Meet Monty...

Hello,

I know, I've been a terrible blogger this week. I don't really know what happened, I was just feeling lazy! I did spend a lovely Friday afternoon shopping (or browsing in my case) with the lovely Eileen formerly of The Shoe of Salvation. She really is a sweet heart and I hope we catch up again soon.

On Saturday we browsed around around our local market and I picked up some awesome kitchy porcelain cat figurines. We are currently scouring the Sydneyside for cool things to decorate our house with (our stuff still hasn't actually even left NZ yet and isn't likely to for another two months!!!!). David and I also caught up with a former collegue of mine who moved here in November for lunch.

And to make up for my complete lack of bloggy goodness, how about ALOT of cute pictures of the latest edition to our family?

Meet Monty!!

He likes to bite things...

And get into high-ish places...

He loves getting into things... The Fridge:

Bowls:

And paper bags, to name a few:

He loves Mocha Biddy and follows her everywhere. She likes him sometimes, when he isn't being annoying and/or biting her. When that does happen, she gets her own back...

And at the end of the day, there is nothing he likes more than a nap with his favourite toy, Green Dude...

And because Mocha is super cute too, here are two photos of her...

The green pot is supposed to have tomatoes in it, but we haven't quite gotten around to planting them. Its starting to get cold too so they might have to wait until spring unfortunately.

We have no grass in our yard and so we have a couple of pots of cat grass around the place. We have to keep them away from Monty because he just likes to play with it and squash it.

And that is our small furry family :)

Tomorrow is my very first day at work, eek! I'm nervous, but very much looking forward to it. I don't expect to be around much this week either as I settle into full time work again, so I apologise in advance.

But on the plus, I have a dinner date this Thursday with E. - fingers crossed I'm not sick again and Sydney's weather has finally given us a break from the heat. For the past two days we have been snuggling up in layers - fingers crossed it stays like this!

Have a fantastic week everyone, and thank you so much for reading and leaving comments, it means so much to me!

XX Jen

The Vintage Fair...

Hello,

Yesterday I went to Love Vintage in Sydney - its a weekend full of lots of vintage sellers from all over Australia with hair and make up demonstrations too. I was lucky enough to be invited to go with the lovely E. from A Wild Tea Party and one of her friends. And it would have been a lovely day except that I decided to get a stomach bug while I was there.

(These photos are recreations I took today as I didn't manage to get any good ones yesterday).

I threw up twice!

The first time it happened I thought I was just feeling a little faint because I hadn't had breakfast (I'm one of those people who can't do food first thing in the morning). I told E. I was just going to sit down because I wasn't feeling well and as soon as I left I got dizzy, couldn't see very well and made a bee line to the bathrooms.

After that I really did feel fine, so I bought some juice and we kept browsing. Soon after, I started feeling dizzy again, sat down and then about 20mintues later, made a bee line to the bathroom where I lost my $3.50 worth of juice and promptly decided I needed to go home.

The bus ride was probably one of the longest I've been on. As soon as I got home, David got me some water and a bucket and I crawled into bed and slept away the afternoon.

I managed to get one photo of E. and I just before I left to catch my bus. Sorry for looking a little disheveled, but I had just thrown up after all.

Before that debacle I did manage to snap up a 40's wool cardigan for David (oh the wonders of Iphones and having a camera and email at the ready to make sure people like what you are planning to buy them) but didn't get anything for myself - the prices were far too out of my price range. But it was lovely to look at everything and dream.

I took a few photos of the hair and make up demonstration but they didn't turn out very well. Please check out E.s blog as she took some as well and they might be up soon!

So, that was my Sunday and I am all better now. Tonight David and I are off to a ukulele concert - fun!

XX
Jen

A Quick Post...

Hello all,

So, as it turns out, I start work on the 27th April, not the 19th. The organisation is so brand new that they won't have telephones or computers until the 27th - and without either of those, my job would be rather hard!

I have nothing much of note to say except that tomorrow, I'm going somewhere awesome, with someone awesome and I'm very very excited! All will be revealed, I promise :)

Oh and yesterday David and I rode on the Sydney monorail (I always want to sing the song from the monorail episode of the Simpsons, but I don't actually know what the song is!). As soon as I saw it, I knew I must ride it!

Turns out its not really all that exciting - its a bit cramped and really hot, I'd hate to ride it in the middle of summer. Oh well, one thing crossed off the list :)

Right, off to do groceries!

XX
Jen

Ps) Peta - you've got me bursting at the seams to know when/where you saw me! I've never been 'seen' before that I know of. I only just found out about your comment because David mentioned it to me - my comments moderation did something strange to my initial comments on my first post back so it turns out, I didn't read all of them.

Please feel free to email me or something. I can't think of any other way to get hold of you. And don't worry, I'm really shy too!! But I don't bite, I promise!

A New Job...

First of all, thank you so much for your comments on my last post. They really did mean a lot, and while its not a pleasant experience to go through by any means, its nice to know others are in/have been in the same boat.

