Table of contents for August 6, 2015 in Pick Me Up!

What A Sister! Do you have a sister? Well, apparently 2 August 2015 is National Sisters Day. If you’re as lucky with your sisters as I am, you should definitely be celebrating! 1,400 …that’s how many miles amazing Anna and her man, Lee, cycled to raise money for charity. But their bike ride had a twist – they got hitched along the way! Read their story on p41. What a treat! I went to a special screening of Magic Mike XXL and Channing Tatum turned up. Scream! See how well you know the film with our hard quiz. See www.  lifedeathprizes.com and search ‘Magic Mike’. What a joy My nephews, Max and Lucas, both 2, have just started speaking. They’re picking…

Resting my arm on my baby bump, I used my free hand to rub my eye in the bright sunshine. My hubby, Lee, and I were enjoying a last break in Majorca, before the birth of our baby. Lovely. Except my left eye had been niggling me the whole time. It was itchy, and slightly swollen. ‘Probably hayfever,’ I told Lee, and my parents, Alan and Christina, who’d joined us on the trip. But back home, it didn’t get any better. Every few days, it’d flare up and swell. Two months on, in November 2014, I started to feel a tingling in my lips, too. Soon, I had pins and needles spreading through my mouth. Just a few days before, I’d had a nasty cold sore, so I thought perhaps…

As the artist added a few finishing touches to her masterpiece, I grinned. ‘You look great!’ I told the pregnant woman sitting in front of her. ‘It tickles,’ she laughed, holding her belly. See, she was having her baby bump painted to look like Minnie Mouse. Behind her was a queue of mums-to-be, waiting to have their bumps painted, too. Disney characters, rainbows, babies - they could have any design that took their fancy. And they were doing it to raise money for a great cause... Just weeks before, in March this year, my baby, Sebastian, 7 months, had been full of energy. Then, out of nowhere, he’d developed a cough, and I noticed his belly felt hard. ‘That’s not normal,’ I said to his dad, Gary, 37. I thought…

Mole concern Q My 6-year-old son has a dark mole on his back. He’s had it since birth but I’m now concerned it might turn cancerous – should I put sunblock on it? Leesa, Harrogate A Definitely use sun block. But you should use it all over the body, not just on the mole, because overall absorption of UV rays should be reduced to a safe level. Thrush trouble QI am post-menopausal and I always seem to be suffering from either a water infection or thrush, which is a reaction from the antibiotics I’ve taken. Is there anything I can do to stop this? It’s so frustrating. Gina, Romford A You might benefit from topical vaginal oestrogens to help restore your vagina’s self-regulating abilities. Visit your GP to discuss this…

QI was circumcised as a teenager, but scarring stops the residual foreskin from being pulled back during an erection. Will I have to undergo surgery. Shaun, Catford A Adhesions following circumcision can sometimes be easily resolved with a steroid cream without the need for surgery. To see if this is possible for you, make an appointment with your GP for more information. 53% …according to a survey, that’s the percentage of us who protect our eyes while on holiday in the UK. The other 47% may be risking their sight.…

Sitting patiently on the couch, my 3-year-old grandson, Syd, stared at the door. ‘Mummy’s coming today!’ he exclaimed. Sadly, I knew it was unlikely his mum, Stacey, 30, would show. See, my girl was hooked on amphetamines... Back in December 2011, when Syd was 2 months old, I’d been appointed his legal guardian. Stacey was only allowed to visit under my supervision. I worried constantly for her. But it hadn’t always been that way. As a girl, she’d been a sweetheart. Loved playing football with her older brothers and swapping clothes with her big sister, Danielle. Leaving school at 16, Stacey moved to the Isle of Man to work as a cleaner in the hotel where Danielle, then 22, worked as a croupier. I missed them, but was pleased they…

Footner Exfoliating Socks, £19.99, Boots Wear these socks for 60 minutes to remove years of dead skin! They encourage natural exfoliation for up to two weeks, by which time your feet will be baby-soft. Easier than other methods. Verdict: GENIUS! Great solution to a common beauty problem. Purrfect Arch, £19.99, www.jmldirect.com This grooming and massage arch is infused with catnip to encourage your cat to keep his or her own coat in good condition. It removes loose fur, so cuts down on shedding and fur balls around the house! Verdict: BONKERS! Think we’ll stick to a brush. Official Fullips Lip Plumper, £14.99, www.toxicfox.co.uk Forget injections, this lip enhancer gives you full lips for hours – in minutes! Just wet the area around your mouth with water,…

