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Three birthdays. One celebration. And a whole lot

Three birthdays. One celebration. And a whole lot less organising! 🎂🤍

As our kids have gotten older and everyone has busy lives of their own, getting the whole family together several times in one month isn't always easy.

So when birthdays fall close together, I'm a big fan of combining them into one beautiful celebration at home.

For this one, I kept things simple:
✨ a tablescape created mostly from pieces I already owned
🍔 help-yourself burger boards
🎂 a simple celebration cake and cupcakes
🤍 plenty of preparation beforehand so I could enjoy the day too

Because making a celebration easier doesn't mean making it any less special.

A beautiful table, generous food and a few thoughtful details are often all you need to turn a family get-together into something worth celebrating.

And most importantly? I actually got to sit down and enjoy it too. 🙌

You can find "How to Host a Beautiful Combined Birthday Party at Home" now on A Joyful Ordinary Life.

#CombinedBirthdayParty #ᴇɴᴛᴇʀᴛᴀɪɴɪɴɢᴀᴛʜᴏᴍᴇ #birthdaycelebrations🎉🎂❤️ #easyentertainingideas #stressfreeentertaining

Thankful Thursday 🤍 This has been such a lovely w

Thankful Thursday 🤍

This has been such a lovely week, filled with lots of family catch-ups and special little moments. This week I’m grateful for:

1. A lovely evening with Mitch’s family celebrating his 30th birthday. 🎂

2. A Father’s Day high tea with Dad and Wendy in Ballina. Such a nice way to spend some time together.

3. Getting to spend some time with Mitch to celebrate his very first Father’s Day, while Tony also got to enjoy some special time with Em and Hazel for his first Father’s Day as a Poppy. Lots of lovely firsts this year! 🥹🤍

4. A little Hazel time while Em had her hair cut. Honestly, why does everything just feel so much better when Hazel is around? 🤍

5. Some quality time with Em, Mitch and Hazel while we’re in Noosa for my niece’s wedding. Having everyone together makes it even more special.

And today is set to be another beautiful one, with the wedding happening! 💍🤍 I’m looking forward to celebrating, spending time with family and hopefully hitting the dance floor again — although my knee may have other ideas! 😂

Hope you all have a wonderful day and find a few little things to be grateful for this week. xx

#thankfulthursdays❤️ #feelingblessed❤️ #feelingblessed❤️ #gratefuleveryday❤️
#thankfulthursday🙏

I’ve never been an exercise person. And if I’m bei

I’ve never been an exercise person. And if I’m being completely truthful, I’m still not. 😂

But after damaging my knee, something changed. I became scared of hurting myself again, stopped trusting my body and, for the first time, I started to "feel old".

Then we found out we were going to become grandparents. 🤍

Suddenly, being stronger wasn’t about weight, appearance or forcing myself to love exercise. I wanted to be able to get down on the floor, pick up my grandchild, carry them without my arms aching and be the kind of grandmother I’d always imagined being.

So at 58, I finally did something about it.

Eight months later, I’m stronger, my troublesome knee is now something I barely think about, long-term aches and pains have improved, and best of all, I can cuddle Hazel for as long as I want. 🥰

Do I finally understand that famous exercise high everyone talks about?

Nope. Still waiting. 😂

But I’ve discovered something much more important — how good it feels to trust my body again.

My latest Retirement Reflections post, "Health in Retirement: How One Simple Change Made Me Stronger and More Confident", is now on the blog. Link in bio.

If exercise has never been your thing either, this one is especially for you. ❤️

#HealthInRetirement #RetirementReflections #HealthyAgeingmatters #ʀᴇᴛɪʀᴇᴍᴇɴᴛᴘʟᴀɴɴɪɴɢ #retiredliving

I’m a maximalist… but I really don’t like clutter.

I’m a maximalist… but I really don’t like clutter. 🤭

I love beautiful things, collected treasures, craft supplies, serving pieces and all the bits and pieces that make our home feel like "us". But I also love clear benches, organised cupboards and knowing exactly where things belong.

For me, spring decluttering isn’t about getting rid of everything or creating a minimalist home. It’s about making room for the things we actually use and love — and letting go of the things that are simply taking up space.

In my latest post, I’m sharing how I tackle a spring declutter, why I always take EVERYTHING out of a cupboard before sorting it (there is no other way! 😂), the simple storage trick I swear by, and how I’ve organised our home differently for this stage of life.

Because the goal isn’t to own less just for the sake of it.

It’s to create a calm, organised home you actually love living in. 🤍

✨ "Spring Decluttering for a Calm, Organised Home You Actually Love" is now on the blog.

#SpringDecluttering #DeclutteringTips #HomeOrganisationtips #SpringCleaningtips #MaximalistHome

Thankful Thursday 🤍 We’ve had such a lovely week

Thankful Thursday 🤍

We’ve had such a lovely week this week, with lots of catch-ups, family time and fun — definitely plenty to be grateful for.

