The end is nigh...

The end of the month that it. So as January comes to a close how many New Years Resolutions have you broken?

I think I am doing ok:

1. I wanted to be more creative - check.. journal coming along nicely. If I keep this up I will need a new journal every couple of months! Plus I am addicted to finding cool printables online at the moment... p.s I love that I have a colour printer at work!!!
2. I wanted to travel more - check.. one trip being paid off as we speak and another one definitely in the works. I have never been to a tropical island before (no Tasmania doesn't count!) and this year I will be heading to Noumea, Lifou, Vanuatu & Hawaii!! Plus a possibility of a side trip to Sin City - Vegas... think that's on track
3. Lose weigh - ok so I haven't exactly broken that... I have lost a kg! But then again I am not really doing anything towards that either so I haven't actually broken that one - it's just kind of stalled.

For someone who doesn't actually like the whole concept of making New Years Resolutions, I think I am actually doing a pretty good job of keeping the ones I did make.

Just another one :)

Ok so I was looking around at some blogs and came across this one: http://scrappingthemusic.blogspot.com/ and was getting all inspired. You take songs and scrap to them - not it's not a new kind of rap.. you make a scrap page out of one or more of the lyrics in the song. They have a challenge going each week.

I was looking through the last one and found the song Who Says by Selena Gomez. Now I am not a teeny bopper by any means but the chorus of the song really hit me:

Who says, who says you're not perfect?

Who says you're not worth it?

Who says you're the only one that's hurtin?

Trust me, that's the price of beauty

Who says you're not pretty?

Who says you're not beautiful?

Who says?

Originally it was the line "Who says you're not worth it?" that hit me the most but as I was creating a page in the journal it was the "Who says you're not beautiful?" line that I ended up going with.

Now I am not a girly girl, I am not a model, I am just me... The photo was taken when I was in London in November 2010 and it was seriously one of the happiest times of my life! I had just been to an All Blacks game at Twickenham and it was my 38th birthday. My niece and I were heading back to my accommodation where my sister had made a beautiful birthday dinner. I would have to say it was one of the top 5 birthdays ever!

I guess what the song is all about is that no one has the right to put you down and say you can't do something, or that you are not beautiful or perfect. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and lets face it - no one is perfect. Plus you can do anything that you set your mind to! Trust me... I never thought I would actually get to London, let alone be able to see my 2nd favourite rugby team at Twickenham on my birthday!!!! (Favourite team is the Crusaders, for those of you playing at home).. It just goes to show that if you want something bad enough... you just gotta go out there and get it (of course as long as it's legal!!!)

Filling in time...

So I am bored out of my brain. Just really don't know what to do - sick of everything at the moment.. tho I have added another couple pages to my journal... ok so I have added 11 pages to my journal... haha. I get an idea and kind of just run with it.. then I look and see I have done 2 or 3 pages! The one I did today I think is pretty darn cool - its kind of an actual diary page about when I saw the Eiffel Tower the first time, and the second time :) It was pretty darn impressive!!!

So yeah that's that latest. I am actually ready for bed - sad when it's not even 9pm on a Friday night and I am ready for bed! Work has been pretty full on for the past few weeks and I really just need a rest.

On that note I guess it's time for an update:

• 107 sleeps till our South Pacific cruise.. can't wait. We have 7 nights on the Pacific Sun and go to Noumea, Lifou & Port Vila. It's really exciting coz we get to have my nieces 18th birthday in Port Vila... what a way to celebrate your birthday - on a South Pacific Island!
• Speaking of birthdays on islands... 286 sleeps till my birthday month - well 286 sleeps till my leave begins. Who knows what is happening yet - I think it's a good idea to get May out of the way and then really knuckle down and decide what to do about Hawaii. I am thinking 10 nights but maybe 7 and maybe going to Vegas afterwards. It all depends on $$$ really. But I can't wait. I didn't think I would ever get excited about the fact that I am turning 40 but I think that going into this year I made the decision to just enjoy the year. After the past few years I think I really deserve to have a good one
• Then it's 360 sleeps till I head home again. This time for 2 weeks and more so for my friends wedding. Looking forward to it, she is getting married at the same place my brother did and it's really gorgeous out there so can't wait for that. Plus she has asked me to do the photos so I guess I had better get some practise in!!! Luckily I am having two holdiays between now & then so I will have PLENTY of photo ops to get me up to speed again :)
• And the big one - 959 sleeps till I change my life forever... seems like such a long way a way but in reality it's only 2 and half years. I have a plan at the moment but of course it will no doubt change. I will be sure to let you know when I get to a more definitive point of knowing what I am doing :)

So I guess that's it for now - well that wasted a few minutes :)

Get those creative juices flowing...

