Live on £4000 for a Year, 2009 Challenge, part 2

savingfortravel

Jamie-Hope you're son is ok too.

Will catch up on posts soon.
Had such a busy weekend..can't believe its Sunday eve already!
Woke up on Saturday like a bear with a sore head.
Decided we needed to go for a walk to the nearest village and it was so the right thing to do. First Mr SFT heard and saw skylarks then we spotted his favourite flower..the scarlet pimpernel! Saw water forget me nots and yellow water lillies too which we've never seen before. The village just happened to be holding its summer fete which we popped into. Sadly there was only a handful of people there but we had a lovely time..I picked up some children's books/novels for me and a book called 'A country girl at heart' by Peggy Cole-all her experiences of rural East Anglia since 1930s and has some fantastic recipes for country style wines.
Mr SFT bought homemade cakes and honey marmalade. Such a shame such events aren't better supported.
We walked back and by the time we got back to the cottage I felt like a new woman. Were invited around by our lovely new neighbours to see how they are renovating their kitchen. Also got a tour of their beautiful garden with cottage style borders, an orchard (told us that they put windfalls outside their cottage as they have such a harvest-yipee!) and saw their chickens (lacewing? pekins? greyspots? and 1 day old chicks). The chap has offered to cut our agricultural land with his mower so Mr SFT will be making muffins this week for them to say thank you. The lady is the president of the local gardening club so I think I'll join up. The roses in our front garden are very traditional and smell heavenly and I reallly need to learn how to care for them. So glad they are so nice and down to earth..in their secret garden they have slate which the chap picked up from a skip. .... :rotfl: Sounds like one of us!
Managed to find time for a bit of report writing too.
Today I worked solidly until my and Mr SFTs families turned up for fathers' day buffet. Everyone loves the cottage and we have just found out that the oldest part is actually almost 400 years old (built in 1620-before the Great Fire of London)! Got lots of bits left which will help with the Grocery budget. Still finding it hard to get time to sort out the £2k budget..bit of a failure really Nyk..thank god you don't ask me to leave... I know I wouldn't have got this cottage if it hadn't been for the MSE forum.

Just watching Stephen Tomlinson in Botswana and Namibia..is bringing back some fantastic memories for us both...

Back to school tomorrow but we break up on the 13th so just over 3 weeks to go!

Have a great evening all..sorry for the long post.

sft

Vixstar

I must start finding some more frugal hobbies - as shopping and restauranting definitely aren't, though I am being more sensible. Think I am going to try and join a local club/society as it'd be a great way to get to know more people in the area so when I finally sell my flat and move here I'll have a group of friends already.

Brighton_belle

what a lovely post sft. How wonderful to live somewhere so old - all that history and your little home has at least in part been there for it.

I wrote a long post this mroning and lost it and didn't have time to rewrite then, so I'll try and recall what I said.
Good to hear from you JD, but so sorry to hear about your son. I hope you son can be helped to feel safe in school again.
Enjoyed hearing about your kitchen stock take cheryl; surely you only need to top up with a few basics now for a while? And what great job you have done in teaching your youngest how to be financially aware.
Good luck with the interview results SL.
Good to hear form you again andromache - brilliant exam results:T. Welldone for working through the whole relationship thing. I'm sure it wasn't very nice, but ultimately, ideally, that's what going out with people before a long term committment is about; to see if you are compatible for the long term; it is kinder for both of you in the end to face things honestly.
SM - I think bringing our OH's with us on our journey is a labour of love, and so rewarding when they gradually get it.

I've had a rewarding weekend with my OH sorting out the house and our new living arrangements. He hasn't found change easy in the past, but seems to be embracing it this time far more comfortably. We've put up clothes rails in our alcoves today and been transferring clothes from the wardrobe (which will become a storage cupboard with shelves in the front room): he does tend to squirel his away in differnt places but they are now all in one place and he can' hide from the fact he has 4 times more than I do... and most of it beige:rotfl:. Tomorrow we start our new life style - a separate bedroom rather than a bed sit.Apart from 3 yrs in the 90's, this will be the only other time in my adult life I have had a separate bedroom to my main living area.
Today I have also cooked a week's packed lunches in the slow cooker, batch made a load of sweet potato soup, made another load of flapjack in the remoska.And yesterday I used a '£25 off a £50 spend' at a local DIY shop that came with our local paper a few weeks ago: bought paint and bits for current project.

