Before leaving Melbourne to go home for my holidays, my family and I decided to see what we could do in Melbourne whilst they were here. Luckily, much to their surprise and enjoyment, Rippon Lea a historic mansion in Elsternwick, was holding an costume exhibit of one of my mums and aunts favourite movies. The Dressmaker.

The exhibition itself was a showcase of the wonderfully crafted costumes worn by the actors in the movie itself, placed within the magnificent halls of the Rippon Lea mansion.

The historic halls of Rippon Lea became the breathtaking backdrop to the costumes. Adding in a certain elegance to the whole experience. As we wondered around the exhibition not only did we take in the well designed costumes, but also the architecture of the insides of the manor.

Once we had wound our way through the entire exhibit, we ventured out into the gardens that surround the house. Seeing what marvels we could come across. 

The grounds themselves hold many wonderful bits and pieces and can be explored in your own time. Along with the mansion you can also find a Fernery, Lookout tower, a Lake, Tennis Courts, a Heritage orchard and a grotto under a waterfall, along with several other interesting places that can be explored.

We wondered around the groups at our own pace and marvelled at the little things that we managed to come across on our wander.

                    

It was like some magical wonderland, almost as if time froze once you stepped into the gates. The wonders of the grounds really made me feel at peace. Like I could almost comfortably get lost wondering around and not worry to much. 

It was a much needed relaxing day, in which I am glad that I got to spend it with my family.

xx Kat

We got fish.

Since moving into an apartment together my housemate E and I have been jokingly talking about getting ourselves some fish. Since we both come from households with pets, and we aren't allowed anything like cats and dogs where we live.

So today after months of semi-joking we bought ourselves a little flock of goldfish.

Let me introduce to you the newest members of the household. Tamaki, Buffy, Ragnar and Kevin Owens.

Officially happy to finally have some form of pet back in my life.

xx Kat

Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful mum's out there. I hope you all had fantastic days.

I, for the third year in a row, was unlucky and didn't get to spend it with my wonderful mother. Seeing as we live in different parts of the country. But I wanted to write a little appreciation post.

My beautiful mother when she was around my age.

I adore you to the moon and back and love you more than words can describe.

Thank you for always being there for me not matter what and putting up with me, even though sometimes I am the worst.

I wouldn't be who I am today without you and wouldn't be the person I am without you. And I can't think of anyone better that I would have wanted to learn all those things from.

We have had so many great moments and I am truly thankful for having you in my life.

I miss you and can't wait for when I get home in a few weeks time so that I can see you.

xxx Kat

The future is...

One question that I get asked way to often is what I plan on doing after uni. And in all honesty I don't really know. I know that some people have a set plan on how they are going to do things once they graduate. But I have never really been one of those people.

But I think that it's okay not to know what you are going to do after uni or after school.

It's a big thing to ask of a person. Almost like once we finish high school or university, we have to decide on the spot.

So once again I don't know what my future holds.

And that is hella scary.

But I know that I will figure it out along the way. Which doesn't really sound like a solid plan, but it's what I personally am comfortable with. Which is strange considering I hate change. And the unknown. But I know that I will be able to do whatever it is with a certain level of nervous excitement.

Does that scare the crap out of me? Of course it does. It always will.

But I know that I will find my rightful path, whatever it may end up being. 

And I know that once I am there I will be happy and content.

Just know that not everyone knows what they want to do with their life. Most of us are just fumbling through, trying to make a life that we feel is good, for ourselves. 

Never loose that fear of the unknown, especially when it come to the future, because it is what will drive you to achieve what you want.

xx Kat

May inspiration board.

Welcome to the small list of things that are making me happy and inspired in the month of May

1. Study and hard work. I have a ton of uni work to do, and working hard towards finishing my final year of uni is in full swing.

2. Star Wars: The Force Awakens. I was practically brought up on Star Wars and so the recent release of the newest one has me pumped for what is to come.

3. Polka dots. I just have something for this pattern at the moment.

4. Outdoor adventures. All the hard work and studying has made me crave being outdoors and exploring.

5. Getting cosy with tea. With the winter months coming up, I'm all too ready to snuggle up and get comfy.

6. Sweater weather. Once again winter is headed my way and I can't wait to pull out all my knitted sweaters and wear them 24/7.

xx Kat

Sometimes I wish life would just slow down.

Welcome to one of possibly many late night ramble posts from me this month. This going to be a stream of consciousness type of thing.

Right now I haven't had anytime today to plan a post, what with being sick and the mountain of uni work that constantly sits in the corner, nagging at me that it needs to be finished.

So this is what leads me to today ramble. How I wish that time would slow down.

I almost feel like there isn't enough hours in the day for me to finish all of the work that I have planned for the day. Like the list magically grows, without me adding anything to it. I feel like time just flies by, and then I realise that I have only put a tiny dent in any to-do list.

If time could slow down I would be able to enjoy the small moments and appreciate the little things. I would be able to finish any work I have to a satisfactory level and not have to stress out about running out of time.

If time could slow down I would be able to get over this flu, without making it worse by not resting and constantly being on the go.

I currently have no time to rest, and yet procrastination is my best form of avoiding any work I have to complete. Like time and my mind are battling for my sanity and the part of me that doesn't want to do any work at all is winning. Slowly.

