oh lovely readers...I need you!

My heart did ten back flips when I discovered Stars in Jars made it to the top three in the Free People UK Guest Blogger competition this week!!!

I submitted this post into the competition and then didn't give it a second thought so to be told I made the final 3 was so joyful! 

The next stage of the competition is to rack up the most votes. I just took a peek and I am trailing WAY behind the other two finalists haha!! 

Their posts are stellar though so muchos kudos to them >.<

If you, lovely readers, could take two seconds to click on the link below and vote for Stars in Jars today you will receive one sparkly unicorn and a magical rainbow cape in the post tomorrow.

Not really, but you will have made one girl very happy ^.^

Go team!!

http://blog.freepeople.com/2013/08/uk-guest-blogger-competition-vote-favorite-entry/

I'm so glad that you're here! Why not hitch your wagon to Stars in Jars?
>.<

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goin' up the country

My last few weeks on the Emerald Isle have had the most round house kickin'/ fist pumpin'/ air guitar playin' kinda effect on my heart.

My beautiful cousin and soul sister Finn came to visit for a long weekend. I'll be sharing a house with this amazing girl as well as some other pretty rad house-mates when I move to West London tomorrow (TOMORROW!).

We managed to squeeze in a full day of sightseeing, Irish coffees and pub time in my parent's home-town before packing up the car to head off to Kerry for a big old family knees up.

A 5 hour car journey, way too many travel sweets and one retail park pit stop later we were in beautiful Killarney in Kerry to visit my aunt and her family. It was a girly affair with 4 aunties and three girly cousins staying up way past the witching hour at the kitchen table drinking wine, taking photographs and swapping family anecdotes.

I treasured the opportunity to connect with my little cousin Zio as it's only the second chance I have had to meet her since she was adopted from Vietnam when she was a baby. Such a funny, smart and kind little human being, she just adored getting to know her grown up cousins and we took every opportunity to play with her and get to know her beautiful personality.

When she jumped on my bed one morning and said "Let's play 'Mamas and darlings', you can be the Mama and I'll be the darling" (a game she learned from a tv show apparently) I seriously thought my uterus would go off like a bomb. Sigh. 

As well as the (several) maternal ticks and twitches I also thanked my moon and stars for being blessed with such a huge close-knit family and I relished the chance to bond with some seriously cool female matriarchs. 

Killarney is a treat to visit and if you're ever considering a tour of Ireland it will tick every box~ I particularly fell in love with this time capsule tea room which we all loved so much we ate lunch in it two days on the trot. Smoked salmon and poached eggs and eggs benedict for the girl who wanted to run away with the china. Delicious.

My flight to London leaves at mid-day tomorrow so it'll be an early night for me tonight. I can't wait to check in with my first post from my new home. Thank you to all of you who have left such sweet words of luck and encouragement for me on my journey. Hugs and kisses are on the wind to you all x x x

Thank you so much for reading! Why not hitch your wagon to Stars in Jars?
>.<

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link party ♢ weekly wishes #5

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Sometimes I wish I could hammer a nail into the centre of my forehead and wear a sign there that reads "Work in progress". 

Thanks to Melyssa's lovely link-up I've been reminding myself daily that it's really ok to trip up and fall down, to muddy my cheeks and scuff up my boots. It's the striving for better-ness along the way that counts. I don't believe that a 'perfect' human being exists, rather our whole lives are one big never-ending journey of self-improvement.

Last time I posted my 'Weekly Wishes' I said I wanted to focus on strengthening my heart chakra by practising forgiveness, love, contentedness and yoga.

Two weeks flitted by and I thought I did pretty good; I bit my tongue when I got frustrated with my parents, I offered to hang out with my young cousins while they are on summer vacation when I would rather have had a Woody Allen marathon, I made concious efforts to put my own convenience to one side in order to make others around me happy.

So far, so "pat me on the back for ain't I good".

Yesterday morning I received my first negative comment.

A lady posted a comment telling me she couldn't finish reading because of my "foul language" and that I wasn't her "cup of tea".

I was stung.... embarrassed, hurt, angry, ashamed. 

 My knee-jerk reaction was "oh my god I've offended someone and the evidence is all over my dirty little blog for all to see...delete, delete, DELEEEETE!"

