To new beginnings. To the pursuit of...somethingness.

MrsMoo2U

Thanks Pippi, what a lovely thing to say. yep 5am for me too. I am not too worried though as I have just lounged around -although I find that hard to do sometimes. Raining here too, pouring in fact. Off to walk Moo soon so my wellies are going to be pleased to get some proper mud action.

FW - I so agree re the cheap hairdresser mostly. Although I did find one once who worked in a small salon and I have to say that she was the best hairdresser I ever had, she coloured my hair to perfection and I never had to blow dry my hair too much because it would just fall into place. So I wouldnt write off small hairdressers just because they are cheap. However I do often find that I end up back in an expensive salon. Here where I live though it doesnt really matter if its an expensive one or not as there are very few salons let alone good ones. Yes I will always be a hoarder where money is concerned but for some strange reason I dont hoard material things. I have this belief that material things dont bring me happiness. My most precious possesions are photographs of family and friends that I have lost and some items that were bought for me where real thought had been put into them.

What would I do without my money going on bills? Well, the bills that I have had this month have been connected to ensuring that I invest my money into a lifestyle that will help me to realise my dreams so that is why I am thinking of it as investment. If I wasnt following my heart right now and listening to my head then that money would be firmly in my bank account being hoarded.

Cheery_Daff

Which means it'll be there when you decide what you want to spend it on! :T

((()))))))) hugs for your SIL and familly, what shocking news, all in one week too xxx

Hope you get some rest today if you can!

MrsMoo2U

Thanks Cheery, a woman after my own heart. I do save my money but that does mean that if I have a longing for something I usually have something to fall back on. I do hoard but regularly clear out and start again. Feeling rested, had a lovely day so far, lounging, wandering round the forest in the rain and eating pancakes for lunch a la Daffs.

niccatw

Cheri, I think we need to turn NSDs on their head for you! Have you ever written a list of things you'd love to have "just because"? They don't need to be expensive, just something you've always kinda fancied but would never buy because you don't really need it...?

I've wanted bokashi bins (for composting my veg. peelings, which would virtually reduce my waste to nothing) since I moved in 4 years ago. I still haven't bought them because I feel I don't really need them. But they're £40 and given how long I've spent looking at them and trying to find a spot for them in my tiny kitchen... maybe I should just go for it!

Maybe you need to budget in some decadence! Allow yourself a set amount of money specifically to spend on something you've always fancied just because you can. Maybe start with the hairdresser if you can't find a fabulous hairdresser at a reasonable price.

Big hugs to your SIL. :A

MrsMoo2U

Thanks Nic, what have I always fancied but never bought? Well if you saw my first diary it was entitled. "I have more than enough for my needs but I really want a landrover" So I would buy a landrover. I guess that I cant really want one though because I keep saving up and then finding some kind of urgent bill or other diversion (in the past it has been visiting my friend in Mexico). Little things erm........... I guess that is my problem I am not a material kinda girl. Things that I "want" are usually connected to my house - wardrobes, new kitchen, garden makeover. I love being in my own little space. I used to always budget for my hair to be done and that was one thing I never compromised on. Since moving here I have really struggled to find a good hairdresser so I end up not going and then I hate myself because my hair is a mess. The one thing that I do think of as an extravagence but I really enjoy treating myself is Angel perfume and Clarins foundation oh, not forgettin Clinique Tender Heart lipgloss............ I miss all of those things too. Perhaps the internet can help me there.

Had a bit of a lightbulb moment today. I am subscribed to rather too many diaires on here even though I had a clear out. I only really visit the same ones over and over and give a lot a miss. Not sure what I am learning from them. I seem to be drawn into things because I feel obliged to answer but no more. I am going to withdraw from some threads in order to find myself some more time. Now I had this lightbulb moment several weeks ago but got drawn back in again. I think that I am a little obsessive and I have to learn that I dont have to be involved, I can just withdraw.

Life at home has been a bit shaky this weekend. I think that my long working days have caught up with me. That coupled with my days off being filled with stressful home stuff is not good.

Budget is looking really tight right now and I am a little worried. Seems that I am the only one who has any concerns though.

