Not Long Now!

Hi All

Not long until what, I hear you wonder...  A big lunch.  Lots of presents (for the children).   A nice long walk with the dog.  A visit to the relatives.  At this time of year it seems as though everything is building up to that one day.  Sometimes I think it would be nice if we celebrated in lots of little bursts, instead of one big one.  It would take the pressure off.  But then I suppose we do that too, with birthdays and Easter and such, so I am just burbling on really...

I am hoping to blitz all the present buying tomorrow morning.  I have done some bits and pieces already of course, but time is running out now - I have only a couple of free days before the end of term, and one thing I know is that it is not going to be possible to shop with the children in tow.

I tried it on Friday - took my Mum to the shops, with Toddler.  He was very good considering, but did encourage me to overspend in the DVD department.  He kept badgering me to buy more DVDs, and I must have been feeling weak, because I complied.  They weren't just for him, but for all the family, they were inexpensive, and I do think DVDs make good gifts. 

But then I had to tell Toddler he had to forget I had bought them, because they had to go to a central sorting office for Santa to see who they should be given to, and if he was really good we might get the DVDs he had chosen back (?!).  'I have forgotten already' he said, but when we got back to the car he kept asking to be allowed to hold the bag.  'No, you have to forget we bought them' I told him again, and he replied again, 'I have forgotten already'.  He hasn't mentioned it since, but I am sure he is just biding his time. 

Toddler was funny at dinner time.  All the children were being silly, as they so often are at mealtimes, but as his big sister was holding forth he said to her, 'Don't you start!' in an extremely high and mighty tone.  At the end of the meal his big brother sang 'Silent Night' which he has been learning at school, and he listened most patiently.  He must be growing up.  I will have to find a new way of referring to him soon - he is no longer the Toddler he was when I began this blog (two whole years ago!).

After the shopping tomorrow I have a meeting scheduled with the lady from Rethink Mental Illness who is going to help me set up a new group in this area, hopefully starting early next year.  I do hope it works out, I feel very positive about doing something...positive, and useful.  I want the emphasis of the group to be on Recovery, and I will start by handing everyone out a document referring them to all the useful sites and blogs I have found on the Web.  Although I suppose not everyone may have access to the Internet.  Anyway, I will keep you all posted, and if anyone has any useful ideas for the group, any  suggestions about how it should run or what might help people, please post your comments  below - any help would be much appreciated.

All the best

Louise x