I deleted her comment and enabled comment moderation for the first time ever. I basically did everything short of running and hiding under my duvet while at the same time telling myself I'd done the right thing by ignoring her and getting rid of any evidence that there could possibly be someone out there who might not dig me or my blog.

But, as the day went on the comment and my reaction to it stuck in my throat like a bad taste. I couldn't shake it.

I started to wonder if I really had done the right thing.

 Was I really being honest with myself by deleting the comment, or my readers for that matter? Is the best response to negativity or criticism to run and hide from it? Was this the reaction of a strong, assertive, self loving person?

No, no...no.

I wish I could go back and un-delete that comment. Deal with it in some other manner or thank her for her honesty, even!

I shouldn't place so much importance on what one person thinks of me or on the impression I want to make on a lot people I don't even know.

 This is my space, my creative outlet. I can write well written and meaningful posts or sloppy posts or drop the occasional S-bomb here and there if I feel so inclined and not expect rainbows to be shot up my ass by every single person who finds themselves reading. 

And I refuse to edit myself! This is me. I can swear and belch AND write about my spirituality and self-improvement at the same time. I won't hide what I'm about and I'll make no apologies. 

I can't please everyone.

 And that's okay.

This is my new promise to myself: Don't shy away from criticism, face it head on and take it on the chin like a bad-ass.

Now, I'm off to disable my comment moderation ^.^

Wanna join the party every Monday?

Click below!

link party ♢ weekly wishes #4

This week I suffered a personal setback in regards to my application for the degree course I wanted to start this year. After sitting down with the prospectus, a notebook and a calculator I realized that the total monthly fees are going to be higher than I first thought and will be way out of my budget. My heart fell in to my feet when I realized this and that night I tossed and turned till 5 am, mind churning, feeling deflated and disappointed and angry at myself for not realizing sooner.

The following morning, after beating myself up over it all night and feeling pretty exhausted and low-spirited I turned to my best critic and biggest supporter. I talked to my Mom.

How do Mom's do it? After talking it through with her I felt stronger and more determined than ever. This is just a setback. I may not be able to do this particular course, but there will be another course I can do that better suits my budget. It's not defeat, it's simply back to the drawing board. I suppose I have a tendency to catastrophize situations; here I was thinking my dream lay shattered into tiny splinters at my feet. My Mom simply  bent down, picked up the pieces and rearranged them to make a slightly different picture, and I love her for that.

For this week's Weekly Wishes challenge I want to focus on something that will help redirect my mindset and emotional reactions and ultimately help me on my path to following my dream.

I've been teaching myself about the different chakras recently and I've learned some wonderful methods of opening the heart chakra which I think will benefit me in all aspects of my life.

This week I will challenge myself to apply the following methods to awaken my heart chakra because for me, to practise these in your daily life is to be a better, loving, and more accepting person...

