AUTUMN is having a liberating effect on me. I spent every day of the summer watching the weather forecast for a hint of blue sky and sun and felt cheated as one miserable week followed another.

But now it’s Autumn and the weather is, well, autumnal, I am at last free from forecast bondage.

My mood has lifted even though the clouds haven’t. So what if it rains and is blustery today? It’s autumn - it’s meant to be wet and windy.

I am embracing everything that I love about this season. I have made my first blackberry crumble and lit my first fire. Inform husband that it is time to turn our backs on summer salads and couscous and issue him with an advance warning – "I’m cooking casseroles again."

Husband looks forlorn (‘casserole’ is not a favourite dish) but perks up when told that butternut squash gratin will not be making much of an appearance this year, as the squash have failed to grow bigger than a peanut.

Have quickly fallen back into the routine of school life. Pages of the diary are once again groaning under the weight of dates for brownies, beavers, gymnastics and swimming clubs.

Prior to having children I vowed not to become one of those pushy mothers who signed their children up for every club going.

Have now realised that it is often the child who is the pushy one. I have a daughter who would sign up for a club without even waiting to find out what was on offer. Have thoughts of starting a ‘room tidying club’.

I personally am not much of a clubby person, although a ‘Cirencester champagne testing club’ could get me excited. I identify more with Groucho Marx who said: "I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members."