Carry on Questing

moo2moo

Coooeeeee anyone home??????

Lula-Hula

moo2moo wrote: »

Coooeeeee anyone home??????

Yes, yes I'm here.

Captain Lula reporting for debt busting duty .

Apologies for the lengthy absence - I've been working like a crazy woman who has no life other than work .... errr, hang on that is me :rotfl:.

As we cruise into the final week of Project Stress I was all prepared to shift down a gear & go back to some mundane filing & database updating. But no, the next project is looming already & this is a bit of scary one as it's set to occur during the next 3 months when both I & the project manager are off work for a sume of 5 weeks between us & 2 of which are simultaneous :eek:.

I've been doing some serious [STRIKE]flirting[/STRIKE] networking with the subcontractors - a girl should always have options & in return for me giving them warning of new projects I can expect to get many of my household diy requirements done for £0 :j.

Home-job was bonkers last week - I didnt finish until 11 each night which accounts for my absence in the early part of the week. By thursday night my brain was mashed & all I could manage was 2 Gordons & bed shortly after as I just cant handle much alcohol in the heat .

Friday was an inset day for DD & just too hot to do much at all other than hang washing out. We headed into town to see Shrek Forever After in 3D & I can fully recommend it to all. I love the 3D effect so we're going to watch Toy Story 3 in a couple of weeks too .

Saturday I spent most of the day doing chores & sorting through my paperwork & bills to be paid, & today we planned to go to the allotment but my grandmother isnt well so we spent some time with her instead. She is struggling to cope with the heat at the moment & not eating so I made the fab banana & walnut loaf & a small batch of hobnobs. I'm happy to report that she had 2 hobnobs & a slice of the banana loaf too & I left plenty there for her to nibble on after we'd gone.

We are due some rain anytime soon but it's not here yet. I am so used to wearing my summer sandals now I'l hate having to go back to boots again

I confess to being the proud owner of a new pair of GORGEOUS Faith brown platform wedges from ebay :shhh:. Seriously, they are better than chocolate. They fit perfectly and inspite of having a one & half inch platform & 4 inch heels they are totally comfortable & easily wearable all day at work. The guys loved them too . They were actually very cheap - a mere £12 & having bought a considerable number of shoes this year :whistle: I now think I'm all done for a while. I'm currently bidding on a fab dress that will suit the shoes perfectly but as I have £6 in my paypal account, I should just about stay within my clothes allowance.


I think I'm very close to my grocery budget limit already but I cant really help that as we're eating so much fresh fruit & veg at the moment. DD seems to have developed a curious allergy to apples & carrots. She stopped eating apples a while ago after complaining that they made her lips tingle. I didnt take much notice & just substituted them for another type of fruit, but today she was suffering while cutting her grown up teeth so I got her a carrot from the fridge to gnaw on after peeling & washing it.

Within 2 minutes she said that her lips were tingling & when I looked, they were actually swelling before my eyes & she had a rash developing :eek:. I was horrified so poured some of the anti histamine liquid down her & they started to subside again. I've never heard of a carrot & apple allergy & am now going to test whether it's related to the pesticides used in farming. She always had organic fruit, veg & milk as a baby & it's only in the last couple of years that I've stopped buying so much organic stuff, mainly due to cutting the cost of groceries . I do know that of all fresh produce, it's carrots & apples that are most affected by pesticides so I will be very alarmed if it turns out that organic apples & carrots have no effect on her. It will certainly show just how toxic the pesticides are.

Watch this space & if anyone has heard of this type of allergic reaction to carrots & apples before I'd be very interested to hear from them. It is bizarre that it's only this year she seems to have developed these sensitivities :think:.

I know I know, you only came to hear about the money & I have paid another £100 to the Co Op CC which now has a balance of £200 & brings the total outstanding debt to under £4,000 at a rather cheering £3,900

Eeeeeek, look at the time off to bed for me

night night
xx

moo2moo

We're not allowed to offer up medical advice just in case we misdiagnose something life threatening, but try doing an internet search for Oral Allergy Syndrome (OAS) which develops in teenagers, usually those who suffer hayfever, as a reaction to Birch Pollen. Ask for a referal for allergy testing just to be on the safe side. Incidentally if it is that then the foods are fine once washed and cooked as that makes the pollen inert. And if it isn't then the allergy testing people will at lest be able to give you shed loads of antihistamines.

The chocolate replacement shoes sound v. fab!

makeup

My sister took my niece to see Shrek 3D - it was her first ever film (she is a couple of weeks shy of 3) and as they left, my niece turned to the cleaners and said 'we've had a lovely time, thank-you!'

