Hi friends! Welcome to yet another monthly update (I always love how these updates tend to do quite well). I hope you all continue to enjoy reading my life updates because these are some of the blogs I enjoy writing the most.
So, what have Ashy, Benji, and Luke been up to this month? Stay tuned because there is a lot!
I do just want to say most of November has been spent in New Zealand catching up with family + friends so there will be a lot of that in here. I will work on making some NZ travel posts very soon. We got back yesterday morning and back to work today (well work for Luke, blogging + freelancing for me - it's still work) #lifeupdates #lifestyle #travelblogger
Some Previous Life Updates
November 2024 Life Updates
To start November off, we went to a Halloween Party / Housewarming in the city, and Luke and I got very very lost and nearly got stuck but we worked out how to get out thankfully and made it to the party. I didn't fit in super well with a lot of the people because I feel like my anxiety was very rife but everyone was very lovely and chill.
We celebrated my 29th birthday with a few things (it was the 9th). On Melbourne Cup Day we had Luke's family over where we had a vegan Cookie Monster cake (it wasn't as good as I was expecting but it was cool). And then we also had some birthday drinks on the 8th of November with some of our friends and a big spread of food! For this party, we got a Rainbow Pinata Cake - it was nicer than the other cake but I was disappointed in the Pinata part.
I've definitely been struggling with anxiety and panic attacks a lot more than normal - lots of anxiety, and intrusive thoughts - like feeling like an intruder/imposter at my own events. And lots of panic attacks when things go wrong.
I got spoilt by my partner Luke for my birthday - he got me a new hair straightener, some perfume, a 2025 diary with my name on it, some merch I wanted, and a subscription to Australian Geographic. We also went to a bookshop in Moonee Ponds and he got me some books to read (still very behind on my reading list goal LOL). I'm currently still reading that conspiracy book I was talking about and the 2nd Reacher book.
Benji spent two weeks with Luke's family while we went to NZ (thank you) and got to stay with his bestie Frankie. Apparently, Benji was a very good boy. No notes.
The YouTube videos I put out are as follows: Weekly Vlog: Quesadillas, Puppy Playdates + My Blogging Routine // Birthday Week Vlog // The Dark Side of Sleep Paralysis // Why does the word "cult" carry a negative connotation? I am now also very behind on content. I took a lot of video content in NZ and did have another video I filmed - a Q&A of sorts so I'll definitely have to try and get to those and see what I can do. I'm also a bit on the fence about if I keep doing sociology videos or keep doing things like weekly vlogs - both have pros and cons, but let me know what you would like to see!
The Freaky Friday Files editions I put out are as follows (I did more than I was expecting to this month): Freaky Friday Files: Weird Facts About New Zealand // Freaky Friday Files: A List of Haunted Places in Christchurch, New Zealand // Freaky Friday Files: True Crimes SOLVED by Social Media.
Our flight from Melbourne to CHCH was over 2 hours delayed because there was an issue with the engine - the thing that keeps ice out of it was broken so they had to fix that asap. It was all good though, we made it to CHCH safe and sound and Mum picked us up from the airport and had Jelly Tips ready for us to go!
We spent a bit of time with Mum's cat Bella and the dog Scout whom she walks. Bella seemed quite happy that we were there so that was nice. She is getting very old though.
In CHCH, we caught up with lots of my family - my mum, my dad and his wife, my aunties and my cousins. We also did a bit of a get-together at Mum's house to make things a bit easier where I got to see most of my school friends and a few of Mum's friends too.
Some of the places that Luke and I ate in CHCH were Casa Nostra, Cassel's, Fiddlesticks, Chiwahwah, She Chocolate, and Sweet Soul.
Some cool things we did in CHCH were the Art Gallery, CHCH Botanic Gardens, Haswell Quarry Park, Willowbank, The Groynes, Taylor's Mistake, Mona Vale, and The Tannery.
Some cool travel stuff we got to do was go to Mount Sunday (which is Edoras in Lord of The Rings) and also Lake Tekapo/Mount Cook (Aoraki). Lake Tekapo was so pretty and had some nice places to eat - we went to a place called Blue Lake which was the best, TLV, and two brunch spots - The Greedy Cow and Jack Rabbit. We had a Panna Cotta for dessert at Blue Lake and it was the best Panna Cotta I've ever had - it was covered in tempered Passionfruit white chocolate which was just the coolest thing and was soooo refreshing!
We stayed at Peppers Bluewater Resort - which is somewhere I've always wanted to stay since I was little - I just never had enough money. It was a nice suite we stayed it, a bit pricy than what we'd normally pay - and some of the staff were a bit odd - like the receptionist who kept asking Luke for his credit card even though I was the one who paid. Other than that, the hotel was really nice but I probably wouldn't splurge that much again.
Luke got to see Aoraki (Mount Cook) where we did the Hooker Valley track and also walked up to the Tasman Glacier - it was very cool! Luke also managed to see some stars at Lake Tekapo but I was too tired (but I'm glad Luke saw them). I also unfortunately got VERY sunburnt at Mount Cook and now my arms are blistering - I think I have a little bit of sunstroke.
Luke also got to try real fruit ice cream (at Taylor's Mistake) because my dumb a$$ thought you could get it anywhere and then when I googled it, it was a specific to NZ thing. It was delish and tasted like summer!
We ate so much lollycake while in NZ that I was so sick of it by the time we left, but lollycake will always have a special place in my heart. You can see my recipe "here".
