The Gratitude List - week ending 27 Oct

It's easy to keep up to date if I set myself up at the beginning of the week. I opened a new blog post in my drafts and anytime something awesome happened throughout the week I just jumped into the draft and wrote a little about it.

Here's the things that have made me happy this week

1. Seeing Beyoncé - Yep I know I've already posted about this HERE but I seriously can't stop smiling whenever I think about that concert. AH-MAH-ZING

2. Going to the Zoo with my family - Sunday we went to the zoo. It was Kyla's birthday so the family headed into the zoo to look at all the animals. We are blessed with one of the best zoos in the whole world in Melbourne and it's even more fun when sharing the experience with the crazy nieces and nephews. 

3. Work conferences - Is it weird that I love going to work conferences? We had a 2 day team leader conference in Rye this week and I LOVED it. I love my job and I love that we get the chance to work on ourselves to then create a better work environment when we go back to our stores. 

4. Stuffing letters - I move shops on FRIDAY. I've been at my current shop for almost 6 years so today I decided to personally send out letters to my customer base (I was told by my marketing department that they would do it but it wouldn't go out until the end of next month). I spent hours today individually addressing around 350 - 400 letters and stuffing them into envelopes. It felt satisfying knowing I was allowing myself the opportunity to have customers follow me to my new location.

5. Birthdays - I helped 1 niece and 1 nephew celebrate their birthdays this week. It's always fun to give presents and it's even better when you see the looks of joy on their faces. We ate party food and laughed at Kyla's new laugh which sounds awfully a lot like Woody Woodpecker. 

It's been a happy busy week

 - Brooke

An evening with Mrs Carter - 22 October 2013

From the moment Beyoncé appears on stage you know it's going to be a special evening. She commands your attention and hold it for 2 hours of hip shaking, mind blowing, eyeball popping entertainment.

I was lucky enough to go to my second show on this Mrs Carter World Tour. I managed to score tickets to her show in Toronto in July and this week I was lucky enough to have tickets to her first performance in Melbourne.

I haven't seen Beyonce since her Destiny's Child days. She has toured but I haven't attended. After listening to her latest album "4" on repeat for a solid 6 months (I find it REALLY hard to put on something else) I felt this year it was time to experience Beyoncé again. That is what she is - an experience.

Her whole show is designed to make you feel - it's overwhelming and empowering and I know I walked away unable to put into words what I had just experienced. I'm still struggling. I think I'm going to let some of the photos I took on the night do the talking.

There was so much anticipation in the lead up to seeing Beyoncé, I can't believe it's over and she's headed to other parts of Australia on her tour. I'm so happy I got to witness the marvellous performer that Beyoncé is.

For those interested here is her setlist from the performance (it's a doozy):

• Run the World (Girls) 
• End of Time 
• You Are a Queen 
• If I Were a Boy (With elements of "Bitter Sweet Symphony") 
• Get Me Bodied 
• Baby Boy 
• Diva 
• Naughty Girl 
• Party 
• Freakum Dress 
• Why Don't You Love Me 
• 1+1 
• Irreplaceable 
• Love on Top 
• Survivor (Destiny’s Child cover) 
• Countdown (interlude video)
• Crazy in Love 
• Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It) 
• Grown Woman 
• I Was Here (spoken / interlude on video)
• I Will Always Love You 
• Halo 
• Green Light / Suga Mama

These songs + her incredible dancing (and vocal abilities), dancers, all female band and her backup singers (The Mamas) = everything you could hope for in a Beyonce concert and more.

 - Brooke

Introducing The Gratitude List

I think it's important to focus on the good things in life. We all struggle through things and can feel like there are things that are dragging you down. I've found that if I spend a lot of time focusing on the negative things then that's the only thing I see and feel.

A new feature I am bringing to this blog is called "The Gratitude List". I know a lot of other blogs do this and I know it's something I really love to read. My Gratitude List is going to focus on the things that have made me happy during the week. I'll chose a top 5 and share why these 5 things have made the list for the week.

Let's kick this off

1. A short break to the Gold Coast with my team from work - every year we are allocated a budget (if we hit particular targets) as a team getaway fund. This past financial year our store was very successful so we had some cash to splash and went for a 2 day trip to the Gold Coast. I think this trip came at the perfect time for our store. We are undergoing quite a few changes in the next month and it was a great chance for everyone to relax and get to know each other and basically have a fun break away from the store. I haven't been to the Gold Coast since I was 15 years old so it was great to experience it as an adult.

 

2. The sunshine - our second day on our trip was spent very lazily going out for breakfast then coming back to our hotel and relaxing by the pool. I spent a nice chunk of the time soaking up as much sunshine as I could and I feel great for doing it. I think I said at the time "I feel like a lizard soaking up all this sun". I could feel the stress and worry melting away and it's the most relaxed I've been in a couple of weeks.

3. Panther Maxi Dresses arriving - I purchased a beautiful Panther Maxi Dress from Black Milk Clothing in their Halloween release and it arrived on Monday. It is all kinds of wonderful. I smile just thinking about it.

4. Paying off my place at the Blogcademy in November - I think this is pretty straight forward. After paying for my place it made it so much more real that this is happening in under 4 weeks!!!!!

5. The cast for Les Miserables in Melbourne was announced this week in the most amazing way. This medley that they performed made me cry and I'm so excited to purchase tickets to see this. I'm thinking I need to get tickets around my birthday in July next year (it opens in Melbourne in June).

It amazes me the level of talent there is in the world.

 - Brooke

Introducing "Adventure Awaits"

I love to travel. The great thing about being a travel agent (and a team leader/manager) is that the opportunity to travel crops up quite a bit. Not all of these trips offer a lot of leisure time but I do always get a chance to explore and experience the places we visit. 

A feature I am incorporating into this re-development of my blog is called "Adventure Awaits" where I will share with you a little story or tip from my travel experiences. 

It could be a small restaurant that I've stumbled across in Bali, or a great hotel I've stayed at in New York City. It might be about my experience at Harry Potter land in Universal or some of my favourite music venues in London. Whatever it is it will come from my experiences while travelling and exploring this world.

Travel is my livelihood, I talk about it every day and I know a thing or two about it. It's one of my passions in life and I don't always remember to share my own travel experiences here. 

I'm so excited to begin

 - Brooke