Besties

I was never a hugely best friend kind of girl, but my best friend Alia and I have been besties since I was 19.

We share a lot in common, have a lot of differences, love things, hate things, gossip, tell secrets.. do all the things best friends should do.

Unfortunately, one of the things my best friend loves to do is travel...

When we were 20 we took our first trip overseas together and went to south east asia, about a year later Alia moved to Chile on student exchange for a year, (I visited her there 6 months through her exchange) she came back and 6 months later I moved to Canada for exchange for 6months. 2 months after I moved to Canada, Alia moved back to Chile indefinitely - she came back after just over a year, that was around mid last year...

In May this year she went back overseas to Europe and South America for... what she has promised will be no longer than a year, (it was originally only for 3 months) which means she will be back at the end of May, with the wedding in November.

Over the course of our friendship we have gotten use to chatting over skype, facebook, emails and the like. Sometimes we get slack, but usually we are pretty good with keeping in contact.

Sometimes though it gets hard, I miss her.. I miss having her responses to things happening in my life or her as a sounding board to bounce of little things, which don't seem significant enough to put in an email...

She is my maid of honour and so I think this makes it even harder. She wasn't there when I found my dress or booked most things for the wedding... I am glad she will be back 6 months before, but damn I told her this morning I feel like a soldier's wife (no disrespect intended, I know that is clearly a lot more serious but it is the only comparison I can think of) because she is constantly away from me. I am always saying goodbye.

I have my other girls and I love them dearly, they are helping me out with everything and doing all the can to fill the void, but sometimes I have selfish moments and wish Alia was here for this most exciting time.

Okay selfishness over now... feels good getting it out.. thanks for reading! :)



Cinderella Moment: my wedding shoes!!

Let me Start this post off by saying that I am utterly exhausted! With the trips to and from Melbourne, early mornings at work, chiro appointments and now editing (yes it's been revealed to me) the Dat Girl website... I am just pooped!!! So much so that when I picked up a package at work on Monday, I didn't even rip it open..or get excited...

 Nope, it sat on my desk for a good 3 hours before I decided to take a peek...

Inside the package were the shoes that I will wear when I walk down the aisle to A!!

Remember I bought these shoes a while ago but they were too small and didn't have enough support?

Well I gave up the shoe hunt for a while, occasionally searching for pink wedding shoes, and then I came across these beauties by Badgley Mischka.

They looked like a perfect kind of pink, and soft and pretty, just like my dress.

Unfortunately, the Randee shoe is a few seasons old and wherever I looked no one had them in stock in the pink :(

I thought I wouldn't be able to get them, until I decided to do an eBay search and BAM there they were, size 9 (I'm usually an 8.5, but minor details), new in box with all plastic and cardboard bits attached. The seller didn't send items outside of the US, but I could handle that.

from the eBay listing

I thought about the purchase for a while, then the next day I went to place my bid, only to see the auction had ended. More sad faces!!! :( :( :(

Luckily, everyone else "forgot to bid" too and the item was re listed.. 7 days later I won the auction. Fate.

The shoes were sent to my US address and then to me.

They fit PERFECTLY, and are so soft and delicate, I think they are just beautiful!

The little bit of a platform will be a godsend on the big day and the bottom of the shoe is almost the same colour as the BM dresses here too.

I'd show you the picture of them on my feet, but I am waaaaay over due for a pedicure, so you will have to settle for the above bride's feet.

It felt like my very own Cinderella moment, when I slipped these babies on and I am glad I kept trying to find the perfect shoes! :)

Have you lost your engagement ring?

As most of you know, I was in Melbourne last weekend catching up with A... (more to come)

On the Saturday morning, I did my normal.. nothing spesh, wake up, shower, get dressed, makeup, hair... then we headed out to catch the tram to Queen Victoria markets.

We were on the tram for about 5 minutes, when I looked at A and said "OHH crap! I left my engagement ring in your apartment". A gave me one of those looks, that can only be from someone who knows me so well they know how much I lose things, but loves me anyways.

 

Saturday - look no ring.

I thought about calling the reception desk and asking them not to service the room, but then that thought flew out of my head and I thought it would be okay.

