Phew...

Birthday month is now over for another year! My niece Daisy turned 2 on 20th October and we attended her family tea party last Sunday, with a fabulous 'Upsy Daisy' cake my sister-in-law had made and then my Mum took the children to her birthday party on Monday afternoon - busy, busy!

On 21st October my baby boy turned 7, where do the years go? He is still such a sweet and loving boy. He made me smile on Monday, he was desperate for me to add the tiny bit of squashed birthday cake he had brought home from Daisy's party to his lunch box, so I also added a banana muffin with his fruit and sandwich. When he came home the muffin was untouched and when I asked why, he said ' I couldn't eat it as I had two red items in my lunch box',

'sorry honey', I said ' do the teachers check up on you then?'

'no Mummy, I just knew so I didn't eat it!' - how cute is that? dear little munchkin!

We had a birthday tea of fish and chips and my parents on his birthday, then Wednesday after school Henry and his best friend James had a 'Lego Star Wars' party. Luckily James' mum Emma is fantastic at party games and being a teacher was great at keeping everything calm and under control! We even had a visit from Darth Vader - made Evie cry! It was a fabulous party enjoyed by all 30 children I hope.

So now life is getting back on track and my mind is turning to think about Christmas - 9 weeks to go, next week I am going to check out my 'Anthea Turners guide to a perfect Christmas' book and let you know what you should be doing, I might even let you know a few of my favorite Christmas recipes.

I read some great on-line present buying tips in my 'Woman and Home' magazine:

#Make a detailed list

-it's so easy to over-buy!

#Stick to a strict budget

-overspending is effortless

when money is "virtual".

#Print out or file e-receipts

and order numbers in case

you need to return goods.

#The big upside? You can

do it all at midnight while

wearing your pyjamas!

So that is where I am going to leave you, half term is this next week, so hope to have some updates for you soon.