Table of contents for 19-Mar-2020 in Pick Me Up!

Sitting in the church pews in 1997, at one of our auctions, I placed my bid for a gardener. I needed my garden doing, so I was thrilled when I won. Unfortunately, when Mike came around to fix it up, it started pouring it down. Why don’t you come in?’ I said to him. We soon hit it off, and the following year, the two of us were married. We had such a fun relationship – always off visiting places and going on exciting adventures. But then, about three years ago, I started to notice that Mike was getting confused. One afternoon, he forgot that we’d moved into Alpha Court, a sheltered house run by Alpha Living, eight years ago – he tried to go to his childhood home. Soon,…

This week, our tip of the week will receive a great product from Addis! This cleaning bundle (£19) includes a versatile Kitchen Caddy, which is perfect for storing your dishwasher tablets, washing powder and sponges. There are four Super Sponges to colour coordinate your cleaning routine, a Squeegee with Spray that is ideal for glass, tile and mirror surfaces and a Comfigrip Microfibre Duster that traps dirt and dust like a magnet. For more ways to make your life easier, visit addis.co.uk Five ways to spring clean your oven Astonish, the family-owned Yorkshire cleaning products manufacturer, share their top tips to cleaning your oven after being named Household Cleaning Product of the Year… 1. APPLICATOR To prevent scratches, use a surface specific sponge. Rub the surface using a circular motion…

Deep in the heart of Greece, a young woman looks wide-eyed at the man in front of her, completely besotted. The loved-up pair are oblivious to the scenes of war that surround them. Will their love triumph or is this doomed to end in tragedy? Just then… ‘Mrs Salmon?’ a voice called. Blast, I thought, closing my copy of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin. It was getting good! It was December 2017, and I was at a dentist appointment, passing my time in the waiting room with my favourite book. I’d always loved reading. Starting at the age of five, I was a fast learner, happy to spend my time curled up in bed with a good book. It was my favourite hobby, and, growing up, it became my job, too –…

Moving into our new home together, me and my partner Sam, 33, were in a great place. We had thriving careers, both running our own businesses. Then, in early 2013, I discovered I was pregnant with our first child together. ‘This is amazing,’ Sam smiled, as we stared at the monitor during our first scan. We were so excited to be parents and soon, we started looking for a new place to rent that would fit a family of three. As my pregnancy went on, I grew bigger and bigger and oh boy did I feel it! ‘I’m huge,’ I sighed. ‘It will be worth it in the end,’ Sam smiled, helping me embrace my bump. Then, when I was seven months pregnant, we were going around to Sam’s parents…

Animal Rescue School, Channel 4 Only the best will be selected to enter the RSPCA Inspector School, and only the very best will make it through the gruelling ten-month training course. Recruits must be competent with firearms, able to abseil, pass underwater rescue tests, be able to confront dangerous animals, fully understand the complexities of the law and learn how to be diplomatic when facing confrontation. You follow the hopefuls as they start off living at the school and you get exclusive access as they attempt to prove they are worthy of a place amongst the elite animal protection officers that patrol the streets of Britain. Narrated by Patrick Stewart. Feel Good, Channel 4 This new comedy drama series tells the story of a recovering addict as she tries to…

Last month, Lush Spa released their new treatment – Renaissance. This 40-minute pampering features bodywork used in different cultures, traditions and rituals from all over the world. Based on techniques from the Renaissance period, this treatment uses fragrance to transport you to a deeper state of relaxation. Your treatment will begin with your therapist prescribing you one of four scents from their Florence collection based on your state of mind and hormonal balance. By applying the powder of your scent onto the warm bed, the fragrance will instantly penetrate your senses. After this, using body work, energy healing and massage techniques, your therapist will begin to layer your fragrance to maintain a point of focus. Lush Renaissance perfume expert, Rose Byfleet says; ‘The perfume is layered up over the course…

