Literally Ladies - Part Two

Ladies I cannot believe another month has passed into this challenge (or at all, really) because it feels like I was just deciding whether I wanted to join the challenge or not just the other day and now... Well now... I've just about finished it! I can't believe I've read 10 well actually I've read more than 10 but I'm still finishing off 2 categories.. 

Also, slight disclaimer for this crappy set up. My laptop is acting up so I'm posting off my phone which means I can't share links to the link up or my previous posts until I get back on to it properly. But I am linking up with Kay, Kari and Kristen! 

So from where I was last time, I've read the following:

1. Paper Towns by John Green this may be swapped into my previous lists for the YA category but I haven't made my final decision.

Paper Towns was totally not what I expected it to be and tbh I was slightly disappointed. It felt as if I've read this story or watched this movie a million times. The geeky boy next door obsessed over the hot girl next door  who used to be friends and then there's a reconnection of some type etc... I found Quentin just downright annoying  with his obsession with Margo and I found I wasn't even rooting for him. I will though, of course go watch the movie because you know... FOMO! 

2. What Alice Forgot by Lianne Moraity... This book was boring me and surprising me simultaneously. Strange I know, but the thing that kept pulling me into it was thinking, "What would my life be like in 10 years time?" It's so odd to think at the natural progression and regression of some relationships and how we don't think anything in our lives will change and then it does. Coincidentally I didn't understand the whole level of how huge Gina's friendship was to Alice and how she could even take her "memories" as her own. I found it bizarre. 

3. Grey by EL James this was surprising too, I thought I would have somewhat enjoyed it because I enjoyed the 50 Shades series but for the most part I didn't! I'm sorry to all the 50 shades fans out there but seeing things through Christian's eyes didn't make me comfortable at all. 

So it seems like I haven't enjoyed my last few books but that isn't true I am truly enjoying them I think it's just because I'm reading so much that my level of expectations is so much higher. 

Also I will tell you I'm very close to finishing Where we belong by Emily Giffin and I am LOVING it! 

That being said, it's 20 minutes later, my laptop is still frozen (not good news) and I have to get back to work! Have an awesome weekend and tell me about your views on the books I've read... Or recommend something and make it good ;) 

Don't forget to check in with the other ladies doing the link up and I'll update this post soon with pics and links and buttons! 

X nats

You Probably Don't Know... {Link Up}

I've had a lot of news to share about what's been going on with me so I was super excited to share it today because I could meet some new readers and I could update my faithful readers all in one! So thanks Helene for forcing me to open up, it's about time!

For those of you who aren't familiar around here, I'll tell you, I'm South African but for those that are used to my surroundings, I wanted to share the big news... Well big to me anyway - I've moved to a brand new city. Durban, South Africa.

I'm still getting used to things around the city which explains part of why I'm not blogging regularly because I don't have a regular routine any longer... I have a new job, no; a new business venture which is going with the expected (and unexpected) teething problems. I've been house hunting for a while and it's a challenge and the biggest challenge is that Durban has always been my least favourite of the three big ones in South Africa but God has put me here and I'm ready to embrace it. 

I will blog more about it and my experiences of moving to a new city, finding friends/a boyfriend (which my family is all pushing me towards) and mostly finding myself. 

I hope you stick around to how how the changes happen.

Also, if you want to know more about my country, I've blogged about it on Amy's blog a few weeks ago but it's easier to send you there than to repeat it here. 

A few other random things you probably didn't know about me..

I'm an Aquarius (which is an air signbut everyone  thinks is a water sign) 

I am a huge soccer/ football fan whichever you care to call it.

I'm a pop culture junkie.

And Johnny Depp is 51, people - the sexiest 51 year old I've ever come to know! 

Remember to go check out the other bloggers sharing some of their stuff you probably didn't know... 

x Nats x 

"I'd Rather Die Out There Than Stay In Here Forever"

My intention was for this to be a movie review post, the movie of course for those who haven't watched it or read it is The Maze Runner I had planned it while I was sitting on the edge of my seat watching the movie and then the title's quote came up "I'd Rather Die Out There Than Stay In Here Forever" and it got me thinking... what would I really do?

Now I won't give the story line away because I know some of you may want to watch the movie at some stage but there's a point in the film which got me thinking... would I choose to live a life of contentment and mediocrity or would I be willing to die looking for adventure and passion.

I actually already know the answer to this one. You see, I have this person in my life whom I love dearly and I could easily decide to pursue a relationship with him and our lives would be so good and content but I also know myself. I know I would never be happy in the long run. Maybe I'm asking too much in life to be looking for a passionate relationship which excites me and challenges me but I guess that's my question to ask because it's my answer to live with.