We returned to the room about 6:30pm and the first thing I thought to do was look for the ring. Bedside table - nope. Window Ledge - nope. Bathroom Cabinet - nope. I couldn't for the life of me remember where I put it, but I knew I took it off before my shower.

I kept looking around, before A got suss and I told him what I was looking for. He immediately started to help me look. My heart started beating faster and I could feel myself begin to panic.

We took all the sheets off the bed, lifted up the bed and moved everything around.. even the clothes in his closet.

It was nowhere. I started to cry and cry and cry.

I sent a text to my mum and she told me not to give up easily and to keep looking.

I called reception, who offered to help us look and contact house keeping in the morning.

I couldn't believe the maid had stolen it, I kept telling A that wasn't a nice thing to do and who would do that?

We pulled out every single freaking thing in A's bedroom and put it in the hall, shaking everything violently. NOTHING.

I layed on the bed. A held me so tight he almost broke me.

A wasn't angry, not in the slightest. He kept asking me to calm down and telling me that it doesn't matter - we are still engaged, we still have each other and that's all that matters.

I knew it was all that matters, but this was the most beautiful thing ever bought for me, that he picked out himself, that he saved up for and I just stupidly forgot it. I was so angry at myself for being such a mess and kept crying most of the night.

Our Saturday night plans got cancelled, I was not going anywhere without my ring.

A told me it was gone and not to get my hopes up that house keeping would find it.

A passed out in exhaustion, still holding me so tight on the bed, which no longer had any sheets, pillows or blankets. I didn't care at that point.

We both had restless sleeps and I dreamt that I found my ring and I found it somewhere silly. I kept waking up, touching my finger and realising I hadn't found it.

More crying.

House keeping called - all bad news. The sheets weren't changed, it wasn't in the rubbish or in the vacuum cleaners. Did the maid steal it? I hoped not.

I asked A if we could have just one more look, before we headed out for the day because I didn't want to leave my ring alone...

I pulled the bed apart again, moved the bedside tables and lifted up the bed. Nope nothing.

A told me again that it was gone, it's okay.. it doesn't matter.

I started to cry again, then looked over my shoulder to see something shining underneath the alarm clock... OMG IT WAS MY RING!!!!!!!!!!

I screamed, grabbed it, put it on and then A and I had a massive hug, laughing and crying.

I agreed to clean the house now (it was all over the place) and A was happy.

Mum told me to never take it off again, except for when I was swimming.

I wish this was the first time I had almost lost my ring.....

One thing I couldn't get over though was A's response to the whole situation.. not mad or angry, disappointed or anything else. He was just worried about me being upset and nothing more. I love this man.

Have you ever lost your ring or had a close encounter?

Bedroom

I had a realllly quiet Saturday!

After dropping my flatmate off at the airport (he went to see A - bromance or what?), I was home alone for the rest of the day and night. This led to a lot of cleaning, organising, chucking crap out, wearing tracky dacks, eating meat pies (3 on one weekend) and making furniture.

I started Saturday off with a super session workout, which made me feel like I was going to vom. I didn't eat much on the Friday or at all before I worked out, so I'm sure this didn't help. The wines on Friday night MAY have had something to do with it too..

I did...

 75 burpees

100 lunges on each leg

100 mountain climbers on each leg

100 box jumps

and about a 5k run.

After the airport drop off, I hit the shopping centre for much needed bits and pieces, grabbed a Chai latte (obsessed) and went into Sarah mission mode!

I chucked out a whole trolley worth of stuff just from our bedroom, I dusted until the dust was scared to come back, did all the laundry and made furniture for our new soon to be vamped up lounge room (post when it's done).

I felt really good when I finished everything and the room looked great. I realised I hadn't shown you our bedroom since we moved out... so here it is....

We bought this lil gem of a shoe holder from Homemart. It is currently empty, because we have to wall mount it, but how awesome is it?

Bedside lamps - one of our engagement presents from Mum

I haven't finished this off yet, but you get the idea

Another engagement present (TV) and A's star wars shrine haha

The picture above our bed - it's from a nightclub in Vegas. I made this canvas for A on our one year anniversary.

