really old style living?

NualaBuala

Thanks HippeeChiq Nice to know I'm not alone in my thinking!

mardatha

Starting to worry a wee bit about xmas, the money just isn't there this year. Am doing home made food hampers for all three of the kids families...but is that enough ? I usually just put a card with money in for the GC but its awkward. The cheapest toys or clothes are such a price and I've got 6 grandchildren to buy for.
It's great going really OS and looking up books to see what Victorians gave each other - but kids wont appreciate a hand made bookmark or a hair ribbon! (specially when they're boys!) lol
But the other aspects of winter/xmas are ok. I had the idea of buying candles - we never have candles, the RV think only weirdos burn candles :rotfl::rotfl:- and giving the house a quieter, more old fashioned type atmosphere for deep mid winter.

mardatha

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00vfjlr/Snowdonia_1890_The_Making_Of.../
*********
somebody sent me this ... looks interesting but not watched it yet.

maltesers_2

steph25 wrote: »

Me and my 10yr old have recently moved from Luton to South Wales and though I new it would be different, I didnt expect certain things to be so much harder ie the supermarkets are pretty far. Lidl (who do fab veggie offers) is my nearest one which takes about 30mins or more to walk to which is fine but not for the trip home when your struggling with bags.
Mr M's and Mr A are quite far from here, I got a bus from near home to Mr M's and it cost nearly £5 for mine and brats singles and cost me £8.50p for a taxi home! thats half my shopping budget gone with bus & taxi. Think I am going to have to do a home delivery shop next week when I get some pennies.

Tesco run a free bus service to their superstores in many areas. Where I live it goes twice a week. If you google "Tesco free bus service Wales - you might find one near.

NualaBuala

I know what you mean. When you read a Dickens novel or Little House on the Prarie it's touching to see how humble the gifts are, and how appreciative the recipients are too. Even in my parents' day (they were children during the war), gifts were small. We thought my Dad was joking when he said he got an orange in his stocking! And that there was no way Father Christmas would leave coal in a stocking as punishment - it was too valuable, so cinders were left for naughty boys and girls!

I've often overspent on gifts in the past as I've thought someone will turn their nose up at something but lately it's meant I haven't given anything at all. I think that's terribly sad and there's something very wrong with the way things have become. But I'm heartened that not everyone is like this. My ex-sister-in-law is very well off and is godmother to an equally well-off little boy. For his First Communion, she said no way was she giving money - she got him a football and spends time playing with him out on the street, apparently he is delighted!

But then my cousin told me that you've got to give money for Communions, or the kids don't want to know. They get hundreds of euro! I felt very sad and that I couldn't afford to do that and that there was no point in offering something small that would be snubbed or looked down on. She is well off, and so are her nieces and nephews - but that may be set to change and they will be in for a rude awakening. I hope this new Age of Austerity of whatever the politicians have in store for us brings simpler, kinder, less greedy values.

Love the idea of the candles, I use them for a cosy feeling in winter. Poor RV though, he'll be getting worried that it's a slippery slope and you'll bring home incense and who knows what next!!!

csarina

mardatha wrote: »

Starting to worry a wee bit about xmas, the money just isn't there this year. Am doing home made food hampers for all three of the kids families...but is that enough ? I usually just put a card with money in for the GC but its awkward. The cheapest toys or clothes are such a price and I've got 6 grandchildren to buy for.
It's great going really OS and looking up books to see what Victorians gave each other - but kids wont appreciate a hand made bookmark or a hair ribbon! (specially when they're boys!) lol
But the other aspects of winter/xmas are ok. I had the idea of buying candles - we never have candles, the RV think only weirdos burn candles :rotfl::rotfl:- and giving the house a quieter, more old fashioned type atmosphere for deep mid winter.

Spare a thought for us we have 13 grandchildren and a great grand child........I give them money but the rule is at 18 they fall off the list, they can afford to give me money!! we are down to 6 now and one of them will fall off next year as she is 18. It used to be 21 but at £10 each it was just too much, so it went down to 18.

RAS

Hippeechiq wrote: »

That is absolute genius Annie :T I've just about utilised all the space I have to within an inch of it's life - that's a brilliant idea!

