Versatile Blogger Award

In the calamity that was last week's exam period I completely forgot that the lovely Erinj0 from her self titled blog had passed on this little blog award. I think these are a super sweet way to show someone that you adore what they have to say and the things they share, even though the fact that people actually read this blog of mine sometimes escapes me (especially being so new). But I really enjoy seeing the blogs nominated by others on lists like these and have found a number of daily reads through them! So yes, I will definitely participate!

This award requires the recipient to tell five facts about themselves. But since I often disclose my likes and dislikes, and all the basic facts can be found on my About Me, I'm going to tell you some trivial things that I have never shared before...

1. If I were born a boy, my name was going to be Ryan. Seems odd!?
   
2. Once my shoelace got caught in an escalator and I totally thought I was going to die. A nice man grabbed my ankle and ripped it back out though. 
   
3. I have a hidden love for barber shop quartet! So on occasions I'll just sit here and watch online videos until I get my a cappella fix. 
   
4. Boys use to tease me all through Primary AND the early years of High School. That's why I confided in books, locked myself in the library and dreamed about spending the rest of my life with Harry Potter.
   
5. I've known that I wanted to be a Lawyer since I was eleven years old, back when all the other kids were planning on becoming Rock Stars, Actresses or Professional Skateboarders.

It's my pleasure to pass this award on to five other versatile blogs I rather enjoy. Some are very well established and form part of my daily reads and others just beginning to flourish offering some really sweet stuff.

Pixie Mama

My Beautiful Disaster

Jesslyn Amber

My New Life As A Housewife 

Bird Fly Away

Finally Free

Guess what!? Exams are over!!! I finally finished my last one this morning and my gosh I cannot tell you how good it feels to be free. Even if it is only momentarily. Once again I need to give a quick but heartfelt thank you to my darling family and friends who constantly picked me up when the stress of exams seemed to beat me down!

As soon as I got home from Uni this morning, I did my chores as fast as I could, changed from jeans back into my pyjamas and spent a good two hours working hard at putting my holiday butt groove into the lounge! There are still plenty more chores and plenty more lazy hours to come, which is why I hope for this little break to be both as productive and relaxing as it possibly can. A few big things I have lined up include:

- Cleaning out my closet & my spare room.
- Moving my furniture around.
- Giving my bedroom a quick fix make over!

And, in between all this I plan to:

- Catch up on all those blogs I have neglected.
- Change my hair!
- Read so much more.
- Finish some D.I.Y's.
- Try some new recipes.

But before all this can happen, I need to get through the rest of the week that I have managed to jam pack full of fun. Over the next few days I have arranged a couple of blogger dates, dinner dates, movie dates and shopping dates. Oh and I can't forget the long awaited date with my bed until midday one morning!

Happy hump-day! Enjoy the rest of your week! x

A Week Away

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I'm going to take a little seven day break from this online world. As much as I enjoy every minute of my procrastination, it leaves me with way too much guilt. I am just about to start a very painful week. I have three exams in the next few days, so I'll be needing all of my brain capacity to cope with that. This time next week, I will be ready to sit my final exam. And after that is over, I will be free as a bird!

The procrastination hasn't been all bad though, I have about a page of ideas and stories to share with you all the moment I am finished being a slave to my textbooks! Enjoy your week lovely ladies! See you on the other side...

Studying Sadness

This photo was taken last year while I was knee deep in notepads and textbooks, frantically studying for my end of semester exams. While I sit here now, only three days out from my first exam, I can't help but feel the same all over again. I'm not going to lie, I am seriously stressed out!!! I am a walking sack of sadness and definitely not any sort of pleasure to be around. I haven't actually cried yet, although I've come pretty close.

I think my mind starts to play tricks on me during an exam period. I can become so indecisive, and thinking too much actually makes my brain hurt. I keep looking to other people to make my decisions for me. I don't know whether to finish the chapter, or go take a shower. To write another set of notes, or to take a break to eat. Even the question of what to have for dinner (something I usually love planning) was too much to handle the other night.