~5 Ways to Open Your Heart Chakra~

1. Be love~ don't be a martyr, allow yourself to be loved, especially by yourself

2. Give love~ love others, love unconditionally and unselfishly and whether they are deserving of it or not

3. The grass isn't always greener~ like the quote says "comparison is the thief of joy", be happy with your lot

4. Practise yoga~ camel pose is a great one for clearing a blocked heart chakra

5. Forgive~ even if they are not sorry, let go of past anger, hurt, grief. Don't look back, you're not going that way.

~~~

I think that by trying my hardest to adhere to these pledges this week will definitely be a challenge, but it will help me to let go of certain things I don't need to carry any more and which may have been holding me back in my journey this far.

I'll be back next Monday to let you know how I got on.

If you read the first three words of the previous sentence and thought of Terminator then I love you and we should definitely be friends.

Peace

x

liebster honour part deux

I've had the lovely honour of being named by two beautiful Bloggesses for the Liebster award in the past month!

Big thank-yous to Melyssa and Joan for thinking of me~ *blows internet kisses*~ thank you ladies!

Am I cheating the internet if I do a second Liebster post? Will it give me detention and take away my blog?

I think I'll get away with it somehow and, seeing as it's all in the name of fun and supporting our fellow blogging comrades, I'm game for indulging in a little 'Round Two'  >.<

Seeing as I was nominated by two different ladies and have two sets of questions to work from I'm going to mix + match and choose a blend of my favourite questions to answer from both.

First, if you are unfamiliar with the Liebster Award, here is a little look at the rules:

1. List 11 facts about yourself.

2. Answer the 11 questions given to you.

3. Create 11 new questions for the bloggers you nominate for the award.

4. Choose 11 bloggers with 200 or less followers to nominate.

5. Go to each bloggers page and let them know about the award.

6. Thank the person who nominated you and link back to their blog.

☽☽ the weird & wonderfuls ☾ ☾

1. I quit smoking 3 months ago. It's been surprisingly easy.

2. I can speak very basic conversational Korean and know a handful of Israeli insults.

3. I'm a Japanese anime geek. Love em. Love em all.

4. 'papillon' is my favourite French word and 'schmetterling' is my least favorite German word. They both mean butterfly.

5. I come from the same town as Kate Moss.

6. I'm a mean shot with a rifle (at the arcade).

7. A tarot reader predicted every major event in my life over the last 6 months.

8. I can wiggle my ears without touching them.

9. I'm an uncannily fast walker and have had arguments in the street with friends and partners because of this fact.

10. I have eaten locusts and pupa.

11. I did fire poi on a beach in Thailand when I was very drunk. In retrospect that wasn't a very wise thing to do.

☽☽ the Q + the A☾ ☾

1. Melyssa asked: "What's your favourite quote?"

I draw huge inspiration from quotes and have dedicated entire pinboards to motivational quotes and awesome truths on Pinterest. My favourite ones are usually simple, poignant messages of love and mindfulness. Just recently I received a lovely snail mail package from a reader who included this little gem for me:

I love this. Such a simple, honest reminder to be better. I have taped it up over my dresser.

2. Joan asked: "What made you start blogging?"

I'm glad this is one of the questions as I am often asked by family members why I am snapping pictures of my dinner and then have to explain about keeping an online blog and invariably becoming frustrated when I can't adequately justify to a non-blogger why on earth I want to make public the smallest details of my life.

I suppose there are a few reasons; first, I began blogging during my first year living abroad in South Korea and I thought it was a good way to keep friends and family back home updated on my life abroad without having to write the same things over and over again  in emails to different people. I've always loved to write so very quickly I began to really enjoy testing out my descriptive writing skill in different posts. Not only that but as I began to get readers and interact with them and with writers of other blogs I began to feel I was part of a small community of like-minded people; people ready to give support and feedback and encouragement no matter what little issue I was posting about. I think this is mainly what keeps me posting these days. Not to mention it's a trip to be able to look back over the last three years or so of my life and re-live the highs and the lows and the little memories and moments I may otherwise have let go undocumented and adrift in my memory. It's not for everyone, but it makes me happy.

3. Melyssa asked: "What 5 things make you extremely happy?"

Love (giving + receiving), yoga, being creative, travelling and eating good, nourishing food.

4. Joan asked: "Where's the best place you've ever been to?"

I love being asked this. For me it always induces a rippling effect within my memory; my mind sifting through image after image of the places I've been; like fanning the pages of a magazine.... the colorful landscapes and scenery, the beautiful people I've met, the sounds and smells, the foods I've tried, the markets and the jungles, the tents and train rides and stories told around an open fire.

