til next time...

I must confess this is my second attempt at writing this and I am frustrated beyond belief! I had more or less finished my post, drafting it using the blogger app, walked away... app closed... draft gone...

Really just links in with what I am blogging about today anyway.

Today we are confessing words that makes us cringe... Here goes...

Confessions of an extroverted introvert traveller

Introvert... Extrovert... I always thought you were either one or the other. 

I always swore I feel into the introverted side of things but recently I became aware of a new term the extroverted introvert and I think it suits me, almost, to a tea...

for the Australian Open

I must confess that for 2 weeks in January I am glued to one channel (ok, so they've added a few more now and you can watch any match live on the app) and waste spend countless hours watching one sport.....yep, The Australian Open Tennis Grand Slam is my January guilty TV pleasure!

I have been a big tennis fan from way back when I used to swing a racket in primary school and every year since I have dreamt about attending the Australian Open and this year I ticked it off my bucket list! 



I started my morning early, heading down to the banks of the Yarra River where the Sunrise crew were broadcasting live. This area is such a hive of activity even as dawn is breaking.

Goals and plans for 2016

So... Here we are... 2016... Another year is upon us... 366 blank pages ahead of us to fill with memories, hopes and dreams (well technically a few less now but this sounds better).

So what has it got in store for me, or what have I got in store for it.... read on to find out.

2015 Round Up

This year, 2015, will go down in my history as a big year. It was the year that I decided to take a big risk. I took leave from my job, the security and stability that came with it, but to walk away from the stress and worry that also came with it. 

I planned and planned and looking back now I probably planned a little too much, but hindsight is a great thing and at the time I thought that's what I needed to do.

So my great year of travel has meant a lot wonderful content for the blog, some of which I haven't even gotten around to sharing with you. Today I am going to share with you my most popular 11, because I just couldn't leave one out, in no particular order, culminating with my most favourite post of the year, which also just happens to outline the most favourite thing I did whilst overseas.

Christmas Confessions

I must confess as always I am met with mixed emotions when it comes to Christmas but this year it's extra difficult.

I was not raised in a religious environment at all. I am not sure I truly believe in the 'true' meaning of Christmas and I guess if I HAD to state my believes or align myself with one group over another then I would say I am agnostic. The only times I am at a church is for a wedding or a funeral, so at this time of year I must confess I often feel like somewhat of a hypocrite and that I am totally buying into social pressures and only buying presents and doing the whole 'Christmas thing' because the calendar and society dictates that I should.

But then I also think that Christmas is also a time to gather with family and friends and those we hold near and dear and I love the joy of giving and receiving special gifts that have been especially chosen for the recipient. I love watching people, especially my niece and nephews, open the presents I have picked for them. My twin nephews are now 2 so are getting into the Christmas spirit a little more this year, pointing and smiling and saying Santa every time the guy in the big red suit comes on the telly, even though their Christmas photo doesn't display this same excitment. My family usually decides last minute what we are doing and where we are going and some years it can be a little like groundhog day but I guess the important thing is that we are all together.

to fly West... Perth here I come!

I'm sure for regular readers this won't come as much of a surprise but I must confess travelling somewhere new is never far from my mind, both domestically and internationally. And somewhere that has always been pretty high on my list domestically is the capital of the west, Perth.... Actually on my ultimate road trip wish list is flying to Perth hiring a small camper van and driving to Darwin but it's not a trip I am brave enough to do solo and I haven't been able to find someone to join my venture!... Anyway, back to this trip! 

Since being home from my last trip to the U.S. and Canada I had been thinking about where I'd like to venture to next, actually who am I kidding, I was already looking before I left Canada! So when a chat with a travel agent friend of mine turned into looking at flights to Perth and finding some that were at a great price, the travel bug in me couldn't resist and later this week I am taking off again! 


