Which filofax should I use for my Frugal is Fabulous Challenge? A poll.

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Lovelies I have a quick question for you. I am currently undecided as to which filofax I should use for the 'Frugal is Fabulous' challenge (I don't have any pretty notebooks). I am leaning towards using my A5 Happiness Project Filofax as I have a lot of space left in that and it is nice and big enough to write comfortably. 

However I have so many personal filofaxes that are not in use. I could potentially use my Personal Chameleon filofax or my Personal Pink Finsbury as two other options. However it is so much more difficult to write notes in personal sized filofaxes and the rings will probably get in the way.

So will you be kind enough to help me by leaving a comment on which you think is best or voting in the poll which is at the top of the right sidebar?

Thanks in advance. And look out for Day 1 of the Frugal is Fabulous challenge tomorrow, the beginning of Fabulously Frugal Fridays (FFF). I hope you have been able to complete Day 0 :-)

Frugal is Fabulous Challenge Day 0: Hints,tips and getting organised

This is Day 0 of the Frugal is Fabulous Challenge. Read the official launch post to get started. Or check out the Fabulously Frugal page. Relevant tweets will have the #fabfrugal hashtag and don't forget to check out the associated facebook page for even more discussion.

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Hello everyone! This is the post before the challenge actually starts! Hence the Day 0. I have always dreamed of having a Day 0 post! Doesn't it sound important? And yes I am very easily pleased! ;-) Anyways I just wanted to share some pre-work, including hints and tips before we get started on the real deal. Are you excited? I know I definitely am! Here we go.....


1. Commitment is key!
Now in order for all of us to get the most out of this challenge, we all need to be committed. I know you guys are busy. I am busy too. That is one of the reasons there is so much flexibility in the challenge; so that you can move at your own pace. However I will commit by posting an article on this topic at least every 1-2 weeks, usually on Fridays to create Fabulously Frugal Fridays (FFF). All relevant posts will be clearly labelled and tagged with the label Frugal is Fabulous. They will also be found via the Fabulously Frugal category button and page. If you are planning on doing this challenge I would recommend setting aside at least half an hour (or more) to work through each post.


2. Get organised
This is another fun bit! I recommend getting a pretty little notebook or moleskine or FILOFAX (wait you knew that was coming didn't you) to work through the challenge. It will be your fabfrugal journal! Please note that I AM NOT ADVOCATING that you buy something new. In the spirit of this challenge you should use something that you already own. You can incorporate it into your daily planner or keep it separate. Decorate It. Make it look nice. Just be sure that it is something that you would like to use! :-)


3. Pre-reading
Some of you may have already read the following posts. If you have done so that is great! If not then please do so as they will provide the context for the challenge.
♥ Cents and Sensibility
♥ More money, more problems, and a no shopping challenge
♥ Introducing.... The Caribbean Princess No Shopping Detox Challenge


4. Create your vision

"A vision is not just a picture of what could be; it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to become something more."- Rosabeth Moss Kanter.

The only person who will fully know and understand your true goals is you. Ask yourself these questions

-Why am I doing this challenge?
-What do I want to get out of this challenge?

Write down your answers in your 'fabfrugal' journal. Or write them in your blog if you have one! Good examples of other lovely bloggers doing the challenge are

♥ CP's No Shopping Challenge- Modern Musings did a fabulous blog post
♥ Sharon's Eating Less and Shopping Less Challenge- Sharon created a wonderful new blog just for this!
♥ CP's No Shopping Challenge- Deligted.com has also joined in the challenge.


5. Make your official declaration for the challenge
You may also need to set the exceptions (things that you are allowed to purchase) as I did in the 'More Money, More problems' post.  


Here is my official declaration again.

'From Friday 1st July to Wednesday 30th November 2011, I Caribbean Princess, will not make extraneous and unnecessary purchases, particularly of handbags and filofaxes.'

And continued here

 'I will appreciate the things that I already own and remind myself that there are many people in the world who are not as fortunate as I am. Material things do not bring happiness.'

OK so I think that is more than enough to start working on. Please feel free to share your vision for the challenge and your official declaration in the comments section. As a filofax addict I am quite keen to find out what you will be using as your fabfrugal journal. Feel free to link if you also have a blog. And of course, grab the official challenge blog button! I look forward to reading what you have to say!