This week I’m thankful for…

1. Attending a beautiful family wedding that was full of personality, laughter and fun. There may have been a little too much dancing though… the old knee was certainly letting me know about it the next day! 😂

2. Enjoying Croissant Sunday on the most beautiful sunny day. Good food, sunshine and good company — pretty hard to beat.

3. Doing a little shopping with Dad and Wendy. Always lovely to spend some time together.

4. Getting to see Mitch for his birthday and celebrate our favourite son turning 30! 😉🥰

5. Practising a new buttercream recipe ready for my niece’s wedding cake. I’m very happy to get some practice in beforehand!!! Plus it meant I had some cupcakes to take to Ballina so win win👏

6. A little road trip to Ballina with Em and Hazel to visit family. Any day that includes time with my girls — and some Hazey cuddles — is a pretty good day. 🤍

A busy week, but such a happy one. Lots of family, celebrations, little outings and special moments — exactly the kind of ordinary things that make life feel pretty wonderful.

What’s one little thing you’re thankful for this week? 🤍

#thankfulthursdays❤️ #feelingblessed❤️ #feelingblessed❤️ #gratefuleveryday❤️
#thankfulthursday🙏

When we talk about preparing for retirement, the c

When we talk about preparing for retirement, the conversation usually starts with money.

And of course, our finances matter enormously.

But there’s another part of retirement planning I think deserves a little more attention — "our home".

As we move into this next stage of life, many of us will spend more time at home. We may entertain more, take up new hobbies, have family visit, spend more time in the garden or simply enjoy slower mornings without somewhere we need to rush off to.

So perhaps the question isn’t “Is my home beautiful enough?”

It’s “Does my home support the way I want to live?”

For us, many of the changes we’ve been making aren't about creating a perfect house. They're about making our home more functional, comfortable and enjoyable for the life we see ourselves living in the years ahead.

Better storage. Spaces that are easier to use. Areas where we can gather with family and friends. Places to work on things we enjoy. And, yes, making our home feel beautiful to us too.

Because retirement planning isn't only about making sure we have enough money to live.

It’s also about thinking about how we actually want to live.🤍

I’m exploring this idea in the latest article in my Retirement Reflections series:

"Why Creating a Home You Love Could Be the Best Retirement Decision You Ever Make"

You can read the full article on A Joyful Ordinary Life — link in bio.

#ʀᴇᴛɪʀᴇᴍᴇɴᴛᴘʟᴀɴɴɪɴɢ #retirementlifestyle💗 #lifeafterwork❤️ #retirementconversations #planningforretirement

A beautiful table doesn’t have to mean buying ever

A beautiful table doesn’t have to mean buying everything new. 🤍

For this large family gathering, I wanted the table to feel special without creating a whole lot of extra work — or expense.

So I started with what I already had.

An unopened pair of IKEA curtains became the tablecloth (yes, really! 😂), my collection of vintage crystal vases ran down the centre, and I mixed white dinnerware, two sets of cutlery and even two different colours of napkins.

A little muslin, fairy lights, simple white flowers and touches of my favourite pink and green brought everything together.

Nothing was perfectly matched. Most of it wasn’t new. And I think that’s exactly why I loved it.

Creating a beautiful table isn’t about having fourteen matching place settings — it’s about making the people gathering around it feel welcome. 🤍

I’m sharing all the details, along with my simple approach to entertaining a crowd, in “How to Create a Beautiful Neutral Tablescape Your Guests Will Love” on A Joyful Ordinary Life.

Head to the link in my bio to read the full post.

#neutraltablescape #tablescapeideas #tablestylingideas #ᴇɴᴛᴇʀᴛᴀɪɴɪɴɢᴀᴛʜᴏᴍᴇ #hostingathome

A beautiful table doesn’t need to be complicated —

A beautiful table doesn’t need to be complicated — even when you’re feeding a crowd. 🤍

For this large gathering, I wanted one long, neutral tablescape, but finding tablecloths long enough was proving to be a challenge.

Enter my "IKEA curtains" to save the day! 🙌

Used as tablecloths, they gave me the length and soft, relaxed look I wanted without spending a fortune on oversized table linen. Sometimes the best entertaining ideas have absolutely nothing to do with entertaining! 😂

From there, I kept everything else simple — layers of white, natural textures and greenery repeated along the length of the table to make it feel cohesive, welcoming and just a little bit special.

When you’re setting a table for lots of people, I think repetition rather than complication is the secret. You don’t need dozens of different decorations. A few simple elements repeated down the table can create plenty of impact.

And, of course, leave room for the food, the wine and all those elbows!

Because in the end, it’s not about the perfect tablescape. It’s about creating a beautiful place for everyone to gather, eat, talk and laugh together. 🤍

And if that means raiding the curtain department for your tablecloths…I’m all for it! 😂

#ikeahacking #ikeafinds #NeutralTablescape #HostingAtHome #simpletablescape

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