In Spaces Between

2012. Oh, what a year. The biggest and most transformative 12 months of my life, without a doubt.

The first part of the year can be summed up as B.U.S.Y. Turning the wedding around in five months – and trying to ‘do it all’ – was a little nuts and quite often I found I was thriving on adrenalin and gotta-get-it-done-ness rather than good, natural energy.

The obvious lesson for me here was that I needed to learn to ask for help - sooner. Got it. 

After the wedding, everything began to flow beautifully and opportunities started showing up all over the place. I learnt to deeply trust my intuition and measure all my decisions up against how a situation makes me feel. I turned down one promising gig because I knew I wouldn’t be able to give it the attention it required, but more importantly, because it would take me further away from my other dreams and desires.

I’ve never regretted it. This was just one instance of gut-knowing in 2012.

It’s been a year of enormous growth, new friendships, plenty of aha! moments, milestones, tears, laughter, dreams come true and pure, juicy love. Below are some of the stand out moments…

Bloggers Meet Up

 

January kicked off with a bang with a Gold Coast/ Brisbane bloggers meet up at Stingray bar. Nothing better than getting out from behind the computer and meeting the amazing ladies you’ve been conversing with online in “real life.”

Sydney

 

February was soon upon us and Ramai and I headed down to Sydney and had an awesome weekend exploring the Northern Beaches (the first time we’d checked out Manly, Avalon, Palm Beach et al and we shall be back!)

Read all about it:

+ A Sydney Weekend

Melbourne

 

I also flew to Melbourne for my best friend’s birthday and my first wedding dress fitting (!!) The above pics were all I snapped – clearly I was too busy enjoying myself to whip the camera out.

Alexander Wang Goodness

 

 

The other notable occasion in Feb? Becoming a proud mama to this gorgeous Alexander Wang creation, a shoulder-breaking hunk of a bag that hasn’t left my side since.

Astro Reading

 

March rolled around quickly and became one of my favourite months of the year.

First up was an eye-opening, energy-filled astrology reading with Tali Edut of AstroStyle, and having recently listened to the recording again I can tell you that everything we discussed has unfolded exactly the way Tali said it would (she even said “I could see you doing something like Marie Forleo’s B-School,” which I’d completely forgotten about, AND GUESS WHAT, I DID!)

Read all about it:

+ Making Me Happy 

Engagement Photo Shoot

 

Not long after my reading, we met up with our wedding photographer Ali Mitton for our engagement shoot in Byron Bay – a fun day with lots of laughing, kissing and staring deeply into each other’s eyes (haha!)

Sweet observation: Ramai always seems to be on my left – coincidentally, my “weaker” side – which is rather symbolic of our relationship. He really is my perfect complement – the fine detail to my big picture thinking, the calm to my enthusiasm, the left to my right.

Read all about it:

+ Our Engagement Photos

Hens Party

 

And then it was all about the laydees for my hens weekend – the best freaking two days ever!

I got to play stylist (any excuse). We belly laughed… uncontrollably. We danced. We drank mojitos from mason jars. We revelled in the depth of our collective friendships, and when I woke up on the Sunday morning, my heart, well it overfloweth with love, so it did.

Read all about it:

+ Making Me Happy: The Hens Party Edition

Selfish for 27 Days Featured Guest

 

In April, I was a featured guest in Susana Frioni’s Selfish for 27 days, speaking about the ways I manage overwhelm through positive reinforcement, visualisation and a bunch of other positive tactics.

The rest of the month zoomed by in a blur, knee deep in wedding to-do’s.

Read all about it:

+ 6 Weeks Today: The Wedding Countdown is On

+ Behind the Scenes with a Bride-to-Be: 5 Weeks to Go 

Wedding Dress = Ready + Invisalign = Off!

 

May entailed flying to Melbourne to pick up my wedding dress (tears!), more wedding organisation, and after 12 months of everyday wear, getting my Invisalign off. Big grins all round.

Read all about it:

+ Behind the Scenes with a Bride-to-Be: Under 3 Weeks to Go

Guest Blogger on The Wellness Warrior

 

I was also invited to be a guest blogger for one of my favourite sites The Wellness Warrior.

