50p a day til christmas, healthily?!-Weezl's next challenge (part 2)

ceridwen

OOh....ISOM....you know me so well! Did I ever explain I believe in karma? Well - I obviously didnt need to....;)

Shaz - congrats on entering Blogland...keep up the good work.

weezl74

Hi all!

Was thinking about you yesterday shaz and wondering how things are, great to see you. Like the blog very much. And big rounds of applause for DH and the beautiful raised beds :T:T:T:T:T:T:T:T.

Miggy, I was watching a prog yesterday encouraging people to start up businesses even in a recession, since a good idea will always go far, even in troubled times. So here's my vote for dinky little pots of 'Mistress Miggy's mushroom morsels' on our shelves very soon!

I intended to dehydrate my tomato glut last year as sun-dried toms are lovely, but I never quite got the bumper harvest I hoped for! I think I might buy some seeds this year from a known 'good cropper' rather than take my chances on the ones scraped out of a tomato from Lidl!

ISOM- the lovely freecyclers did return, so all's well!

Been trying to come up with a realistic budget for our food, both now and when Fergus comes. I hadn't realised that one of the best money saving tools I had was my geeky brain:o, until it deserted me! I used to be able to spot which foods had gone up and down in price almost daily, and plan meals around that, but now I notice I'm shopping based on my sense of what used to be a cheap meal:D! So I think I need to be a little more allowing with myself.

The other thing I'm thinking is that food will be quite a pleasure, and something to enjoy after all the sleep deprivation etc of new parenthood, so I don't want it to be a very samey diet.

I've provisionally gone for £80 a month, which may need tweaking once I get a sense of whether fergus will need any formula milk or not.

Ladies, a confession.... I've also been wondering about whispers: a cleaner! Just while he's very small you understand! Don't hate me and run away! Whatever would Martin think?:money:

Love to all,

Weezl x

ceridwen

Hmmmm......well my semi-geeky brain is still working as per normal....so I duly noted that your signature has been amended to "1st" baby due......etc...- rather than "baby due....". Ummmm.....cant you just tell that I've got a mind that analyses literally every word I read anywhere:D ? Whoops....apologies....down to some of the training I've had in the World of W**k over the years......

Is that a coded message for "and there will be another one at some point later"?

Cor.....our weezl does like hard work......whew!;)

Tightwadways

Grrr...that plumber sounds as if he needed a good talking to..rude man!!!!

Weezl....re a cleaner....not a bad idea...I'm now starting to use LETS in that way and am arranging for a cleaner to come on a monthly basis. Not something I'd probably be able to afford without LETS (or think about doing)

shaz_mum_of__2

Weezl i have a cleaner it costs me £20 for 4 hrs once a fortnight and if she runs out of jobs she does a bit of ironing ..............the trick is to TIDY before she comes and let her CLEAN with my neck the way it is i just can't do it and apart from the kitchen mostly the house is tidy all the time especially now DS is living on camp.

I really need to do some geeky maths and meal planning ...............i am spending less and making meals go further but feel i could do more but i struggle timewise now i am at uni and i am starting a volly job too soon as part of the course??

I understand what you mean weezl about shopping around what meals used to be cheap total overhall in mindset is needed.

JTB the mango chutney was yummy and all the rellies were dead impressed on boxing day when i announced i had made it

Pleased you like the blog your the first i have shared with .

The hedging is on its way so hubby better get busy..........after he moves his mum 300 miles !!

Shaz

In_Search_Of_Me

hello lovely people! Just made a yummy chicken risotto...two chicken legs roasted, rice and said dried mushrooms with a few herbs n spices - enough for 3 good portions and the cats had the skin! Lunch tomorrow and one freezer portion....no idea how much as it was the legs from chicken mum got!
Umm a cleaner...I do wonder whether they are worth it myself as would be stressed at a stranger coming to house and poking through stuff plus unsure whether I would be happy that they would do it as well as I would like for money changing hands...mind you I have a wee flat so less to clean and our weezl is more minimalist than me...ie tidier!! Maybe look at what extra you could pay off and see if you feel its still worth it? Think cleaners are also quite expensive in these ere parts!!
Weezl did youmanage to look for bedside table and do you know any roofers?

ceridwen

Yep - I might offer myself - being a cleaner that is our Weezl if I was nearer - but 'fraid I'd be charging the going rate anyways - so thats £8-£10 per hour.

So - cant offer any advice there - other than what the rate of pay is for t'job (there are some things one can rely on in life - and ceridwen being Union-minded is usually one of them! - heh!).

miggy

In_Search_Of_Me wrote: »

Re the mushrooms am happy to post a load if it would help start up your small business lol...minus my commision of course

Hehe... now all I need is somewhere to put them! :rolleyes:
Or I could patent the idea (??) and sell you a franchise?

miggy

weezl74 wrote: »

Miggy, I was watching a prog yesterday encouraging people to start up businesses even in a recession, since a good idea will always go far, even in troubled times. So here's my vote for dinky little pots of 'Mistress Miggy's mushroom morsels' on our shelves very soon!

I intended to dehydrate my tomato glut last year as sun-dried toms are lovely, but I never quite got the bumper harvest I hoped for! I think I might buy some seeds this year from a known 'good cropper' rather than take my chances on the ones scraped out of a tomato from Lidl!

That would be worth doing just to see the dinky little lables looking all hand-written... not sure what my family would think of having the house full of drying mushrooms, though!
Last year was a miserable one for homegrown tomatoes round here, so I wouldn't judge your efforts on that. Even my neighbour who could have fed the street from his garden the previous year, had hardly any. I admit to having grown tomatoes from saved seeds from random particularly nice tomatoes, and then being unable to trace them for sure in catalogues. I suspect some were F1 hybrids though, as they weren't so good second time around. (Beefsteak tomatoes that came out normal sized, for instance).

weezl74 wrote: »

I used to be able to spot which foods had gone up and down in price almost daily, and plan meals around that, but now I notice I'm shopping based on my sense of what used to be a cheap meal:D! So I think I need to be a little more allowing with myself.

Could be you have learned from previous experience, and the goal posts have then moved, rather than 'maternal dementia', as my friend called it.
And if you are happy to have someone round your house (not my strong point) why not have a cleaner? You can clean later in life, you get the baby years once - per baby, that is! And you will need your energy.

miggy

weezl74 wrote: »

I intended to dehydrate my tomato glut last year as sun-dried toms are lovely,

Just a thought - I think it's the amount of sunshine that makes the difference in taste - it increases the sugar or something. Hopefully someone can fill in the science for me?
I did slice up some particularly delicious summer tomatoes once and froze them to add as toppings on pizza, etc. The flavour is always better in summer where they have ripened naturally; I really don't like winter tomatoes.
I would imagine home-dried would work equally as well as frozen, or better.