An Unplanned Break From Blogging

I hadn't realised until yesterday that I had given myself an unplanned break from my blog. I ran out of time to schedule posts over the weekend while I took a quick a trip back home. And this week is the first week of the school holidays so I've been busy working, afternoon napping and indulging in season 5 of Gossip Girl!  

Last weekend I went back to Gunnedah, out in the country where I grew up, for my Nan + Uncle's birthday party. It was really nice getting to see everyone again, and especially those whom I hadn't seen in years. I haven't had the chance to get back for over two years, which hasn't been a big deal because those in my family I am closest to come to visit me and my parents here on the coast. And with things like engagement parties, weddings, surprise birthdays and Mother Daughter Weekends it feels like I see my family a lot. I'm especially excited to see them in three weeks time for a second Mother Daughter Weekend for the year!

I usually like to start my week off by sharing a handful of posts I've enjoyed during the previous week, instead I started it off with a dreadful headache whilst running errands. It was the kind of headache that wouldn't allow me to get excited over a surprise saving  of $100 on my car registration. After a couple of days at work, my working week ended quite nicely and today I had the most delicious blueberry pancake for breakfast with an early morning Gossip Girl session. And I went out for lunch + coffee with my Mum, we did some banking and then she helped me pick out some summer pants. It was an easy breezy sort of day, one I intend to finish off with a book in bed. My unplanned break was just what I needed to get back into the swing of things for next week!

Stop, Drop + Swap!

It's that time of the month again! If you would like to swap buttons for the month of October, I would be delighted to hear from you! My button size is 230x110.

Kora Organics 'DIY Facial' Event Night

On Wednesday evening at the Yoga Loft in Newcastle the Kora Organics team hosted a fun 'DIY Facial' event night. The Yoga Loft will be stocking the Kora Organics range in their spa, and the evening was a great way to introduce the products to their customers. I have already had the pleasure of using some of the Kora range courtesy of Therese herself at our previous Mother Daughter Weekends, but there was lots of new products I hadn't tried. The evening started with warm welcomes from the staff and the Kora team along with some fresh organic produce and wine, followed by a performance by a local musician. Therese Kerr, the general manager of Kora (& Miranda Kerr's mother), began the night with a run down on how Miranda created Kora, and how her own health affected her lifestyle choice to transition from an accountant to a holistic family health ambassador. 

Therese & her son Matt ran everyone through a DIY facial using the Kora products. Each product was laid out along yoga mats ready to try out. Therese thoroughly explained each product and the benefits of using these products, and switching to organic cosmetics and how they can affect your personal health and wellbeing. One of the products I was particularly impressed with was the Kora Blemish Gel, it really really works! So many blemish gel claims to work overnight, or even more promising with instant results, and they are jam packed with horrible chemicals and end up drying out your skin. I had a couple of blemishes around my chin and smile crease, and after using the Kora Blemish Gel I noticed results within a couple of hours. And two days after using the gel, just with one application, my blemishes have completely gone! 

At the end of the evening the tickets for the event were redeemable with the purchase of Kora products. So after an informative evening about the benefits of all things organic, Noni shots + freshly made strawberry sorbet and sampling the Kora range - a discount on the products was an added bonus! I purchased the Hydrating Facial Mask, and will most definitely be investing in the blemish gel later on! It was such a great evening, and it was even better because my sister Ashleigh and my mum were there too!

- Be sure to check back next week as I have a fun little interview with Therese! -

Working Together

[My friend Jamie took this photo]

A couple of weeks ago Luke left the restaurant he was working at to explore different options and has been working at the cafe where I work for the past couple of weeks. Which has been such a great change considering we actually get to see each other now! Before where Luke was working he would work all day, and finish in the evenings sometimes just before 11pm. Aside from a rushed break in the afternoon, we only got to spend time together if I stayed up late to see him after work which was becoming a problem as I start work early. Or Sunday evenings when his restaurant was closed. Our days off always fell on different days, and until recently we hadn't spent a full day together in three months. And this has been our routine for the past couple of years. Having him home in the evenings has been a delightful adjustment, and I now actually get to enjoy the benefits of having a chef as a husband! 