My fascination for visiting Perth has only been strengthened by reading blogs about the most isolated capital city in the world (true story!), in particularly Agent Mystery Case, who makes the city seem so appealing! But rumour has it that there is "nothing to do in Perth" and so I am making it my week long mission to bust this rumour and prove it all kinds of wrong!

Now as soon as I mentioned to Raych aka... Agent Mystery Case, she was on the case hunting down unique and super fun activities and events for us to partake in and I actually timed my visit to coincide with the Event Ready show which looks just fab! (extra confession...I've never actually been to a fashion show and even though I do not consider myself a fashion guru and even though I am super nervous and have no idea what I am going to wear I am also super excited to get a glimpse into this part of the fashion word!).

Two regular calendar events happen while I am in Perth, the first being Halloween, which I am a little puzzled as to why Australia has jumped on this bandwagon but when an invitation popped up to attend the Wolf Lane Halloween Howls event we jumped at the chance ($10 Spiced Pumpkin Daiquiri's! Yes Please!). The second event being that little horse race that happens on the first Tuesday in November! Now working in schools since forever has meant that I have never had the joy of attending a glamorous or even a not so glamorous event so I am looking forward to what Perth has in store for the Melbourne Cup. 

We have a few other events that we will be attending but I don't want to give away all our secrets and plans, you'll have to follow along on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to see what we get up to on our mission to prove there's heaps to do in Perth!!

 

Having said that though there are a few gaps in the itinerary that I would love to fill with those gaps with suggestions from you! 

Have you been to Perth? 

What's on your must see/do list?

Got a Perth based travel blog you love that I need to know about?

Please share in the comments below!

**Linking up with My Home Truths for I Must Confess, One Mother Hen for Open Slather and My Brown Paper Packages for Wednesday Wanderlust and Agent Mystery Case for Worth Casing Wednesday**

**Image Credit... Thanks to Agent Mystery Case for supplying all images for this post, can't wait to see them in real life!!

taking stock and counting down

I must confess that I am well and truly on the countdown and things have been a little crazy around here as I finalise things before my next big trip! It has been a whirlwind 8 weeks since returning from my trip to South East Asia and I feel like I've been chasing my tail ever since, but alas, it is almost time to board a plane again!


This time next week I'll be in the air, or in Nashville, or in a jet lag induced trance somewhere (I honestly have no idea where I'll be as I struggle to work it out with flight lengths and time zones but what I do know is I won't be here!!

to confess songs from my iPod

This Monday's I must confess is being hosted by Sanch at Living My Imperfect Life and the chosen topic is "embarrassing songs on your iPod".


Now I am going to start by confessing that I love music and my genre of choice is Country. 


I don't have a problem with that, but it has been the cause of some tense conversations and some teasing to be honest, over the years. 

My number one travel app..

I was recently chatting to someone about my trip to Thailand and Cambodia and they informed me that they hadn't been to Asia since the 1980s and she laughed about how hard it was for her to organise the trip herself, telling me that she booked BnBs by sending Postcards to them and hoping the booking was secured when she arrived.

I seriously could not fathom travelling that way! I am a big pre-planner when I travel. I need to know where I am going, where I'm staying, when I'm leaving and everything in between. Sometimes it's a little annoying and I wish I could be a bit more 'fly by the seat of my pants' but it's just not me.

With the invention/introduction of the Internet booking and planning travel has never been easier, and now with smart phones everything is literally at your fingertips. You can find any information you need, book flights, accommodation, everything, in an instant, almost anytime, anywhere.

There are countless apps that you can download to suit your every travel need but when I travel there really is only one that I use, without fail, every single day....

Why I choose to travel alone

So due to some poor time management on my part, a family trip to the Sunshine Coast, the absolute lack of wifi in Australia (don't get me started on that!!), a stunning wedding and a little bit of downtime this is my first blog post in a week!!! I know....shock horror *gasp!*

My next destination

Barely back from my trip to Thailand/Cambodia/Singapore and already people are asking what's next.