My solution to this problem - lets all move to the same place at the same time and we could all be friends with each other - hows that?

I've had some great news on the job front - I am officially employed! I start on Monday (19th April). I'm really excited and also really nervous and I've started to doubt whether I can actually do the job I've been employed to do! What if I suck (for lack of a better term) at my new job and they don't like me and want to fire me?

I also now work in a semi-corporate environment. At my last job, you could wear whatever you wanted as long as you did your job well and weren't breaking any laws in the process. Most of the clothing I have here at the moment are vintage summer dresses that aren't really appropriate for the office or for the slowly dropping temperatures. I really do need the rest of my clothes to arrive now please!

Kitten Boo in the background - his introduction is coming!!

I did go and buy a few bits and pieces of office appropriate wear yesterday, just to get me through until the bulk of my clothing eventually arrives. I will of course, be taking some liberties with my dress in the office though - don't worry, I will not turn completely black, grey and white! There are some lovely bloggers who work in the corporate world who I will be taking inspiration from and if you have any inspiration you can point me to, I am all eyes!

XX
Jen

Making Friends...

Hello All,

I still haven't heard back on the job front yet, but its only afternoon Monday, and 'early next week' means Monday or Tuesday! I'm nervous...moving on.

One of the things I have been most worried about since we knew we were moving to Sydney late last year was finding friends.

Its so easy to make new friends when you move to a new school or go to university - you are all experiencing it together and its almost like insta-friends, just add water!! But when you move to a new city, its a whole new kettle of fish.

A few years ago we had a lovely person come to work with us. She was from Australia and had moved to Dunedin with her partner while he finished off his last year of uni. She knew no one. I knew she knew no one and knew she was doing lots of different things to try to meet people, so I therefore assumed she was fine and happy.

As it came time for her to leave Dunedin and return back to Australia with her partner, she told me she had really struggled to find close friends and that she really hadn't enjoyed her stay as much as she thought she might. It didn't help that her partner worked on the weekends which meant she had no one to keep her company.

When I heard this, my heart sunk. I knew she knew no one when she arrived, but because I had my own friends and my own life, it had never occurred to me that she didn't have any of that. After she told me this, I went about trying to make her last few months as happy as possible, going to lunch and movies etc.

The thing is, I very much liked this girl. We had lots in common and I really would have loved to have seen her more. The big mistake I made was that I didn't want to seem intrusive and throw myself at her and into her life, inviting her to this, that and the other thing. Looking back on it, and being in the same situation myself - I should have smothered the girl with invites to do fun things!

Entering into a friendship with someone who is already settled and already has a circle of close friends they love and see regularly is daunting. Will your friend invite you into the circle? Will the circle accept you? Will they like you? Will you like them?

I've known a few lovely ladies who have moved to brand new places knowing no one. The settling in trend seems to be the same:
1-4 months - Love it, its so exciting and new and wonderful - so many things to do, so many places to see.
4-8 months - Hate it, I know no one, no one wants to be my friend, I just want to go home.
8-12 months - Like it, I have a few friends and I am finally settling in.

I haven't hit the 'hating it' stage yet because there is too much to see and do, and finding a job has been foremost on my mind. But I know that I will soon get lonely. Its strange to think you can be lonely in a city that is bigger, population wise, than all of New Zealand.

And while I am very lucky to have David to go through all of this with (I'd probably be a mess otherwise), a girl also needs her girlfriends - who else is she going to see the Sex in the City movie with when it comes out in June?

I have this blog to thank for putting me in touch with some really lovely people who are in Sydney though - people I would have probably never met otherwise. In fact, I'm going to a Vintage fair this weekend with one of them.

But this is still a big issue for me at the moment - I know I need to be proactive and put myself out there, no body will know I am looking for friends if I don't tell them. So, do you have any tips or tricks for me to try out? Or should I just start wearing a sign saying 'Will you be my friend?'.

XX
Jen

To Market, To Market...

Hello,

Today David and I explored the Glebe markets - they are a haven if you are looking for something to wear, not however, if you are after something to read.

I didn't end up buying anything, but there were a few bits and pieces that took my fancy. I am not going to buy anything until I have a job now - food really should come first (though its not all that bad, I'm just being dramatic!).

I do have some positive news on the job front however. The interview I did on Friday went really really well and later on that day my old boss sent me an email saying that they had called her, she had said good things (like she should), they had told her the interview had gone really well, and she thinks I might have it. I really hope so, I'm sick of not working, I really do need structure in my day and really do like being productive!

I fell in love with the butterfly sleeves on this dress, which is from our local markets before they actually became our local markets. We were in the area looking at a few rental places and decided to stop on in. Sadly though, the stall I got the dress from has not turned up again and they had some great pieces at really affordable prices. Oh well, I live in hope for the day they return.

It was another beautiful, warm autumnal day and I'm starting to wonder if Sydney will ever actually happen upon autumn. Or winter for that matter...

