Signs of Advent are appearing around here. But as yet, there’s no Advent calendar pages to turn and no story about Teddy’s adventure or anything else I posted about last year . I don’t really know what’s happened but a series of busy days with other, more important things to do means that we’re a little behind with our preparations.

I made it as far as Gloucester yesterday, in torrential rain, to the flower wholesaler where I normally buy my Christmas things and came home with a boot full of spruce, poinsettias and half price paperwhite bulbs. Sometimes, being late to the party has advantages, for yes, I know I ought to have set those bulbs on water ages ago, but I have a sneaky feeling they will still go crazy and flower in extra quick time - and I have twice as many!

Getting the spruce means that our garden table is looking a little more seasonal, at least, now I’ve taken away the sad, frosted geraniums, swept the table of dead leaves and covered it with spruce to offset the lanterns and Christmas roses.

I haven’t done anything with the paperwhites though…maybe they will flower in the bag!?

I also brought home a few strands of what is known around here as “babooba” - tinsel - and other shiny things, because I have plans to make a Christmas pajaki. Hmm. We will see! (But having said it here, there is a kind of commitment, isn’t there?)

Our Christmas cards are not only all made, but written, addressed and have stamps on! I took the opportunity of buying the stamps online this year, getting them sent mail-order rather than going along and standing in the Post Office queue. Imagine my surprise when they arrived, delivered not by the Royal Mail, but by UPS. What’s that all about!?

I made the cards on my Silhouette machine this year, so had quite a bit of weeding to do. It was a mindless enough task but it did mean we were knee deep in red bits of paper for a few days.

Today was my WI Christmas lunch at the Snooty Fox in Tetbury - a great excuse to take a look around the shop windows in advance of the turning on of the Christmas lights in a couple of evening’s time. The shopkeepers do a grand job of making them extra-festive and this young bear was looking very pleased with himself having snagged the best vehicle in the place.

One shop had a snow machine in the window - not easy to see in this pic but the moped and parcels are sitting in a few inches of “snow”, which is falling from the machine above the window. All very pretty!

Of course, the traditional approach always works well when it’s done so lavishly! Seventeen Christmas trees, two box trees and an enormous wreath?

The hotel was ready for our arrival and had laid the table nicely with crackers, party poppers, screaming balloons and extra streamers…for grown women?!

Three hours later…well, what did you expect? At least it was only the streamers hanging from the chandelier!

On my way back to the car, I realised I’d missed one of the Tetbury Christmas regulars: I included a photo of him in the post about my WI Christmas lunch last year.

But there in the Bristows window this year were just a few puppets - sorry about the reflections. I put my head around the door, needing no real temptation to go inside this amazing shop…

There he was, standing proud and centre stage, advertising some textile classes!

Tomorrow I have a meeting all day and I have fun planned for Thursday too. Sometime around the weekend, I might manage to get my Advent act together. In the meantime, I’d better make sure my shoes are clean - Nikolaus will soon be here!