There will be regular posts before Day 1 of the Challenge which will be posted on Fabulously Frugal Friday!

Have a great day!

This is Day 0 of the Frugal is Fabulous Challenge. Read the official launch post to get started. Or check out the Fabulously Frugal page. Relevant tweets will have the #fabfrugal hashtag and don't forget to check out the associated facebook page for even more discussion.

Introducing CP's No Shopping Detox Challenge: Frugal is Fabulous!

Lovelies, the day has come! Welcome to the official launch post of my No Shopping Detox Challenge. Now the official title as stated in the image is a bit of a mouthful (if I do say so myself, can you tell that I am an academic?) But this challenge is important. And so it deserves a name of regal proportions. It probably also deserves its own Trooping the Colour Parade but the Royal family is cutting back (that wedding was soooooo expensive!)  Anyways for the sake of your sanity (and mine, as I am the one who will have to type the damn thing) let's just call it the Frugal is Fabulous Challenge, shall we? Agreed? OK. Let's move on.


The Frugal is Fabulous Challenge
Some of you may be wondering what the Frugal is Fabulous Challenge is all about and why I decided to start it (and if you weren't I plan on telling you anyway). I will be the first to admit that I LOVE TO SHOP! I have a penchant for pretty things, in particular filofaxes and handbags (although I can't really afford designer fare on my NHS salary). I am not in debt (except for my mortgage). I save. I pay off my credit cards monthly. I don't live beyond my means. However recently I have started thinking about my spending habits. I have been questioning myself about why I seem to need to spend, spend, spend. After all, I consider myself to be a happy person generally. And I know that more money and more stuff are highly unlikely to make me any happier. I have plenty of things that I can enjoy.  Which leads me to this question......


'Is it really necessary for me to buy and own more stuff?' 


The simple answer is 'No.' 


But when it comes to shopping all rationale goes out the window. I am lured by the thrill of the new purchase, the excitement of unwrapping something that I have bought with my own hard earned money. So my dears, I recognise that I am weak. And in order for me to successfully establish a healthier relationship with money and develop a better approach to spending, I WILL NEED HELP. So this challenge is for me as much as it is for you. Because there is strength in numbers. And if the statistics on average personal debt are anything to go by, we can ALL benefit from managing our money better.


What's in it for you?
♥ A better understanding of money and budgeting
♥ Wiser spending of your hard earned cash (focus on quality not quantity)
♥ Money saving tips
♥ Money and happiness
♥ Priority and goal setting 
♥ Staying motivated
♥ Money confidence
♥ Group support to be fabulously frugal. If you are already fabulous and frugal please feel free to join in and help us! The more the merrier!
♥ Fun!!
♥ Flexibility. Although I will start the challenge on July 1st you can follow along at your own speed. 
♥ It is free! This is one of the few times where the phrase 'cheap things not good and good things not cheap' DOES NOT APPLY! Yay!!
      
And loads more!


What should you do next?
1. Roll call. If you want to participate please leave a comment on this post.
2. Get connected. To ensure that you don't miss any relevant posts, subscribe and follow me via google connect, email, facebook, or twitter. 
3. Join the specially dedicated facebook group.This will be your link to other lovely readers. The facebook group can be found here. It will be administered by @imysworld and @skhen. 
4. Add the official badge to your website (if you have one). Shout it out that you are frugal and fabulous and participating in this challenge. The badge and code can be found on the right sidebar. Copy the code and paste into your blog.
5. Spread the word! Tell all your friends and family about it so they can join too.


Please note that
♥ All related tweets will be labelled #fabfrugal. If you would like to share any articles please use the hashtag #fabfrugal as well.

♥ There is a new category button on the right sidebar called 'Fabulously Frugal'. All related posts will also be included on that page, as well as in the main blog. 

♥  There will be two more posts dedicated to the challenge this week, Day 0 - Pre-challenge reading and Day 1- 'Budgeting for yummies'. After that relevant articles will be posted every 1-2 weeks. 


Have a great day lovely people. Don't forget to comment and follow me if you are interested in participating in the challenge :-)

Inspirational quotes: When you want something.......

