I thought I had this year all figured out. In fact, I had nearly everything laid out in perfect order - right down to the potential tours we wanted to go on, the budgets we would need to stick to in order to get everything done, and the potential dates for moving back to Australia and getting ready for the yet-to-be-organised wedding.

I even had things written on a calendar. And in my diary. And let me just say, I don't put just ANY old thing in my diary. What goes in that diary, tends to stay there. I hate scribbling things out and making a mess. Hate.

Jase and I have always had our own little pet project when it comes to looking but not touching. For me, that's been wedding planning: in secret for a few years, and then more openly once the engagement came about. For Jase, it was property. He loves keeping an eye on the latest markets, and watching the trends and prices of suburbs back home in Sydney, where we'll eventually end up. The problem with looking but not touching is just that - you're seeing all of these amazing and promising ventures, but you know you're just not in the position to do anything about them just yet.

They say everything happens in its own time; for us, that time appears to be now - about a year earlier than predicted. We discovered a vacant block of land available in a suburb that we have always been interested in. (Long back story: choosing a potential area to live in is so much harder than it looks. Really.) It's completely empty, it's in a lovely street and it's been on the market for a little while now, which leaves us the potential to haggle with pricing. And it's fabulous. Just fabulous.

So, we're following it through and will see where it takes us. It might not work out. We might be pipped to the post, or the asking price may not get to where we want it to be. There might be problems, or random circumstances that stop this little venture before it even starts. But on the other hand, it might just be the one. And if that happens, the rest of this year and all of my carefully thrown dates and plans will be thrown to the wind, and we'll have a whole lot of other things to think about.

Cross your fingers for us - it's going to be a long and possibly drawn out couple of weeks. I just think I'm going to need a bigger diary!

I woke up in a really average mood today.

It was dark, it was rainy, and it felt like I'd just gone to bed a few hours before - even though I'd actually had more than enough sleep. I grumbled about having to get up. I grumbled when I couldn't find my favourite pair of jeans. I grumbled about having to go out. I grumbled about the tube lines being closed. I grumbled when my substitute jeans ended up sopping wet from the puddles of rainwater on the ground.

In short, I was a real catch to hang around with this morning.

We were headed for brunch in a gastropub near Tower Bridge, where I splurged on the most amazing breakfast of french toast & banana with maple syrup. This was followed by a walk in the rain to the nearby Borough Market, with mulled wine & amazing food - not the best place to come with a full stomach because everything smells so fresh and amazing, all you want to do is eat. Again.

Soon after that, we found ourselves in an old school bowling alley, where I was reminded of my less than stellar ability to throw a ball down a lane. Jason thrashed my score, as per usual, though I held it together with none of my trademark stomping or sulking; I must be outgrowing it. Well, either that, or I didn't want to frighten the other patrons. Lots of chatting and a few pitchers of beer later, I decided that Jason and I would make a whole day of it, so we headed out to Nando's for grilled chicken in Notting Hill.

It was still raining on the way home, but this time around there was no grumbling.

Sometimes, dragging yourself out for brunch in the rain can make all the difference to an otherwise miserable morning.

Today …

I woke up and looked out the window to see everything covered in white.

I may or may not have freaked out when my iPhone got stuck on a black screen of doom. It's fixed now, thanks to Google.

I had cereal for breakfast AND dinner, and loved it.

I started something new, though I'm not ready to go into details on that.. yet!

I had a stranger compliment my engagement ring during the tube ride home.

I stood outside in the cold with snow in my hair taking pictures like a crazy person.

How was your Wednesday?

That's the thing about starting a new year... sometimes it just flies on ahead and leaves you clamouring behind it to catch up. The holidays are over and the first week back at work is done. I have no doubt that I'll wake up tomorrow and it'll suddenly be February. Or something.

London's had some very wintery weather these past few days. We had snow snow, lots of ice and freezing conditions, which made for fun days catching public transport into work. (When I say fun, I actually mean 'just a trifle challenging'.) It's supposed to stay cold this weekend, but I think the worst is over for now. Sad. I would've quite liked a snow day this time around. The last time London had heavy snow, I was at home in Sydney waiting for my Visa.

Today marks six months since J popped the question in Prague. Six months! I haven't done a smidge of wedding planning in that time either, unless you count scouring the web looking at things I can't physically touch. Although, there are only three months to go until I head on a plane and zoom down under for my two week visit home - so maybe I'll be able to work on the whole wedding thing yet!

