About Me...

“IT IS GOOD TO HAVE AN END TO JOURNEY TOWARD; BUT IT IS THE JOURNEY THAT MATTERS, IN THE END." - Ernest Hemingway

Family Skiing

HELLO LOVELY READER, THANKS FOR STOPPING BY! 

I’m Holly – Wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend. Avid explorer, lover of all things creative and seeker of beauty & small joys to appreciate amidst the often chaotic minutiae of everyday life… 

This blog is about the little things that make me smile, fill up my world, and bring me happiness (or headaches). It’s about Life, Love & the Lessons I’m learning along the way. It’s my antidote to the burnout & depression I suffered almost 2 years ago, that led to a long road of recovery… As much a roadmap for myself as for anyone else!

It is a mindful approach to life, a reminder of what’s important and of the person I aspire to be. Through my stories and posts, I’m hoping to spread a little bit of LOVELYness  Welcome to my world 🙂

I currently live in beautiful Austria. We moved here a few years ago after spending 8 sunny years in New Zealand; prior to that we lived in Wales & a few other countries thrown in for good measure – as you can see it’s not been a very straightforward road!

My husband, “Mr Fix It” & I have 2 delightful (only occasionally frightful) daughters and a very loving & loveable Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. We have been doing our very best to raise our girls to be kind, lovely, thoughtful, inquisitive young ladies, with a passion for learning, an appreciation of beauty, a resourceful nature and a respect for our world & the people around us.

As much as I’d like to think of my life as my own – to do as I please, make my own decisions & follow through on my plans, that is very often not the case with our two leading ladies. Being a parent is definitely the biggest blessing & the greatest joy, but at times it is also extremely challenging. I absolutely aspire to enjoy the whole ride, however, occasionally the wheels do fall off the wagon…

Nevertheless, our girls have taught me some of my greatest lessons, for which I am eternally grateful – I wouldn’t be who or where I am without them. They’ll no doubt feature in many of my stories. My leading man, Mr Fix It, will also be making regular appearances (if only to solve my occasional technical dilemmas, help me bring my projects to life & keep me grounded as a parent), so I thought I’d introduce them all.

A little more about me if you’re interested…

I have been writing journals & letters for as long as I can remember and have always enjoyed having a blank page, another chapter to begin, a new book to write… (I originally started a slightly different version of this blog almost 10 years ago, but life, a full time job & several house moves got in the way!) Having the opportunity to explore & create something new has been the story of my life, collecting wonderful memories along the way and a handful of lovely people who I carry with me in my heart wherever we go.

Looking back, I can define my life as a series of  different chapters in numerous locations around the world, that have all come together to bring me to where I am now… Steve Jobs was onto something when he said:

You can’t connect the dots looking forward: you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” 

I’m a firm believer in small miracles & happy endings… I also believe that random acts of kindness can have immense power. I always enjoy heartwarming stories, whether in a good book, a great movie or in everyday life – to me that is LOVELYness.

I love flowers, sunny days, seasonal changes, long walks on the beach (or nowadays in the mountains), exploring new places, jogging in the morning, being on the water and quiet days at home. I also love baking, cross-stitching, playing the piano, jigsaws & boardgames, art, music, interior design & architecture, fireworks, all things colour (especially pink), cuddles and more than anything the sound of our girls’ infectious laughter – simple pleasures!

Another thing that makes me extremely happy is to have great friends around the dinner table or a room full of our nearest and dearest.

I have a weakness for straight lines, bold wallpaper, tiny things, pretty stationery, baked camembert, home-made chutney, elderflower cordial, cinnamon rolls and cookies straight out of the oven.

Underneath everything, I’m also just like many other lovely Mums out there that I know (and quite a few Dads, Mr Fix It included!)… I craft, create, make & bake, cook, clean, do the laundry, provide taxi services, tutor our kids, decorate the house, go to work, manage an overflowing family schedule & a tight family budget – eat, sleep, repeat…

Through it all, I still believe that anything is possible and try to retain my sanity with as much patience, gratitude, grace & dignity as I can muster on a daily basis… Some days are more successful than others!

I don’t profess to be utterly lovely, but it is a daily pursuit that I am on and it is in that pursuit that I find happiness. As my daughters tell me “Don’t worry Mummy, you’re trying your very best!” 

This blog is a place to bring some of my trials, tribulations & lessons I’m learning together to share with like-minded women on a similar path. I hope it can provide a little inspiration… 

It is my journey of discovering little things to smile about on a daily basis and my quest for leading a simpler life that is full of love, joy, beauty, colour & meaning.

I hope I can make you smile, make you think, inspire you to look after yourself and encourage you to open your eyes & take in the beauty all around you.

Thank you so much for joining me on the hopeful road to happiness, feel free to comment, get in touch, send me tips and spread the LOVELYness… 

Have a LOVELY day! X