AFC ASIAN CUP 2015: Australia 2 - 1 Korea Repubic

Last week I went to my first ever soccer (or football) match! It was so exciting. I mean, I love watching soccer matches on TV, but when you're actually there, the atmosphere is amazing! People cheer for everything - whenever someone gets the ball, loses the ball, gets a penalty, and of course, a GOAL! I actually went with my friend Monica & our boyfriends to the South Korea semi-final against Iraq and so that was my first actual match. And then, when we found out it was going to be a Korea vs. Australia final, we just had to go - no matter how terrible the seats. All four of us got tickets last-minute and so they were pretty high up but it was so much fun. We were amongst both Australian & Korean fans so it was all the more exciting.

We were closer to the official Korean supporters so I got a clearer picture of the flag. It was really cool how they 'raised' the flags during the national anthems. Korea even raised it again when they scored the late equaliser in 91st minute - it was incredible. Everyone was at their feet, cheering as the match went into extra time. No one thought it would happen but they did. And then there's the other three-quarters of the place, all green & gold, thinking we had won the match already. Honestly, it sort of looked like an episode from the Simpson's, seeing all the yellow :D

But ultimately, Australia scored the winning goal in extra time and so they took the trophy home. We didn't stay for the ceremony because we wanted to get out before the traffic, but it was a great finish to a great tournament. And I think it was Australia's last year competing in the Asian Cup so a great win for them.

Also, I know it's probably a common thing in most matches, but I'm not a huge fan of the booing. It just ticks me off sometimes but I guess, that's the 'fun' of it all? I don't know. Is anyone else like that? I'm sure no one loves it and alcohol is a big contributor to these matches, but it doesn't feel so sportsmanship-y to me.

Anyways, I hope you've all been well. Sorry I've been pretty absent both here & on my Instagram in particular, but I'll try to make more of an effort. Thanks for reading though!

Love Always,

Anna Banana ♡

♡ 21st Birthday Recap

Guess who turned 21?! That's right, this girly :P

I share my birthday with my bestie, Mon & Halloween...although that's not a birthday. Halloween was never really a big thing here in Australia but lately I've seen more trick or treaters & decorations at some houses. Although there weren't any trick or treaters at my place this year. But I hope you all had a fun & exciting Halloween and didn't get too sick from eating so much candy.

I had an amazing day. Starting as soon as I opened my eyes. I must have really been out of it because Kalen managed to get up and attach balloons on my bed and place the most beautiful bouquet of (21) roses beside me. We had a delicious breakfast at one of our favourite cafés and then went shopping at IKEA with Mon & her boyfriend, Jeremy. That's right ladies & gentlemen, an IKEA double date on our birthday. Romantic, huh? But really, we just love strolling through IKEA and I bought a few bookshelf inserts. I may or may not have already started getting the dog's room ready...

Then we just relaxed at home, putting together the drawers & whatnot, and I gotta say, it's coming along pretty great. I'm planning on doing a 'Puppy Trilogy' sort of thing so stay tuned. I'm so excited! I know I got the car for my birthday (for the next 5 years), but since it is my 21st, it seems I really am getting a puppy! I just feel so blessed & lucky to have such amazing family & friends...I honestly don't know what I'd do without them. We're going to see the puppies tomorrow (Sunday) and I'm super, duper excited to see them! Just imagine, this time tomorrow, there will potentially be a little puppy tucked into my lap as I type and exciting new blog post.

If that doesn't work out, we may be going to another place next Sunday. It'd be a little disappointing if that happens since I've been hyping this up the whole time but a puppy will definitely join the Rose household by next month so that's all I can ask for. Plus, I'd prefer all the stuff I ordered online to arrive before the puppy comes so that may even be better. I'm trying to make the best of anything & everything because I'm just so grateful for the amazing gift of a new best friend.





Enough about that now. A birthday wouldn't quite be a birthday without cake now, right? We picked up 2 of these adorable little cakes that were amaaaaaazing! We got them from this cute little Korean bakery/café in Strathfield called Hello Happy. What a cute name! We'll definitely be going there again, soon! And of course, a cake that pretty was just screaming 'Instagram' so naturally, we dressed up the table a little :P

Honestly, my family & friends made this day so special for me. We love having these low-key occasions, even if it is a big birthday like a 21st, and it was made even more special being around all my closest friends and family.

But on top of that, when I posted these pictures on Instagram, all of you wished me a Happy Birthday and that was seriously just the icing on the cake. The cherry on top. The sugar coating. Enough cake puns? ;-) And I can't thank you all enough for making my day even better. You have all become such great friends of mine & I wish there was a better way of me to express my thanks for you, but at the moment, thanks seems to be the only way...

Thank you so, so much.

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡

MY WEEK: 11-17 August 2014 & Life Update ♡

Hello, hello, hello! Remember me? I wouldn't blame you if you didn't because I think the world's worst blogger award can go to none other than me!

I have been having a pretty hectic few months...