One thing I can count on when I am an old lady will be the happy memories gleaned from travel.

The best place? I would have to say the Vivekenanda Yoga University in Bagalore, India where I lived as a student for a month. It was so liberating to walk barefoot and make-up free, practise yoga and meditation and purge and learn and walk the lush grounds and eat a vegetarian ayurvedic diet every day.

I would go back tomorrow if I could.

5. Melyssa asked: "What three words do you hope people will use to describe you at your funeral?"

Haha, such a self-indulgent question, I love it!

Kind,happy and unforgettable!

6. Joan asked: "Which dead celebrity would you bring back to life?"

Lennon.

7. Melyssa asked: "Without thinking about obstacles, what is the biggest dream you'd like to accomplish in your life?"

For as long as I've known I want children I've wanted to be comfortable enough to spend their early years at home with them. I can literally remember all the time I spent with babysitters because my parents had to go out and work. I would love to have the luxury of being a stay at home Mom until my kids reach school age.

8. Joan asked: "What's your guilty pleasure?"

Candy Crush on my iPhone. I'm on level 65.

9. Melyssa asked: "What would you do if you stepped in dog poo on the way to an important interview?"

New shoes! (any excuse ^.^)

10. Joan asked: "What's your favourite book?"

'The Magic Faraway Tree' by Enid Blyton. First published in 1943 and I'm still hanging on for a movie version!

11. Melyssa asked: "What was the best thing that happened to you this week?"

Puppy kisses after an out of town trip. Nobody can ever make you feel more missed than a family dog.

☽☽ my nominees☾ ☾

1. Maria @ I Believe in Story

2. Taylor @ Live and Move

3. Sondra @ Abhaya

4. Allie @ Call Me Sassafras

5. Freya @ Nishaantishu

6. Hillary @ The Painted Arrow

7. Sarah @ Floral Mountains

8. Madison @ Telling Oceans

9. Emily @ Some Girl- A Diary

10. Melissa @ The 25th Hour

11. Angie @ Lariats and Lavender

☽☽ my Questions to you☾ ☾

1. Tell me a joke

2. What would you change if you were President/Prime Minister for a day?

3. It's dinnertime, what are you cooking me?

4. Have you had any kind of mystic/spiritual experience (or anyone you know)?

5. Who would play you in the movie of your life?

6. What's your favourite childhood movie?

7. What's the wildest thing you've ever done?

8. Describe your perfect date.

9. What's the best gift anyone's ever given you?

10. Which are cooler? Dinosaurs or dragons?

11. Are you proud of yourself?

If you're still here, congratulations!! Now how about clicking through and saying "hi" to some of the sweet gals I linked to above?

Meeting new faces is a bloggers favourite treat  ^.^

link party ♢ weekly wishes #3

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Time for Round 3 of Melyssa's Weekly Wishes link party!

My last wish was centred around an application I posted for an online Nutrional Therapy degree course that I want to dedicate the next 4 years to.

Guess what folks, I got an interview >.<

SO, I guess my wish this week will be that I prepare well and pull off the Skype interview so that they respond with a big fat "hell YEAH lady, we want you on our course, come on down!"

 Or a simple "your application has been successful" will suffice too I suppose!

While it is scary putting my personal goals and dreams out there for all to see every week, especially the prospect of being unsuccessful and looking like a failure,  it is at the same time a great push to get myself out there and try extra hard. If I kept this to myself I possibly wouldn't be as motivated, comfortable in the knowledge that if I don't get it then it doesn't make a difference because nobody knew about it anyway. Writing about it keeps me on my toes, keeps me hungry, gives me that extra little fight to really step up to the challenge and achieve something good.

It's not too late for you to jump on the Weekly Wishes gravy train, if for no other reason than to happen upon some really awesome blogs. I've definitely gained a few new additions to my Bloglovin reading list from clicking and commenting on blogs in this link up. 

Give it a try!

{{p.s ~ Google reader has officially shut up shop, so if you haven't made the switch already you can follow Stars in Jars on Bloglovin here ^.^}}

link party ♢ weekly wishes #2

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Time for round 2 of Melyssa's weekly link party!

I'm pleased to say I did really well with last weeks promise to keep up with the daily yoga challenge I signed up for.
There's a quote I love from Joseph Pilates: "You are only as young as your spine is flexible".
  I love to see those pictures floating the internet of 80 year old women who are in wonderful shape and can still contort into the most impossible asanas~ proof of the truth behind this statement. I like to keep this quote and those images in my mind's eye whenever I feel like shirking my daily practise.

Today my weekly wish is based around a big brown envelope I dropped off at the post office today.
5 years ago I developed a keen interest in Nutrition which  has ballooned  into a desire to pursue it as a career choice. After 5 years of procrastination and talking about it I have finally bitten the bullet and filled out an application for an online degree course in Nutritional Therapy.
