♡ Out with the old, in with the new - My new Filofax!

Hellllloooooo!!! It's been a long, long time since my last post. I sincerely apologise from the bottom of my heart. Uni has been crazy and technically I'm still not done for the semester - I'm procrastinating at the moment :D But since something very special came in the mail today, I thought I'd make an exception. I've also made a whole list of blog post ideas so hopefully in the upcoming holidays, I'll be back on the blogging bandwagon. And hopefully this little beauty will keep me organised to balance uni and blogging next year!

You may or may not have already seen on Instagram but I have actually sold my Orange Metropol. Yes, you heard right, sold. I know I could have just kept it but it was just sitting in my drawer the whole time, not being used. One of the biggest reasons I haven't been posting is that I haven't actually been using my Filofax at all. To be honest, it was quite counter-productive. I felt organised, hauling a cute little Filofax around, but really, the decorating and the Instagramming and all that was so distracting that it didn't keep me organised at all. In fact, it was hindering my uni work and not helpful at all. That's why I bought this cheap Kikki K planner for $5 halfway through the year that I was 'allowed' to be messy in and I found that this really helped me stay organised.

And then I sort of just fell out of love with planners and Filofaxes. I still liked them and thought they were cute but I just wasn't so interested anymore. That was until I happened across the Nude Original. I had always wanted an Original. I actually bought a Fluoro Pink one when it first came out but unfortunately it didn't make it to me (I got my money back though). Initially I thought of it as a sign that I shouldn't have spent so much on a planner & I was quite glad I didn't end up getting it because when I saw it in person, it was a lot brighter than I imagined. But this one... Man, where do I get started?

I've been stalking every Instagram account and YouTube Channel that featured Nude Originals and I had such a heard time deciding if I wanted it because of the colour and texture of it. I had so many questions because it looked so different from one person's photo to another. Was it really shiny? Did it have sort of a 'matte-r' finish compared to other patents? Did it get dirty easily? Was it a lighter or darker nude?

As you can see, I was really obsessed with it. But then one day, I decided to bite the bullet and got it off eBay - funnily enough it was the same seller that had failed with my Fluoro pink one years ago - but I was so relieved when I got it. The seller was Quickdraw Stationery on eBay if you're interested. It came so well-packaged and even in a box so that it didn't get damaged in the process (perfect rings!). Not to mention it's so much cheaper and the shipping really isn't that bad.

Anyway, after all that rambling, I just wanted to give you an update that I got it and I love it and I'll definitely be doing a setup & review post in the near future. But my first impressions are that it is still shiny, of course being patent. I saw the purple and fuchsia ones in store and didn't like how overly shiny they were (sorry to anyone who owns them! It's all personal preference!). The nude definitely isn't as shiny but you can still sort of see your reflection in it and what not. I love the light beige colour, the simple interior, the quality of the leather and that it lays flat. Honestly, I am so back in love with ring-bound planners and I really think that this is the one. I'm sure we've all said that before but this is one that I've put a lot of time and thought into and my first real leather planner and think that I'll have and use this for a long time.

On that note, I want to add that I still want this to be a functional planner for me, rather than just a pretty & neat one that I spend hours on decorating & whatnot. Because of this,you may notice that it is not as colourful or neat as before so I hope you don't mind too much. I'll still decorate when & if I can, I just didn't want to get your hopes up or anything.

Wow, that was a really long post! I guess I had a lot to say after all this time!
Hope you enjoyed this & I hope to see you soon!

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡

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 ♡

Philips Sonicare Diamond Clean Toothbrush

So, I know it's crazy how much I've talked about this Philips Sonicare Diamond Clean Toothbrush to my parents & friends, but I mean, seriously, can you blame me? It's pink! And it's gorgeous! I had a cheap(ish) Oral-B one but it was sooo loud! I mean, it's not too much of a con, but I felt like I was waking everyone up in the morning & once I saw this pink one, I honestly couldn't stop thinking about it... Is that weird?

I was so confused at first about how to charge it. But the cool thing about this is that there are technically 2 chargers. You just have to put it in the glass cup, that sits on top of the silver thing. Once you plug it in & turn it on, it charges just like that. The other way is by connecting it to the travel case (the cute pink thing!) and you can either charge it to an outlet or by USB (wait, does that make it 3 different ways?). How cool is that?!

