Thanks y’all!

Surround yourself with loving people who really, truly want the best for you. Surround yourself with people who want to help you, want you to be happy and want you to feel loved. Because at the end of the day, they’re the ones you’re going to spending the lead up to your special day with. Read more.

I wish…

When I was young, my aunty beat breast cancer. A few years ago, my great uncle passed away from prostate cancer. Right now, my mum is fighting pancreatic cancer.

So I understand what it’s like to go through the ‘good’ cancers and the ‘bad’ cancers. Everyone’s right – there is no such thing as a ‘good’ cancer. There’s no such thing as a ‘good’ illness. But when it comes to pancreatic cancer, the numbers speak for themselves. Between 2006 and 2010, the survival rate for pancreatic cancer was 5.2 per cent. For breast cancer it was 89.4. Read more.

Popping your own question

While I popped the question to my bridesmaids a while ago, I’ve been trawling through Pinterest as of late to finalise my ideas for the decor of the wedding and there seems to be a myriad of ways to ask your bridal party to be part of your special day.

So here are the top five that I’ve stumbled across. Read more.

Shoot scouting

Lately we’ve been talking wedding photos.

There are a lot of things that come into play when it comes to choosing the location of wedding photos if you’re not having them at the ceremony or reception venue.

So let’s break it down. Read more.

Home sweet (expensive) home

Along with our wedding, we’re also house hunting. Whether you’re looking to rent or buy finding a home can become a very stressful process. But only if you make it one.

As your weekends become filled with open houses, measuring tapes and deciding whether the couch you love so very much will fit in the corner of the living room, slowly slowly you begin to realise how much there is to actually think about when it comes to choosing a home together.

If you’ve found the home, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Read more.

Guess who’s back

With my own wedding less than three months away, a question I was frequently asked was whether I was making notes as I attended the four other beautiful celebrations.

Truth is, most of my wedding is already organised. While I am exceptionally anal when it comes to organisation, I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing to stay ahead of the game.

That’s not to say I didn’t learn a thing or two. Read more.

I don’t like cricket … I love it?

I’ve grown up in a cricket household. Despite my dad having two daughters, he got lucky with my older sister. While I was at dance recitals and music lessons, she was at the cricket with my dad. The Sydney Test was daddy-daughter time. Eight years ago, when her husband came onto the scene, he joined them. And seven years ago, when my fiancee joined the family, it suddenly became a four-person excursion.

I hate to say it… but the only way to beat them, is join them. Read more.

Wedding bells

With four weddings coming up over new year and my own impending nuptials in just over three months, it’s hard not to think weddings all day.

So of course, the majority of blogs I’ve been reading revolve around weddings. Hair prep, make-up trials, dresses, table decorations. There’s so much to think about that it’s very easy to get swept up and become that dreaded B word. Yep, I’m talking bridezilla. Read more.

Paperback girl

I love the feel of paper between my fingers as I’m turning the pages, fully engrossed in the words. The idea of pressing a button to turn a page just doesn’t sit too well with me.

People often tell me to move into the digital age. Print is dead! It’s so much easier to carry! Soon you won’t be able to buy books!

Truth is, print isn’t dead. It’s just people tend to ignore it a little bit. Read more.

Budding artist

As I was painting away in my pseudo-studio, I realised how therapeutic the activity really was. A lot of issues have been thrown my way over the past year and despite the thousands of thoughts running through my mind, at that present moment, everything seemed to melt away and all I could think about were the brush strokes and making sure the letters were perfect.

It actually made me consider taking up painting as a hobby. When people are stressed, some turn to exercise (I wish! I’d be stick thin by now), some turn to eating, some turn to friends … and some turn to art. Read more.

Capture the moment

I’ve always been fascinated with photography. That ability to capture one, single moment in a ‘forever’ image astounds me.

My sister recently gave birth to a little boy. He’s about to turn one and I can’t believe how time has flown by. So much has happened in the past year that it’s astonishing to think that December is already around the corner and our little boy is growing up so quickly. Read more.