I must confess I am a little sad that my trip has come to an end and how quickly that end arrived. I am back home in Australia spending Easter weekend with family at the Sunshine Coast, so I guess I can't really complain too much can I.

So what is next.....

I am home for about 8 weeks, during that time I will be catching up with family and friends and hopefully getting some relief teaching work. The pay is pretty good and I can be flexible with the days I work.

And then, in about 64 days, I take off again, this time US/Canada bound!!

I have never been to the States so I am super excited about that. And first stop is Nashville for CMA Fest, which has long been near the top of my bucket list! From Nashville I spend 5 nights in New York before starting a Top Deck 28 day USA Road trip tour, a few nights in LA before heading to Canada.

I have been to Canada before. Back in 2005 I took 6 months off work and headed over. The main reason for my trip was to see my friend Katie get married.

So it's been 10 years since the last time I was in Canada and I must confess I have been a slack friend and not kept in touch with Katie very well (and she's not very Facebook active - terrible excuse I know!) but I am super excited to see her and spend some time getting to know her 3 children, none of whom I have met.

I have no real plans for the 6 weeks I have in Canada other than to catch up with friends as I did a lot of touring around there when I was there in 2005. 

The last photo of Katie, her husband Mike and I

So that's what I'm up to next, what about you?? 

What have you got coming up that you are looking forward to?

Linking up with My Home Truths for I Must Confess and One Mother Hen for Open Slather.

for one thing I would change

I must confess....I wish I had started travelling earlier. I also wish I had paid more attention in History and Geography classes and I wish that I understood more about the world and the countries in it.


Unless you are really new around here then you would know that I am currently overseas. I have been OS for about 3 and a half weeks now and have just under 4 to go before returning home from this trip.


Having spent time in Thailand I am now in Cambodia volunteering at a Child Care Centre and already dreading the thought of having to leave. I live at a volunteer house and apart from one volunteer who is the same age as me, all the other volunteers and quite young. Many of them on their GAP year or on break from University Studies. 


I really envy them giving themselves this opportunity and wish I had done the same. 


To be honest though I don't think it was even put forward to me as an option. When I finished High School the done thing was that you went on to University. Also given the fact that I was still very much financially dependent on my parents, travelling was out of the question.


I have traveled on and off over the past 10 years but really wish I had done more when I was younger. It is very much a catch 22 though, as if I hadn't made the decisions I had made back then, then who knows where my life would be at right now and if I would have met the people I have if I had done things a little different.


If this trip is teaching me anything at the moment it is that I cannot take anything for granted and I am extremely lucky to have led, and continue to lead, a very privileged life and for that I am truly truly grateful. 


Linking up my short and sweet confession with Kirsty at My Home Truths and Alicia at One Mother Hen. I have been away over the weekend and am not feeling the best so will get back into soon I promise!


Over to you...

 is there one decision in the past that you would go back and change if you could?

for a secret confession

Another confession topic this week to touch a raw nerve.... Kirsty has challenged us to share something that we have never revealed to anyone.


So here goes.... I am not a big fan of what I see in the mirror. I know that we are all our own worst critics and that I am exceptionally bad at this but struggling with my appearance has been something that has been with me from a young age. 


Having friends, family and bullies comment on my appearance has not helped this. Being so disproportionate has been something I was teased about on a regular basis with people commenting on either the size of my arse or my lack of boobs. My forehead, extended jaw and constant acne (which still rears it's ugly head) were also cause for teases and taunts from stupid teenage boys during my high school years that still haunt me. And even though I am now a well-educated woman it is a daily struggle when I see what I see in the mirror (especially if that mirror happens to be in a change room under horrendous lighting and on all 4 walls that show you from every single angle! For a woman who loves clothes sometimes clothes shopping is enough to bring me to tears!!).  

Having photos taken is not really something I enjoy as I rarely have one taken that I like. Having photos taken that I don't know about is even worse. During my cooking class in Chiang Mai the other day they were taking action shots of us while we worked, later sending us the link with all the photos. Scrolling through there is not one that I like as they all seem to be taken from weird angles and side on which seems to emphasis my jaw and forehead even more. 


