Keeping up appearances.......

Honey_Bear

HappyNow wrote: »

Awful things. When Mr H and I got married, in around 1066, someone gave us a deep fat fryer as a wedding pressie. They were just becoming fashionable and were considered quite hi-tech - a definite step up from the old chip pan. He was itching to try it, so I suggested he stand it on the hob to use, so the extractor fan could take away any cooking smells. He did, but, being used to a chip pan, he absent-mindedly turned the hob ON underneath it! Then he left the room. The smell of burning electrics, melted plastic and fired oil will stay with me for a long, long time! The new hob was a complete write-off and we were slipping around on the greasy floor for weeks .

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Honey_Bear

HappyNow wrote: »

So, Awesome April starts tomorrow. I deliberately ended Magic March a few days early so I could have a bit of a blow-out but I didn't mention that to HB because I didn't want her getting sloppy .

I thought it was getting a BIT LONELY around here At The End Of Magic March. 'Nuf said.

Honey_Bear

Your Awesome April sounds really positive Happy. I'm sticking with most of mine, but after two months they're now kind of ingrained in conscious thought and those that I don't keep (Twinks, anyone?) I've at least managed to cut back quite a bit to the point where I lost a bit of weight last week. So, mine will be:

• Maximum of three mugs of coffee a day;
• Maximum of one hour reading on-line newspapers a day;
• Five phone calls a week for new business;
• Lights out by midnight.

Honey_Bear

For some reason, even though I knew it was it was April I completely forgot I was supposed to be tweaking my habitual self-defeating behaviours. I expect it was because I was very conscious of not have a beach body, and not being a size 10, much less a toned one.

• Success
• Fail
• Fail
• Success.

Must try harder.

Honey_Bear

Scores on the doors today:

• Maximum of three mugs of coffee a day: Success, but it was hard.
• Maximum of one hour reading on-line newspapers a day:
  Success.
• Five phone calls a week for new business: Not done. It wouldn't be a good idea to ring any business during the Easter holidays, so that won't be happening.
• Lights out by midnight. Success.

HappyNow

Honey_Bear wrote: »

For some reason, even though I knew it was it was April I completely forgot I was supposed to be tweaking my habitual self-defeating behaviours. I expect it was because I was very conscious of not have a beach body, and not being a size 10, much less a toned one.

I've been a size 10 most of my life, just genetics. If I eat healthily I do maintain the dress size, but sadly the distribution of my weight is changing with age. I used to have a rounded bottom and a flat stomach, now I have a rounded stomach and a flat bottom . That's where the toning bit will (I hope) come in. But only if I do some, and so far I haven't. It's probably a lost cause at my age but I intend to give it a go, then if it doesn't work I know not to bother in future!

HappyNow

Awesome April update. I've lumped the two days together because Miss H is home and I haven't been able to get on here in private.

• FINANCES. Had another big spend of £90 on the 'weekend away' deposit. The balance of £175 is to find by the end of April. This sounds like a luxury, but it isn't. Every year, we take my elderly parents away for a 3 day weekend because otherwise they wouldn't go anywhere as they're too frail to travel alone. Nor can they 'rough it' so it has to be a decent hotel that caters for their needs. They pay for themselves and would pay for us too if they knew money was tight, but of course they don't. Every year now it's a struggle to find the money, but I always WILL find it and all four of us will have a good time. It's fully catered so only drinks to buy when we're there. Otherwise, no waste.
• BEACH BOD: Ate well on 1st, but yesterday was an Easter chocolate fest at work and I joined in enthusiastically. Then I felt sick so didn't eat anything when I got home. No alcohol, lots of water. No toning exercises as I would have thrown up.
• SPRING CLEANING: Nope! I will have more to report tomorrow though.

HappyNow

Well yesterday wasn't a huge success story either.

• The money bit was OK. I started making a huuuuge stockpot of lentil and veg chilli, but realised I'd run out of chili and paprika. Did an emergency trip to Tessies to buy some, and also picked up an oven cleaner ready for today. Mr H came along for the ride and sneaked a lovely pud into the trolley. I did try to put it back but he was too strong for me . Any guesses what was for supper last night and breakfast this morning ? The chilli is so low-cost it will make up for the other stuff and do about eight healthy family meals which offsets the wasted money but not the 'beach bod' bit.
• Spent the day visiting relatives to show Miss H off. They all kept us longer than we'd intended and force fed us junk food. Didn't have time for exercising other than the standard dog walk/horse mucking out.
• Another 'nope' to the spring cleaning. I truly want to get on with it but there was just no time yesterday and today's not looking great either. One of our field walls has collapsed so Mr has to rebuild that today and I will be helping as labourer. It won't cost but it will be dirty, exhausting and probably cold and wet.

Honey_Bear

I think I'm going to bore myself to death here. I need to get to grips with Awesome April.

• Maximum of three mugs of coffee a day: Two and a half, so that was progress.
• Maximum of one hour reading on-line newspapers a day:
  Fail.
• Five phone calls a week for new business: Bank Holidays!
• Lights out by midnight. Success. This is the one that is the most important because I have a nasty habit of going to bed early but then watching trash on the computer or reading trash.

Honey_Bear

HappyNow wrote: »

• Another 'nope' to the spring cleaning. I truly want to get on with it but there was just no time yesterday and today's not looking great either. One of our field walls has collapsed so Mr has to rebuild that today and I will be helping as labourer. It won't cost but it will be dirty, exhausting and probably cold and wet.

How did the wall rebuilding go? Work off a few puddings, did you? Naughty, naughty Mr Happy regarding the shopping! Is he anywhere near 'beach ready?' I'm thinking this is the man who's been sneaking bacon sarnies on the way to work and now puds and junk food with relatives. Each to their own, but you wouldn't want to put him to shame by being all gorgeous knowing it would make him super self-conscious, now would you?

Regarding Flying, I think you probably have been, but discounted it. Anything that stops the place turning into a midden counts, including bed-changing, tidying up, clearing out your handbag. As a Flylady of several years standing who doesn't even read the list every day, I happen to know all of these things appear on them very regularly. I don't know how many others will admit to being a slattern but if I weren't one I wouldn't need to be a Flylady. I was going to say I am a closet slattern, but there's absolutely no room in any of ours to hide me. What you said made me think though, so I'm adding one of my irritants to Awesome April.

• Sort the filing cabinet.

It's a job that needs doing properly and I've got a few files that are collapsing-type thick. Some of the stuff can go, some needs to be archived. I've already found my pension forecast, something I'd been trying to put my hand on for quite a while. Then, in May, I need to get up into the attic and sort the paperwork mountain up there into subject boxes, as opposed to having everything muddled up all over the place.