Lia's Big Figure News!!

It's official . . . . .I'm now competing in Ms Figure - Open Division this year for the 2006 INBA Victorian Titles. To be eligible to qualify for this years 2006 INBA Natural Olympia I have to compete against the best of the best, it's a big step but one worth taking and I'm up for the challenge as always. LOL!! I have nothing to lose and everything to gain by this experience and what doesn't kill me will only make me stronger. :o) xo

Brunetti Cafe

Phew what a weekend! I'm sure there's a weekend thief out there because as soon as they arrive they're gone. LOL!!

Brunetti's Cafe is to die for! It's a definite must visit during the off-season and one I look forward to. Alicia, Lindy and myself had the lovliest time and we chatted away as if we were the oldest of friends. Of course I wasn't able to indulge in their delicacies so as soon as I arrived I pulled out my chicken salad and a bottle of water because we all know a girls got to eat. LOL!! I did however order myself a long black. It's funny, I never used to be a coffee drinker. I loved the smell of it, I loved making it just couldn't drink it. It was to bitter for me and without copious amounts of sugar I just couldn't bring myself to drink it. But you all know me and nothing's impossible as far as I am concerned. Once we had our espresso machine and our coffee grinder the search began for a coffee that I could drink. At our local markets we asked the staff at the coffee shop what was the least bitter coffee that I could try and so they introduced me to Etheopian Mocha. There was no bitterness instead it had a smooth taste to it that I quite enjoyed in my cafe latte. Once I got used to it I enjoyed and looked forward to my daily cafe latte. Of course I experimented with all different types of beans and have come across some really lovely flavour's during the process. Over time I've managed to cut back on my milk and replace it with water so that I could elimanate all dairy from my daily nutrition. And now I can quite happily enjoy a long black. If you truly desire to have something in your nutrition plan you can re-educate your taste buds, it's just takes time and patience. Rae posted about her sugar addiction and it got me thinking that the only thing I have in my diet that isn't a whole food is my splenda which I really could do without being that it is highly processed. So Rae, you have prompted me to follow suit and slowly but surely I'm cutting back. Well anyway, I got a little bit of track there so getting back to my original story. LOL!! Katie unfortunately couldn't make it although we totally understand her incredibly busy work schedule.

I'm going to have to cut this short as it's time for another meal and I'm positively starving. I'll be catching up on some more blogs this afternoon and hopefully by the end of the week I'll be all caught up again. I hope you all have a lovely day and most importantly don't forget to smile. :o)

Good Morning

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

xo

MAC Face & Body Foundation - For Deb

Deb here's the product information copied and pasted straight from their website. "A water-based, water-resistant foundation that provides long-lasting, natural coverage for face and/or body. Ideal for all skin types. Face and Body Foundation provides sheer, natural looking coverage in an easy to blend, water-resistant formula. The long-lasting formula is available in a wide range of colours and contains several emollients to help moisturize and condition the skin. It delivers professional looking results that meet the exacting standards of beauty photography and is ideal for perfecting the face and body."


MAC Face & Body Foundation - N9 is the darkest shade available and matched perfectly as you can see in the above picture of me at the 2005 INBA Australian Titles. It's been applied from my neck up both front and back and including my ears. Unfortunately though, you can only purchse it from their MAC Pro Stores. But luckily for me there's one over in Chapel Street. ;o) If you decide to go with this option just let me know and I'll pick a bottle up for you next time I'm over that way which you know is quite often. LOL!! Well actually it's next weekend to be exact. LOL!! I hope this helps. :o) xo

Thank god it's Friday! ;o)

Well the weekend's almost here and it's another busy one for me. Lucky I'm organised and have time management on my side. First up this afternoon I'm off to my local salon for waxing, I've booked in for full leg and a full arm, long overdue let me assure you. LOL!! My beautician certainly has her work cut out for her and here's hoping that she's kind to me. ;o)


Then tomorrow morning I have the distinct pleasure of meeting the girls for coffee. The girls consisting of Lindy, Alicia & Katie. It'll be quite the Physique Essentials gathering of Figure Girls. It'll be nice to sit back and relax over a black cup of coffee. :o)


From there I'm going shopping at Myer. MAC Cosmetics is #1 on my list followed by Anthea Crawford as a close second. A girl can never have to much makeup, especially when she's a figure competitor. LOL!! I'll be getting a whole bunch of products for this years season, I've been researching on their website but have yet to make my mind up. So many gorgeous colours to select from I just know I'm going to have trouble selecting which ones. Like I needed an excuse to go shopping, we all know how much I enjoy my retail therapy. LOL!! Anthea Crawford is my favourite designer at the moment and I'm going to pick something up for a wedding Sunday. Her designs are stunning to say the least and I've already tried on the top I'm after.

Then Sunday I have a girlfriend's wedding to attend and I can't wait to see her. It's been sooooo long, last time being in Brisbane 2003 if I remember correctly. And not only is she getting married but she is also pregnant. So I guess you could say that we have a lot of catching up to do. LOL!!

Well that just about covers everything for today. I have an inspection to conduct before I finish work as one of our bosses has given us an early knock off. *woo hoo*

Have a great weekend! :o) xo

Thought For The Day

"If you are going to be a champion,

you must be willing to pay a greater price. "

-- Bud Wilkinson

Va Va Va Voom . . . . .

I'm back!

That's right, I'm back. LOL!! Unfortunately for me my hectic schedule was only meant to last for a week instead it rolled over into a second week. Not to worry though, everything's back to normal wef today. *woo hoo* Just a lot of catching up to do at home but that shouldn't take too long once I recharge the batteries and get motivated. LOL!!

