Agatha Cami and Brief Set

And, drum roll please…transferred!

To LONDON.

No joke. Out of the blue, my boss called me into her office. She said this opportunity in LONDON had come up. And the position was mine, if I wanted it. It would mean moving to LONDON, for a year or two. And working in the LONDON office.

Did I mention, the position is in London?

So now, yes, I’m moving to London!

What about Colby, you ask? How could I be so cold as to move to Europe just when things are getting interesting? I admit, it’s a dilemma. But, planes go both ways, and surely I’ll have to jet back to the “home office” every so often. I’ve never done the long distance thing before, but I’m willing to give it my all. While I’m away, I’ll write home every day, and send all my…

Hey, is Prince William still single? Perhaps I’ll just order this new Agatha cami and brief set before I leave…

Anyway. I’ve got a lot on my plate right now, as you can imagine, so I’ll be taking a little hiatus from these updates for the moment. How will you know how it all turns out? Use your imagination!

You think you know a person. Then you spend four days side-by-side, and you find out all kinds of things about him that you never could have imagined. Such as, he uses a LOT of hair products. And babbles in his sleep. And misses a big spot when he puts sunblock on your back. Also, he has this unreasonable fear of seaweed and nearly drowns if even the slightest bit brushes against his shoulder in the water. And so, a weekend trip to paradise can become a real learning experience.

Of course, the good things I learned about Colby over our little vacation more than made up for the kooky little quirks. For example, he looks extremely good in a bathing suit. And, he gives excellent back massages and is super careful not to touch the sunburned patch. He is also good at purchasing vacation gifts. Lady Godiva Hot Pant and Cami, anyone? Very sexy, very sophisticated, but also comfy and perfectly wearable. Nice and soft on a sunburn, I might add. And to be honest, I also have an unreasonable fear of seaweed—if it aint wrapped around a nice piece of yellowtail just keep it away from me. So, we have that bit of strangeness in common, and it feels surprisingly nice.

Now, what else happened during my romantic, tropical weekend? Ask all you want, I’ll never tell.

Blast you, chocolate bunnies! Of course, I know better than to get on the scale the morning after devouring the last chocolate bunny from the basket Aunt Dorothea sent. (Sent on behalf of the Pekinese, mind you, as their way of thanking me for taking such good care of them whilst “momma” was away. Judging from the size of the basket, the dogs enjoyed my visit tremendously.) Anyway, yes, I knew better, but I stepped on the dreaded thing anyway, and was not pleased to see that the evil contraption claimed I was a good two pounds heavier than I was pre-bunnies. Not what I wanted to see the night before my long weekend of fun in the sun with Colby.

Ate nothing all day but lettuce, crackers, and, well, a few chocolate bunnies I had lying around the office (c’mon, they won’t be back until next Easter, how could I help it?), then went home and commenced packing. Tried on all the most important pieces before they went into the suitcase, to see where exactly that two pounds had come to roost. And well, that Caliente Rebecca Bikini still looked quite caliente, if I do say so myself! Same went for my Walk the Line Fabienne set, and, in fact, all my Eberjey suits. No pinched places or highlighting of all the wrong bits. How do they do that? Magic, I suppose. Huge sigh of relief. Of course, they ALL had to be packed, along with my Warm at Heart Chemise, the Lady Godiva Robe….well, I just threw it all in, because you never know what mood you’ll be in on vacay, right? So what if my suitcase weighs 700 pounds?

The thing about promotions is, at first, they are really exciting. Then you realize how much more work you have to do, and it gets a little scary. In the last three days, I’ve been to five meetings. And I only understood about half of what was said in any of them. Luckily, Colby has been sending me pep-talk emails and leaving me useful little gifts, like coffee, coffe and more coffee. Because I’ve been working later than ever to finish a massive project. Once I get the hang of this new role, I’ll be fine, and Colby’s all tied up nights with his own work anyway, so I’m sure it’ll all work out. And when it does, you can bet I’ll be celebrating! I’ve had my eye on the Safari City Cami and Knickers set, but I’ve decided to show a little restraint and hold out. It’ll be the perfect reward when afore-mentioned project has been successfully completed.

In other news, Tot’s received the teeny-weeny bikini I sent her, and she said it was so cute it actually made her cry! She was sniffling into the phone when she called. Of course, she said she ate a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich yesterday that was so good IT made her cry, so, I’m thinking there may some hormones at play here. Whatever is was, she was inspired to hop online and order herself a Confetti Ava bikini for her upcoming Babymoon in Hawaii. I was inspired by her confidence when she said, “It’ll be the perfect frame for my bump!”

If you keep an open mind, life is just FULL of special occasions. We all know the usual ones—New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day. A friend announcing that she’s eating for two. A first date. But why limit ourselves? I say, we’d all be a lot happier if we celebrated the less-obvious occasions, as well.

For example, I celebrated the fact that I aced my “big” presentation last week with a small token of my appreciation (appreciation for myself, that is…why not?)—a bottle of Pure Delicates Wash, to keep all my recent purchases in tip-top shape. The very next day, you’ll never guess! Promotion! For me! I celebrated, of course, with yet another purchase: Delirious Low Rise Thongs in red, mandarin, fuchsia and pool blue. Perhaps a tad extravagant, but I deserve it! Then, the ever-dazzling Sophia announced something spectacular. She’s engaged! Not that she had me spooked or anything, but who doesn’t like to have a little insurance in a case like this? Yep, I did it again…same thongs, but I was sensible this time and went for white and black.

This weekend, I saw a few crocuses and what might have been the start of a clump of daffodils just starting to peek out…so I celebrated the fact that spring is legitimately on its way, by splurging on a box of my favorite truffles to stash in my desk. What, you thought I did ALL my shopping at Eberjey?

