc. It doesn't always work that way. People experience different types of stress that are triggered by different things and everyone deals with it in different ways. I know this is going off topic slightly (oops) but I just think that people my age are also struggling and it wouldn't do people any harm to respect that. One of the main sources of pressure at this age is linked to choosing a career and what you want to study. Oh look, another decision to make and I'm still absolutely awful at making them. I know it's possible to change careers and it's almost certain that we'll have more than one job when we're older, but this is still the age that we're expected to at least choose an 'area of work' to go into. That way, we can narrow down what to study etc and the stepping stones to getting the job you want will be set in place. This is stressful enough as it is, especially when you're like me and you constantly change your mind about what it is you want to do. But when you actually go into that career, there is no guarantee that the job you're given is the job you expected. I fear this so much and it's probably why I'm so scared to make decisions in the first place.

'Acting like a child,' because that needs to stop now that you're an adult. What?!?! How many times have you shown an interest in something or said something and have been told to 'act your age'?!?! Of course, becoming an adult means that everyone's expectations of you will change. You'll get the 'look of disapproval' when you make a decision that makes you look childish and inappropriate jokes are completely off the cards but it frustrates me so much when people of my age get told this on a daily basis when there are fully grown adults in this world who could pass for wearing a nappy! I'm so opinionated on certain topics that I'm passionate about but I can't defend the point I'm making without appearing rude and don't even get me started on the whole 'you've got an attitude' problem. Being an adult and facing the pressures of what an adult should be like are very different and it can be so tricky getting the balance right. 

We can't forget the inevitable questions - Are you seeing anyone? When are you going to University? (Notice I put 'when' and not 'are' because of course everyone just assumes that's the right choice to make). Have you got a job? Have you passed your driving test yet? And the little comments and remarks that make my blood boil such as people who barely know you talking about your future wedding that you are definitely going to have with your imaginary children and your perfect job that lets you have three holidays a year. HAHAHAHA. I'll admit though that one thing that I am really looking forward to in the near future is moving away from home. I've never been fond of where I've grown up and even though it'll be tough and a real wake up call when I eventually do move out and I've got to stand on my own two feet, I think it'll be the breath of fresh air that I've craved for so long. I know it'll be a struggle. One thing most of us are guilty of is being so heavily dependent on parents / guardians when we were growing up. Doing laundry, cooking meals, paying the bills... Even though I take responsibility for a lot of those kind of things now, I know that moving out is on a whole other level and it'll definitely take time adjusting. 

When you're growing up, you spend hours daydreaming about the exciting aspects of being an adult but there are so many parts of being an adult that you won't see coming or aren't prepared for. One part of growing up that does make the stress worthwhile is that your experiences force you to get to know yourself better. Being an adult allows you to really come into your own which is so important. I know I hardly qualify to write this post, I've only 'officially' been an adult for 4 months, but I think it's about experiences and your level of maturity and independence that contribute to making you an adult as opposed to your age alone. I just keep telling myself that almost everyone my age will be in the same boat and despite this being an important time in my life, I refuse to let it to consume the amazing times and memories I can have. I think finding a balance is always important as well as being patient. I find comfort in the saying 'everything happens for a reason' and I've been reminding myself of that quite frequently over the last year or so. All I know, is that, the future is terrifying and nothing is certain. So, my new plan is to just take each day as it comes and that means embracing change, no matter how scary that may be.

Anyway, I'm sorry if this post was long and very chatty but I hope you enjoyed it all the same!

Lots of love,

Meg X

Super Easy Iced Coffee

I feel like I'm completely betraying my love for tea here. I drink tea all year round but it's very rare that I'll make myself a coffee or even fancy one when I'm at home. Of course, if I'm in Starbucks then I'll almost always order some kind of coffee. But recently, and I'm blaming the unexpected warm weather we've been having in the UK for this, I've been craving iced coffee and it's honestly SO easy to make. So, I thought I'd share it on here just in case you haven't thought of making it before or you didn't know how.

You will need: 

Milk (I'm using Soya milk) 

Coffee 

Ice

Hot Water

A mug / glass (preferably a double walled glass / heat resistant) 

Note: I haven't put any measurements there because how much coffee and milk you use depends on how strong you like to have your coffee. 

1. Firstly, pour milk into the glass so it's just over half full before putting in a couple of ice cubes.
2. Boil the kettle and measure out around 1 and a half tea spoons of coffee into a separate mug before adding around 50ml of the hot water. 
3. Stir the coffee and hot water just like you would if you were making a normal coffee and then add the coffee to the glass with the milk and ice.
4. Stir it once more and there you have your iced coffee! You could leave it like that or if you like the flavoured syrups, you could add a tea spoon to add more flavour. I personally like the vanilla one for this time of year.

