Unspoken Conversations are the topics that are often swept under the carpet, whispered amongst the closest of friends and bitched about by many. I want to create awareness about difficult things that people face in life; grief, mental health, money, illnesses, family troubles, relationship difficulties and putting yourself first. I want to tell the truth about things that really matter.

Wednesday 31 October 2012

The Girl Behind the Blog - Vlog

Yup I've just had to madly race around my bedroom to find bras to chuck on while in my PJs so that I could jump on the chance to join the link up party and create a video blog about 3 things I couldn't go without in a day.

5ohwifey

 

I hope you get a giggle!

Believe it or not but after Mick's bashful appearance he tried to make me record it again, and again, and again...talk about show pony...but I stuck with the original - mwaaa aaaa ahhhh!

Here goes, Aussie accent and all... you may have to turn your head to the side (yup, I'm a goober!)



What 3 things do you need to get you through your day?

Look after yourself and those around you,

 Kirsty xxx


Tuesday 30 October 2012

A Fijian Taught Me...

I had an ahhhhhh ha moment in Fiji. You know one of those moments when someone says something and it really pulls your heart strings and just makes sense?

A Fijian told me this story.

One day a white man came to the shores of Fiji in his boat. He saw a black man up a tree. He said to the man "what are you doing?" The man replied, "collecting coconuts to trade at the markets." The white man asked him why he didn't use a wheelborrow to carry more coconuts to the markets so that he could make more money. If he did this, he'd be able to hire someone to collect the coconts for him. Then when he had enough money, he could open a factory, where he could use the milk from the coconut for coconut oil, the flesh for expensive balms, the husks for souviners and the coconut leaves for weaving. Then, of course, the black man could retire happily and relax in his mansion by the beach. The Fijian replied "why would I want to do that when I am already living in paradise and I'm already relaxed?"
What do you think the moral to the story is?

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxxx 

Monday 29 October 2012

Operation Christmas Child - Help Me Help Kids Overseas

Do you love buying presents for others?
Have you always wanted to volunteer and help those who are less fortunate then you?
Do you L-O-V-E Christmas and can't bare the thought of someone not having any pressies to open up on Christmas morning?
Then I need you.
The presents go to South East Asia and the South Pacific. If you need a heart warmer, check out the kids faces as they open the packages! 
Follow the easy steps below to create your shoebox and email me at kirsty.arnold88@gmail.com for the drop off point.
 
For tips on what to and not to include in your box, click here. 
Sorry about the tight turn around but I will need them dropped off to me by Wednesday the 10th of November.
I'm really excited!

Help me make little kids christmas day fun and memorable!
Look after yourself and those around you,
Kirsty xxxx 

Going the Distance

Via



My partner and I lived 700kms apart for 4 years; that's a 7 hour roaddddd trip, $200 plane flight, ginormous phone bills and a lot of tears apart.

Yes, I resorted to cuddling my pillow for comfort at night during that time.

People go the distance for all different reasons. Some are married to military men and women who bravely fight for their countries overseas, some partners work away at the mines, and some people like me, grow up in the country and need to ship on out to the big smoke for university, leaving their partner behind.


The pros and cons of going the distance:

Pros

  • The sex is amazing when you see each other, I mean, you really learn to appreciate each other.
  • You learn to build a relationship on communication ( make sure you have a great phone plan!)
  • For us, I got to live the whole uni student i-cant-afford-rent-but-i-can-afford-alcohol lifestyle in Adelaide shaking my booty at the clubs while mick got to enjoy the bachelor life where gasp, I-don't-even-want-to-know-what-he-got-up-to lifestyle with the boys
  • You may be doing it to support your partners dreams and they will be forever grateful for that
  • You get more time with your friends
  • It may mean that you can be a stay at home mum (which let's face it, is pretty much a luxury these days) because your partner has chosen to move away to make some serious moolah
Cons
  • Couples things are tricky because on one hand you don't want to miss out but at the same time they make you slightly green with envy
  • You miss them like crazy and it only gets harder the more time that you spend apart
  • The risk of drifting apart because you are living such different lives
  • Massive phone bills
  • Becoming a born again virgin (depending on how often you see each other of course)

Going the distance sucks balls, but I wouldn't change the 4 years that my partner ans i spent apart for anything; it's helped to shape the strong relationship that we have today.

We definitely don't take the little things for granted like getting to have a sleep over with your best friend every night or cuddling on the couch.

Have you ever gone the distance?

What do you love/hate about it?

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxxx

Sunday 28 October 2012

The Life of a Mormon.


I stumbled upon SarahJane's blog Just the Two of Us the other day and instantly fell in love. Being the life learner that I am, I knew straight away that I wanted her to do a blog post for me on life as a mormon, so that I could learn more about!

I am guest posting over at SarahJane's blog today! Check it out. 


Hey there. My name is SarahJane and I blog over at Just the Two of Us
We would love for you to stop by sometime and read about our adventures. 


When Kirsty asked me to do a guest post for her about
All Things Mormon, I was really excited!
I have been a member of 
my entire life. 
I love any opportunity I can get to share what I believe to be true. 

