10 Travel Experiences To Get Excited About

This week, it's been a strange one but overwhelmingly I've tried to focus on the exciting things I have coming up in my life so, currently - 

*3 days until I fly to Madrid

*4 weeks and 4 days until I fly to Nice

*393 days until I depart on a cruise to the Norwegian Fjords

I very much booked all of them on a whim, Madrid because I love Spain and had already been to Barcelona, Nice because Abigail wanted to go there and speak French, and Norway, well that really was on a whim, again Abigail said book it and so I did.

I think I'm probably most excited about the Norwegian Fjords because I know very little about Norway, when we go there'll be 17 hours of daylight every day (thank goodness for an interior cabin), the temps will probably be in the mid to high teens and, yeah, I'm going to have to take a waterproof, Norway didn't get so green and verdant without all of that rain it gets!

I think it's probable for me, as someone who has bipolar to get through the bad days, the sad days, the up and down crap days by focusing on the promise of travel, I love my job and the work that I do and I know I have trips just around the corner, this year I've averaged 1 trip a month and I hope that will continue.  Hopefully by Christmas I'll have the cruise paid for and the best part about cruising is that you don't need a lot of spending money because literally everything is paid for on board, my last cruise with NCL, I think I only spent a couple of hundred pounds for the whole of the trip and that was only because I was bringing home Christmas gifts!

So, whilst I'm focusing on the good stuff, here's my current 10 ten travel experiences I'm looking forward to

• Getting the train from Nice to Ventimiglia, we're crossing the border to Italy just for lunch one day upon the recommendation of my lovely friend PJ!
• Going swimming in the pool at the Parc Del Campo in Madrid, it's where the locals go to cool down on those hot summer days, the park is also home to an amusement park and a zoo, it's a big old park!!
• Going on a cruise through the Fjords as the sun is setting, the whole trip is pretty much a photographers dream and getting to share that with Abigail is going to make it even more special
• visiting the Oceanographic museum in Monaco, okay so I'm a hug fan of aquariums, you probably already know that if you are a regular reader, this one really does look quite special though.
• introducing my daughter to my Cotes d'Azur, the place I fell in love with a couple of years, I want to share Cannes with Abigail so it's a special place for both of us.
• Finding out more about the Norwegian culture, I know very little of Norway, only that it's somewhere I hadn't considered visiting until Abigail mentioned it.
• Getting on the fast train to visit Toledo from Madrid, a unesco world heritage site, the whole city is steeped in history and I can't wait to explore it.
• Setting sail on a cruise ship from Southampton, waving goodbye with flags as we leave the port just like on Titanic except with significantly less promise of death.
• Finally visiting Villefranche-Sur-Mer just like Deborah Kerr and Cary Grant in "An Affair to Remember"
• Watching the sunset over the Cote d'Azur, it really is such an amazing place for sunsets, I've never experienced a sunset like the one I saw when I was on the Norwegian Epic departing Cannes

So it really is going to be an exciting year and that's not even the half of it, none of those travel experiences are with Looby and I hope that I'm going to get to take a couple of trips with her too, she's rather more freeform than Abigail so last minute things always seem to happen when Looby and I plan to go away and of course, we are planning a year of big adventures but more about that in September.

I hope you'll stick around and enjoy the images and articles I share, whilst I'm only ever three steps away from complete insanity, I remind myself often that I'm only ever 2 steps away from my next travel adventure.

I'm going to have it all and here's why!

So after some time floundering around in the chasm that is my own mental health I've picked myself up, brushed myself off and I'm raring to go again with a whole new energy, sometimes I think we need these small dips to examine our own inner self, a period of introspection to really calm the mind and figure out a strategy of what we're going to do to make it to the next level.

Here's the thing, I love what I do, and I want to keep doing it for as long as I possibly can but I know to do that I need to find the following - 

*More paid blog work and writing gigs

*More clients for Mandy Charlton Photography

This is especially true through the summer as I have plans, big plans, I know that there's an abundance and it's on it's way to me, I believe so much in the laws of attraction, just take this example, last week Abigail and I were passing the travel agents when she remarked, we never did book that cruise I replied that since the 2018 summer dates had been released I didn't have the spare cash available to put down large deposits!