I made two different types of sangria (I feel like my drink-making is getting good, kinda). You can check out all my sangria recipes as follows: Rose Sangria // Pineapple Sangria // Red Sangria.
I've been trying to get back into baking a little more - experimenting with buttercream and fondant again. I'm not as good as I used to be, but getting there. I made cupcakes, Russian Fudge, and Lollycake.
Luke wrote a guest post for the blog - "My Top 10 Country Bakeries in Victoria, Australia - by Luke!" I highly recommend you go check that out!
We had one of the most awful experiences with a taxi driver getting home from Melbourne Airport - I was so f*cked off that I wrote two bad reviews and what's worse is you can't even contact the company because their website doesn't work. All other reviews were really bad. Taxi driver had a go at the Airport Security for where our house was then complained to us and then gaslit and berated us the whole way home. It was absolutely terrifying. Please don't treat people like that.
Some TV Shows that I've been enjoying this month have been Tracker (it's like discount Reacher lol), The Jetty, A Remarkable Place to Die, and Taskmaster Australia - speaking of which we have a few Aussie shows we need to catch up on because I've already gotten spoilers.
Since travelling, my daily gratitude lists have kinda gone out the window - I completely forgot about them as soon as we got to NZ. However, I am still doing my gratitude app on my phone so not all is lost.
The coolest birds we saw in NZ were two Kingfishers, a Royal Spoonbill, and a Tomtit.
I'm still not great at making matcha (I'm working on it) but one of my friends gave me some yummy tea leaves for my birthday, the flavours were peaches and cream, strawberries and cream, and pomegranate! Very yummy teas!
We tried a different shop for bagels - Bagels Baby in Pascoe Vale and it was very delish!!
In regards to my tooth that just had the root canal, it seems to be settling down now - sometimes I will have pain after drinking alcohol or eating something that might get stuck in there but most of the time it feels fine and it responds to nurofen if I happen to need it.
I tried a new Billson's drink - Lychee flavoured and it was so delish. Oh and a peach one too! I am going to have to get those flavours again but right now our kitchen is well-stocked with alcohol.
Luke isn't a fan of nuts but I got him to try Chilli and Lime Cashews from NZ and he really liked them - he even said if I give him any more he will finish the whole packet LOL.
We went out for ice cream one Friday night to Augustus Gelatery and we saw a family of Tawny Frogmouths in a tree where we parked which was pretty cool.
My driving confidence has gone up again woo! I get a bit anxious about driving but once I'm in the car I'm fine - like idk why?
I'm feeling a bit sad because the dairy and meat in NZ doesn't upset my IBS but the dairy in Aus does a lot so I've gotta be more careful, but that's okay because there are some good alternatives!!
Luke and I have been invited to two weddings in 2025 this month (I don't think I've ever been officially invited to a wedding - the last two I went to I was the photographer and other ones I wasn't invited to which made me a bit sad) so I am definitely very grateful to be invited to these ones too!
This morning I also had a berry flavoured crossaint that Luke bought for me which was yummy.
I think that's most of what we did! The rest of the week, I am planning on getting caught up on content (my blog + YouTube channel), finish up the cleaning and washing - I did a lot yesterday because I was running on adrenalin but haven't done everything and Saturday Luke has cricket, I have a haircut, and Benji has his last day of obedience school for the year on Sunday (feels like a primary school break up LOL).
Things that we need to sort out now that we're back in Melbourne are sorting Benji's neutering (as they say to wait for corgis' backs to be strong), go Christmas Shopping (I really feel like just spending Christmas by myself this year), catch up with Luke's family, go back to my doctors for my therapy referrals and check my iron levels now that the root canal is fully over. I also got a voucher from some of my friends for JB Hi-Fi to get something for my content so I gotta figure out what to get there, and from the same friends I have a day spa voucher for Daylesford that I still need to use - it expires in 2026 so I've got time, it's just working out when we can go and Luke and I still have gold class movie tickets and an Air BnB voucher we need to use. It's not a lot but leading up to Christmas things feel like a lot. Lots of our neighbours have their decorations up already. I do like Christmas decorating, I think this year I'm a bit over it because of how many people made "jokes" about us putting our decor up one week early and also I feel like Benji would eat the tree.
Some photos!
Anyway, I hope I'm not forgetting anything! But that's my November 2024 Life Updates!
Thank you for reading.
Much love,
Ash
If you made it this far, comment below your favourite ice cream flavour! I love cookies and cream and anything with chocolate!
Your cake is so cute! Looks like you had an eventful month for sure!
You've certainly had a busy November - that's lovely. I hope and have faith that health wise things will get much better.
Love this <3 I love food I can eat. The pictures are so lovely. Much love and support to you.
Sounds like you packed a lot into November! I am glad you got to spend time with your family and time in NZ. I've enjoyed seeing your adventures on Insta!
It sounds like you’ve had a whirlwind start to November! Even with the challenges, it seems like there were some lovely highlights, like celebrating your birthday with creative cakes and special moments with friends and family. It’s tough when anxiety makes those moments harder to enjoy. My daughter suffers from intrusive thoughts and depression, so I do understand. She is learning day by day on how to deal with it and I love how she pushes herself to step out and live and not let it overtake her. Although sometimes it is a struggle. So glad that you share because I believe it will also help others. Enjoyed reading your post!