As Coach Calhoun in Grease would say, 2011 was “a banner year”. In addition to my career soaring to new heights, I travelled like mad, made heaps of new friends, & best of all, I married the love of my life in a simple but beautiful ceremony overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge. You can’t ask for much more than that…

2011 kicked off on a high note. I was on the cover of Canvas magazine in New Zealand, & featured in New Zealand’s current affairs programme, Sunday. (You can click here to watch the segment!) I walked in Betsey Johnson’s show at New York Fashion Week on Valentine’s Day — the perfect gift! It was the experience of a lifetime, & I will never forget it.

Shortly thereafter, I flew to Paris with Nubby where we had an incredible time, eating plenty of croissants & drinking extremely strong coffee! After a few days in Iceland (& enjoying their famous Blue Lagoon), we parted ways & headed home to our respective cities. I took up trapeze classes, & suddenly, it was spring!

I started meeting with a group of amazing women for Magical Tuesdays, which brought so much meaning & love to my life, & then before I knew it, I was heading back to Los Angeles for a few fabulous days with my best girlfriends. I wasn’t back in NYC long before Mike & I got engaged, & bought a 1951 Chevy Bel-Air! (It was a big day!)

I was suddenly thrust into wedding planning mania, but in the meantime, my best best best friend from New Zealand, Jennie, came to stay. We ran all over the city eating vegan ice-cream & laughing our heads off.

A month after we got engaged, we were married, surrounded by our friends & family. It was perfect. Two days later (!!!), I hopped a plane to Miami to meet another of my best best best friends, Jess! While we weren’t terribly smitten with the city itself, we still had a great time, because when we’re together, we could make anything fun… I came back to New York & had barely unpacked my bags before I was zipping up my notorious pink suitcase yet again!

Next stop: Chicago! Chloe & I went together & had an action-packed two days. It was fantastic, what a great city! I really can’t wait to go back.

Angel came to visit us in NYC, & later that week, with the threat of a devastating hurricane bearing down on NYC, I ended up catching an early plane to Los Angeles. I was due to go to New Zealand for New Zealand Fashion Week & some sightseeing, thanks to Tourism NZ, & I was afraid that if I didn’t leave NYC early, I wouldn’t be able to leave at all! Thank god I did, because as my flight was hovering over LAX, a flight attendant told me all flights after ours had been grounded indefinitely…

Milkshakes & sunshine in Miami with Jess; the Bean & Chloe in Chicago; love times with Angel; avec mon homme at a motorcycle show; with Kat in Los Angeles; staying warm with Jennie & Helen; post-birthday photos with Nubby!

Los Angeles was a blast, as always. I saw Jazzi & Jake (visiting from Minneapolis), & even got to have dinner with Kat & Gareth from Rock N Roll Bride! After a few too many excursions to In-N-Out Burger & a whirlwind trip to Shareen Vintage, I was on my way to New Zealand for another adventure! I visited Auckland, Wellington, Nelson & Christchurch, fed lions & giraffes, & experienced the utter beauty of some of the country’s national parks. Also when I was in New Zealand, I spoke at two schools — St Margaret’s College in Christchurch & Samuel Marsden Collegiate (my old high school) — & discovered a brand new passion!

Photos from Wellington, including my father, my mother, Jennie & Helen

When I came back to NYC, it was my birthday! I was so lucky to have so many people in town for it — Nubby, Jazzi, Shae & Adam all happened to be there on that date! — & Nubby & I threw a rad, low-key party at a favourite bar. It was our favourite birthday party yet.

At the end of September, I got on another plane to Barcelona, to be part of an MNG for MANGO campaign. While I was only in Barcelona for about four days, I had a wonderful time & adored the city. It is so beautiful!

With Nubby again; Barcelona; chalk drawings in Brooklyn; with Ben at the Bowery Mission; Halloween; curled hair; with Molly; & celebrating my blog’s birthday!

Since then, Mike & I have been winding down & settling into the colder weather. We had a lovely low-key Christmas, complete with a pink tree, & my mind has been in overdrive, plotting & planning new fantastic things for 2012.

I’ve already started to fill my Filofax for next year, but with a caveat: I want to spend 2012 doing things that I truly think are important.

In 2012, I want to strike a fine balance between love & career & friends, between philanthropy & travel & education. I want to continue to pursue my dreams relentlessly & with passion. I want to see new cities & speak to more women about radical self love. I want to make time for my friends & go on adventures.

I can’t wait for the clock to tick over to 00:00 on January 1st. I plan to spend it kissing my love, with a sparkler in one hand & a fabulous cocktail in another!