New Years Resolutions For 2015...

Happy New Year everyone! I am feeling incredibly lucky to have had such an amazing Christmas, Birthday and New Year spent with my beautiful Australian family who have made me feel so welcome throughout 2014. I spent New Years Eve on a boat on the harbour in Sydney, an incredible way to spend my first Sydney New Year. We watched the 9pm fireworks with family, they were just spectacular. I was in bed just after 12 (wild, I know) and the whole evening couldn't have been more perfect. I love New Years resolutions and I feel like 2015 is going to be a big year for me as I settle into my Sydney life and look to the future. 

1. Make more time for Me. This one has to be the top of the list as it's something I really want to fix this year, I really struggle to take time off work and find it hard to relax. This year I would like to make more time to just relax and unwind, watch movies, read books or go on adventures and road trips. I also want to explore Australia and go to more concerts as these are things which I barely made time for last year. Life's  too short and I need to learn to say no and not to take on too much work and enjoy quality time spent with friends and family.

2. Eat Healthy, listen to my body. I'm really bad for eating whatever I want regardless of whether my body likes it or not. I have pretty bad digestive problems, and I really shouldn't be eating any wheat at all, but this year I've been awful and have just eaten everything and suffered the painful consequences. This year I would like to get used to eating only what my body can digest and hopefully feel healthier and happier in the process. 

3. Begin the process of becoming a Full-time Freelancer again. Whilst living in London I worked freelance as a Production Assistant for TV Commercials, but after relocating to Sydney 14 months ago I've been working in a cafe and nannying as temporary work. This year I am aiming to set up my own family portrait and wedding photography business in the hope that I can be working for myself within 2 years. I'm sure I'll keep you up to date on my progress on here and eventually I would like a separate but integrated blog where I can share all of my latest photographic work.

4. Stress Less. I really put a lot of pressure on myself on a daily basis and find myself stressing and worrying about little things and feeling so anxious I can't sleep at night sometimes. Robbie's relaxed nature has a really good affect on me and I need to continue to try to worry less as it really is a waste of time and just makes me feel rubbish.

5. Plan Our Wedding. I've never been the girl who's dreamed of their wedding day, in fact, if I were to have got engaged in the UK I expect I would have run away somewhere to have a low key ceremony. However as I live so far away from all my family in the UK, we would love to have a family wedding to bring all of our family together. We plan to get married over here with around 100 guests of friends and family, I will keep you guys posted on the plans as nothing is organised for our big day just yet. 

6. Explore Australia. Since my original plan of coming to Australia to travel and take photos was scuppered by meeting Robbie, which obviously I was pretty happy about, I would love to see more of Australia this year. We already have a weekend in the Blue Mountains booked next week, and a trip to Palm Beach this year, but I would love to visit Byron Bay, Hunter Valley and Melbourne this year too. 

7. Continue to Save Money. Although this year has been the best of my life and has been so exciting and positive, we have really worked hard to organise our finances and get saving. Now this was not easy at all with all the extra costs of applying for my visa, moving in together and visiting my family in the UK but we've done pretty well, so this  year should be a breeze (besides the huge cost of planning a wedding, but lets think positive!)

8. Continue to be Happy and Positive. The last year has been the happiest of my life so far, partly because I live in beautiful sunny Sydney's northern beaches where I've made lovely new friends and people are so relaxed and welcoming. And partly due to my mindset of being positive, trying to see the good in everything and being nice to everyone without comparing myself to anyone. I've been consistently happy for the last year and I hope to continue into 2015.