October's Plans and September's Outcomes

Well the Canada trip pretty much took over my life as holidays do.  There was a ton of planning and organising and re-planning and then the actual holiday so my blog posts for the past few months have been fairly random and few.   I've now been back a week and the jetlag seems to have finally gone away and my head is a little less spacey than it usually is so it feels like the right time to get back into things and to think about future plans, small and large.

Other than my writing (blog posts and other material) I'm pretty pleased with my progress so far for this year.  I've cut down on my reading and no longer feel the pressure to read everything on my To-Be-Read wish list in quite such a mad hurry and have even gone through and deleted quite a few books off said TBR list, which was quite liberating.  I've gotten back into knitting which I'm enjoying and have, so far, finished everything I've started.  Which is kind of novelty for me, Master of Procrastination that I am.  The walking and losing weight is also going well, despite a few setbacks, and I definitely feel fitter and healthier and less tired which is a big plus.

So what are my goals for this month... 

First up reading goals.

1.     Summer at the Comfort Food Cafe by Debbie Johnson 
         A book about food and moving on with life this is just the kind of thing I love reading at 
        the end of a long day.  A perfect warm and fuzzy read.
2.     Letters from Lighthouse Collage by Ali McNamara
        Another warm and fuzzy read
3.     Sleepless in Manhattan by Sarah Morgan
        And another.  I've read Sarah Morgan's books before so I'm pretty sure I will enjoy this
        one too.

4.     Daisy in Chains by Sharon Bolton
        Give me a good old crime novel any day.  After having been a bit hit and miss with my 
        reading over the past couple of months I'm really hoping that this month's mix of chick 
        lit and crime will hit the mark.
5.     Hide and Seek by M J Arlidge
        I love M J Arlidge books so I'm really looking forward to this one.
6.     Play Dead by Angela Marsons
        And another one by an author I have so far really enjoyed reading.  This month's 
        reading goals are so far looking like a winner. 

 7.    Pumpkin it up by Eliza Cross
        It might be spring here but my heart is still in the Fall courtesy of all things pumpkin
        while I was in Canada so coming back home I just had to continue on with the theme.
        As you do.
8.     Veg Out 
        In the spirit of eating healthier I've become addicted to hunting out new recipes to try.  
        Despite the fact that I'm not much of a cook.  Oh well I can always look at the pictures.
9.     Afternoon Tea at Home by Will Torrent

        There is just something about afternoon tea that sounds warm and comfortable so this
        book sounds just the read before bed.

10.   Berlin Station
        Spies and Richard Armitage.  Need I say anything more.  Other than I have a major 
        weakest for both so it's no surprise that I can't wait to start watching this.  I sense a 
        Spooks marathon rewatch soon.
11.   Longmire 
        Other Half and I caught the odd episode of this show while traveling around Canada 
        and enjoyed it so much that we are now marathony the show right from the beginning.
12.   The Secret of Crickley Hall
        I don't know how I missed this when it first came out but at least I have found it now 
        and have added it to my viewing list.  Even better it has Lucifer from Lucifer in it.

13.   Write more
        Still on the list, still a goal that I would like to achieve 
14.   Knitting
        A goal that is still going well.  Three scarves and almost two blankets down.  I'm kind 
        of pleased with that. 
15.   Lose weight and get fit
        Another goal that is so far going well.  I did heaps of walking while on holiday and have
        managed to keep it up since I got back, going on a walk almost daily.  The weight loss 
        is also progressing... slowly but still the clothes are feeling looser and I'm feeling better 
        for it.

Knitting Tales

Well I finally finished the puppy blanket.  It came out not to bad though adding a border AFTER I had knitted it was a killer of thing to do.  As you can imagine there was lots of unpicking and cursing going on but I got there in the end.

Lesson learned - knit the border as you go. 

Despite my lopsided photography skills the blanket is actually a rectangle and a lovely coral/orangey shade of colour.  

I am now onto my next knitting project.  Another blanket.  This time for a cat.  He's a super cute kitten at the moment but will grow up to be a very large Norwegian Forest.  .

I'm doing a different pattern this time and knitting the border as I go.  So much easier.  The whole pattern is a mixture of seed stitch and stocking stitch and so far it's coming out really well.

August Buyer's Archive

Well I had a bit of a spending spree last month.  But as it was mostly in aid of the holiday I'm looking at it as being totally worth it.

So what did I buy...

Suitcase - $60 from The Warehouse

I really wanted the pink and orange suitcase but as they were all sold out I had to go with my second choice.  Still it's in a lovely shade of blue and is really compact but with plenty of room.

