Live on £4,000 for a year - 2009, Part 3

Kittikins

Oops, should have clarified....the berries haven't been near the voddie *hic*, they had to sit with the sugar all day and then be pulverised and the juice went with the booooooze. Imagine the jam otherwise...wow! Certainly wouldn't be letting DD anywhere near it.

Random question (and cover your ears anyone who's overly-delicate), but when is one supposed to make C-h-r-i-s-t-m-a-s pudd or cake? DD lurves the former and she's told me that she wants us to make it this year!

She's a good cook - we made our own tortilla wraps this morning for the picnic and apparently they were gorgeous. I'm never buying them again, it was so easy

cw18

My grandma used to make her own cake and puddings, and my brother and I often got to help stir the pudding mix. I suspect this would have been October half-term, though stir-up Sunday is the last Sunday before the start of Advent (ie. 5 Sundays before Christmas, which will be 22nd November this year if I've done the maths right)

Kittikins

Thanks Cheryl - I've got plenty of time to find a good/easy/deeeelicious recipe then

cha97michelle

Hi everyone

We're back from our fantastic night away. Spent about £60 of our £100 budget (drinks/food/taxis/car parking) so quite pleased. We did splurge on a chinese takeaway tonight as we were so tired, but back to being frugal tomorrow.

It was a really frugal wedding we went to. The bride had even made her own dress even though she had never made one before, and even though it was plain compared to usual bridal wear it was pretty and the bride liked it so that's the main thing.

Our most frugal spot was we found out someone was staying at the same hotel as us, and they had prebooked a taxi, so we split the £5.50 taxi fair rather than have to pay it ourselves in full, making it cheaper than the £3 spent on bus fair on the way there, and also saved my feet after all that dancing and walking in heels.

MIL and FIL had a brill time watching our boys. Said they were angels which is lovely to hear. Particularly as we don't normally leave them overnight. MIL had even done some washing for me so DH's work clothes were on the line and almost dry when we got back.

We then spent the rest of the day visiting my mum and dad as they have just returned from a week in spain. We spotted that their driveway which is a good length has got brambles growing the whole way along. We just have to get in before my nephew. Last year he picked just about the lot and sold them to his dads work mates. :rotfl: We only got one measly tub full when he had done. :rolleyes:

Tomorrow i need to do yet more housework, and my mate has invited me to the gym yet again using one of her guest passes. she asked if i wanted to do lunch as well but i said i had eaten too much rich food over the weekend so i thought it wasn't wise. Need to start dieting again tomorrow. The scales say it is only a few pounds in the last few months but my stomach is so bloated i look pregnant. :eek:

I should also pick up a prescription from the other week. I paid for it but they didn't have it in stock. All busy here then,

Herewegoagain

Hiya guys,
Not been around for a while as I've been ill, so will go and read the posts I've missed. Hope your all well.

HWGA xx

Frugaldom

Good morning frugal friends

Hope you are feeling much better, HWGA

Cha, well done on the frugal fun weekend at the wedding, glad you enjoyed it and that the kiddies were well behaved whilst you were away.

SL I'll need to make loads more jelly & jams if they're to last us until next year. This place devours a jar a week with toast. No worries, we'll save you some for next visit. I should be much more focussed on frugality after DD's wedding and then Frugaldom will be better ready for receiving kitchen table visitors. Besides, you'll need to sample the elderflower champagne. Still not tried the peapod wine but I suspect that the wedding weekend may take care of that.

SM, hope work isn't too much of a drag, Del Boy says cockadoodledaaaaaach (he can't quite complete the sentence yet, his crow voice hasn't broken :rotfl:). After all that rain, it's clear sky today, so I'll ask the weather spirits and woodland fairyfolk to save up summer sun for the bank holiday weekend.

I thought that I'd finished off my cookathon weekend making lemon curd and a tray of coconut macaroons, but friend appeared later with a bag of windfall apples, so I stewed some while we drank our coffee and made us an apple crumble each. I have the rest of the bag sitting waiting for my next foraging adventure, which will probably be for more blackberries. Loads of apples still to come as these were just the best of the windfalls after all the horrible weather we've been having. Still to be made - apple & blackberry jelly, apple & rowan jelly, apple & mint jelly. The rest of the apples will be stewed for crumbles, desserts and sauce for pork.

Frugaldom accomplishment - HS attached bubblewrap as extra insulation above the loft hatch in the hall (it's glazed to let light through from the attic skylight window) and the difference in the hall temperature this morning is amazing! I'd never have believe that a piece of recycled bubblewrap could make such a difference! :T

Next task - restoring the larder for winter stores.

Hardup_Hester

Morning all
Still can't go back to work, my room may be ready tomorrow, it's going to be so busy when I can finally go in.
So plans for today include, making flapjacks & chocolate brownies for a visitor who's due later on, make 3 chicken & ham pies, 1 for tea tonight & 2 for the freezer, I'd like to cut the grass, but I think it's too wet so I'll probably spend some more time sewing for Christmas.
Still no decent blackberries round here, so no jam making for me.
Hester

Savvy_sewing

sophiesmum wrote: »

Mooloo - I am trying this one
http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/recipes/preserves/1056625/

hope you aren't really making crap apple jelly:rotfl: , I didn't use a lemon just a few spoons of lemon juice but it says you can leave it out if you want to.

Oops, sorry, I did mean Crab, but the typing is a bit hit and miss,! I am surprised it was not deleted with ***'s!. Oh well, heyhoe, slip of the tongue so to speak.
Thanks for that link. I am all geared up, didnt get to make any though as I had a change of plan and came over to Oxford on the bus on Friday. Go back tonight when BF can give me a lift. So thats now a Tuesday morning job before they all go off and I wasted my time picking them up.
Must say most were no good as the wasps were into them, or the slugs were. They were fast!!

grandma247

nykmedia wrote: »

Frugaldom accomplishment - I'd never have believe that a piece of recycled bubblewrap could make such a difference! QUOTE]
Good morning everyone.
Yes Nyk It makes an amazing difference. We did it with the huge loft windows. The loft is well insulated but I could still feel the cold falling from the glass in the windows before we wrapped them.
Been busy all weekend, Made vegetarian pasta sauce and veg soup with lamb stock and "canned" them.I will try and get photos later. Also cleaned all the onions for storing for now.
I have dg1 here for the week because nursery is closed and dd1 has to work.

lingojingo

thanks for the suggestions of places to stay in Edinburgh. Travelodge & Premier Inns all no good, no cheap room deals that weekend, but i have a booked a nice little B&B near Murrayfield (with twin beds).