Happy and healthy new year :) To all of us!

 

This is how you fit three dogs and one person on a single bed :) Amazingly they arranged themselves like that. A perfect lineup!

If you don’t know the doggies, from L to R they are Chloe (12), Daphne (10), and Micky (14).

For the first two nights home while I still had drains in, I slept in this bed (without dogs, they just join me during the day). Thankfully now I am free of the drains and back in our own bed.

And I am so glad to be home! I haven’t been far, just from bed to sofa to bed to other sofa to bed, and I go for walks outside circling the house multiple times a day to keep my circulation healthy.

Paul walks with me in case I fall over :)

At night I wear compression stockings, which are fun to get on 😊 Maybe one day I’ll get to wear them on a flight and go on holiday. That would be nice, something to look forward to!

My satin loungewear pajamas have come into their own at the moment, they are my all-day clothes. I switch between my black and hot pink sets. 

 

 

 

I have just about finished the excellent Camino Island series by John Grisham, with only a handful of pages to go in the final book (here on Amazon if you are interested), and I’ve read ALL the library magazines on Libby on my iPad haha.

Plus I’ve been writing inspiration in my journal (and the pink folder in the top photo).

Sometimes I like loose leaf paper for the freedom of writing what I want. I can move previous pages to the front of the folder if they are inspiring to me at a certain time.

All the reading and writing is in between naps of course. I’ve had a LOT of naps too, often before dinner. 

 

 

Head nurse Nina overseeing her patient

 

So I’m slowing getting back to normal after my surgery (today is one week).

For the past couple of days I’ve put a little makeup on, just because I felt like it.

Although on makeup day two what I thought was taupe eyeliner I actually applied pinky-beige lipliner to my eyes. I didn’t realise until I’d finished the second eye.

Oh well, pile on the mascara and do better tomorrow!

And now it’s New Year’s Eve, in New Zealand at least. I certainly won’t last until midnight but I do plan on having a glass of champagne, we have Veuve Clicquot in the fridge 😊

Sante! And all the best to you my friends!

xx Fiona

PS. Find out where to read or listen to my books at fionaferris.com, or click the images below (I use Amazon affiliate links which doesn’t change the price, but I may receive a small compensation. If you choose to use my links for any purchases you might be making I am grateful!)

 

 

 

 

Out of hospital :) I made it!

 

Hello friends!

 

I made it! This was my Christmas Day, 24 hours post breast cancer surgery.

I can’t tell you how happy I am to have my operation in my rear-view mirror, and I’m sure it’s because I was given the good drugs, haha, but the pain hasn’t been too bad either. So grateful for that.

I couldn’t have picked a better time to be in hospital with the special festive meals (see my menu). Everything was extra cheery with decorations for miles, festive scrubs on the staff, and even though us patients were hobbling around, it had a nice atmosphere. 

 

 

 

I got a bit bored in my room so while doing my walks I found a sunny spot in the elevator bay, with views over the hospital carpark :)

 

 

 

I’ve been enjoying John Grisham, he accompanied me to my sunroom reading sessions (Camino Island series: Amazon affiliate link). I accidentally read the third book first, then got books 1 and 2 for my recuperation. Currently on the ‘final’ book 2 and they are excellent stories. I thought John Grisham was more an author for men and only did legal stuff, but apparently not so!

I came home yesterday after two nights, and feel good in myself. The surgery went well, and I find out more in a couple of weeks when I meet up again with my surgeon and the lab tests have been completed.

I don’t know what I was expecting, but I really do feel quite ‘normal’ considering what I’ve been through. I know other surgeries are bigger, but mine was still 3-4 hours long, and involved both sides (cancer on one side and symmetrisation on the other, which just means making them the same size :)

It’s SO nice to be home, although excited doggies had to be kept away from mum not to knock anything!

I slept in our guest room last night in a single bed since I still have drains on both sides and they could drape down either side of the bed, and also so any pets wouldn’t climb on me in the night.

Daphne was determined though and broke in this morning when I was getting up. She pushed the door open haha but luckily Paul was hot on her heels!