Today, I got a message that you could book any cruise through Princess Cruises before the end of today for just £1 per person, so what did we do, we booked for next July to go to the Norwegian Fjords and I cannot wait.

Now you may believe that this is coincidental and certainly Jung would have us believe that it's sinchronisity but let's ignore him for a moment and instead let's go with Einstein who believed very heavily in the laws of attraction, it's all about the concept of Dream, Believe, Achieve and I really do, I sit every morning saying my affirmations and this stuff really works, I'm foolish though because I get into a routine and then all of a sudden I stop believing, I get anxious or worried and that leads to negative thoughts and instead of thinking of an abundance I worry about there being times of great scarcity and then that leads to more thoughts of less and, well it's self fulfilling.  Well can I just say this now, no more, I've seen the proof and I've been using the Laws of Attraction since 2008, remember in 2007 I set up a business just to prove to others that I wasn't "mental" and my business is 10 years old tomorrow and it's successful, I'm successful, I'm good at what I do and I don't think anyone can do things the way that I do them, the same could be said of you of course, yes you, right there, reading this, we're all unique and we all possess talents that no one else has, you too need to dream, believe and achieve.

On my noticeboard above my desk I've written a cheque to myself from the universe as well as my abundance list, things which I have ordered from the universe which will be arriving imminently, I figure if I put these 2 things right in front of me then I'll see them every time I sit at my desk, which, is quite often!!

So, although you may think that this crazy lady has truly lost the plot just watch this space and I'll report back on my progress by the end of July, I know what I'm going to achieve and I can't wait to tell you about it when I've manifested it!

Overwhelm!

So, on Sunday I finally caught up to date with all of my outstanding blog posts for brands I've been working with, it's been ages since I've been in this position and I can't begin to tell you what a relief that is.  Just after I'd written my last article I became the most anxious I've been since I had a breakdown in January/February, the feeling of overwhelm and the knot that gathers in your solar plexus felt so hard I thought I would explode, as I sat at my desk and cried I posted to my Facebook friends what was going on, it's rare I reach out or get dramatic on Facebook but for once I just needed to let go and right in that moment, Facebook was the quickest, safest option.  And you know what?  Something wonderful happened?

My Facebook friends are a pretty amazing bunch, all open minded, accepting, caring, lovely people, it takes years to curate a collection of like minded people, we may not all share the same political affiliations but when it comes to purely caring, we're there, a great hive mind, a supportive coalition of the best kind of people.

To be honest, work, life, single parenting, perpetually juggling a million balls and trying to catch each one so it doesn't shatter is hard, and that's without throwing any kind of mental health situation into the picture!

Whilst I can't sort everything out, I have at least spoken to a couple of people who are going to help me with the marketing side of my business, Facebook you see, well they're my personal nemesis, just when I think I have my advertising sorted out with them, they change the goal posts, my successful strategy suddenly stopped working for no apparent reason but you know what?  It's time to get back on track.

I've run a pretty successful business for the last 10 years and I still intend to run one in 10 years from now, my quest to be a weekday digital nomad still stands, I want to travel the world nourishing my soul whilst still running a business which provides for my family and I, I will always photograph kids and their families because my first love is Mandy Charlton Photography and I will always write because I have to, I'm compelled to sit and let the words pour from my inner thoughts, whether of course people want to read that, well that's another thing entirely but I remember the first days of my blog over 11 and a half years ago I didn't care that only 4 or 5 people read my blog, it's quite by accident that over 30,000 ever read my blog in it's most active, salacious and juicy period last year, it's dropped a lot since then but I can still manage 20k on a good month and I guess you, the readers who've stayed with me are the ones who care about my story, not just the juicy dating parts, either that or it's just a random collection of people who accidentally end up here and stay for a while reading the crazy animal lady's scrambled thoughts.

Yesterday I decided was a brand new day, filled with thoughts of positivity, as I sat at my desk knowing that I'd said my affirmations to the universe before I'd even checked one email I decided that it was going to be a truly great Monday, and you know what?  It really was, I achieved so much, I relaxed a lot and gave big sighs of relief knowing that I've got this and everything is going to be okay because I have a team on my side, good people thinking positive thoughts always and I'll do the same for them in their times of need, in fact you know what, I already do, as the affirmation goes "I wish good fortune and happiness for everyone I meet". "I'm ready for my abundance, it really is my time"

We need to talk about Scotland!

