It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas - Mum arrives!!

It was a hive of activity chez-nous today as Mum was arriving to spend Christmas with us and I wanted to get ahead of the game with regard to the meal on Christmas Day so I made the sausage-meat stuffing, bread sauce, red cabbage and turkey marinade in readiness and started on some of the nibbles we are to have on Christmas Eve.  John had taken the hit to go to Paps and run the gauntlet of the Christmas rush bless him - he said it wasn't too bad actually and there is nothing now we need or want for about six months looking at the fridge and the freezer.

The weather was changeable today and when the sun was behind the clouds it was pretty chilly compared to how it has been - still it is 23rd December!!!  John and I took the opportunity to pop round to Lakis and Argy's to check is was ok - John skimmed the debris from the pool and then I noticed that the outside shower (which Argy had carefully wrapped in blue bags to protect it) was looking rather limp and we realised that it was no longer perky and upright - we think the violent hail storm last week did the damage.  John is going to unwrap and look at it once Christmas is over.

Mum arrived safe and sound and we had a lovely meal together (home-made leek, potato and butterbean soup) and were just about to settle down for the evenings viewing when Charlie came in with blood pouring from his good ear.  We are not entirely sure what had happened but he had a tear about a centimeter and a half long and it looked nasty, like he had caught it on something and ripped it.  Our cats never get ill or injured during normal vets working hours so I had to ring the out of hours number and got Dr Suzanna who said not to stress him out but keep in clean and take a look at it again tomorrow.  We managed to get some iodine on it and some Dermagel and then some spray antibiotic which he didn't like but he seemed none the worse for his ordeal after he ate a huge bowl of food and took himself off to bed - fingers crossed a trip to the vets will not be necessary.

We finished the evening with a fabulous film - Togo - for which we must thank Nicky and Mark for the recommendation.  It is based on a true story and kept us on the edge of our seats.  The young and boisterous Togo reminded me so much of Charlie - big and daft and determined.