I've 'ummed' and 'arred' over the possibility of leaving this study desk a couple of times this (long) weekend. Just to relax for a while and enjoy the company of friends. I even started to put my jeans on once. But every time I think about going out, I am instantly plagued with a guilt that sees me running back to this very chair.

I'm just glad that the idea of a holiday, with an empty schedule and complete freedom, is such a strong motivator! I'm longing for a few spare hours to catch up on all those daily blog reads I am subscribed to, because I feel a little neglecting right now. 

Also, my apologies for not sharing my usual cheery 'Sunday Sounds' track this week. I didn't have time to format something in advance. Maybe next week!

Time Capsule

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Since the start of June, I have been participating (rather briefly) in The 30 Day Journal Challenge hosted by Run With Scissors. Each of the daily prompts have been fantastic, and I've been able to jot down my answer in a timely manner, alongside my exam study. However, one of the prompts this week had me completely stumped! Participants were asked, "If you were to make a time capsule today, that wouldn't be opened for 100 years, what would you put in it?". The question was completely hypothetical, allowing ideas to be as strange as they could be. But, I still struggled with the thought of parting with some of my prized possessions today, only for them to be opened by some stranger in 2111. After some thought though, I figured that all that really needs to be in there is a little bit of evidence that I existed, and some other kick ass stuff! I would include...

• A handful of photos showing snippets of my life.
• A journal, possibly the one I'm doing now, to detail what life is like nowadays.
• Harper Lee's To Kill A Mocking Bird (just in case hard copy books cease to exist). 
• A mix tape of my favorite songs. 
• My Grandma's recipe for scones. 
• A copy of Frankie Mag (in case they don't exist either). 
• Some sort of jewelry to become heir-loomy. 

If you could create your 100 year time capsule today, what would you put in it?

And! If you are looking for a little monthly project, I strongly recommend heading over to Run With Scissors to play along! Its not too late! I'll share some of my entries soon.

Sunday Sounds: Agnes Obel & A Link Up!

This week's Sunday Sounds is a beautiful track bought to you all the way from Berlin's Agnes Obel. It's a little old, but Riverside is definite gem! It's simple and calming and absolutely great for whatever you have planned this Sunday! The piano chords are a stark difference to the music I listen to on a daily basis, and I've found it quite refreshing. And then there's the video! The video is hauntingly beautiful and filmed in matching tones. It's enough to captivate your soul and take you on some sort of whimsical journey. I think even without the visual aid, Agnes Obel's vocals alone are enough to ensnare any listener.





And now! More importantly!!! I have decided to turn Sunday Sounds into a link up! I've noticed over the last couple of weeks that a few blogs have been playing along anyway... So why not make this a space for everyone to share their weekly music loves!? I love sharing new music, and I certainly love finding new music, so what better way than to have it all here in one place. If there is a new song your are currently lusting over, or a new album out by one of your favorite artists, or even an old song that's just stuck in your head, please share it with me! There aren't too many rules with this link up! You can use YouTube clips like I do, link to an mp3 download, use a media host, or even just write about it in general! All I ask is that you use the Sunday Sounds button I've provided, and link up your post back here for me, and anyone else who's interested to see! Happy listening!



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Fill In The Blank Friday... On Saturday

Fill In The Blank Friday with Lauren of The Little Things We Do has fastly become my favorite link-up! They are quick little prompts that I can always fill in during the spare moments I have between jobs, but then I leave thinking about them for the rest of the day! If you don't play along already, I suggest you do. Its tonnes of fun!

1. I love the end of the semester because that means that holidays are so very soon!!!

2. A time that Mama knew best was when her and Papa stepped in and held a little intervention for something that wasn't so great in my life! I quit my job as a result and started on a path of positivity. Thank gosh, because I am probably the happiest I have ever been!

