It’s been a long term, but an Easter break mid-term is always appreciated. A sneaky few extra days off to get on top of all the jobs (oh, I mean rest and relax) is exactly what I needed. I’ve booked my Samoa trip for the first week of the school holidays, so that will help me get through the next couple of weeks.

March was a chaotic one. We had the painters transforming the house with their magic, and whilst that was all sorts of amazing, everything was nicely stacked and stuffed in the laundry or back verandah, making for a huge, disorganised chaos. It required organisation, foresight and the ability to handle dust, drop sheets, paint odours and work from the outdoor table. I lost my name badge and sunglasses on the first day and didn’t locate them till a week later. Whilst some may be able to live that way, it is definitely not for me. The Easter break was a good chance to get on top of everything, clean, rearrange and start on the next stage of the renovation.

Nights and weekends have been busy, which I am not complaining about. I am back at Live Life Get Active X Training and Boxing two nights a week then swimming two nights a week. We had a few birthday parties this month, and I have completed my Advanced Fire qualification.

Listened to - 

* The School of Greatness with Lewis Howes

* How To Fail with Elizabeth Day

* Autism Classroom Resources Podcast

* Where Should We Begin with Esther Perel

* The Marie Forleo Podcast

* The Tony Robbins Podcast

Read - 

* The Sea Captain’s Wife by Jackie French - loved it, great read

Splurged on - 

* can’t think of anything this month, I have been trying to save instead as had a huge tax bill to pay

Watching - 

* Three Birds Renovations - Erin’s house

* NRL games

Went to - 

* My dads Auntys 90th birthday party at Budegowoi. Great to see family and update the family history

* Dinner at The Fenwich, Balmain with my bf which was incredible. Highly recommend

* Dinner at Nomad, Surry Hills. The food was very nice but the experience was pretty ordinary

* Friend’s 50th birthday with a wig/hat theme

* Cousins 40th birthday with a 80s theme

* Stayed at Crystalbrook Albion Hotel in Surry Hills. I had booked it back in August and was super pumped, I chose the best room and was hugely disappointed when we got there and were shown to a box, with barely enough room to walk around the bed. Very underwhelming and wasn’t the break I was expecting. We basically got in and got out.

Booked - 

* Nothing. Now that the house is almost complete, it is time to enjoy it.

Cooked - 

* Not much actually, been leaving cooking up to my bf this month

What's new - 

* Home improvements - a carpenter came to put the skirting on, we used coloured gap filler in the gap between skirting and floor boards, took the kitchen cupboards down off the wall, had a council clean up and got rid of some more old paint that’s been sitting around. The painters took five days to undercoat, first and final coats, and the house looks fantastic. My bf went with ‘feather soft’, which is a light beige colour, though it is one of those colours that looks different in each room depending upon the light. We also got a quote for the outside of the house to be painted but that won’t happen til it warms up. We spent the long weekend de-dusting and cleaning the whole house, and we did an intensive cleaning of both the bathroom and ensuite. We washed every window inside and out and cleaned or updated our light switches and powerpoints. My bf installed the stair handrail and a new showerhead in the ensuite. He also patched and painted over small holes the painter hadn’t filled. I found some door handles on Marketplace as ours were peeling so that was a great find.

* Updates on my blog - again wishing I dedicated more time to blogging. Maybe over the holidays

* Lost three kilos since coming back from the Philippines. Exercise and a gluten-free diet has made all the difference. Also upped for step count for the day

Looking for - 

* place to stay for my cousins wedding in November in Mollymook

Sold -

* listed things but not sold

Started - 

* The intensity of work has begun. The emails and phone calls have tripled this month, and I am trying to manage them in a healthy way this year. I have learned from last year, but I really don’t want to get caught in that trap again.

Attempting to -

* organise baby shower for my sister

How was March for you? What did you get up to? Anything you learnt in hindsight? Feel free to join the conversation and leave a comment below.

For other months in hindsight click here