Cherry Blossom Adventures

Yesterday I had the most amazing day (until about 8pm but that is a different story for a different time)- Since I had the day off work I slept in until 8am, got up & had some breakfast before spending half an hour on the computer checking emails and blogs. It was so nice not to have to rush off anywhere.

I got up, dressed in some comfy hooping clothes before heading down the road to “Got A Go” a boutique my mum`s friends have owned and run for years. I get most of my wardobe there and have done since I was about 14 or 15- it is an expensive place to shop though so I tend to buy only really good (read: expensive and usually above my budget) one of a kind type pieces or cheap simple pieces for work. Since we are nearing the end of the season more than half the store was 50% off so I went a little nuts….. Plus with my birthday coming up I also put a couple of pieces out back for mum & ad to get me! I came home with two dresses, some tights, a pair of pants, a singlet top and a cardigan! I did well- and the best thing was that most of the clothes were a size down than I would usually wear and the shop was quite busy (due to the sale) despite it being a Friday morning and many people who I know in passing actually commented on how much weight I had lost which frankly made me feel fantastic. I wore one of the dresses (plus some new shoes- forgot about them) out to dinner tonight with Shun (we went for Japanese- at a place called Sono at Porstide- fantastic if you live in Brisbane!)

I headed up to Southbank with my hoops in the car (my new clothes in a bag on the floor) and I arrived nearly 2 hours before I had to meet D for some hooping but it was okay because I found a delicious little tea shop where I could sit and read and write and wait until 1pm, the designated time I was to meet up with Deanne. The tea was amazing and since I have cut down on coffee so much (have had 2 in the last 10 days!!) and switched to herbal tea (mainly green tea or rasberry & hibiscus  is another favourite) the little tea shop was a great find.

I met up with D at 1pm as expected, enjoyed a fruit smoothie to replenish and refresh before starting on the hooping. It was technically a lesson as D is a qualified hoop dance teacher and all I can really do with my hula hoop is spin around and around. Oh it was so fantastic, I learnt so many new tricks some which I caught on to fairly quick others I will have to practice more by myself over the coming weeks. D is an amazing teacher and her love of hooping is evident in all she does…

Here are some pictures from our day out in the sun at Southbank hooping away…

Thanks D, I had a great time!!! Can`t wait to hoop with you again back in Tokyo!

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Tomorrow I am meeting up with Deanne from Sushizume. I knew D before she was a hooping dance goddess and before she started Tokyomade with her boy Masao. In fact I met D on her 30th birthday but we had been blogging friends for almost a year before that…

Last year, around this time in fact (March 2008) I met up with D and Leila for some hooping in Yoyogi park! I had read about her hooping adventures and wanted to join in and this was before she left teaching and became a hoop dance instructor. I have not hooped with D since then because I moved out to Chiba soon after and then back to Australia but tomorrow that will change because tomorrow we are meeting up for a major hooping session ( I took the day off work- was so excited to see D & go hooping that I knew I wouldn`t be able to concentrate on work if I went in even just for the morning.

I loved it , hooping I mean, (although I was terrible) when I tried last March and I bought some hoops when I got back to Australia and have gradually gotten a little better with time. I can keep the hoop up at least but I am ready to take hoop dance to a new level and get out there and bust some moves (so to speak!). I haven`t hooped with friends in awhile but soon after I got back to Australia I did meet up with Jen, Jac & Jey for some hooping at Southbank but it has been a long time!!!

I thought I would post some photos of me hooping last March and then again in June/July because since then I have lost almost 10kg (just under! Weighed in tonight and lost 1.5kg this week!) and when I take photos tomorrow I will see if  you can tell (I see pics of myself from last May & June and I can`t tell the difference between now and then but who knows…)

March- Double Chin- Yuck!

Oh wow, I think this one is worse than the first yet I was lighter.

Just a couple of weeks earlier- I look thinner perhaps?! Could be the 80`s wedding dress though!

I am so excited!!! I can`t wait to see D, Catch up & hoop up a storm! More stories will follow I am sure!