Not so very long ago, Looby, Harriet and I went on holiday to Sundrum Castle near Ayr in Scotland, the way I survive the busyness of my business is by having travel experiences to look forward to, it's the thing that very much keeps me going.  So, half term Monday in heavy rain off we all went, Holly Bobbins too of course looking forward to her very own dog friendly holiday.  I was armed with my Fuji XT1, the 35mm f1.4 lens and the 28mm f2.0, I was also armed with a brand new blue leather camera bag from Mapp of London and also a Samsung S8+ from Three complete with tons of data, essential for staying in a wifi-less caravan in the middle of nowhere but I'll get to the phone in a moment.

Now I should say that depending on which camera's and lenses you are using you can comfortably get 2 cameras in the bag, I have a padded insert in mine which I also find super useful for putting in the bottom of my Osprey bag for when I'm working, the Mapp bag is actually big enough to take along to weddings, mostly because I'm lucky enough to have Stacey who carries the bulk of my equipment so I can just keep batteries, memory cards and spare lenses in this one.  It's a beautiful, well made bag and Emma who runs the company is so devoted to making the best products possible,  a photographer herself she knows that there's a line between functional and pretty and that as a woman although you want something stylish, you essentially want something that actually does the job!

So, back to Scotland, a bargain break in a luxury dog friendly caravan courtesy of Hoseasons and I have to say after staying in both a basic caravan at the Berwick holiday park through Haven and this luxury one, I wouldn't go back to the basic one without the central heating, the lovely van we stayed in was just so spacious but even then, we said if Abigail had come to it would have felt crowded.  The thing is though, we didn't really spend a lot of time in our caravan, it was a place to sleep, and a place to cook breakfast in the mornings and the rest of the time for 4 glorious days we travelled and explored, from the South West of Scotland to the banks of Loch Lomond, there's nothing better in the world than being able to enjoy a holiday with your best friend, your daughter and your dog!!

Oh and before we get to the main part with all of the glorious images, well there's something I need to admit to - 

I'm an Apple fan girl, I have been since 2008 when after purchasing a iPod, I later went out and bought my first iPhone and my first MacBook.  I have at times been tempted in the Samsung way so when Three offered to loan me an S8+ for a month I said I would give it a go and let me tell you, it's a shiny, shiny phone, it looks good, it feels great but I love my Apple products and I just found it too different in lots of weird ways so I gave up soon after trying it out, what I did love though was the Three coverage, one day on the banks of Loch Lomond, in a sleepy village called Balmaha we sat at the Oak Tree Inn having lunch and me trying to catch up on business, checking emails etc, my usual carrier O2 couldn't connect to anything, Harriet's Vodafone also had no signal but Three, wow, we actually got 4G in the Highlands, surrounded by mountains it took me by surprise and I'm so thankful for that.  Three actually do a Sim which gets you unlimited data, 500 minutes of calls and 3000 texts for just £25 and I'm not sure how they provide service in the mountainous regions of Scotland but I shall be sending for my free sim and using it the next time I go to the Highlands!  Well done Three!

So back to the part you really all came for, my glorious break, mostly rainy apart from our day spent travelling around Loch Lomond but we didn't care, in fact we didn't give a fig because we were warriors, we were the best of friends and nothing could dampen our spirits not even the pouring rain, oh and if you're wondering, the bag coped admirably with the rain but then wanting to save the beautiful leather I swapped to my hiking Osprey bag as that was what we did for some of the holiday at least, we climbed over hills and vales and admired the views as we got to the top whilst Harriet and Looby cursed me for wanting to climb yet another mountain path, I can't help it, no matter where I go, I always want to find the highest accessible point because everything looks more splendid when you are up high!

Biggest 10th Birthday Competition/Offer Ever!!

My business, Mandy Charlton Photography, will be 10 years old on the 22nd of June and I'm still a little in shock to have made it to this point, a business I started on a whim just to prove people that I wasn't a write off not only succeeded but has prospered and grown and I hope that I'm sitting here in another 10 years still loving what I do as much as I do today.

Now it wouldn't be a birthday without some kind of celebration, feel free of course to send cards and presents to the usual address (hehe, I'm kidding of course). No, in this instance it's me who's giving away some unbeatable offers just for the next week.