So this is just a little update, and to say THANK YOU for all the lovely messages, emails and comments. You are so kind and I appreciate every word.

xxxxxxx Fiona

Merry Christmas! ~my final post for the year

 

Merry Christmas friends! Here Paul and I are at his Christmas do. The venue and the tree were just gorgeous.

I’m wearing my Lauren Ralph Lauren dress I bought from Macy’s last time we were in Hawaii a couple of years ago. I love it!

 

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The Cat Coach Cafe podcast I was on last month with the lovely Monie, has a Christmas special out where me and other guests share their Christmas favourites and how they celebrate with their cats, plus our New Year’s wish for them and Christmas wishes.

How cute does that sound? Go here to Monie’s Substack for links if you’d like to take a listen. 

 

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When I held my Black Friday sale a weeks back, I included a code for 50% off anything in my eStore.

Unfortunately I didn’t see that it had an expiry code from this time last year from my previous annual sale, so didn’t update it.

I’m so sorry if you went to purchase and the code didn’t work!

I’ve fixed it now, so have extended my eStore sale for another few weeks just in case you want to get any eBooks or eAudiobooks for the holiday season.

The code is HALFPRICEHAPPINESS and you can find my eStore at payhip.com/fionaferris.

Happy reading and apologies again! And thank you to the kind reader who emailed me with the error 😊

 

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{Summer evening sunshine on the hills, view from our lawn}

This is my last post for the year, and I’m going to take a couple of weeks off over Christmas and New Year.

I’m actually having a bit of a unique Christmas. On Christmas Eve I’ll be going into hospital for breast cancer surgery, so Christmas day will be quite different this year.

I’ve been told my cancer is small, and it was caught early through screening. Fingers crossed that remains the case after surgery.

So yes, a bit of a clanger to end the year on!

But I’m also so grateful. Grateful to live in a country like New Zealand with fully funded healthcare (and where anything to do with cancer is fast-tracked).

Grateful that it was found before I even knew there was a problem, through regular public health screening systems.

And grateful for the care I’ve received so far.

So I’ll be resting up on Christmas Day happy to have my surgery behind me. I am apprehensive, but also optimistic and feeling positive.

If you’ve had a big health diagnosis this year I’m right there beside you, and if you haven’t, yay for that. Health is the real wealth 😊

I’ll see you in a few weeks and I hope you have a fabulous and wonderful holiday period. Please have a glass of champagne for me on New Year’s Eve!

With all my love, Fiona

A simple, festive week

 

Hello friends,

Above is ‘almost’ a holiday portrait 🤣 I’m missing my husband Paul (since he’s taking the photo) and Nina cat (probably asleep inside).

But here is me with our doggies: Micky on the ground, and Chloe (left) and Daphne (right).

It’s been pretty warm here lately - over 30 deg (90F). But it’s not humid so it’s lovely.

I know it will sound strange to you Northern Hemisphere folk, but it really does feel like Christmas is just around the corner when it starts getting hot and summery and the cicadas are singing.

Less than two weeks to go!

I like to keep things simple gift- and plan-wise, but I love the music, movies, decorations, all of it.

We watched ‘Oh What Fun’ on Netflix the other night and it was excellent. Very funny and quite silly 😊 Silly in a good way! And last night we saw ‘Jingle Bell Heist’, also on Netflix, which was so enjoyable. I loved the cozy London vibes. 

 

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I’m enjoying this combo before bed each night. Lucky Paul doesn’t mind 😊 He says it smells nice, and I think so too.

My excellent brother-in-law brought back more Bath and Body Works from the US for me on his last trip there.

It’s fun to have a seasonal scent for December. I put the cream on my feet, knees, elbows, decolletage and hands.

And I lay a towelling bath mat from our ensuite by my side of the bed just like in a hotel, so I don’t get cream on the carpet. It’s a twofer: hotel vibes + practicality 😍

I really like the Laneige lip balm too, it’s lovely for overnight. During the day I prefer a lip balm in a wind-up tube.

I love my thrifted tray to corral everything on my bedside table as well.

This vista makes me so happy when I go to bed at night!

It’s the little things that delight my feminine heart 😊

 

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And yesterday was a beautiful day for lunch with my friend Tanya. We alternate home visits and always have sushi, and look forward to it each month. It was so nice sitting outside on a sunny day that we both could have easily had a nap afterwards!

