2016 a year of positive challenges

Its funny how every time the calendar clicks over to a new year we have an overwhelming urge to improve ourselves.

Isn't that something we should think about everyday. I want to do that. I want to wake up each morning & think about what I can do, to be better than I was yesterday.

 I want to be a better wife, mum & friend. Relationships are something that we should all invest time in, especially family.I will be making time for a few girlie coffee dates with friends & dinner dates for the dream guy & I to catch up with friends together. As well as the usual mum time, I have lots of things planned for the kids as well.

My little Christmas reindeer, he falls under the family & fitness category, lots of love & walks for Ralph in 2016

I need to be fitter & healthier. I was on the right track in this department & feeling awesome but the festive season took over & here I am a little chubbier around my middle, bloated, uncomfortable & out of routine when it comes to working out.Oh, how easily I can be distracted.

 So time to find a little discipline & get back on track. I ALWAYS feel better for it!!!

I am desperate to improve my career options this year, maybe work for myself or maybe an employer, we will just see how that pans out. I am doing some pretty full on research into what option of study will work best for me & get me into a role within the interior design world, whilst working & maintaining life as we know it.You know, the current job, household duties, parenting etc etc.

There are so so many course providers, each teaching the same syllabus but with their own trademark style. The prices vary incredibly from college to college & then there is the option of attending face to face classes or online study.Do I do a diploma or just a cert IV. If you have any experiences or recommendations in this area all advice will be taken on board .No decisions have been made at this point......eeeek!!!!

I am a little photography obsessed at the moment, that is my relaxation, it really does transport me to my happy place. Its always on my mind as to how I can improve.
 Practice practice practice I think is the best way. I have decided to learn a little about editing this year & have already started trying to learn how to use Lightroom & will incorporate that with Photoshop, which will also be useful for creating design boards in the interior design world. I have noticed that just through the tutorials I have done so far on Lightroom it has made me put a bit more thought into how I take my photos, so winning already.

I have also joined up with a couple of photo challenges in hope that I can complete  365 days of photo's, or should I say 366 seen as though it is a leap year.Having someone set a theme for the day really challenges you to be a bit more creative. No doubt some of my photo's are going to be boring as some days you just have no mojo but I do hope to produce a few snappers.

 So far I have joined the
 Fat Mum Slim photo a day challenge
 &
 Finding Myself Young 52 weeks of memories challenge
I am yet to join a 365 day challenge, at this stage its just my personal mission. So  once a week I will post the weeks worth of photo's on here or you can catch me on instagram @dreamhousetrish
I think most of these will be taken with my iPhone. As much as I would like to do them on my DSLR the best camera is the one you have on you && for me its my phone. I have no major rules on this aspect as its all for fun. Its not convenient to carry a bulky camera. I often find my best photo opportunities arise when I am out walking or running, luckily my phone is also my workout tracker so I always have it on me & don't have to miss out on the opportunity.
My last personal challenge is to be a better blogger. Blogging has changed since I started but I haven't really moved with those changes so expect to see some new stuff going on around here as well. Firstly though I would like to get back into the routine of regular posts before I get to carried away. All will evolve slowly over time I think.

So how about you, any goals for 2016, I would love to here about them.
Happy New Year everyone, lets hope its a great one full of good health & happiness!

CHEERS
Trish xx

2015 ALREADY!!!!

Seriously, 2015 already!!!

How quickly did the past 12 months pass us by ?

We had a nice night ringing in the new year with some lovely friends.

We made the most of where we live & all walked to the river to watch the 9pm fireworks & then back home to count down until midnight.

I have lots of plans for the new year, how about you?

We have lots of plans for repairing & rejuvenating our home, it will be a slow & ongoing process as we will be trying ever so hard to save for each stage rather than create debt for our reno's.

So having a strict budget & sticking to it will be a priority, sounds boring I know, but it will pay off down the track.

Lucky this big guy is clever & we wont need to hire to many outside trades, I will be the chief designer & lackie whilst he does the clever stuff.

My kids all have big years ahead, full of change

No.1 is going into her 2nd year of studying Graphic Design at Billie Blue Design College & living & working in Sydney. She has really made a great life for herself & enjoys city living.

No.2 Has just completed a Cert 4 in Business Admin & is now on the lookout for employment. She has a huge list of goals to kick this year & I have no doubt she will achieve them all.

No.3 Is just about to start High School & is maturing at a rapid pace. He really is looking forward to the change & plans on tackling it with great gusto

&

No.4 goes into primary school, she really is growing up way to fast.

2014 was full of ups & downs for us, it does sometimes feel like every time we are getting ahead something changes to pull us back again. Generally after a lot of frustration, life heads in a new direction & it sorts itself out again.

Career wise this has certainly been truer than true.

I will be looking for the perfect part time job, I have no real direction there, do I return to hairdressing, look for something sales orientated in line with my last job(New Home Sales consultant), work in retail, preferably homewares or home furnishings or learn something new.

I think it will be dictated more by the work hours on offer & what works family wise rather than passion.

I have been very inconsistent with my fitness & nutrition over the past 6 months & it shows.

I feel very sluggish & my clothes have become a little to snug for comfort.

Its time to get back on track & build regular exercise back into my daily routine . I really do need to cut back on the sweet treats & wine

This may hurt.......

So to cut a long story short, my goals for 2015

Happy kids

Happy husband

Renovate our home

Save Money

Eat healthy

Exercise

Get a job

& have a few adventures along the way.

How about you, do you have any major resolutions?

Happy 2015 everyone, here's to a healthy, wealthy, smooth sailing 2015

CHEERS

Trish xx

Farewell 2012, What a year!

 

Happy New Year my friends!!!

