Positive Thinking for 2013

Gingerjar

I am really enjoying this thread, it's helping to pull me through January which I often struggle. The snow is still here in the Midlands but I am lucky enough to be working from home today, nice and warm and wrapped up in a million layers including my fleece blanky!

Hope everyone else feeling okay today. Btw, did anyone see Come Dine With Me last night? It was set in Kent and one of the contestants was a hilarious retired lady with a cheeky sense of humour and lilac hair. Could it have been Jackie O? She looked exactly as I've imagined her if you see what I mean!

Anyway, back to work x

MummyEm

We are all poorly here which is a time I would easily start feeling down, but I refuse to do so in 2013!

Things to feel positive about
-washing pile isn't huge for once (I'm refusing to look at the ironing one!)
-I have managed to get a beef stew in the SC so will have easy to get together, scrummy cold-weather dinner this evening
-have been given more hours at work which is what I wanted, and will help build up our emergency savings pot more quickly
-Been putting Feb budget together so far it's all looking pretty healthy!

his_missus

Hello all,

I have come back to share my success with you. I've finished knitting a square. Well, I say sqaure - it started as 44 stiches wide but ended up 50 stitches wide. No idea how I managed that. It only took me a week, at this rate my best friend will get a blanket in about 2 years time! Might do patchwork cushion covers instead

I'm now onto square no.2 and trying to get the hang of purling.

[Deleted User]

his_missus wrote: »

Hello all,

<<<I have come back to share my success with you. I've finished knitting a square. Well, I say sqaure - it started as 44 stiches wide but ended up 50 stitches wide. No idea how I managed that. It only took me a week, at this rate my best friend will get a blanket in about 2 years time! Might do patchwork cushion covers instead
I'm now onto square no.2 and trying to get the hang of purling.

>>>


Hi there,
well done for persevering at knitting It will get better as you keep practising trust me.I make 'blankies' for a charity called 'The Linus Project' and thoroughly enjoy it.I go nowhere without my little bag of two pins and wool and can even knit a few rows while I am waiting for the grandchildren to come out of school to my car.

Its so addictive at times.My late Mum taught me when I was tiny (circa 1946) and I can't remember not being able to do it, but crocheting I just have never ever got the hang of no matter how much I tried.My oldest friend does crocheting plus patchwork quilting and I knit When she comes to visit me we sit and knit and natter for England.
All of my grandchildren have had a home made 'blankies' and the boys have all had them in their favourite footie teams colours.

My eldest DGS Danny still has his, and he is 22 and its his bit of comfort when he's feeling poorly:rotfl:
Its so nice to see everyone still looking on the brighter side of things,no matter what the weather spring is definitely on its way as I saw some tiny bulbs pushing up in the pots in my garden this morning, and the nights are slowly drawing out.before you know it we will have the birds singing their heads off and the sun will hopefully shine this year (bit of a damp squib last year wasn't it):D
I am quite pleased with life at the moment as I had a lady get in touch who lives in Perth Australia and is a descendant of my Gt Grandpa's brother so we are cousins and I managed to put her in touch with another chap who lives in Winnipeg Canada who is also a cousin and she is chuffed to bits as she didn't realise there were any family left in the UK let alone Canada,so thats my good deed for the past week.
Plus I helped my DGS Danny learn to cook himself a veggie curry and some chilli con carne and he had never boiled an egg in his life and he's really got the cooking bug now.He texted me today from work to say his lunch was delicious (he had taken a portion to work and reheated it in the microwave)
So spring will be here soon and thing will suddenly seem so much brighter hopefully for us all.
My bathroom is finished and I am very pleased with it Its so nice not to have to try and climb into a bath now as I have an easy walk-in shower instead which is so much safer with my wobbly joints.
Kepp looking at the positive side of thing as being negative just makes you feel down and sad.Today I gave the rather fed-up young man in the greengrocers a big smile and said 'Come on lifes good you know' Its amazing what a smile can do its really catching and by the time I came out of the shop he had cheered up a bit at least:D
So come on chums get those smiley faces going and see how many folk you can get to respond tomorrow
Cheers everyone:D:T:D

JackieO xxx

Hezzawithkids

Well done Missus on the knitting! I used to knit and crochet years ago (as do all the women in my family) but prefer cross-stitch now, not that I've done much of that lately.