WIN A HOLIDAY! Boost, the pay-as-you-go-energy supplier, has created the ‘Give Me The Energy awards’. They’re giving away five £100 vouchers weekly and a £2000 holiday voucher for the funniest pictures of your testing moments. T&Cs apply, enter at goodtoknow.co.uk/boostcomp boost GET IN TOUCH Send us your stories and photos, including all names and ages, a daytime phone number and full address. E-mail hello@pickmeupmag.co.uk WRITE TO Pick Me Up! Media Centre, Emma-Chris Way, Abbey Wood Park, Filton, Bristol, BS34 7JU PHONE 01174400607 FACEBOOK facebook.com/pickmeupmag SEE OUR WEBSITE lifedeathprizes.com TI Media Limited reserves the right to reuse any submission sent to Pick Me Up! magazine, in any format or medium. Unfortunately, we can’t return photos without a stamped sae. Letters/photos must not be sent to any other publication. Don’t miss this…

Fill it! Complete the grid then read down the shaded squares to reveal the hidden answer. Clue: Film term. Answer on page 47. ACROSS 7 Jermain _, England footballer (5) 8 Self-employed (9) 10 Billie _, ‘Bad Guy’ singer (6) 11 Word list (8) 12 Customary (8) 13 Taverns (4) 15 January celebration (3,4) 17 Liked (7) 20 Type of school (4) 22 Conquer (8) 25 Picked (8) 26 Unit of time (6) 27 Cannibalistic (3-6) 28 Churlish (5) DOWN 1 Pauses in doubt (9) 2 Degree or strength of a poison (8) 3 Easily broken (7) 4 Hard grains used in puddings (8) 5 Emma _, Little Women actress (6) 6 Oak tree fruit (5) 9 Archaic word for ‘you’ (4) 14 Vexingly (9) 16 Enjoyment of food (8)…

Introducing The Scarlett Edit at Peacocks, in collaboration with the talented presenter Scarlett Moffatt. Like Scarlett’s loveable personality, the edit is utterly contagious. Featuring dainty florals on tea dresses and flouncy blouses, denim jackets and ripped jeans. These fashionable outfits are effortlessly stylish and flattering for women of any shape and size.…

Have you ever seen a close friend or family member struggling with fertility problems? If so, you’ll know the anguish they experience in trying to fall pregnant, and you may have felt powerless to help them Of course, there are always the options of adoption, surrogacy, and sperm donation to help couples become parents. But have you ever heard of egg donation? This is where a woman has some of her eggs collected, which she can then donate to someone else’s fertility treatment. And while egg donation is on the rise in the UK, it’s still a pretty unfamiliar concept, and therefore still in high demand. In fact, the number of women needing donated eggs has risen sharply in the past 10 years. According to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology…

Martini Prosecco, £10, Asda. The perfect gift for Mother’s Day, Martini Prosecco is packed with delicious fruit flavours and a floral aroma. Charlie Bigham’s Proper Puds range, £5.50, Waitrose. The aptly named ‘proper puds’ range includes sticky toffee pudding, bread and butter pudding and a deliciously rich, melt in the middle chocolate fondant. WW Cake Slices, £1.50, ASDA, Co-Op, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons. Less than 100 calories and 70% less sugar than a normal cake slice, you can certainly have you cake and eat it with the latest offering from WW – Weight Watchers reimagined. LEON dips, £1.75, Sainsbury’s. Expanding their vegan offering, LEON have now launched a range of vegan and vegetarian dips, including hummus and Beetziki, which combines smooth Greek-style yogurt and delicious beetroot. Zymurgorium The Tale of the Ruby…

Adjusting my mic, I sat down to record my Sunday morning radio show on WaveWSM in Somerset. ‘Good morning everyone,’ I said, holding my headphones. I’ve been a radio presenter for nine years and love my job. The only downfall is that it takes up valuable time on weekends that I could spend with my family. My wife Melonie, 36, spends her weekends with our two daughters Teyla, six, and Freya, two, and my two daughters Lauren, 20, and Chloe, 19, doing girly things. In a bid to have some father-daughter bonding time, one Sunday in August last year, I bought Teyla along to work. As I chatted away into the mic, she sat opposite me in a chair listening. Then suddenly, she started responding to me. Turning the mic…

