While I like the idea of winter – in the heat of the summer it seemed a magical, mythical season and I daydreamed endlessly about reading a book in front of a roaring log fire – it never quite lives up to it. I am always surprised that – each and every year – this realisation comes as a little bit of a surprise. I am a seasonal goldfish. It might be a survival mechanism I suppose.

But the worse bit is now. The long haul from Christmas to spring. It's dark, damp and away from our roaring log fire – cold. AND I have yet to read any book aside from the highway code.

We were almost tricked into thinking that spring had arrived. We had a few balmy, t-shirt days. We got out, got busy, cutting, burning, hacking. We even got around to the yearly discussion of putting in a swimming pool. That is until winter and spring had battled it out for a bit and inevitably winter won. Not a snow filled wonderland. Nor a hoary, frosty, windy, savage Highland experience just dreech. I love that word. Dreech.

And with winter comes fever and sickness and headlice. I know that this happens year round but this year we seem to have more than usual. Guy is at this moment on his sick bed. Kepler was there a couple of days ago and I think i might be there tomorrow.

On the positive side. My sister-in-law Jo had her baby – Louis. My friend in Copenhagen had a little girl – Emilie and our friends in St Louis also had a little girl named Anna. Winter bounty :-)

OK. Not a great entry to mark the start of a year. But there you go. Kepler and I have just finished making some biscuits so I am going to settle down with a cup of tea with Gardener's Question Time on in the background (how sad is that) and eat a few.