Last few days have been a bit of a struggle but I'm trying to stay positive. I was poorly towards the end of last week, I think I've been so over-worked and suffering from lack of sleep lately that my body just gave up on me - but looking on the bright side I got an extra day in bed from it (even if I felt like curling up and dying for most of it!)

On Friday I took a donation to the local Foodbank and then took a couple of black sacks of clothes to the CS then sent off a packet of used stamps to another charity. Everyone was so appreciative that it gave me a nice warm glow. I sold a handbag on ebay for nearly as much as I originally paid for it and have had the pleasure of shopping for a birthday present for my sister and a ruby wedding anniversary present for my brother and SIL. We are having a big family get-together next weekend which I'm really looking forward to.

The last few days I've been hearing from some old friends with various suggestions for meeting up which has cheered me up no end.

I now have my hospital date and have booked the first week of March off for medical leave. Its a silly thing to be excited about but any break from my job is a welcome one at the moment.

Yesterday I started the Celebrity Slim diet, which is a meal replacement plan along the lines of Slimfast. Every instinct is screaming at me that its a crash diet, not sustainable etc etc but having jumped on the scales at the weekend (then jumped straight back off again in horror!) I need a kick in the pants. So far so good, the food is quite tasty and my OCD tendencies are kicking in to make sure I stick to it

Have a great day peeps!

[Deleted User]

hezza, me too too re believing in karma, doing a kind act spreads a little happiness

Just a positive heads up now re weather, data is in link post 6063
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/58754553#Comment_58754553

Heavy blizzards due in 2-3 days, good idea to put winter stuff in car/get food in. Lol, positive is also doing things to help in events that will happen

So nice to see positivity going strong and nice to have an uplifting thread like this. I have to say that I hardly come on mse nowadays, such a draining time- wasting site, except for this lovely thread. Am spending lots of time doing positive stuff at home like learning spinning on a spindle and now on a wheel. I also bought another wheel which I am reconditioning for my own use. So so satisfying and already leading to new contacts and potentially new friends

Another positive is my hair, I never had it long in my whole life but the hairdresser cut it shorter and shorter, like a pixie only I am 65. I started growing it to put up or tie back and the in between stage is so smooth. I like my hair now and longer length is good as it is shiny silver

I am still using storecupboard food and greens from the allotment and garden so have not spent a penny since the 15th december, hence the second hand spinning wheel purchase. I can see this going on until march at least, growing alfalfa seeds for fresh sprouts for sandwiches. We are eating well and am also rooting stuff out for the local village foodbank collection point

I read all your posts when I come on, love them

Hezzawithkids

It's all gone a bit quiet again - time for another bump!

I joined the MSE £2 Savers Club. I decided to save up for a Marc by Marc Jacobs handbag at £350 :eek: I've coveted one ever since I saw my SIL with one, the leather feels like butter and its quality all the way. I have a bit of a handbag fetish and change mine all the time but now I've decided to save the old fashioned way and really treat myself. Any extra funds I get from eBay sales, Quidco etc plus the cash I'm getting from recycling my old mobile is all going in the pot. I use cash all the time so usually get lots of change.

I started the Celebrity Slim diet last week and saw a big loss in the first few days so I'm hopeful that it will continue.

Last week I had a lovely thank you letter (snail mail!) from the manager of the local foodbank who were the recipients of our left over Xmas goodies.

This weekend I'm looking forward to a big family get together. We have a couple of celebrations - my brother's ruby wedding anniversary and my sister's birthday.

Hope everyone is still ok and feeling positive!