They were a touch confused & surprised :rotfl:

Seems she has manners at any rate!

I've not heard of such an allergy before, how alarming!

And well done on going sub £4k.

Lula-Hula

Makeup - your niece sounds delightful :rotfl:I was hopng to be very MSE & take the 3D glasses home with me :shhh: but a very militant lady was grabbing them off people as they left.

Moo - thanks for that info on OAS - font of all knowledge as usual, whether it's drying out logs, finding stylish steelies or OAS then Moo has the answer :T

Having told dear Grumpy that I was not going to hack up to the wilds of Scotland to put lotion on the midge bites he couldnt reach :eek: I did a bit of searchin as per your advice & I think your suspicions may be correct; it does sound as though DD has the Birch Pollen allergy . I'm not going to have her tested as I think at this stage it's easy enough to just avoid those foods in a fresh state & cook them instead, although she (typically) prefers raw carrots & the findings say that OAS tends to be seasonal so will try her on them again in a few months time. Interestingly, when I was buying gorgeous Scottish carrots a while back, she never once complained of any symnptoms so I will just try some organic produce again just to see if that makes a difference.

Gropey came in while I was reading & as someone who suffers with severe asthma & several other allergies he was fascinated & had never heard of OAS.

I do wonder why this allergy has only recently emerged though, as she doesnt suffer with normal hayfever or asthma :think: perhaps it's linked to hormonal changes.

The green-eyed Goblin is being quite distant now & we dont really have much to do with eachother workwise now as I'm already gearing up for the next project _pale_ scared, scared, scared is how I feel, particularly about the time I'm going to be off. Highly-Annoying seems to have accepted that if he doesnt do his share of the work, then I'll just go ahead myself & make him look really incompetent, so it's just easier to be productive

Went to school for the PGL meeting & came home £70 lighter but it doesnt affect the budget as I already had it saved up The next instalment is due in September & it's pretty much £50 a month form then on but I plan to keep up with my funds so always staying ahead.

Otherwise a fabuous NSD :j.

Cat has had a collar & bell on for a couple of weeks now & not brought home a single corpse . This morning he had managed to chew through his collar & half an hour ago he had the nerve to rock up with a very sweet but exceedingly dead little field mouse . I removed the mouse & fitted a new collar. Dont care if it's natural to hunt, if he wants to live in my house, then the same rules apply as with the DDs - no overnight guests withour prior agreement :mad:.

Too late again, must go to bed

night night
xx

makeup

I think allergies can be a bit hit and miss.

I know I never had hayfever but a couple of years I got it for the first time and now every so often, when the pollen count is really high then I'll get it for a few days.

I think the weather has a lot to do with it, so maybe this year the weather conditions were perfect for birch trees and so they're extra pollen-y this year?

Conversely my Dad always suffered really badly with hayfever and was alwasy really bad in the Summer. (My mum laughed that when they met she envisioned spending the Summer having romantic walks & picnics in the park but instead they spent the time in the cinema as it was one of the few air-conditioned places in the 70s!!)

However in recent years his hayfever has disappeared?

Weird eh!

Congrats on being all organised with the PGL budget as well!

I'm really pleased that my savings is enough to cover my legal fees and also my new bed so I won't be starting off my home ownership with credit card debt (that'll just come later......:p)

Lula-Hula

*Yawns*,

thank goodness that's another working week over :j. The last 2 days at work-job were rubbish, & I'm no longer worried about taking that week off at the end of July, I'm relishing the prospect. I really need a break from the place & all the aggro & to spend some time at home, catching up on jobs.

Moneywise I earned enough to top up all the cash funds & although they have taken a battering what with trips to the cinema & deposits for PGL trip they are still afloat

DDs clubs/hobbies/trip etc = £140
DDs holiday childcare = £ 75
Trips & Treats = £190

A trip to the co op earlier cost me £5.99 & gained me 2 x £2 coins so I now have £18 of them - just one coin short of the amount needed to pay in to the bank.

I finally received the bill from Topshop for the bag & thanks to the most agonisingly messed up online system I couldnt set up an online account management system in spite of 3 separate efforts :mad:. I then attempted to pay through theSantander online system only to be told after about 30 minutes that they could only process that type of payment at certains times of the day :huh:. What a load of bullocks .

With every knockback I became ever more determined to pay the damn bill asap & never have anything further dealings with Santander again so eventually used the automated telephone payment system & now the total £49.50 is paid, phew .

