Fill a virtual goodie bag! How could I resist? The plan is to put all my favourite or desired items into a swag bag for a significant birthday including: a book, beauty product, snack food, music album and ‘my choice’. By the way, dear readers, my real birthday is approaching soon so sit up and pay attention 😉

I was asked by my Writers Abroad chum, Louise Charles to take part in this blog hop. Louise has just published her novel, The Duke’s Shadow. Set in mid-Victorian times, if you enjoy period dramas such as Upstairs Downstairs or Downton Abbey you will love Louise’s book!

Book: As Virginia Woolf said, every woman needs a room of her own, or better still a shed of her own! Preferably one without hubby’s tools getting in the way! I mean gardening tools of course. What else? Gill Heriz, author of ‘A Woman’s Shed’ has interviewed over 80 different women, and Nicolette Hallett has photographed their sheds creating this unique insight into why women have sheds, and what they do in them. There are sheds for puppet-makers, sculptors, and writers, as well as farmers, furniture-makers, and woodcutters.

Beauty Product: Who could resist a lipstick called Pudgy Peony? Especially when it’s packaged so perfectly like the Clinique Chubby Sticks. I don’t know who they’ve got naming their colours but he or she is a genius; Chunky Cherry, Woppin’ Watermelon, Fuller Fig, Graped up, Voluptuous Violet, Mighty Mimosa, Whole Lotta Honey, ah it’s sheer retail poetry. Bountiful Blush is my favourite shade, so in it goes!

Snack Food: That’s easy peasy. I’m a Herefordshire lass (That’s HerEfordshire, not HerTfordshire!) and I loves me Tyrell’s Crisps. The spuds are grown in the rich red soil of home and they have nostalgic black and white pictures on the packets. So even when you’ve scoffed the lot you can keep the pic! Plus they’re artisan crisps so you don’t have to feel so guilty…

Music: I’ve always loved Middle Eastern music so I’d pop on my favourite Belly Dance Fantasy CD by Veena & Neena just to cheer myself up if I was feeling depressed about getting so old. I listen to Classic FM while driving the car, it keeps me calm.

My Choice: In ‘The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe,’ by C.S. Lewis, the children bump into Father Christmas when they are in Narnia, as you do! He’s the usual jolly, rotund figure and he gives all the children gender appropriate gifts. Some might say he was a bit sexist but hey, it was written a long time ago so get over it. He gives Peter a sword and shield, Susan a bow, a quiver of arrows and a magic horn and he presents Lucy with a bottle of cordial. At first she’s totally underwhelmed but then old Santa explains that a few drops of the magic potion will heal any injury or ailment. Sounds like the best pressie to me, so I’ll have a flagon of Lucy’s Healing Cordial in my virtual swag bag please. Thanks, Santa!

Next week the Swag Bag- Blog Hop passes on to the lovely and talented, Kathy Gamble who blogs about her experiences at home and overseas here Expat Alien

Join in the foray! What would you put in your swag bag?