It's STILL tough and not getting better - so how are we coping?

ceridwen

taplady wrote: »

The thrilla - I just watched those clips :T- very scary stuff indeed! :eek:

:T

So did I - why do you think I eat as organically as possible and go in for making things from scratch? This is far from the first time I've done any "reading up" on what happens to our food.

I tend to assume the motive is just the (bad) one of profit - rather than the even worse ones being inferred here - even though I hate the way that world overpopulation/British overpopulation is getting worse and worse...

Right....off to make some more homemade bread anyway...with my wholemeal stoneground flour, honey, rocksalt, olive oil....errr...I'm not sure about that dried yeast though:cool:

alec_eiffel

The_Thrilla wrote: »

I couldn't agree more. But before you get too relaxed you will want to have a look at this about food:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSpkLk0vYmk

And here's part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-B9MeO3SRxU

If there is a better advert for OS home cookin' that is it.

Suddenly, I ain't hungry any more.

Just because I want to remove stress from my life doesn't mean I want to close my eyes and stop learning! I'm just a firm fan of changing what I can change and dealing with the rest.

Spendless

gailey- There was a thread on the families board recently about cheaper entertaining in the hols of older kids. It's a couple of years old but was bumped recently so I think you'd find it only a few pages back. My eldest is 10 and I have found it becomes harder to think of free/cheap things the older they get. Bowling sometimes have cheaper deals depending on what time you go.

I was reading a DFW diary the other day and something I intend implementing is always filling a glass with half ice, this should cut down on the amount I am currently spending on drinks. I also realised something else said on there, because I am weekly paid, hubby monthly and CB and TC 2 weekly we are never more than a few days away from payday. I am hoping to leave the joint bank bank account alone this month and just let it pay the bills and all the incidentals including grocery shopping come out of my account. My aim is to try and clear the o/draft on there. Might not manage till end of Aug but will be nice to see how far I get.

penelopedee_2

We had a bit of a nightmare Christmas last year and spent much more than we wanted to. We have a massive split family and I can't get some of them just to do basic gifts for the children. Worse still one of them wanted 'nice' clothes for the little ones - so I ended up spending more than I would on clothes for myself and the cheeky so and so's took the clothes back and pocketed the money :eek:

So this year it is going to be so different. My rules are £5 each for the nephews and nieces (I've already stashed enough £5 notes back to put into the cards). Then I will do little luxury food hampers (nice jams etc) for the grandparents. That is it, apart from DS who has been well trained and knows to only ask for something reasonable and likes to receive clothes and smellies now too.

With regards to teenage boys eating, DS probably eats twice as much as us. He is good and eats anything we are for his lunch and tea and then snacks on white rolls with peanut butter, yoghurts and cereal. He knows he will only get own brand if I can't make it myself and his favourite treat is fruit with value custard on it.

northwest1965

gailey wrote: »

Hes binned 2bags of plums as said they looked manky not siure if in pastic bags anyway they were free

got white bread mix rising for son.


2nd attempt at homemade pastry turned out better than first.

Want to do some hibnobs and toffee cake but now run out of butter.

Where do you get all your plums from gailey?

I think with pastry the more you do it the better it will be, do you leave it to chill after making? If I'm going to make some I'll treble the quantities and portion some up for the freezer.

Do you always use butter for baking? I have just been to Farmfood for the 1st time, popped into Netto next door, they had some spread for 44p - it says OK for baking. I'll be using later, want to make some cakes ready for stepkids tomorrow.


I feel so lucky listening to you all talk about Christmas presents. The only ones I have to buy are for my Mum & Dad.

Grumpycupple

So after getting all stressed out about trying to find the cheapest train tickets available for a family funeral next week I did manage to get some. MPH (My present husband :rotfl:) It will be forty years in 2012.was asking me allsorts of silly questions the bliddy phone kept ringing so as I have the breaking strain of a cobweb you can imagine how I was. :mad:

This afternoon however there was a knock at the door with a courier delivering me a parcel. I knew I hadn't spent anything this month on internet buying and of course hubby looked at me quizically. Opened it up to find a fab freebie from Harris Brushes with a tile kit. He was still giggling when he went out. :j

Now I might put this on one side as a C present for a nephew that is into DIY because it looks rather expensive.

Cheap curries from Asda for tea tonight and then Wallender...bliss.

EstherH

Do you know what the difference is between a convector heater and oil filled radiator? As far as heating a flat for early morning and after work at night which would be best do you think. DD's flat has rubbish electric wall heaters and it was freezing last year. I have just seen a convector heater on Argos that is only £10.99 down from £26.99, got great reviews, seems to good to be true so I'm wondering if it's really expensive to run, but have been told that all electric heaters cost the same to run as the kilowatt hours they produce - or something like that.
Any advise?

Nargleblast

I had an oil filled radiator years ago and found it only useful for taking the chill off very small rooms and for drying my undies on! The convector heater would be better for heating the room, but you need to check how many kWh it uses per hour then multiply that by what you pay per kW to get an idea of running costs.

taplady

ceridwen wrote: »

So did I - why do you think I eat as organically as possible and go in for making things from scratch? This is far from the first time I've done any "reading up" on what happens to our food.

I'd read up on Aspartame before too. I am also trying to cook more from scratch, have given up meat and just have a little fish. Cant persuade the males in the house to follow suit unfortunately but they are willing to try my food occasionally. Tonight I'm having a go at my first ever curry from scratch as I usually use a jar:o:D
sweet potato and butternut squash - recipe from a 50p carboot book - Ainsley Harriots low fat meals in minutes. Fingers crossed its edible;):D

EstherH

It's for DD and she is on a pre-payment metre, I'll ask her what she pays per hour but know that she wont have a clue. However, from your answer, and what I have gleaned from others, halogen will be direct heat if it is on you but won't warm the room, and fan heaters make a lot of noise and aren't very effective at warming a largish room so it would seem that the convector is the best. The one I was looking at is out of stock though - just noticed that. Still, there is time. The thread about it going to be another cold winter made me think about it now rather than waiting till we are bang in the middle of it.