When you wish upon a star....

I love award season. And tonight is the pinnacle of that season: The Oscars!!!! I have always loved watching the red carpet and commenting (criticising) on all the stars hair, gowns, shoes...and Jewels.  Oh, the jewels, they make my heart skip a beat!!! Serious palpitations!!! I have loved all that sparkles from the time I was just a little girl and was constantly playing in my mom's jewelry.  This love runs deep so in honor of my love of jems, jewels, and the Oscars here are a few to get your heart racing! Your welcome ;) 

                                       

                                              

                                                

Happy Valentine's Day to us all

This past week I have spent time catching up with some amazing women.  What I noticed as we talk about different things going on our lives is that too often as women we don't own our self-worth.  As if that is some sort of selfish act.  You don't want to be seen conceited after all (says the voice in our head).  Why do we often feel, that to think or even say that we are amazing is a bad thing? Well, it's not! So in honor of Valentine's Day, the day of love, let's all start by loving who we are first!! Own your greatness!!  We are all beautifully flawed people.  We are wives, mothers, partners, friends, sisters, and more! In each of these roles there are things that we do that we do well, really well.   Own it, love it!!!

Be passionate about yourself!

Let's see something positive instead of always focusing on our faults

Let's respect who we are as individuals and expect that from others

Let's fill our hearts and lives with love for life, ourselves and each other.  So full, that there is no room for negativity or people who will not see our worth. 

Let's not hold back in our opinions, our love, our needs, our dreams. 

Let's love with abandon!

I made cupcakes for Valentine's Day for some of my fabulous girlfriends. Oh, and one for myself of course ;) 😘😘

Golden anniversary?! Shouldn't 50 years be gold, covered in platinum, covered in diamonds?!

We were so grateful to celebrate Laurence's mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary in January.  Everyone from the Mawhinney clan came together for dinner. There were a few surprises, an amazing handmade cake (thank you SO much Tammy!!), good food and lots of laughs! Congrats to you 

Kerry and Marie! 50 years together, wow, it's such an amazing and increasingly rare event to celebrate! 

When music and fate collide

This past weekend we went to a concert in Gibbston Valley.   This valley is one of my favorite places in New Zealand.  Filled with row after row of vines growing future wine nestled amongst these majestic mountains.   Throughout NZ during the summer months, concerts are held at vineyards all over the country.  Music and wine, well that is always a good combination!! 

We went to see Three Dog Night, Foreigner, and Heart (three of my husband’s favorite bands).   Foreigner was my favorite of the three and was again on that day.  It was such a fun afternoon surrounded by what I like to call "NZ splendor" and enjoy good food, wine, and company.  Jamming to some great classics, "be a jukebox hero, got stars in his eyes” Ah-mazing!

Now, for quite some time my husband and I have been looking at property in and around Queenstown.  At first I thought that I wanted to get something in the center of the town.  Then we started contemplating buying land and building and would spend many a weekend morning discussing all the options that were before us.  We even went so far as the contact realtors and look at a few properties.  But there was never a moment when we both went, “this is the one.”   Last month we put the search on hold after the process began to bring more frustration than enjoyment.  

Segway back to the concert, where my hubbie and I both thought that Gibbston Valley could be a great place to have a home. This lead to an online search, which then lead to a drive on Sunday, and this drive took us to an amazing property.  Standing on it, looking out at the mountains with the vineyard spreading out below us….that familiar but rare feeling rushed over me and I knew “this is it!”  Far less poetic, my husband’s “ah-ha” moment was when a couple living in the same area stopped to offer their help and ended up sharing a photo of the latest deer the wife had shot from the kitchen, LOL! 

Then there was a week filled with a flurry of calls, offers, paperwork and texts back and forth. Today, I am very happy to announce that we are officially landowners of a beautiful piece of Gibbston Valley.  We even met with an architect yesterday (eek!).  It’s very surreal that in such a short period of time we are beginning this amazing journey of building our first house. Surreal, as well as exciting and slightly terrifying!! 

This will be our view.....how gorgeous is this?!? 

I feel so lucky to be at the start of this process (feels like the first time...).  Proving, once again, that in life when it’s meant to be it’s meant to be! Was that a line from an 80’s rock ballad? Well, it should have been!