It's not completely quiet but it's definitely a lot quieter than my Oral-B one. It's quite strong & so I still have a bit of trouble controlling it at times ^^". It feels a little weird on my teeth but I'm sure I'll get used to it over time. And it has so many settings: clean, white, polish, gum care & sensitive. It also has the 2 minute timer that I think most electric toothbrushes have now.

It is quite expensive for a toothbrush, but I have been saving up for it so I thought I'd treat myself, you know? :D I know there's probably a lot of debate about whether they're actually good but what do you think? Obviously, I'm very for them but I'd love to hear what you think as well. I hope you enjoyed this mini product review and somewhat weird & random topic but talk to you next time!

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡

TEDDY TUESDAY: Honey's 2nd Birthday!

Wednesday the 21st of January of Honey's 2nd Birthday! So we all went to the dog beach for a little party. Naturally, being the organised freak I am, I packed quite a bit... Better safe than sorry, am I right? On the drive to the beach, Honey & Teddy sat in the back with me and my nieces. Teddy was sitting on my lap when Honey decided she wanted to sit on me. And this girl is not light. She's 15kg & very strong. So I got a few scratches on my legs & drool all over me but since she was the birthday girl, I let it slide :P

The beach itself was gorgeous & also had a grass area for picnics and dogs to run about. The tide was low so we could walk in quite far and the water would still only be about knee height.

I was curious to see how Teddy would react to the water since it was her first time, but we were all pleasantly surprised when she just bounded in by herself. She cried a little once we got in deeper & was stuck to the spot, but I held her and when she was paddling confidently by herself, I slowly let her go & what do you know, she was a natural water dog! It was so much fun! Don't forget to check out her Instagram to see more photos & videos from that day! Honey was already a good swimmer but the grandpas, in particular Cola, got in by himself as well and it was so good to see them have a good time.

Here's the birthday girl! She was a little grumpy today but we let her off the hook a little since it was her special day :D But we think she had fun! And you might remember I got her a collar & leash from Mattie & Margot to match Teddy's, as well as her sister, Mimi.

There was no cake but we did get Honey a toy in the shape of a 'Barkday Cake', and I did give her & Teddy a little biscuit as well. And as you can see in the last photo, Teddy was absolutely exhausted on the way home. She had a lot of fun that day & I can't wait to go back! Maybe on Teddy's 1st Birthday :-)

Love Always,
Anna Banana 

TEDDY TUESDAY: Weekend Recap!

So, as I mentioned in my last post, I got a bike on the weekend! That day, we dropped Teddy off at the groomers & went to get our bikes. Since we bought 2 bikes, we took 2 cars so me and my cousin (who got her bike that day) arrived at their place first. My other cousin & her boyfriend had some errands to run and they insisted on picking Teddy up on the way, since they were in the area. This was the photo they sent once they did. It's such a cute photo and I just wanted to share it with you :D

When we were all at her place, we decided to test our bikes out. And of course, we had to take the dogs. How cute are they?! Whenever I rode behind the trailer, Teddy would always watch me, sometimes crying to get out and play with me - it was so cute!! But as I said last time, we went for a loooong bike ride & she was exhausted by the end of it (which I don't understand ;D).

Typical of Australian weather, one day it's sunny, the next day it's not. Since it was quite chilly the next day, I decided to dress Teddy up in her adorable little reversible jacket. I got this at the place we get her groomed - Pet Mansion where they have the most adorable clothes & accessories for your pets. We definitely got a lot of looks while we walked all the way to our cousins' place. And Teddy & Honey were reunited once more! You can tell how much they love playing together and Honey has definitely warmed up to Teddy. They place so well now, it's adorable to watch.

I know Teddy (& Honey!) has sort of taken over my blog posts lately but don't worry, I'm working on a post about how I'm settling into my new Emily Ley Simplified Planner (I'm loving it by the way). Unfortunately, I have decided to give my Filofax a rest for the year to see how I like the spiral-bound planner. But a huge thank you to everyone who is still interested & reads my blog! I don't think I tell you all enough how appreciative I am so thank you thank you thank you! And of course, I'd love advice about what sorts of things you like or don't like about my blog. I'm always open to suggestions & making this blog much more enjoyable for you.

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡

♡ I've got a bike, you can ride it if you like...