As part of my organising, I even put my new business cards in the holder my mum bought me for graduation.

It felt good to stay home for a weekend, organise my life and get sh$t done, but now I am ready to go play again :)

2 more sleeps until I see A!! wooo hoo!

Any must do things for Melbourne? anyone?

WINNER and Days Until....

There were literally only 2 entrants in the Project X giveaway, so I drew the winner out ol' school stylz... wrote the name on a pad...

and placed them in a .....

Palmers Cocoa Butter box. haha I had no hat?

THE WINNER IS...

MISS_MEGS!!!

Congratulations honey, email your address to sagapotoo@gmail.com.

In other news, I have downloaded the "days until" app since I saw it on Mez's blog (I loove counting down to things) and look at all the exciting things I have coming up....

EEeeeEeEep! I CAN'T WAIT!



HAPPY WEEKEND Y'ALL!

A Beautiful Woman

Today is the birthday of the most beautiful woman I know. The woman who has given me strength, determination, a crazy sense of humour, a love for all things sentimental, a positive outlook on life and a great appreciation for the little things...

HAPPY 52ND BIRTHDAY MUMMA!!!

My mum, like many mums, has not had an easy life.. I cry (and am fighting back tears right now) thinking about what she has endured, because I think no one person should have to go through as much as she has in one lifetime, but I guess that's what makes her such a great role model!

my first graduation

I went to uni, because as a single parent, I watched my mum put herself through her HSC and 4 years of Uni just to give us a better life. I still remember reading her study cards on long road trips.

with the first grandbubby

I write sentimental cards or make sentimental presents, because every kind of occasion  in our life, without fail, my mum has made us feel amazing, like the most special person in the world and she did it all with her special touch. When times were tough, we didn't even notice... who would notice when you come home from school to a lounge room full of balloons?

When we came home from the cruise we got engaged on

mum had CONGRATULATIONS written in balloons and lots of girly presents for me

You will definitely see my mum's little touches around the wedding.

My mum has taught me to look on the positive side of life, no matter how bad things get... one of the things my mum has always said for as long as I remember is, "don't worry, we'll get through it... we always do!"


Mum Greek Dancing

My mum is also the reason I am who I am today and have the life I have, because she decided I "needed to move to Sydney" when I was 14. Mum had lived here when she was younger and she knew it would help me blossom, for lack of a better word. I remember one of our first days driving around Punchbowl, I turned to my mum and asked her "Where do Lebanese people come from?". I wasn't being racist, I didn't know.. I had no clue, it was an honest question. Today, I could not think of my life without the influences of different cultures (I like to take a bit from here and there) and I thank her for that! It has made me the rounded person I am and the person who CANNOT STAND racism, but that is a topic for another day.


mum's first trip overseas - Disneyland Tokyo OMG WE'RE IN DISNEYLAND!

I also have my mum's wicked sense of humour. Her sense of humour is also an amazing thing I love about my mum, she laughs so hard sometimes she snorts. A also loves my mums sense of humour and when A and my mum hang out they are unstoppable, my brother has even commented about the two of them being "trouble".

Mum with a Drag Queen at her 50th

 

 

One of my mum's favourite things to do and funniest things is to make up stories about people. People on TV, in the street, shopping mall... they are not regular stories, they are more like the kind about where he buys his socks, or why she looks so sad or why he has an attitude and they are always hilarioussss!!

Mum enjoying a "couple full of happiness" aka Saki

My mum is actually my best friend. I hate how I treated her during "those dreaded teenage years", but I love that our relationship is even stronger now. The trust and the bond we have is the stronger than strong, there is barely anything I won't talk to her about.

My mum has so much love for everyone and will do anything for you, she has even been known to go through a Red Rooster drive through for chicken for a very spoilt dog!

 I sincerely hope that if I ever ever become a mum, that I can form the same relationship with my children, that my mum has with us. I hope I could be a mum as good as her, just like her, but with a bigger bum! (my mum will understand that one)

We are off to the Footy to celebrate tonight - Bulldogs v Parra, should be fun! :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUMMA!!

What's Dat Girl??