Want the perfect... TEMPORARY TATTOOS? Try one of these… Hip: Lottie London Treasure Tatts These may be double the price of the others but one pack contains three sheets of tattoos! The script designs look so pretty worn just above the hip. Hippie: NPW Metallic Tattoos I love the pop of turquoise on these, and the smaller shapes make great bindis for a real festival vibe. Happy: Models Own Colour Chrome Body Tattoos Wear the long ones in this pack instead of bracelets. The pineapple print is my favourite! READER’S TIP Bring old mascara back to life with a couple of drops of salt water. Georgia King, 42, Ferndown Pick Me Up! FOR LESS Miss Beauty London make-up range has now launched in Poundland Jess’ Beauty Hero Palmolive Feel Glamorous…

As I helped Ruby fix her special breathing mask to her little face, she gave me a big grin. ‘Thanks, Mrs Bunting,’ she said. It was September 2012, and I was a teaching assistant at a local primary school. I loved my job, especially as I’d been assigned to help Ruby Sadler, then 7. She has cystic fibrosis, so each day I helped with her medication, physiotherapy and breathing apparatus to help unclog her lungs of mucus. A lovely, intelligent little girl who never let her illness get the best of her, Ruby and I had formed a close bond. I was also in regular contact with her mum, Jo, 31, who kept me up on new caring techniques. There was only one thing that held me back from the…

The news brought happy tears to my eyes. ‘It’s twins,’ the specialist smiled at us. It was November 2008, and my husband, Neil, then 39, and I were over the moon. We’d been trying for a baby for eight heartbreaking years. Had struggled through IVF, surgery on my Fallopian tubes. And now, after our second IVF cycle, we were expecting not one baby, but two! ‘I can’t believe it!’ Neil cried, hugging me. We saw our babies on the monitor screen - heard their tiny hearts beating. Everything was perfect. As my bump grew, we broke our happy news to the family. But then, at 19 weeks pregnant, I started bleeding. Worried, we rang the hospital. Unbearable ‘You’d better come in,’ a doctor advised us. Arriving at University Hospital Coventry,…

Room for one more? My boyfriend sharing an adorable morning cuddle with Casper, our Staffie cross. Sharing with these lazy lads, it’s no wonder I never have any space in bed! Poppy Clarke, Tylorstown Jaw-some! Brighton Pier might not be known for shark attacks, but that’s what happened to me on a recent trip. Help! Laura Smith, Finedon Totes amazing! While at Chessington, my girls, Lily, 8, and Rosie, 6, discovered this totem pole. Rosie did ask – but it refused to smile for the camera! Nicola Partridge, Lordswood Light lunch This tiny banana was a big hit at work when it appeared in a colleague’s lunch! I wonder if it was half-price? Andrea Hewitt, Rainham Hello, kitty How adorable does my 2-year-old daughter Paige look as she gets ready…

Quinsy 1 Quinsy is a condition affecting the leg. 2 Symptoms include a severe and quickly worsening sore throat. 3 There is no treatment for quinsy. 4 The condition can be life-threatening. 1 FALSE Quinsy causes an abscess, which can occur with tonsillitis. It forms between one of your tonsils and the wall of your throat, after bacterial infections. 2 TRUE This is the main symptom and it’s usually felt on one side. Other symptoms include difficulty opening your mouth, bad breath and earache on the affected side. 3 FALSE If you have quinsy, you’ll be treated with antibiotics. Pus may also need to be drained from the abscess, too. 4 TRUE It can cause serious breathing problems if untreated, and the bacteria can spread to elsewhere in the body.…

Television news reporters swarmed the small but exclusive French ski resort, Grand-Bornand. In the weeks before, news had broken that some of the resort’s residents had gone missing. Xavier Flactif, 41, had disappeared into thin air, along with his partner, Graziella Ortolano, 36, and their three children, Sarah, 10, Laetitia, 9, and Gregory, 7. The Flactif family had the table laid for dinner, a casserole in the oven...and then they’d vanished. A reporter for a French news-magazine TV show arranged an interview with the family’s neighbour, David Hotyat. But far from being concerned about the Flactifs, David seemed glad they’d gone. ‘He battered them to death with a blunt object’ Suspicions ‘The Flactifs had everything,’ he snarled into the camera. ‘In their garage there’s a huge 4 x 4, a…

