Table of contents for 02-Jul-2020 in Pick Me Up!

At just six-years-old, my wonderful daughter Isabelle, now 13, became dangerously unwell. For four years she was misdiagnosed, but then doctors at Birmingham Children’s Hospital diagnosed her with Crohns disease. Now on the right medication, Isabelle went into remission, but she would live with this for the rest of her life. That means a lifetime of doctor and hospital appointments. And it didn’t take me long to realise that she would say whatever the doctors wanted her to, just so she could leave. It was because she was scared, and as I looked around hospital rooms, I noticed other children were doing it, too. And that’s when I decided to create a children’s book–Rodney Meadow-Hopper, The Hare Who Didn’t Care. The book tells the story of a hare called Rodney…

Floristry Zanussi has teamed up with Ciara Attwell (AKA My Fussy Eater) to create family friendly recipes that can be made in a few simple steps. For more inspiration visit myfussyeater.com Apple berry crumble □ 500g mixed frozen berries□ 4 small apples, peeled, cored and chopped into bite sized pieces□ Juice of 1 clementine□ 5 tbsps caster sugar□ 100g plain flour□ 60g cold butter, cut into cubes□ 50g jumbo oats□ 2 tbsp sugar 1 Preheat the oven to 180°c. Add the frozen berries, chopped apples, clementine juice and 2tbsp of the sugar to a baking dish and mix with a spoon. (A slightly wider dish works well so the juices can bubble off and the crumble gets nicely golden). 2 In a large bowl mix together the flour and butter…

Top tip Puff sleeves and frills are trending. Top tip Add a splash of colour! Top tip A co-ord gives you that extra polish! LOST STOCK Since Europe went into lockdown, high street retailers have cancelled over £1.5billion worth of orders. That’s over 2million factory workers in Bangladesh now out of work. Without government support, the workers–and their families–are in trouble. And you can help! Lost Stock is a fashion clothing box, powered by Mallzee. If you purchase a Lost Stock box, they will send you three mystery pieces of clothing from these cancelled orders, originally destined for stores like Topshop and Gap. Each box is tailored to your size and taste, with up to £70 worth of product, costing just £35. Lost Stock have partnered with SAJIDA Foundation to…

Baby monitors are supposed to be your eyes and ears when you aren’t in the same room as your child. To keep an eye on your baby–to keep them safe. And yet, cyber-hackers are using these devices to violate our private lives. Is there anything scarier than hearing a stranger remotely whisper ‘I love you’ into your baby’s cot? Thanks to vulnerable software devices, this is terrifyingly a reality for some. Each year, our homes are getting technologically smarter. Personal mobile phones, laptops, tablets and smart TVs all have built-in cameras. Even baby monitors, robot toys and video doorbells have the power to record you and your family privately. Whilst their primary purpose is for work, safety or virtual socialising, these videorecording devices can leave us vulnerable to online attacking–known…

Borce his carried his wife's coffin knowing coffin what he'd done to her Making of a MONSTER The leafy suburb of Avondale Heights in Melbourne, Australia, was home to couple Borce and Karen Ristevski. They’d been married 27 years, lived in their stunning $1.3million home with their daughter Sarah, 20. With five bedrooms, elegant decor and open plan living, the couple appeared to be living a privileged life. Talented Karen, 47, loved fashion, and the couple co-owned two clothing boutiques in the area called Bella Bleu. It specialised in formal dresses and luxury gowns. The shops certainly looked the part, but they were more than $400,000 in debt. Borce and Karen also had credit card debts of around $80,000, plus hefty mortgage payments. The couple would have to address their…

Who would have thought? The launch of Disney+ has reignited our love for Disney films and of course, our favourite Disney princesses. But have you ever considered which Disney princess is the most eco-friendly? Neither have we! Saveonenergy.com has analysed popular princesses to see which eco-friendly actions they took. For each action, they were awarded two points. And the awards go to… Aurora (20 points) has the crown of being the eco-friendliest Disney princess. While she may be a sleeping beauty, she is certainly awake when it comes to looking after the environment. She chooses electricity-free actions such as using candles instead of lamps and sewing clothes by hand as opposed to using a sewing machine. Snow White (18 points) and Cinderella (18 points) share second place–taking common steps like using…