Does anybody have any tips for convincing Mr C that if we buy a bag of potatoes they dont all have to be cooked and eaten in one meal? Oh this also goes for a pack of spaghetti. There are only 2 of us eating after all.

Tonights tea is Butternut Squash and Sweet Potatoe tagine(I have made it with one potatoe and half a butternut squash ) with couscous. Hopefully it will taste as nice as it currently smells. Inspired by Nic so thanks for that Nic. Oh and I have bought beetroot in Lidl today at 49p (cheated as its ready cooked) so trying the hummus at the weekend if I manage not to eat the beetroot before then.

Pippilongstocking

(()) cheri - you do need to focus on you!

I make the dinner on my own and portion it up - might help?

Money tight here too - and more mouths to feed! xxx

We'll get there I promise

Cheery_Daff

Or hide half the spaghetti and potatoes?!

Yes! Try out the internet for a little parcel of treats every now and again if that's what you fancy! :T :T

And well done on the diary clearout - I always feel bad doing that too - but at the same time, if I'm spending all my time reading about other people's lives, I'm not living my own :T So you just take time for yourself when you need it, all those diaries will be there if you ever fancy a pop in, and of course people understand

youareallhelpingme

I still read my subscribed ones but very rarely reply now as I can't always think of what to say. In fact I must update my own diary with the fabby news that I bought my truck with a business loan from my mum. I even have a spreadsheet and worked out the compound interest to cover what she is not earning from her savings account. I even only used about 80% of what she was prepared to loan. How grown up am I :A.

You look after yourself or that nasty illness will be back x

MrsMoo2U

YAY ME :j:j:j:j:j:j TO TRUCKS. How very exciting. Well done on getting it at a lesser price too. Very proud of you. This will really help the business. Errm spreadsheets and compound interest sounds way too grown up to me though! Had a very bad attack of my illness on Friday ME and I know it is because I have been doing too much.

Thanks Pippi, yes we will get there. I am feeling a right grump at the moment and really wishing that it was the end of July because then I know that I will have no money but at least I will have the next part of my great escape in place.

Cheery, thanks for the note about the diaries. I have about 12 subscriptions but there are just about 5 that I really enjoy dipping into because they are so positive and I learn so much from them. Also those people visit me here and give lots of friendly pushes (no kicks just a little assistance) to help me see my way. So these are the ones that I will focus on now. A couple have been getting me down without me realising it. How odd how easy it is to be sucked into something without even noticing.

The overcooking stuff by the way is on his cooking nights. I have tried hiding half the spaghetti but he always finds it :rotfl: Last night we had mash and I swear it was enough to feed 5000. I did manage to quickly whizz some out of the pan and into a tupperware box convincing him that if we put it into the freezer we could have mash on another night when there was no pennies left in the pig to raid.

My brother has a theory about the feeding of the 5000 by the way. He says that the reason 2 fishes went so far was because everybody was too polite to eat any and passed it to the next person :rotfl:

niccatw

I'd say you've two choices with Mr C. Either you let it go and roll your eyes. Or you make him put baggy pants on and eat everything he cooks (minus your portion) in one sitting. You might have to do both, only in the opposite order of my typing.

I'm completely with you on the diaries. I did the same. It's also the reason I sometimes disappear from the NSD thread. As much as I love it there, it's so fast moving, it's hard to keep up.

Linking the above with you getting ill again because you know you are doing too much and your difficulties in finding your favourite treats where you are now... they are not treats! They are necessary for your wellbeing. They keep you smiling. They keep you feeling good about yourself and remind you you are worth it. They make the shaky days and the long, busy so much easier to bear. They help you focus. They keep you well. It's the little things... and we need to work hard not to overlook their importance.

Sometimes we really do need to let ourselves off the hook or we'd drive ourselves mad! Remember the card I got from my pamper day:

Be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars. In the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul. Max Ehrmann

We really do tend to be our own harshest critics. We'd never talk to our closest friends or family the way we talk to ourselves.

If you have ready cooked beetroot in your house and it makes it to the weekend for hummus I will be very, very impressed! I had to resist the urge to just pop one of those wee beets into my mounth as I was making the hummus! :rotfl: Ooh, let me know how the tangine worked out. Mine's scheduled for Thursday at the moment.