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Have a great day lovelies! Please note that the official launch post for the no shopping challenge is coming up tomorrow! Are you excited? I am!

Her Royal Highness recommends 24/6/11

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Hello wonderful people. I have some great posts to share with you this week! So without further ado.....

♥ I love reading Zen Habits. And I am sure you do too as he is very inspiring. This post on How to be a positive person, in less than 300 words is short and sweet and well worth reading again.
 
♥ Are you the master (or mistress) of your time? Or are you its unwilling servant? Lately I have found myself so caught up in my work that the time just melts away. Angeliki's post on Dissolving time was so relevant. She gives 5 tips on how to master your time and 7 on finding your flow.

♥ I have been reading and enjoying Gretchen Rubin's The Happiness Project. I also have my own lovely filofax which is devoted to this! Here is one of my favourite articles from her blog- 'Ten tips for being happier.'

♥ To go with the happiness theme, I would also like to share two of my older posts for new readers who may have missed them initially. They are 'In pursuit of Happiness' part one and part two. 

♥ Here is another post from Angeliki which I managed to miss previously. It is a folk story called 'And they lived happily ever after'. Do you enjoy your treasures as they are? Or will you be like the servant in the story? You need to read it!

♥ Do you carry a monkey on your shoulder? Or accept monkeys from other people? If you have no idea what I am talking about then read this post on Collecting Monkeys by Cupcakes and Cadenzas. Trust me it is eye opening!

♥ I love fashion and although I stopped reading fashion magazines several years ago I read an increasing number of fashion blogs. Why? Because I want to read about style from real women whether they are young, old, black, white, Asian, of all sizes and shapes. I did not want to be bombarded by images of size zero models or feel that there is only one ideal type of beauty which if I am honest never includes an Afro-Caribbean woman with large hips and bum! Gala Darling's three part series where she talks about body pressure in the blogosphere is definitely worth reading even if you are only mildly interested in fashion.

♥ Have you seen the sneak peak Vlog for my no shopping challenge? No? Well then you MUST click here!

Ok that's it for me folks! I am in London for a conference today but don't worry I won't be heading to Oxford Circus any time afterwards. The No Shop Challenge will be launched this Sunday 26th June 2011 :-) I am very excited!

Have a wonderful day!

       

Sneak preview: The 'No Shopping' Challenge Vlog

Hello everyone

Today I am sooooooooooooooooooooo excited to share my first ever Vlog (video log) on this blog. There is a catch though! It wasn't done by me but by the lovely Imy of Imysworld YouTube fame (she also has a lovely blog here).

Anyways this amazing video is your sneak peek into the wondeful no shopping challenge that will be officially launched this Sunday 26th June 2011.

So lovelies without further ado, let's move on to the video. Lights, camera, action!

You may have noticed that the blog button for the challenge is now available (see the right sidebar). There is also a new category page, but more about that on Sunday.

Have a wonderful day! Look out for my web finds post tomorrow! :-)

My Happiness Project Filofax :-)

Happy Tuesday lovelies!


Today I want to share with you what should be my last filofax purchase for many months to come (due to my no shop challenge which I will be launching this Sunday)! I managed to get this stunner from Ryman stationers for a steal of a deal at only £20. And better yet it only cost me £10 as I already had money on my Pay Pal account.  


To be honest, I had been craving an aqua filofax long before I featured Vicky's vivacious personal finsbury. However I DID NOT NEED ANOTHER PERSONAL OR POCKET FILOFAX. So I resisted and didn't get one. Alas I soon realised that the personal and pocket filofaxes were too small for me to make notes in comfortably. It was obvious, I needed an A5 or bigger for the happiness project. So I went on ahead and got this. And I am delighted. The colour is beautiful and bright! It really is a happy filofax! And just looking at its vibrant colour makes me grin!


So here are some photos of its current set up (you can click on the photos to enlarge)

As I said the colour is stunning!

I decorated it with stickers and smileys from my Scrapbooking stash. 

I try to write down things that make me happy every day.

I plan on making notes from each section of the book.

I have started with the section on work- Aim higher.

I am not too certain how I should use the notepad. 

Back cover. 

Matches with the Happiness Project book. 

DH got me these pens from the grocery. 

