Table of contents for 8-Aug-2024 in Pick Me Up!

Scrolling through Facebook in December 2020, I was on the hunt again for new suggestions. I’d joined a community group about adopting animals in our area – me, my mum Alison and my dad John were looking to adopt a dog. But also having a cat named Domino, our search was proving a little difficult. Then, I spotted a new post. It was by the charity O.U.R Dog Foundation, who rescued dogs from kill shelters in Romania and found them new homes in the UK. They had the perfect dog for us, too. A dog called Diesel caught our eye. He was gorgeous. ‘We have to rescue him,’ Mum breathed. So, we kickstarted the adoption process. As we waited for him to arrive in the UK, we were sent updates,…

STAR LETTER I’m a bus driver and when my passengers said I looked like Paul Chuckle, it made me laugh. Now I have my own Facebook called Chuckles Friends and I even went to see Paul doing a DJ set with my wife Denise and met him backstage. John Simpson, Darlington These two rescue dogs are always hugging – Lucky is one years old and Dotty is six. I love them – they make my world and accept me for me. Graham Steer, Wangford Poppie’s first sports day – being autistic she can find things overwhelming, but she did amazing! Charlotte McLean, Lowestoft Here’s me, my boyfriend Mark and our little Wiggles on a recent break to the Lake District. It’s a wonderful place. Krissie Cope, Manchester If your letter makes Star Letter…

Pushing through the charity shop doors, it was a treasure trove. And scanning shelves, one item in particular jumped out at me. A beautiful pink floral lamp. Priced at a pound, it was a total bargain. I knew the vintage style would fit the aesthetic of my home perfectly. Because I loved the style of the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s. And rather than plumping for a shiny white IKEA kitchen, I’d gone for something completely retro. My home was like a time capsule! Plumping for rich brown, dark green, mahogany and dusky pink, it was a ‘40s dream. The style reminded me of my nan Patricia, 87. She was a character and throughout my childhood, I spent most of my time at her flat. It was my happy place. Nan’s…

Sniffs and snuffles Q I feel like I’m really prone to colds. Even in the summer, I have a snotty nose. I don’t want to rely on medication. Are there any home remedies I can try? Olivia, Newport A If your symptoms – like a runny nose, blocked sinuses, and sneezing – are frequent, it could be hay fever rather than a cold. Although hay fever peaks from March to September, winter allergens like dust mites, mould spores, and pet dander can trigger symptoms all year-round, too. To alleviate your symptoms, try: • Applying petroleum jelly inside your nostrils to trap allergens. • Keeping your home as dust free as possible. To avoid it as much as possible, try wearing a mask while dusting with a damp cloth and vacuum…

Waking up in the morning, there’s no time for a lie-in – seven hungry birds are awaiting brekkie. Dishing up scoops of donated cat food onto Chinese trays, I make my way out to the sanctuary in my garden. And by the sound of the excitable dinosaur-like shrieks, I know my gulls are hungry. Laying out the trays, I smile as the birds clumsily stumble over each other to get to their food. And while they chomp away, I get to work making fresh beds of hay. Having set up my very own seagull sanctuary five years ago, after moving to North Wales with my partner Kayleigh and her two children Osian, 15, and Nansi, eight, I’d rescued hundreds of gulls in need. Starting with some abandoned chicks back in…

Instagram baking sensation Jane Dunn is back! Her new book Easy Favourites, is full of sweet and savoury treats, no bake recipes and cakes that take 30 minutes or under! • Jane’s Patisserie Easy Favourites, £22, Waterstones Treat of the week Summer Fruit Drizzle Cake Serves: 8 Prep: 15 mins Bake: 50-60 mins TOP TIP: You can use frozen berries rather than fresh, although it can mean the cake takes a little longer to bake. YOU WILL NEED: ☐ 150g unsalted butter, at room temperature☐ 150g caster sugar☐ 225g self-raising flour☐ 3 eggs☐ 1 tsp vanilla extract☐ 175g summer berries FOR THE TOPPING: ☐ 100g summer berries☐ 100g caster sugar☐ 2 tbsps lemon juice 1 Preheat the oven to 180°C and then line a 900g loaf tin with parchment paper. 2…

