As The Workhouse Approaches....How To Do Everything To Avoid It, the Old Style Way

hornetgirl

Sammy_Kaye candle is lit for you getting your house.

Softstuff, if the finances work, the house sounds great. We're a childfree couple in a modest 3 bedroom house and find it the perfect size for us. We could manage somewhere smaller (we came from a 1 bed flat, albeit many years ago), but it's lovely just having a little more space. I can't imagine now not having any outside space - growing things to eat, drying washing on a sunny, blowy day like today and just sitting outside with a cuppa and listening to the birds are such simple pleasures, yet I value them so much. Good luck with whatever you decide, I'm sure you'll make the right choice.

We got up early this morning and went to the CBS, figuring that the good weather would bring out plenty of sellers and it did - took ages to get round. I got a good selection of chunky candles, which I stockpile ready for early autumn evenings when we can't justify putting on the heating. They manage to give the room a lovely cosy glow and it somehow feels much warmer. Also got a good stack of paperbacks for MIL, who goes through them at a rate of knots, and one of those wheat bags that you heat in the microwave. Not a huge haul, but I was happy with it and spent less than £5.

Thanks for the reminder about the coupon programme Gailey, I'm looking forward to it. Not sure it's something we can apply here, but it sounds entertaining, and I like the idea of getting one over on the big supermarkets.

ceridwen

ginnyknit wrote: »

Not heard from Mardatha, maybe she has gone to visit Ds I imagine that will be quite a drive as she is so far from anywhere. Hope all is well with our dear buddy

Now sitting here wondering if she has found a wondrous Sweetie Workshop - sherbet lemons = yep they'll do. Chocolate buttons = now you're talking. Liquorice allsorts - well...I'll force myself if thats all thats available....:rotfl:

katholicos

ginnyknit wrote: »

I planted round the established plants, serves me right when I back onto a cemetery full of field mice

Ditto this bit of your post about the problem with mice when living next to a cemetery. I live next to one too and lot's of my pea sowings have been eaten by mice. I try to always hold some seeds back to fill the gaps where it's obvious that the mice have invited themselves to dinner.

charlies-aunt

GreyQueen wrote: »

Ladies, it is now May 1st. I have given up chocolate. Again.:o But this time I really mean it as I want to be able to get into the clothes which don't fit right now and look better in the others. Anyone else out there want to climb on the choc-free wagon and share (im)moral support?

I'll hitch a ride with you on the choc-free wagon :T - I've put on 3st over the last two years which I'd love to shed. I think the diet will have to last longer than Lent Older and [STRIKE]wiser[/STRIKE] wider - thats me! :rotfl: From the exercise that I do, I ought to be a thin as a rake but I have six monthly steriod injections which give me the appetite of twenty :rotfl:and as I am greedy by nature, its going to be a challenge but I'll give it a go!

Our allotment is also next door to a cemetery - and we have just sown peas! Will be on the lookout for mice nibbling them

katholicos

I'm ever so cross with myself.

It did seem that I was really starting to hammer down my overdraft but then i went and made a massively extravagent mistake. Last week I went to the local haberdashery shop to purchase 3 x Robin Chunky balls of wool to finish off the massive throw I am crocheting for my bed, Should have spent less than a fiver in the shop...idiotically I totally misread the pricing on two rolls of pay per metre tablecloth material. Having previously purchased a piece in a similar pattern for my kitchen table, for less than £7 I promptly asked for 1.5 metres of 2 similar designs.

It was only when both pieces were cut that a salesperson came up to me and said to the lady cutting it, 'I told you someone would buy it! It might be expensive but it's soooooo worth it'.

I tried not to gulp so loudly as to be noticed.

When I got to the till I discovered the cost of my stupid mistake...the three balls of wool might have cost less than a fiver but the 2 lovely new tablecloths had stung me by £50.

It might be time to get my eyesight re-tested.

Don't you just hate those expensive mistakes?

Agapanthus

gailey wrote: »

Been invited to take part in medical trial less immunisations for children not sure if to take part sadly no payment.

This sounds like the one that DD1 was invited to put our little GD on last year (she's in Bristol area). DD's a nurse, so she looked into it, said there weren't any disadvantages and went for it. I'm sure GD would be delighted that she's had fewer injections - if she knew!

I think they only tend to pay you for the risky trials!:eek:

grandma247

Agapanthus does that mean they are putting lots of stuff together in one injection then or are they leaving some things out altogether?

katholicos I feel for you. I nearly did the same thing for dd's wedding dress when I saw just the right lace border so asked for X yards then the lady said the price. I can't remember what it was but I almost stopped breathing! fortunately she had not cut it so I told her I changed my mind. Whew!

meanmarie

Watched the coupon programme...don't know about UK but it could definitely not happen here...they seemed to be able to use double coupons if they had them, they also mentioned that they sometimes buy 6 or 7 newspapers to get coupons.....it would be cheaper here not to bother with the papers and pay full price! But really the thing that put me off big time was the sheer organisation needed to make it work.....couldn't do it folks!