Ok so this filofax is still a work in progress. I want to incorporate the stuff from my pocket inspiration Metropol filofax which is simply too small. So I will be certain to do some more blog posts in the future. I also plan on sharing some of the notes I make from each chapter of the book so you should look out for those posts as well. And just to spoil you guys I will do a book review at some point.

That's it for now lovelies. Please share in the comments what you think of my happiness project filofax. 

If you want to buy the book you can get it here

Have a great day!

On fathers: 10 things I love about my Dad

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" You are not a man because you can make a baby

  You're only a man if you can raise a baby, protect a baby and     

  provide for a baby." Jesse Jackson - American civil rights leader and Baptist minister.

    
So today is Fathers day. Which unlike Mothers day seems to be celebrated all over the world at the same time! Many stereotypes abound about the negligence of black fathers.  In 2008, Barack Obama caused controversy by openly rebuking absentee black dads. And I am not so naive to say that the stereotype is a lie in its entirety; it does accurately describe some black men. Although I must note that the problem of absentee fathers is not limited to any particular race. 

But today and this post are NOT about that. Why ? Because today I want to celebrate those men who have been good fathers to their children. The men who have been there, through the thick and the thin. My Dad is one of those men, although he never knew his own father (who died from cancer when he was only three). I wouldn't have become the person I am today without my Dad (and my Mum who should get her own post next year! hehe). I am not saying that my father is perfect (do you know anyone who is)? But to honour him I just wanted to put together a list of the 10 things that I love about my Dad (this is the last list post for a while I promise).


♥ He is a true family man. I am proud to say with absolute certainty that every penny that my Dad has earned in his life has gone into his large family (I have five siblings). I remember when my Mum used to go to Venezuela to shop (as things were much cheaper there than in Trinidad) that he would go without new clothes or shoes and tell my Mum to focus on buying stuff for us. He never spent his money on unhealthy addictions either. My Dad was always devoted to my mum (they have been married 43 years) and devoted to his family.


♥ He tells really stale jokes. Dad's jokes are just plain awful. But that does not stop him from sharing them over and over and over again. I would give an example but they are really bad. Trust me on that one.


♥ He buys me what I want to eat! This may seem vacuous but my Dad knows that I love to eat and that I like yummy stuff. Whenever I go back home he makes sure that I get to eat ALL of the treats that I like. Even if I then decide I won't share any of them with him! Or anyone else for that matter. haha!  Disclaimer -I do feel a tad bit guilty about saying no to my cute little nieces so I tend to leave the room!


♥ He is passionate. Dad is a very passionate man. Unfortunately for my Mum his passion is football! MY. DAD. LOVES. FOOTBALL. He can never get enough of it and is either watching it, playing it or coaching it (post retirement from teaching he opened a coaching school). This is the only thing I don't quite get about him as I am not a huge fan of sports in general. I am simply too lazy. And I stand by the fact that PE does not mean 'Physical Education' but 'Please Excuse'.  

♥ He is his own person. My Dad is a confident person although he is just 5 ft 6' (as my mother likes to point out). He is not easily embarrassed and thinks he is the world's greatest baritone (he isn't) but that doesn't stop him from having a good time and singing oh so loudly!!!! It is sooooooo embarrassing!

♥ He is very sociable. My Dad can start up a conversation with anyone, anywhere, from any walk of life. He has a natural affability with people and is the life of any social occassion. This is definitely something I got from him although I think I am much more subdued (except at Philofaxy meetups).

♥ He is intelligent. My Dad can talk about anything. Although when I was younger my Mum took more of a lead for encouraging education, my Dad is the one with whom I usually discuss my research now. He has read and continues to read extensively. He was one of the first people in his town to attend university. And he got this on a government scholarship. He could have easily been a doctor or a professor of Biology and although my Mum will probably kill me for saying this, I think I also inherited that talent from him. Don't worry Mum, I got my ambition from you! :-)

♥ He always does the food shopping although he cannot cook to save his life. I grew up thinking that it was customary for fathers to go to the grocery or the market ALL OF THE TIME. Until high school I really thought it was something men had to do until friends told me differently. Anyways grocery shopping is the only shopping I HATE WITH A VENGEANCE. So it is a job that my poor DH gets stuck with mostly although I will accompany him on rare occassions almost never.

