Hello 2018!

Hey guys,

So, I posted about my highlights of 2017, so what better way to kick off 2018 than a good ol' post about what I'm getting up to in 2018, and hopefully what I will achieve this year? Plus, it gives you all a good nosey into my life, and it's something to look back on to see what I have actually achieved. Let's hope I actually do achieve some!

Well, I have a lot to look forward to this year! I have a lot of travel plans and events planned that I am so looking forward to, so thought I'd let you all in on what my year will hopefully be like, and my aims for the year!

Plans for 2018

Work experience at Penguin Random House - This is something that I am INCREDIBLY excited about. I have grown up being an avid reader, and cannot think of anything better than lying on a beach with a good ol' book; pure bliss. I have work experience here in the Marketing and PR department, and I cannot wait to learn all about marketing at a publishers. I am just so bloody excited! Can you tell?

Going to a ball - Okay, so this is literally the dream. I study English, and our department is pretty small, so we don't really get to do this kind of thing a lot. However, my boyfriend studies medicine, so one of the perks of this is being able to attend the Medball every year. I have never attended, as I felt that I would feel pretty damn inferior next to all the medics, but everyone I've met is absolutely lovely. And let's be honest, I can definitely get away with being a medic for the night. If anyone asks, I'll just blurt out random body parts or recite Wikipedia or pretend I'm drunk. Which I probably will be, so may not have to pretend. And I get to dress all fancy. Buzzing.

Going to Disneyland Paris with my best mate - If you follow me on Twitter, then you will know that me and my best friend Lucy (some of you may know her from Just Lucy's Life) are going to Disneyland in February. If you know either of us, you will know that we are going to embarrass ourselves a lot and fangirl over everything. But to be fair, if you're gonna go to Disney, you've got to go all out. We have already planned our matching Mickey ears and accessories. And yes, we know we are sad, but we don't care. We will get the ultimate blogger pictures outside of the castle and have no shame.

Finishing my third year of university in Italy - If you didn't already know, I'm studying in Italy (if you didn't actually know, where on earth have you been? It's legit all I talk about, lol). But, sadly, this is my final term there, but I will definitely be making the most of it and travelling as much as I can. And trying to get a bit of a tan to make myself not look like a ghost 365 days a year. 

Exploring more of Italy - So last year, I actually ended up visiting a hell of a lot of places in Italy, including Rome, Milan, Florence, Siena, Pisa, San Gimignano, Matera, Alberobello etc. I was so lucky to be within such close proximity of such beautiful places, and I will definitely be taking full advantage of this again in 2018. I hope to visit Naples, the Amalfi Coast, Lake Garda, Bologna, Venice, and so many more!

Visiting Canada with my family - The fam and I haven't been on holiday together for quite a while, so I'm so looking forward to exploring Canada with them! We are hoping to visit Vancouver, Vancouver Island, Whistler and Calgary, but these plans may change.

What I Hope To Achieve This Year

Putting my all into my blog - I've been writing on Love, Ellena Grace for almost two years now (what the hell, that has literally flown by), and I have loved doing this as a hobby. However, over the past couple of months, it has kinda dawned on me that I would absolutely love to pursue this as a career. This may never happen, but I would bloody love to give it a good go! Therefore, I'm aiming to post at least twice a week on here, and really try and up my photography game.

Actually stick to a theme on Instagram - Ah, Instagram. The social media platform that all bloggers love to hate. In all honesty, I love Instagram, and I love following other bloggers, and the number of followers I have has never really been something that I have been interested in. However, I have seen loads of bloggers with fantastic photography over on Instagram, and it has really inspired me to try my best to keep up a theme somewhat, and really experiment with editing and lighting. I mean, my photography is not great compared to a lot of people, but I want to get out of the whole 'comparing myself to others' crap, and actually do it for me. Plus, I've just got a camera and I love it, so may as well put it to good use!

Gain more confidence and be happy - Confidence is a thing that I have always struggled with, and I don't think I'll ever be 100% self confident (to be honest, who is?), but I'd just like to get over the whole thing of being self conscious. I want to get into the mindset of 'who cares if I go out without make up on?' 'who cares if someone laughs at me?' 'who cares if I make an absolute fool of myself?'. I'm on this planet to have a laugh, and I really don't care if people think I'm an idiot. It's accurate. But I want to get into the mindset of not caring and just being content with who I am. 

Get as much work experience as I can - Being a student sucks. I mean, it's great, but it sucks. The worry of not being able to find a job after university is constantly in the back of my mind. However, I have found a career path that I feel really passionate about, and would love to pursue. Therefore, I am going to try my very hardest to get as much experience as I can whilst I'm still a student, in the hope that I can make contacts and hopefully get a grad scheme. My fingers and toes are very much crossed for this one. 

So, it should be a pretty decent year! I just hope to have a laugh, travel and spend time with friends and family in all honesty, but anything else would be pretty good!

What are you looking forward to this year?

Much love, 

Grace x