BIGGEST 10TH BIRTHDAY OFFER/COMPETITION EVER!

To celebrate 10 years in business on June 22nd I have a huge offer and competition.

*Until 22nd June you can purchase a voucher for a standard session (with online gallery for 30 days and 15% off for the first week your gallery is live) and I'm even including a complimentary 12x8 print (upon placing an order) worth £18, total combined price £93 for only £35, valid until June 2018

simply purchase  this link and I'll email a voucher back

*One family will have their session upgraded to an all inclusive session worth £250

*purchase any session including a standard session or an all inclusive mini session before the end of June and 1 family will have their session fee refunded

*Finally, like my FB and the post  this comment is linked to and comment "Happy 10th Birthday Mandy Charlton Photography" and one person will win a voucher as above

I have a full list of availability at here if you want to book a standard session just find space for 2 mini sessions

Sharing on Facebook isn't required but a little love is always appreciated!

So there you have it, an easy way to win a session and also to save yourself some money in the offing, mini sessions, of course, offer the greatest value with a 30-minute session on location and all of the images via a digital download, some families have gone away with over 30 images and the session is £100, I'll let you do the math on how much per digital image that is, you know, I sell single digital images for £50 in my gallery and I think they're each worth that when you think just how large you can print them and how many family members can print them.

The standard sessions, of course, are brilliant for people who love their prints so if you're already getting the first 12x8 included, it seems a great offer to me!

Whichever offer you choose or even if you just enter the competition to win a session I hope that you will raise a glass with me and celebrate 10 epic years of business!

Let's hear it for the dad's

It may have escaped your attention but it's Fathers Day on Sunday and if you still haven't found the perfect gift well let me be the one to help.  I find that men are the hardest people to buy for, most dads, well you ask them what they want and they say either very little or just tell you not to buy anything for them.

Let me start by mentioning the lovely people at Hallmark who pretty much furnished my children, my friends and their friends with Fathers Day cards, they sent a truly splendid selection as well of their very cute Superhero Itty Bitty's which are now furnishing my desk, it's pretty well known that I love Superman but The Flash is my favourite because he's the only Superhero faster than Superman and he can phase and he can travel in time!!  That's my chosen superpower if ever I get the choice!! 

Other than Superheroes something that a lot of men like (if the dating profiles I read are anything to go by ;) ) is travel and what popped up in my email box this morning?  Yes the lovely folks at Lonely Planet are having a 45% off sale until Sunday, I've already spent way too much (I have about 20 and another 4 on the way) I reckon there's lots of dad pleasers in there and I think it's something he wouldn't necessarily expect to receive so do go check out the Lonely Planet 45% off Sale

Now I wouldn't a photographer if I didn't suggest that maybe, just maybe, you could purchase a gift certificate for fathers day, hey, it's the gift that keeps on giving and you get to be in the photos too, and you know you should always buy gifts you'd love to receive yourself so if you want to make everyone happy, why not buy an all inclusive mini session voucher for just £100  and then bag yourself some gorgeous photos with the people you love.

Now I've had a skirt around the internet and come back to my old friend lastminute.com and they have all kinds of experiences and breaks you could purchase for the man of the moment, sounds like a plan to me, why not go the whole hog and book yourself a sunshiny mini break to somewhere exotic or, well you know, Scotland is lovely at this time of year!!

Hopefully, my little last minute gift guide has helped you to come up with some interesting and unusual ideas to keep the dads in your life happy.  You know, dads are amazing, Abigail and Looby's dad is brilliant, he single-handedly has Abigail living with him 24-7 (barring the times she's at my house) and it can't be easy being a man parenting a teenage girl, I have total respect for him for that, we all make compromises for our kids and I have no doubt in my mind that he's doing a brilliant job, Abigail is a shining example of that so even though we're no longer together I truly want to say, let's hear it for the dads, the single ones, the married ones, the one's who co-parent, the ones who don't get to see their children enough, we make such a massive fuss of Mother's Day and yet Father's Day always seems a much more muted affair, it could, of course, be that we don't celebrate it in my house but I think dad's, on the whole, are just as brilliant as mum's and so they deserve their own special day in the sun being pampered and showered with recognition for the great jobs they do.

