Hi everyone!

 I have been getting lovely comments about my skin recently and thought I would share my skincare secrets with you. First secret.... there is no secret! Haha. It's probably all that lovely vitamin D I got off holiday :oP. To be fair I am quite lucky, in that I have never really had problematic skin. I would class my skin as normal to dry, combination skin. So occasionally I can get a bit oily in my T- zone, but never too much.

Today's look is natural. Still working my tan from holiday! 😄😄 #bbloggers #bblogger #bbloggersuk #beauty #beautyblogger #makeupartistbirmingham #mua #muabirmingham #naturalmakeup #fresh #spring #springbeauty #highlight #highlightandcontour #contour #contouring #vibes #saturday #weekendvibes #weekend #birmingham #birminghamuk #nofilter

A photo posted by Amina Ali (@aminaali_mua) on Apr 16, 2016 at 4:42am PDT

My skincare routine starts with me washing my face in the morning with water. That's right, just WATER, nothing else! This might be a shock to some and quite normal to others, but I prefer to just cleanse my face with water every morning and exfoliate twice a week.

Once I have done this I then apply my Lacura Renew, anti-wrinkle, daily face cream with Q10. Which is a whopping £3.49 from Aldi! Yes, you read right - Aldi! Lacura have award winning products and I can absolutely say I love this cream. It is just perfect for me, not too greasy and not too absorbent. It is just want I'm looking for. Plus the anti-wrinkle and SP15 are both a bonus. As I am getting older (27 now) I am buying more anti-wrinkle products. We age much quicker than we used to because of all the pollution in the air, so I advise you to start thinking about it much earlier. I have also recently purchased some anti-wrinkle products from Avon and once I have tested these out will be posting, so watch this space.


If I am going to be applying my everyday makeup, I then apply Olay anti-wrinkle firm and lift hydration primer (£9.99) I love this product because it has a 2-in-1 purpose. It hydrates your skin, as well as priming it ready for makeup, leaving your skin feeling soft. I then apply my makeup as usual.




Before I sleep I usually remove my makeup with a makeup cleanser and wash my face again. Once it is washed and dry, I then apply Lacura face treatment oil (£3.99) from Aldi. Now you might ask why do I need a facial oil if my skin is normal to dry. Well the fact is oily skin ages much slower than dry skin. Take my eldest sister, for example, she has oily skin and out of all four sisters she is always mistaken for being the youngest! So, any oil that nourishes the skin is good. I have also heard facial oils can be good for oily skin as the oil on top of oil can cause a counterbalance, but don't quote me on this. After using this product for two months I can definitely say I am hooked. I apply a few drops, warm it through my hands, and apply all over the face before I sleep. When I wake, my skin has absorbed the oil and my skin is left feeling youthful.



And that is it. Quite simple, but effective. Do you have any skincare secrets? Sharing is caring, as they say! I would love to hear any tips.

Amina xx

As I mentioned in my last post I have just returned to Birmingham from Ayia Napa, Cyprus. It was fab! Sun, Sea and much needed relaxation time (even with the kids)!

 It has taken me a long time to pluck up the courage to go abroad with the children, my eldest (Bubbles) being two and a half and youngest (Choochi) just over one. I haven't been on holiday in 3 years!!!! The last time was when I was pregnant with Bubbles. 

I have always been so worried about the kids being too much of a handful, what with travelling through airports and on planes. But I am so happy to say that everything went much better than I thought and we actually had a great holiday. The best actually.

I thought I would write a post for all those parents who are in the same situation as me and give you some travelling tips!

When booking a holiday obviously the first thing you think about is location. We thought long and hard about where we wanted to go. I know there are a lot of braver parents out there that take their kids back packing (my husband would probably love to do that), but I wanted somewhere relaxing where we could just chill, and wouldn't have to travel around too much. That said, it's important to keep the kids occupied, so we made sure our hotel was child friendly. The Atlantica Sun Garden hotel had a children's outdoor and indoor play area, a toddler pool that was shaded, and was 300 metres from the beach, which was perfect, as when we weren't in our room or outside the resort, they still had plenty to do. I would definitely visit again!