Luggage Label - $7.99 from Typo

I love all things Typo so it's no surprise that I brought my luggage label from them.  It also totally goes with my new suitcase which is pretty cool.

Vanity Case - $44.99 from Colette Hayman

I hunted for ages for a vanity case and though this one cost a little more than I would usually spend I just loved the colour and design so much that in the end I decided to get it.  Even better it comes with 2 inner bags so it's really 3 bags for the price of 1.
Three Quarter Capri Pants - $5 from Hospice Shop

I find 3/4 quarter pants an absolute must have for holidays.  They are super comfy to wear and are suitable for most occasions like climbing up lots of stairs, going on boat trips and walking.  Lots and lots of walking.  Which is something that my Other Half and I tend to do heaps of when we go on holidays.

CamisoleTop - $4 from The Warehouse

My summer wardrobe is seriously lacking.  I'm gonna have to get a few things over the next few months but in the mean time I have managed to pick up a couple of things to take to with me on holiday.  Cami's are another super versatile piece of clothing so you can never have too many.

White Skirt - $1 from Hospice

At just a dollar this skirt was a bargain that I couldn't pass up.  It's a little shorter than I would like, sitting just on my knees, but I love the crochet lace at the bottom and the drawstring waist so I'm sure I'll get some wear out of it this summer and while on my holiday.

Floral PJ's - $39.99 from Peter Alexander

I had been eyeing these PJ's for absolutely ages but at over $100 I couldn't justify the cost.  Imagine how happy I was when found out they had been reduced on sale.  They are so comfy and soft and pretty I wish I could wear them all the time.
Total spend for the month: $162.97

And The Holiday Is Now Upon Us...

The last few weeks have just flown by and now our holiday to Canada is here.  Tomorrow me and my Other Half fly off on our Canadian adventure.  Six weeks of sightseeing, going on lots of walks and eating yummy food.

Our suitcase luckily doesn't look like the pic above.  Trust me there is nothing worse than lugging around a ton of luggage so travelling light is definitely the way to go.

I generally only take a handful of clothes and mix and max things.  A couple of skirts, a pair of pants, 3 or 4 tops, a warm but light weight cardigan, undies, comfy shoes and a pair of sandals and I'm pretty much good to go.  

My toiletries bag is also pretty compact - shampoo, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, sunblock, lip gloss, a travel nail care kit and that is pretty much it.

Even more amazing I've even managed to do a couple blog posts which I've got scheduled to come out while I'm away.  I'm also hoping to do some posts of our travels while we're away. 

For now our bags are all packed, the house all clean and tidy and it's just one sleep and then tomorrow it is all on.

The Viewing Files: The Legend of Tarzan

The Legend of Tarzan really should be called "The Legend of the Chest"

There is a story -  Wild Man whose become civilised  and lives in a castle with a pretty young wife goes back to the land where he was raised.

And then the tall Viking God known as Alexander Skarsgard aka Tarzan does something like this and all thoughts of the plot go right out the window. 

The Chest is strong in this one.  And luckily for us it features quite prominently.

Living in the jungle it seems requires very little clothing.  Maybe it's the humidity it just makes those pesky things called clothes stick to the body.  So why not just strip off that shirt and run wild and free

He certainly looks hotter... I mean cooler without that shirt.  Though personally I'd be a tad worried about blood sucking leeches sticky to all the bare skin.  That is if leeches exist in the jungle.

Still think of all the laundry he doesn't have to do by foregoing said shirt.

And we even get a few closeups of The Chest just in case we had forgotten who was the real star of the show.

I'd almost like to send the producers and Alexander a nice gift basket just in appreciation of The Legend of the Chest.

"Dear Mr Skarsgard if you are reading this thank you , thank you, thank you. Yours an appreciate fan."

And if The Chest isn't  your thing there's a love story and a bad guy out to do bad guy things and wild animals looking all beautiful and action for those that need it.

But really it's all about the Viking God and The Chest.

The end. 

July's Buyer's Archive

I managed to buy only two things this month so I'm pretty please with that.  I have a feeling though that next month will be a complete budget blow out as I need to get a few things before I go on holiday.  Like a lot of things.  Oh well this month's purchases were...

Shoes - $10 from The Warehouse

I've been wanting some nice looking canvas type shoes to wear during the summer so as soon as I saw these I knew I had to have them.  It's all about the pretty don't you know.

Socks - $12 from Farmers

You've probably guessed by now that I have a thing for socks.  Well socks and cardigans.   And these were so super cute that I just had to buy them.

 Total spend for the month: $22