I am shocking at taking selfies and have no idea what my 'best angle' is. Like many many other people I have on occasion completed the Fat Mum Slim photo-a-day challenge. In January I had remarked to my sister how much I hated pictures of myself and was useless at selfies, so I decided to set myself a little challenge in the January edition of FMS Photo-a-day. I would put myself in each of the photos somehow and try and learn to love what I look like and embrace the selfie.


Here are some from the month:

yep...not really a fan

I know that age old saying, 'you must love yourself before anyone else can love you', and while I know that I am a kind, loving and caring person on the inside, it is the outside that is seen and judged, more often than not incorrectly, first.


I have worked hard over the years to improve my appearance and grow more comfortable in my skin and try and accept what I have been dealt, some days are great and some are not so great. It's a work in progress....


After a month of selfies I really wasn't feeling the love for the FAD thing and with everything else going on in February I decided to take a break. But this month I am back with a vengeance (hopefully!) as I am in Cambodia for pretty much the whole month and hope to give you a glimpse of my life here during that day whilst following the prompts of the challenge. Be sure and follow me on Instagram to check out all my pics!

What about you? Love or loathe pictures of yourself?

How do you cope when the voice in your head takes over?

Linking up with Kirsty from My Home Truths for I must confess and Alicia from One Mother Hen for Open Slather

for what makes me most happy

For me, this week's confession was a no brainer really, especially given my current location.

When I first read the prompt my immediate response, which is usually the best, was

I am most happy when..... travelling.

The obligatory out the window/clouds/sky shot from the plane

Travelling means, exploring new places, meeting new people, discovering hidden treasure, experiencing different cultures. What's not to love? 

Downtown Bangkok

But it's not just international travel that I love. I have lived and taught in numerous places all over Queensland, and with that means that I have friends and family all over the place, so travel can sometimes mean that, waiting for me at my destination are the people I love.

On the road to visit my bestie!

However, travelling can also be a time when I feel at my loneliest . I know, I know!! How could I possibly say that, right?? 

Travelling alone means long stretches of time, well.... alone. 

Long stretches of time with no one to talk to and nothing to do but listen to the thoughts in your own head which are often blocked by 'life noise'. 

I know that there are people who think that I'm 'lucky' to be able to bugger off overseas for weeks at a time and that I should be grateful to not be tied down to responsibilities back home, and for the most part I am. 

But being able to do that means there is a big part of my life missing that I have always dreamt of having and its probably when I'm travelling that I feel that hole the most. 

There are also the things you miss while you're away, and no I don't mean episodes of Home and Away (although if someone could let me know how Brax gets himself outta this one I'd be grateful!!! Lol).. While I am away I know I will be gaining and learning so much, but back home birthdays will be had, milestones will be met, events will be attended that I should be at, but I know all those people will be there when I do return. 

So as I lay in my sleeper on a train somewhere between Bangkok and Chiang Mai watching the sunrise feeling so very blessed and happy to be able to live this experience, there is also that hint of sadness. I know life is a juggling act and so often we all want what we haven't got, and I am so guilty of being one of those people. I am making a promise to myself to try and get out of that! 

But then, as the saying goes, life wasn't meant to be easy and I will enjoy this time while it lasts!

What's the first thing you think of when you hear, "I feel happy when...."

Would love to hear your responses below! 

Linking up late (time difference and lack of wifi!) with Kirsty at My Home Truths and Alicia at One Mother Hen.


PS...I'm also pretty happy when a one hour pedicure with a meticulous Thai man only costs me about $8!!

for my first trip to Thailand and Cambodia!

This time next week I will be in Bangkok!

This Friday I fly out for my first trip of the year.

Over the past few weeks I have been asked time and time again how I am feeling about my trip....

I must confess it goes something like this...

I find it one of those bizarre questions, like I am not sure what they think I am going to answer. Of course I am excited! Who isn't when heading off overseas on a trip to a country they have never been before.

