The other night Andrew was out having fun with Simon, Tara and Ricky and I was at home looking after Evie. But because Evie goes to sleep at 6:30pm, looking after her this evening just involved me sitting on the couch in my PJs watching Better Homes and Gardens. I was feeling a bit sorry for myself.

But then I realised, Evie goes to sleep and doesn't wake until 2am for her next feed. There was really nothing stopping me from having a night out of my own. I emailed my Mothers' Group straight away and suggested that we have a night out.

And tonight was that night out. A group of us headed out to dinner at La Casa where we ate yummy food, had a few of glasses of wine and chatted (and not just about babies!). It was awesome.

Because it was my first night out in a while I actually made an effort to dress up a little bit. I straightened my hair (for only the 2nd time since Evie was born), I put on makeup and I even wore high heels. I got Andrew to take a photo as evidence.

Maybe I'm not too far off the mark with the whole "Jess is 12!" declaration. Especially if you look at some of the presents I received this year for my birthday.

Stormtrooper Mighty Mugg



Sakura Momiji Doll



Wolverine Mighty Mugg



To balance out all these toys I gifted myself with a beautiful new handbag. It's an Ollie and Nic Dolci chocolate tote. I love it! It has that beautiful new bag smell and it's huge (it fits 2 books!). It was on sale and I couldn't resist.

Ollie&Nic bag

I marked a few firsts on my birthday this year. It was my first birthday in London and also my first-ever summer birthday. I think it's probably also my first ever low-key birthday.

I'm a big one for parties and usually have something elaborate planned to celebrate. Car Rallies, Trivia Nights, and Fancy Dress Parties have all featured in my birthday past.

This year my birthday fell by the wayside when I suddenly found myself in employment. Not only did I find a contract but it was one where I actually had to work! The first 2 weeks of my contract passed in a blur. I worked hard all day and then often worked late into the evening. Before I knew it, it was the weekend of my birthday and nothing had been planned.

House husband to the rescue! Andrew quickly whipped up a lovely weekend away in Brighton to celebrate my birthday. We caught the train down on Saturday morning, spent a lovely couple of days relaxing by the seaside then trained it back to London on Sunday evening. Natalie also organised dinner and cocktails on Friday (888) for my birthday.

It was nice to have other people organising my birthday events for a change. Certainly different from how it usually happens (mainly because I love organising stuff too much to let other people do it!)

Andrew has been telling me for years that you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday after you turn eleven. Maybe I've finally reached that milestone. Jess is 12!



(Not if Andrew has anything to say about it. On my birthday weekend away, he continually reminded me that this birthday was also my first 30-something birthday. Not sure why he takes such delight in this fun fact. He's celebrated a few more 30-something birthdays than I have.)

I must apologise for the lack of activity around here. Believe or not, the silence is due to the fact that I am no longer an unemployed bum. That's right! I have a job!

It all happened very quickly. Last Thursday, I got a call from a recruiter asking if I could do an interview in the afternoon. That afternoon, I went to the interview and dazzled them with my brilliance. Actually, they checked that I didn't have two heads, asked if I could write a user guide in a week, and then asked if I could start the next day. Tick! Tick! Tick! The job was mine.

I actually did start the next day. My first day at a new role was a Friday. It was kind of strange. I've been working hard all week and it looks like I will finish the user guide by the end of this week. They thought I was being cocky when I said I could do it. I showed them! (And it will look great on my resume.)

I'm enjoying the work and the environment so here's hoping my initial contract of only 2 weeks gets extended. It does help that my desk has a view of the Thames and the London Eye (so pretty!). Makes having to go to work each day that much easier to bear.




A photo from more relaxing times...

P.S. Happy Birthday Leah!

I know, things have been awfully quiet here on FuShMuSh. Apparently, I have the worst immune system in the world as a couple of days ago I was struck down the Winter Vomiting Virus (Yes! It has its own name.) My poor Andrew succumbed shortly after I did. We've spent the past couple of days sleeping and feeling sorry for ourselves. We're on the mend now. Maybe tomorrow I may even consider getting out of my pyjamas and having a shower. It's the fourth time I've been sick this Winter season. Not... happy... Jan!

Here are some photos of a sweet dessert to tide you over. The ice-cream snowman was the special winter dessert at Abeno Too, a Japanese okonomiyaki restaurant. Two scoops of ice-cream on a pancake with some special snowman decorations. Unfortunately, like all snowmen, he melted. Luckily, unlike all snowmen, he was delicious. Delicious and cute!


Happy Australia Day!