Forbiddenl0ve.net

Hi all!

Wow, it’s been a LONG time since I’ve made a blog post. Life happened.

I recently gave up the night shift lifestyle (7 night shifts straight a fortnight, followed by sleeping most days). I honestly didn’t get much time to myself, and before I knew it, another year had passed.

I’ve attempted to work on my site over the years. Each year, when the renewal comes around, I say to myself, “This is it. This is the year I’m going to start focusing on my website!” And then life happens. It’s a continuous cycle.

I feel like I’ve been living in autopilot mode for the last couple of years. I was supposed to have this site back up and running in 2025. Well… that didn’t happen.

But here I am. 2026. A blank canvas (literally, because I lost my website).

AND!!! I have a new host! I’ve officially moved from Site5 to Bubblehost. My first official Australian host! 😁

I’ve also recently finished recovering my old blog posts! After all the time spent digging through old files, photos and backups, it’s such a relief to finally have so much of my old content back. There’s still plenty of work to do, but it’s a start!

First things first, a HUGE thank you to the affiliates who have stuck around throughout my rather non-existent (hiatus) period. I appreciate you! ❤️

I can’t promise I’ll be adding A LOT of content to the website in terms of graphics, tutorials and other goodies just yet, but I do want to make an effort to get back into blogging and sharing little snippets of my life.

Which brings me to my next little project…

I’ve decided it’s time to play catch-up! There have been quite a few things happening over the last several years, and rather than trying to cram everything into one ridiculously long blog post, I’ve decided to break it all down year by year.

So, we’re going back to 2020 and working our way through to 2026!

There’ll be life updates, memorable moments, events, photos and probably a few things I’ve completely forgotten about along the way.

So buckle up, grab some popcorn and let’s rewind a little! ❤️

Amanda x

Not a whole lot happened in 2021 either, but I did hit a milestone birthday, made a new friend, went on a plane (yes, you read that correctly!) and had one of the most memorable holidays. So, let’s get into it!

June – The big 3-0!

June marked a pretty big milestone for me… I turned 30!

I celebrated with a small party at home surrounded by close friends and family. Nothing too extravagant, just a lovely little get-together with the people closest to me.

But the celebrations didn’t stop there!

June – Off to Cairns we go!

After celebrating my 30th, it was time for a little getaway! We packed our bags and headed off to Cairns.

Now, let me just say… ME AND FLYING. OMG! So scary! I’m absolutely terrified of heights, so getting on that plane was an experience in itself. 😂

But we made it!

Once we landed, we picked up our hire car, a Holden Equinox, and let me tell you… if I could have kept that car, I absolutely would have! I LOVED driving it. Even though I don’t drive all that often, I just loved the feel of it.

We spent around two weeks staying at a friend’s place (Jeff), exploring Cairns and the surrounding areas. It was honestly one of the most memorable holidays and birthdays I’ve had, spending time away with Matt, my parents, my parents best friends and Matt’s family.

Pictured above – my parents and myself, cutting my birthday (chocolate mud) cake! It was delicious.

We visited so many beautiful places, saw some incredible waterfalls, went on plenty of scenic drives and even made our way up to Port Douglas.

There was quite a bit of exploring, so here’s a little rundown of some of the places we visited!

💥 Australian Armour & Artillery Museum

This was definitely an interesting experience! For the first time in my life, I actually got to fire a gun.

I had the opportunity to do some target practice, and honestly, I didn’t do too badly!

It was such a strange feeling holding and firing a gun for the first time. Definitely not something you do every day!

🌿 Paronella Park

Next up was Paronella Park, located in Mena Creek.

If you’ve never heard of it, it’s a heritage-listed attraction built by José Paronella, surrounded by beautiful tropical gardens, towering trees, waterfalls and natural rock pools.

The grounds cover around five hectares, with thousands of tropical plants and trees. It’s quite an enchanting place, almost like stepping into another world.

Definitely one of the more unique places we visited during our trip.

💎 The Crystal Caves – Atherton

This was another interesting stop!

The Crystal Caves in Atherton is a unique, man-made underground cave filled with an incredible collection of crystals, minerals and fossils.

One of the coolest things about this visit was getting to crack open my very own geode and keep it!

