keeping the dream alive... may photo a day

As I am sure you know by know, I have been playing along with Chantelle from Fat Mum Slim's photo a day challenge since January. I am really proud to say that I am still going strong, and if anything, I am enjoying it more and more. I share my photos daily on the smartphone app instagram, and there is this amazing little community out there playing along too. I have met all these interesting people from all around the world, and Australia just from sharing my photo a day. I think it is a bit like having modern day pen pals.

day 1 peace | day 2 skyline | day 3 something you wore today

This is what happens when I ask my husband for advice...
me: the theme today is peace, what should I do?
mr g: we've got loads of peas in the freezer (pause for anticipated laughter, caused by hilarious wit)
me: (actually laughing) that's funny, I'm totally doing that.
mr g: (falls over in shock that I thought his joke was funny enough to use)

Adelaide city skyline from the perspective of Chesser Street, standing right outside the Intrinsic front door. It is a beautiful old lane way overshadowed by old warehouses and new office buildings and covered with a canopy of vines.

At the hairdressers on day 3 with a head full of foil and feeling super excited to get my wooly head sorted out.

day 4 fun | day 5 bird 

Day 4 was a Friday so that could only mean one thing. Drinks with my sister. I think Roxy was a little to keen for Friday fun and was waiting a the car door with a big fat glass of wine, like all good friends should.

You would think in a garden so full of trees that I would be able to find a bird to photograph! I heard plenty. I'm pretty sure they were mocking me. In the end this was the best I could come up with. An out of focus magpie and a koala's butt. Even the koala was mocking me.

day 6 you | day 7 someone that inspires you 

On day six I went to a ladies lunch raising money for Variety club at the Adelaide Wine Centre. A friend is in the Mad Max team and asked if my sister would put together a table. It finished up being a brilliant group of girls, all different and all fabulous. I feel really lucky to have so many wonderful women in my life.  These two lovely ladies are both friends I have made since having children and are both very special to me.

Following the theme of beautiful people. As you may know I work for Intrinsic. Intrinsic is owned by Adèle and Jamie Basheer. Adèle writes all the inspirational messages that appear on all our products. Her journey is an inspiration.

day 8 a smell you adore | day 9 something you do everyday 

I didn't quite read day eight's theme properly. I thought it was favourite smell. I had cleverly planned to have dinner cooking in the slow cooker and to brag about my cleverness as I walked into the house to the delicious smell of dinner already cooked. Then I read the list again. A smell you ADORE. I think adore is a pretty strong word, and I am not sure that my casserole in the slow cooker is really quite right for it. But I had nothing else.

Everyday I drink my coffee. Then I pick it up just wishing there was just a little more left. As a side note to drinking coffee and this cup being a takeaway cup. I have made a commitment to myself to not buy coffee in a paper cup. I have been spending too much money on coffee and it has to stop. I am still allowed coffee in glass or ceramic, so that means that if I have bought a coffee I am drinking it in a cafe. That's my rule.

day 10 a favourite word | day 11 kitchen | day 12 something that makes you happy

I was feeling very lucky to go to another fundraising lunch on day ten. This time it was the Crows Foundation raising money for Heartkids. I went to work for the morning and when we arrived I was excited to find out that it was champagne o'clock, my favourite word. It was another brilliant function and again I enjoyed spending time with and some people I know and love, and also meeting some new friends. My highlight was hearing Lisa Wilkinson speak. She was the best speaker I have ever heard. She has an awesome story and told it so well. My sister has a giant girl crush on Lisa and was in awe for the whole time. Lisa spoke for way longer than she was supposed to, so she finished speaking and had to leave immediately to get to the airport on time. I grabbed my sister and her phone and we ran to cut her off at the exit. I garbled something about massive fan and photo please. And Lisa was gracious enough to have her photo taken with Roxy, who almost passed out from happiness.

When I was thinking about happiness on day 12 I looked at the flowers that Roxy (unnecessarily) bought me to say thank you, and my heart just filled with happiness thinking about how that little thing I did, that cost me nothing, and was really quite easy, made her so happy.

Oh yeah, day 11 my kitchen. By careful use of cropping and camera angles, my kitchen actually looks tidy, and it also highlights my two favourite features. The view and the coffee machine,

day 13 mum

Perfect theme for Mother's Day. I am lucky to still have my kind and caring mum live close enough for me to see her when I want. (Although it would be nice to be a little closer to see her more often) I am also lucky to have a gorgeous caring daughter and an awesome loving step-son. On Mother's Day I was counting my blessings. That is for sure. It can be a really, really, tough day. I was spoilt with a treasure hunt planned by miss m to find my present. Then, with a little guidance from mr g, she made me pancakes. The boy arrived home with a bunch of flowers for me and a bunch for my mum. He scored so many brownie points with that! We then went up to Mum and Dad's for lunch, along with my sister and her family. My choice for day 13's photo is my mum with the grandkids.

day 14 grass | day 15 love | day 16 what you're reading | day 17 snack

Oops. Forgot to take a photo of grass today. Remembered at 8:00pm. Asked the Instagram community if we could call it moody and atmospheric, instead of oh crap it's 8:00pm and I haven't taken a photo of grass yet. They were very supportive.

