Ok, so it’s been a while again. Everything has been pretty hectic here. The Boy is up and about with a vengeance, becoming a proper toddler – tantrums and all; my new job has been keeping me busy, especially since we lost half our team over Christmas (to promotion, not plague); in the absence of boozing, I’ve been obsessing over whisky to add to my growing collection; and I’ve been battling another chest/sinus infection whilst fending off my demons (currently washing down antibiotics and anti-depressants with a heavy-handed hot toddy). With all that on my plate, it’s been hard to imagine sitting down to write, each time Monday rolled around.

But here I am. ‘Turning up to the page,’ as they say.

Apart from the chaos of everyday life, it’s been a largely unremarkable month; swept along on a relentlessly mundane current. Every now and then, I pop my head up and realise another week has passed. Hey ho. I guess that’s winter. We have managed the odd family outing – most recently to the incredibly disappointing Museum of Childhood, in Edinburgh. The place hasn’t really changed in 30 years (except that they’ve got rid of everybody’s favourite – the self-playing piano), and still boasts such attractions as: ‘Shite toys you can’t touch’; ‘the giant train set that disnae go’; ‘the Victorian taxidermy human child zoo’; and ‘Golliwogs.’

I’m aware that I’ve painted something of a bleak picture so far, but we’re off to Aberfeldy for a long weekend on Friday. I can’t wait to have some time away from work, and the inevitable domestic cycle. To be somewhere different; just the three of us. Oh, and there’s a distillery.

This post has just been a quick opportunity to get writing again, and unload a bit of my angst – but I’d like to canvass y’all for suggested subjects for future posts. I want to get things going again here, but I keep drawing a blank. Is there anything food related you’d like to know about, but want me to do the research? Got a foodie challenge you’d like me to try (can anyone make jellied eels sexy!?)? Want to see an interview with a local food/drink/parent-y person? Want me to do a David Blaine, and live inside a giant wheel of Gouda for a month (I’ll do it!)? Let me know in the comments – I’d be grateful for a bit of inspiration!

Finally, I’ve mentioned in the past the value of considering our ‘sparkle moments’ – the things, big or small, that have brought us joy (#notyouMarieKondo). My sparkle moment of recent weeks -apart from The Boy’s blossoming into a chatty and fun wee character – has definitely been accidentally (honestly!) teaching him to say ‘mummy’s penis is funny’, which – of course – he has delighted in shouting at the top of his tiny voice.