Highlights of 2025: Family, Fearless Moments, and Viral Success

It’s New Year’s Eve, and like many people, I’m reflecting on 2025 — what I’ve achieved, what I’ve survived, and how I’ve truly felt along the way.

For me, 2025 was the year I became more confident showing up on social media.

The year I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and did things I never thought I could.

How the Year Began

The year started as it usually does — with family time and friend time. My best friend came to stay with her daughter, and we had a few fab days together. One of those days was spent exploring the local area, taking photos for her daughter’s school photography project on natural frames.

She had to photograph places, people, or objects framed naturally — like capturing our local church through its entrance arch, or a photo of Jiya taken through the decorative brickwork in our front garden. That photo of Jiya ended up being used in her school project, which felt really special.

We also attended a 4th birthday party for a family friend’s daughter at soft play. Jiya used to be close friends with her older brother when they were in nursery, and although the kids aren’t as close now, the parents stayed friends — so we still get invited to all the birthdays. Maanvi was one of the oldest kids there, surrounded by much younger children, but she handled it all brilliantly.

A Big Family Upheaval

Then came the biggest upheaval of the year.

My husband’s cousin left her husband and moved in with us with her children — for five months. The girls gave up their bedrooms. Maanvi moved in with me, and Jiya shared a room with her dad. Suddenly, we had three adults and four children living in a three-bedroom house.

It was tough. Really tough.

But family means everything to us, and when family needs help, we help — no questions asked. Somehow, we made it work.

During that time, we celebrated Maanvi’s 11th birthday with a bowling party, I went to see Indian comedian Amit Tandon live in Birmingham, and Maanvi went on her Year 6 end-of-primary trip to Alton Towers for four days — a huge milestone.

By the end of June, the cousin and her children were able to move back home after receiving permission from the courts, and we slowly found our rhythm again as a family.

Endings, Beginnings, and Summer Reflections

July was emotional. Maanvi finished primary school and had her farewell party. There were tears — from both of us.

At work, I unintentionally started a bit of a birthday trend. I’ve always been the birthday organiser in my team — collecting money, organising gifts, and making sure cards are signed. This year, I discovered an AI website called LookaLikey, where you can upload a photo and generate a realistic AI image. I started creating personalised AI portraits for colleagues as part of their birthday gifts, and it became a thing.

The summer holidays flew by — juggling work, spending time with the girls, and mentally preparing for Maanvi starting secondary school. I also signed up for a course to create an AI twin of myself. I’ve always hated having my photo taken and posting online, so this felt like the perfect solution — professional-looking images without the pressure of photo shoots.

Big Steps and Bigger Wins

September was huge.

Maanvi started secondary school, and if I’m honest, I was terrified. She’s always struggled with change, and her anxiety made me worry about how she’d cope. But she surprised us all. She absolutely loves it. Even now, she begs her dad to drop her off early for breakfast club and has signed up for three after-school clubs.

September was also my birthday — I turned 44. I celebrated with a girls’ day out, watching Surinderella, an Indian adaptation of Cinderella, at the theatre. It was hilarious, and we all loved it. We followed it with lunch and a chilled bus ride home.

That same month, I posted a TikTok that went viral — hitting over 200,000 views in 24 hours. Because of that, I was approached to be a guest on a YouTube podcast… and I said yes.

Facing Fears and Finding Confidence

In October, I tried clay pigeon shooting as part of a work team day (something I never imagined myself doing) and recorded the podcast episode in a studio. I was terrified, but Mani, the host, was incredible. He helped me relax, and we ended up recording a two-hour session with breaks.

October was also our 15th wedding anniversary. My husband and I spent the day together — breakfast out and a cosy movie day.

For Halloween, Maanvi transformed herself into a zombie by ripping up some of my old clothes — and honestly, she looked amazing. I also won a pumpkin decoration competition at work with two colleagues.

The Unexpected Viral Moment

In November, the girls and I went to the cinema to watch K-Pop Demon Hunters on the big screen. They loved it all summer, and I loved the soundtrack, so it was a win-win.

Then… things went crazy.

The podcast episode I recorded in October went live — and to say it went viral would be an understatement. In four days, my TikTok following tripled from under 200 to over 600. My Instagram gained 300 new followers in a week. My book sales increased too — I sold 12 copies in December, which is huge for me.

I was approached by a radio station to appear as a guest (coming up in January) and also invited to be a model for a TikTok makeup artist — again, happening in January.

Among all that, we celebrated Jiya’s 8th birthday, Christmas, and one of my proudest mum moments: Maanvi learning to make beans on toast and cheese on toast — and actually making them for me when I asked. She also went completely over the top making Rice Krispies treats… enough to last two weeks. We finished the last of them today.

Looking Ahead

So yes — 2025 was a fab year.

And 2026?

It’s going to be even better.

If you’d like to keep up with what I’m doing, you can follow me on social media or subscribe to the blog to never miss a post