Twenty Wishes - Progress Report

At the end of December I jumped on the Blog band wagon and made a list of Twenty Wishes I would like to achieve along with taking my life back.

Here is my progress report so far:

1. Fall in Love - Still waiting on this to happen
2. Buy a nice fitting blazer - Have not looked yet
3. Buy a cool pair of Converse DONE! and I am loving them. Ok they are Levis, but its the look I liked and I wear them so much!
4. Go overseas I am going to Japan in April for work and working on my holiday in September to visit Zurich and Croatia. Exchange rates pushing air tickets up, but I am hoping they will reduce a bit
5. Read a great book - The Perks of Being a Wallflower perhaps
6. Watch a classic movie - I have never watched Mary Poppins, Sound of Music etc
7. Cook/bake more
8. Do another wine tasting trip in the Cape
9. Drink more water
10. Go to a live concert - if it was One Direction, my life would be made
11. Get my weight below 70kg - then lose a further 5kgs
12. Work towards a better toned stomach
13. Get rid of the people in my life who drain me I am getting along on this one very well
14. Buy a dining room table  DONE! Now I need chairs....
15. Go on a photography course
16. Have a wall full of frames with my photographs from all my trips etc 
17. Work less - Not getting this one right, but trying
18. Be a happier person - If I can get the above right, I will be happier
19. Do something totally spontaneous
20. Manage my budget more diligently - being a homeowner means I need to be alot more careful

Join us and let us know what your wishes are for this year


 

The Dining Room Dilemma

I have always dreamt about the day I would have my own dining room.
For somebody who hates cooking; I love to entertain.
I like making the table pretty and adding a cute little favour by the person's plate. I love adding atmosphere with carefully placed candles and soft music.

Decor for my dining room was all picked out (in my head) - Dramatic & Modern: -
Simple, black table with clean lines - Richly upholstered chairs in an opulent material such as velvet or a heavily patterned material.
Dark purple curtains and wrought iron candle sticks.

Until I walked past a store and fell in love with a wooden table made of exquisite Emboia wood. I bought it on the spot. (So much for my black, clean-lined table)

My entire design scheme is out the window and now I have to decide on what I want. I am a Gemini and for this very reason, I find that I always like 2 totally different designs.
My dilemma comes in finding the right dining room chairs on a budget. (Who knew it was so darn difficult to find the right chair)
I wish I were able to buy a chair a month, but the problem is, 6 months done the line, they might not have stock and then I will be stuck!
And I would really love to have a house warming party in my new place and have somewhere for the guests to sit!

I love the patterned high-back chair for a more romantic, formal look, and I like the lower chair for a slightly more contemporary style. (My lounge is contemporary & I might like to have a contrast and not the same design style throughout my house)
The upholstered look of chairs and I have Scotchguard at the ready to treat the chairs as soon as I get them.
I realise that wooden chairs are so much easier to clean, but I really do not find them comfortable and a cushion on top slips and slides.

Options:

4 of these...

... and 2 of these?

6 of these?

6 of these?

I feel Pretty....

Or should I say ... I feel sexy

All it takes is for a person to stroke my hair, tickle my ear, kiss me gently and I am putty in their hands.

The wild kisses and hot sex are just an added bonus!

Floored in Five

Coming back from 2 days off from work, it felt like I had been off for 10... 98 emails - each requiring a further 3-4 emails to get them resolved - added to my tree-destroying To Do List and I'm desperately hanging onto my sanity.

I have an appointment to sign my papers for the house on Friday and I got to choose my wooden flooring today. Except I had 5 minutes to choose because my boss called an unexpected meeting ( he had a very serious face so I couldn't dispute it)

I've been oscillating between darkish flooring and light flooring- and being Gemini -both appeal to me!

Having 5 minutes to decide forced me to go with my gut. The choice of carpet and tiles really aren't nice and if I don't change the flooring now, it will become a project I'll keep wanting to do, but never get around to doing because I would never have the time/money/all the above.

Due to financial constraints and thanks to an inside connection, I will be replacing the flooring in my bedroom downstairs and in my loft/tv room upstairs at a very reasonable price.

Perhaps it will sink in soon. It still doesn't feel real!

Hit the Ground Running

I knew that 2013 easy not going to be any quieter than last year, but boy have I sped into it like the bus without brakes in Speed (am I giving my true age away? )

January galloped past at an amazing rate and my year ahead looks to be promising much excitement.

Highlights from January:
Work sales conference. Resulting in a back and neck spasm, but I got to visit the chiropractor for a "back massage" (how's that for a positive spin in things- haha! :-)

Was invited to my first Burger Night over at Claudz and Richy.

Met 2 new people. One guy with a very dry sense of humour and fast wit- I liked him instantly.

Beginning of Feb:
Began planning in ernest for my friends baby shower in March and managed to buy all the favours and get them made!

Had my folks over for a visit, subjected them enjoyed watching some One Direction videos with them. Cooked 2 dishes all by myself- a chicken pie and Bread and Butter pudding. Yum!

Here is what my calendar still holds:

Feb: another foray into the world of speed dating.
A Long weekend to the Pilansberg mountains.
Friends birthday party
Hosting Bookclub
My nephews second birthday

March: week away at Mount Sheba near Hazyview. A holiday we have spoken about for ages.
Friends baby shower
Moving into my new place

April: a trip to Japan! And I am going in springtime which means I get to see the beautiful cherry blossoms.

I'll be away an awful lot which means my work will pile up, but I've already proven last year that no matter if you work until 10pm, the work is never done.

I said 2013 was going to be about me, and that's what I'm going to do!