Battle of the High-streets

Being in Australia and all, it would be rude not to do a bit of shopping and check out what's hot & what's not down under.
With this being my 4th trip here I've already got my faves and a pretty good idea of what shops suit me best (style and fit!) 'Cotton On' is great for your basics - tee's, shorts, scarves, summer dresses, it's cheap n cheerful and has a great children's department too. 'Sportsgirl' is a bit like Topshop in that it caters for the young and is current and up to date with its catwalk copies & ok-ish prices (latest celebrity collaboration/collection by Whitney Port) 'Bardot' is sparkly party Saturday night outfits and 'Forever New' is a floaty, feminine, very pretty collection of dresses, skirts and pastel colours, with gorgeous accessories but on the pricier side.
Having said all that, I have often struggled to find clothes here and my unadventurous British side has often hankered for a straight forward H&M, Topshop or Gap!
Luckily for the Aussies, this is beginning to happen, with recent openings of Zara and Topshop Flagships in Melbourne (not Sydney surprisingly, 1-0 to Melbs) H&M and River Island making appearances and the nationwide openings of Gap. I do wonder with the arrival of these global retail giants, what will become of the Australian high street stores?
Other Australian brands include Supre, which I find too young for me (think Tammygirl) and Myer, which is one of their main department stores, and has a brilliant children's brand called Sprout.
They have Espirit, which we have too., and ASOS have developed an Aussie web too, which certainly opens up many shopping opportunities!

As much as I'm a creature of habit, I desperately need a dress for a party on Saturday night, so it's time to get shopping, Australian style!


                         Some of high-street brands/webs repping the UK (and other countries)

                              
 
                                            Some of the high-street brands repping Australia

                           
                                                                My beloved Cotton On!

I miss you, silly.

Tonight Jacob is sleeping in his very own bedroom. He hasn't done this since August when we moved to the countryside and then back to London and our lives became chaotic and ridiculous and we lived in 2 places in 4 months whilst we house hunted. As a result of the upheaval and the fact that I was drowning in guilt at him not having his own space, he slept with me and his Daddy, in order to make him feel secure and comfortable. And now we are in Australia and he has a lovely little room, with a proper little bed and a cute dinosaur duvet cover and just a WHOLE BEDROOM OF HIS OWN.
And I miss him, I can't sleep. I miss his breath on my face, and the smell of his hair, and his finger up my nostril and even the early morning boot in the ribs.

Waaaahhhh.

*2 hours after this post was written, Jacob was snoozing in our bed. Will try again soon!

Jetlagged

Day Two in Australia and that hazy, heavy fog is still hanging around, unwanted making me seriously grumpy, fuck off Jet Lag. I'm starving at 3am and have zero appetite at 6pm when everyone else is preparing for dinner, urgh.
Jacob has been a grump today too, like me, sleep deprivation hits him hard.
On a positive note, we went and watched Ben play his school league Basketball game today - Jacob absolutely loved it and was shouting from the bleachers like a little angry, chubby Coach, waving his arms, clapping and general nut case behaviour. Weather still good too (considering Australia is heading into Winter - its still mid twenties) We've got Madison's Basketball game to attend tomorrow and then it's a 2 hour drive to the coast to stay for a few days. On the exact half way point of the journey we stop off at this amazing little wood town of Broomwood for meat pies (best meat pies and lamingtons in Australia) its seriously like stepping back in time to a country and western town. So cute. So excited to be at the beach and will hopefully get some nice shots of Jacob.
...and maybe even a *real* tan!

Australia.

Sunshine, family and beaches.... That's really all it took to convince me to come on a 3 month holiday to Australia. Mike is from Canberra and has been dying to get back for years ..and I have to say it really doesn't disappoint.
The flight over was amazing, 12 hours first leg in which Jacob slept 10 hours, then a lovely little stop over in the humid and busy metropolis that is Kuala Lumpur. Had a great little mooch around the street markets and had some tasty local food. Nice.
Second flight of 8 hours was a bit more trying as he was awake for the majority, but still, we made it through..and I still managed to squeeze in a film, Les Miserables which is by the way, a-effing-mazing.
..Then we arrived! Australia, I love you. The sun is shining, I've been to the mall for flowers as its Mike's Gran's birthday do tonight, marvelled at the ridiculously amazing food halls they have in the shopping centres over here. We've been for a picnic at the lake, caught up with a friend for coffee, been to the park, and watched the (exotic) birds. Jacob has met up with his cousins and become completely infatuated with his older cousin Ben. I'm now sat in a lovely soft play centre surrounded by other mums and getting the low down on the kids activities in the area (lots, by the sounds of things)
We have lots lined up to do, a visit to Sydney, a camping trip, maybe some skiing at the snowy mountains, a trip to NSW coast this weekend which I'm beside myself with excitement about. Basically exactly what the doctor ordered after a shitty miserable last few months.
The world definitely seems brighter when the sun is out.