But there are other emotions that go along with that as well.

My first stop is Thailand, I have never been but everyone who has, has told me how much they loved it, which makes me even more excited. I arrive in Bangkok the day before my tour begins so I have time to myself to explore the city. 

After doing one in Vietnam last year and enjoying it so much, I am doing another Intrepid tour that goes for 10 days starting and finishing in Bangkok and travelling through Chiang Mai, H'mong Lodge, Sukhothai, and Kanchanaburi/River Kwai. People say that I am brave for heading off overseas by myself but I almost always do a tour of some description as I am not quite brave enough to head off and explore on my own! I still like to have other people around me and the knowledge of the local guides. 

When Kelly Exeter shared this picture on her Facebook page last week it really resonated with me and I just had to share it!

After the tour I have a few nights to myself in Phuket before heading to Cambodia to start my volunteer project. This is where most of the nervousness and anxiety comes in. Naturally the first question people ask is about what I am doing whilst in Cambodia....and the answer is....

This is my very serious "I don't know face!"

I have requested to be placed in a Childcare position but there are no guarantees. My booklet tells me that my placement will not be known until I arrive in Cambodia to ensure that all volunteers who are starting at the same time as I am are placed in the most suitable placements and where there is the most need at the time. Once I arrive I will meet with local staff in Phnom Penh and they will have drawn up a potential placement for me which we will discuss and go from there. 

All accommodation and meals are part of the volunteer fee that I have paid and my booklet tells me that is it simple and basic and that I can expect to share a room with one or two other volunteers and that there will be running water and electricity and in most cases there will be a TV and internet access.

Each day I will work from 8am until approximately 5pm with a 2 hour lunch break in the middle! Weekends are free for me to do what I like and so I am looking forward to exploring the other areas of Cambodia. 

My placement lasts for 4 weeks and then I have a few nights of luxury booked at Singapore on my way home!

So whilst I am nervous, anxious and a little scared the main emotion that I am feeling about going is excited. I am excited to be heading off to explore new countries, experience new cultures and things, I am excited to be pushed out of my comfort zone and learn more about myself and help others along the way. 

I look forward to using this blog as a means to share this journey with you.

Linking up with Kirsty at My Home Truths for I Must Confess and Alicia at One Mother Hen for Open Slather!

(PS...apologies for my absences....I have moved over to a custom domain and had a few little hiccups along the way which meant my blog went down for a few days! I am SO useless at all this techy stuff!! I plan on making up for it with a vengeance this week before I go!)

Have you been to Thailand or Cambodia? Any travel tips for me?

What's a question you are asked repeatedly that puzzles you?

Stay tuned for updates of my adventure!

to reveal my plans

A friend messaged me the other day asking about my plans for next year or did she have to wait until my blog post.

It was then I realized it has probably seemed like some big state secret that I was withholding! Not intentional I promise.

To share where I am going I will show you what I have been reading lately, which is the confession prompt this Monday over at My Home Truths.

First I have been reading this.....

My online course Travel Blog Success. It was something I joined up to some months ago but it has taken a bit of a back seat but I have logged on again this past week. I am still a little unsure of what my blogging goals are and if this is even the direction I want to take. The more I read the more I realize I am a little out of my league and exactly how much I don't know what I am doing! However, I'll continue to plod my way through and see what transpires.

I've also been reading this....

My tour itinerary.

My first trip I am heading back to South East Asia. As mentioned, I had such a great time in Vietnam in September and it confirmed for me that SE Asia is definitely somewhere I want to explore more and any hesitations I had in travelling there were slightly unwarranted.

First stop is Thailand where I am doing another Intrepid tour starting and ending in Bangkok. Following that I will be chilling in Phuket for a few nights.

Then I'll be heading to Cambodia for a month and need to make sure I'm up to speed on everything in this....