ACROSS 1 To pay back (6) 4 Handcuffs (8) 10 _ Newton, Line of Duty actor (7) 11 Stonework (7) 12 Notion (4) 13 Annoying or troublesome (10) 15 Superficial appearance (6) 16 Water tank (7) 20 Algerian capital (7) 21 Fine powder produced by plants (6) 24 Mathematical device (10) 26 Wheel surround (4) 28 Tool for chopping meat (7) 29 Cast a spell on (7) 30 Hold as sacred (8) 31 Make beloved (6) DOWN 1 Regain possession of (8) 2 Brotherly (9) 3 Naked human figure (4) 5 Furniture item (8) 6 Soaking up of a liquid (10) 7 Language, informally (5) 8 Harry _, singer with the UK top 10 hit Adore You (6) 9 Spanish man (5) 14 Musical note value (10) 17 Team running…

Heading to the back of the line, I walked straight past most of the guys in my year. Every school photo day was the same. Head to the back of the line, ready to stand at the top. At 5ft 9in, I was one of the tallest in my year group, so it was just the way it was. Coming from a line of 6ft family members, I’ve always been tall. My dad is 6ft 7in and my brothers are around the same, if just slightly shorter. In fact, my mum is the only one of us under 6ft, at 5ft 8in! She looks tiny standing next to all of us! Of course, my height meant that I was always on the receiving end of jibes. ‘What’s the weather like…

Being married to a police officer comes with its challenges. While so proud of the brave work my husband Stephen, 30, did every day, I was a nervous wreck each time he left for a shift, praying nothing bad would happen to him. And with our one-yearold daughter Isabelle to take care of, that fear was stronger than ever before. She needed her daddy around just as much as I needed my husband. So, on 3 December last year, when Stephen crept in at 1am to say he’d been in an accident, I was terrified. ‘Are you alright?’ I cried, sitting bolt upright in bed. That day, he’d been working a long shift, hadn’t really had time for a proper meal. Driving home, he’d started to feel dizzy at the…

DON’T MISS The Glastonbury Experience Live, BBC Two Jo Whiley and Mark Radcliffe celebrate the weekend that would have marked 50 years of the Glastonbury Festival. With an inviting blend of great performances from the archives and live acoustic sets from contemporary artists, this is one you won’t want to miss. The show brings viewers previously unseen and rarely shown moments, including highlights from The Rolling Stones headline set in 2013, PJ Harvey’s rocking 2004 performance, the irrepressible Lizzo in an early acoustic performance in the BBC garden area, Florence & The Machine’s 2010 debut on one of the main stages, and a reminder of Stormzy’s headline set last year. Not enough? Head over to BBC 4 to catch even more iconic festival sets. Comedians: Home Alone, BBC iPlayer A…

Watching the little girls in my class running around in their dresses, their long hair flowing behind them, I knew that was supposed to be me. But I was sat there in my shorts, my hair cut short–and I was a little boy instead. Just five years old at the time, born Rothmoony Sdeung, I already knew I was in the wrong body. At eight years old, my dad left, leaving me and my mum Nathloun, now 50, on our own. Life was hard already, but growing up feeling I was in the wrong body made it even harder for me. Whenever someone referred to me as ‘boy’, ‘he’ or ‘him’, it stung because I knew that wasn’t who I was. It caused great confusion and eventually depression for me…

Gliding effortlessly into the air, a flurry of sequins whipped around in a flash before landing gracefully on the ice in one swift motion. It was a precise move that had taken months of practice. Perfecting your first double axel, you had a huge grin on your face as you coasted to a halt. ‘You did it!’ I beamed from the sidelines. It was July 2017, you were just 10 years old and in your element at our local ice rink. You’d got into figure skating just two years before when I’d taken you and your older siblings–Kerri, now 22, and Declan, 20–to the rink during the school holidays. While other kids your age were grappling onto their plastic penguins for balance, you were a natural, doing laps around the…

