For Katie

So it seems that your time has come to an end,
It's with sadness we farewell such a sweet & dear friend.
Our beautiful Katie will go on her way,
To bring some sunshine to someone else's day.

She has been with us for over a year, 

And leaves us to embark on a brand new frontier. 

We wish her well and we'll pray that she’ll be, 

Happy and blessed and forever carefree.

We all will miss the fabulous treats that she makes, 

All the brownies, biscuits and sweet little cakes. 

She was definitely surprised and didn’t foresee, 

The domestic goddess she would turn out to be. 

Behind that blue door, many memories were made, 

Happy days and special friends, that time can not fade. 

Bike rides by the river on a perfect summer’s day, 

Believing that chocolate is in fact the only way. 

The beauty and comfort that is the Christmas Bed, 

The daily debrief of all that has been said. 

The wonderful times spent over coffee and brunch, 

Not to mention the delicious wine and Sunday lunch. 

The delightful fashion shows of what we should wear, 

And help with the curling and straightening of hair. 

Sitting on the love seat with a sweet cup of tea, 

Encouraging one another in all they could be. 

We will all treasure the time we shared at Bunny HQ, 

It’s with warm wishes that we bid you sweet adieu. 

So as our dear Katie goes on her little way, 

We wonder what parts of us, with her, will stay? 

Perhaps from Tennille, her love of clothes and personal style.

From Hajie, her passion for life and sweet effervescent smile. 

Lisa no doubt, has given all the business advice that she knows. 

And from me, I guess she has developed an appreciation for bows. 

So may God keep you safe and may your dreams come true, 

We are excited to see what the future holds for you. 

So our dear friend, we just wanted to say, 

You are loved and we wish you well on your way. 

And wherever the road takes you and whatever you do, 

There will always be a place in our house just for you. 

xx

Take heart

It's hard to comprehend the sheer magnitude of the earthquake that hit Japan this last week. Within hours of the disaster, #prayforjapan was the main trend in the twitter world {and it continues to keep trending the world over} So let us keep being mindful of the people who are caught up in this natural disaster.

Over a thousand people are confirmed to have perished, over 10,000 missing and millions of people displaced with no access to power or water. Let us join together and pray for Japan.

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There is a light
It burns brighter than the sun
He steals the night
And casts no shadow
There is hope
Should oceans rise and mountains fall
He never fails

So take heart
Let His love lead us through the night
Hold on to hope
And take courage again

In death by love
The fallen world was overcome
He wears the scars of our freedom
In His Name
All our fears are swept away
He never fails 

Lyrics: Hillsong United, Take Heart {Aftermath}


Donations to the Japan Tsunami Appeal can be made through your local Red Cross or you can text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10 to Japan's Emergency Relief.

Operation 'Beach Holiday'

It's official 'Operation Beach Holiday' has begun. With the first glimpse of sunshine hitting London town {two days in a row, might I add} I have started to dream about the absolutely delicious European Summer.

Oh how I love Summer time on this side of the world. Most likely because I think I have learnt to appreciate it so much more than when I was living in the perfectly temperate land of Australia, where it's practically summer the whole year through.

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This year who knows where the tides will take me, but one thing is for sure, I'm going to have fun dreaming about it in the meantime. Hot on the top of my list this year are the sunny shores of Sardinia, the beautiful waters of Croatia and perhaps a little glimpse of the stunning Amalfi Coast. So excited for some sand {or in some cases, rocks}, sea & sunshine. 

Who knows if I will actually get there, but a girl can certainly dream! 

Happy Sunny days... Only 83 until summer {but who's counting} xx

And while we're on the topic...

So as you can probably tell from my previous post, I love the whole notion of 'kissing and making up'. So much so, that when I discovered these little treasures, I was ridiculously excited!

Now mock me if you wish, but seriously, who wouldn't want these delicious little face wipes as a part of their day? They are organic, they have a super-cute name and the packaging is pink! What more could a girl ask for?

One of my dearest friends got me on to the Organic Surge range a while ago. I have tried a few of their products and apart from actually doing their job, they all seem to smell so amazingly divine. Bath time has never been such a treat!

