Recession? What recession?

I thought everyone was supposed to be broke? Why then was there a line at the mall on a Wednesday morning? Rosie and I trooped off to Bluewater today and it was heaving. Unpleasantly busy. And it's not even December yet!

In preparation for Thanksgiving and Christmas I had to get some new dishes and cutlery. Embarrassingly, considering we're catching up on 40, we didn't have enough of either to handle the big meals this year. I decided it was time to be all grown up and get proper bone china so off to the shops we went. When I was little we had a set of cutlery that Dad brought back from Japan. It was a kind of brushed stainless steel and very strong. I remember it was the preferred spoon for scooping out ice cream because they would never bend. I loved that cutlery and managed to find something similiar today. Of course, once I got started I had to have some nice serving spoons and other bits and pieces including the teeniest, tiniest little spoon that's used for English mustard. It really was necessary.

Then it was off to another shop to get some winter clothes for the children. Our drop in temperature seems to have coincided with growth spurts for both of them. Hat and gloves for Rosie. Warm slippers and long sleeve tops for both of them. Then lunch.

Once you start spending it gets easier and easier so when we got home I called the dealer about a new car. Mine is on its last legs and we'd really like to replace it before I leave for NY on the 12th. Jason is taking the children up to Skegness to see his parents while I'm away and it would be nice for them to go in a reliable car. We never buy new cars, except for Jason's mid-life folly with the Mini, but the dealer has three cars that fit my spec. I've decided to get another Renault Scenic which will be my third. This time I'm getting the 7-seater though. It's just getting to the point where those extra seats would come in handy from time to time. Jenny and I have been talking about going away with all of the children one halfterm and this way we can all go in one car. See, it's not extravagance. It just makes sense.