How cool is that? A little souvenir to take home with me. 😁

🦋 Kuranda – Markets, Skyrail & Birdworld

We also made our way to Kuranda!

I got to experience the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway, which sounds lovely in theory… until you remember that I’m absolutely terrified of heights. LOL!

Let’s just say I was a little nervous travelling above the rainforest, but it was still an experience I’m glad I got to have.

While we were there, we wandered around the markets and visited Birdworld, where I got to see so many beautiful birds and butterflies.

There was certainly no shortage of things to look at!

And that’s a wrap on Cairns!

Looking back, Cairns was definitely one of the highlights of 2021. Between the beautiful scenery, waterfalls, little road trips, interesting attractions and spending quality time with family, it was such a wonderful couple of weeks away.

I even managed to survive a plane ride AND the Skyrail despite my fear of heights. Small victories, people! 😂

I’d absolutely love to go back one day and explore even more of what Far North Queensland has to offer.

July – welcome to the world, Logan

July brought a new little addition to the family! My sister welcomed a beautiful baby boy into the world.

Welcome to the family, Logan! 🥰 It’s always special to see the family growing, and I’m so happy to have another little nephew! ❤️

September – A second job!

In September, I decided to take on a second job!

I started working casually at another residential aged care facility, which I’ll refer to as BC, while still continuing my work at KG.

And yes… I was doing night shifts at BC as well!

Apparently, one night-shift job wasn’t enough. 😂

It certainly kept me busy juggling two workplaces, but it was another little change in my working life.

December – A friendship I never expected!

Now, this is where things get interesting!

In December, I headed out to the Dirty C (also known as the Cenny), one of our local nightclubs.

I was just minding my own business, enjoying the night, when out of absolutely nowhere, this lovely woman walked straight up to me and started chatting.

Little did I know that this random encounter would turn into one of the best friendships!

And just like that, Laura and I became friends.

We ended up having one of the BEST nights at the Dirty C, and it was the beginning of an awesome friendship that I’m so glad came about.

Funny how some of the best friendships can start from a completely unexpected encounter!

And that’s a wrap on 2021!

So, there we have it! Another year down.

From celebrating the big 3-0 and conquering my fear of flying (well, sort of!), to exploring Far North Queensland, juggling two aged care jobs and meeting a new best friend, 2021 certainly had a few memorable moments.

It might not have been the busiest year, but there were definitely some lovely memories made along the way.

Now, let’s see what 2022 had in store for me… because we’re not done playing catch-up just yet!

Stay tuned for the next chapter! ❤️

Amanda x

As we’re playing catch-up, not a whole lot happened in 2020, but I thought I’d recap a few things that did happen throughout the year!

At the time, I was 28 years old and working at my first aged care job in a residential facility (KG) in Bundaberg. I’d just hit my two-year mark there, having started back in 2018, and was still doing the night shift lifestyle.

July – A little medical mishap!

In July, I had a cyst removed that had grown on the outside of my stomach. It was the tiniest thing, but I absolutely hated the way it looked, so I decided to have it removed.

Little did I know what a saga that would turn into!

Initially, I had stitches for a couple of weeks. Once they were removed, I was left with Steri-Strips covering the wound/scar. All seemed well until I noticed the wound had started opening up, and the Steri-Strips were practically pointing inwards. I’m thinking… that’s definitely not supposed to happen!

So, off to the doctor I went. More stitches!

And just when I thought that was the end of it, it was time to have those stitches removed. BAM! INFECTION!

The wound had swollen up terribly, and I’m pretty sure I even fainted. Ended up needing an ambulance.

So much for a nice, neat little scar! Instead, I’m left with a rather unpleasant reminder of the whole experience. 😂

I’m going to spare you all the photos of that one. I don’t want to scare you off, especially when I’m trying to bring you all back! LOL.

September – Movie night!

In September, I headed to Big Screen Cinemas in Hervey Bay to watch After We Collided in their deluxe cinemas.

Nice, comfy chairs! Can’t complain about that.

I’m a HUGE fan of the book series, so naturally I had to go and see the movie.

I actually have more books from the series, but I just can’t seem to find them. Typical!

November – Gold Coast getaway!

In November, I went on a little mini holiday with the family to the Gold Coast. We stayed at BIG4 Holiday Park and also made a trip to Dreamworld.