♥ He taught his daughters to be free thinkers, to stand up for themselves and not to accept nonsense from anyone, in particular men. This also means that he now has to deal with a bunch of very opinionated women. Maybe he regrets this now. Haha.

BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY

♥ He showed me what it is to be a 'good' man. No one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. However I know that I was very lucky to have my father as a role model. It is one of the reasons that I was single for so long as I had extremely high standards as to what I wanted in a 'signifcant other'. I could immediately see through smooth talkers or free loaders. And I quickly kicked them to the curb without a second glance. My Dad showed me what a 'good' man should be. And because of that I was able to marry one.  

I would like to wish all wonderful dads a Happy Fathers Day. Please share in the comments if you were also lucky enough to have a great father or father figure. And why they are or were so very special to you.

Take care lovelies.........  I have a filofax post coming up soon! 

Arriving at my wedding ceremony in style :-)

Inspirational quotes: One of a Kind

 I just wanted to share this poem with you today.

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Enjoy your day!

Six reasons why.......I am smiling today!

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Lovely people, I have just realised that it has been more than a month since I did one of these posts! There have been lots of things making me smile in that time so this post is long overdue! Here are the six wonderful reasons that I am smiling today. I hope you enjoy them!

♥ My PhD. I am finally doing this full time so I no longer have to fit it in around my previous public health job. Yay! I have a lot to learn and the learning curve is steep but I am enjoying the thrill of stretching my brain to the limit. Some days I am so engrossed in what I am doing that 5 pm arrives and I have to scramble to catch my bus to get to the train on time! I AM LOVING IT! It is something I always wanted to do! It really is my passion.

♥ Teaching. I had my first ever tutorial group for epidemiology last year where I was responsible for 13 first year medical students. I was very pleased to know that my epi 'babies' were the highest performing group in that subject in their end of year exams. They gave me great feedback too. :-) 

♥ Reading the Happiness Project. I joined a lovely little facebook group based on Gretchen Rubins' The Happiness Project. The book cost me nothing as I still have the Waterstone's gift card I won for best poster and abstract at a conference last year. I am in no rush to read it in its entirety. However I have decided to start with the chapters for March- Aim Higher and July- Buy some happiness. I even have a lovely new A5 filofax that I am using for the project (using the last of my 'treat' money for June before I start the big no shopping challenge!) I hope to share pictures of this soon!


♥ Skype. I can't believe that I only started using Skype late last year. It really is the best thing since sliced bread! I use video skype with my parents in Trinidad and it makes me feel as though they are with me. It brings me so much joy to see their faces when I am talking to them :-) Last week I chatted with my oldest niece and it was great to hear her little voice. There is also a great Philofaxy Skype group which I would recommend joining if you are a fan of filofaxes like me!

♥ The response to the proposed no shopping challenge! I am so overwhelmed by the enthusiasm you guys have shown for this challenge based on my money themed 30 days of truth posts. I am working on creating something fabulous ;-) so look out for the official launch post on the last Sunday in June. 

♥ You guys. In the last few weeks I have received lovely, supportive emails from several of you which have really touched me. I really enjoy blogging and connecting with people and building a community are just a couple of the reasons why I blog (you can read all in these two posts). I don't want to sound cheesy (heck I am cheesy! hehe) but blogging and connecting with you all has really changed my life for the better. I hope that my writing has positively impacted on yours too.

So wonderful people, is there anything in your life that has been making you smile lately? Or anyone that deserves a special 'shout out' for some act of kindness or generosity? Please share in the comments and as usual.......

Have a marvellous day!  

P.S. I just wanted to mention one of my lovely readers who I know will definitely be smiling today! I would like to congratulate Alannarama on her well deserved success in her final year medical exams :-)  Well done Dr Alannarama!    

16 reasons why I blog (part two) :-)

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Ok so this is part two of my post on the 16 reasons why I blog (for part one click here). And the image above DOES NOT APPLY to me! But it made me laugh. So I decided to share it. Here are the final eight reasons why I blog...

 8. To share my thoughts

I am a very thoughtful person. I spend a lot of time thinking about bigger issues such as the world, the way it works, how to make it better, poverty, health, people, but I can be equally as obsessive about less serious things such as fashion. I really believe that we could all make the world a better place. I would not commit to writing in a personal journal (and my handwriting sucks). However blogging allows me to share my thoughts more widely. I also like to educate about topics I am passionate about, like public and mental health.