[Deleted User]

We have had two glorious sunny days here, so warm that we had to pull some solar shading down and heat from the sun absorbed by a special heat sink wall and tiles on the floor, so the only heat input needed has been 2 hours with the stove. Real signs of spring on the way here and hopefully a bit more of normal wintry weather first

New crafting is going really great now and I have learnt to wash raw fleece, which is just about ready to spin. I bought a lovely solid spinning wheel on ebay and have spent a couple of weeks refurbishing it ie stripping down to bare wood and getting rid of gunk. It is now finished and gleaming and running very sweetly. So yes since the beginning of january, I have learnt to spin on a wheel and on spindles, I have learnt to prep fleece and have learnt that I can buy beautiful fibre blends so so cheaply, to make garments that would cost a fortune. So gradually this 65 year old will be turning `smart hippy` with ever growing longer silver hair. Its a second life for me and I love it

The crafting room ex junk room/study is gradually becoming revamped and I have ordered a 6` bookcase that will hold a lot of neat boxes and crafting books. Some stored food has been moved out and much to the food bank collection point and I will now concentrate on eating from the study. I should be cleared in there by summer, when it will be a cool north facing haven

I have only one regret which I have turned to a positive and that is about shtf over storing too much stuff. It has taken a stupid amount of space but of course the upside is that I have not bought food for weeks and weeks, apart from a little salad stuff. I won`t be making that `hoarding` mistake again and that includes candles and toilet rolls

[Deleted User]

Gingerjar wrote: »

enjoying . Btw, did anyone see Come Dine With Me last night? It was set in Kent and one of the contestants was a hilarious retired lady with a cheeky sense of humour and lilac hair. Could it have been Jackie O? She looked exactly as I've imagined her if you see what I mean!

x

Hi there no it wasn't me my hair is pepper and salt grey and I could never imagine having violet hair or even that odd shade of pink that some ladies like

Although I do have a good sense of humour (or seeing the funnier side of life perhaps )My youngests grandsons call me groovy Gran as I think that they are under the imrpession that I am no where near as old as I really am :) I adore the kids and have such fun with them.I feel quite sorry for my DDs ma-in-law as she never bothers to make the effort to come and see them apart from once every couple of months or so and then hardly stays very long.She just isn't maternal at all and sees kids as a bit of a nuisance I see them as the greatest thing on earth and love all seven of my grandkids to bits.This Saturday night my eldest granddaughter Katie is taking me out for a meal with her boy friend Tommy as a treat for my birthday and I am so proud of her as she has lost 2 stone on SW and stuck to it and is looking gorgeous as well.They are off to Florida in May so she wanted to shed some weight for her holiday and seeing how its working has altered her way of eating and she is really stunning now.Mind you I adored her whatever size she was :)
Well my real positivity will come next week at the start of Lent as I am giving up all sweets,puds & chocolates as my abstinace so this Saturday night will be the last 'blow-out' before I start next week.Pancakes on Tuesday night for the boys then no more goodies for 40 days:) Roll on Easter It will be interesting to see if it makes any differance to my weight (I'm built for comfort, not speed :))
But my youngest DGS says he is giving up beer :eek:and at the ripe old age of 8 he is smart, as he doen't drink anyway, so giving up something you don't do isn't really much of a sacrifice :)

Jack the 12 year old says he will give up cheese toasties which for him are almost part of his life as I always cook him one when he comes in from school Bless, I don't know how he will survive .

The bulbs are coming up nicely in the garden and I am thinking that I will have a go at some herbs on the window sill in the conservatory as my positive move towards a more eco way of living.Why spend cash on something I could probably grow without too much trouble .I am going to have a look in the local garden centre for a couple of pots and some compost and see what I can grow I used to have a greenhouse but it got too much for the upkeep as the local kids used to be attracted to it like flies and would hurl things over the fence to hear the glass breaking and as the panes were then around £6.00 a go it just go too expensive to keep replacing them.
Well I am so pleased at how positive we are all becoming,it makes such a change from the doom and gloom of winter and when the sun shines as its doing at the moment its getting lighter every nigh so soon summer will be here and life will look a lot brighter
take care everyone and keep the positive vibes flowing :):)
JackieO xx

his_missus

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all well.

Work has been busy but I've earned myself 3.5 days extra holidays, one is already booked to spend with one of bessies on a girly day - which means she'll drag me to all the shops/outlet stores her family don't like being dragged to but it'll be nice to spend the day together, we've not done that for nearly a year.

jackie n hezza i'm still plodding on with the knitting. Onto square 3 (it's a work in very slow progress ) knit one row, purl one row. I'm glad other creative people struggle with crochet, makes me feel better that I can't grasp it. I used to x-stitch but even with a day lamp it would strain my eyes in an evening after an hour or so.