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Friday 27 September 2013

The swimsuit journey continues

Why hello there. How are y'all doin' today?

I'm terrible, I said I'd try and write at least three times a week, and that didn't even happen. Perhaps I should aim for once a week instead. I was never good at keeping a diary as a kid, and a blog is pretty much that, only I don't tell you my deepest and darkest secrets ;)

Over the last few weeks since my last entry, I've kinda been laid up in bed in worlds of pain. You see, my back isn't taking too kindly to this coldish weather we're having here in Melbourne. So, I've just been laying here, doing not much of anything. Perfect time to blog, you say? Well, maybe not. I gotta have stories to tell y'all in order to do that!

A week ago, I got a message from Nicole at Turning "I can't" into "I can" asking me how I'm doing. I found Nicole through my friend, K. Nicole's from Canada, from the area K grew up in. K and Nicole's brother went to school together. But, I digress.
Nicole was checking in to see how I was doing, so I told her I'm not fabulous, but that I'm not bad, either. It also got me to thinking about content for this little ol' blog. 
I've realised that my swimsuit journey is still continuing, not because I'm not comfortable in my body, but because I actually haven't purchased a new swimsuit! Yup, I didn't end up getting myself a new one last summer. I was content that I was able to fit in to my existing one (plus the funds didn't really allow for a new suit). 
The other thing I've been thinking about is just writing about how good I feel, and what it's done for me mentally (even though I'm not out of the depths of doom and gloom, (and I really hope that doesn't offend anyone)) I'm still feeling MUCH better than what I was 18-24 months ago.

So, aside from the fact there is a family wedding to attend in February that I want to try and lose 5 - 7 kg for, I'd also like to get that new swimsuit. I want to spend time on the beach this summer!
The link earlier is last season's suits, but definitely still designs and cuts I'm chasing.


Suits Me Just Fine: Polka Spots


One piece swimsuit
myer.com.au


Bettie Page one piece swimsuit
96 AUD - modcloth.com



One piece swimwear
myer.com.au


Halter top
myer.com.au





What do you think? Which one's your favourite?

Oh, by the way, I'm going on a small hiatus til my exams and assignments are done, so my next post probably won't be til end of October-early November.
Take care, and remember, one day at a time.

xx

Monday 2 September 2013

The third quarter: how did you fair?

Don't worry, it's not about AFL or any other sport. Appropriately titled though given AFL finals begins this week.

What I'm actually talking about is how you're fairing with any resolutions or goals you may have set yourself way back on 1 January 2013.
I hate making a list of resolutions. I have never really been fabulous at sticking to them. On 1 January 2013, I did write a list of things I want to achieve (see this post). If you're like me and don't always like clicking through posts, see here:



2013 - come at me



In this post here, I wrote about what I'd achieved so far 26 days into 2013. Here we are, on day 245/365, some 219 days later, and this is how my list stands:

  1. Be confident

    I'm not as confident as I was earlier in the year, that's for sure, but I'm not going down without a fight! Onward and upward!

  2. Learn new make up techniques

    I've definitely learned a thing or two after attending a vintage make-over/photo shoot in June, as well as playing along with the Fox in Flats Style Dares. Check out my Instagram feed for my take on the Style Dares from March - June.

    9 June 2013: Before and after
    Photos courtesy of Brook Orchard Photography
    Hair and Make Up by The Lindy Charm School for Girls


  3. Take risks

    I've taken some big risks this year, both personally and in my small biz.
    Let's just hope these big risks will pay off later down the track.
    There was also the fun risks, like mentioned above with the FIFSDs!

  4. Love myself enough

    I reckon that seeing as I've gained 3kg, I've loved myself a little too much but also that I'm being too harsh on myself given the circumstances surrounding my weight gain. Working on this one.

  5. Learn Spanish

    ¡Hola chicos y chicas! Hablo un poco español porque asisto clases lenguas español en mi universidad.

    I do not speak fluent Spanish. I barely speak enough Spanish to get through my classes. I have no idea if this is correct or not. As this post goes live, I'm actually taking deferred Spanish assessments because of my ill health from May - August.