The Fear of Not Being Good Enough

I could have also entitled this "Why I'm not taking on any more long weddings" you see, I have a huge problem which has troubled me for years, pre-wedding anxiety gives me nightmares, I worry so much about weddings for weeks before them and yet when I arrive my anxiety subsides and I have the most wonderful times with my clients, their friends and family, and then I get home and the anxiety starts again, have I done a good enough job, did I shoot enough, did I shoot too much and that's before I've even edited them.  Once I release the galleries I am a nervous wreck worrying that I'm not good enough and everyone will hate my beautiful interpretation of their special day, I have the same anxiety when I realise portrait galleries but it's not overwhelming.  It's why I almost gave up weddings completely in 2011/2012, in fact, I'd got down to my last 2 weddings and I think they were shorter ones and I realised how much I loved shooting them.  Magical things happen at weddings, you cannot shoot a wedding without feeling so much love and joy in your heart that it gives you hope about true love and soulmates over and over and over again.

I've realised now though that I can't go on like this, part of my self-care is to minimise anxiety and I don't get the same fears when I'm shooting 2-4 hours, I realise the same pressure is there but for some (and maybe unknown) reason, it just doesn't effect me in the same way.

I think it's possibly not fair to take any anxiety into a relationship with clients and it's certainly not fair to do it to myself.  One of the reasons I nearly stopped was because I thought that if ever anyone hated my work it would actually end me and I mean that seriously.  Of course, I'm so much stronger and better now than I've ever been but I still have those feelings of being overwhelmed and unable to cope, more with the fear of rejection than actual rejection, I suppose it's the same way I feel about my personal life.  I live with the constant fear of rejection, it's something I actively try and work on and with regards to photography at least, I never really have to look too far to see other work out there that other people get seriously overenthusiastic about and I think "blimey, my work is so much better than that".

When I won "Inspirational Woman in Photography 2017" I wanted to truly use the award to continue to be honest, to be frank and to inspire others so I have 1 more full all day wedding this year and I am so looking forward to it because it's completely untraditional and that works, I also still have a few shorter ones and they will all be fabulous because I kind of love sweeping in and capturing the most important parts, some swishy fabulous portraits as only I can and then quietly sweeping out again. 

So here and now, for the future of my business I want to continue to shoot 2-4 hours of wedding coverage, I'd actually like to shoot a little more of it all year around but I won't be taking any 8, 10 or 12 hour bookings because there's someone out there who will do the same great job who isn't having anxiety nightmares before and after.

I put 110% into each wedding I shoot, the portraits I shoot are technically demanding, everything is shot manually including the off-camera flash and I'm constantly doing sums about how much zoom of the flash, how many tenths of a second, shutter speeds, iso's, it's no wonder I'm exhausted afterwards, I hope no one ever doubts how much I love their weddings or how much I always give the very best I can, I've just about made it into my 11th year of wedding photography and I'd like to still be shooting some in another 10 years and hopefully my plan to only shoot smaller wedding packages will work, it's why I'm putting it out there into the universe I guess because I love what I do and I want to keep on doing it for as long as I can.

Let's talk about quality time #PrezzoLaFamiglia

You know the best thing about going out for dinner with friends and family?  It's not the food (although good food is essential) it's the chance to catch up with the people you love the most.  As many of you know I try to have friends around for dinner as often as I can fit it into my schedule, we may not have enough chairs, a big enough table and often we run out of cutlery but it's just that hour or two spent away from phones and work and the constraints of daily life.  I will be the first to admit though that lately, friends for dinner hasn't gone so well due to my schedule so when Prezzo asked if I wanted to come in and try their #prezzolafamiglia challenge I actually jumped at the chance and booked straight away for Harriet, Abigail, Looby and I, you see, the new La Famiglia sharing dishes mean you can really eat together as a family or indeed a group of friends.  What happened on the day was that Looby came home from school an hour late with her best friend because she'd forgotten so she stayed home and Harriet, Abigail and I went to attempt an enormous Spaghetti Carbonara on our own.

It had been such a busy week that I hadn't seen Harriet since we'd been to Scotland and because Abigail didn't want to come to Scotland it meant I was really missing some quality time with my beautiful teenager.

We really had the most wonderful time catching up and I think sharing a big dish brings people together, it's something I do often at home anyway as a shared experience, well it nourishes the soul doesn't it?  I cannot fault the food or indeed the service we received at Prezzo, Newcastle upon Tyne and there's no doubt that we'll be doing it again, not just because of the awesome sharing dish but also because the chocolate and sea salt gelato is probably the best gelato I've had in Newcastle.

