What's in my handbag part II

It's been a year since the last time I checked this, and I'm not sure whether I've learned much about not overloading my handbag. Luckily I have the wonderful Shelley, who is a massage expert, to undo all the horrendous knots in my back! But they're all neccessary items, honestly.

Here's my list from this time last year.

So let's start a new catalogue:

* Pink leather wallet (Christmas present from aforementioned wonderful Shelley)
* Kodak digital camera
* Glasses + glasses case
* Portmans sunglasses
* Pink sparkly purse which contains: business cards (yes, mine!) (great for shopping lists), 3 x packets of Listerine strips, 5 x band-aids
* 1 x Hillsong London pen
* 1 x Hillsong Music pen (with a highlighter on one end)
* 50 cent coin
* 'Kiss Kiss' earrings (which I had to take off after my friends mercilessly roasted me about wearing them to church!) (they're white! they went with my white necklace! there was no subversive messaging intent!!)
* Covergirl TruBlend translucent powder compact
* Nivea deo compact
* Bodyshop lipstain
* Bodyshop lip colour in sparkly pink
* Bodyshop Hi Shine Lip Treatment translucent pink
* Bodyshop mini Mango Body Butter
* Bard promo lip gloss
* Vaseline Intensive Care hand & nail lotion
* Nokia 6288
* Nokia 6288 adaptor for charging
* iPod nano
* ear phones for nano
* Bach Rescue Remedy spray
* 10 x lottery balls from the 1950's Melbourne lottery

Okay, so most of it is essential handbag equipment, I think you have to agree on that. Maybe a few random ring-ins, but you show me how I can pare that down to anything less and I'll be impressed.

Maybe I need a bigger handbag...
So what's in your handbag??

Reasons why...

Just before I left London to move to Sydney, my favourite friend Michelle wrote me a list of reasons why I would be happy to go back. I think she told me at the time that it was partly to convince herself, but it certainly helped me too!

Okay, the jpeg's aren't showing up very nicely, but you can click and enlarge them which might help a bit.

So the list has been sitting in the back of my bible, and every now and then when I'm missing London, or missing Mish, I take the list out and read it and remember the reasons why I'm happy to be living in Sydney.

Isn't Mish wonderful? Well it's taken me nearly 18 months to repay the favour, but here's my list for her.

Reasons why Amy is happy to have Mish as a best friend

* not many other people understand the fine line between wearing too much pink and not quite enough

* it’s important to have someone who will tell you when you’re being weird

* we have the same love language (gifts!) (this works out quite well for birthdays and Christmas!)

* we both understand that every so often it’s important for your soul to watch a very good trashy movie

* we both have a passion for connecting people, but doing it with style

* our weaknesses compliment each others strengths

* sometimes she calls me needing advice, and then not much later I call her needing the exact same advice. I don't understand how this works, but it's great to have someone to do this with!

* Mish has a deep seated aversion to tinsel, and is the last word on being stylish at Christmas, which I totally aspire to

* she sets me free to achieve my goals

* sometimes when she phones me she doesn’t even say hello, just starts talking straight away, which I love

* she loves me unconditionally, even when I'm in a bad mood

* she can carry more fruit than any other person I know (I find this strangely comforting)

* she has a beautiful inbuilt sense of etiquette

* we wear the same size shoes

* even though we live on opposite sides of the planet, in the last 18 months we've grown closer than ever

* the girl can ACCESSORISE like no one else I know!

* she sees God in people and this brings out the best in them

* when we lived in the same city we became dangerously coordinated (which I secretly enjoyed)

* she is incredibly generous with her time and resources

* she recognises the total joy of the random glory that God brings to our lives

* one day she asked my permission (in all seriousness) to take a chocolate cake in her arms, which will remain the funniest question anyone has ever asked me

* one day we will be wrinkly old grandmothers together, with matching pink support hose (it’s inevitable!)