Catch Claire live on Facebook ARIES 21 March–20 April With Mercury retrograde in Leo you’re finding it hard to go forward with a certain person. Rather than using each day as a test, why not try to just let it be? It’s the key to you seeing how the mists clear when others are left to make the next move. Be prepared to be pleasantly surprised by contact you receive out the blue this weekend, too. It’s your time, Aries! Call: 09058 170 710* TAURUS 21 April–21 May As Venus enters Libra, you finally start to make sense of the mixed messages you were sent as you ended July. You’re not willing to play games, nor should you have to, Taurus. You only have time for those willing to lay…

ACROSS 1 Quarrel (4) 5 Long-eared mammal (4) 6 Wicked (4) 7 Pact (4) DOWN 1 Discard (4) 2 Cover with slabs (4) 3 Opera song (4) 4 William __, Swiss folk hero (4) Read down the shaded squares for the answer. Answer on page 44. Follow it! Solve the puzzle to spell out a term related to the picture. The arrows show you where to put your answers. The answer is spelled in the yellow squares. Answers on page 44. Fill it! Complete the grid then read down the shaded squares to reveal the hidden answer. Clue: Type of ship. Answer on page 44. ACROSS 1 See 9 Down 4 __ Mumba, singer whose hits include Gotta Tell You and Always Come Back to Your Love (8) 10 The…

Feeling like I’d reached rock bottom, I didn’t know who to turn to. In May 2021, I’d split from my long-term boyfriend Barry, 43. In that moment, I wasn’t sure what to do. The break-up hit me hard. We’d been with one another for four years and had shared some great memories together. Relying on drugs to get me through traumatic times, I thought it was the only way to see light at the end of the tunnel. It was self-destructive behaviour, but I didn’t know how to get out of that cycle. However, that’s when I knew who I could rely on – Julian. He’d give me weird smirks and make slimy remarks We’d first met through mutual friends over 15 years ago – he was introduced to me…

Whacking up the volume on my stereo, I swayed to the music. As Whitney Houston blared in my kitchen, I danced over to my mum Janice, then 60. ‘Oh, I wanna dance with somebody!’ I sang, grabbing her hand and giving her a twirl. We’d only had a few drinks while out for dinner that Easter in 2021, with my daughters Lacie, 18, Mylie-Rae, 15, and my kids’ dad Craig, 43. But Mum and I were the life of the party. She was my best friend – my rock. On Mother’s Day in 2022, I wanted to thank her. I’d ordered her a Peaky Blinders card and bought her a plug-in diffuser – she loved her home smelling fresh. As Mum tried to open the card though, she winced. ‘What’s…

Adding a pinch of salt and pepper to the creamy, cheese sauce, my alfredo bubbled away. A family favourite, the cheesy whiffs were enough to get my mouth watering. ‘Dinner’s up,’ I called to my husband Sean, 52, and our two little girls Scarlett, 10, and Morgan, seven. Plating up regular portions for the girls, I piled mine and Sean’s plates high. Often digging into at least twice the size of a regular portion, I loved anything carby, cheesy and high fat. Eating until I was full to the brim, this was the usual. But this indulgence wasn’t because I hadn’t eaten all day. In fact, I was renowned for a double dinner, often eating up to four meals a day. As a stay at home mum, at our Florida…

OLYMPIC GOLD With the Paris Olympics 2024 now in full swing, go for gold and dazzle this August. Make Up Gallery Time to Shine in shade 24K, £1, Poundland Bring the bling to your fingertips with this slick liquid gold. Transforming nails, this colour really does pack a punch. e.l.f Skin Bronzing Drops, £12, Superdrug Beauty fans have been going wild for this pot of liquid gold and we can see why. Creating a warm, sun-kissed complexion, it awakens and illuminates the skin for a bronzed glow. Lottie London x Outer Banks The Gold Multipurpose Dry Oil, £9.95, lottie.london Add a sun-kissed glow to your skin with this illuminating Champagne oil. With a sweet scent, it will transport you to a sunny haven with glowy, dewy results. Charles Worthington Moisture…

