Thrifty Gifty - Organised for Christmas and all ocassions 2009- Santas Challenges

Shevs

3_cheeky_princesses wrote: »

Morning all,

Weather here is miserable and rainy. Make me feel like crawling back under the covers.

Got lots to do today. Want to stay busy as will take my mind off food as well as i start diet today.

Thank you Ragz and Shevs. I know this is a drastic diet and you should be careful but you are monitored by your counsellor diet and also have to get your doctors approval and signerture. I will be careful i promise. I have tried WW when you had so many points a day but i found i was still eating bad foods just not going over my points allowance! On the cambridge diet as you get near your target weight they introduce food and help you to maintain your weight so you dont put it back on. They also give you counselling to try remedy why you over eat in the first place. Again it is a hard diet and not for everyone but works wells for me.

Right better go have a shower and get my lot up ready for school X

Good luck but if you ever want any help or advice just PM me and that goes for everyone xXx

Ragz - I saw some really cute decorations in poundland yesterday if that helps xXx

KiWi13

Hi all,
went to asda yesterday and bought a few of the jars to make the sweets in a jar for some xmas prezzies.
Also grabbed some mini twixs and the large quality street caramels cos they are gold for my pots of gold that I am going to try.

Just wondering though would using a small clear tumbler work just as easy as I am having real trouble trying to find any golden pots to put my stuff in?

Rufusdog your quilt is fab - I'm sure your daughter will love it and hope your proud of yourself for achievening something so great.

I have all these ideas in my head ("borrowed" from this site) and have bought a lot of stuff for them but I just haven't had the time to do anything about them. (work 2 jobs and studying for an exam in May). Maybe get a chance after work on Sunday to make a start! hope so.

fedupandskint

I have just put together my mum's HM treats hamper with chutneys and vanilla sugar.

I put a brown paper circle on top and a cello circle from an old jam toppers pack then attached a brown card luggage label and wrapped around a gold effect rope ribbon and they look lovely!

Popped them in a basket and now just waiting for the oil drizzler to arrive from Lakeland to go in and then put some shredded tissue paper in there and all done.

Found out one of the teal hatbox gift boxes to put the pamper hamper into for mum and checked I had enough baskets and boxes for the other pressies.

All done now and really on a few things left to buy thankfully.

Just waiting for a deal in itunes gift cards to materialise like last year, fingers crossed!

ragz_2

Went to Asda this morning while the kids were at preschool (rushed off and forgot to make DH's packed lunch, oops).
Bought myself a laminator! Have laminated what the kdis brought home today but am too tired to play with it properly at the moment (it's the weather I think, I turned the PC on an hour ago then just snuggled up on the sofa for ages!).

Asda still had loads of half price toys and though I'd said I'd finished present shopping, I couldn't resist a huge tub of Duplo sized Megablocks for £15 (reduced from £32) as it was so cheap and the boys are really growing out of their big Mega Blocks. They won't know what's hit them come xmas morning, I never suusally buy them much and have now officially gone over their budget, but I don't care, I've done so well everywhere else.
Asda also had a load of xmas decs but I resisted buying a heap full until I decide on a colour scheme and what kind I want. I did buy a baby 2ft xmas tree for £1 and some SP tinsel for 37p so the kids can have their own little tree in their room, thought that'd be cute.
The SP decorations were actually quite nice, lovely little red glittery stars for 15p each so may go with a load of those for the tree (I'm thinking red and gold).

We usually buy a real tree but it was such a pain last year, OH got over ambitious with the Dig Your Own Tree thing (a lady from some country magazine was photographing people doing it) and ended up with a tree too big for the living room (apparently he forgot it would be taller when dug up and in a pot) which looked a bit silly, was a pain to decorate and m,eant I couldn't get into my cabinet for a month.
Not to mention the mess, then having to try to plant it in the garden after.
I've decided a fake one would be cheaper in the long run and a hell of a lot easier to manage.

In Asda they had several
a cheap plain green one, 6ft for £9. Which looked OK but a bit sparse.
A prelit 6ft tree in green or black for £25
A Norwegian Spruce style one, prelit, for £45

Not having ever had one I don't know what kind to choose, obviously Asda is not my only option but using these to compare.
I always thought it was silly to get a prelit tree but after wrestling with a long string of lights and getting pricked to bits on last year's tree, I'm reconsidering. Also, I never manage to get them to look right lol
Is it worth the extra money or so they break easier, can you still replace the lights?

My T-shirt from Iffyton arrived today. So anyone still expecting theirs, it should be here soon, looks nice too.

mary-op

Hi all
Not done much today apart from clear up after the painter..........all done now, stuff back on the walls, quick tidy up of dresser shelves and now wait for gloss to dry before I slide little sofa back near the wall.
Found some brown wrapping paper and wrapped one of my sons parcels up...........might post it off tomorrow......that'll be one down, three to go.........:j

nicki_2

DD is off school again today although she's much better than she was yesterday (sore throat, headache & tummy ache, all much improved ) so I'm going to sit down with her and make some Christmas cards for immediate family She's currently pottering on a birthday card for my dad

mum2one

esmf73 wrote: »

Try sending by DHL - check out prices - might be cheaper than Parcelforce.