Too much pink? Surely you jest!

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's Valentine's Day - how romantic! Hope you're all having a very special day, and being spoiled by someone you love!

I love being spoiled...

Cheers!

You just have to see these!

Shells picked up these fabulous wigs for the girls to wear to Frontline retreat. (Every year all our age group go away for a few days retreat to the Central Coast, which is a fabulous, fabulous experience!) (But I couldn't go last year because I'd just started my job, and I couldn' go this year because I'd already booked my Melbourne trip!) The wigs did startle me one evening when I went into Shelley's room to grab something, didn't bother to turn the light on, and she had them haning on the wardrobe doors - they looked like two people standing there in the dark! Freaked me right out!

Anyway, I loved them, loved them. (You know my passion for dressing up!) Check us out being glam. (By the way, this was on moving day, so we should have been packing, but I think a fancy dress break is just as important as a drink break etc.)

Sarah as a brunette (with a pink polka dot headband courtesy of moi!)

Me as a blonde!

A few last minute adjustments...

Shells and Sarah, beauty queens!

So loving it!

By the way, I've also done that annoying thing where I go back and add photos to previous entries, it's only the last couple. So if you've read them lately you can now go back and see photos in glorious technicolour!

Holidays! Glorious, glorious holidays!

It's no secret that I've been a bit stressed out lately so that just makes it ALL THE SWEETER to be out of the office and on holidays in sunny Melbourne! Oh yeah! We've had such a fab time so far, and still more time left. The best part so far has been seeing all my wonderful Melbourne family, and getting to spend so much time with my fabulous, fabulous sister Katy.

The intrepid travellers, Clover and Watkins.

(I found myself curiously unable to crop this picture, for which I apologise!)

We've done a fair amount of shopping.

Er... should I rephrase that?

We've done a LOT of shopping!

Hmm, let me rephrase that once again.

We've spotted some amazing bargains and stretched ourselves financially to invest in several key pieces each which will enhance the functionality of our existing wardrobes while adding to the joy and frivolity of our future existence.

Y'know??

We've been staying with the extremely wonderful Loulou and John, who we love. And their adorable dog Saphy, who is (I think) the best trained dog I've ever met. (I am a Non Dog Person, this is the best dog compliment I can give!) It's been so fabulous spending time with my wonderful aunties and our glamorous Nanna. I definitely haven't taken enough pictures of everyone.

We saw Bill Bryson speaking, and he was fantastic. (Haven't read any of his books yet, but now I certainly want to!) At one point he opened up the talk to questions from the audience, which is always a bit risky I think. He shut down some annoying lady beautifully when she just kept talking and talking, by saying 'Well, yes, I see your point, but this is becoming a bit of a dialog, so let's continue with someone else.' Beautifully done!

We watched Babel yesterday, and it is a great film, but I didn't like it. Which is to say, I liked the way it was made, Innaritu makes impeccable films and I love the way he uses intersecting storylines and plays with time - but I found it awkward, messy, painful and uncomfortable. I like films to be escapism really: fun, entertaining, pretty and leave me with a smile on my face. It was a gorgeous old retro theatre though, which I thoroughly enjoyed.

We're off to the 15 restaurant tomorrow. My talented uncle Andy taught the 15 kids to cook, did you see the tv show? So he's taking us there for cocktails, which I'm looking forward to! Two of my very wonderful cousins have just turned 18, so they'll come with us as well.

Oh, you know what, there have been a million fabulous things that we've done that I'm not even going to list here because it would take too long! It's certainly been an action packed holiday so far! Looking forward to coming home eventually though, as coming home means coming back to the Palace! (Which, by the way, currently looks like this:

so I'm certainly going to have to get cracking on the unpacking as soon as I get home!)

Hope you're all having as fabulous a week as I am. Not too sure how that's possible, but I'm an optimist so I'll hope for it all the same ;-)

Lovely hat which I was very tempted to buy!