Marrying the Man of My Dreams

 

The most magical day of my life happened this year – June 2, the day I married my best friend and soulmate, surrounded by the most important people in our lives.

I was never in a big rush to get hitched as Ramai and I have always “felt” married, but I have to say, sitting here with my husband six months in, it does feel different… in the best possible way. I couldn’t be more in love with this beautiful soul.

Read all about it:

+ R + R Get Married (Part 1)

+ R + R Get Married: The Ceremony (Part 2)

+ R + R Get Married: The Reception (Part 3) 

+ R + R Get Married: Party Time (Part 4) 

+ R + R Get Married: The Details (Part 5)  

B-School

 

Two days after our wedding I started Marie Forleo’s B-School, an eight week online business/ entrepreneurship course that, with absolutely-no-hyperbole-at-all, has changed my life.

I knew B-School would give me the push I needed to steer my ship in a new direction, but at the time, I wasn’t entirely sure when that would happen or how it would all unfold. I now know.

I started coaching with Susana who was my ‘accountability coach’ for several months and along the way, I’ve formed gorgeous friendships with inspiring (and aspiring) biz women in the B-School Facebook group. Again, total game-changer. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

+ Pop the champers, In Spaces Between also turned 1 in June (hooray!)

Hotel Weekend

 

Oh hi July.

First up was a relaxing winter weekend at QT Hotel, where we ate, drank delicious cocktails and I drifted off to heavenly place during a spa treatment at spaQ. Yum.

Read all about it:

+ A QT Weekend

The Village Markets Bloggers Breakfast

 

Later that month I joined a bunch of gorgeous Gold Coast/Brisbane bloggers (Lori from Eight. Ten. Ten; Jas from Fizzle Out; Liss from Daydream Lily; Ally from Unknown Pleasures; Jess from Konstantinos; Sammi from Chase Dakota; Sophie from Peppa Hart Bride; Carly from Mumma Electric) and our hosts, Marissa and Sarah from The Village Markets for a chilled out morning of eating, chatting, wandering and shopping.

Pretty much the perfect Sunday morning, no?

eBook

 

In August I released my first eBook, More Magic All the Time: 20 Ways to Create Your Best Life Ever which has found its way to the hands of 3000 peeps in the past four months.

I also created, with the help of Sian (who designed the eBook as well) a downloadable daily planner to help us all hone in on the most important stuff every day. Practicing gratitude is, of course, front and centre.

Both are yours for free so if you haven’t already got your copies:

+ Grab my eBook

+ Download the Make Magic Daily Planner

The Lifestyle Transformation Guide Featured Guest

 

Jess invited me to talk passion, balance, overwhelm and everything in between on video for her revolutionary wellness program, The Lifestyle Transformation Guide, which hit the interwebz in September.

Thrilled and honoured to have been part of such an incredible – and important – offering.

Read all about it: 

+ The Lifestyle Transformation Guide

Another Wedding

 

In September, I also got an insight into what it’s like to style someone else’s wedding (well, the putting-it-all-together part anyway, the overall look had already been created by Judi from Little Gray Station).

Read all about it:

+ Making Me Happy 

Cosmo Bride

 

Ahh October, the month our Big Day was featured in Cosmo Bride magazine!

Such a beautiful keepsake (for when we’re old and grey and our grandkids ask “What’s a magazine?”)

Problogger

 

I went back to Melbourne in October for the Problogger event, where I had a ball meeting a bunch of wonderful bloggy – and B-School – babes (and catching up with the gals I already know). I also met Sarah Wilson (stunning, smart as hell) and Chris Guillebeau (beyond lovely).

Read all about it:

+ Problogger Event 2012: The Full Wrap Up (Pt 1) 

+ Problogger Event 2012: The Full Wrap Up (Pt 2) 

Interviews

 

2012 was a big year for interviews (I’ve lost count but let’s just say there were many – which is awesome, because I love being interviewed!) but one of the highlights was popping up on Betty Means Business in October, a killer site run by a fellow B-Schooler.

Read all about it:

+ Making Me Happy {direct link to interview here}

Friendship

 

2012: The Year of Ze Woman. Or should that be, The Year of Soul-Rocking, Heart-Warming, Effing Excellent Friendships?