3. My first kiss went a little like this... a little quick and nervous peck in the 9th grade. Yes, THE NINTH GRADE! Either I was the only person in high school that thought that boys still had cooties! Or I was THAT girl that no body dare wanted to kiss. I'm not sure :(

4. My celebrity crush is Johhny Depp. And always will be! So much talent!

5. My splurge of choice is food! I don't really eat that much. But I like to go out on dinner dates a lot.

6. My biggest accomplishment is my studies! Getting into University, already completing one degree and being part way through another is probably by biggest achievement to date.

7. My dance jam of choice is Lady GaGa. Not for any particular reason. But just because it's always playing in someone's car when we're going out as a group.

Head over to The Little Things We Do to see what other people have filled their blanks with!

Spare Time

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Right at this very moment, I am sitting up (but still in bed) after a much needed sleep in and waiting for Joel to get home. I knew I wanted to make a blog post about not being able to do this for much longer, and the best way would be to participate in Jesslyn Amber's The Simple Things link up again!

So, keeping with the theme of overall positivity, the thing I am appreciative of right now is spare time! My final exams are in no less than two weeks! Eeep! So, yesterday I sat down and drew up a very tight study plan, with all the topics I need to make notes for and all the questions I should practice answering. It's a great plan, and I'm pretty proud of it. The only thing is, while I've factored in time for my regular paid work, I didn't leave any room to spare! So I think I will become somewhat like a hermit crab over the next few days... 

Knowing that yesterday and today were to be my last days of freedom, I decided to make the most of them. Last night I met up with two of my dearest friends for a dinner date at our favorite Thai restaurant. We stayed for much longer than anticipated, so much so our partners had each called to tell us that they had retreated to bed! And today, well Joel should be home any minute now... and all I plan on doing is relaxing and enjoying his company before I have to go to work tonight and start this study regime tomorrow. 

I may be a little MIA for a while. But I promise to have bigger and better things when I come back!

I hope you each enjoy the rest of your week, and head over to Jesslyn Amber if you feel like spreading a little postivity and sharing your appreciation for life's simple joys.

Winter Aspirations

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It's officially Winter here in Australia and you can definitely tell! The lovely Autumnal trees I posted about last week have lost most, if not all of their leaves and are standing tall and naked now. It has been raining a lot lately, which means I don't have any dry fire wood! So hopefully that will change soon. Artificial heating just isn't the same.

As with any seasonal change, I like to make a list of aspirations and things to achieve in that three month period. Since I am on Uni holidays for most of Winter, I'll be raising the bar by adding fair few more to-do's.

1. Achieve higher than a PASS on my final exams.

I only have 3 x 3 hour final exams left and then I will be finished another semester of my Law Degree. I have been lucky enough to score fairly good marks on the assessments throughout the semester, so with a little bit of applied study the exams should go well!

2. Start a regular training regime.

This is something that I've not only been wanting to do for a long time, but really need to do. Generally Winter is a comfort season for me. I crave hot foods and I long for entire days spent rugged up indoors. Each of which will not be any good for my figure or general health. Since it will be too cold to run outdoors, I should take this opportunity to join a Gym and finally cross off my monthly running challenge. I think Couch to 5K would be a good place to start... Besides, everyone is warmer after a work out!

3. READ READ READ!

Over the last couple of months I have picked up around thirteen or so new books! My goal is to get back to my old reading pace and read at least three or four a month! Now is when I ask you all for suggestions...

4. Follow up the DIY's I have purchased materials for...

This one is pretty self explanatory. I have collected buttons and material of all sorts, I've even started cutting out the pattern for some DIY's. So Winter this year should be quite the productive one.

5. Cook a hearty vegetable soup!

Like I said, I crave soups in Winter. I can taste it now Mmmmmm.

6. Make an effort to spend time with my friends.

I often try to work as much as I can in the Uni break so I can cut down when the next semester starts and hopefully still have some money saved. But some much needed friend time is definitely on the cards this Winter.

7. Try my hardest to cross of any Winter related goals on my 101/1001 list.

You can view the list here. At a quick glance I can see myself knitting, sewing and trying my hand at solving a rubick's cube!

Oh and Winter would be complete if I saw someone wearing a Snuggie in public. That never happened last year. What would your Winter goals be?