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On Saturday night my friend Dani celebrated her 24th birthday in style with a 80s themed party complete with blue eyeshadow, Wizz Fizz, Care Bears cakes, bad hair and fashion, Culture Club & MacGayver (Remember him?)- you can not get much more 80`s than that!

Oh and by the way my no drinking for January went out the window however I am now alcohol free til my birthday I would say which is mid Feb (and hey I lasted til 24th!!)  I may have gone a bit overboard and I am really really really hoping it hasn`t jeopardized my chance of a weight loss this week.

It was such a fun night with me wearing my mum`s wedding dress (She married my dad in 83), coral eye shadow and taking my hoops (more 50`s and then 90`s but hey!). Shun was not much into the dress-up idea however he claimed his new haircut to be 80s (very true with his curls!) and donned a red eye mask to go as Raphael from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We through about having him go as The Karate Kid but I could not find any plain white material to make his head peice from- so red it was!!!

Dani played the perfect host as Rainbow Brite. Dani and a Cyndi Lauper look alike (Alana) below.

There was of course plenty of bad 80s fashion

And a Michael Jackson look alike as well as a pacman couple!

We got into the hooping groove later on in the night. Spreading the hoop love is a must at any party!

And lets not forget some MacGayver love!

We had a great night!!! I was a little worse for wear on Sunday though…

More photos from the night can be found here

In other news the hairdresser got a bit of a shock when he cut Shun`s hair despite me telling him it was naturally curly. The more he cut off the more he realized what I was saying was true. He had never cut curly asian hair he said- I think he got a kick out of it. I like Shun`s hair short (he usually has it chemically straightened!) and curly (okay more fuzzy now than anything but still) but he hates it. He is counting the days til he can get it straightened again in Japan- I swear he spends more time and money on his hair than me!!!

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• ..thinking about how I have fallen off the weight-loss, eat well and exercise wagon- But I hope to hop back on this week. And apart from all the chocolate (and pizza last weekend) I haven`t actually been eating too badly. I didn`t go to weight watchers meeting on Thursday night and the week before I put on 100g- I am pretty sure I have put on more than that since then. I have stopped walking though and I need to get back into that- might have to meet up with mum after work and go walking with her. We can`t take Abbey on long walks yet otherwise I would take her with me- we do try to take her out for 15 minutes each day.
• …going hooping in Southbank tomorrow- so yay there is some exercise.
• …excited because our friend had her baby- a healthy little girl who so far has no name but I have seen pictures and she is adorable. We will be sending the package on Monday! When Shun found out his friend had been there for the birth he was surprised. This is a conversation I have had with him before telling him that he MUST be there when I have kids and it has freaked him out cos he doesn`t like hospitals or blood or needles or anything like that and I told him that if he wasn`t there then I would hold the baby in with my hands until he came into the room and his response was “maji de? sore ga dekiru no?” (Means “really, you can do that?”)- this has lead me to become slightly worried about what Shumpei actually think happens during the birthing process!
• …thinking about applying for a job where I am currently working even though I know I don`t have the skills to get the job I have been encouraged to apply because it would mean they could keep my resume on file for up to 12 months. But since it is government job it would mean having to do a lot of selection criteria etc etc and I am not sure if I want to spend my Sunday doing that. The current temp assignment is until September 12th with possibility of been extended.
• …thinking about what I should do for my Q is for in the encyclopedia of me- I had an idea and i scrapped it so am thinking of opening up the floor to all you dear readers, and let you ask me any questions you want and have a Q is for Q & A…I have done this before but hey, if you have any more questions then you can let me know either in the comments or via email.
• …aware that I haven`t done a July update for 101 things in 1001 days even though I have a couple of things to cross off the list. I will try to get to it this week!!!
• …also aware that I have not thanked all of you for your comments on the last post explaining the in and on to me regarding transport- Shumpei read the comments and now understands. Next time he has a question I told him to post it on my blog and let you all give him the answers so I don`t have to. He starts school on Monday though so hopefully he will be able to ask his teachers too. He is very nervous about starting school for two reasons- one he has to do a test and two he thinks he might be a lot older than everyone else. I doubt it, I am guessing the average age is about 25 and he is only 2 years older than that. I told him he should try to make friends but he is really shy so not sure how he will go- Hopefully he will be fine. I already told him I would make him a bento to take with him!
• …a little bit worried that when I go back to Japan things won`t be the same (within my group of friends etc there)- I was speaking to Cat the other day cos she rang me and it was so good to talk to her. I miss them so much and I miss Japan too- I recently saw pictures of them at the beach and it was so sad cos usually I would be there with them! I can`t wait to see them again!
• …thinking it may be time for bed! Goodnight!

