The Christmas and New Year break was a good one here. We spent lots of time together watching family films and eating nice things which makes for the best kind of Christmas holiday in my book, especially as Amy is usually out or cloistered with her computer in her room and it was lovely to have a little more of her company. Toby loved his new lego and has been busy chewing it as usual. He's becoming well practiced in the teenage art of long lie-ins and though he's still up each night playing musical beds he was coaxed back to his own bed in the morning with a tray of toast and ginger biscuits and happily snuggled there with his books 'til almost lunchtime while I got on with household chores. Return to routine is always welcome however, Toby copes so much better when things are as he expects them to be and when he copes better we all do. So today feels good as the school term has started and I'm sitting here enjoying the quiet while making lists and getting organised.

The mornings have been cold and frosty here this week so it seemed a good excuse to start the pair of gloves above. They're from a Kate Davies pattern called Snawpaws and I'm knitting them in the unbelievably soft Tynd yarn from Woolfolk which I bought from Loop. They're knitting up nice and quickly so I'm looking forward to wearing them by the weekend.

Well, I'm off to write some more lists and ease myself back into work mode. As usual there's a rather large number of emails in my inbox awaiting a reply so if you are waiting to hear from me hopefully you'll bear with me while I work my way through to yours.

Thanks for dropping in, I hope you've had a good start to the year where you are x