Daughter's bedroom decorating saga has continued, becoming an all-encompassing project.

She's had help from friends who have been to stay the night. This has meant a lot of noise but at least they've had fun.

Their paint application techniques are even less skilled than mine, which doesn't say much.

An awful lot of paint only reached a very small area of wall but covered a lot of carpet and an even greater amount of child.

As it was all becoming rather expensive and messy, her Dad and I stepped in, just to get it finished.

The general feel of the room is rather theatrical and reminds me of a seedy nightclub but daughter is pleased.

I am just glad there is no more paint being trodden through the rest of the house and everything is back in the cupboards.

I have been on leave for the past week. In between reading in the garden and generally being lazy, I have been reorganising the house.

I find it very therapeutic. One of my favourite pastimes is to rearrange the furniture and change the contents of all the cupboards.

It drives him indoors up the walls, or would do if he could find them. He gets exasperated and says he cannot understand why I do it - what's wrong with leaving the furniture as it is?

What's wrong with moving it? is my reply.

I must admit it does seem to be a girly thing as men never waste time wondering whether the sofa would look better against that wall instead of this one.

As long as the seat is comfy and they have a good view of the TV they don't seem to be bothered by the feng shui. Anyway I had to change the living room because the new sofa didn't look right against the same wall as the old one.

The old sofa was taken away by some rubbish clearance people while I hid behind the curtains and hoped none of the neighbours were watching.

It was extremely old and shabby and had been hidden under throwover covers for the last few years.

Once they were removed and it was carried out in all it's full glory in the daylight I shuddered to think one of the neighbours might see just what they had been sitting on when we invited them round.

My friend Richard says his wife does room rearranging thing on a regular basis, so I know I am not alone.

Him indoors has been known to spend at least half an hour trying to locate which drawer his socks are in after one of my sorting everything out episodes and has taken to hiding them in his wardrobe.

When I haven't been rearranging the house, daughter and I have been shopping, another great girly pastime men don't even begin to under- stand.

Trying to explain that you bought a blouse just because you liked it is beyond most men, who will only go clothes shopping because they need something, and then buy half a dozen of everything in the same colour.

He has worn the same style of jeans and polo shirts for years.

Like most females I was born to shop. What's wrong with buying the blouse in both colours because you couldn't decide which one you liked best? Of course, I then needed a pair of trousers to go with them. He shouldn't complain - I bought him some socks.