XX
Jen

A Post About Lots of Different Things...

Hello All,

Thank you for your welcome backs they are much appreciated - its really lovely to be back!

I do seem to be having problems trying to find a good place to take outfit shots here though. I need somewhere with good light and where I can balance my camera because my tripod is somewhere over the ocean. I have yet to find a good spot but I have tried a few...

In the kitchen, against our big red feature wall. I've always wanted a big red feature wall by the way.

In my bedroom, next to my bed which has been deliberately cropped out - it was unmade and I couldn't be bothered making it.

Outside in our little courtyard with my little Mocha Biddy.

I decided to stick with the outside shots today because its beautiful, warm and sunny with some lovely gusts of wind so as not to be too hot (but enough to blow up your skirt if you weren't careful).

I've not done much shopping while here, but have bought a few things at the many hundreds of markets Sydney seems to have. I found this dress at a market on our way to pick up our kitten in Newtown. It had some rather bad staining along the bottom of it and I was planning to take it up once my sewing things had arrived. But, as it turns out, leaving it to soak overnight made all the difference and you would never know of the evil stain that once lurked there.

The little tapestry bag came from our local market which I got on the weekend, at some point though, I will replace the handle - its not the original and what it was replaced by isn't all that nice.

I've also been thinking a lot lately about hair adornment and am now the owner of several bows, flowers and various other bits and pieces. Next on my list is a collection of sparkly headbands - but the bows are probably my favourite thing to wear at the moment.

Also, here is a sneak peek of our new little kitty boo -

We took him to get his last vaccination today and when scanned for his microchip, it had fallen out for the second time! And those things are not cheap - third time lucky.

Wow, this post has absolutely no flow what so ever - hope you were able to keep up with my ramblings!!

XX
Jen

And She's Back...

Wow, what a long time it has been! I would be a terrible 'holiday' blogger, there is far to much to see and do when you are in a new place than be on the internet!

Any way, I am here. I am in Sydney! And I love it...

We've been very busy and had a lack of internet, hence the longer absence than originally planned. We've been using the internet that came with Davids iphone and suffice to say, it hasn't been all that much, so we have been limited to looking for places to live, a job for me and our emails. The necessities only.

The real internet came just this morning and now, I have so much to say I don't even know where to start! The weather for one thing has been amazing, we were still having 30 degree days up until last week, even though it has been Autumn here for a month already. It cooled down a bit over Easter weekend but it looks like this week is set for some more high 20s (not sure what that is in fahrenheit sorry). This is a good thing considering our things from New Zealand haven't arrived yet and I don't really have anything warm to wear (although I did buy a beautiful vintage hand crocheted wool cape from our local market on Saturday).

This also means that our house is a bit bare at present. We managed to get ourselves a lovely little one bedroom semi with a little courtyard out the back in a beautiful area - we are a 10minute bus ride from the city. The only two problems we have with our house is that the wall separating us from our neighbour is paper thin, and she likes to be noisy (stomping down the hall way, loud banging of cupboards, terrible terrible karaoke at 1am...) and we live rather close to a main road and a mechanic. This means loud car noises, loud motorcycle noises and just general noisy-ness. But we are getting used to it - we have to remember that we are really lucky to have found such a place at all with the Sydney rental market how it is. And it only took us just over two weeks to get (and a few rejections later).

I do plan to take you on a virtual tour of our house once everything has arrived and is in its place!

Our little Mocha biddy arrived safely and has settled in perfectly. We also welcomed a new edition into our family a week ago - he's little, fluffy, cute and a super duper purry little fellow. He will have his very own post this week some time!

The job front has not been so rosy for me unfortunately. I've been applying for so many jobs that I actually don't really remember what I've been applying for. I don't have any of my sewing things here which means I can't start making things for the shop which in turn, means I'm getting bored being at home. I want to be doing something useful and productive, and I also wouldn't really mind some cash coming in, not least because I've been holding back on the vintage shopping here due to lack of it (although I've already bought my wedding dress, on the weekend actually, but more on that later), and because every time we leave the house we end up buying things.

But keep your fingers crossed, I may have finally made some inroads. I've had a few phone interviews and I'm waiting to see if they want to do a face to face interview with me. I've also just finished applying for a job within the publishing sector which I'm really excited about - so please, wish me luck, cross everything that can be crossed!

I have been taking some wardrobe remix shots along the way, so you'll have to bare with me as I show you old photos and try to catch up with things. You'll also need to forgive me for perhaps not commenting on your blogs for a wee while, my google reader is literally bursting at the seams with all the posts you've been writing, and catching up with you all will take some time. I must admit though, I have been missing blogging a bit, and I'm so glad to be back.

Righto, I think that's enough writing from me for the mean while! But, in case you are interested, David wrote a post on his blog about our initial settling in, and you can read it here if you like.

So happy to be back, see you all soon...

XX
Jen