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Today I am going to share with you a few of our core beliefs. 
If you would like to learn more, 
you can visit the Church's website
or leave a comment below and I will surely get back to you :)

5 core principles of the LDS Church

1. We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ 
and in the Holy Ghost. 
We refer to these three as the Godhead. 
All three members of the Godhead are distinct beings with distinct roles 
but they are one with purpose and doctrine. 

2. We believe in the same organization that existed when Christ was upon the earth. 
Our church is the true restored church of Jesus Christ. 
We believe there was an apostasy for many years 
where the church was taken away from the earth. 
We believe it was restored to the earth in 1830
 through the first Latter-Day Prophet, Joseph Smith. 

3. We believe that we have a prophet on the earth today just like 
the prophets in the bible.  Our Prophet is President Thomas S. Monson, he receives revelation
from God to direct the members of the Church on earth. 
You can read more about current revelation during our bi-annual General Conference.

4. We believe Temples to be the house of God. 
We visit them often to complete Ordinances and make covenants with God. 
My husband and I were married in the Salt Lake temple. 
By obedience to the covenants we made with God that day, 
we can be an eternal family. 

5. We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved. 
We believe when Christ was on the earth, he atoned for our sins. 
Because of this atonement, Christ is our redeemer and Savior. 
He is the light and the way to live with our Heavenly Father again. 
Through Christ, we can have eternal life.  

All five of these principles are taken from our 13 Articles of Faith
You can visit the link if you would like to learn more about our core beliefs. 

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Thanks Kirsty for letting me steal your blog for the day!!
Make sure you come stop by and visit me :)

Thursday 25 October 2012

Why Everyone Should Visit a Developing Country.

Two gorgeous Cambodian kids proudly showing us a spider that they caught!


I think that everyone can learn something from developing countries.

Yup, that's right, in my opinion, developed countries should take a leaf out of developing countries books.

What made me think this?

Two years ago I travelled to Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Let me tell you, it was a life changing experience, but maybe not for the reasons that you thought.

Yes, it was a shock to see rubbish lying around, power lines that were out of control, houses made of styrofoam boxes, corrugated iron, bamboo, coconut leaves and anything they could get their hands on, the Mekong River that was used for washing, cleaning and drinking, popping squats over toilet seats, no footpaths and side curbs, and all that jazz that we take for granted here in Australia.

 It was easy to feel "sorry" for them, because of the way that they lived. BUT when you looked past those things, you saw the true beauty of these places, and the HUGE smiles on the locals faces.

The houses along the Mekong.

While we were on a long boat, speeding along the Mekong in Cambodia to see the sunset, I asked our tour guide, "are these people happy?"

 Without blinking an eyelid he replied "of course - they have their homes, their family and their health, what more could they want?"

Some of the sights we saw along the Mekong in Cambodia.

It was in that moment that I thought about what I would say if a Cambodian came to Australia and asked me the same question "are these people happy?" (as they looked around them seeing us in nice cars, HUGE houses and dressed in flashy clothes). 

Little children would wrap snakes around their necks and beg for money.

It got me thinking, what constitutes happiness? What should we all aspire to? Are we any happier if we are surrounded by nice things?

Are developed countries happier then developing countries?

I think you'd find that many Aussies who have flashy cars and nice homes are up to their eyeballs in debt and probably stressed out of their brain about making their next mortgage repayment. 

Should we feel sorry for developing countries or should developing countries feel sorry for us?

What developing countries worry about and appreciate.


What developed countries worry about and appreciate.
Or maybe, just maybe, developed countries have learnt to love what they have, and aren't always thinking that the grass is greener if I had such and such.

What do you think?

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxxx


Wednesday 24 October 2012

Happy Birthday Mum!

To the amazingly strong, beautiful, giggle pot who bought me into this world, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

I don't think it's until you move out of home that you truly appreciate your mum. I only get to see mum every 3 months now if I'm lucky and I can't wait to move closer to drop round for free food  I mean, see her more often when we move home.

So to mum, sorry that I have given you a few grey hairs over the years, but I love you so incredibly much and appreciate your hugs and giggles more than anything!
 
Do you think we look alike?

Mum and me in Fiji, sailing out to the islands!

Mum on the far right for my sisters hens weekend!

Me, Mum and Mick being silly goobers!
Anddddd, if I could afford flowers, I'd send you these

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxx 

Suicidal at 14...

Me and my husband

Today I welcome the very brave and courageous lady Jess to my blog to discuss her experience with depression.
The super scary fact - depression amongst children is becoming more and more prevalent - and at ages that would scare the pants off of you. Take it away Jess... 
I was diagnosed with Depression & Social Phobia in October 2002.

When I was finally diagnosed, it felt like there had been a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, like I could almost breathe again. It finally gave me a name to “what was wrong with me”.

I was 14.

