What did you learn in 2011?

sparklewing

I have learnt to sew and how to roast a chicken (and make it stretch for 3 days)- I was veggie until this year so I've been learning all sorts of new meaty type cooking. Ooh also how to make bread, jam and chutney.

I've always cooked from scratch but I've made an effort to try new recipes this year and to do things like make biscuits instead of buying.

esmf73

2011 has taught me a number of different things.

• Fairies DONT come and clean up
• cats and dogs can mix
• open fire / woodburner is only good if you remember to clean it out and stock up on wood / coal!!
• Growing my own without adequate child / dog proofing measures results in lots of shouting and not much in the way of produce.
• Having a husband who works away means a lot is left to you - DONT Ignore it!!!

But most importantly the most OS thing it has taught me is to prepare dinner from scratch when I can, so that when we're having bad days with DS1 we can afford the odd takeout. Been FAR TOO many times this week so far!

[Deleted User]

I have learned, this week actually, that the chicken carcass that I stripped for my DD on Sunday night not only yielded me almost 2 litres of stock on Monday morning in the slow cooker but enough meat that I had missed when stripping to make, (with the addition of chopped tomatos,onion,leftover red pepper and a few chopped mushrooms enough to make two portions of chicken curry,one for Monday nights dinner and one for the freezer.Today I am using the stock up to make carrot and coriander soup, some for the freezer and some for the fridge.I had been on the point of binning the carcass on Sunday night then changed my mind and brought it home .So 2 'free' meals plus lots of stock to use the carrots up at the bottom of the fridge today.
I have decided that everything that is in the ;east edible in my house gets eaten and not thrown away (not a lot did anyway ) and by buying only essentials I have cut back on so much waste indoors.I had a good dig around in the cupboard under the sink and found more than enough cleaning materials to last till next Easter.I am using up more stuff from the cupboards as well as running down my freezer (hopefully will get to defrost it before Christmas) I am astonished at how much food is actually in my stores .This month so far I have only spent just under £9.00 on essentials only in 10 days .I am making the extra effort so that there will be a bit more in the holiday fund for next year, plus I am getting great satifaction in conjouring up things to eat out of odds and ends.
This week ispent nearly two days peeling chopping and stewing windfall apples ,most of which are boxed up in the freezer for the moment, but over the next few weeks they will be used in crumbles ,pies, mixed with plain yoghurt, and even some in parsnip and apple soup which is gorgeous on a frosty day.This hasn't been a bad year but I think we will all have to tighten our belts even more come the New Year sousing what I have in the store cupboard means less I have to haul home from the shops and more cash left in my pocket at the end of the month.

Memory_Girl

What have I learned from the University of MSE (Or MSE U if you prefer)

That men's trousers from the pound rack can be cut down to make toddler trousers that look designer and cost a quid.

That a decent store cupboard saves you hundreds of pounds a year.

That toddlers are happy in handknits and granny is so proud too.

That I can learn to build stud walls, on my own, single handed and with wombled materials.

That putting stuff off is pointless - jump in and have a go and then its mostly done before you think about it.

but most importantly ................

That I LOVE being debt free

MG

savingssaver

i learnt that i need to sleep more and party less...

karren

Ive learnt that
* I can actually cook
* kids prefer my cooking to the junk they used to nag for!
* that people will take advantage but only if you let them!!!!
* Life is short so do what you want not what you think will please everyone around you
* that stardrops will do just about anything!
* that less is more, less to dust and less to worry about breaking
* calor gas fire will heat room very cheaply in day to save heating up whole house until bedtime, and can keep track of the fuel bills
* that mse forum is likewise people who are doing best to make what they have stretch to enjoy the life we want without being sucked into the consumerism
* facebook is waste of energy and time!

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

I've learned that buying all those offers of buy one get one half price is false economy when you end up throwing the second one out because its gone off.

Gettingtherequickly

That being debt free is very liberating.

That I cook more from scratch than I thought I did, have a friends hubby staying with me 3 or 4 nights a week and my bin is much emptier when he is not here as his idea of cooking is bunging in the microwave and buying salads, therefore packaging filling the bin.

That, despite what the utility companies tell me, I can control how much money I give them, ie they don't have a dd facility, but I do make payments to them monthly based on what I have used and a bit extra for the winter payments. That way there is little likelihood for a huge bill or trying to get my money back.

That it is really nice to benefit from single insurance payments.

That I have savings which I can forget about, - know the money goes there every month, but as I will only be getting a statement once a year, when I get it through, it will be a pleasant surprise.

Confirmation that with real friends, no matter how difficult it is for the group of us to co-ordinate diaries, when we do meet, it feels as if we only met the week before and no matter how much we dislike the guy in one girls life, her being happy with him is much more important than our dislike for him.

tea_lover

That OH is in a lot more debt than I ever realised, but also how good it is that he's now admitted how bad things are and is finally being open with me about money.
That I really enjoy trying to cut a bit more off the shopping bill each week.
That meal planning isn't as scary as I thought it was, and is already saving a lot of money.

p00

Ive learned not to read all the threads on MSE as Ive learned that a bargain isn't a bargain if you didn't need it and weren't actually looking to buy it anyway. And stock piling everything doesn't work.

I became addicted to following the Boots thread, the Tesco thread etc etc and rushing out to get 'bargains', 'freebies' and 'glitches' to the extent all the cupboards are full of THINGS and have given so much away just to get rid of it.

Fortunately I now save more money by not spending it in the first place and learning to stay away from the shops unless I really really need to go.

xp00