I am nervous writing this post. Nervous because I'm scared of failure I guess? Nervous because I know this is one more step I can't turn back from and nervous about bad criticism.

I have mentioned Dat Girl in a few posts here and there, but never actually mentioned what it is.

Dat Girl is my latest Project. Dat Girl is an affordable Australian online clothing boutique set to launch in September.

Everyone has been at a cafe, nightclub, restaurant and mall and seen a girl who is wearing an amazing outfit and she has you either saying or wondering "wow I like her style!" "where'd she get that from?" "what does she do?" "who is Dat Girl?". Every girl (inclduing you) has been the girl who's outfit has left others wondering, whether we know it or not, and the aim of this store is to provide the outfits that do just that!

Dat Girl will stock clothes in a variety of styles, will be easy to navigate and (mark my words) will not have any item of clothing over $200, because Dat Girl isn't about turning heads because of the name on a tag, but rather because of the entire look.

At the current time, I have some great, perhaps less known Australian brands on board and I'm set to buy some more closer to launch date.

I am also currently in the process of designing the website.

I'd love to know from YOU what your pet peeves and loves are of online shopping. So far all the feedback I have received has been really helpful and I am hoping the finished product will reflect what people are telling me they would want in their ideal store.

I'd also love it if you could 'like' the Dat Girl Facebook page here. As we get closer to launch, I'll be releasing more photos of upcoming fashion, hosting giveaways and giving discount codes to Facebook followers.

I am really excited, petrified and nervous about this project, but I guess if you never try you can never succeed, right?

Black, White and Red

First of all, thank you to all of you for your kind words and support for my weight loss journey and the serviced apartments suggestions for A. He will be moving to Melbourne a week from Monday.

Now to this post...

On Sunday we had the christening of our niece, Deanna.

Sitting up by herself now :)

 

It was my first time going to a Greek Orthodox Church AND my first ever christening.

The church was as beautiful as I expected, I just wish I wore non-brand new shoes, so the standing parts didn't hurt so much lol.

Deanna was such a good baby, laughing, smiling and pulling cute faces at the priest. She barely even cried, and when she did it was just because she was cold and had been dunked a few times. What a good baby!

Afterwards, we went to a waterside function centre for a HUGE 3 course meal. I really should have taken photos of the food, because it was delicious, and very generous portions... better than most weddings I have been to actually.

The place was decorated in lots of pink for the beautiful little girl.

I really should have taken a photo of the cute little pink cake too - but hmm I guess the bad blogger award goes to me? :P

Ah well, at least I got some outfit pics for you!

Wearing my new red Wittner shoes and Love dress, only $40 (free shipping) from here.

What's your plans for this weekend?

Let's talk numbers!

Okay I'm going to do it, I'm going to talk numbers and weight in a post on the world wide web. SCARY!!!

A trick we learnt in pole last term

"Look mum, no hands!"

First of all I should tell you that I'm 168cm to put things into perspective.

I'll start with my starting weight at the start of this round of 12WBT - 70.3kg (granted part of this was due to my over indulgence the week prior).

At the photo in this post I was around 62kg.

At our engagement party, I was pretty happy with how I looked and I was 64kg.

My goal for the first month of 12WBT was to get to 67kgs. I didn't care of it was 67.8 or 67.2 - that was my monthly goal.

In the first week I lost and weighed in at 69.1

Second week - lost another 900grams, weighed in at 68.2

Third week - gained 500grams - 68.7

And yesterday???? I lost 800grams and weighed in at 67.9!!!!!!! I only just made it in to the 67's but I don't care, I'm not getting caught up in semantics. I achieved my goal and I am proud.

I am starting to feel like myself again.

I have currently lost 2.4kgs and 3.4% of my body weight.

My two month goal is to be in the 65's.

The "Angel"

In addition to weigh in, at the monthly mark I also had to do my measurements. I don't think there is much point in revealing what each measurement is, but I will tell you the difference from when I started until now...

Hips - down 7cm

Waist - down 4cm

Arm - one down 4cm, the other 3cm

Legs - one down 5cm, the other 3cm

Again, I'm stoked!!