  6. Make new friends

    Friendships are circumstantial. I'm learning that slowly.
    I lost my job because of a clash with uni this semester, so the contact isn't really there with those friends.
    There are people in this world whom I am forever grateful to. You support me through the good times and bad, and for that, I thank you and look forward to our future!

  7. Do well at uni

    Must say, rather pleased with my efforts last semester.
    If only they followed through to this semester.....

  8. Be the best lover to my partner

    Only one person can be the judge of that, but I'd like to think I am doing a good job.

  9. Start jogging again

    Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances with my back, jogging is on the back burner. It was there on the front burner in May before I hurt myself, so this is a good thing! At least I know that when the weather warms up and my strength returns, I'll be able to hopefully get back into it.

  10. Build my business

    Little Goldfish Invitations & Stationery has a website now, and I'm slowly getting more content to it. I won't be doing any more markets in 2013 for a few reasons, but once the weather continues doing what it has been here in Melbourne (sunshiny, glorious, beautiful), I'll be able to get out and take some hopefully nice photos of my wares to sell on my site.

  11. Wear a bikini

    Wish I hadn't have lost my mojo earlier in the year. We'll put this one on the list for summer 2014/2015.

  12. Be a better friend, daughter, and granddaughter

    Again, I can't answer this, but I'd like to think I've improved. I mentioned earlier that friendship is relative to proximity, and I think this also plays a big part in my not-s0-great ways, but I do try.

Now it's time I take heed of my own words, and love myself enough to get through this next phase of my weight loss journey!

Sunday 1 September 2013

Spring Cleaning is not just for the house

Spring, spring, spring!

Oh boy, it's here, it's here, it's here! Spring! Too many exclamation marks? Here, have another!
I love spring. It's A's favourite season too. Hopefully it's kind to us both after the dreadful winter we had.

First things first - notice a bit of an overhaul to my blog's appearance? I had been searching for something lovely, something beautiful, for quite a long time, searching mostly for 'Free Blogger Templates'. Today, I searched for 'Blogger Templates', and got some fabulous hits. I got this 'Love Me' theme here
Second, you may have noticed that I'm actually publishing content on here after a two month hiatus, and prior to that, entries were published sparingly, too.
Thirdly, I said we had a dreadful winter. Three kilos of dreadful for me, a combination of factors really. It could have been worse, but 3kg is still bad enough. My back hasn't been the greatest since May, rendering me immobile for a total of around 8 weeks, though not all at once. This is where my 3kg gain came from. The only way is up! I'm seeing the physio regularly again, and hopefully come time for wedding season (dear friends in November, A's brother in February), I want to be looking and feeling great.

Yesterday, we went on a slow but long walk. I've realised today I pushed myself a bit too far. I've just mapped the circuit out for you to see how far we walked. We were gone for an hour and twenty minutes. This included stopping for 10 minutes (thanks to the queues of people in Acland Street) to get gelato from 7 Apples, and stopping on the foreshore to witness the commotion of the seven MFB (every time I see a firetruck, I still go to say CFA. You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl, right?) trucks at the iconic Edgewater Towers. Click here to see what I'm talking about. We saw the aftermath when the firefighters were clearing the building. I think we were stopped here for 5 or so minutes, too. 
Approximately 15-20 minutes of stalling in our 1 hour 20 minute casual stroll. Google Maps says the very exact 5km route we took should take 1 hour and 3 minutes at a regular pace (the average human being walks at a pace of around 4-5km/h).


5km: Elwood - S. Kilda - Elwood

I'm not going to lie, I am rather sore today, indicating I pushed myself too hard, but I can walk this circuit in under an hour when I'm walking at my regular pace (A usually struggles to keep up with me).
Fingers crossed that with continual physio visits and getting ourselves back onto the balanced diet and meal planning bandwagon, 75kg by 31 October might be achievable.
I've started logging on MyFitnessPal again today, and writing here (I'm going to try to do it at least three times a week) to make myself accountable.

Have you been following me on Instagram? You can find the most up to date pictures of me there. But for now, here's one from 18 August when we celebrated A's 30th birthday, and just 3 days before my 29th birthday.


18 August 2013
Hasta luego chicas!