7. To learn from others

I really enjoy posting my 30 days of truth posts and gauging your ideas on a wide range of topics. Also since so many of you are bloggers yourselves I end up learning a lot from you too!

6. For personal growth

I honestly believe that blogging has made me a better person. I am open and honest in my posts which requires me to take a good, long, hard look at myself and who I really am as well as what I stand for. A lot of emotion goes into my posts and I have actually cried when writing some of them.

5. To create my personal journal

For some reason I find it difficult to commit to a personal diary. However I have totally committed to this blog. Maybe it is because I know that you guys will be tuning in so it gives me the energy to actually get it done. It is much harder for me to want to disappoint you by not posting.

4. To relieve stress

I love my work. But like any job it is stressful and I put myself under pressure to perform. As they say in academia, 'publish or perish'. So I need something a bit lighter as I am too young to suffer burnout! And I have seen it happen to many fellow doctors. I want to continue to be passionate about what I do.

3. It is so much fun

Let's face it. Blogging is hard work. But it is so much fun! I really enjoy writing and exploring the creative aspects of my personality.

2. It is extremely versatile

I am a lazy person and blogging can be done from anywhere. I don't even have to get dressed. Most times I am not....... really! haha. Too much information!

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And last but not least!

1. To represent who I am
The main reason I started this blog was to show the different aspects of my personality. I felt that too often women were being pigeonholed into very narrrow categories. I was also a bit tired of the media focus on pseudo celebrities and glamour models! Surely 'accidentally' releasing a sex tape should not be your claim to fame or the route to superstardom! But sadly it is. I decided that I needed to create my own entertainment.

I also wanted to show that it is possible to be serious about having a career in academia and still be a girly girl who is interested in shoes and handbags. Why should I have to choose between being stylish or being smart? Or have my intelligence questioned because I choose to wear lipstick? This is who I am. No one said you had to like it! 

So again please feel free to share your thoughts about this post and share your blog, any favourite blogs that you read and why they are your favourites. What keeps you going back to that particular site every day?

Have a wonderful day lovely people :-)

16 reasons why I blog (part one) :-)

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So blogging has become the new black! Everyone is climbing on the bandwagon; there are mummy bloggers, fashion bloggers, lifestyle bloggers, tech bloggers, religious bloggers, niche bloggers, nicheless bloggers. Heck we even have the 'bloggers who blog about blogging' bloggers :-) It has been estimated that there are over a 100 million active blogs. So is the blogosphere overcrowded? And are there simply too many blogs out there? Maybe I should close up shop and forget this whole blogging thing, don't ya' think? 

Ok goodbye then.

PSYCH! Just kidding. I won't. At least not right now.

Here are the 16 reasons why I started this blog. For part two see here.

16. To be published 
I am an academic. Anyone who has worked in this environment will know that it takes ages to publish academic papers, sometimes as long as a year to go from first submission of your article to seeing it in print or online. I will not tell a lie. I. HAVE. NO. PATIENCE. Blogging stops me from pulling out my hair extensions and running around the place stark naked in frustration. It really does. I revel in pressing the 'publish post' button and knowing that my words of wisdom ramblings are there for the world to view immediately.

15. Cheap therapy

I read somewhere that blogging is cheap therapy. It is. And I am too cheap to pay for counselling. I would much prefer to buy a filofax, or a handbag. Don't judge me.

14. To give Dear Hubby some space
I love my husband. He is great. But I am extrovert and he is (gasp can I say it) very introverted (I will post about personality types in the future). I can exhaust him just by my normal chatter. He doesn't understand why I never seem to tire of talking. Or why I need to repeat myself. Or why I need to repeat myself (see, I told you so). Alas he needs his space so he can spend time in his head. And blogging is a solitary activity that allows me to talk to people virtually! Muhahahahahahahahaha! A win-win situation for me I think.

13. I believe I have something important to say

This may be true. Or it may not. But I am happy to live in ignorance and believe my ego. hehe. Just humour me ok ?