I wish I could tell all of you that I want to just find someone and settle down but the truth is I want someone who is going to want to challenge my every choice in life, a love which consumes me which is also a little dangerous... (sound familiar?)

Either way, this wasn't supposed to be a post about love more about a post about whether you're an individual who would choose to stay in comfort or be willing to die looking for something more.

Oh so I watched the movie as I mentioned earlier and it had a similar feel to Divergent/Hunger Games. I didn't realise it was based on a book because if I had, I would have read it before watching the movie. Also ladies, Dylan O'Brien is worth checking out. He's like a cute nerd... and who doesn't like cute nerds?

What's the latest film you've watched?

Also, I'm linking up with Helene for my current favourite song of the week and it's easy and I hope you enjoy it!

What are you listening to this week?

Facts About Me { #Blogtober14 }

I've been wanting to link up again for Blogtober but been a bit lazy to actually work at the topic that's why today's topic is simple PLUS I need to redo my about page so this is me working some of those kinks out... 

* I am OCD

*I am an Aquarius and while I don't follow the whole star signs thing anymore I think it's interesting to know. 

* I believe in love at first sight

*I'm a qualified lawyer

*I'm obsessed with travelling and there's not a place in the world I wouldn't go to, just once. 

* My favourite place is Ireland. I've been twice and I know I will be returning many times over. 

* I love my horse. 

* I'm obsessed with soccer/football and my captain fantastic Steven Gerrard

*I'm a bibliophilia

* I have my person and I didn't always understand the relationship we have until Shonda Rhimes showed it to me!

* I'm basically a TV addict. 

* I like the Kardashians, especially Khloe. 

*I've been on a contiki trip and I recommend it to just about everyone

* I'm a nerd at times

Yes, I'm repeating last week's image.. I'm a bad blogger!

* I love different types of music especially country and folk which is only gaining popularity recently in South Africa

*I'm South African - this is the most surprising fact which I receive comments from other bloggers... yes we read blogs in SA.

* I'm in the middle of starting a new adventure but not ready to share the details but I'm so excited by it all. 
* The Script and One Republic both follow me on Twitter, so you should do the same!

So I sort of cheated by bringing a lot of my old posts into this one but these are all facts about me.. do we have anything in common??? Share in the comments!

And of course, I'm linking up with Helene and Tay so go check them out!

A Letter To Myself In 10 Years Time { #Blogtober14}

Dear Natalie

Congrats on finally realizing you didn't have to plan your entire life for it to be better than you could ever imagine. I knew you would be able to combine your different passions and make all your business ventures a success. Confectioner. Lawyer. Sports Management Guru and best of all, Published Author. When you reflect on the last 20 years, I hope you will remember how people who loved you and supported you despite not understanding your vision spurred you on.

You're a mother now of a few kids and who knows how many more but don't feel bad that you waited to have children, that you waited to marry your soul mate because as you know, the wait was so worth it!

Uptothemoon is old now but don't forget to visit her, she still loves you more than anyone else.

Your younger years were your building years and there's still some work to do but I think you should be happy that you're crossed off so many more countries off your bucket list.

Remember, although you have lost people over the last 10 years, time heals all wounds but your love for them will remain in your heart forever, cherish them.

Just like Crisitna told Meredith...

Yours sincerely,
Your Future Self

PS: I hope you've continued to work on not being so OCD!

PPS: Your 37 year old body rivals JLo in her 40s and that's a huge compliment!

Linking up with Helene and Taylor for Blogtober and Kathy for Humpday Confessions.

What would you tell your future self?

10 Things You'd Tell Yourself When You Started Blogging { #Blogtober14 }

While I would like to tell you I intended to join in Blogtober for the entire month I would be lying. I did link up on day one, you can read what I would do if I won the lottery here otherwise I've just been living my life, planning nights out which end earlier than the plan, going to whale festivals where the whales forgot to show up yip, that's what I've been up too. Oh, and baking... lots and lots of baking.

However today I wanted to link up again with Helene and Taylor for the "10 Things I Told Myself When I Started Blogging" and thought why not start off Monday with some reflections from the beginning.

Note: I was just about to hit "Publish" then checked Helene's blog and she had a post "10 Things I Wish I Told Myself When I Started Blogging" and thought I wrote about the wrong topic but I went over to Taylor's blog and I wasn't wrong.. so that made me feel much better. 

1. I would not blog everyday. I wasn't wrong because I have not managed to do the blog everyday, ever, I always miss a day or three. I knew that I would not want to blog every single day because I wanted to blog about things that I wanted to read so content is important. 