Start Your Week Off With..

4 Simple Goals by Kitty & Buck

Adoring Pyjama Pants by The Sea & Me Change

10 Reasons Why I Heart New York by Happy Pretty Things

The Most Amazing Giveaway Ever by BenLovesTing

Earring Superstition

Last year when I worked at a magazine in the advertising department, I would associate my days luck/success with whatever set of earrings I was wearing. I would hold certain pairs of earrings responsible for signing new clients, or losing them. It was totally ridiculous! So ridiculous that it became a little secret, and a regular thought pattern. Even though I no longer work for that magazine, I still maintain the same thought pattern that some earrings possess better days than others. And more recently, if I wear a 'good day' pair a couple of days in a row and my luck pattern doesn't follow suit, I'm convinced I've jinxed them temporarily. I am completely aware that is silly and ridiculous, I just can't seem to shake these thoughts. So much so that a couple of weeks ago I bought a pill box to organise my earrings so I wouldn't wear the same pair two days in a row. Even though the motive behind this comical, I've actually found this to be a practical solution to organising my earrings and keeping my current favourites in rotation.

My Monthly Agenda / September

WANT / NEED / MEAL / READ

I wanted to put off posting my new monthly agenda because I haven't yet finished 'Fifty Shades Of Grey', which was last months read. I got behind with my monthly goal of reading a new book each month, because one of the books I was reading was a little lack lustre in some parts and I was put off reading it. And if I start reading a book, I need to finish it no matter how bad it is. Whereas Luke buys books all the time and only reads half of it, then starts another, and it really unsettles me for some strange reason. So I'm 50 pages off finishing 'Fifty Shades Of Grey' and then I intend to start 'This Is How It Ends'. I picked it up at the shops a couple of weeks ago because the book design had lovely colours, and I usually go for the better designed book cover. I know you should never judge a book by its cover, but I studied design and we always did!

I mentioned last week that on our adventures together, Luke & I came across the perfect decorative sitting chair. We saw it in the store on the Monday, and on Wednesday morning I called to order it and because I left it a couple of days they had all sold out and now we have to wait five weeks for it to come back in stock. Which is annoying, but a lesson learnt - don't hesitate when it comes to lemongrass sitting chairs! Another purchase for this month that I intend on making is a melting ice-cream iPhone case. A couple of cutie pie girls came into the cafe last week and they both had one and they were just so dreamy! And even though it doesn't look so dreamy, I want to try Therese Kerr's favourite smoothie which is the most hectic smoothie I've seen! Theres like twenty ingredients to that bad boy! Let me know if you try it out.

Celestial Cat + A Fancy Wolf

Did anybody else take advantage of the $9.99 tees on Threadless last week? These are the two tee's I treated myself too. I've been wanting a cat tee forever and as of next week I'll have one! 

Start Your Week Off With..

Sweet Corn Ice Cream by Katie's Pencil Box

I'm A Hoarder by Salvaged Strawberry

A North Park Date by We Will Stay

Questions + Answers by Sometimes Sweet

Some links to start your week off with!

The Wrong Side Of The Bed

[source]

I can actually count on one hand how many Saturday's Luke & I have spent together in the four years we've been little lovers. And today was one of them. We had a lovely morning together until we left the house to begin our day. Deciding to stay in bed reading books rather than making an early start, we left ourselves little time to have breakfast before our lunch date with my family. So we popped over to one of the cafes near our house and had our morning coffees in the sun. As we were about to leave for lunch I got a text with a delay in our plans, so Luke & I made our way to Bunnings instead to replace our abnormal hoop-like kitchen light - which was not in stock. Normally this wouldn't bother me, but I was already in a bad mood, and everything on the coast is spread so far apart that completing a menial task can take an hour. So we will be without a kitchen light until Monday, which I am just thrilled about!

