Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 2

Kerry_Woman

miss empty piggy - Hope your DD gets better soon.

Trying to be careful what is being spent. Baked scones at the weekend and baked a banana cake today. Went for a walk in the park, then to the local co-op today. So at least I got some free exercise. Am going to try and do more walking, so I can get out the flat and do something positive, as there is no work until May at the moment.

rising_from_the_ashes

Ohhh miss empty piggy hugs to your DD - I've not had chicken pox (nearly 40) and just about go into panic mode when anyone arrives at working saying one of their kids has it (I have an auto-immune disease & take immunosuppressant drugs so my immune system's shot).

Hope everyone else is well, will pop back later for a "proper" catch up on the posts.

Also hope everyone's looking forward to the holiday weekend (commiserations to anyone who's working). I finish up for 2 whole weeks tomorrow (can't remember the last time I had a "proper" break, all hols for the last 2 years have been spent writing assignments etc but have now finished! at least until September) - can't wait!:D

It's been pea-soup here all day, has finally cleared so you can see about 100 feet - beautiful 10 miles up the road at work:( - typical!

However, I've spent the afternoon setting up my big planters as DM rang last night to say my peas are ready to be planted out - 12 in total:eek::eek::eek: - never grown them before so fingers crossed.

Just popping in to say please wish me luck - residents association meeting tonight & will be trying my luck at being able to extend my garden a bit into the "wasted" land at the back. Spoke to the planners today and they said if others have already done it, there's no reason I can't and no reason others (who don't back onto it) couldn't clear bits and do a veg patch etc due to the lack of available allotment land here. May be pushing my luck in asking if I can keep some chickens but may as well chance it.

It's overrun with mice so not sure how I'd be able to keep them out my veg patch? Have been told that chooks would be great at clearing it so may use that to try to sway the decision!:cool:

Kerry_Woman

rising from the ashes - Wishing you good luck with your plans for your garden. Keep us informed of how it went.

dizzy_lizzie

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

Just popping in to say please wish me luck - residents association meeting tonight & will be trying my luck at being able to extend my garden a bit into the "wasted" land at the back.

Luvz Dizzy x
♥

miss_empty_piggy

saorsie wrote: »

Pleased your DD is feeing more settled M.E.P. and fingers crossed for a good day today.

I caught chicken pox when I was 30 and had felt ill for a few days without realising why. The first spots appeared errrr 'down below' and I was convinced that my then husband had given me something hideous !:rotfl: :rotfl:I can definitely confirm that the older you are the worse you are affected, however sounds like fortunately your dad may have a natural immunity.

-s-

-s-

:rotfl:That made me laugh out loud Saorsie, Oh dear, I'm just imagining the look on your husband's face, and then yours when you realised. Ooppss...xx

miss_empty_piggy

Thankyou to everyone for your kind wishes. DD is much better. Yesterday she didn't moan or scratch at all, occasional sore throat but other than that she was up and about as normal so I think that she's over the worst of it!

Rising from the ashes - am looking forward to hearing how it went last night. Hope it was a success for you. Fingers are crossed.

Yesterday I managed to get my garden table umbrella up. What a job!! Dad had to cut a length of plastic tubing to fit into the hole. It's a bit wobbly but I didn't want to spend new money on a table and chairs. Table has been painted blue, old emergency chairs painted cream (they have blue/gold/cream material seats) and a couple of metal chairs which are brown (think I might spray paint them) so now I have matching (loose term) table and chairs. Feel like i've saved loads.

Some of the seeds on my kitchen window sill are starting to sprout so I'm getting excited about having an abundance of fruit and veg growing in my garden. How satisfying!!

Am planning to go to a CBS today, there is a vacuum cleaner guy who does replacement parts and reconditioned vacuums for about 20 to 60 pounds. I think I might get some parts for my dyson as it is not picking up very well. I am also on the look about for some more wine making stuff. Then on to work to pick up some stuff and then on to the beach with the little ones. Hope everyone has a great day.

DDs asked for garlic pizza yesterday. At £1.34 each from Mr T I decided to see if I could make my own cheaper. Made pizza dough with DDs (entertainment) and "free" from stores. Made garlic butter with minced garlic found in the fridge and pack of butter and some herbs. Mixed all together and then baked. spread more on when came out of oven. Kids loved it (but they really stank!). Have loads of pizza dough left and garlic butter in the fridge, so cheaper than £2.68 I think!! Love it when a frugal plan comes together.

tumptyteapot

miss_empty_piggy wrote: »

DDs asked for garlic pizza yesterday. At £1.34 each from Mr T I decided to see if I could make my own cheaper. Made pizza dough with DDs (entertainment) and "free" from stores. Made garlic butter with minced garlic found in the fridge and pack of butter and some herbs. Mixed all together and then baked. spread more on when came out of oven. Kids loved it (but they really stank!). Have loads of pizza dough left and garlic butter in the fridge, so cheaper than £2.68 I think!! Love it when a frugal plan comes together.

Great idea, we have not done garlic pizza - we make stuffed crust pizza though, stuffed with smoked salmon (the cheap scraggy bits) and cheese. That is amazing!

ceridwen

risingfromtheashes

Well understandable that you want to extend your garden. Just one little consideration - and that is that "piece of wasteland" may actually be being used by someone already (ie there may be a forager or two who has found good supplies there of some forageable food or other).

Just saying that it would be wise to check that "wasteland" out and see if there is anything there that any forager would be likely to want and, if there is, then "keep an eye out" to see if there looks to be any of them paying "visits" to forage for that free food. If it is the case that there are maybe a couple of foragers doing so - then it would be wise to "get them on board" by making it plain to them that they would just be swopping one type of free food for another (ie you would all ensure between you that they were given an equivalent amount of free food from garden surplus food you were growing).

I realise this - because I have various bits of apparent "waste ground" that I value both from an amenity viewpoint (ie extra greenery around - as opposed to concrete) and from a "foraging for free food" viewpoint and have had several disappointing experiences of realising that someone has "used my patch" for something else and I've lost it:mad: (ie in my case - its been down to bl***y developers building something or other there and the land is now a building and/or someone's garden):(:(

Don't want to put a dampener on - but just in case you would find yourself inadvertently "stepping on someone's toes"....

rubytuesday

Thanks for thinking of me Dizzy.

I am feeling a bit better but hearing from my foster brother after nearly forty five years has been quite emotional. I found out his family applied to adopt me but my foster Dad had a heartattack during the process and it was not allowed.

I have had a few NSDs but seem to have been paying out for a lot lately. My daughter bought a ticket to Gloucester to see her Grandparents and then realised her pass expired the day before she went so I had to pay out twenty odd quid for a new one. I got my hair coloured at Trevor Sorbie for free yeserday but left a generous tip and then went on a hunt for Newberry Fruits to take to my foster mother next week to no avail and ended up tired and hungry so treated myself in the M and S cafe.

Today I went to the dentist and had a filling and feel traumatised so treated myself to some Rochester Ginger Wine and Suma soap and then found a wicked leopard print coat for the girlie and lovely ethnic print top in the scout shop for me, so spend spend spend I'm afraid!

I need to get up to speed with the spending diary too!

tumptyteapot

Frugal fail day - I phoned to cancel my mobile contract because i was going to get one with cashback and I got persuaded to spend £3 a month more on my contract for a phone with a better camera. I just felt so sorry for the Indian girl who was talking to me.