This was the little poem that miss m wrote me to test out the notepaper she gave me for Mother's Day. It is really beautiful and made me teary. Then she added a little extra to the back. Turns out I had to pay 50c if I wanted it!

I had been reading a book of slow cooker recipes, trying to find some different things to try, instead of the usual casseroles.

I almost always have raw nuts to snack on at work

day 18 something you made | day 19 a favourite place | day 20 something you can't live without

I made the decision. I would do the Barossa half-marathon again. You can read all about it here.

After yet another busy Saturday I made it to Victor Harbour to spend the night camping with a really great group of adults and kids. I was so happy to finally sit my self down in front of the campfire with a glass of bubbles. Relaxing with friends is always a favourite place to be. The physical location doesn't really matter.

We were so lucky with the weather and mother nature blessed our bleary heads with the most beautiful sunrise the next morning. We can not live without sunlight, so it seemed like an easy solution for day 20.

day 21 where you stand | day 22 pink | day 23 technology

I know I could have actually made a statement about something meaningful. But it was Monday morning, I was standing at the bus stop. It just seemed easy.

So much pink to choose from. I looked around the room and saw the girls sweat bands sitting in the kitchen. I loved that the Manchester United store had so much girl stuff. And so did miss m.

My technology at work. I love my mac and wacom tablet. They make me so happy at work. A cup of tea also helps.

day 24 something new | day 25 unusual | day 26 12 o'clock

A lovely stack of new books from the library on day 24. I love the library, it's so (nerdishly) cool to be able to choose a massive stack of books that look interesting and not have to put any back because it will be too expensive.

Oh so very unusual on day 25 to have a deliciously empty diary to sit myself down with my new books and a cup of coffee and try to understand how I can make my blog look the way I want it to. I still don't understand yet. But I did have a lovely day.

At 12:00 on day 26 I was walking past Mary Martin's thinking about the lovely coffee I would soon be enjoying.

day 27 sweet | day 28 the weather today | day 29 a number

Day 27 was half marathon day and crossing the finish line and taking off my shoes and socks was oh so very sweet.

I wrote about the beautiful weekend we had in my last post, so I won't bore you with it again. But  the weather was cool and cloudy, and perfect for checking out the wineries.

I put my sneakers back on again to play basketball on Tuesday night. I'm number 7. We lost. But I was pleased that I could play at all to be honest.

day 30 your personality | day 31 something beautiful 

This was a tricky one. To visually describe my personality. I decided rubber band, I think my best trait is that I can go with the flow and adapt to last minute plans. So I went with I am flexible. I also have a habit of overcommitting and not really judging how long things will take. I stretch too far. Sometimes I snap, just ask mr g. But I do always bounce back.

I was rushing off to a meeting at 6:00pm on day 31, and crossing my fingers for a beautiful sunset. We pulled over at our local CFS (country fire service) to take this beautiful shot of the sunsetting over Adelaide as the sparkly city lights were coming on. I think our CFS one of the best views in South Australia.

How has your month been. Are you still sticking to your New Year's Resolutions? Would you like to challenge me that your fire service has a better view? Have a great weekend

day 61-67 (march photo-a-day day 1-7)

In a burst of enthusiasm, tiredness and overwhelmedness (hmm spell check is telling me overwhelmedness is not a word, but I'm keeping it) and following from yesterday's theme of trying to get my act together and stop being so late and disorganised, I have written myself some little goals, and a bit of a schedule. Lets just say that I almost achieved it tonight. But the part I am achieving is that I am designating Wednesday to be the day I share my Fat Mum Slim March Photo-a-day pics with you. And here I am doing what I said I would. Unfortunately I need to type faster, because I told myself that screens have to go off at 10:00pm. So I have 10 minutes to finish. Eek this could finish up being a PB for typos!!

day 67 (March 7) - Something I wore

I got dressed really quickly this morning. I really wanted to get to school before the bell, but I had slept in a little, so was a bit behind from the start. After my shower a quick scan of my wardrobe saw this hanging, calling out to me and I said yes! It is an absolute favourite of mine. I love the colour and pattern and it does not need ironing or hand washing. It is comfy for cycling in and suits layering in winter.

day 66 (March 6) - 5pm

5pm should have been in the middle of Miss M's basketball game, but I was too distracted and excited to be thinking about photo challenges. Our school team has not won a game all season (the season started in term 4) The kids are so good about it and just keep on trying hard and having fun. But we know that they all really want to get a win (and let's be serious the parents probably want it more!!) So anyway for the first time we scored first and managed to stay in front for the whole game. And actually win!! This is Miss M's last game for this season. This photo is actually 5:20pm in the tree outside the stadium. Because why wouldn't you celebrate a win by climbing a tree?