Oh my god oh my god oh my god! So, there I was sitting at the bar with Tots for a little midweek toast to, well, the week being half over. I’d been rambling on and on about Colby and bikinis and squish-faced dogs for about half an hour, when, suddenly I notice that Tots hasn’t touched her pinot. “You’re not drinking,” I say. Even before she answers, I just know. It might have something to do with the fact that she’s just pulled a bag of crackers out of her bag and is chowing them down like Pekinese chows bacon (my aunt had made me promise no table scraps, but they were just so cute, and it’s not like they’ll tattle on me…). Anyway, it’s true! Perhaps the chemise I gave her for Christmas set the wheels in motion. I do hope it’s a girl. I can already see her on the beach in her Baby Ziggy Katie bikini. How cute is that?

As it turned out, my weekend at Aunt Dorothea’s turned out better than expected. In fact, I had an excellent time. Two full days and nights doing whatever I felt like doing…watching makeover shows, eating ice cream out of the carton, and, perhaps best of all, staying in my Prima Ballerina PJ set the ENTIRE time (well, not exactly…I have two sets, one in chocolate/sorbet pink, the other in sorbet pink/taupe). Even the Pekinese were more pleasant than I’d remembered. In fact, they proved to be excellent foot warmers when placed correctly at the end of the bed.

So, I returned rested and happy knowing that I can be quite content all by myself. The only slight, nagging question at the back of my mind is this: Is it possible to own too many bikinis? Because I did a LITTLE shopping while away, and the Pop Flower Isabella suit is on its way, as is the Walk the Line Fabienne set. I guess I’ll just have to make sure I have somewhere to wear all these little number in the coming months…

Still life with Pekinese. That’s what I’ve got to look forward to at the end of this week. While I had hoped to turn my dog-sitting gig into a romantic weekend away, it is not to be. Turns out busy season really is, well, busy. And from here to eternity—or, until April 15, to be more precise—Colby will be working weekends. So this weekend, it’ll be just me and the dogs. And about 2,000 beady eyes staring down at me from Aunt Dorothea’s glass hummingbird collection.

Won’t I be tortured the entire time, you ask, by visions of the Siren Sophia sinking her hooks into my sweetheart while they work side by side into the wee hours of the weekend? Nah. I’ll be too busy daydreaming about the long weekend Colby and I have planned. Departing April 16 for four glorious days of sun-‘n-sand-‘n-surf. And whatnot.

The idea had me a little nervous at first. I mean, who wants to go bathing suit shopping so soon after dating a professional chef? Then I remembered: Eberjey’s got suits! No dressing room with the horrible lighting and 3-way mirror for me! I chose the Caliente Rebecca bikini because it looked so flattering and fun. And the Lulu tunic to toss on over it.

A little self-tanner and I’ll be ready to go!

Now I just have to make it through this weekend in the cold, cold country. With no one to keep me warm except those jumpy balls of fluff who bark at every sound and somehow always end up on my pillow in the middle of the night. (Did I mention they snore?) Ah, well. They do say absence makes the heart grow fonder…

Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose…

Someone clever said that. And while I don’t really know what it means, it’s been running through my head since Sunday. The Big Day. Tots was right—the entire holiday is one big cliché, and this year, I loved every silly moment of it. My Valentine arrived armed with roses in varying shades of pink and red, a big box of chocolates, a frilly card, and a really cute and sort-of-embarrassed grin. “I know, kind of cliché, but I couldn’t help it,” he said.

“You read my mind!” I said, indicating my red ensemble and the bottle of champagne I had chilling in vintage ice bucket that’s been waiting for use since I found it at my favorite flea market six, yes SIX, summers ago. It might interest you to know that we DID not do the clichéd, prix-fixe dinner featuring oysters and flourless chocolate cake at a local romantic hotspot. I felt we had to draw the line somewhere and I can’t even tell you how happy Colby looked when I told him I’d ordered a pizza that would be arriving shortly. I’ll leave the rest of my little tale to your imagination, but I will tell you this—there’s no meal more perfect for Valentine’s Day than pizza, chocolates and a bit of bubbly.

My apartment still smells of roses. A perfect pink bloom is safely pressed inside my newish copy of “How to Cook Everything.” (I know how to cook nothing.) And my Lady Godiva Robe, in the most beautifully named shade of Rosewater, is speeding towards me as I type. I may stop on my way home for some rose-scented bodywash…why not let the feeling linger? After all, as they say, Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose!

I’m ALIVE!  Not only did I get through the presentation without a hitch, (well, except for having two of my charts completely backwards, but no one noticed), my boss’s boss said “nice job” and asked me to repeat the presentation at the company-wide meeting next month! Which is a good thing, even if I’d rather be hung by my freshly-painted Red-Hot-to-Trot toenails over a flaming pit of angry bears. At least now I can shift my focus back to my love-life and Valentine’s Day preparations. Work-shmirk.

Of course, the best way to truly prepare for Valentine’s Day is to have your best friend Tots over to review every single piece of clothing you own, so that’s just what I did.

“You’ve got to wear red,” she said, “that’s a given.”

“Of course,” I said, indicating my newly arrived, most decidedly and devilishly red Colette bralet and boythong set.

Tots approved, but said that I had to wear red over my underpinnings as well. I thought that might be a little too cliché, but she insisted. “The whole holiday is one big cliché! That’s the fun of it! The candy, the flowers, the candlelight dinner. You want to look like the personification of Valentine’s Day itself!”

“I do?” I asked?

“You do.” She confirmed. And suddenly, I agreed. After all, Tots has been married for two whole years, so she obviously knew something about finding and keeping Mr. Right. Plus, I couldn’t help but think Sophia would look all washed out in red. While I, on the other hand, would look like, well, just like Tots said—the personification of Valentine’s Day itself!