I think if you are looking for a great family or friends sharing experience then you really should give Prezzo's La Famiglia sharing dishes a try, they do come in meat and veggie options and the portion size is absolutely huge, I actually left some of mine so that I had room for ice-cream!

Summer, you know, it's about getting together, eating outdoors, enjoying each other's company while life seems to progress at an easier pace, well if your life, like mine doesn't quite live up to that remit then I think you're well placed to book a table at Prezzo, an outdoor one if the weather is balmy and have yourself a little time away from your desk and some quality time with the people you love the most.

This post is an entry for the BritMums #PrezzoLaFamiglia Challenge, sponsored by Prezzo

When life moves at a million miles per hour

Here I am at my desk, I've just made it through 10 days without a day off and don't get me wrong, I love what I do but with each and every task I perform in my life, I give my whole heart, I may not get everything right all of the time but I do everything with love because that feels right to me.  As you can probably deduce right now, I am shattered.  I need a day off to just do nothing and catch up with myself, I want to watch the new season of House Of Cards, I want to literally do nothing, except...

I currently have several blog posts to write, 4 weddings to edit and around 10 or so photo shoots, I am no further forward than I was the last time I blogged.  One thing though, I have glasses and can see and I couldn't be happier, life is pretty giant right now and I did see one of my carefully edited cat photos and thought to myself "jeez that's oversharp" well let's just say when I think images have been softer than I would like, it turns out they were perfectly fine, my eyes were just overstretched, the muscles were giving up and I could nearly be sure that I found them breathing a sigh of relief when I put my glasses on for the first time!

I've consoled myself that I've destroyed my eyesight with photography, it's worth it to do something I love so much, plus I'm not exactly a spring chicken and as you age your muscles start to wear out, "I'm so old" I cry with my fist shaking at the skies...

So, just lately I'm going to be the first to admit that my diet has been horrific, I mean, just like many of us I'm sure, Thursday aka the General Election was a day for binge comfort eating, I've tried to reassure myself that our beautiful country is going to be just fine but "eek" suffice to say that's a whole blog post on its own.

I have been sort of saved but it comes with a pretty large caveat, you see, a few weeks ago I was asked if I wanted to try Everdine, it's a subscription meals service, it's clean food, food which is good for you, wholesome, nourishing and pretty blooming tasty, prices start at £6.90 a meal and you can either buy an 8 meal subscription for £55 or 12 meals for £76, this seems a little expensive to me when I basically buy a week's groceries from Waitrose for around £90 and that feeds 3 or 4 of us and friends for dinner once a week.  Oh and here comes that caveat, you see I don't have a microwave, call me some kind of lefty liberal neo-hippie but I really loathe microwaves and most of the Everdine selection is microwave only, even some of the meals I selected turned out to be partially microwave with just a couple of things you had to oven cook.  I adapted the cooking and just did oven anyway and it was fine but as it's unlikely that I'm ever going to buy a microwave I don't think it's the plan for me.  If however you love clean eating and you have a microwave and you only have to worry about feeding yourself then go for it, the meals were scrumptious, tasty and pretty low calorie too.  The meals all come frozen and then you just microwave when you want to eat them, I chose a selection of Veggie and meaty meals and every single one was yummy so no complaints there but it's not something that is going to work for me.

So this week it's back to ordering online from Waitrose and trying to get healthier again, honestly I've had a week where my anxiety flared up and days where I felt lonely and not good enough and I'm sure it's been partially due to my crappy diet which has contained too much sugar and not enough happy healthy vitamins (barring the Everdine meals).  Luckily my shopping list is set up and should take around 3.4 seconds to go from filling my basket to checking out!

So as we go into this new week I have to find a way of keeping my anxiety at bay, to try not to get stressed out but I also have to couple that with a huge amount of work and a still very hectic schedule, I need to be caught up soon as I'm flying to Madrid 2 weeks tomorrow and really, it's that which is keeping me sane, I would love it if I could edit my Scottish adventure photos first though so I'll make this plea now, if you know anyone, absolutely anyone who has a tardis handy, send them my way please, I could do with a few more hours in the day.