What is depression? It is a chemical imbalance of the brain. It made it so hard to function, but in conjunction with social phobia it was horrendous. 
 Social phobia stopped me from getting out, enjoying life, being a teenager!
 I always felt like people were watching me, criticising me for what I was doing, who I was with or what I was wearing. 
I became a recluse. 
I used to pull “sickies” at school because I couldn’t handle being around people. Being constantly bullied, harassed and picked on. I struggled to tell my group of friends that I had been diagnosed with depression, as I was always seen as the strong one. If any of my friends had problems, they came to me, because they knew I would help. Sadly though, no one realised I was in need, that I was struggling and that I needed their help.
 In my journey, I tried many anti depressant medications. The first one was Zoloft. This medication had no effect, so after a few weeks, I was switched to another medication. The next one was Luvox, which looked like it might have had potential... Then the change came, I became so much worse. 
I stopped eating, sleeping and I would stay up all night writing morbid poetry and self harming. 
I then hit breaking point at the end of November 2002, I took an overdose of panamax paracetamol. I didn’t know it wouldn’t kill me... Only make me very sick. That night, I tried to take my own life. I got scared, and decided I didn’t want to die. I told mum... I fear, that night would have been the thing out of worst nightmares for mum. I was taken to the emergency department of the local hospital and had to drink charcoal and be hooked up to drips and all stuff...
 I remember the doctor on call was from Tumby bay, the same doctor who delivered me, just over 14 years before hand. His reaction I will never forget. The treatment I received from some nurses was appalling, others was fantastic... It was support. My doctor, also from Tumby Bay, told me to bed over the bed so he could kick my bum! 
I made some amazing friends while in hospital... People that I never expected to care came to see me... I even had one mum climb in to my bed with me and cuddle me after I’d met her briefly twice!

I spent 3 nights in hospital, my medication was changed to Effexor XR. I spent alot of time in the school chaplains office, talking, crying and learning how to smile again! This medication worked wonderfully... Until I’d been on it for a few months and decided myself I was “all better”... I was “all better” for about a month. I went cold turkey off the medication. I had head spins and felt sick in the stomach, but once I came down, I felt really good... For a month... Then the world came crashing back down on me! I went back on the medication, and tried the 75 mg again... to no avail... I then tried 150mg, with no success and finally ended up on 225mg a day which finally worked! 
I learnt after that, no going off the medication without the doctor pushing for it! After a while on the medication I went on a “drug holiday” I was so excited! It involved being put on another medication, whilst weening off the Effexor XR. Once weened, I was on Lexapro for a few weeks, slowly decreasing the dosage till nothing... Eventually I was “drug free” and I did alright, but by this stage I knew the warning signs and knew when to put my hand up and ask for help! I ended up having to ask for help again after 3 months off the medication and I was then put on Cipramil.

I spent 4 years on cipramil. My doctor said to me in the early days, The recovery from depression is 25% medication, 25% support network and 50% myself, fighting the disease and learning from it.

I found some amazing people during my lowest times, and I still hold them close to my heart.

Depression is awful, and it is a disease I don’t wish upon anyone, but I wouldn’t change my battle with it for anything!
It has made me stronger and more aware.

Today, in October 2012 I was diagnosed almost 10 years ago with depression and social phobia.

I have been off the medication for 5 years now.

I am married, have the most amazingly beautiful 3 year old daughter and 12 year old step daughter. I work hard to support my family. I have achieved things that I would never have been able to do 10 years ago.
My gorgeous daughter

I have my moments still. When everything gets all too much and I have to take a step back, I think back to where I’ve been, and how far I’ve come!

My advice.

Be patient, recovery doesn’t happen overnight, but it does eventually happen!

Learn the warning signs, don’t ignore them!

Support those around you in need.

Dont judge!

Watch for changed behaviors in family, friends and co workers.

Don't joke or tease someone regarding their decisions whilst suffering with depression.

Depression cane happen to anyone, from any background, it does not discriminate!

And above all, don’t be ashamed to ask for help!
Jess x


Tuesday 23 October 2012

My Weekend of Fancy Frivolities in Melbourne!


Every girl LOVES to dress up. I mean, even I, the country bogan who lately has been spending my weekends covered in paint splatters renovating, LOVES the excuse to get dressed up.

So hell yes did I jump on the chance to buy a new dress, curl my hair, whack a fascinator in, unplait my legs hairs and shave, and replace my thongs with heels to place bets on the horses at the Caulfield Cup in Melbourne.

Hello netty trip!

While I didn't pick a winner, I had fun watching the single ladies use their sashes as a pick up line, catching some vitamin D, and telling the jockeys to "whip it, whip it realllll good!"

It was soooo was fun! We also managed to cram in some retail therapy, a massage, and a pub crawl along the river, with a mixture of pints of cider and shots!

Check out the gorgeous girls who helped to make my weekend!

Me, Anna, Camille, Ash and Em all dressed up and ready to bust out at the races!

The girls all looking g-l-a-m-o-r-o-u-s!

Me!!!!

What better way to spend a Sunday session then with these girls drinking cider and shots!

$50 for all of this! I almost felt like I was shop lifting haha!
How did you spend your weekend?

Look after yourself and those around you,

Kirsty xxx