Went to Trago Mills today (fab shop in Devon /Wales, sells everything at discounted prices) and got some great baskets for hampers that I've been inspired (by threads on MSE) to make for next Christmas! Well, if I'm doing home made (which I am) then it will take me all year to fill them!!!!!

At last - someone else who uses Trago Mills, I'm always raving about it at home, then remember I'm 200 miles away from one.

We use the one just outside Newton Abbot, I just love that store, could spend all day wondering around and buying, its brilliant.

Off for a toddle there next week, and the petrol, it even undercuts Tesco, thou I don't know about u but I miss the 10p gallon off voucher.

been told the one at Liskeard isn't as good, apparently its a small building over 2 floors, I just wish they did shopping trolleys, we go couple of times a yr when were down here on holiday.

Trouble is, I always start munching the chocolate before hand, usually they have the Elizabeth Shaw (the milk choc mints) and there my favourite xx

mum2one

just a quick hi, sneaked an hour in Morrison.

don't know what happened, but -

Saturday - driving across the moors, dd was all dressed up in her Halloween costume, heading for Steam train trip, got mum i'd don't feel well, yes I know you've got the sniffles ......no

next minutes shes thrown up everywhere, pulled in at the nearest place, sods law on a hill, just wide enough to get the car in, got her cleaned up + changed, she had to put her pjs on..... driving in the rain, with the back windows open, I don't do sick!!

tried to get her a docs appointment yesterday, no we can't see her until Friday..... as your not local...... no problem, I'll wait to the surgery calls, call Devon docs and when I get asked to travel to Derriford hospital at Plymouth (about 20ish miles away), as i'm not local I don't know where it is and I'm nto travelling with a sick child!!

Amazingly they find a telephone consultation - rang at 5pm, then said she should of been seen this morning!:mad: :think: ...... the doc was lovely gave us directions, (5 mins away), shes got a viral infection, and I've got a chest infection, gd news its not swine flu!!

Rang up the school to say she won't be in, and the secetary said, we know (ok, me wonders), didn't you realise shes on a authorised holiday.... did I feel such a prat !! xx

mum2one

just incase any one fancies a home made one - really good as its not a steamer variety xx

CHRISTMAS PUDDINGS
SERVES 4
INGREDIENTS
150G / 6OZ MIXED FRUIT
100G / 4OZ STONELESS DATES – ROUGHLY CHOPPED
60G / 2OZ CARROT GRATED
½ APPLE – GRATED
FINELY GRATED ZEST + JUICE OF 1 ORANGE
150ML / ¼ PT BRANDY
60G / 2OZ BUTTER
100G / 4OZ DARK MUSCOVADO SUGAR
1 EGG BEATEN
40G / 1 1/2OZ S.R. FLOUR
100G / 4OZ FRESH WHITE BREADCRUMBS
60G / 2OZ ALMONDS CHOPPED
4 INDIVIDUAL METAL PUDDING BOWLS OR CUPS

METHOD
1. PREHEAT OVEN 190C / 375F / GAS 5
2. PUT THE DRIED FRUIT, DATES, CARROT, APPLE, ORANGE ZEST, JUICE + BRANDY IN A PAN AND HEAT GENTLY. – REMOVE FROM HEAT
3. IN A LARGE BOWL, CREAM TOGETHER THE SUGAR AND BUTTER, MIX IN THE EGGS + TREACLE UNTIL SMOOTH.
4. FOLD IN THE FLOUR, BREADCRUMBS + ALMONDS, THEN TIP IN THE WARMED FRUITS
5. GREASE THE PUDDING BASINS
6. SPOON THE MIX INTO PUDDING BASINS AND PUT INTO A ROASTING TIN.
7. POUR ENOUGH BOILING WATER IN TO REACH ABOUT 2CM / 3/4IN UP SIDES OF TINS
8. COVER ENTIRELY WITH FOIL AND BAKE FOR 2HRS 20MINS
9. UPTURN AND SERVE

mum2one

The cinnamion and grenadine remind me of xmas x

POACHED PEARS IN HONEY SYRUP
INGREDIENTS – SERVES 4
3TBSP RUNNY HONEY
JUICE OF 1 ORANGE
200ML / 7FL OZ GRENADINE
1 CIMMAMON STICK
4 PEARS, PEELED, STALKS LEFT ON
METHOD-
1. PUT HONEY, ORANGE JUICE, 100ML, 4FL OZ WATER, GRENADINE, AND CIMMAMON IN A SMALL PAN AND HEAT GENTLY TILL WELL BLENDED
2. ADD PEARS AND SIMMER FOR 20MINS, TURNING AS NEEDED TO COVER PEARS EVENLY WITH LIQUID
3. LEAVE TO COOL IN PAN
4. PLACE PEARS IN 4 SERVING BOWLS AND SPOON OVER HONEY SYRUP.