Life is just a series of moments, and those moments slip away faster that you sometimes wish.

So that was just one late night ramble thought that has been on my mind lately.

Whilst blogging is currently a form of procrastination, it's not one I'm mad about.

xx Kat

Birthdays.

The milestone of every year that represents us getting one year older than we were. 

Today was mine.

Now I must admit, now that I am older I don't quite get excited about it like I did when I was a kid. I find that other people are more excited about it than I am personally, but I wouldn't be able to tell you why that is. Maybe the thought of growing up just frightens me, and I wish that I could be like Peter Pan and the lost boys, and never grow up.

That's not to say that I am truly appreciative of the people who made my day better and filled it with the extra sunshine that one deserves on their special day.

To my family for cheering me up all day and singing happy birthday to me on the phone multiple times.

To my roommate who went out of her way to make me and ice cream cake, of which she is the first person (Outside of my family) to ever make me a cake.

To the girls I work with back home for sending me pictures of the dogs from work with their messages, it cheered me up and made me feel a little bit homesick.

And to everyone who went out of their way to say Happy Birthday, I'm not sure I deserve it from some of you, but thank you anyway.

I hope you all had a wonderful Monday, and that someone puts that little bit of sunshine into your day, like you all deserve.

xx Kat 

Easter long weekend

I hope everyone had a great easter, and for those who don't celebrate just a great weekend in general. I had the pleasure of celebrating easter with my roommate, at her family farm. 

It was strange for me. This is the first time in my 22 years of life that I haven't spent the easter weekend with my own family. But the year heading back to Sydney just seemed like an inconvenience as it's rather early on in the semester and such.

I got to do something that I haven't yet done here in Melbourne, which was catch the train to get to her place. Coming from Sydney I am more accustom to catching trains, but here in Melbourne the trams make travelling so much easier, in my opinion.

 I spent the weekend offline, away from the internet and out of reception mostly. In the fresh air and away from the city. 

I also had the joy of cuddling a puppy for the weekend, something I miss doing since I'm not at home and away from work.

I hope you all had good Easters.

xx Kat

Week 1, Year 3: The Final Year

Over the past two years I have written a blog post about my first week at uni for the year. And this year is no different. Minus the fact that this one is running a little late after an absolutely crazy week, of just crazy things. I have finally had the time to sit down and write about the first week of my final year!!

This uni year started out differently than the last two.

For starters I have moved off campus and into a small apartment with one of my close friends. This meant that I didn't need to be down here a week earlier than most, because I only had one o'week to participate in, instead of two.

This meant that my first week was more relaxed and was filled more with getting the things I needed for the year ahead (like a bed), instead of games and parties. Which if I am being honest, I didn't miss at all.

I got to sleep in and watch movies and laze about, for a week, before getting thrown into the deep end of being a third year student.

I found out that living off campus is just as fun as living on campus. Only it's quieter and more peaceful. Which are two things that I don't mind at all.

I hope those of you who have started uni recently are having a blast.

xx Kat

Just a small update.

It has been a while I know. I have many excuses that I could make for my being away, but the reality is I was just out living life, working and enjoying my holidays.

Now the summer is almost over and I am heading back to uni, for my last year. I will be doing things and having fun. I will be trying hard to complete my work and finally finish my studies. 

So here is a little update just to get us started again.

I have spent the summer months working away. It is practically all I did on my holidays, which is kind of what I wanted to do, and on my days off all I did was sleep and be lazy. I got to spend my days with dogs and animals, just being comfortable and at peace with life.

I took chances in life and did things that I had wanted to do for a while, like dyeing my hair. 

I spent time with people who made me happy and made friends with new people.

It has just been a pleasant summer. 

I hope everyone is well. And I hope to see you all soon.

xx Kat

It's a new year.

Holy crap, it's a new year. I can hardly believe that 2015 has ended and 2016 has begun. I know I am a little slow on the new years post, but I just needed to get myself to sit down and write this out. 

In a way I am glad that 2015 is over. It means that all the bad things that happened last year can be washed away and all the good times can be remember fondly. Its also a time for change and to begin being a new person, to better myself. 

So in the idea of changing for a new year, and bettering oneself, I thought I would share some of my goals for the new year with you all.

1. Read more new books

2. Say YES to more opportunities

3. Write more/blog more

4. Learn to enjoy life for the little things and appreciate them

5. Be more creative in everything I do

6. Make healthier life choices for myself

7. See more of the world

8. Try something new every week

9. Learn new and interesting things

10. Be positive

Hopefully I will be able to stick to these and make life more enjoyable and fun for myself as the year goes on.

This year is a rather important one for me. It is my last year of university (yikes) and that means that I need to get myself organised and figure out what I am going to do with myself when I leave the comfort of university. Creating and finding opportunities for myself and my future. Which is an idea that scares me more than I sometimes would like to admit.

I also plan on making some changes here, and I know thats not the first time I have said that, but this time I plan on keeping that promise. I have a couple of regular post ideas that I would like to start doing monthly and sometimes even more often than that. Things that I want to be able to keep up and continue on as the months go by. In the aim of furthering this blog a little.

I want to be able to share  more exciting things with you guys this year, and getting myself more out there. 

I hope you guys are ready for what lies ahead, and I hope that the year that lies ahead of us, is an exciting one at that.

xx Kat