2. I'm blogging to get my thoughts out. I'm not blogging for money (while that would be great) it's not my profession - not for now.

3. I could stick with the default template. I was wrong, I needed to change it to something that would reflect more of my personality. 

4. I'm not in it for followers but I like building a community, one blogger friend at a time.

5. I'm going to be an anonymous blogger. Truth is, I really would have done this if I knew how to do it but then again I wouldn't have been able to be an actual "lifestyle blogger" because I would have been hiding my real lifestyle.

6. I'm going to just be myself, the point is for me to have a creative outlet.

7. I will never let my employers know who I am, two months ago I finally added my URL to my CV. 

8. I didn't need to custom design pictures for each blog post, probably because I didn't know how to do it. 

9. I wouldn't buy sponsorships not until I was sure to be getting a return on it. 

10. I would do a football or soccer post every so often because it is a huge part of my life. I did this for a while but then I realized that this wasn't the correct forum so I actually may start another blog, a female sports blog, sounds good doesn't it?

So, what did you tell yourself when you started blogging? Are those things still relevant to your blog?

If I Won The Lottery I'd... {#Blogtober14}

This is the kind of thing which highly unlikely to happen for one simple reason, I don't play the lottery. I've just never been able to get into risking my money, that being said, it's fun to think of things I would do if I won!

1. Pay off all my debt, it's not that much but I hate any sort of debt

2. Purchase a house, maybe two. One in Johannesburg and one in Cape Town. Property in Cape Town is really expensive so I would definitely need the lottery money to help me out.

3. Invest in a cause like Make A Wish or Operation Smile

4.Fund my wannabe Sports/Law firm

5. I saw an article about 1000+ coffees and I love the idea of being able to have coffee with all my Facebook friends. It really got me thinking, if we're friends on Facebook, whether we met while waiting for our next flight in Dubai or we met at a bar five years ago or (my favourite) we were on a Contiki trip in London and Paris together - if we could not sit down to have a coffee (or more) together we shouldn't be friends in real life or facebook. I am absolutely in love with this idea and you shouldn't be surprised if I actually take this up sometime in the future. It would cost a shitload of money because I have a lot of friends in South Africa but many more around the world starting in Kenya to Morocco to Kansas to Rio De Janeiro to Granada to the South of France.. you get the idea right? There are all corners of the earth crawling with friends I've made over my 27 years and I would love to see them again.

 I would take my family with me to some of the places because we haven't traveled together overseas and I think every family should do that and I would go watch soccer matches everywhere I went.

So who would you visit just to have coffee with, anywhere in the world?

Today I'm linking up with Helene and Taylor for #Blogtober14 and with Kathy for confessions!

sorry the button wouldn't work :( click on their names for the links!

Things I'll Never BE { Link Up #12}

I've already shared a list of things I'll never do but as I write this post, on Tuesday evening, I'm reminded of something else I will never do intentionally but more so something I'll never be. Then it got me thinking... there's a lot of things I'll never be...

// Bulimic. Now before anyone gets upset with me for being insensitive, I am very aware that bulimia is a disease and I feel terribly for those who suffer from it because I've had many discussions with nurses or sufferers of bulimia to know it's difficult plus, I watched Sami do it in Days of our Lives when I was like, 8 years old. However the reason I could never be bulimic (nor do I want to be) is that I have a terrible gag reflex and today when I was choking on something I ate and had to force myself to bring it up it hurt at a ridiculous level of pain. I could never intentionally make myself puke. Oh and my eyes got all red like I'd been crying for days and I don't think I could ever pull that look off. 

~ Credit~

// a Ballerina. I wish I could have been one because it seriously looks like the most graceful manner for woman but I went for a few ballet classes when I was 4 or 5 years old but didn't follow through. I can't remember why I didn't commit to it but I think there was some level of foresight because my bust size would not allow me to stay in the normal leotards. 

~ Credit~

//a woman who walks around without a bra. You get those woman who don't necessarily need to wear a bra, I'm not one of those. Bras are an essential item in my life for those who don't have this problem, I hate still love you.

// a person who thinks it's okay to date your friend's ex. This is random but I was watching Drop Dead Diva and I was super pissed with a certain someone for this and I hate when people do that and pretend as if they're current feelings should invalidate your history with the person. There's a girl code - don't be a bitch! Okay, rant over

~ Credit ~

// someone who uses "sms talk". While I definitely use shortened versions of words I love using vowels so I won't be the person to send a message with "M8, runin l8, C U in 10" even typing that out gave me anxiety. I love proper grammar and language.  