I cant believe 2012 is coming to a close already.

Its been such an incredible year full of ups & downs, I would even say life changing in our household.

 

For 2012 I set myself a few goals, I wanted to be

Consistent

I wanted to get myself into some sort of consistent routine with my fitness training, I wanted to be a yummy mummy!!

Well I did get it all together for a while there & I was feeling pretty good about myself, BUT & theres always a BUT,

I got a full time job & haven't managed to be organised to exercise much since, so, as you can imagine this one is back on the goal list for 2013

 

I also wanted to be

CREATIVE

This I did do, I got more creative with my photography & I did a fair bit of sewing & some great party styling, right down to making a fantastic prop box for a photo booth at parties, which has been a real hit & left us with some fun memories.

 

My last goal for 2012 was to show

COURAGE

when I communicate

My marriage was going through some pretty tough times & I was desperately unhappy in life, so I had 2 choices.

I could throw it all away

OR

speak up & fight for what I felt was right & change it!

Well finding the courage to speak up brought about some pretty awful days, followed by lots of change & I have to say, this is the happiest my life has been for a VERY long time.

 

So it turns out that 2012 has been a very tough year but well worth the fight.

I'm hoping 2013 might go a little slower as we have so many big & exciting things happening in life this year, it would be great to take the time to notice them & live in the moment a little!!

 

I have been working full time(45hr week) for 2 months now & I have so much to learn in my job its not funny, but I really am enjoying the challenge.

It feels good to know I am building myself a new career. I turn 42 this year & really felt that this was my last opportunity to have a big career change.

 

Dream child No1 starts her studies in fashion design at Billie Blue design college in Sydney & has just moved into her first apartment, all by herself. She is so grown up & mature, I'm so proud & excited for her!!!

Dream child No2 did 10 months as a hairdressing apprentice this year, but due to a not so pleasant work environment decided it wasn't the career for her & has since quit & gotten a traineeship in Business Admin which starts if feb2013.

 

Dream child No3 has really come a long way, its safe to say we have this ADHD under wraps with diet & homeopathic treatments, NO drugs. He has lots of lovely friends these days, not just the other naughty kids. He goes into Yr5 this year & has also been elected as sports captain for his house at school.

 

Dream child No4 has graduated from kindergarten & is now a big Yr1 kid in school, she has had a great year & learnt so much it blows my mind, she also caught every cold, flu virus & bug including  head lice so I think she should have a good immune system for the year ahead!!!

 

There are some intersting things occuring on the dream house front as well, which I will save for another post.

 

So I'm expecting

2013

to be a fabulous year full of rewards from lots of hard work.

 

My goals are to be

Organised, Efficient & Consistent.

 

I want to be organised enough that I can exercise consistently & be efficient enough that my house stays tidy & organised while I fit in this busy work schedule around my mummy duties. I also want to ensure I keep communicating with the dream guy so our relationship stays positive.

 

Any tips GREATLY appreciated!!!

 

What are your goals for 2013, I would love to hear them, they keep me inspired.

 

CHEERS

Trish xx

Self Portrait

Happy New Year everyone!!!

Did you have a lovely evening seeing in the New Year?

We celebrated by having a mini street party with several of the neighbors & it was a really great night, the kids had a ball!!

My self portrait!

I have set myself  lots of goals for 2012 & one of those goals is to improve my photography, not just my technical skills but also my creativity.

To do this I am going to attempt to take a photo a day....Don't worry I wont post every single one of them, but, I am joining up with two other bloggers to post one photo a week.

On Wednesdays I will be joining in  with

Heather from Family Volley

 for her 2012 Photo Challenge. 

This weeks theme is

 "Self Portrait"

Its going to be a fun challenge, you should come & join us!

I have a few other goals for 2012 that I will share with you as we go along, I don't wont to bore you with all of this me, me, me talk...... not all at once any way, ha ha ha!!!

What are your goals for 2012?

CHEERS
Trish xxx

Hello 2011

Hi everyone,

I found myself dropping off planet blog over the Xmas/ new years period,

life was just a bit hectic,

filled with family & festivities!

Here's a bit of an update of how we filled our days...

We did Christmas dinner at our house twice, 

The first time was a few days before Chrissy for our family that were travelling elsewhere for the big day & then again on Christmas day for us & my parents.

It was a really lovely day & I was lucky enough to be given my first D SLR camera....

I haven't stopped taking photo's since, mind you I have NO idea what I'm doing.

Thank goodness for all of those talented bloggers that enjoy passing on tips to the newbie photographers!!!!

Although this is an old photo from my last house, I really did get to share a bottle of Moet with my lovely neighbor & friends for New years.

Maitland put on a fantastic fireworks display on the Hunter river each year & we had a fabulous view of them from our street, which was great!!!

Then it was time to take down the tree & put my house back together, the living area seems so much more spacious without a giant tree in the room.

We have enjoyed some great family days, this is my 2 favourite men fishing at Stockton beach

of course you cant go to the beach without building a few castles

dream child no.1 also got a DSLR off Santa so we had a lovely day snapping the sights of Newcastle & Stockton

My ultra gorgeous little sister is also the proud owner of a fab camera & the 3 of us wandered around like crazy tourists snapping up the sights & experimenting with different features on the camera....sooooo much to learn, soooo much fun!

We have also had to have a couple of skate park excursions for dream child no.3 to hone his scooter skills!

So this is what Ive been up to lately, plus a trip to the movies to see "Mega Mind", a few shopping adventures & several trips to our local pool.

We have so many exciting adventures planned just exploring Newcastle & The Hunter Valley, we don't have time to go on a holiday & that's why I love where I live!

What have you been up to so far?

CHEERS

Trish xxx