That’s my simple life festive round up for the week! I just like to keep things quiet and low-key as much as possible. I hope you are enjoying the holiday season thus far too ❤️💚❤️💚❤️

xx Fiona

PS. My book ‘A Chic and Simple Christmas’ is the perfect accompaniment to keep you serene and calm this time of year 😊

 

 

 

 

[My Amazon links are affiliate, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase using these links. It’s no extra cost to you, so I really appreciate it if you choose to use my links for any Amazon purchases you might be making!] 

Preparing for a chic Christmas - listen in to my latest interview!

Dear friends,

I am thrilled to share with you a lovely podcast I was lucky enough to feature on: it’s called the Cat Coach Cafe and my episode has just dropped.

Nina cat thought it appropriate that she be the star, both of this post, and the show. After all, why not, with such an excellent name as the Cat Coach Cafe? (This is me folding towels on our bed the other day and Nina ‘helping’ in case you were wondering. Aren’t cats just soooo ‘helpful’? Haha).

 

 

I had such a fun time chatting with the delightful Cat Coach Cafe host Monie. She is in Europe and I am in New Zealand, so we both had to stretch our schedules to find a time. It was first thing in the morning for me, and after dinner for Monie.

I really hope you enjoy this interview ❤️ We chat about preparing for a chic Christmas, what it’s like to have Christmas in the summer, and all sorts of cozy, Christmassy things, as well as other topics we wandered onto!

You can search for Cat Coach Cafe wherever you listen to your podcasts, or find it here on Monie’s Substack post with all the details.

 

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Our tree is glittering in the corner of our living room ✨✨

 

I really was considering just having our small decorations out because I couldn’t be bothered, but then decided ‘it’s only a few hours work and it looks so pretty and I only do it once a year’ so here it is, sparkling away in all its glory 😻

I’m glad I made the effort because I love Christmas decor. It’s just sometimes my relaxedness takes over and I want to make things very simple and easy for myself 😁

But this week ‘extra effort’ won out!

Sometimes it’s the little things that make you feel superhuman you know? 😅

(The red velvet stockings are for the doggies, Micky, Daphne and Chloe. Treats will go in them!

Nina cat doesn’t have one, I felt it was insulting to her to lump her in with the dogs 😂)

And yay for December Christmas vibes! I hope you have more oomph than I had with my tree 🫠 But it was all okay in the end!

 

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My Kindle sale is finishing on Monday, so now is your last chance to download a few new reads for the holiday season and up-to-60%-off prices.

Maybe you’ll inspire yourself with ‘A Chic and Simple Christmas’, make exciting plans and goals for 2026 with ‘100 Ways to Be a Chic Success and Create Your Dream Life’, or be slimmer and richer with ‘Luxurious Weight Loss’ and ‘Financially Chic Vol. 2’.

Whatever the flavour of your reinvention (and even small changes can count, I love to reinvent myself from day to day with even tiny intentional thoughts), I hope you find some of my books to help. And on sale too!

Can I ask a favour? If you have a like-minded friend, please forward this post onto them so they can find a few sale books to inspire as well. Thank you in advance 😊

Happy weekend, and I hope you’re feeling festive and happy. And not too rushed! I can already feel the energy building and I have to keep reminding myself, it’s only the first week of December. Just breathe 😂

I’ll be making a Peppermint Bark Snack Cake from Mimi’s Organic Eats for a Christmas party on Monday.

I haven’t made it before but it looks delicious. I was searching for a peppermint bark cake recipe and this one looked yummy, and simple.

I can only buy the white chocolate just before making it otherwise it will disappear from the pantry 😂 And I can’t blame anyone other than myself!!

Wishing you a fab weekend and happy reading!

xx Fiona

PS. Kindle sale prices may vary in your country depending on currency and sales tax. The price of $3.99 is USD on Amazon.com

And if you would like an Amazon alternative, shop my eStore using the code HALFPRICEHAPPINESS for 50% off everything in my store. Also ends Monday.

 

 

[My Amazon links are affiliate, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase using these links. It’s no extra cost to you, so I really appreciate it if you choose to use my links for any Amazon purchases you might be making]