12WBT Brocolli Soup- YUmMMm!

I know this second month will be harder to keep dropping the weight. I have recently purchased a polar heart rate monitor and once I pick it up from the post office I'll be setting myself exercise goals to keep pushing the limits!

Anyone have any ideas for exercise goals??

I FOUND THE DRESS!!!!

A I SHOULDN'T NEED TO TELL YOU THIS, THE TITLE SHOULD SAY IT ALL- BUT LOOK AWAY NOW PLEASE =)

Ummm yeahh so I think I might have forgotten to tell you all something on Friday??

ON THURSDAY NIGHT I FOUND MY FREAKIN' WEDDING DRESS!!!!!

bahahahahahaha... I am soooo excited! I was soo giddy all day Friday and in general disbelief, I could think of nothing but THE DRESS.

Remember a little while ago in this post, I told you I had another appointment to try on dresses?

Well on Thursday night mum and I went... we tried on THE dress first, then another 2 for good measure, but I couldn't wait to get back into the first. Then I didn't want to take it off! I left it on until the last possible second.

I couldn't stop smiling, mum got teary and as I hugged her I think I did a little bit too. I knew I would never be one of those bawling brides (not that there's anything wrong with that) because I was just waaaayyyy too happy to cry and the only time I have cried from happiness was when A proposed. Regardless, I knew this was the dress. I couldn't stop staring at myself in the mirror and doing twirls, with this ridiculously huge grin on my face!

The sample gown is not exactly how I want my dress to be, so the designer is making me a custom dress using the sample as a kind of "base".

Francesca from Couture by Francesca was great. She was truly wonderful, genuine and helpful. She said yes to most of my requests for alterations, except for where it would compromise the fit of the dress. She let us ask a million silly questions and even made me sit in the dress to see how it felt/looked - which ps. was amazing! haha. She has been designing from home for the last 20years, working with Jessica Fontaine and her own brides purely by word of mouth. Luckily for me, she opened a boutique two weeks ago.

Francesca told us she will only take on a certain amount of brides at a time and the best part? Unlike many pushy stores I have been to previously, Fran did not ask me to put a deposit down or sign anything - Oh no, she doesn't even have EFTPOS facilities because she wants her brides to go home, sleep on it and then when they are still 100% sure, email her, pay the deposit etc. amazing!

Given that my dress is custom, I cannot show you any pictures and I don't want to give away too much by showing you the sample. What I will do is show you this lovely sneak peak again and tell you a few details...

I will have a loooongg train.

My dress is WHITE white, which I think looks best on me.

My dress will be made of lace, silk and french tulle.

I will have a long plain veil.

The bodice will have Swarovski crystals all over it.

It will have buttons, just like my shoes.

I am taking my girls to see me in the dress on Saturday, but after that I won't see the designer again until January when we do the first measurements. I'll take photos at the starting appointments to show you all how it's going, before it starts to look too much like the real deal.

I seriously cannot believe I have found my wedding dress, I am soo nervous about my decision, but in a good way if that makes sense? It's a huge decision, I can't believe I made it! LOL.

What kind of reaction do you think you'd/or did you have?

I can't wait for my shoes to arrive this week!

Argghh it's all coming together now!

Moving to Melbourne

Last Friday at 4:30pm A was asked by his boss if he would like to move to Melbourne to work for a client for 2-3 months.

His boss said that he understood he was engaged and would assume it would probably be a no, but he let A have the weekend to think about it.

As soon as A told me, I told him to take it. I don't think he expected that response, but who am I to hold my fiance back from an amazing opportunity, experience and cred on his resume?

PLUS this means many trips to Melbourne for me, shopping and dumplings :)

A told them yesterday he would accept it.

This morning they got back to him.... IT  HAS BEEN APPROVED!!!!

A will have a serviced apartment in the city and trips back to Sydney every few weeks included in the package.

I am going to miss him terribly, but I think when exciting opportunities like this come along you just have to grab them with both hands and run with it.

 3 months with regular visits is hardly anything. We did 6 months with no visits...  so hopefully this will be like a walk in the park.

Expect many Melbourne posts from now on.. The first I'm sure will include China Bar.