After much mulling over with my Mom about how this will eat up the next 4 years of my life and income I have decided the end goal is so worth it. I will be able to begin a career in something I am truly passionate about.

My wish this week is that the universe will send back a positive response to my brown envelope and send me down a new and exciting path in my life.

Fingers, toes and eyes crossed >.<

link party ♢ weekly wishes #1

I'd like to take a long moment in this post to introduce you to a purdy young lady I have had the pleasure of acquainting with through this funny ol' blogging world.

Meet the lovely Melyssa of The Nectar Collective.

I "met" Melyssa earlier this year when I came across her blog and instantly connected with her as she is a fellow expat teacher in an Asian country. Even though she currently teaches in Japan while I used to teach in South Korea, I instantly related to her blog posts about the struggles and breakthroughs of living, essentially, as an 'alien' on another planet.

Not only that but her blog is peppered with beautiful crafts, recipes, adventure stories and, my personal favourite, her 'Musings From Monja' series where she chronicles (hilariously) life as viewed from her cutie pie dog Monja's eyes and all the thngs that "really get my nub wagging".
 Leaves me rolling around in happy tears every. single. time. 
(I challenge you to go read about the poop barf and not chuckle)

Anyhoo, fawning aside, you should check the gal out. She wins the internet in my book.

Which is why I will be taking part in her Monday Link Party: 'Weekly Wishes'...

Each Monday Melyssa will host this link up over on her blog and she is inviting one and all to share their personal  wishes/goals/challenges/promises with each other. I can't wait to click through to some new blogs, maybe find a new favourite, and also read what goals people are making each week and gain some inspiration from them.

This will be my first contribution to the Weekly Wishes link up and I am going to start this week by challenging myself to be vigilant and keep up with the free 30 day yoga challenge I signed up for yesterday.

Apparently this Weekly Wishes has come at just the right moment in my life because it's personal challenges like this that make me hold myself accountable when I sign myself up for things and then end up not doing them. Case in point, I was emailed my first yoga video this morning and I still haven't done it ~.~

I was, however, very proud of myself for sticking to my one week raw cleanse which I posted about yesterday.

I had a bit of interest about my eating schedule since posting that so for any who are interested just leave me a comment or email me on tremblingstarz {at} gmail {dot} com and I will send you my 7 day recipe plan which I made to follow every day of the cleanse.

The plan breaks down the week day by day and gives recipes for all meal times; some  recipes are taken from the book I was following and some were from recipes found on Pinterest, including raw blended tomato and coconut soup and lemon chick pea avocado salad.

Just drop me a line if you're wanting to cleanse and I'll shoot it to you lickety split.

Peace!

x

london trip// roll up! roll up!

Come one, come all,

to the majestic circus show!

The circus was in town while I was staying in London so on Sunday afternoon we took ourselves out to see the show.

I popped my circus cherry at the same time and also learned that you are NEVER too old for the circus ^.^

From the minute we spied the big top from the car window to the old timey popcorn and candyfloss vendors, the whole event was a great day out... we did lots of ooh and aahing at the contortionists and trapeze artists, snickering at the clown acts and we clapped and clapped till our hands were sore at the aerial silk performer (my personal favorite).

I got so carried away with the magic of it all...the whole day left me wanting to run away with the circus and spend every day spinning around in the air on ribbons and wearing a sparkly leotard...

And what better way to end a Sunday than with sausage,mash and onion gravy and sticky toffee pudding at the local pub?

It's hungry work, that circus biz!

london trip// turning thirty

Turning Thirty was a breeze for this gal, of course it helped that she was spoiled with the company of some very special people ^.^

The rainy weather (and too long taken to gussy ourselves up) caused us to veto our planned Jack the Ripper walk. Instead we raised our umbrellas and headed east for a stroll in Brick Lane.

We wandered through cobbled streets, touched railed clothing in vintage shops and toasted my birthday over fresh mint teas.

Later in the evening we returned for a long awaited Indian curry~ oh how I've craved a good curry with coconut rice and almond pashwari naan!!

We closed the evening at a beautifully ramshackle hole- in-the-wall hookah bar surreptitiously recommended to us by the waiter in the curry house.

We blew apple and mint flavored smoke bubbles and listened to some great 90's R & B until the clock struck midnight.

Here's the birthday breakfast rustled up for me by my cousin that morning using the goose eggs and walnut bread we bought from Borough Market the previous day.

How thankful I am for beautiful family and friends to add a bit of sugar to my birthday cake!

x