I am going to start with the logistics of actually travelling with two children under three. Luckily Choochi had just started to walk properly a few weeks before we departed. Even so we still needed the pushchair for when she got tired. The company we flew with allow you extra allowance for things like pushchairs and carseats. So make use of this, especially if you are hiring a car, as then there is no need to pay extra to hire them. Because Choochi is still light enough to fit in the papoose we also took this with us. This was great for when we needed our hands free, i.e when handing over boarding passes and passports or when having to walk for miles to the boarding gate. Although, to be completely honest, at times both children refused to go in the push chair or papoose which left us holding them aswell as pushing the pushchair. Luckily the ratio was one adult to one child! 

Now, when it comes to food, I always take snacks with me. In general, you never know when something may happen or you may get stranded. So like most people I don't travel light. Of course you can buy things at the airport and on the plane, if you don't mind the hefty price. 

The travelling days are long. We were at the airport for 7am and didn't get to the hotel in Cyprus until 4pm.  At home, my children will usually have a couple of snacks and lunch during this time, so I accounted for this. However when children are bored, they tend to eat more. I also took some sort of sweet for them to chew or suck on, on the plane. Choochi was fine as she had her dummy. 

When it comes to liquids, remember to empty your child's beaker before you go through security. This can then be refilled once you get through. It's also a good idea to check the security policies of the country you are flying to as when traveling back Cyprus did not have the same rules about liquids so we were allowed to have them pre filled.

I also packed snacks in the checked in luggage, to keep in our hotel room, which my husband couldn't seem to understand as we were 'all inclusive', but you just never know!

The part I was most worried about was the flight. I knew once we arrived at the hotel, the actual holiday would be great, but the thought of the flight gave me the most anxiety. Especially with it being over four and a half hours. We flew with a budget airline, and there was no in flight entertainment. So we took our own entertainment: a tablet with pre downloaded films and headphones, colouring book and crayons, books to read, and small toys. This practically took up a whole hand luggage allowance, but it was well worth it.

At times I could see myself over thinking situations and getting carried away but then my husband reminded me to chill out! So all I can do is reiterate this. Relax! You deserve this holiday and are entitled to have some chill out time so make the most of it. Also, just take everything in your stride. If something out of the ordinary happens you will deal with it when it does.

This post is dedicated to both my children on their 1st birthdays. Bubbles is two and a half and Choochi is about to turn one, which has brought about these mixed emotions all over again.

Happy 1st birthday! I am so proud to call you my baby! But that's just it. You are not a baby at all anymore. It sounds silly, as you are only one, but my how you've grown. From the first day I set eyes on you, I knew you were special. An angel even. A gift from God. And over this year, the miracles I have seen you perform still put a smile on my face. From your first tooth, to watching you crawl, you fill my heart with warmth. You do not even know how much joy you bring to our lives, but maybe that's the beauty of it.

No longer a baby, you grow in confidence everyday. Exploring, doing and being you. You are perfect, so please don't change. As you grow, I hope you feel secure, happy and know deep down that no matter what, you will always have me. I hope your life is blessed as you have blessed mine.

And now, even though I am bursting with happiness and pride, I feel a sadness too. Sad that soon I will no longer spend this time with you, sad that there will be a day where you no longer need me. But I can look back and know I've done my best. I look forward to what this next year brings. More milestones, and happiness, I know. I love you!

One

To my angels, I love you so.

How much? You will never know.

Through it all, good times and bad,

You're the greatest achievements I ever had.

On turning one, well done you did it!

Teething, sitting, crawling, I can't believe it!

Here's to the next year, I can't wait.

I'm sure you won't fail to surprise me, it's in your fate. 

Now to the future, proud I know I'll be.

Whatever you do, it's meant to be.

Never too far, I'll watch you grow,

To my angels, I love you so.

Lots of love, your Mummy XX