12. I wanted a hobby

Before medical school I had hobbies. I would play the piano (I got up to Grade 5 level), the steelpan/steeldrum and write and sing calypsos. That all went out the window due to the excessive workload of medical school, internship and residency. And I wanted to excel (it is a bad habit I have). So I focussed on exams and surviving the pressure of clinical environments. 

I have passed all my professional exams now. I got my PhD grant. I want and need to have a life. I am so proud and happy to be able to answer the question 'What do you do in your free time?' Now I can say that I have not one, but two hobbies, blogging and scrapbooking.Yay!

11. I am an accidental scientist

I always wanted to get a PhD. But in high school I loved the arts. Literature, French and History were my favourites. The only science I was super crazy about was Chemistry. But my twin hated sciences. And we needed to create our own separate worlds (we were both fed up of teachers comparing us ALL OF THE TIME which was something our parents NEVER DID). So at the age of 14 I chose to do the sciences. And to be honest I have never looked back. But I still miss the arts. Blogging allows me to tap into the writer in me.

10. To build a community
I am accustomed to being part of a community. It is the West Indian way. I come from a family where I have five siblings. I even had company in my Mum's uterus. I can feel lonely even when DH is present. Sometimes one person is just not enough. I want noise and I want chatter. I will never understand this aspect of British culture where I barely know my neighbours. It feels so strange.  So dear readers thank you for giving me a sense of community.You are wonderful. 

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9. To connect with people

When I started this blog I never believed for one minute that people would read it or that I would have visitors from over 88 different countries. It is mind bogglingly amazing. I have built and I am continuing to build friendships with so many of you all (bloggers and non bloggers) via emails, facebook, twitter and Skype. And I have been fortunate to meet some of you in person. None of this would have happened without blogging and I am extremely thankful.


Ok this post is way too long now so I have decided split it into two. Look out for the second post coming soon with the other 8 reasons!

Please share with me why you blog and if you have a blog please leave a link in the comments and say what it is about. If you are not a blogger, then leave the names of your favourite blogs (mine included hehe) and why that is the case.

Have a great day! 

To be continued...........

Blog housekeeping 11/6/11 and an update on the 'no shop' challlenge!

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Hello lovely people :-)

This is just a quick update to keep you informed of some new happenings on the blog. 

Custom Domain

Some of you may have noticed that my web link has changed and no longer includes blogspot.com. I finally bit the bullet and went for a custom domain. Finally I am simply caribbeanprincessmusings.com! I had been thinking about doing it for months but finally decided to just go fo it (after reassurance that the world wouldn't end from other lovely bloggers). The blogspot address still works so all the old links will be fine. Please let me know if you have any issues with the feed on facebook, email or twitter or if there is any issue with comments. I made the switch on Thursday and so far everything seems to be ok. 

Mobile Template

Blogger has introduced a new mobile template which I am loving enormously. It makes it so much easier to proof read my blog and read your comments on the iPhone. If you prefer the standard website and need your fill of pink prettiness then there is an option for you to return to the standard view (which you get on iPads and computers). 

The 'No shopping' Challenge

I have been really overwhelmed by the support for the recent posts on money (as part of my 30 days of truth posts). I asked for suggestions on a suitable name for the challenge and here are the suggestions

♥ The Shopping Detox for Yummies - CP
♥ CP's No Spend Challenge- CP
♥ CP's Spending Detox Challenge - Imysworld
♥ More money less shopping- Re-Psych
♥ More is less - Re-Psych
♥ The No Shop Challenge: Five months of Fabulous Frugality -Skhen.

I am loving that Skhen tweeted 'anything CP blogs about is fabulous'. Awww. Yay!
  
And for the hash tag on Twitter
♥ #noshop - CP
♥ #nospend- Imysworld
♥ #fabulousfrugality- Skhen and Aspire
♥ #fabfrugal-CP 
♥ #fabfrugality- CP

My plan is to mix and match these to come up with the final name and hashtag for the challenge. I will do an official launch post before July so be sure to look out for that. I am so excited about it all! It should be so much fun.Yay!

@Imy and @Skhen have also volunteered to administer an official facebook group where we can network and share interesting links etc. I will be in contact with them to keep them updated on the progress.

So enjoy the rest of the day :-) Tomorrow's post will be part one of my two part series on 'Why I blog'!!!