Frugaldom

SFT, why, on earth, would anyone ask you to leave? You are now 'in with the bricks' of the 4k challenge thread, so you need to stay regardless. (Otherwise we'll all come looking for you at your new cottage. ) I think it sounds absolutely beautiful there and you sound so happy. It was a good move to have made, methinks.

cw18

Just read back through all the posts from the last couple of days -- seem to have been meeting myself coming back with all the kitchen tidying and babysitting I've been doing :eek:

((hugs)) to those that need them

:T for those doing well in exams, house, gardens etc., and also for everyone still on the challenge (even those having the odd 'blip'), and regardless of how often they do/don't post

SFT : Long post? I didn't see a long post (not by my standards anyway!)

BB : Still got 4 cupboards to go (plus spice rack/cupboard), then the second freezer and the boxes of food wherever I found space to put them :rolleyes2 But I'm certainly aiming to be very careful about what I buy when I use my last Mr M voucher this week, and then want to be aiming to base as many meals as possible around what I have in stock - mainly so I can get to the point where the food is all in the cupboards and is all stuff DS and I will eat on a regular basis (I'm still finding tins etc that were bought for DH when his tastebuds were all over the place!).

Won't get any sorting done tomorrow though, as it's my morning for helping out in pre-school - and then younger GD comes home with me for lunch and the afternoon. But I know I have some bread flour and dried yeast in one I've not been through, and DS actually asked me this evening when I'd last used my bread machine. He then asked (very hopefully) if it was cheaper to make to make than to buy, looked a little deflated when I said it was cheaper to buy from A!di, and brightened up when I added I still intend to use it after the girls break up for Summer. (GD's aren't impressed by 'non-cheapo' bread, so I'd still have to buy some for them as they tend to have toast after school most days)

Skint_Lynne

Hi everyone,

I've been quite busy today, lots of washing done, visited mum and dad, wee nephew was there, so we went out a walk. His wee legs are getting stronger, but you still need to carry him sometimes.:rolleyes:

I was really annoyed with my dad tonight, he used to drink a lot and went off it completely after he had a heart attack through drinking. He hasn't touched a drop in 2 years, has been to parties and everything and went to one today, and asked me to pick up his car..............he had had a couple of drinks.

Not only is this bad for his health, everything goes to pot when he is on the drink. No one is pleased with him, sis 1 has fell out with him, sis 2 (very sensitive) is all upset, mum is raging, older brother is gobsmacked. I hope it is a one off, I can't go back to that again, although I suspect it won't be because of the roasting he will take when he gets home, lets hope so!

I'm driving up north tomorrow as I have appointments in Elgin and Inverness on Tuesday. I am quite excited as I am going to stay overnight with my auntie. They moved up that way years ago, and everytime I see my her (one of my faves), she tells me off as I haven't visited. I called her today to tell her I was coming up and asked her if she knew any good hotels next to her, of course she would not hear of that and said that my bed will be ready and the dinner will be on time for my arrival. I then asked her how long they have been there now and she said it had been 16 years.:o At least she won't tell me off anymore.:p

Going to visit her is on my 101 list, so that's something crossed off. I didn't spend anything today but will have to tomorrow as I'll take her a present.

Speak on Tuesday in case I don't get on tomorrow. xx

cw18

Yeah for the free overnight accomodation SL And how fantastic to be able to combine a family visit with a work trip :T

((hugs)) about your Dad He's done well to stay off the booze for 2 years (my DH could hardly manage 2 days unless he was cooped up in hospital), so I think my biggest concern would be what caused the blip yesterday? Is he stressed about something? Or was it a case of the folks he was with putting him under pressure to have 'just the one'? But at least he had the sense not to drive

Frugaldom

Good morning fruguys and gals

SL, sorry to hear about your dad's slip up, like CW says, it's maybe more a case of getting to the bottom of what caused it than anything else if he's been strong-willed enough to have gone two years without touching a drink. Hope it was just a minor blip without repercussions. Have a great trip up north, I'm sure your aunt will be more than delighted to see you.