Our last Melbourne trip



Cake Boxes

I'll start this post of with a confession...
I am not a HUGE cake fan. I felt a few jaws drop just writing that haha, but it's true. I like cake and I love cheesecake, but it is not anything I am ever craving for or thinking "mm I would like a piece of that cake". I often don't eat the cake at parties or even order desert at restaurants. Maybe it is because of my feelings towards cake, that I have noticed that wedding cakes often go largely uneaten.

At the weddings I have attended, by the time the cake comes out most people are full, a bit tipsy and out on the dance floor dancing. They may run back to the table for a bite or two of cake and then return to the dance floor. Some I'm sure miss the cake entirely or are too full to eat it.

At our wedding when guests enter they will be served canapes, then when they sit they will be hit with an individual antipasto platter, an entree, salads and dips on the tables, a main, a desert and a fruit platter to finish. That is A LOT of food.

When thinking about the amount of food that will be at our wedding in conjunction with my observations on wedding cake, I have decided that we WON'T be serving cake at our wedding.

No, I'm not saying we won't have a cake and I'm not saying we won't share it with our guests, all i'm saying is that it won't be served on the tables on plates.

Instead, I have opted for a "take your cake" option. I will be asking the waiters to place people's slice of cake in a cake box, which will be placed on a table near the exit for guests to grab as they leave. Sure there will still be left overs and some still won't get eaten, but there will also be a lot eaten the next day when people pull it out of the fridge. That's the plan anyways!

To carry off my plan, I purchased these cute cake boxes from Light in the Box (thanks for making me look on that site Little Black Sheep) with a handle and all.

I purchased 192 of these little babies for only $96 incl. delivery.

how they start out

We only needed 180, but purchased the extra 12 to play around with. For the wedding, I want to have a black ribbon around the handle and a customised sticker on one of the sides.

Big enough for a slice of cake.

That's my hand underneath.

I am really happy with them.

They will be our own little party bags :)



Stuff

I think the title of this post illustrates the mood I am in most Monday mornings. Today I am not so bad, but I am never as good as I am on a Friday morning or a weekend. A job where my hours aren't defined... where I am my own boss.. that's the dream!

Anyways, enough ramblings and on with the stuff I promised. The stuff is a bit random and a bit of weekend stuff, but both stuff so both fit in the stuff category. What am I on this morning? Who knows? Maybe some stuff. lol. Okay, okay I'll stop.

On with the stuff....

Lunch for today, Risoni Pasta salad. A and I make our lunch most days for the health aspect, money aspect and choice aspect. I seriously think there are waaayy too many options in a food court for me to decide, find a seat and eat all in one lunch break!

Friday night was my friend Anni's 31st birthday. We headed to Establishment after work for a few drinks. I knew I had to be awake at 5am and warned her that I couldn't stay long or drink much. That WAS the plan. 4 bottles of wine and 4 hours later, I'm on the couch with A, he is laughing at me and teasing me about being drunk. Eh, I tried!

I had to wake up so early on Saturday morning for these lil munchkins! My nieces live in Wagga Wagga and it was the eldest ones (aka rabbit face) fourth birthday. It was worth waking up for.

We had to give Taylor a present or two as well and she looooveeeeddd this rocking horse.

After driving to Wagga and back in one day (4 and a half hours each way), A and I lovvvvveeeddd our beds.

On Sunday, we were lucky enough to have another kids birthday. A's nephew's 9th birthday. I think I am all kiddied out for a while now.

I made this Bolognese on State of Origin night, when my friend Alana stayed over. I decided to experiment a bit and it worked out perfectly!! Tomato soup really made the sauce super rich and the avocado I put in at the end... MmMmMmM!! It doesn't look the best, but it was fork lickin' good.

A candle my coworker bought me for my birthday. It smells so pretty, people keep asking "what's that smell? it is like a garden".

The kick bum fajita I made. Healthy and all. WINNING!

Man I hate uploading lots of photos on blogger, it takes soooo long, pick one, close, press upload, open up all the folders, pick another one. Can someone please save me and tell me there is an easier way to do this.... anyone???

What did you do on the weekend?