Wiping my little boy’s nose, I smiled. ‘Shall we go to the shops for a bit?’ I asked. It was October 2017, and Hero, one, had the sniffles. It seemed ever since he was born, he’d had a runny nose. Keen to get him out the house for a while, I strapped him into his car seat next to his brother Zack, then two. My husband Matt, 40, stayed at home with our other kids, Madison, then 12, Lola, 10, and Savannah, nine. Climbing into the car, I checked my rear-view mirror. And I was in for a shock. Hero’s head was tilted back, his mouth was wide open, and his eyes had rolled back. ‘Hero!’ I cried, jumping out and running over. I grabbed him out of his car…

Her little thumbs tapping away on the screen, my daughter Aria was all smiles. ‘Gotcha!’ she squealed, as the tinny music blared out of my phone, signalling she’d won another game. ‘Right you,’ I smiled, taking my phone back. ‘It’s about time we get you ready for school.’ At just three years old, Aria was incredibly intelligent, always playing games and soaking up any information she could from the telly. When she was born in July 2016, she’d sadly inherited a heart condition from me–called coarctation of the aorta. She’d been born struggling to breathe, and went on to have two surgeries on her heart at just a few weeks old. Our condition meant that our main arteries in our hearts were narrowed, making us tired all the time. I…

If you’d have told my younger self that I would fight for my country, I’d have called you crazy. Me in the military? Never in a million years. I cared more about cutting hair than training for war. Pageantry was never a goal of mine, either. Whilst I’ve always loved getting glam, I’m far too shy to be in the spotlight! And yet, here I am–a 32-year-old ex-military businesswoman, dipping my combat boots into the world of pageant queens. When I was in my teens, I was hired as a hairdressing apprentice in a local hair salon in Scotland. For nine years, I cut, styled and blow-dried hair. I enjoyed every minute–from chatting to regular customers, to making people feel beautiful. It was always a lifelong career for me. Then…

Treat of the week Whether they're roasted, sautéed, mashed, fried or boiled, potatoes have been a staple in British kitchens for centuries. Seasonal Spuds are celebrating their versatility with delicious recipes to give you inspiration for creating your own potato dishes. Healthy fish and new potato chips □ 2 fillets of white fish (cod or haddock)□ 650g new/baby potatoes□ 200g frozen peas□ Zest of ½ lime and a wedge to serve□ 1 tbsp chopped parsley□ 70g breadcrumbs□ 20g butter□ 1 tbsp mint sauce□ 2 tbsp vegetable oil□ Salt and pepper□ 1 tbsp capers (optional)□ Tartare sauce to serve (optional) 1 Preheat the oven to 190°C / fan 170°C / Gas 5. Peel and chop the potatoes into small sticks. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and…

Recently been through a break-up? We feel your pain. Rest assured, though, there is light at the end of the tunnel! Experts at online dating website eharmony share their tips on mending a broken heart… 1 Understand why Understanding the reasons a relationship has ended is the critical first step to dealing with the emotional overload. Try writing down the reasons you broke up. What went wrong in the relationship? Logic can desert us when our heart is broken and this is the first step to restoring some reason. 2 Seek out singles The last thing you need is the company of loved-up couples, smugly flaunting their perfect relationships while you wallow in misery. Grab your single friends and seek the catharsis of a Improve your life just week! Improve…

YOU’VE GOT TA LOVE! As we scoured the fields for a missing dog, me and my friend Amanda, 42, had it down to a fine art by now. We’d always been animal lovers and since becoming the admin of a Facebook page that helped search for missing dogs, we’d helped find hundreds of missing pups. And when Zena, a rescue dog from Bosnia, escaped from her foster home in Bristol in April 2019, we knew we had to help out. ‘Any sign?’ I shouted over to Amanda as she searched through the fields. ‘Nothing!’ she shrugged, clutching a pair of binoculars. It was frustrating but we’d only just got started. ‘We’ll find her,’ I reassured. Zena was a stray who had been rescued from Bosnia by Claws and Paws, a…