So I have decided that 2012 I am going to be more creative. No it isn't a New Years Resolution because New Years Resolutions are stupid and no one sticks to them. Mine is a WHOLE Year Resolution... I actually started this creative thinking a few days ago so technically I was doing it in 2011 :)

So yeah, I have decided to do some journalling... basically just putting a whole heap of junk in a book! Sometimes it is just a whole heap of stickers or images plastered in the book but sometimes I actually right stuff too. I don't think there is a right or wrong way of doing these things - its just what you feel like doing at the time. I have uploaded some of my photos from the journal that I have started doing - it is definitely a work in progress...

The other thing I have been wanting to do for a while is canvas art. Below is my first attempt at it... I am pretty happy with it for my first time but I can definitely see areas for improvement.

So yes, 2012 is going to be my creative year.... I have a couple of trips coming up so I want to do journals for them so I have to collect everything!!! I need to be more organised to if I want to do this stuff - you can't have everything everywhere otherwise you will lose it....

What are your plans for 2012?

The photo

This is the photo that sparked two things for me:

1) my love of carousels... they are just magical, colour things and I love them

2) my want to take better photos than ever before.. actually I wanted to take THAT photo

photo by Henri van Noordenburg

This is my response to that photo:

Now to be honest, a lot of this photo is down to editing - even tho I didn't really edit it too much. I was really proud of my photo - it was (as still is) one of the best photos I have ever taken

It is done....

It might have taken 24 years, but the above image is one that will go down in history. I am so proud to be a kiwi right now!! 24 years after hosting & winning the first Rugby World Cup, we have finally both hosted and won it again. We have been called many things over the years - mostly chokers but after last nights game, the All Blacks are the 2011 Rugby World Champions. We have dominated the world of rugby for years and have been that team that other teams look up to, but somehow the biggest reward in world rugby has alluded us... but no more! And what a game it was.. I did actually think there for a minute it might have been a French win.. but thankfully the boys held one and got the silverware...

I know its been said but you do have to put into perspective just how much this means to NZ as a country. We haven't had the best year when it comes down to it (and yes I say this in light of the floods in Asia, the deadly earthquakes in Japan & Turkey).. when you look at it tho.. it has been pretty much an 'Annus horribilis' - to steal a phrase from the Queen.

1) Sept saw the first earthquake in Chch

2) The Pine River disaster

3) The deadly Feb quake

4) The Rena disaster

Not to mention all the crap weather that happened around the nation & the constant aftershocks in Chch... this has definitely been a year that most people would like to forget, but then to host the Rugby World Cup - which by all accounts has been a wonderful success and to top that off with the unofficial King of New Zealand - Richie McCaw holding that gold cup above his head, well that is the stuff that dreams are made of.

I am so proud of the All Blacks, of New Zealand and to be a kiwi. There is no better nation in the world and when you see moments like last night, you know why it is be the best country in the world - no matter what the world throws at us. NZ is and always will be Aotearoa - Godzone

Getting Excited!

So this time in 2 weeks I will be on a Great Ocean Road Tour... so excited about this. I have been wanting to see the Great Ocean Road for ages and I decided that even tho the tour is 13 hours - someone else is driving and you get to sit back, relax & take in the amazing sights..

I am really excited about my trip.. tho a little nervous that my flight might not go as planned. They had already changed my flight to be a later one - arriving in Avalon (about 50 mins out of Melbourne) at 9.45pm instead of 2.15pm... I rang Jetstar to say it wasn't good enough so they changed me to be arriving at 11.40am in Tullamarine (about 20 mins out of Melbourne).. so it was better for me that they did that coz a) its cheaper to get to Melbourne from there; b) I get to Melbourne earlier meaning I have more time; c) it didn't cost me a thing to re-route.. which wasn't allowed on the fare I had but because they stuffed up my plans they changed for no fee.. Yay!!

I can't wait to get down there.. the way my plans are now is that because I get to Melbourne earlier I get to have a whole free day there on the Friday which is awesome - because now I am doing my Melbourne Museum exhibit on the Wednesday afternoon now - hence my reason for the flights being on time!! Then the tour on the Thursday and a whole free day on Friday before leaving early Saturday morning... then it is CHCH!!!!!

I plan on having my birthday in Chch and then going over to my sisters on the Monday for a few days, then back to Chch for 5 days. So looking forward to being home! Just can't wait to walk down to the beach, drive around familiar streets - well quake damage allowing of course! Seeing friends & new babies!!! Seeing gorgeous little nieces :) Just can't wait to be home to be honest.

Anyhoo.. I will have to post some pics of the Great Ocean Road when I get them.. really can't wait for this tour :)