In an attempt to cheer me up Luke suggested we go to Jb HiFi and see if they had 'Secretary' so we could buy. And not to my surprise it wasn't in stock there, or any other store we went to. I also couldn't find a single black simple t-shirt to wear to work. Anywhere. Nor could I find anything else I was looking for. It just seemed to be one of those shopping days, not to mention the chaotic Saturday shoppers! Being blocked in stores and having to dodge somebody every couple of steps is truly exhausting when you're in a bad mood. However, the universe did reserve a little luck for me in the form of a cat brooch! 

On our way home we called into the supermarket and I mentioned to Luke that the only thing that would cheer me up would be smiley fries, and even they weren't there! After that I was just ready to go home and bury my brain in a book. But before I could my nose decided to start bleeding uncontrollably! And all I could really do was laugh, because when I was little other kids in my classes always had bleeding noses and I was so jealous of their discomfort. And now at 23 I get my first nose bleed, and it is far from glamourous. It's safe to say that I will have no hesitations climbing into bed this evening!

A Quick Spring Picnic

Luke & I had such a perfect little day together on Monday. We were dressed, ready and out the door relatively early (for a day off) so we could have a little breakfast date at Lotus cafe. We've been meaning to cross that cafe off our list for some time, and now we can and know not to go back. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't what we were into. The food was lovely and super quick, so quick we received it within 5 minutes or ordering, but the coffee tasted a little stale as though the beans had been ground weeks before or something. After breakfast we went to some furniture stores in search of a decorative sitting chair. Our flat is really small, but we've come up with a way to change it up so we can fit a cute chair in. Our last stop was Freedom where we found the perfect lemongrass coloured chair. I never think to go into Freedom because it always looks a little too pretentious and expensive, but their current stock is just perfect. My sister is also in the process of redecorating so I'm hoping she'll go there to so the things I can't fit in my current flat, she might get for herself!

Once we found what we were looking for, we did a quick grocery shop, banked two months worth of coin collecting, did a quick tidy up and washed some clothes. Once all that was out of the way we packed some sandwiches + fruit, grabbed some coffees and went on a little picnic! We found the perfect little nook in the park to lay our picnic rug down and play cards on. The few times Luke & I have had days off together throughout the year, it's either rained or we've had to do other things and our picnics have been put on hold. So it was just the loveliest afternoon to be out in the park, laying down in the sun. 

When we came home we decided to do some baking together, and we made the most delightful hazelnut cake. I'm going to post the recipe soon, because it would be absolutely selfish of me not to! And we finished our day off with some lasagne Luke made while I finished up on an illustration. It was extra delicious because my boss picked me a huge bunch of home grown organic silver beet from her veggie patch! 

Start Your Week Off With..

Kindred Spirits by Delightfully Tacky

21 Things I'm Really Glad I Know How To Do by Dream Of Me On Winter Nights

I Like Having A Simple Love by IROCKSOWHAT

Happy Pretty Home: Apartment Makeover by Happy Pretty Things

The Danger Of Getting Comfortable by Kate Henley

For the past couple of months Monday has been one of my favourite days of the week because it has been one of my days off. Now, I like it even more because it's also Luke's day off too! We had such a delightful day together that I can't wait until next week for more Monday adventures. Have a great week!

Oh, Hello Spring!

[Photo by Mari Crea / Type by me]

Today was one of the busiest Saturday's I've had at work in a couple of months. It was such a beautiful day with the sun out, the markets on and lovely people everywhere. It would have been a fantastic day to be sourcing fresh produce at the local markets along the boardwalk in the sun and reading magazines over coffee. But alas, I was on the other side of things. When the morning began to pick up and we started to get busy, a customer commented how it was the first day of spring, and it took me by surprise. The past week or so I've been keeping busy finishing off an illustration and logo design that I completely forgot to get the last good wears out of my winter dresses! It hardly feels like winter was here at all this year it flew by so quickly! As much as I love winter, I think that spring is my new favourite time of year. Luke & I have been casually trying to rid our spare room of unnecessary things we've been carting around from house to house over the past couple of years to make the room a more practical space. I'm almost positive my clothes collection needs a good spring clean to make room for some new season dresses too! I also put up my new sponsor swap buttons for September, make sure you visit some of these fancy ladies and say hello!