My body has turned to jelly and my brain to mush. This happens to me every jANUARY. I personally think that humans were genetcally programmed to hibernate during January and somehow along the way we lost the habit.

I was back at the gym today with my long-suffering gym buddy. We slogged our way through the usual workout but both admitted that it had been really hard to get going today.

Even my son and daughter were off form - no symptoms of any recognisable illness, but tired, grumpy, irritable, clingy.....

My friend and I couldn't stay in the club for lunch as my son was so badly behaved we had to take him home. So we went home and pigged out on toasted samdwiches, cakes and biscuits, and did precisely nothing all afternoon.

Strangely enough I don't feel any better. Still grumpy and tired - and guilty to top it all.

The boiler has been ripped out and replaced. Thank goodness - above all this was the part I was dreading.

The engineer came on Tuesday and the work began. I took the children away to stay with friends on Tuesday night and have been staying out of the house as much as possible since then.

When I did have to be home, I lit our open fire and we huddled round in the living room. It wasn't a particularly cold week really, but I realise how dependent on heating I've become and what a softie I am, because I felt drained and miserable for the few hours that I had to endure it.

But the guy was quick and efficient and normal service was resumed on Friday lunchtime. Now I've just got to wait until the surveyor comes on Monday to find out exaclty how much of a nightmare the main kitchen fit is going to be.

Here I am back at the computer after a lovely break over Christmas. Happy New Year to all my blogfriends!

Had a lovely time over Christmas, saw a lot of family, played with my kids, drunk a bit but not too much, ate far too much of all the wrong kinds of stuff and did absolutely no exercise. Not much more to say really.

Thanks to all of you who have shared the latter half of 2006 with me - it's been great fun. Hopefully I'll be back a bit more regularly again now.

Today I've taken the tree and decorations down, because tomorrow I've got the first of four gangs of workmen arriving who are going to completely remodel my kitchen and replace my central heating system over the next six weeks.

Tomorrow I start with the boiler and central heating people, then I have the trashing of the old kitchen, tiling electricals and replastering. After that comes the kitchen fitters and finally there are the granite worktop fitters.

If I don't have some fodder to blog about during all this time I'll be well surprised. Right now I'm not sure whether to be excited or scared.