OS Achievements of 2006

moggins

What a lovely thread Queenie.

Relearning to knit is also my big one although I can still only do scarves (the look on peoples faces when I give them something handmade has been a surprise)

Really thinking about how much waste I was producing and getting my bin down to half full for a family of 4 is something I am proud of.

Knocking up more meals from whatever is lying in the fridge instead of throwing loads away every shopping day.

Growing stuff that we could eat

Making my kitchen a warmer place to be in the winter by simple DIY

Cutting my gas bill down by £10 a month

Just generally thinking about things a little more carefully rather than going for the easy option.

Making butter in my new Kenwood

AussieLass

OS successes 06

1) Made jams for the first time. Thriftlady inspired me. Also made chutney.

2) Made yoghurt also for the first time. It wasn't as successful.

3) Cooked all our meals from scratch.

4) Read TWG & More for Less. Both superb.

5) Learnt how to be a builders labourer.

6) Started a household journal. Thanks to Moggins thread.

vixtress

its a bit megre compaired to some but after only 6 weeks of os ive:

made nearly all meals from scratch
made truffles for xmas!
made a shopping list (and nearly stuck to it)
started using meal planner
bought crystal deodarant
stopped buying things i dont need (especially cleaning and toiletries)
RESISTED THE SALES!!
bought stardrops, soda crysytals and microfibre cloths
used 1 laundry tablet
checked cupboards/freezers and planned accordingly prior to shopping

not bad for only a few weeks i thought, just need to lose the 2 stone of baby weight (from 2 years ago:o )

lil_me

Great Idea Queenie!

Been the year of change for me so be nice to remember what has changed, only started very recently, in fact most of it I started in December.

Found this website and did many hours of reading
Saving £400 a month on things I have learned I can live without as shown http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=335929&page=3
Reducing my grocery bill by over half a month saving £300+ a month
Learning to cook a lot from scratch
Stopped buying ready meals
Stopped buying cooking sauces
Learning how to use a slow cooker
Eating more healthy which in turn has helped me loose half a stone this month
Started using more enviromentally friendly cleaning products
Meal plans made each week
Stopped overbuying because of the meal plans
Produce less waste as I throw less out
Getting more organised at home and managing time better
Cleared out a lot of clutter
Recycle a lot more (cardboard, paper, metal, glass, composting etc)
Batch cook foods which saves me so much time and waste
Stopped buying loads of cleaning products and potions I don't really need

Blimey, suprised myself, will add more as I think of them, I've got that ever so smug proud of myself look on my face right now

chickadee

This year, thanks to OS inspiration I have:

Taken three months off work and been able to enjoy time with my son; Grown our own courgettes, potatoes, carrots, lettuces and tomatoes - more planned next year; Used my breadmaker to the full, with only a minimum of shop-bought bread; Made home-made pizzas from scratch - everyone now prefers them to shop pizzas; Started to teach DS to cook - he loves it and prefers our 'cooking night in' to a meal out like we used to have once a week as our treat; Given my home a complete de-clutter - what a liberating experience; Reduce, Re-use and Recycle to the full - we swapped our large wheelie-bin for a small one and still hardly ever fill it.

Not as much as many of you but acheivements in our own little way.

Thanks to everyone who inspires me on this forum and here's to a great OS 2007! :beer:

Gingham_Ribbon

Been a bit more complicated than I'd have liked since I have hyperemesis and am eating whatever I can manage and that involves a lot of junk food that I never normally eat. But that aside:

Making all our own bread.
Growing herbs and veg in our back yard.
Put my name down for an allotment.
Made use of slow cooker and have some meals already frozen for after the baby is born.
Using a composter.
Discovered the joys of stardrops and microfibre!

VickyA_2

Seems so little in comparison to you lot, but:

make most meals from scratch
pad out "bolognese" sauce with lentils and veggies so it goes even further
made soup
bought and used Stardrops! :beer:

erm, that's it. More of the same next year and a bit more!

moggins

I forgot one!

Starting the Flylady challenge and getting nominated for post of the month. That's a real OS achievement

thriftlady_2

And I forgot one

Getting a compost bin and water butt form the council. Compost bin has been fab and really helped reduce our waste. We really need to work on reducing our rubbish.

I'm thinking about an allotment too, but really not sure I'm motivated enough to keep it going.

lynzpower

We were tihnking about an allotment too, but have to wait till we move. I expect if and when that happens I will be a migrant to the rivercottage boards but youll still see me here too

Last year I
Cooked almost every meal from scratch ( the ones we didnt we didnt like!)
binned all but one of our takeaway menus, as we can make better at home.
reduced waste and recylced more
grew rocket, herbs, lambs lettuce and others in the poky garden ( hopefully more next year once we move into a more appropriate place )
Impressed OH with some cracking meals out of leftovers,l and impressed me too :T
Learned a LOT about frugality which will be built on in the new year.

Happy 2007 to each and every Old Styler, without you all 06 would have been a much more expensive and much more wasteful year indeed

With love
Lynz
xxx