// a Hoarder. While I may definitely hoard some old photographs and a T-shirt or five from High School, I could never be a hoarder worthy of the show Hoarders because I am so scared of any bugs and let's face it, hoarding crap brings on the dirty bugs! Eeeeeeeeew!

I had a whole longer list but then I thought this might get too long because I can feel the rambling starting!

What will you never be?

Also, of course I'm linking up with Kathy at Vodka and Soda and the gorgeous Ian ;)

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What's In My Bag??? {Link Up}

I was so undecided about whether to post today or not because I wanted to post yesterday but I got caught up with doing my new blog design (Do you like it??? I'm totally in love with it!) #SorryNotSorry

Either way I've been wanting to do a post like this for a while so when I saw that Becca, Rachel, Heather and Lisa were doing a link up I figured I might as well tag along join the party!

Here's my usual bags of choice, pretty,right?

Glasses ~ Sunglasses and my distance glasses

Bubblegum ~ which girl walks around without it?

Hair Comb ~ I prefer to use a comb as opposed to a brush. #FineHairIssues

Notebook ~ as a blogger girl I have so much on my mind I find it better to just have a notepad with me at all times. 

Tablets ~ I carry charcoal tablets in case any anything upsets my tummy, allergex for when I for my wax appointments and extra strength disprin in case I get a headache

An array of lipgloss or lip balm and lipstick ~ a girl can never be over prepared

Three purses ~ I used to use only the big one but then when I switch into a sling bag I switched my purse too to the pink one or the small black one when I go clubbing.

Spare change ~ it doesn't matter that I'm carrying three different purses/wallets I always throw change into my bag

Hand Sanitizer ~ I bought this last year when I was in Germany and it's still going strong although over the past year I have used a lot of we wipes as well.

Miscellaneous ~ hair clips, eye drops, earrings and a USB because you never know when those will be required

What's your essential items in your hand bag?

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OCD Confessions {Link Up #9}

Welcome to Wednesday, it's time for humpday confessions with Kathy and Ian of course!

I had another post planned for today but I just couldn't get into it to finish it off so I thought I would share one of my entertaining traits ... well, my obsessive compulsive traits. Basically, the things that just irk me.

~ Credit ~

* Dirty hair or dirty looking hair. I think I've shared this one on the blog before but am too busy lazy to go back and find the link for it so you'll just have to take my word for it. I know that I shouldn't judge people with oily hair but I have oily roots and I just make sure that I was my hair all the time to not look as if my hair is dirty.

Also, when people have put powder or something else in their hair to make it look clean but it actually smells oily because, hello - your hair is dirty!

~ Credit ~

* Long toenails. When people are wearing sandles but they are clearly a size too small because they haven't taken into consideration that they don't know how to cut their nails/

* Men with long nails. I don't care how beautiful you if your nails are long you instantly lose points. 

* I'm obsessed with making sure I have my nails painted. I just feel naked with nothing on them.

* When I have painted all my nails and then one gets smudged, I have repaint all of them. 

* Towels. I read somewhere that you shouldn't use a towel more than three times before washing it before a whole lot of bacteria grows on them so I basically change my towel every second day. This drives my mother insane but I just have too.

I have many more things that I obsess over but I have to run, so have a wonderful day everybody, I'll be sure to leave some love on your pages 

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Confessions of a Football Loving Girl {Link Up #8}

Good morning everybody!!! 

Can't believe it's Wednesday already and this week I decided to theme my humpday confessions with Kathy because, I didn't have enough interesting confessions to share I wanted too. 

I've made it no secret that I love watching soccer or football (whatever you want to call it) but I'm not sure I've told you why...so let's get into it. 

I confess : 

* my dad started a soccer team when I was four years old and that's where I was surrounded by soccer games and training and men with sons

* I was mostly the only girl with my mom and the other footballer's wives

~ Link ~

* This team went on for almost twenty years and through the years the friends I made along the way made different reactions 

age 4 :

~ Credit ~

age 12:

~ Credit ~

age 18:

~ Credit ~

* Guys always say they want a girl who appreciates soccer but then we go on a date and I know more and they look at me like this...

~ Credit ~

* A couple of years ago, a friend and I walked into a store after a big championship game had been on the night before and one of the coaches had lost it.

~ Credit ~

The guys in the store started talking loud about what happened but then they were contradicting one another so I very easily told them what happened and they all look embarrassed and well, didn't say much more to us.. 

~ Credit ~

So basically, every time I thought my knowledge would enhance a conversation with a guy it actually highlights their lack of knowledge and that's never comfortable.

*Despite the above confession, I still love to watch the game. My teams were eliminated very early in the tournament but I have continued to watch every game including Brazil's historic loss to Germany.

What are you confessing this week???

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