Just been into my kitchen, got on my hands and knees and pulled one of the plinths away - and OMG! how many extra tins could you store under there eh? lol ......tell you what - it would also be a good place to hide Christmas prezzies too! No one would ever think to look there, would they

It used to be possible to get plinth drawers - they have a small roller wheel at the back. I have three from Ikea. One contains all the large flat baking gear that is such a pain to store elsewhere. the others take things like packs of clothes, scourers, gloves etc.

Another good place to "look" is under the fitted oven if this is under counter. Most have a simple fascia about three inches hich under the oven and then the plinth space. With the fascia on a hinge, there is a decent space underneath for larger things.

Hippeechiq

mardatha wrote: »

Starting to worry a wee bit about xmas, the money just isn't there this year. Am doing home made food hampers for all three of the kids families...but is that enough ? I usually just put a card with money in for the GC but its awkward. The cheapest toys or clothes are such a price and I've got 6 grandchildren to buy for.
It's great going really OS and looking up books to see what Victorians gave each other - but kids wont appreciate a hand made bookmark or a hair ribbon! (specially when they're boys!) lol
But the other aspects of winter/xmas are ok. I had the idea of buying candles - we never have candles, the RV think only weirdos burn candles :rotfl::rotfl:- and giving the house a quieter, more old fashioned type atmosphere for deep mid winter.

You and me both. I tried discussing it with OH on Friday, and all I got was "well if the money isn't there, we can't buy masses of food and expensive presents"

How is it everything is always so black and white with men?

In my adult life, I have never had so little money to live on, let alone manage a christmas on. We just about manage to scrape by week on week, and, well to be honest, I'm dreading it quite frankly.

I know what he says is true, is fact, but it still doesn't stop me worrying about it. I know my children and SS 25, 18 & 21 will not expect much, and will be grateful for anything (well, my children will, not so sure about SS) they know the money isn't there, but it still doesn't stop me feeling krap about the whole thing

The hampers are a wonderful idea for your children, and, I think, will mean so much more than something bought. I don't know what the answer is for younger kids though mardatha - especially boys. How old are they?

What's wrong with candles? Candles are a brilliant idea, and you can tell the RV that they do actually generate heat. My daughers bedroom faces north and never gets the sun. It's the same size as my bedroom - which faces south - and both have the same size radiator. My room doesn't even need the radiator on as the days sunshine warms it up beautifully (and I don't like a hot bedroom) Both rooms are double glazed, but my daughters room is always cooler than the rest of the house in the winter, even with the heating on.

We've discovered that on really cold evenings, if she burns around 4 tea lights it makes the rooms lovely and cosy. A$da currently sell packs of 100 tea lights for £2 each or two packs for £3. I always buy two packs at a time, and they last me ages. They only burn for a couple of hours though, so obviously more expensive ones would last longer.

I have a drawer full of tea lights, oils and josticks. I burn candles most days, either on their own, or in an oil burner. I often have a jostick on the go too, so RV would really love it here! :rotfl:

mardatha

:rotfl:Oh my god incense would finish him off. He's think I'd turned into an old hippy. My daughter makes candles, her house is full of them. She used to give me lovely ones but they just sat around gathering black coal dust and I told her no more. I might shove some in the hampers for the other 2 families though.
My main probs are two five-yr-old boys and two girls, one aged 2 and one aged 10. I will think of something but right now the money isnt looking good at all. Every week the food costs more (well there's noway this is OT cos women must've been saying that for centuries !!
He is having to really watch his diet/diabetes as the weight is still falling off him and I'm worried. So we are low carbing and it means a lot of meat and no cheap easy fillers - but his health matters so we must.
We have decided to get rid of live tv if we get any poorer. I never watch it at all and he is bored of repeats and just watches soaps :rotfl: he can watch them on this laptop.
If I let him...

seemasfriend

Mardatha, in my experience children aged 5 and under tend to be more interested in the box than the contents, especially if they are overwhelmed with presents. My three year old grandson enjoys nothing more than my undivided attention doing something of his choosing - usually ball related! So why not put the two together and create some pass the parcels and include a picture clue in each layer to get them guessing what the treat will be. " making cookies" "playing football" " jumping in puddles" etc. Whatever would appeal to each individual. Just some ideas to make your present feel special.