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I am inspired to do more. I have so many things on my to do list and so many things I know I need to do yet I don`t really seem to be getting to any of them….I believe I am in what some call a “rut”! I have spent the last couple of hours surfing around on blogs I read and looking up stuff and I realized that I need to take action- I need to get motivated.

My friend Mandy wrote “Have thought that perhaps instead of making so many to-do lists and planning, I should actually just take action and practice what I preach.” and continued on to write things she was working on for her 101 things in 1001 days list and she has already marked ONE OFF in just a day and I realized I need to be more like that! Jen had a rough couple of days and had to make a couple of hard decisions but she has bounced back and written about what she is going to do with her life and her plans sound so amazing (and yes I am jealous!) and again it made me realize that I too can achieve what I want to do! Deanne at Suzhizume (who has moved to a new location-update your links and reader all!)  is one of the people that inspired Jen and she is definitely worth a mention because she is such a fun loving, awesome, down to earth person (Who I have had the pleasure of meeting quite a few times- she is the one that inspired me to get some hula hoops!) who decided what she loved and is doing it and while I haven`t quite figured out what it is I love so much that I want to do I figure crossing some stuff off my to do list etc is going to help me head in the right direction!! She is such an inspiration! Another inspirational girl is Gala Darling, oh how I heart thee! This lady got up and went to New York and now has decided she wants to live there and is making her dream into a real possibility. If you have never read gala`s site then you simply must start now because it is fantastic stuff and I am so jealous (yet again!) of all the stuff she does- and she always does it so eloquently! She is a great writer, and I totally wish I could be more like her! And she used to do weekly resolutions which is what this post is actually all about!

I journal, and sometimes, after reading about them at Gala`s site ages ago, I write my own weekly resolutions in my journal and I realize that it is time to bring this back into my life- and sure it is another list but I do love lists and they do help keep me motivated! So here goes, here is my weekly resolutions for this week!

- hoop at least 10 minutes everyday

- track the food I eat in my little weight watchers book and do at least 4 walks!

- blog another 2 times

- Contact wedding celebrants (at least 2) and set up meetings for sometime in the next couple of weeks!

-Study Japanese for 3 hours!

-  and since it is nearly midnight I am going to think about this last one and make a decision on it by Monday! Or perhaps one of you might have an idea of something you think I should try and acheive this week in my weekly resolutions!

Thank you to all my bloggy friends out there- some of you I have met in real life and others I have yet to have the pleasure but the joy I get from following your adventures and reading your comments, advice and inspirational writing makes my day! I only mentioned a couple of you who have inspired me in the post but trust me, it is not only those I mentioned! My goals for the week might not seem like much but to me they are important and I promise I will try really hard to acheive them all!

Hugs to all, xoxoxo

Ps: All is going well with Shun- he is also inspiring me of late because he is trying so hard with his English already and it makes me realize how slack I have been with my Japanese study hence the mention in my weekly resolutions! Oh and in other news we picked up Abbey today and she is just adorable- Shun and I played with her all afternoon and it was delightful!!! And while writing this blog post- it was interupted by a howling little dog….but I went down to see her and she is doing ok now- I think she just woke up and forgot where she was for a minute!

