We've been overwhelmed by the love and generosity of our friends and family members over the last few weeks. From the day we found out that we had lost the baby, the messages of support just kept flying in.

It's so hard to say much other than 'thank you' - but I've tried hard to make sure people know how grateful I am, we both are. Little tokens were left on our doorstep, cards were posted to us so that we can read in private - it was beautiful, and showed us how loved we are - even in our darkest moments.

It's not only the physical things that mean so much though - it's the words, the text messages, the support I've received from other amazing women online. I wouldn't be healing without you... so thank you, so so much.

Oh, did we have an amazing weekend - busy, but amazing!

On Saturday, I spent the day at my parent's place, baking up a storm with mum and my lovely friend, K. We made cupcakes, oreo baby rattles {which were so dodgy at first that they almost ended up on Pinterest Fail}, mars bar slice, some dips AND a four-layer lilac ombre cake with white chocolate ganache icing. I was actually really proud of how it turned out - mum cooked the cakes beautifully, K found the perfect violet food colouring, and we had help frosting it from a baker friend. This was the final result - doesn't it look amazing?

Sunday morning was a big ol' blur. I picked up a friend who was visiting from another state & brought her back to our place - and K picked up and brought over another out-of-town friend. It was a house full of women for a few hours, but Jase coped pretty well. ;) My next door neighbour {who is also, conveniently, a hair dresser} came over with her daughter, and they gave me a bit of pampering - tinted my eyelashes and gave my hair some ridiculous curls. After squeezing {literally} into my dress, we were out the door & off to my parents' place.

You guys, the baby shower was amazing. Mum did a wonderful job of decorating and putting out the food, and it was a great turn-out - so many people love this baby girl and can't wait for her arrival.

Most of the afternoon was spent chatting to people and trying my hardest to get around and see everyone - I think I managed to get to most of my guests! We played a few games, but mostly enjoyed the company. I'm never sure on how to respond to gift-opening at showers, but the consensus was to OPEN THEM. Goodness gracious. I really hope Baby Jag is a girl after all of this, because she was thoroughly spoiled!

Today started out like any other holiday.

I slept late, lounged around the house in my pyjamas, lazily arranged plans to get out of the house & had a wonderful afternoon - I caught a movie with the bff and ambled around a local shopping centre, not really looking for anything in particular and enjoying some company. Later that afternoon when it was time to go, I did what I always do: walked Kirby to the door, and stood with it mostly closed, saying goodbye.

Usually, Oscar sits behind me and watches through the crack. Today, he shoved his head out the door - so I had to nudge him back inside out of sight, since he's not really supposed to be here, and I'm always frightened of our neighbours hearing/seeing him. All was well, until he decided to make a bolt for it. Oscar flew straight out between my legs and onto the landing - and that's when panic ensued. Kirby stayed guarding the stairs, in case he tried to make a run for it and disappear, and I lunged out of the apartment after him and grab him while he was close.

I was successful - I swung out, grabbed him up into my arms and breathed a sigh of relief. That relief turned into panic, when I saw the door swinging closed out of the corner of my eye. I ran for it, but like in slow-motion, it slammed shut literally seconds before I'd got to it.

So. There I was. Standing in the hallway of our apartment complex, holding onto a terrified cat who is not supposed to exist. Kirby looked on in panic, as I frantically tried the door knob several times, realising with a sinking feeling that my keys, phone and handbag were all just inside the door... which was locked. What else was I missing? Why, my shoes, of course. I was barefoot and freaking the eff out.

First things first, we hid in a stairwell. I couldn't risk Oscar being seen, and we didn't want to leave the entire apartment complex because otherwise would have no way of getting back in. We rang Jase from Kirby's phone, explained the situation & asked if he could leave work early to let us in - except that he was in the middle of a deployment and physically couldn't leave the office.

We ended up hoofing it to Miss K's car and driving to his work with the cat sitting on my lap - talk about some strange expressions from people in surrounding cars! Oscar coped remarkably well, making friends through the windows and being pretty calm about it all considering the situation. I think I was more stressed than he was. We met Jason at his work, grabbed his keys, and headed back for home.

Honestly, talk about an eventful evening. In the end, we managed to smuggle Oscar-cat back upstairs, thankfully not running into any neighbours on the way, and sat down to laugh about it all. Talk about a random way of ending the day! I'm so thankful that Kirby was there; it tells you a lot about a person, if they're willing to shuttle their friend AND their cat halfway across town of an evening.

Moral of the story? Wear shoes, always. Keep an eye on your naughty feline. And always, always unlock the door's dead-bolts before opening it - just in case.

The first of our summer visitors is arriving this afternoon - a friend will be staying with us for the next few days. We became friends in 2008, not all that long ago, but it feels like we've known each other a lot longer than that. 

I met Sarah in Anaheim, California - the morning our road trip was due to set off across the States. Miss Kirby and I were standing around awkwardly by the bus ready to go, when this cute and tiny auburn haired girl appeared lugging a giant suitcase behind her. We started up a conversation and that was that. Instant buddies.

For the next six weeks, the three of us (plus another new friend, Carly) were together virtually every single day. Our awesome foursome explored famous places, took note of countless amusing billboards and laughed our way from the West Coast to the East Coast. Nearly every memory I have from that trip involves the girls.

It's not easy travelling with people. I started that trip travelling with two good friends from home, and I ended the trip with only one of those friends still speaking to me. But I also ended that trip with two new and amazing friends, that I treasure. If you can survive each other for six weeks of travelling cross country, you can survive anything.

The saddest part about ending our USA adventure was saying goodbye to the girls. We all lived in different parts of Australia, and I was returning to the UK. However as fate would have it, the very next year saw me stuck home in Sydney for three months while my Visa was renewed - and we had a reunion! Sarah flew in from Adelaide, Carly caught the train down from Newcastle and of course, Kirby and I hoofed it to Sydney, where we spent a weekend being tourists in the capital. And, as I'd guessed, we were all just as much fun to be around in this country too.

I'm so excited to have Sarah staying with us - she'll get to meet Jase for the first time and I'll hopefully tag along with her to see the sights. And so begins a summer crammed full of friends and family. Bring it on!