Volunteering overseas is something that has been on my bucket list for some time now and after hours of trawling the internet and asking people for advice I finally settled on Cambodia and registered with International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ). I have a 4 week placement in Cambodia and while I am not sure of all the exact details as yet I have requested to work in Child Care. I will know more in the coming weeks. I will confess to being a little nervous about what conditions I will be working and living in, but I am excited about the experience and what it will bring for me.

I am not sure in hindsight and time will tell if it was a good idea or not, but I fly out of Brisbane on Friday the 13th February and am totally on the countdown.

Someone recently commented that I was very "planned" for my trip and wasn't leaving much room for chance and possibilities. That's really not me. I like to have as much planned and paid for before I leave home, I think I just feel safer and reassured somehow if I know exactly what I'm doing and where I'm going. Perhaps that may change, we'll have to wait and see.

What sort of traveller are you? 

Fly by the seat of your pants or organised Annie?

Linking up with My Home Truths and One Mother Hen! Check 'em out!

for a new backpack

My without a doubt bargain buy in this years Boxing Day sales was my new wheelie backpack and packing cells from Kathmandu!

I was fortunate enough to get a $100 gift voucher to use at Kathmandu from some lovely people at work and went looking for some new luggage to get me through my adventures this year. I had been doing some research and had decided that I wanted to invest in a backpack on wheels. I am not a big backpack person and hundreds, probably thousands, of dollars being spent at the Chiropractor and on remedial massages seems like such a waste to then go put a heavy arse backpack on it but I do like the convenience of them if need be. So a backpack on wheels seems like the perfect compromise, and this one was a bargain.

Prior to the sales I had written off the Kathmandu ones due to the expense, but with the voucher, some money from my Grandmother and an awesome sale I got exactly what I wanted.

70 Litres of spacious wheelie backpack heaven

It did also have an optional day pack that can be attached to it, however I already have another small pack that I use as my day pack so I decided against it at this point.

While I was there, and given how good the sale was I decided to invest in some packing cells. Lots of people swear by them these days but I never saw the fuss. During my last trip to Vietnam I used suction packing bags and they were great, especially because I did my fair share of shopping there!

Time will tell how good these are.



New packing cells


In the bottom left hand side is a cotton sleeping bag liner. Sometimes when travelling, beds and linen can be lacking and/or questionable, so a tip I picked up from another traveller is to invest in a sleeping bag liner that you can slide into if such a need arises....eek..

So how much were all my bargains and how much did I save?

The sleeping bag liner was 60% off making it just $23.99. There was a deal on the packing cells, any 3 for $25, which was a bargain as the large one is usually $29.98 on it's own. The backpack was the biggest bargain down from $499.98 to just $224.98!

All up I purchased $709.84 worth of goodies for just $298.97, so with the voucher and other money I had received, my out of pocket expense was quite minimal! A bargain indeed I would say!!

Can't wait to put all of this to good use very soon! Stand by in the coming weeks as I reveal where I am wheelie backpacking to first and whether my new bargain backpack is up to the challenge!

I have just had a quick look at it seems the massive Kathmandu sale is still happening so if you are in the market for any camping, outdoor or travel gear be sure and check it out!

Linking up with Kirsty at My Home Truths where you can read more about bargain Boxing Day buys, and Alicia from One Mother Hen for Open Slather.

for my word for 2015

A few years ago I went to a psychic, actually I've been to a few over the years, and while I take what they say with a big fat grain of salt, something this one said in particular has stuck with me and has been replaying in my head as I contemplated my word for 2015.

She told me I was too nice, she said that I put others before myself too much and that I let people take advantage of me. She said that I was the type of person that if I had an apple and 10 of my friends complained they were hungry, that I would cut the apple into 10 pieces to share with all my friends and not leave any for myself. She said I was the type of person that went to movies I didn't want to see and shops I didn't want to go to because I wasn't the type of person to push what I wanted..... I didn't really think much of it at the time, just kind of shrugged it off thinking that she could have really been describing anyone...I mean isn't that what most people did, that's my personality.

