Salut, mes amis!

Sorry that it's been a little while since I last posted. I've been out and about having adventures, been on a wonderful holiday to Paris, celebrated a very special day with my family and even had my first autumnal picnic of the year.

First things first, Paris was amazing and D and I had a really relaxing week away. It wasn't a particularly touristy kind of holiday and we didn't really do very much. Mostly, we wandered around, watched the world go by while sitting in cafes and read our books in Les Jardins de Luxembourg.

Our trip started leisurely on the Eurostar from St Pancras International. It's such an easy way to travel, none of the stress of driving and much cheaper and easier than flying. I whiled away the two and a half hour journey with a spot of knitting (Bella's Mittens) and a great new magazine called Oh Comely. We had a little picnic on the way and were there before we knew it.

Getting to out hotel was one simple journey on the RER and thanks to the lovely JennyJ we didn't even have to worry about tickets as she had some left over from a recent family holiday. The hotel itself was stunning. Located in one of my favourite parts of town, The Five Hotel was incredibly chic and absolutely charming. Our room was beautifully designed and I particularly loved the little star-lights around the head of the bed.

In the five days that we spent there rather than try to pack things in, we just took it easy. We enjoyed a Beethoven recital at the Armenian Cathedral and a return trip to one of my favourite shops in the world, Entree des Fournisseurs at 8 rue des Francs Bourgeouis in Le Marais. It's the most amazing haberdashery and I could spend hours and hours browsing their buttons alone! As it was, I had my camera on me and they kindly allowed me to take photos of the rows and rows of ribbons and braids. Paradise! Here are some of the other pictures that I snapped with my trusty little Olympus, from Les Jardins de Luxembourg, Musee Rodin and a fabulous little stationers that we came across on our meanderings.

News from this side of the channel has been my parents' celebration of their ruby wedding anniversary and the renewal of their wedding vows. It was a wonderful ceremony, followed by a lovely party for friends and family back at their house. I was responsible for decorating the cupcakes (best job going, if you ask me) and D took charge of the drinks with my big brother Rich. A splendid time was had by all!

On the needles, the mittens are coming on apace and I've picked up Cheadle again. I've noticed in all of the fashion magazines that knitwear is seriously hot right now, so I'm determined to finish off this cabled sweater in time to look trendy (and snug) this winter! The Snapdragon Tam is all done, and accompanied me on the first cold-weather picnic to Boscombe Pier near Bournemouth.

The last of my little adventures was with my dear pal, Piney. We went to Go Ape  before Paris, which now seems like a distant memory. The fact that it feels distant is a very good thing indeed, as I am now well on the way to forgetting the fear of climbing up and flinging myself out of trees at over 30 feet! With hindsight, it was great fun and something to be proud of, but at the time, I was simply terrified.