Either way, it’s been all about strong bonds and feminine power in my world this year. From special moments with my best friends, to deepening new friendships online and at my now-former job, I’ve often marvelled at how lucky I am to know so many ass-kicking, dream-chasing, wild-horses-wouldn’t-hold-me-back kinda women.

Connecting, collaborating and making a commitment to cheer each other on always is so, so powerful. Dear Universe, more of that in 2013 please!

Turning 30 + A Mini Break in Byron

 

Birthday month! November is always an exciting month for me and this year was no exception, particularly because this birthday was a special one – the Big 3-0.

On the brink of 30, everyone started telling me how your thirties are the best years, how you just “know” things that you previously would have doubted and how you care less about what others think and more about what feels right for you… and I have to say, it’s true! Turning 30 was a noticeable leap forward for me.

To celebrate me shimmying into a new decade, Ramai took me away on a holiday to a gorgeous beach house in Broken Head in Byron Bay for five days, and my nearest and dearest came down for a day ‘n’ night of good food, cocktails and dancing. Perfection.

Read all about it:

+ Thirty 

Kinesiology

 

I started seeing a kinesiologist (Anita Crosbie) in November which was definitely the catalyst for what happens next in my 2012 story.

From the first treatment, I learnt how out of harmony my energy was, where stress was impacting my body and the limiting beliefs that were keeping me in my comfort zone and away from living a completely aligned life.

Anita said “Things usually start happening pretty quickly after kinesiology” and ain’t that the truth, sista?! I was initially working towards leaving my full-time job sometime around May 2013, but a month after my first kinesy sesh I stepped into my boss’ office and handed him my resignation letter after 4.5 years with the company.

It was time.

Quitting My Full-Time Job + Starting a Business!

 

Which brings me to this point. Let me tell you about a week that will always stand out as one of those “defining weeks” in my life.

We’d come home from my Byron birthday festivities on the Monday and I went straight to my second kinesiology sesh. Jacked up on delicious energy, I raced home for my first coaching call with Julie Parker – who I’m thrilled will now be mentoring me on a longer-term basis – and by the end of the call I knew that I would be leaving my job before the year was out. It would be an extraordinary end to an extraordinary year and would allow me to regroup over the break and start 2013 fresh and with a new direction.

Julie said “There will never be a perfect time” and I tucked that truth in my pocket, spun it around in my head a few hundred times, and on the Wednesday, included a few lines in my newsletter to let you all know that I was taking “expressions of interest” for bright sparks wanting to work with me on a one-on-one basis.

By Friday, I had 30 clients locked and loaded, the majority for one and three month packages. Ta dah! A coaching biz was born!

I resigned the following Monday and the last few weeks have been a big ol’ swirl of action and ideas for a massive 2013. I’ve never felt so sure of anything and know that this is just the beginning of a thrilling ride.

And finally, 2012 had a whole lot of this…

 

Running, op shopping/ decanter collecting, green goodness, healthy treats, crafting, Burleigh love, 11:11, guidance, neon and succulents.

Thank you so much for your love and support and for being an integral part of the In Spaces Between community (and hey, kudos for making it to the end of this EPIC post!) 

2013: we will, we will ROCK YOU. We’ve got this.

Poster: Work is Not a Job

A little peek at our gorgeous mini-holiday in Broken Head, Byron Bay and the fun and frivolity of my big THREE-OH celebrations.

Five hours at Gaia Retreat & Spa, beach swims and headland walks, dancing a-plenty, sunshine and special memories to last a lifetime. What more could a girl ask for?

What an awesome weekend!

A week or so ago, I was asked by QT Hotel Gold Coast to come along and test out the new spaQ, which is rather funny considering I’ve spent the past few years on the other side of the fence organising visits just like these for media.

I’ve been to QT’s Stingray Lounge on a few occasions (you might remember I had my birthday there last year and we hosted the Gold Coast/ Brisbane bloggers meet-up there in January) and have gorged myself silly dined at their ridiculously awesome restaurant Bazaar, but hadn’t yet checked out the refurbed rooms or the new spa – both of which I spent some time in over the past two days.

Let’s talk through the visuals, shall we?