The biggest change would have to be that I'm taking a break from uni at the moment... It was after much consideration (& stressful tears later) that my parents and I agreed I should take a break from uni. Not only has it been a mentally taxing semester for me, it also took quite a physical toll and I'm recovering with the amazing help & understanding of my parents. Hopefully, I will be able to relax in the next 6 months or so to really get back on track, both mentally & physically and be fit as a fiddle for the new year.

Also, yesterday was my cousin & godmother's wedding! It was such a beautiful event & I actually had the honour of reading a bible passage at the ceremony. I was sooooooo nervous but apparently I did really well! :-)

Here are some pre-wedding ice cream shots. My boyfriend insisted I needed to 'cool down'. Lord knows I love him ♡

Decisions, decisions... Can't I just have them all?!

As you can see, it was pretty hard to decide. But, I settled for the Cookies & Cream with Hazelnut in a cone. And of course, I snuck in a few bites of my boyfriend's Macadamia & Honey with Coffee. Yuuuum. I will admit, Cookies & Cream and Coffee were the real winners.

Cookies & Cream + Hazelnut = HEAVEN!

Also, I've been quite interested in juicing lately & finally put my Myer giftcards to good use and invested in a Breville Juicer. I've used it everyday since I bought it & have been playing around with different combinations. Some good, some really good, some bad...and some really bad... But it's so much fun, nonetheless! It's hard to say what my favourite is so far but let me know if you want some juicing recipes in the future. I didn't want to just dedicate this blog solely to Filofax & stationery but make it more of a lifestyle kind of blog so...there you have it :-)

Breville Juice Fountain Compact BJE200

And can I just say, I'm loooooving this juicer. My boyfriend & I were up early this morning to make my parents some juice before they left for work and they were completely surprised, saying they didn't hear it at all from upstairs. So brownie points for being quite quiet (hehe). Also, the cleaning! There are only about 6 parts to it - which I'm not sure is a lot or not - but it's so easy! But then again, that is my personal opinion and my friends & family would agree with me on that. We all just loved juicing & wanted to juice more but the hassle of cleaning up afterwards was just such a turn-off. But not anymore! It's so much fun & quite affordable.

At Myer, it was $129 but I got it on sale for about $110 and with my $75 gift cards, I only paid around $35 dollars for it! Woo hoo! And it's even cheaper at Bing Lee where it's $92 or something like that. So I'd definitely recommend it because it's so worth it. And when you think about paying $5+ for juice at Boost or Top Juice, I'd say it's amazing. The shape & design of the actual juicer is also just so sleek & cute and perfect on the kitchen counter without taking up too much space.

Can we also just take a minute to admire my new fruit bowl from IKEA? The colour is sort of a muted neon-y green and the wooden base thing is actually a lid. I used it as a base here but you can actually use it separately sort of as a wooden tray. It's just gorgeous.

Soooo....after that long long update, how about a My Week post? It's been a while... I feel like I'm losing my decorative edge (if I even had one...). But then again, not much has been going on too much in my life. Let me know what you think :-)

11-17 August 2014

If you're still here, reading this insanely long post...you're my hero. Thanks for all your love & support, especially on Instagram and I'll try to post more now that I have time to relax and such.

Also, about the 2015 inserts. I've been a little stumped as to the design of them. Should I keep them the same as the 2014 ones? Or should I change them up a bit? Maybe make them day per page? I'd love for you to leave me some ideas down below so I can get to making & uploading them ASAP.

As always, lots of love.
Anna Banana ♡

WHERE HAVE I BEEN?!?! O.O

Hello everybody! (If anyone is still around!)
I am so incredibly sorry for being so MIA these past few weeks? ...Months? ...Years?

But I was studying like craaaaaazy for my exams and as of Wednesday, I am officially a free woman! So hopefully I'll be good & post more plus, spoiler alert, I may or may not be uploading 2015 inserts!!! Woo hoo!!! Snaps for Annie? ;-)

So, as usual, here is a little update on my life...

I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM! I HIT 2000 FOLLOWERS ON INSTAGRAM!

OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! 

STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! STAY TUNED FOR A GIVEAWAY! 

I have been OBSESSED with The Fault In Our Stars. Ansel Elgort...you have my heart. So I bought the book to read it again and again and again because...Gus... ♡ But please give me any book recommendations so I could obsess over more fictional characters. I also got Divergent & I know I'm really late on the Divergent bandwagon but at least I'm getting started.

FIFA World Cup & Wimbledon. Need I say more? I know I may seem like I'm betraying my own country (countries) but let's face it, Australia didn't have much of a chance... Although, huge shocker about Spain though, huh? But ever since the last World Cup, I have been a fan of the German team & they looked pretty good, at least in their first match against Portugal, so hopefully they do even better and win! :-)

And as for Wimbledon, as awesome as The Fed is, Rafa & Nole all the way! ♡

And finally, once my exams were over, I got to planning a new layout for my room & by Thursday, my boyfriend and I were making a trip to IKEA. We've been hard at work the past few days & I'm so grateful to him and so very satisfied with the final outcome.

What do y'all think? It's a little empty but I like how clean and unclustered it looks.

M is for Make-up!

My new study area!

Yay or nay?

Anyways, I missed you all & I hope to talk to you soon!

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