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

tiddles

This is from a few pages back:

For anyone who's not hear of them the Gill Holcombe books are very useful. I haven't bought the new one yet 'cos I think the price will go down yet [/QUOTE]

Here is a link to read these recipes online:

http://www.howto.co.uk/wellbeing/quick-healthy-recipes/make_dinner_not_excuses/#chicken--ham-pasta-bake

Hope this helps!

Tiddles

Hardup_Hester

Glad you liked my themed hamper suggestions, I have to admit, I cheat & although I call them hampers they are boxes covered in wrapping paper.
I've spent many years being skint & so have had lots of practice.

AlexRed

Hello, I've lurked on this board for two years or so, have posted occasionally but always read the 'Its tough now....' thread. Thought that I would join in this new thread. I am a married Mum of one little boy of ten months. I have been able to drop my hours at work and work part time, two days a week. I changed careers a few years ago from a high flying job which I came to loathe to a job working with special needs children which is very rewarding but has a lowly pay. Althought I love the job I would love to have be a fully stay at home Mum for the next few years but we can't afford for me to give up paid employment completely.

It is already a struggle on my decreased hours but we can pay all the bills with not much left over. I do feel lucky that at least I have been able to drop three days at work.

Have felt a bit down lately as I returned to work last week, and although its only for two days I worried about my little one terribly. Also I breastfeed so it was awkward expressing at work in during my ten minute break!

I find the discussion about renting vs mortgage interesting. We have a very modest three bedroom house and we did have a variable rate mortgage but fixed this two years ago at 7% for five yearsas we were planning a family and thought it would be better to know what we were paying even though it is much higher. We pay £700 a month even though we don't have a big mortgage at all (£78,000). At times I wish that we were renting although it is good to know that we can stay in the same house as we do love it. It seems we should have stayed with the variable rate with the interest rates so low.

I cook most meals from scratch, bake bread, my little one wears cloth nappies, we shop mostly at Aldi, Lidl and HomeBargains as well as local butcher and greengrocer when I can get there. Many of my clothes are from charity shops and we have been lucky to have lots of clothes from some family members for my little boy.

Have been made to feel a bit small over the last few days, one of my close relatives was very sniffy and critical about shopping in Aldis saying that the quality of the food is bad. Also some friends were pretty condescending about putting my little boy in cloth nappies. Another relative also implied it was a bit cruel to have him in cloth as it means he is sitting around in 'soaking nappies' rather than disposables apparently which keep baby 'dry'. My son has never had nappy rash and is changed fequently but all of these criticisms this week have made me feel a bit small and that some people think I am moneysaving in a way which is affecting my son, which I would never do.

I also feel a bit lonely at times as though I am swimming against the tide of a lot of my contemporaries if that makes sense. We don't go out much for fancy meals, cinema trips etc. Although we frquently visit a lovely local park and go to our local museums free events and go to the local swimming pool on the cheaper days. We are also lucky to have a lovely local library down the road which I take full advantage of for books for me, hubby and my little one.

I always find it very inspiring to come here and read about the experiences of other like minded people and am also worried about the stae of the country at the moment. Hopefully it will make our society more mindful of what we consume and realise that there is more to life than having pots of money.

Sorry for the long essay of a post, am looking forward to joining in more here if that's ok :wave:

Sequeena

Hello everyone. Wow you all talk a lot! :rotfl:

Hugs to those who need them and congrats to those who deserve them!

I'm feeling a lot better today which is a great sign. I still need to see the doctor though as I need another prescription for my anti depressants.

Our blackberry bush is producing fruit! :j Only one was ripe enough which I ate straight away - mmmm!! When more are ripe I'm going to make a jam in my slow cooker :money:

kezlou

I'm making hampers this year again, i made two last year and MIL loved it, my mother said "where's the necklace i wanted?" :mad:

My mother: -a bottle of vodka, bottle of coke, tied up in a bow with some samosa's from the corner shop. Its her ideal night in.
MIL: -maybe something horse / dog themed hmmm
My dad: -lots of miniature cars, special mug, little bottle of brandy (home bargains), and some little bits from poundshop.
FIL: -pics of boys, cd, tennis balls, book, special mug and some little bits from poundshop.
Sister: - smellies, slippers, pj's, ferrero roche (her favourite)
Brother: -mixture of smellies, cd or game, chocolate and a cheap gadget.

Not sure what else so far, i tend to do a round up of things for my nieces and boys.
I also just used two green boxes which i got for 50p form a box shop, placed some fabric on the inside and arranged the contents in them.

Just ordered two books off amazon for me and OH for a whopping 43p,:D i used a £5 that i got from doing surveys, so were both super pleased with that.

Spendless

gaily- Have you got a children's centre near you? Ours runs in the school holidays, often does trips that aren't expensive and you can take older siblings with you.

I didn't realise your children were young, so no some of the things I suggested won't be suitable. Though the first week or so can be 'OMG how am I going to entertain them every day for so many weeks', eventually it settles and not having to get them up and out in a morning for the school run is good. Does the baby have an afternoon nap introducing 'quiet time' for the older one- watching a dvd etc could mean some time for you to catch up with any jobs you need to do...or just take time to relax.

Souk08

Alex, I live by an Aldi and can honestly say that the quality of MOST of their stuff is good. I personally don't like their cereal or tea but that's my choice. I also had a rotten meat joint from there but that was my fault for not cooking it properly! Other than that it has saved my life and kept me healthy as I tend to buy a few bits from the Super 6 every week to help me get my fruit and veg in. Also their continental stuff is great. I bet this lady has never darkened the door of an Aldi! My family all had cloth nappies and had no bother with them!!! Some folk are so pass remarkable.

Spendless

kezlou wrote: »

I'm making hampers this year again, i made two last year and MIL loved it, my mother said "where's the necklace i wanted?" :mad:

My mother: -a bottle of vodka, bottle of coke, tied up in a bow with some samosa's from the corner shop. Its her ideal night in.
MIL: -maybe something horse / dog themed hmmm
My dad: -lots of miniature cars, special mug, little bottle of brandy (home bargains), and some little bits from poundshop.
FIL: -pics of boys, cd, tennis balls, book, special mug and some little bits from poundshop.
Sister: - smellies, slippers, pj's, ferrero roche (her favourite)
Brother: -mixture of smellies, cd or game, chocolate and a cheap gadget.

Not sure what else so far, i tend to do a round up of things for my nieces and boys.
I also just used two green boxes which i got for 50p form a box shop, placed some fabric on the inside and arranged the contents in them.

Just ordered two books off amazon for me and OH for a whopping 43p,:D i used a £5 that i got from doing surveys, so were both super pleased with that.

Was she joking? If not how rude. :eek: For my sis and bil I once did a family hamper of all bits and bobs as an extra present, toys for their dog, fancy cups with straws for their twins, bits that they like, asked them what they thought and got "ermmm....well...., it certainly was different". Never bothered again.;)

seabright

Topher wrote: »

Does anyone here remember a T.V. show called Bazaar? I think its where I first came across Shirley Goode. I became a housewife and mother in 1983, and it was one of the first daytime T.V. shows created especially for the NEW idea of daytime T.V. It also coincided with a bad recession. (I kept a page out of my diary from one of those years showing what your mortgage would be with certain interest rates and they included 16% as an interest rate.!!!)

I have all three of her books - I was 13 then and thought she was wonderful I haven't looked at the books lately, I must go back to them!

I am a lurker too, the other thread was too unmanagble for me to deal with. Maybe with the mega-threads they should be re-started once a quarter or even once a month?

seabright

She's still in the moneysaving business: http://shirleygoode.blogspot.com/:j