After we checked in last night (homemade lemonade delivered to our room + welcome macarons = major boxes being ticked already!) we ducked down to Stingray for a quick drink before heading next door for dinner at the  property’s Japanese restaurant, Yamagen.

Hello cute husband, how do you do?

Yamagen is one of those restaurants that has been around forever, but for some reason, I always seem to forget about when planning a night out so it was a no brainer that while we were staying just upstairs, we’d be checking it out. Japanese is ALWAYS a winner in my books.

Yamagen’s a la carte menu had all the usual favourites like agedashi tofu (to-die-for!), edamame, teriyaki beef skewers, tempura vegetables, sashimi, sushi and hearty mains like Wagyu beef. For those wanting something a bit more interactive, you can sit at the Teppanyaki bar and have your meal cooked in front of you, but since it was just the two of us and we were keen to chill out and be pretty inconspicuous, we ordered most of what I’ve mentioned above (except the sashimi/ sushi/ Wagyu) straight from the menu.

Seriously delicious. In fact – and I almost feel bad saying this – we have a little favourite Japanese restaurant down the road from our house that does an amazing agedashi tofu, and we both looked at each other last night and said “This one’s better, isn’t it?”

Shhh.

After dinner, we headed back in to Stingray for a sneaky mojito and a spot of people-watching, before heading back to the room because OF COURSE, THE FOOTBALL WAS ON.

Say hello to our Saturday nights during the AFL season. Yes, really.

(amazing stripes everywhere)

TODAY

 

As usual, we woke up early this morning and were greeted with a stunning – if not blinding – view out to the beach. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – winter is one of the best times to be on the GC.

I’ve thought what I’m about to say through and I realise it’s a huge call, but the bed at QT was the most comfortable bed I’ve ever slept in. Hands down. And I don’t say that lightly - I’ve stayed at several Sofitel hotels in my time and they are renowned for their comfy beds, but the one I woke up in this morning was far superior… and of course, I now have a severe case of bed-envy.

Note to self: find out where to get our very own cloud of awesomeness, asap!

Before our breakfast at Bazaar, I went a bit nuts taking photos of all the rad decor and graphic elements in the room for future decorating projects.

View from the lift area. 

As far as breakfast goes, I’ll let the photos do the talking (just know that there was more food. So much more).

And what did I eat? Nutella on toast, this incredible potato bake, creamy mushrooms, aaaaand…. one of pretty much everything in the place. Yep.

STOP. PAMPER TIME!

 

Later today the really fun part arrived – a visit to spaQ, where I was booked in for a oh-my-god-how-divine-was-that?! facial. Not sure if that’s the official name of the package, but that’s certainly what I was thinking when I floated out the door in my robe and slippers an hour later!

The bathroom. If you can’t already tell, yellow features heavily at QT. Fresh, sunny, happy. GLORIOUS.

The procedure:

After filling out my details on arrival, I was shown around the spa and taken to the bathroom to get changed into my robe and slippers, before heading to the ‘chill-out’ room shown in the last image above.

The chill out room is designed with just that in mind, so you’re encouraged to grab a cup of tea or a glass of water and lay back and read a mag (I judge venues on the quality of the stash, and can assure you it was top shelf).

Not long after, my lovely therapist Lily came and collected me and it was time for a peppermint foot soak/ exfoliation so we could chat about what treatment I wanted and what I hoped to get out of it. All sounding amazing by this point, as you can tell. I’ve got super tight muscles all through my back and shoulders at the moment and was keen to relax and unwind so I went for a hydrating facial. What ensued was an hour of pure, unadulterated bliss, and for the first time ever, I almost fell asleep during my treatment.

What I loved:

+ All the products are natural and custom-blended for your individual requirements – for example, Lily used a deeper exfoliating product on a small patch on my forehead and around my chin to really “get right in there.” The products are all also made with active plant extracts, which means they smell absolutely beautiful and do what they need to do, gently.

+ The rooms are really light and airy – a nice alternative to your standard spa – and if the overdone “trickling waterfall sounds” CD drives you a bit bonkers like it does me, you’ll be pleased to know the tunes are as funky and fresh as the decor. Hooray!

So that was our “mini-cation” – a genuinely fun and relaxing weekend, just up the road from home.

Have you ever been to QT?