Sitting down with my mum Sheila, 71, she fell silent before breaking some devastating news. I ve got breast cancer,’ she confessed sadly. ‘Oh no,’ I cried, as tears rolled down my cheeks. In November 2018, Mum had taken herself to the GP when she noticed a change in her left nipple. She was sent for a mammogram, and doctors discovered a 2cm tumour in her breast. Further tests revealed the heartbreaking news that Mum had stage two cancer and it had spread to her lymph nodes. She decided to keep the news to herself until she was officially diagnosed. ‘I wish you’d told me sooner,’ I sobbed. ‘I didn’t want to worry you,’ she replied sincerely. My mum had always been my best friend – we told each other…

Cradling my newborn in my arms, I smiled. ‘She’s gorgeous,’ my husband Richard, 35, said. It was April 2018, and we’d just welcomed our little girl Mary into the world. We knew our son William, now five, would adore his little sister. A few hours later, it was time to try and breastfeed. Little Mary latched on right away, and was such a good baby. She loved her milk, and fed happily for hours. Later that day, though, my breasts started to become really sore. ‘I hope I’m not overdoing it,’ I said to my midwife. Not at all,’ she smiled. ’Why don’t you try feeding for 40 minutes on each side, to stimulate the milk?’ They’d turned into open wounds The following day, we were allowed home, and Mary…

What’s the buzz? Bees are in decline on a global scale as they face many threats, from habitat loss to the use of toxic pesticides. If these threats aren’t brought under control, we could be looking at a future without bees. Find out why our food system and environment are dependent on bees… 1 One third of our food has been made thanks to pollinators such as bees. 2 Bees help create habitats for birds, insects and mammals. 3 Bees are part of the food chain, and at least 24 species of bird prey on bees. 4 Honey is a valuable product for its sweet taste, dense energy and its medicinal properties. 5 It would cost British farmers £1.8 billion per year to manually pollinate their crops if we didn’t…

Laying in my hospital bed, the nurse placed my newborn son onto my chest, ready for his first feed. ‘There you go, Ross,’ I smiled, lifting him up to my boob. Only, almost immediately after taking his first sip, he threw it back up. ‘Is he OK?’ I asked the nurse. ‘It’s normal,’ she quickly soothed. And so, I decided not to think about it too much, and we were soon discharged so we could go home and introduce him to his big sister Erin, now 14. Only back at home, Ross still wasn’t keeping down his milk. After every sip he would just throw it back up. ‘He’s not getting enough,’ I fretted to my husband Scott, 39. ‘The nurse said it was normal though, let’s just keep trying,’…

In 2013, Stacey*, 32, from Brighton, heard an advert on the radio asking women to consider egg donation. ‘I thought it was a nice idea,’ she said. ‘I’d always been on the organ donor register, always gave blood, so I thought, why not?’ Stacey signed up to Altrui online, and she soon got a call to discuss her application further. ‘I had a few phone calls over the next few weeks, but they were really lovely and friendly – not pushy at all. ‘After that, I had a private session with one of their counsellors, and even then, there was no pressure on me at all, and I was given plenty of opportunities to change my mind. ‘I just thought, I lose an egg every month anyway, so why not…

Mother and Daughter Makeover Photo Shoot, £10 You’ll feel like models for a day with this mother and daughter photo shoot session. Expert makeup artists and hair stylists will primp and preen you to perfection before you step into the studio, ready for your close-up! Choose from a selection of studios, where you will have the opportunity to be pictured with different backgrounds and to make clothing changes if you wish. Aft er the shoot, you’ll be invited to a viewing session to receive one complimentary print and order any further pictures to take away with you. A fun bonding day out for the girls! Two Hour Dance Lesson for Two at Forever Dance UK, £80 Be taught how to dance with a fun and informative two-hour private dance lesson…