CW, you doing your food cupboards remind me of painting the Forth Road Bridge - you no sooner get them sorted out and it's time to start again. :rotfl:I am completely useless at meal planning, so cannot advise, but perhaps you could order them into combinations that can be eaten as meals then just lay the responsibility onto DS by asking him to select dinner from the cupboard. I get so fed up trying to decide what we are having and end up with cupboards full of stuff that nobody will eat unless it's in a concoction that they don't realise the ingredients. :rolleyes:

Weather forecast was wrong again - it's still dreary and wet here but it is very warm. Half expecting a storm, as it's so clammy, however, it is making the veggies grow and I cannot complain about that.

Just found out that there's a poultry sale on at Carlisle in September. It's about 100 miles from here and, according to last years sales reports, pure breed chickens were making £100 per PAIR :eek: If I'm skint after DD's wedding, I may be tempted to enter my surplus birds - that beats the £10 & £20 each I can get for them about here.

chika

Hi everyone, hope you all had a good weekend?

Andromache - well done on the results! What are you studying?

NYK - £100 for a pair of chickens! Wow thats not bad money at all. *considers new career as bird breeder* Do you get very attached to them though? The baby ones are just sooo cute, I can imagine it would be quite hard to sell them... Although for £100...!

Its all change here at the moment, new housemates moving in and others moving out. I too took the chance to sort out my food cupboard and realised that I've managed to accumulate lots and lots of beans and chickpeas - probably from my vegan phase last year. Need to go and have a look on the Old style board for some inspiration.

I'm moving down to London next week which I'm quite excited about. Still have a few things to sort out. I'm still going to have to pay rent on my room here in Manchester for the two months that I'm away - I thought about subletting but i thought my landlord would be annoyed. I had a chat with them last week and she isn't bothered and encouraged it! So I need to find a tenant! Thankfully there are loads of students here so I'm going to put word out later.

I also need to figure out transport in London - does anyone here live there? I can't decide between an 0yster card or a monthly travel card. I'll have a peak time commute from zone 4- zone 1 in the mornings and in the afternoons I intend to go and explore. Any ideas?

bails

Hello everyone, what a lot of news to catch up on!

Congratulations on your 1st Andromache :T and I'm glad you've sorted out your relationships, hard though it is x
So sorry to hear about your son Jamiedodger, hope he is better soon and things get resolved at school.
Hope your Dad's blip is all it is SL; enjoy your visit to your auntie.
Well done on all your cupboard clearing CW - was wondering why you've got tinned fruit if you don't really like it, is it a health thing?
The cottage life suits you perfectly SFT, so wonderful to hear how much of a difference it's making to your life :j I love how this challenge is making people's dreams a reality.
£100 a pair would be worth a trip to Carlisle eh Nyk (trying not to think about what happens to the birds afterwards....)
Sorry Chika, don't know anything about London but I'm sure someone does... Great that you can rent your room out, nice landlady!
Fab news about the sorting out BB - hope you have a wonderful first evening in your new spaces xx
Hi to everyone else, brain has dried up but hope you're all well and happy.

We had the most amazing weekend! :j:j We were near Hereford at Moutain Mayhem, a 24-hour mountain bike race with all my biking mates from up North. OH took his bike so he could just ride the course and ended up getting himself a place in a team! So there was not much sleep, loads of adrenaline and a fantastic atmosphere all weekend! One of my mates is the main sponsor for the event so we were lucky enough to have our own big tent for everyone to meet/chill out in plus free food, our own toilet (important at these things!), about 20 bottles of Original S0urce, 2 racing jerseys and OH even got 2 new tyres free (worth £80!) :T But best of all we had a lovely time with my friends who I haven't seen since New Year - they really are a special bunch of people and I love 'em loads.:smileyhea One couple are talking of coming to visit us in Nepal too :j Oh, and the guy who won the solo race (26 laps of the course on his own in 24 hours, no stops, no sleep, more than the height of Everest covered - ultimate respect :T:T) crossed the finish line and immediately got down on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend! A special finish to a special weekend
In other news OH's mum phoned him, from one field to another (she was at a singing weekend somewhere) to introduce him to a contact for placements in Nepal, so another new lead to follow there :T
2 days now and then we're off to Glastonbury so it's all go here! WOOP WOOP! I'm off to find my running kit and take the dog out before catching the beginning of Wimbledon inbetween jobs. Have a great day everyone! xx