What I Got For My 20th Birthday // Birthday Haul

As some of you may know, it was my birthday on the 1st July (this is a little late but hey, better late than never) and I was spoilt with so many lovely gifts! 
I love reading 'What I got for my Birthday' blog posts so I figured I may as well share for any of you nosy curious readers who are like me ;)
I'll try and link where possible.

From my Parents:
Cotton On Body Order- I had been browsing online at Cotton On Body and filled up a wishful shopping cart of goodies which Mum and Dad offered to pay for, for my birthday. I chose some bralettes, socks, a dressing gown, some PJ pants, a flannel, a grey t-shirt dress and some black ugg boots. It was so lovely and I had even forgotten most of the things I'd picked so I was still surprised.

Black Leather Boots- These gorgeous (and super comfortable) black boots which are actually from the horse riding shop that my little sister gets her riding boots from - I'm lucky that shes growing bigger than me because I also inherited a pair of her brown boots as well.They are such a staple and very good quality.

Lonely Planet 'Europe on a Shoestring' Book- My parents bought me this fantastic guide to help the planning of a Europe trip that Bryce and I are hoping to take at some point in the next year and a half. I have the travel bug bad and after having a quick flip through this book, it only makes me more excited to hop on a plane and explore!
Globe Stress ball- I'm a stresshead and a dreamer...and also horrible at geography so this was perfect.
60 Sheets of Polaroid Film- I'm obsessed with taking Polaroids on my Fujifilm Instax camera but the film is just so expensive so I was stoked to open this and get snapping.

From Bryce:
Pandora Black Leather Bracelet- I am obsessed with this beautiful bracelet which I think I'll wear without any charms because I love the simplicity of it by itself.
Miss Shop 'Stud Trim Trilby' Black Hat- I actually already own this hat but it is falling apart because of how much I wear it so I was stoked to see a brand spankin' new one!

Lipstik 'Top Hat' Boots- These are so gorgeous and again, a staple black boot. I haven't worn them out yet so I'm not sure how comfortable they will be but they felt good when I tried them on.

Cotton On Vest & Sports Bras / Water Bottles- These Triumph Sports Bras are so comfy (and come with a free water bottle each - bonus!) and the vest is super warm.

From Emma (Sister):
Pandora 'Darling Daisies' Spacer, Undies, Mini Nivea Deodorant, Mini Nivea Moisturizer- Em chose this particular Pandora charm for my silver Pandora bracelet because this year was the birthday that we had a ton of flowers floating around the house after Mum and I went to the flower markets.

From Sally (Sister):
'Secret Garden' Colouring book by Johanna Basford, Chi Chi Makeup Blending Sponge, Bonds Undies, Mini Nivea Deodorant, Mini Nivea Face Wipes- I've heard so many great things about intricate colouring books and as a babysitter I have a lot of practice and find it one of the most relaxing things to do, I can't wait to fill this book! I've never tried the Chi Chi sponges before but I use the Real Techniques blending sponge and I love it so this will be great to use so I don't have to wash them as often.

From some Family & Friends:
Undies, Socks and Mini Perfume- My friends Sally and Maryanne bought me this little pack of some undies from Bras n Things, some socks and a miniature perfume of Katy Perrys 'Meow' which I have the full size of and love.

Toiletries- Wendy, Emily and Abby made up a little gift of some classic stock-ups! This Herbal Essences duo are my all-time favourite shampoo and conditioner (they smell absolutely amazing) and the rest of the products are just fantastic to have.

Necklaces- My Aunty and cousins gave me these two gorgeous necklaces from Lovisa and some money to treat myslef. I love both of them, especially the bar one.

MAC 'Shy Girl', Bondi Sands Tanning Foam, Lush 'Phoenix Rising' Bath Bombs, Scunci Bun Maker, Colour Theory Mascara, Bobby Pins, Ellure Fake Lashes- I was contacted by the lovely Bec from 'Bec and Beauty' a few days before my birthday to let me know that I had won a birthday giveaway that she had run so I thought I would include the goodies in this post. When Bec found out it was my birthday on the 1st she express posted the parcel so it would arrive on my birthday and even included a little card in it (seriously so sweet). She asked me which MAC lipstick I would like and I requested 'Shy Girl' which is a lovely nude colour and the perfect shade to have as my first ever MAC product!
Check out her blog here, her content is fabulous and she is such a great person. Thanks again Bec!

From Tiarney:

'Secret Garden' Colouring Book by Johanna Basford & Textas/Pencils- I'm going to swap this over for another colouring book (there's a mandala one that looks beautiful) because Tiarney and Sal bought me the same one (it's all good with them for me to swap one over). She also bought me some Faber Castel textas and pencils to use which is fantastic!

Kikki K 'Textured Leather Pencil Case'- Okay seriously, is this not the most gorgeous pencil case? I had been eyeing this off for quite a while so I was so happy to get this!