GreyQueen....as my cholesterol reading was 6.1, to-morrow I am giving up chocolate, butter, cheese, eggs, bread and living on salads, veg and fruit and oily fish, so I will join you....I am a true addict in the sense that I am fine if I don't have any chocolate but once I taste I can't stop!

Softstep....I would go for the house if you can at all....just having some space around you will be worth the effort....

Marie

Softstuff

To try and answer questions raised about our house and lifestyle (as much for typing it out and reading it myself as typing it for you guys )

I believe hubbys job is as secure as one can be in the current climate. The boss is very happy with him, he's quite senior in his role which is a small firm and is very very good at what he does (I married a real lovely nerd ).

The communal fees are a bugbear. It isn't leasehold though, our lot in the complex is freehold, but we still pay the fees.

We don't have to heat here, and I can't imagine having to air-con much more there than here (you'd only cool a room you were in in the day). Rates would go up a bit, and we'd have to insure the building, but since that would all come in less that $6k, we'd be winning. General power, water heating and water bills could all come down substantially if we had solar installed.

I think a few of you chaps hit the nail on the head when you thought I might feel guilty or awkward about 2 people living in a 3 bed house. It seems a bit wasteful, and I'm not keen on that. The opportunity to use if for temporary lodgers and food production mitigates that a bit, but it's still a big place for two.

Ginnyknit, I don't have NF. Fortunately I don't have the pervasive cancer the first few tests pointed to either. Worst outcome for me would mean I need no stairs, wide enough spaces for a wheel chair and a bathroom I could hop around (you're not prying GQ ). Our unit is on one level, so is the house, but it's easier to manage a small unit than a big house so pros and cons there.

The location of the house compared to the unit is very similar. Both quiet, close to parkland, long walk to the shops, drive to the library (unless you're up for a very long walk, but you wouldn't want to do it with the amount of books we get out). Doctors is a drive either way, in-laws would be a drive, but 10 mins shorter. Both are about a 5 minute walk to a bus stop, with about the same (few) buses. Car use is essential for hubbys job, which is 40 minutes away, but we can't move closer to that since property is over 30% dearer (we'd get a 1 bed unit like ours for the price of the house).

Next thing I need to look at is if it floods. We're in a rainy cycle right now, and when it rains it's crazy.

Anyhoo, must go cook a dozen aubergines and assorted other veg and freeze.

Thanks for your support guys.

gailey_2

OMG Guys that extreme couponing programme on discovery shed tonight(sky-under lifestyle channels)

It was like old style !!!!!! for us lot:rotfl:As we talked so many times in past about stockpiling.

This was american and they all had huge basements and racking enough stocks same as cornershop and had groceries all round house.

hundreds of soaps
over 1000toiliet rolls
hundreds ofcereals.

one lady said her overstocks wereas beutifal as herfamily.

Showed 4people tonight one lady bill came to 1200dollars b4coupons then after coupons were deducted came to 5dollars:j

Another lady in order to use her coupons did17sepearate transactions took cashier like an hour to put it all through.

One lady brought 77 bottles of mustard I mean why?
Another lady meal planned 60days ahead had meticulous lists/planning despite having 6kids.
Plus 5hours in a supermarket:eek:hubby can barly stand one he hates tesco extra as too big!

Notsure if system over there vastly different to uk think it is as they have huge discount warehouses where you pay membership like costco/macro ect.

Find farmfoods quite good here as get flyers in paper with2.50, £5and £10 off so normally save £10 on £100shop.

I readthe offer flyers in local rag too tempted to go tesco metro as hagan daaz on offer at £2.07.

We do shop around as much as we can .

Sainsburys nearly always has chedder on offer.

other month mcain website had code combined with offer in morrisions worked out mcain wedges were34p abag!

The tesco price match with asda seemed to earn people money but was bit complex to get my pregnant head around.

Im quite clever with boots advantage points butcan get confusing and takes a lot of time to plan.

Im feeling bad as still not got co-op loyalty card.
saved enough on stamps/savers card
not shopped around as much as I could.
not gone food shopping on bank holidays.
not gone reduced hunting as not had time with new baby and was ill lastfew weeks of pregancy.

Last week lidls passata was 29p told hubby go back and stockpile before it goes up again.

welcome new people!

stilt walker-good luck hate the lastfew weeks waiting game hope baby here soon.

The jabs is less men c as eldest has less jabs than child no 2.
Theycome to house to give jabs rather than me go to doctors surgery so money saving on commutingcosts.

Well tonight babys still unsettled.
my5year old showed off aboutbedtime as usual and reawoke my 19month old.

Me and hubby both tired and snappy.
despite spag bol he wanted his stew which didentstart until late as was

sorting thegirls out
feedingthe baby.

made 6cornish pasties
have 300ml chicken stock left.
huge lot beef casserole.

put 1pasty in fridge forhubbys lunch tommoro was well asbeef stew in tub.

Tommrow need to do something with leftover mince and defrost some sausages and make some more bread maybe even cakes.
Really want to improve my baking this year.

We definatly fine until thur.

determined to stocktake and meal plan 14days with stuff we have.