So, get your hands on a packet and get ready to 'kiss and make up'.

Much love x

Let's kiss and make up

I love the phrase, ‘let’s kiss and make up’. It seems to be such a sweet neutraliser. 

Let's face it, some days, despite our very best intentions, we get ourselves into arguments and disagreements with the people that we love. We live and we {try to} learn, we let each other down, we get frustrated and sometimes we even hold grudges {who would have thought?}

And although conflict is not fun, I must admit that the silver lining is indeed the 'kiss & make up' part.

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Sometimes the problems are significant and need to be worked through carefully {and fairly} and other times, the problems are trivial and we just need to get a little perspective on the matter. Either way, the manner with which we navigate the turns and trials in our relationships, ultimately determines the health of them.

No matter what type of relationship it is, forgiveness is always fundamental. Forgiveness is a verb {and for all of you who may be as gramatically challenged as I am most days, a verb is a 'doing' word} Forgiveness is an action not just a word. It is to grant pardon for or remission of an offence or debt. I find it interesting that the dictionary also sees that forgiveness is to cease to feel resentment against someone.

How many times do we say we are sorry yet continue to hold resentment and hard feelings? And likewise, how many fights have we had where we don't stick to the topic and bring up all the issues and arguments we have had in the past?

It's a tough one huh?

Robert Muller wrote that “to forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.” How true is this!

So if we find ourselves in conflict, let's commit to fighting fair. Let's commit to being the ones to say sorry and mean it. Then we can go ahead and enjoy the fun part.

Happy Kissing and Making Up xx

Are you happy?

So simple, yet so true.

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Much love & happy thoughts x

Boys and Girls

I love that boys and girls are so completely different. It totally intrigues me how we manage to come together and compliment each other so perfectly. I must admit, I do find the differences we have quite endearing and generally, fairly comical. 

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Here are a few truths I have found {or been told}...

I'm pretty sure that women have a dedicated part of their brain for remembering every piece of clothing that they have ever worn, where they wore it and who they wore it with. Men can't remember {or don't care about} what they wore yesterday.

A women will always know what to do when somebody starts to cry. A man will panic, grab the nearest women to help and run away.

Generally, women take 20 minutes to choose food from a takeaway menu, men will take 1 minute. When the food arrives, women always decide that they want to eat the man's food..... and subsequently do!

Men will answer any simple question with a long, boring and over detailed answer. They will also answer complex and important questions with "mmm" or "yep".

Men apparently have a 'nothing box' in their brain. When women ask men what they are thinking, "nothing" is officially a valid answer. This does not generally go down well with women. Mark Gungor amusingly validates this point.

A man will sleep through any sound. A women will hear any sound and be worried about burglars.

Men are generally good drivers. Women tend to believe they are good drivers.

Men learnt very quickly in childhood that small house spiders are not going to eat you in your sleep. A woman never learns this.

Men forget almost every birthday, anniversary or appointment. Women have a built in diary that triggers a 'card alert'.

Women must attend bathrooms in multiple numbers. Men use the tag team technique.

A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel. The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. {A man would not be able to identify more than 20 of these items}.

A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and football games and romances and best friends and favourite foods and secret fears and hopes and dreams. A man is vaguely aware of some little people living in the house.

And just while we are on the point, here are a few random conversations we {girls} have overheard. Don't worry boys, it secretly makes us love you even more.

Guy 1: How was your weekend, mate?
Guy 2: Not so good.. my van caught on fire.
Guy 1: That sucks.
Guy 2: Yeah.
End of conversation.

Boyfriend: Look at that massive puddle over there!
Girlfriend: That's a river.
Boyfriend: Are you sure?
Girlfriend: Yes, that's why there are boats on it.

Man1: Has your sister had her baby yet?
Man2: Yeah, a couple of days ago, it's immature.
Man1: What?
Man2: A baby girl. She's immature.
Man1: Do you mean premature?
Man2: Er, yeah, probably.

Hope this made you smile xx