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I think I am ready to start blogging again…I can`t promise it will be regular but Dad is out of the hospital and I am getting settled into my life back here. I think I was a little overwhelmed at first with all that was going on…coming back to Australia has been a huge transition for me and not having Shumpei around has also made things a little lonely. Even though I have family and friends here I had been relying on a completely different set of people in Tokyo and when I got back here I had to try and adjust.

Work is going well, still temping for UQ as student coordinator for medical students and I am really enjoying it. I have applied for a permanent position but they know I will only be here until next June so I am not sure if I will get it although it would be nice if I did. If I don`t though I am not too worried because I will just go temp somewhere else once this role is finished.

Shumpei has finally set a date to arrive and he will be here on July 12th, a little less than 4 weeks to go. He is getting very excited I think because he will be finishing up work at the end of next week and then will be able to relax for and get ready for 2 weeks before he comes.

In other news I have booked a photographer for our wedding. I am going with Sylvie from http://www.papillonstudio.com.au/ who was recomended by somebody at work. She was the first photographer I met with and I had an instant connection with her (so did my mum) and while I had planned to meet with other photographers (I had a list of those to contact!) I decided on meeting her that I didn`t need to. She really is lovely and I can tell she will do a great job of taking beautiful photos on our wedding day. She is local to the south side of Brisbane and has actually done weddings at Shangri-la before (where we are having our wedding) and taken photos down near the manly bay which is exactley what Shun and I wanted to have our extra shots done. So she is perfect! Next step is to find a celebrant and to book cars…..Then I might start looking at dresses!!!!

I did join Weight Watchers almost four weeks ago now. In my first two weeks I lose 2.3 kilos and then lost track a little and didn`t go last week cos I was at a doctors appointment with Dad but I am trying to get back on track this week with the walking and watching what I eat. I will go back this Thursday and while I don`t think I will have lost due to the last not so great 10 days but hopefully I won`t have put on either. I think since returning to Australia almost five weeks ago I have lost about 3 kilos altogether though so it isn`t going so bad. Hopefully once i get back on track with excersise and eating better and tracking what I eat then the weight will start to come off again.

I also ordered two hoola hoops the other day online from here and they should arrive sometime soon I hope! I think they get sent out of Sydney? So I can`t wait to get them and start doing some hooping!!!

I caught up with my friend Clarie (she is also one of my bridesmaids) while she was in town this last week which has been great. I hadn`t seen her since I was home at Christmas and she is now living in Mt Isa so I do not get to see her as much as I would like even though I am now back in Brisbane…..trust her to move away as I am moving back! I did some much needed shopping with her over the weekend and we caught up and had a look at some possible bridesmaids dresses! Having bridesmaids in three different countries is going to be a challenge!

I also saw the Sex and the City movie with my brothers girlfriend Gem (Who turns 21 tomorrow the darling thing!) and it was awesome. Definitely worth seeing even if you weren`t a Sex and the City addict!!!

Well I think that is enough of an update for now but I just want to say thanks to those who commented on my last post and also those who sent me personal emails or facebook messages. I am sorry If I did not respond to you all but it did mean a lot. It is nice to know that I had a lot of people thinking of me and sending good vibes to my dad. While he has awhile to go yet he is improving a lot and will hopefully go well.

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Last weekend on Saturday it was a beautiful beautiful day. I would say it was probably over 20 degrees also which was nice for a change…I went to Shinjuku Gyoen, took off my shoes and hooped for a couple of hours with Deanne and Leila in the perfect Tokyo sunshine!!!

It was my first time hooping (well since I was like 5) and I had so much fun. I was terrible at it, but it didn`t matter because I enjoyed it so much!!! My stomach muscles ached for days after…..but I can not wait to do it again. Thinking of buying myself a hoop once I am back in Australia!!! Both Deanne and Leila are super good at it and it was great to watch them do their moves….I hope one day to just be able to keep the hoop up and spinning for more than a minute! I think when we do hanami in a couple of weeks that I will have another chance to give hooping ago if Deanne can bring some extra hoops! Yay, I can`t wait….and here are some photos from the day! Please don`t laugh at me!

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