Executive Coach of the Year, Jo Emerson, answers your questions. Listen to her podcast Tell Me Who You Really Are on your preferred streaming platform. Grab her book, Flying for Beginners, follow @jo_emerson_ on Instagram and please visit: jo-emerson.com Am I cheating? Q I’m a married woman but I’m desperate to kiss my boss. When I’m alone with him, I can’t think of anything else and I have initiated flirty behaviour. However, I do love my husband, so what’s the matter with me? Andrea, Georgeham A I hear that you love your husband but do you fancy him? What’s going on with your marital sex life right now? I’m pretty sure that if your needs for excitement and intimacy were being met in your marriage you wouldn’t be fantasising about…

We’re loving If Bridgerton has got you yearning to practise some long-forgotten pastimes, you’re not alone – Lady Whistledown’s whimsical way with words has inspired us all. If you want to hop on the fancy letter writing trend but don’t know where to start, why not try out Hobbycraft’s Beginner’s Guide to Modern Calligraphy workshop? With a skilled Hobbycraft Artisan teaching you simple techniques, you’ll learn how to use varying line thicknesses to style your letters – and you’ll be ready to craft your own Regency love letter in no time. • £28 per person, book online via: classbento.co.uk. You will receive a craft kit ahead of the workshop with over £31 worth of calligraphy products. • For more, visit: hobbycraft.co.uk Why not start an impressive new hobby? Fun day…

Holding my daughter on my lap, we weren’t just having a cuddle. Instead, I placed a plastic mask over Olivia’s face. Then three, she never kicked up a fuss when it was time to have her nebuliser, take her inhaler or daily medication and do a quick physio session. But spotting her cousins not doing the same, she piped up. ‘Mummy, why do I need the neb?’ she asked, confused. I decided to be honest. ‘Because you have CF,’ I said. ‘You need to take your neb to help you.’ When Olivia was born, she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis – it came as a shock to me and my husband Ash, 33. A genetic condition which affected her breathing, harmful bacteria could cause awful colds and a build-up of…

Sitting down in the living room, I had some exciting news to break. Beside me sat my husband Matt, 33, with our boys Oliver, now eight, and Noah, now three, waiting patiently opposite. ‘Mummy has a baby brother in her belly,’ I smiled. ‘When can I play football with him?’ Oliver grinned. That sent Matt and I into fits of laughter. ‘They don’t just come out football ready,’ I giggled. But at the time, in January 2022, Oliver was too young to understand that. All our boys had on their minds was footie, wearing their blue Cardiff City FC kits and kicking balls about the house. Finding out they were getting a baby brother meant a new player on their team. For Matt and I, it was like our very…

Flicking through Hinge, I had a match. In late November 2020, I came across Christopher, then 39. How are you? he messaged. I can’t say there was much of a spark, but Christopher – or Chris – was nice enough. After a month of chatting online, Chris and I met up for a walk in his village in Hitchin. Chris seemed like a decent bloke, and we planned to see each other again. Only, he kept ghosting me. It wasn’t something I’d normally entertain, but Chris was in and out of hospital with a heart condition. My dad suffered a stroke that year and I lost a friend, too, so I felt sorry for Chris. Only there were weeks where we wouldn’t speak. If you’re not serious, don’t bother, I…

Bitesize! pg 3 Sail Strike it! pg 13 Panorama (Cross out: 1, 12, 18, 25, 39, 57, 63, 71, 83, 86) Crack it! pg 23 Telephone Fill it! pg 13 Frigate Sudoku pg 36 1,4,3 Cross it! pg 36 Paradise Number fit! pg 13 2436 Spot it! pg 38 Starry eyes pg 28 Stacey Dooley, Martin Lewis, Maya Jama, Graham Norton, Dermot O’Leary Follow it! pg 8 Brigantine PLEASE NOTE Pick Me Up! will still be bringing you great puzzles to pit your wits against, but will no longer be offering prizes. Don’t forget, you can do puzzles for big cash prizes every weekin our sister magazine, Chat.…