My mum came to visit today- the glorious 12th- the Christmas season is now officially here, as we were each asked for a wish list. Thanks to modern technology, the sorry lack of an Argos catalogue could not deter, as the children were able to look online and print off pictures of what they wanted. As Mum is unable to use her computer for much more than Skype, we didn't reveal to her the delights of online shopping which could, for some, make the whole shopping experience achievable from the living room. Judging by the traffic today, that still doesn't seem to be as popular as you might expect; I had to cross the roundabout near Tesco Extra and Argos Extra today and it was slow moving, to say the least.

As yet unprepared, emotionally, for the onslaught, I feel like giving each child a walnut and a tangerine.

At yesterday's concert it was mentioned that for the Ugandan village upon which the Quicken Trust focuses Christmas Day is seen as the best day of the year because that is the day they eat meat.

This year, however, I was able to give some ideas of what I would like for Christmas; in the past I may not have mentioned what I would really like and then been less than thrilled with what I was given but, in all of life we may need to get better at stating what would make it perfect.

Knowing that we get what we ask for, asking for nothing in particular will mean we get that back!