Coconut Choc Bars Serves: 14 Prep Time: 25 min Cook Time: 40 min Base: Topping: 1 Preheat oven to 180C/ Gas 4, and grease and line a 20cm square cake tin. 2 Whisk butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Sift in flour and cocoa. Mix well. 3 Press into tin to cover base, using back of spoon. Prick all over with a fork and bake for 15 min, then set aside. Reduce oven to 140C/Gas 1. 4 Make up egg white as directed, and whisk until stiff. Gradually whisk in sugar until thick and glossy. Gently fold in coconut and vanilla. 5 Pile on top of base, smooth top and bake for 25 min until golden and crusty on top.…

Charming, smartly dressed and generous, Chloe thought she’d found the perfect man when she met Craig Davies on a dating website. However, when cracks started to appear in their relationship and Chloe noticed unusual activity on her bank account, she became suspicious. It turned out that Craig wasn’t quite as generous as she had first thought. And, what’s worse, Chloe wasn’t his only victim... With my two kids in bed, I decided to log on to the dating website I’d signed up to. I was a single mum, had been unlucky in love. I wasn’t even sure I was looking for romance. Just a link to the outside world - a grown-up to talk to! And, one night during the summer last year, Craig Davies became just that. I’m an…

Posing in skimpy lingerie, I smiled and pouted as the photographer snapped away. I’d never felt so sexy. A curvy size-16, I wasn’t your typical model. Not only that, I also had a prosthetic leg. When I was a teen, if you’d told me I’d feel comfy taking part in a sexy photoshoot, I’d have laughed in your face. Then, I had zero confidence... I’d been born with femur-fibula-ulna syndrome - a rare condition that meant my right leg was shorter than the left, and didn’t have a kneecap or ankle. At first, I could do anything my mates could do. Skateboarding, football, swimming... Then, when I was 11, I fell over and dislocated my right hip. At University Hospital, Coventry, I had pins inserted to correct it. But my…

One of our kids, Lauren, had always struggled at school... She found the noise and crowds overwhelming, had difficulty making friends and sometimes fell asleep in class. ‘We need to get her some help,’ my hubby, David, 40, and I agreed. So we took Lauren to educational psychologists and specialists for answers. ‘Lauren’s suffering from epilepsy,’ one explained in 2008. Thankfully, it wasn’t too severe and had only caused ‘absence seizures’ - a less severe kind of fit - so Lauren, then 9, was prescribed medication. But the problems persisted, especially when she started secondary school. Everything was bigger and louder and Lauren struggled to cope if there were any changes to her timetable. ‘I don’t like it,’ she’d say tearfully. Diagnosed with autism shortly after in 2012, my girl…

SIMPLY BE Pick Me Up! Loves... …paisley prints! These will work for autumn, too. IN THE STYLE TIP Wear with a fedora to make the most of the 70s vibe TU TIP Vertical stripes will slim your pins VERY GEORGE AT ASDA DOROTHY PERKINS F&F AT TESCO TIP These are really comfy, perfect for long journeys! PEACOCKS MATALAN RED HERRING NEXT TIP They look designer – but at a fraction of the price! NEW LOOK TIP Wear a simple top with these prints…

A singer in a working man’s club, I was used to lots of faces staring back at me from the audience. But tonight, in 2008, as I blasted out another Barbra Streisand classic, I felt one face focussing on me more than usual. The bloke was thin with mousey-brown hair, and looked a bit younger than me. After I’d finished performing, he introduced himself. ‘Steven,’ he smiled, full of charm. ‘You were great. Fancy going for a drink?’ A mum of four, I’d been single for about a year and didn’t want to get hurt. But I was glad I agreed. We had a laugh. Had stuff in common, too - we both had kids from a previous relationship. A gentleman Steven Burnett, then 36, worked as a taxi driver…

Don’t use a knife Tear lettuc e with clean hands – it’ll stay fresh for longer. Lucy Bryn, Liverpool Soggy cereal If your cornflakes are a bit limp, put them in the o ven to make them crispy again. Angie Jacobs, Helsby Easy squeezy To avoid waste, wrap a squeezy tube – such as cheese spr ead – around a fork handle, to squeeze out the remaining content. Jacqueline Wilkins, Frome Tasty fish Grill fish over lemon slices to add extra flavour. Beverley Lindfield, Hextable…