But lately it's got me thinking and as I move towards a year of discovering who I am and what I really want from and for my life I have decided that this year my word is:

enough

For a long time I thought the word was going to me ME as this year is really all about me and doing what I want but something in the last 24 hours has changed that and I have settled on enough.

I think it's more this saying that the actually word in isolation that has struck a cord with me. This saying is what I need to remember. I am going to stop focusing on my flaws and focus on my strengths because I am enough. I am going to stop wasting money on trivial things because I have enough and I am going to stop doing everything that I am asked to do and do the things I want to do because I do enough.

So while it may sound a little selfish I am going to focus more on me and less on pleasing others or doing what others think I should do, or what I think others think I should do (does that make sense!). I am not going to do this to the detriment of my personality or my friendships, I am not going to change who I am, just shift my thoughts and my focus a little.

So NO you cannot have my apple and NO I am not going to see that dodgy movie that I don't want to see just because you asked me to!!! 

2015 is MY year!

Linking up with My Home Truths, One Mother Hen and Maxabella Loves

**I must confess that my 2014 goals and word didn't quite come to fruition like I had hoped it would in 2014 but if you want to read about it you can do so here **



to review 2014

This week at My Home Truths we are sharing our favourites post from 2014. I thought I would take this opportunity to do a bit of a recap of my year by sharing my top 5 posts of the year. These posts happened to be 5 highlighting events of the year as well as my most popular posts of the year. So in no particular order really here goes.

5. Sharing my secret
A few weeks ago I confessed that I had a secret and last time I linked up with Kirsty I revealed that secret and a slight weight lifted off my shoulders. I was super excited about the positive feedback and encouragement I got from my blogging friends and if you commented then I truly thank you for your support. I think reality hasn't set in just yet and it will be some time before it does, but I am nervous and anxious and excited about times ahead all at the same time! (if you don't know what I am talking about then you'll have to click the link above to find out!)

4. Trip to Vietnam
Without a doubt an absolute highlight of my year was my trip to Vietnam during the September school holidays. Not only did I met some truly awesome people, I also ate something I never thought that I would, and just got totally absorbed by the whole country. They are truly lovely and amazing people who live very simple lives with such gusto! I still feel like I have so many stories and photos to share with you from that trip! The trip was also a precursor for what I want to next year and it certainly confirmed my decisions!

This made me smile and feel like a Queen in Vietnam!



3. ProBlogger
Again another highlight of the year in a very overwhelming kind of way! Prior to January 2013 blogging was something I never really gave a second thought to, let alone knew there was a whole conference attended by 100's of people dedicated to the cause! It really was a nerve racking, eye opening, overwhelming, awesome experience.

Janet from Middle Aged Mama, Marleisa from This is Who I am.. and I catching up over lunch at ProBlogger!

2. A to Z Challenge
I was crazy enough to sign up for the A to Z Challenge in April, where every day for the month (with the exception of Sunday) you blogged about something to do with the corresponding letter of the alphabet. A lot of people chose a theme in an attempt to make it "easier". I chose to blog about me and my life as a teacher. The link will take you to my wrap up post at the end of the challenge. So if you are new around here and want to know more about little ol' me, that's bound to answer pretty much all of your questions!

 

 

1. Remembering Kathy
This was both one of the hardest posts I've ever written and also my most read post of all time. On the anniversary of her passing I shared my recollections of the days prior and post losing my beautiful sister Kathy to cancer back in 2006.



2014 has been another year where goals seemed to go unmet and it would be easy for me to be a bit doom and gloom about all of that, but the beauty of blogging is that you do have a record of all that you have done so it's been good to look back and see what has happened and what I have achieved. I am not sad to see the end of this year though, I am definitely ready to move on to bigger and better things and excited about what 2015 has is store for me! I look forward to sharing the journey with you!

Linking up this 2014 wrap up with Kirsty from My Home Truths and Alicia from One Mother Hen.