April reflections, highlights and favourites

Heyy there everyone – How are you today? 

Today’s post is another monthly reflection just because I’ve had such fun doing them. I really plan to turn it into a regular (well… monthly) thing. April has certainly had its ups and downs. I’ve had some holiday from uni, which is always great, but also tons of other work and things to get done, so was it really a holiday? Hmmm …. Not really, but oh well. 

I’ve spent most of April, from after Easter exactly, doing research for university work, as well as working my one job remotely for my university, and my job at a hospital here, so between all of those hours, I think I might be more tired now than I was at the end of the term… if that’s possible. Thankfully, with the end of April also comes the knowledge that I will be finished all of my assignments for this academic year in just three weeks, and that is always something to celebrate, so yayyy!! But before I get distracted, let me get right into my favourites and highlights for this month! 

Favourite book – A life on our planet (by David Attenborough) 

As soon as I heard that this was coming out, I knew that I had to read it. For years, I have always adored David Attenborough’s work. His documentaries were such a highlight when I was growing up. As I’ve gotten older, my appreciation for the work he does has grown exponentially, especially because of how much effort he has put into highlighting the importance of wildlife conservation and the need for climate change. 

This book, I won’t lie to you, is heartbreaking. It is beautiful to hear of his story, but the way he highlights how much of a detrimental position humanity has put itself in, it brought tears to my eyes. It is terrifying to have all the selfish problems we have caused put into words by someone who has spent their life documenting the wild we should be preserving. This book is a must-read for everyone – it doesn’t matter if you are passionate about conservation or not because the issues and solutions he gives to us are more than relevant. They are essential for us to understand and start implementing. He gives us hope for the future so that we can stop before we add the last straw to the camel’s back and send ourselves into an unpreventable period filled with natural disasters, death and the extinction of humanity. But we won’t be able to do all of this if we don’t all start rallying together and put pressure on people in power to start implementing these changes on a massive scale. So please go read this book! You won’t regret it – then come back so we can talk about the next step together 🙂 

Favourite film – Holidate (Netflix) 

Ever since going to movie theatres became a thing of the pre-covid world, Netflix has definitely become people’s main source of entertainment and location to watch new films. After all, it’s not like we can just pop into a cinema to check out the latest blockbuster anymore. So, as I was scrolling through Netflix trying to find something to watch, I stumbled upon this little film. 

This is such a funny movie. The concept of having a date for the holidays and all the stress around that and turning it into a film was great because the truth is there is a lot of pressure. For anyone looking for a not so classic rom-com, this is definitely an excellent movie to watch on your next film night. Emma Roberts is great; the humour is absolutely fantastic (I could definitely relate to drowning sorrows in food, particularly chocolate). The only thing is this movie can be quite inappropriate at times, so if this isn’t your thing, you may want to give this film a miss. 

Favourite moment – seeing a honey badger in the wild 

As a proud and loyal Hufflepuff, I’ve always loved honey badgers. I know that they’re pretty aggressive animals, but I still love them. Plus, I’ve never seen them in the wild before or even in a zoo or conservation site. Literally, the only honey badgers I have ever seen are ones on google and on all of my Hufflepuff merchandise. So, as you can imagine, the idea of seeing one in the wild has always been a massive dream for me, and this month it finally came true! When I was in the bush with my boyfriend, we were lucky enough to see not one but two honey badgers, so honestly, my greatest dreams have come true. I am happy! 

What are some animals that you would love to see in the wild? Let me know in the comments section xx

Favourite recipe – vegetarian enchiladas 

Part of my April eco-challenge included eating less meat. So obviously, I needed to do some research into finding vegetarian recipes that I could convince my brothers to enjoy. I’ve always loved veggies, but I don’t have so many that I know well in terms of actual vegetarian meals, so experimenting with recipes I enjoyed was a great part of this month. My new favourite dinner recipe emerged – vegetarian enchiladas! Sadly I don’t have any pictures of these, but the enchiladas were filled with roasted pumpkin, sweet potato and tomatoes, as well as chickpeas and cannellini beans. We topped them all in a homemade enchilada/chipotle sauce and some mozzarella, and let me tell you, I could eat those things until I become a big round ball of deliciousness. Seriously they were so good, and if anyone wants the recipe, let me know, and then I can share it here in a post! 

April Eco-challenge reflection 

So this month, I made several small commitments that I wanted to try out. These included opting out of buying takeaway coffees and instead putting that money aside to donate to WWF, collecting recyclable litter to take to centres, and obviously eating more veggies and adopting a more plant-based diet. If you want to read more about these and some excellent eco-friendly tips you can use in your daily life, you can check out that blog post here. 

When it comes to putting money aside that I would use on takeaway coffees, I would say I’ve only been mildly successful. Sadly I don’t go out too much so I usually just make my tea at home or work. Another issue is that I don’t eat a lot during my workday, so if I do get a takeaway chai, that usually ends up being enough calories to get me until dinner. So I’ve sort of been dancing between never getting and needing to get, but I have saved about 4 cups of tea’s worth of money for WWF – I’m hoping to increase that when I get back to the UK. Collecting recyclable litter hasn’t been easy because I don’t get out much, but it has been going well at the hospital, and in terms of having a more plant-based diet, I have loved it! Honestly, as much as I love meat, and I do, it hasn’t been too hard to have a more plant-based diet. I loved all of my vegetarian recipes, and I felt healthier. I really did. So I definitely plan on carrying all of these habits forward, particularly the plant-based diet. 

Now the last thing before I sign off for today, two of my friends at university are trying to raise money for breast cancer support. Their goal is to raise £1000, and they are just past £700, so they have gotten so far, but they just need a little more help to reach their goal. One of my jobs is I am the part-time receptionist/front desk manager in a breast cancer unit, and my mom is a cancer surgeon, so I am also very aware of how horrible a cancer diagnosis can be and how crucial these foundations can be in terms of supporting patients, survivors and doing research that looks at improving cancer treatment and looking for a cure. If you can, any small amount is appreciated, so if it isn’t too much trouble, please go check out and support their fundraising page by clicking here. 

And that’s all I have for today, everyone. What were your favourite moments this month? Any that stick out, or how about any challenges you faced this month? How did you get past them? Let’s chat in the comments section! Also, if anyone has any ideas for what eco-challenge I should try next month, let me know! 

Lots of Love

Blondey on a Mission xxx