A nice little getaway and a chance to get out of Bundaberg for a bit!

And that’s a wrap on 2020!

As I said, it wasn’t exactly the busiest year, but there were still a few memories worth looking back on.

Between work, a rather dramatic trip to the doctor and a couple of little outings, that pretty much sums up my 2020!

Now, let’s move on to 2021 and see what else I’ve been up to. 😉

<3 Amanda x

Soooo, the ABBA tribute was good, I quite enjoyed it.

My make up looked good too. Lol

Has anyone played Cards against humanity? If you have not I suggest you do. (Best drinking game ever)! There’s 3 expansions – so get on it! I won’t spoil it for you!! I’ve been going to some “game nights” once a month or every few weeks and this game is a real hit. If anyone has any suggestions for board games drop a comment below.

I went to Tweed heads for 2 nights and caught up with my aunty. I had missed her soo much. Then I was off to the Gold Coast (surfers paradise, Australia) and Stayed in an amazing 3 bedroom apartment with my girls from back home.

The view was sensational.

I celebrated my 28th (twenty one plus seven) birthday.

This is the outfit I wore on the night. It is not the bodysuit I wanted to wear as the one I wanted to wear wouldn’t fit so this was next best bet. 😭

I can tell you by the end of the night I had stopped doing up the crotch as I was way too drunk. A few times I had to undress myself entirely to get it on properly. Haha. I had started drinking around 2:30pm and ended up at the hotel around 5am. I don’t know how I managed to drink for so long.

I got to experience “draculars” while I was at surfers paradise. (Dinner and a live show). You arrive on a ghost train and a woman pops out in front of you, screaming. Hence the horrible horrible photo below. Lol

I chose the pork, it was nice.

Come back from my trip and back to reality and I get the flu. I’m on the mend now but why does the change In weather always stuff you up?

I restarted the pre-sequel (borderlands) to try and get it platinum before borderlands 3 is out in September.

Anyways that’s all for now

Love & light

Amanda xo

So, let’s go back to January, eh?

• I was up to season 8 of Greys Anatomy.
• I sold my 42″ TV and upgraded to a 49″😍
• I toured the Bundaberg brewed drinks, for the first time and tried all the yummy flavours.

• I completed 2 puzzles as birthday gifts.

• I still have heaps of new puzzles to get through!

February:

• I started season 8 of Greys Anatomy!
• I went for a day trip down to Hervey Bay with family, visited the pool, had an awesome time there. And checked out “Timezone”. (Arcade games). After the superb day we had, we ended up at Hog’s breath cafe. Amazing food. ( but a little pricey). I had the steak and veggies. (The other plate was ribs)

• I found out my car had an issue, which was going to cost too much to fix, so had to get rid of her. I miss the old girl.

I loved my Nissan pulsar. But. This is what I have now, I call her, “Black Beast”. 2016 Kia Cerato!

• I reached level 40 in Pokémon Go! (max level)

March:

• I went to a wedding, at sandy hook. The dress theme was “black and white”. I had never been there before, but it was a perfect location for a wedding.
• I had my first ever drive in multi-lane traffic. (3 – lane highway) I went to Lismore, for 3 nights. It was nice to catch up with my family. I was so scared of driving on the high way, but it’s good I finally broke the ice.
• I got 2 new phone covers. Aren’t they pretty? I haven’t bought one in well over a year. The first one glows in the dark !

April:

• I started season 11 of Greys Anatomy. (My friend gave me seasons 11-14 on DVD to watch)
• Booked accommodation for mikayla and my birthday in June, at surfers paradise! Party!

• I found out that BORDERLANDS 3 will be released in September. I pre-ordered the Super deluxe edition. Missed out on getting the diamond loot collection though. It was already sold out within minutes. I can not wait for September.

• We had a games night at my house, and for the first time I played “cards against humanity” oh my god, that game is brilliant. I can’t wait to play it again, this weekend at the next persons house.
• Borderlands 1 remastered came out on ps4, and I have already got the platinum trophy for it. (My first ever platinum). I’m currently working on getting borderlands 2 platinum, just one trophy to go!

May:

• I haven’t got a whole heap planned except for “ABBA” tribute! And another games night on Saturday night.

That pretty much wraps it up for now. Come visit me on the Forum.

Love & light

Amanda xo