December 16, 2009

Evening, all.
I've not got much to write really, but thought I'd dash off a quick post before I hit the hay.
It's been another busy day today - up and out this morning to drop in a prescription and a box of Christmas chocolates at our GP's surgery. (Charlie loves our doctor - he's brilliant! Don't know where we'd be without Dr S and his team.).
Then it was off for a whizz round Tesco to try to get a few more bits of Christmas shopping.
Then off to the garden centre for yet more Christmas shopping.
Then it was off to the post office to dispatch parcels containing aforementioned Christmas shopping. (Five big parcels and a couple of books of stamps = £24. Eek. But I guess that's less than it would have cost me to have delivered them all in person!)
Then back home for a quick cuppa with my friend Kelly, and then off out for my girly Christmas lunch. Company and conversation: great. Food: great. Service... not so hot. We sat down at noon and finally left at just after 3pm, and that was only because we hassled them lots for our dessert. Hey ho - at least we had lots of time for chatting!
Then it was just about time to pick up Charlie from school, and that was another day gone!
Chas has been writing his Christmas cards (he's so much more organised than I am. I've stood at the card rack half a dozen times over the past couple of weeks looking to buy some cards, and the only ones I seem to see are for 'Dad' or 'Grandpa'. So each time I've given up and just left. Hence I haven't bought any cards yet, so apologies to anyone who's expecting festive greetings from us - we're running a little behind schedule.)
As I was saying - Chas has been writing cards for his school friends, and has been enjoying it, writing his own little messages to his mates. His writing and spelling is getting so good now - it still amazes me when I find little stories he's written lying around the house. He's getting pretty good at reading too - he's getting so grown up.
Well, tomorrow is the craft fair - I can hardly wait to see what delights Charlie has concocted (he's been mumbling about cookies, calendars, bookmarks and cards made of pasta, so we shall see!)
We had a fun evening, watching the first couple of episodes of the old BBC drama 'Box of Delights', based on the John Masefield book of the same name. I've LOVED this show (and the accompanying musical score) since it was first shown when I was about eight. I bought the video years ago, and managed to get hold of the DVD in more recent years. (For those of you who have yet to appreciate this classic piece of telly, here's a bit of the music...)



So watching 'Box of Delights' has been one of my (and latterly our!) festive traditions for many years now. I figured that if Charlie isn't phased by Doctor Who, a spot of John Masefield wouldn't go amiss... and I was right! It made me bizarrely happy to watch the programme (which I loved when I was little) with my own little boy!
Anyway. Pete's off to Wolverhampton at the crack of dawn tomorrow (admittedly not quite as early as when he's leaving for Halifax, but early all the same) so I think I'll go to bed. I need to start wrapping presents tomorrow. Oh how I wish I had a sellotape dispenser!
Nighty night.