J and I have already spent quite a bit of time doing some planning for the year ahead, which is looking to be pretty monumental right now. It's too early to say what we'll end up doing this year, but I'm very much looking forward to it. Good times all round. So how's your 2010 been treating you so far?

So with the New Year already blasted into being in most parts of the Southern Hemisphere, and with only a few hours until we celebrate* here in London, it's time to look ahead to the future. Mainly for myself, but also to share with anyone who is still here reading the ramblings - you can be my conscience!

Without further ado, here are my resolutions epic plans for 2010.

Blog

I've definitely let my blogging slide this year, which is a bit disappointing. To go from being a daily blogger for a number of years with quite a few followers and blog friends - to the occasional post when I remember, is incredibly slack. I'm not saying that I'll be returning to blogging daily next year, because, let's face it, I won't be but I will be more regular. That's a promise.

2010 will also likely see me return to my old wordpress account, as I just can't justify the money involved in self hosting at the moment. And seeing as I'll be saving for other things (... see below!) I think it's a sacrifice that makes sense. It won't be any time soon, but when my hosting is up for renewal, I'll let you know so you can adjust your feeds once more.

And lastly, I will definitely be making more an effort to get back into commenting this year. I've turned into a super lurker - I have a habit of letting my blogreader get the better of me, and then end up reading without chatting, which I hate doing. If you haven't heard from me in a while, I hope that will change soon.

Travel

Work has been the big priority for both Jase and I last year, and having Oscar has made it trickier to drop everything and go! This year, there are a few things in the works - and while it involves quite a lot of cash and forward planning, it potentially covers quite a few countries I've been meaning to visit in the last few years.

High hopes at the moment are to head back to Europe, maybe a little more of Scandinavia, revisiting Scotland, checking out Ireland/Wales and maybe even popping across to Canada, if we're lucky. I already have a two week visit back to Sydney, Australia, booked and paid off for April, so that's a start. I'm so excited!

Health

It's pretty cliche, but I'm determined to get on with it this year. I've ended up at around the same weight, if not a little squishier, than this time last year. I wish I had something to blame it on that would justify that, but unfortunately I don't. It's just laziness. I joined a great gym, have been involved in some great classes that I do pretty regularly on a weekly basis (Aqua & Spin!) but I just haven't had the drive.

Seeing as the goal for setting a wedding date is going to likely be in 2011, that leaves me with a whole year to get myself into shape. No, it's not just for the future wedding, but that's as good as an incentive as any to get my arse into gear and shed what I need to shed. Before I moved to the UK I lost a good deal of weight by recording what I was eating and starting a running program, though I developed pretty severe shin splints in the process that still haunt me now.

This time around, I'll do the food journals mixed with other regular exercise at my gym, and stick with it. That's the goal. I'm not going to count calories, per say, although I may end up doing that if it becomes a habit. And I'm not going to set up any extreme exercise goals, because I'll just set myself up to fail and give up (again). Instead, I want to aim for 2-3 times a week at the gym, supplemented with whatever else I feel like doing after that. The most important thing that I've learned about myself is the ability to self sabotage my efforts. This year, if I have an off day, I intend to just write it all down (yes, all of it!) and keep chugging along.

Of course, it's always positive to have something to work towards - so I have my own little personal achievement I want to hit. The first is to have some progress by April, which is when I'm heading home to Sydney. Thanks to our new Wii Fit, I have a rough idea of my weight & (dreadful) BMI, so I'll be using this to keep a track. I don't have a set number or figure. I just want to see a difference from the beginning. Pretty broad goal, I know, but that's what I'm starting with.

Read

I'm a big reader at the best of times, but in the latter part of 2009, I found myself flying through books at a crazy pace! To combat this, my new favourite resource are Oxfam, Hospice & Charity Stores, where I can rehome secondhand books at a fraction of the price - and can then give them a new home once I'm done.

This year, I really want to keep on reading at that frantic pace. I have at least a dozen unread books sitting on my bookshelf ready and raring to go, as well as a few old faithful's (why hello, Harry Potter) that I'm itching to start over with. Can't wait!

This will be my last blog post for 2009. I hope there will be many more to come!

*celebrate = try to stay awake until midnight, but will most likely fail.