So much has happened of late it would take forever and a day to get you caught up on it, so if you all don't mind I'll just pick up starting today. Not to mention it's going to take me a little while to read up and comment on all your blogs but rest assured that it will get done sooner rather then later.

Time's got away from me again. It's time for me to head over to the gym for quads and calves. Then it's posing practice with heels of course followed by multiple run thoughs of my posing routine.

Sorry for the short but brief blog today, but something's better then nothing I always say. I'll blog more tomorrow, I promise. Enjoy the rest of your day! :o)

Good Night

Good Evening. . . . .I trust that everyone had a great weekend!

This is going to be a real quick blog tonight, so appologies for that. Today I realised that life is really all about choices. . . . .and I chose to do whatever it takes. So in saying that here's what an average day this week is going to look like for me:

0230hrs - Rise'n'Shine
0330hrs - Ride 5km To Work
0400hrs - Weight Training & Posing Practice
0500hrs - Shower & Change
0600hrs - Start Work
1800hrs - Finish Work & Ride 5km Back Home
1830hrs - Food Preparation
1900hrs - Routine Practice
1930hrs - Shower & Change
2000hrs - Bed Time

Now you all know what this is a quick one. Here's hoping that I get some spare time this week to blog again but at this point in time I can't make any promises. It's only for this week so it's not the end of the world, just feels like it. LOL!! ;o)

Be Strong

Miss Rae bless her sent me this motivator in reply to an email I sent asking for help this week. It's what got me through the day amongst other things I had also received from a lovely bunch of ladies and you all know exactly who you are. ;o) One particular word really hit home for me and that was STRENGTH.

To be strong, remind yourself that you can be.

To be strong, remind yourself of why you choose to be. To be strong, remind yourself of what your strength, focus and disciplinehave already brought you. To be strong, remind yourself that yourcommitment can be just as powerful as any excuse or rationalization.

To be strong, have a well-understood purpose and a well-defined plan. Tobe strong, be sincerely thankful for all that you have and for all thatyou are able to do.

To be strong, begin with your thoughts. When your thoughts are of strengthand of positive possibilities, your actions will follow along.

Each day the world will send you all sorts of challenges, difficulties,temptations and distractions. Know that these things are surely comingyour way, and choose in advance to be strong.

As the ups and downs of life arrive, remind yourself that you have chosento be strong. Then as each moment passes, you'll naturally follow throughon that choice.

-- Ralph Marsten

Don't forget, keep your eyes on that prize.....

Winning Physique, New Bling & Louis Vuitton

Saturday morning I had my second lesson at Winning Physique. Vicki Arief my choreographer has out done herself with this years routine, it's a real doozy. She always says when I come through the door that I'm a bundle of energy and that she wished all her clients were as energetic as me. I guess it's because I'm excited about everything this year and that I really want to be there to learn. I usually can't wait to learn more of my routine, of which I love. I'm just having so much fun this year and that's what it's really all about after all. :o)


Then it was off to the city to this gorgeous little boutique I found hidden away called Paint'n'Powder. It's in Royal Arcade of the Bourke Street Mall, Melbourne. They'd rang me during the week to let me know that my jewellery was back and ready to be picked up. When I stumbled across this boutique I wasn't even looking for any costume jewellery as I had previously bought it. Oh well, a girl can never have to much bling. ;o) This one particular piece had caught my eye and I instantly had to have it, what can I say I'm attracted to shiny rocks. LOL!! It was almost perfect, but luckily for me the lady that owned the boutique said that I could get one custom made. Are you kidding me, that's perfect! So now I have in my hot little hands my new matching earrings and a bracelet made of swarovski crystals. They are simply stunning. :o)

And then last but certainly not least was the purchase of this years reward to myself of a new handbag. And not just any old handbag but my DREAM HANDBAG, Louis Vuitton Hudson Handbag. For all my hard work and effort and all that I have sacraficed this is my gift to myself. It also matches my Louis Vuitton Koala Wallet perfectly which was last years reward. Dreams do come true, I now know that. :o)

Rise & Shine

Thought For The Day

"What counts in sports is not the victory,

but the magnificence of the struggle."
- Joe Paterno

Dallas Olsen Photography

Dallas Olsen is a brilliant photographer who specializes in taking competition and fitness models style shots. He has a very keen eye and knows exactly what to look for when it comes to shooting muscle definition considering his wife is the lovely Lindy Olsen. You can check out his handywork on the Public Gallery of her website if you want to see for yourself how good he is. Or worst case scenario, your own personal shots didn't turn out the way you wanted he also does touch-ups.

For $100 you'll get an entire cd of shots that are yours to print, copy or use whatever you want. All he asks in return is credit if you publish it somewhere. These can be taken at the competition venue or comfortably in a private studio. The sky's the limit!

You don't need to guess who's taking shots for myself and my husband this year now do you ladies. LOL!! So for further information and/or bookings you can email me at lia.halsall@bigpond.com

Bio Ionic

Boy do I have a lot of news to share, so much so that I'll post individual blogs on each and every topic that I want to cover. So sit back and relax because we're going to be here for a little while. LOL!!

Well I finally took the plunge and booked myself an appointment at Toni & Guy in Chapel Street, Melbourne for Bio Ionic. I spent a total of eight hours in the chair from start to finish and now have the straightest of straight hair! It's even better than I'd expected. It's straighter than if they had blow dried and ghd ironed it if you could possibly imagine. I just love it and have absolutely no regrets in doing it.

And then I have one more appointment left for the final cut and colour in two weeks time and then the hair transformation will be complete. And yes, there'll be photos taken. I'm sure the staff in the salon won't mind taking some photos for me. We post our before and after body transformation pictures so I see no reason why we can't post our before and after hair transformation pictures either. ;o)