First came the blotches on the back of my neck. Soon, they’d spread to my elbows and knees. Red and itchy, dry and flaky. I was 13. The GP diagnosed me with psoriasis. It’s a skin condition, and it’s incurable. I was given a cream to help control it. By then, my body was covered in sore, itchy patches. From my scalp to my toes. I did my best to hide my skin from the kids at school. But they saw the patches on my face and hands. They called me Rice Krispie. And it really hurt. Almost as much as the condition itself. Every day, I’d shower with a special oil and slather thick, white moisturiser everywhere. Only then did I apply the psoriasis cream the doctor prescribed, often…

It’d been going on for six years and no-one knew why I’d have these fits and end up in hospital. The doctors suspected epilepsy, but the scans weren’t conclusive. Until finally, when I was 15... ‘You have severe epilepsy,’ the doctor told me, after an EEG (test for electrical activity in the brain) confirmed it. I had tonic-clonic seizures, where my body stiffened, then my legs and arms twitched, I lost consciousness, and convulsed on the floor. They could happen at any time. And it also meant I’d lose control of my bladder and bowels. So when they happened at school, I was mortified. In 1995, I was having up to 200 fits a day. From the age of 8, the doctors had been giving me different medications to try…

1 Asda Lamb Shank In Minted Gravy, 400g There’s loads of delicately mint-flavoured gravy with this tender lamb shank. Serve with lots of mash to soak up it. 2 Morrisons Slow-Cooked Lamb Shank with Mint Gravy, 400g The meat is so tender, it falls off the bone. With a fresh-tasting mint gravy, what a treat! 3 Tesco Slow-Cooked Lamb Shank With Minted Gravy, 400g Not only does this melt in the mouth, the gravy is delicious. There’s masses of meat, so ideal for those with a hearty appetite!…

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When my partner, Lee, 55, and I started planning our wedding, we both agreed we wanted something different. A traditional, big, fancy do just wasn’t us. Keen cyclists, we’d recently discussed doing a 1,400-mile bike ride from Scotland to Cornwall. ‘Let’s get hitched on the way,’ I laughed. ‘We can cycle a few miles, get married, then carry on.’ Lee thought it was a great idea. We decided to raise money for the British Heart Foundation and Cancer Research UK through sponsorship, in memory of my dad, Stan, and Lee’s mum, Della. Instead of wedding gifts, we decided we’d ask guests to donate to the charities, too. ‘You’re mad,’ our friends and family laughed when we told them. I knew my usual cycling shorts and helmet weren’t going to cut…

Reading One Million Lovely Letters by Jodi Ann Bickley, I couldn’t put it down. It was an inspirational novel, documenting how the author stayed positive through illness and depression by writing hundreds of encouraging letters to others having hard times. A month later, this February, I was revising for my A-levels. ‘Everyone seems so bogged down with the pressure,’ I said to a friend – and it got me thinking… Perhaps I should write some letters of encouragement for the other students, like Jodi had? So I began writing words of support, taping them up in school. You’ve gotta keep pushing on, I wrote anonymously. You can’t let obstacles stop you from achieving your goals. By March, everyone at school was talking…

Strolling through my fella Philip’s farm, I grinned as I let my black Labrador, Ace, off his lead. He bounded off, followed by his mutt mate, Grace, 2, a black Labrador-cross. ‘They’re adorable,’ I laughed to my friend, Stacey Gott, 31. Twice a week, we’d meet to walk our dogs. Other times, I let Ace roam on the farm. He was a typical Labrador, always running about excitedly. So on 1 May this year, I knew something was up when Ace was off his food and seemed listless. He usually followed me everywhere I went, but he wouldn’t even leave his bed. That was very strange... Later that day, I tried to take him walkies, but he went into the garden, then came straight back inside, breathing heavily. I knew…

LEO 24 July–23 Aug Even those who know you well will find it hard to know what’s really going on in your mind. You’re going to find it hard not to act from the heart, but this is a good thing, as Friday’s surprise dramatics are about to prove to you. Call: 09058 170 714* VIRGO 24 Aug–23 Sept You find yourself on the outside looking in lately, as those around you seem to be making decisions without consulting you about what you want or need. Luckily, Saturn kicks in on Friday to help you see who your heart and soul really desires. Call: 09058 170 715* LIBRA 24 Sept–23 Oct Contact from those who live far away makes your life a more exciting place. You start to see with…