Soooo, I mentioned in my last post about wanting a bike... Well, on Sunday, my cousins and I went to look at some & well, here's my bike! I had a hard time deciding on the colour. I always saw the baby blue ones & loved them, but as soon as I saw this Mint Green one, I was in love! I took forever trying to decide & when I heard that there was only Mint in Small, I decided it was fate and went with that one.

And I couldn't be more happier with my choice. I got my bike at Reid Cycles & they have a huge range of amazing bikes there. It's the Vintage Ladies 7-Speed Classic bike, which was originally $279 but is on sale at $249. On top of that, thanks to my cousin who got her bike last week, I got a 5% discount :-) Then, because of my bike, her sister (who also got a bike yesterday) got a 5% discount on her bike & 10% off accessories.

The reason I didn't get the 10% discount for accessories is because I went for the Vintage Starter Pack. This includes: a basket, basket liner (of course I got the one with roses :P), helmet, lock, lube, mini bike pump, LED lights & an extended 4 year warranty. All of this would have been about $220 but this handy little package deal was only $120. So all together, I paid just a little over $350, which I think is more than reasonable for everything I got.

And of course, we all had to go for a bike ride afterwards. My cousin got a black one yesterday and that's the same model as mine, whereas the coffee one, which my other cousin got last week is the Mixte model. The blue one at the end is from a different place and that belongs to my cousin's boyfriend. As you can see, we attached the trailer to his bike and so Teddy & Honey rode with us. We rode about for 2+ hours so I'm a little sore today, but I'm just so in love!

So, what do you think? What are your bikes like? My dad's thinking of getting one as well so we can all go bike riding together. Any recommendations?

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡

TEDDY TUESDAY: Fun Day Out With Cousins!

So, you may all know Honey the Puggle (Pug x Bealge) by now. But this is probably the first time you meet her sister, aka my cousin's sister's dog, Mimi, a Jack Russell x Maltese. The reason she wasn't in as many photos as Honey was because she's a little hostile. It took a while for even her & Honey to become friends, but we're making great progress with Mimi & Teddy. And we finally took a photo of all 3 of them together!

My cousins and I decided to take a trip to Petbarn because let's face it, it's one of our favourite places. And of course, a trip to Petbarn wouldn't be complete without a puppy haul. Teddy needed a new tennis ball & Dentastix so we got those and of course some new toys & treats. I also wanted to ask you dog or cat owners about Greenies - are they good? are they bad? I've heard such good stories about them but such scary horror stories as well and I'm not sure what to do. I'm not even sure if Dentastix are good but any advice would be much appreciated.

Since Mimi's more on the hostile side, we can't really take her to dog parks or stores so we only took Teddy. And when we got home, she must have been tired because all dogs were just napping on the floor. Teddy has endless amounts of energy so whenever she sleeps, it's actually quite a relief. And in these photos below you can see Honey's new collar - a present from us! We bought her & Mimi some collars, leashes & bows from the same place I got Teddy's (Mattie & Margot). They were absolutely gorgeous & doesn't purple look gorgeous on Honey?

They've all become quite good friends. Although I feel sorry for Honey sometimes because Teddy's always all over her...but she doesn't seem to mind too much. We even took them out on a bike ride! My cousins have these trailer things that attach to the back of bikes so you can just pull them along. Honestly, I've never properly rode bikes or learnt how to so it was a little scary at first but so much fun! We did about 20 small laps around her place before doing 3 bigger laps around the block & park, taking turns pulling the dogs (we had 2 bikes but only 1 trailer). Speaking of bikes, I desperately want one - especially after today. The vintage style bikes are just so pretty & of course, the baby blue one is calling my name. This is my cousin's in the Coffee colour. Isn't it gorgeous? Her & her boyfriend bought each other bikes for Christmas so I ahem, Kalen...wink wink nudge nudge :P I'll keep you posted on that in the future :-)

As you can see, Teddy was exhausted on our way home. I'm not entirely sure why since all the dogs just sat & watched while we pedalled our hearts out but she was completely knocked out. And I'm feeling quite tired myself so I better rest up & talk to you some other time! We might be going to the dog park again tomorrow so we have to charge our batteries for then.

And to finish up this blog post, here are some photos of Honey & Mimi keeping watch of who comes & goes outside. Aren't they adorable? My cousin wants to find Honey a boyfriend so she can have adorable little Puggle puppies & I can't wait! We have been talking about me keeping one but it's more a matter of convincing my parents... Well, that's for another blog post! :P

Love Always,
Anna Banana ♡