I have a few direct debits due out next week; £19 for a year's magazine subscription :whistle:, £37 for the Virgin CC minimum payment & another £11.89 for my mobile so wont have much spare but hope to have enough to make the total Virgin CC payment up to £100.

Money is very tight now until the end of the month & I havent even paid the £200 into the savings account which is a bit dire as the MOT is looming & I need to get that done the week I'm off work. Typically that is the week before payday .

I cannot wait to get the Co op CC paid off & contrary to my earlier plan, I am going to use it regularly for purchases throughout the month eg for fuel & groceries & then pay it off in full each month.

I need to let go of the Barclaycard _pale_. It scares me rigid, but I seem to be able to save up for things now & currently have over £ 1,000 with the cash & banked funds so if I can clear the debt on the Virgin CC by the end of this year -or at least get within £500 of being totally DF - I will close the Barclaycard account.

Project weight loss starts tomorrow with a last ditch, desperate attempt to achieve some results with the help of slimfast

So relieved I dont have to work & sincerely hope not to wake up & discover the lower half of a mouse corpse on my bedside rug as per this morning :eek:. Cue stifled gagging & frantic run to washing machine at 6.30 am . Have gone right off the cat this week, it seems to be on a mission to prove that no bell other than perhaps the one from Big Ben will prevent it from catching small animals & presenting them to me with a smugly triumphant meow.

Lula-Hula

Morning all,

I ginerly stepped outside my room this morning & was very relieved to discover that we were carnage free :j. I closed all the doors except for the kitchen one last night & despite hearing much running up & down stairs & some frantic clawing at my door the cat didnt leave any rewards.

Dropped DD off at school & then headed to the next village on foot via the towpath. I walked at a brisk pace & realised that if I did that journey 3 or 4 times a week as I used to then I would soon get fitter & also feel more connected to the local community. I use my car too much since being out at work .

I think I may have found the perfect Project Body incentive; i the chairty shop window I saw a fantastic picture & although it was £6.50, decided to buy it. It's a curvy woman with her DDaphne & DDelore s encased in a large black lacy bra & matching knickers & red strappy sandals struggling to get her jeans done up :rotfl:

I think its a Beryl Cook print, beautifully framed & I just had to have it . not sure where to hang it but it will probably be the kitchen.

Next stop was Boots where I bought 2 cans of the chocolate slimfast powder & some very cheap conditioner as I stupidly got 2 bottles of shampoo in my last Tatco toiletry stock up .

Have all sorts of family drama going on at the moment so plan for today is to potter about at home, doing chores & then will get family stuff & laundry done over the weekend.

I've received a £10 amazon voucher from Ipsos so have already added it to my account

Just had yummy chocolate milkshake & now off to colour my hair,

bye for now
xx

Lula-Hula

Trying to be clever now & copy the Beryl Cook picture ... anyone who knows me & has seen me trying to squeeze my @rse into my 20lbs undersized jeans will appreciate just how apt this picture is :rotfl:

http://images.officedog.co.uk/size600/product/66/6624.jpg

Lula-Hula

Oh, the picture has disappeared Try the link instead

Woke up this morning to that very particular meow the cat makes when he's brought something home _pale_

Both DD & I peeked round our bedroom doors wondering what on earth we were going to see ... & today's offering was a very surprised looking but otherwise unharmed frog which DD released back outside while I held on to the furry ball of claws & teeth.

Decided I might as well get on with the chores so have hung out 2 loads of washing & then decided to cut the grass. An hour & a half & 5 grass boxes full later the garden is looking rather more presentable.

I was outbid in the final 10 seconds of the dress I wanted on ebay :mad: but it does mean my pathetic allowance remainder is still intact, so not all bad news.

DD is cleaning her room :eek: as I've now decreed that pocket money will not be awarded until after it's done on a saturday

I've had my slimfast shake for breakfast & couldnt wait until this evening for real food so had my real meal at lunchtime ... nothing but liquids & fruit for me for the rest of the day then. I had to throw out a lot of gone off food from the fridge this morning which shows that I've slipped back into shopping with my heart rather than my head again . There is no point filling up a trolley with lovely fresh food if I am too tired to do anything with it when it's mealtime & it then just goes in the compost bin or out for the birds :mad:.

Having a NSD today & now panicking slightly over the timing of my holiday from work-job ... need to graft at home-job for the next 5 weeks before I take 2 weeks off.

Spoke to Dad this morning & due to family drama he has had to postpone his trip so I'm now very glad that I dug my heels in about not going.

It's being a NSD all day today so am going to potter in the garden & maybe count up all the clothes items that I cant fit into to spur me on a bit with weight loss.