Like I said earlier, it's super duper easy and quick to make and it's so ideal for this time of year when the weather is a little warmer. I am so dependent on my cup of tea in the morning to wake me up but I'm never in the mood for it when it's warm so iced coffee is beaut!

I hope you're having a fab day!

Lots of love,

Meg X

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Getting my Tattoos

On March 23rd earlier this year, I got not only my first but my second tattoo! I still (nearly 4 months later) can't believe that I actually went through with them because I am the most indecisive person in the world! Growing up, I never thought about getting a tattoo. I'd always loved them from afar but I didn't think I'd be the kind of person who'd suit one I guess??? A couple of my friends wanted them and so we'd often talk about different tattoos that we liked but it was only when I was 16 that I considered getting one. 

In my spare time, I'd look at designs and I found it super easy to narrow down particular themes that I wanted. I adore travelling more than anything and I was always very confident that if I got a tattoo that it would be travelling related. No matter how many different designs I researched, this one particular design kept cropping up and I fell so in love with it. I told myself that if I was still as in love with it by the time I turned 18 then that would be the one I'd get. Anyway, my 18th birthday came and I can remember really wanting to get my first tattoo. My younger self was probably screaming 'wait until you're a bit older etc' but I knew in my heart that this was the one (sounds like I'd found my perfect wedding dress, yikes!). Deciding where on my body to get the tattoo took no time at all because ever since deciding on the design, I'd imagined it on my right ankle and I thought that would be the perfect place because I could show it off but equally cover it up if need be. Now, I'm quite a spontaneous person which can be quite dangerous because a few days before I went to book the tattoo, I'd fallen in love with another one. This one was much smaller but very simple and cute and I could picture myself getting it on my left wrist. I thought about it (a lot) and decided to book them both to get done on the same day. I knew I could always cancel if I started having doubts but as the day approached, it only made me more excited to get them both done!

The day came and the nerves were definitely starting to kick in now. I hadn't thought much about how painful it was going to be. All I kept telling myself was that it was going to be worth it. I arrived for my appointment and the tattoo artist was SO LOVELY which is super important because you're trusting this person to give you a tattoo that you'll have for the rest of your life. But he was so chatty which took my mind off it. He wanted to do the bigger one on my ankle first which I thought was a good idea because I knew that would hurt the most. He then did the template just so I could check in the mirror if it was in the right place etc and as soon as I saw it, I knew I'd made the right decision. I lay down on this bed and tried so hard to keep still. I've got a habit of flinching when I'm meant to keep still and the whole time I was there I was so nervous that I was going to accidentally kick him in the face and the tattoo would go completely wrong! Luckily, I only flinched once so it was all good. I won't lie and say it wasn't painful because it was but it's such a weird sensation. It's like having lots of painful bee stings only much weirder because I could feel the needle the whole time but it didn't freak me out?? That was such a bad description but you do get used to it and if you have a fear of needles but really want a tattoo, don't let that stop you! The tattoo artists, I mean it depends where you go, but they are so lovely and will help take your mind off the whole thing. It'll be over before you know it and plus just don't look at the tattoo being done and close your eyes. I watched the whole thing being done (when I wasn't trying to keep extra still) and I loved it but not everyone will want to do that. The only bit that was almost too painful to bare was when the tattoo artist was just above my ankle bone. Oh my god, that was agony and my eyes started to water so much but I just asked him to keep going to get it over with! It took around 30 minutes to do the one on my ankle and I'm so happy with it! I got to look in the mirror before he started on the tattoo on my wrist and I knew I'd made the right decision. I loved it SO MUCH and if it's possible, I love it even more now! The one on my wrist one only took around 10 minutes but I'm so glad I decided to get them done at the same time! I've definitely destroyed any fear I had of getting a tattoo and I'd happily get another one in the future. The week after I had them done, they were quite sore but I wrapped them in clingfilm and put the recommended cream on to make sure they didn't get infected. 

This tattoo is similar to a compass than runs through the world map. There were so many different versions of this design but I still ended up changing the design a little before showing the people in the tattoo shop. Originally there was a little plane which I loved but I wasn't 100% sure about it.)

This one is pretty self explanatory. It's a little Creasant moon and I'd always wanted something like this on my wrist.

I honestly have so much love for them both. I remember saying after having them done that they're like my children (don't laugh, hahaha). I'm just very protective over them and even though there is quite a big difference in size, I love them equally and I'm so proud of myself for going through with it. There isn't a super sentimental story behind why I got them other than the fact that like I said earlier, I adore travelling and I love adventure. It's a big part of who I am and I'm glad I now have something to represent my love for that. 

As always, I hope you enjoyed this. If you've got a tattoo, I'd love to see it so send me a DM on Twitter (@astudyintennant). Also, if you're thinking about getting a tattoo and you've got any questions then please just ask me! I'm definitely not an expert but I might be able to help.

Lots of love,

Meg X