day 65 (March 5) - a smile

A chilly smile. It was a little cold for swimming lessons, but for me, it was perfect for sitting by the pool watching and chatting to a friend.

day 64 (March 4) - bedside

I have discussed my bedroom before and nothing has changed, I really don't like it and I really need to prioritise a bedroom makeover into our budgeting and planning. In the meantime for the bedside theme, I looked down to my daggy fluffy slippers sitting on the ground. They were a Christmas gag gift. There was a funny story that went with the reason why they were given to me. But I have forgotten it! And as it turned out, I actually quite like these slippers.

day 63 (March 3) - my neighbourhood

We are very lucky to live in the beautiful Adelaide Hills. I love it. Except for the buses, or lack of buses. If you are travelling Monday to Friday during peak hours you are fine. But any other time forget about it. During the day the buses are one and a half to two hours apart and there are no evening or weekend services at all. On the plus side you will quite often spot a koala while you are waiting for the bus, and my husband has even seen kangaroos early in the morning.

day 62 (March 2) - fruit

I get my groceries delivered by the very lovely Banana Blue, a local online supermarket. I like the surprise of ordering a mixed fruit and veg box full of whatever is in season. It's not all local, but that's okay(ish) I do love seeing what we receive and the challenge of making sure that I use everything.

day 61 (March 1) - Up

Super excited that I have kept this going now for two months. I am so excited by the idea of having a photo for every day this year. My girl is sitting up the top of the steps posing for me, slightly annoyed because I made her stop watching TV for 2 minutes while I took this. It's a tough life. 

Although day 1 was kind of tough for her. We were back to the orthodontist and she had braces put on her bottom teeth (she already had them on the top ones). Getting braces on can be kind of uncomfortable, so I let her have the afternoon off school and we have a very fun shopping trip to the (now not so new) Zara at Burnside Village. I am not normally at the shops during the day anymore, and I had the disconcerting realisation, as I looked around at all the mums of babies, toddlers and preschoolers out shopping and having coffees, that I no longer have anything in common with them. My girl is now so completely past that stage, that the feeling of camaraderie, seeing mums juggling with dummies and nappie bags and baby wipes and sticky fingers that I used to experience was completely gone. On the plus side I now LOVE shopping with my daughter. She no longer runs away, she can be relied on to wander in a shop and browse with out wrecking stuff, and she will even give me advice on whether something A. looks good on me and B. is my style!

It's now 10:30, so I am half an hour behind my schedule. But that's not too bad. How is your year going? Have you kept on top of your goals or are they dropping away? What do you do to boost your goals when they start to slow down?

day 40 - front door (or feb day 9)

Our front door looks right through to the back of the house and out the back window. I am not sure what a Feng Shui expert would say about it. I suspect it explains why I never have any money. (Because that could not possibly be my fault!!)

day 30 & 31 (plus catch up from day 3 & 4)

Whoo hoo!! I did it!

I am so proud of myself for seeing through the January photo-a-day challenge. I have previously 'fessed up to my pinterest addiction, and this is the first time I have actually done one of the projects I have pinned onto my I could do this (maybe) board. So that's a pretty cool achievement for me.

I know that the idea that came first was project365, but I still can't remember where I first read about that. I am looking forward to kicking on with the February Challenge

If you are looking for a creative challenge you should play along too. My daughter is even inspired to play along. She has been posting some photos onto my instagram, but she has decided to use her DS to take the photos for Feb. (If we can work out how to get the photos off the DS, I might even share some of her creativity - any tips on photo extraction from a 3DS would be appreciated)

I'm thinking that for Feb I'll post a photo-a-day wrap up once a week, and, because life isn't busy enough I will attempt to try more projects from my I could do this (maybe) pinterest board.

So below are my final photos to wrap up January + the missing ones from day 3 and 4...

day 30 - nature

I was really hoping for a koala to photograph for day 30, but I could only find koala poo. That seemed kind of gross, so I decided to go with our gorgeous view over the Adelaide hills. Only problem is I really should have looked ahead to the Feb challenge, because tomorrow's challenge is your view today. I'm going to have to get creative.

day 31 - me, again

day 4 - letterbox

When I was out scouting for koalas, I remembered that one of the challenges I had missed was letterbox. Nice work me. Only one missing photo now.

day 3 - something I adore

I could have gone with someone from my family, but I'd really done enough of them, and our puppy (he's not really a puppy, he's actually nearly 12 and is really an old man now) hasn't had an appearance yet. And I really do adore him. When he isn't driving me nuts wanting to be let in and let out and in and out and in and out.......