Cotton On Body Tracksuit Pants, 'Granny Takes a Dip' Lush Bath Bomb, 'Honey I Washed The Kids' Lush Shower Gel & Undies- She knows me so well! I can't wait to try out the lush stuff.

'Boom Boom Balloon' Game- We have seen this on Youtube when Joey Graceffa did this video on his channel, and thought it looked like fun so I cannot wait to give this a go!

Metallic Temporary Tattoos- I can't wait for Summer to test these babies out. The designs of all of them are so gorgeous and I think the pop of blue with the gold is stunning (and blue is my favourite colour).

I felt so so special this year and have been truly spoilt rotten with all the lovely gifts. There were a few more people who also gave me presents which I love but I didn't have some of them when I took the photos. 

Thank you to everyone who made my birthday one of the best ones yet, I am so grateful to have such fabulous people in my life.

If you are curious as to what I got up to on my actual birthday, I did a post on it here.

I'd love to hear the best present you have ever received in the comments below.

-Caitie xx

My 20th Birthday

Guys, I am officially no longer a teenager! On the 1st of July I turned 20 and had such a lovely time celebrating my birthday. I know this post is a little late (I actually ended up in hospital with appendicitis the day after my birthday which has definitely set me back a bit) but better late than never! I am going to do a separate post sharing all of the lovely pressies that I was spoilt with, but for now; here is how I celebrated!

Get ready for a whole bunch o' photos.

On the Friday Mum and I woke up at 4am and headed out to Sydney markets to grab some flowers to decorate the house and we managed to find a ton of gorgeous flowers that we made into bouquets at home. It was such a lovely experience and although I was super tired, it was definitely worth it to see behind the scenes of the Sydney florist industry.

All up, this whole lot of flowers cost us around $100 - absolute bargain!

On the Sunday before  my birthday (28th) I had an afternoon tea with some family and close friends where we played games and ate some of my favorite foods- it was such a great time and I haven't seen some of the guests in a really long time so it was so nice catching up. We played Heads Up (an app similar to charades), Pictionary (which I had surprisingly never played before), Spoons and enjoyed snacking all afternoon.

Is there anything better than a good cheese platter?

 

They may not look that great, but my Mum's beef goulash pies are DELICIOUS! (and we got these adorable chalkboards from Kmart for $2 each!)

On the day before my birthday I decided to treat myself to a wash, cut & blow-dry at the hairdressers and just as I was about to walk out the door, Mum surprised me with a gift voucher to get it all done which she had planned to give to me for my birthday before she even knew that I was getting it done beforehand! I decided to go for a big change and chop it shorter than I've ever had it before which I'm still not 100% sold on, but it feels so healthy and is really easy to look after so I'm loving that aspect. I didn't really get any nice 'before and after' photos but you can see the short hair in the following photos from my actual birthday.

I woke up on the 1st to pressies from Bryce and my family and then breakfast in bed (french toast with strawberries, banana and maple syrup) with freshly squeezed orange juice - a tradition in my family. 

After getting dressed and ready Bryce and I picked up Tiarney and we took the train into the city to go to 'The Grounds of Alexandria'. The Grounds is basically every instagrammers dream, with flowers stalls, various cafes, fresh donuts and gorgeous plants everywhere you look. 

 They even have a petting zoo with resident pig 'Kevin Bacon' and 'Turbo' the Shetland pony, as well as chickens and goats.

We ate lunch at 'The Potting Shed' which was themed as an actual shed/green house. There was tons of natural light, plants, and garden-y bits and bobs all around (water hoses to dispense the drinks behind the bar, shovel heads as plates and drinks served in pots anyone?).

Bryce and I shared some garlic bread, some pork ribs, and a pulled pork burger with chips - all delicious! 

All three of us chose different drinks, I had a raspberry lemonade, Bryce a lemon lime bitters and Tiarney some type of citrus blend. The drinks were all made on site I believe and tasted so fresh.

While we were eating, one of the workers happened to sit at the bar next to us and brought Fluffy with him. Fluffy lives at The Potting Shed and is the most beautiful Macaw who was dancing, talking and eating out of the workers hand. After admiring for a while, the girl behind the bar offered for me to have a hold- it was awesome.

On the way out we walked past the 'dog parking' area and I couldn't resist giving this adorable sausage dog some love!

I had wanted to go to Bondi Westfield to do some shopping too but time seemed to go very fast and we only got a chance to have food and a stroll around.

On the way back to the train station we found a massive antique store which we had a quick look in.

We headed back home and I had a package was waiting for me from the lovely Bec from Bec and Beauty whose giveaway I had won and she then sent it express so it would arrive in time for my birthday. I will include the goodies in my 'What I got for my Birthday' post but I was very excited to rip straight into it. She even included a little birthday card which was such a beautiful touch- Thanks Bec!

My family went out to a Lebanese restaurant for dinner and then I went back home to watch some more Orange is the New Black. 

All in all, I had an absolutely lovely day and felt very special amongst all the birthday wishes and love from the people in my life.
Thanks to everyone who made it such a great day.

-Caitie xx