i haven't given up on my blog, i've just been really busy. it really is no excuse but in between work, visitors, family, maxi and sleep - i really have not managed to find much time to blog lately. so what have i been doing these past couple of months you ask? well here is what i've been up to, in summary:trip to melbournestarted off in the 2nd week of april when i flew to melbourne to surprise mel (and t) on her birthday. spent the weekend celebrating mel c's birthday with what we love doing best. eating. we went to karaoke on friday night, had a late lunch on saturday at my favourite - pelligrini's on bourke st, ate pizza on sat night before heading out to some club at the crowne casino. on sunday, we headed out for breakfast were mel c, t and i divulged 2 breakfasts each, then drove to visit some wineries. then in the evening we ate vietnamese, and PLENTY of it to, and then had hot chocolate at a chocolate dessert shop, where mel c and t caned the dessert menu.
girls trip in sydneyi was a very lucky girl this year. my best friends all flew in to sydney to celebrate my 24th birthday. i had a black n white themed party at the world bar and to my surprise, everyone adhered to the dress code. i couldn't take any time off work but i managed to take the girls out for dinner most nights. the highlight (besides spending time with the girls) was the present i got from the girls. on the eve of my birthday, we climbed the sydney harbour bridge on a lovely evening, and then they serenaded me with the birthday song. it's rare to be able to find good, loyal and loving friends, and i feel so blessed to have 5 of them. 
work work work
april and may were extremely busy months for me. in the past 2 months, i have made 2 trips to melbourne and 1 trip to brissie, i've had to work till midnight for around 6 weeks, non stop. all in all, work has taken over and ruled my life. but my hard work has paid off. my performance review was tops, and i won a bi-yearly award for being a 'top performer' so at least the recognition sets me up for a decent pay increase at the end of this performance year.
visitors to sydney
besides having the girls over during my birthday, i've been lucky enough to have some visitors pass through sydney for a multitude of reasons.
s came down under for an IT conference in may so i took him out a few times for dinner and lunch, showed him aussie things like harry's pies, good food, kingscross, the harbour, the opera house and the bridge. unfortunately he was most impressed with something very non australian - krispy kremes and the casino. (!!)
a also came across for work. i spent saturday shopping with him last week, took him to bondi junction, paddington markets and tiffany's. i made sure i helped him to pick out nice gifts for his gf, but more importantly his mum and sisters (*wink mel c*).
my parents have also been in sydney for the past 2 weeks. mum is about to head back to perth but dad will be here for a couple more weeks. it's always so wonderful having them in town. it's strange because i only really realize how much i have missed them once they actually arrive in sydney. strange i know, but true. mum and dad love maxi and though mum is still terrified of touching him, i feel that she does share a strong and loving bond with him and i look forward to the day where she dares to touch him.
long weekends
since my last entry, we've had 3 public holidays/long weekends - easter, anzac day and queen's birthday. during the easter long weekend i was obviously in sydney as it was my birthday.
for the anzac day holiday period, we hired a holiday home at the central coast and spent some time out there. maxi's parents live near shelly beach (where we stayed) so we took him to visit his family. it just so happened his breeder was dogsitting his brother and sister (from the same litter) so it was great for maxi to see his mummy, daddy, older brother and younger sister.
and this long weekend has been spent doing a million and 1 things. i managed to get a day in lieu from work on friday so we drove down to canberra for the day. went to the chairman and yip's for a nice lunch, and then went to visit the parliament house. we went on an educational tour and it was indeed, quite educational.
world cup
i am definitely suffering from world cup fever. i've bought my adidas zip up jacket, supporting the brazilian team. i know i must sound very unpatriotic to australia but i promise that when australia plays against brazil, i will sticky tape australia on the back of my jacket. but i do love the brazilian team and i hope that they can win back to back titles. and ronaldhino is just too good.
maxi
maxi turned 1 on the 19th april. we had a birthday party for him and his friends on good friday and he absolutely loved the attention. he's becoming more and more adorable each day and i hope that one day we can buy him a little sister for him to look after and play with.
so now that i've caught you up with the daily adventures of miss j, i will start to blog on a regular basis once more.love lots... and promise to update you with pics soon. xx
