The OS Doorstep - a helpful and supportive thread in these tough times

savingqueen

Good idea Mrs LW. My boys adore YPs, one of their favourite things. I will try them as a starter some days. They also love pancakes which I often add ancient bananas too, these are very filling and make a good breakfast. We don't often have a piece of meat like chops for example but mostly in things like pasta, risottos etc and padded out mince dishes etc. I am also going to look at more veggies meals as well. I sometimes add a bread roll as an accompanient to dinner but have to watch that as DS7 would fill up on bread and leave his veggies. When we have yorkies as part of a main meal, I don't put them all out at once and then if boys finish their plates, they have more yorkies at the end.

Unfortunately DS10 doesn't like rice pudding or custard or even cream. Same with gravy, he prefers his food plain and as he so good eating veggies and salad, he is let off. DS7 is the very opposite! I need to try some different homemade puds though as tastes do change and I buy far too many shop bought fruity and other yoghurts for the kids.

I haven't been baking this year since my mental health took a dive but I really enjoyed making DS10's enormous birthday cake. My supplies of ord flour are almost depleted but I have several bags of bread flour so am going to start baking bread again and things like flapjacks and muffins as I used to.

Making plans is so helpful - not just the outcomes of course but knowing you have some control of situations when times are financially tough.

sq

FairyPrincessk

Good idea with the collage Lyn, unfortunately he got something similar for his Christening! However, my mum has suggested hand puppets made of flannels for bath time. Excellent idea and I can whip it up fairly quickly as time is drawing near! His parents have recently renovated and put an addition onto their house, so haven't seen his 'new' bedroom and not sure what they're going for in there but will keep the pouches in mind for next time either of them needs a pressie. Unfortunately mum and dad are likely to be a little fussy about if it goes with the decor or not.:eek: To be honest, I think it is far harder to please them than him! If it was him only I'd give him a lovely collection of card board boxes, some sealed up with rice or bean or beads inside, some covered in different textures. He'd love it but they'd not appreciate the 'rubbish.'

SQ, what about blended soups in a mug for starters (a very plain tomato could be whipped up from tinned toms for not much money at the beginning of a week), or plates of sliced raw veggies with dips--hummus or a soured cream dip would help up the calories if they'll eat them! I must admit it is a challenge keeping grown boys full as well. I find it helpful to make puddings that he likes more than me:rotfl:

Pooky I love making and eating risotto--it always calms me down to cook it which I know sounds strange. I also love those wonderful 'base' recipes that can be used to make anything. Omelettes and quiches are another of my favourites, esp. as I like the eggshells in the garden!

monnagran

Hi everyone. Back from the gorgeous holiday and strangely reluctant to pick up the threads again. I have returned looking tanned and healthy but know it won't last. I have read right through what you have all been up to while I was sunning myself by the poolside but can't remember now who did what. I know that SQ is having family problems like so many of you. I can't imagine what that must be like coming, as I do, from a stable loving family. It seems that I am very much in the minority. At least 2 of my close friends had appalling childhoods and the Rev's upbringing was the sort that books are written about. How she ever turned into the well balanced, cheerful loving person that she is must be some sort of miracle. I do know that when I first knew her I was horrified that the ordinary things of life that I'd always taken for granted were completely foreign to her. We had to practice giving and receiving presents as this was something quite new to her. All you wonderful Mums out there are doing a fantastic job and a lot of you are breaking the family mould to make sure that the next generation has a better start than you ever had yourselves.

I've just had an emergency call from the drop-in to say that their electricity is down so I have to put our oven on and rush to the rescue.

To be continued...............

[Deleted User]

Hi MONNAGRAN glad you had such a lovely holiday, and back into the fray as soon as your feet touched I o W soil, you're an amazing woman, you always go when they call don't you?

SQ would they like a plain or fruited suet pudding with some golden syrup poured over it for a pudding (it was my dads favourite and I used to make it in a long roll wrapped in greasedproof paper and then an old tea towel to boil it in a big saucepan and then I cut it into slices to reheat. The dried fruit was mixed in at the beginning or the plain roll was sweetened with a little sugar as it was for pudding and not rolled out then rolled up like a swiss roll, but ,just made into a long roll of pastry. The other very nourishing pud if the lads like it is bread and butter pudding or bread pudding both of which are good old ribstickers!!!

Pooky

FP - What about making him a playmat bag - can be fabric scraps done patchwork style backed with a fleece blanket or similar with a drawstring edge. I made one for the girls when they were younger, it kept all their lego in, laid out flat to play on and then just pull the strings and all the lego is back in the bag and ready to hang up. I'm sure you could find a pattern if you google. Can be used for some many sorts of toys - cars (you could do a road pattern in felt with houses and garages etc), dinosaurs - ponds, caves, trees etc. Pirates with a beach......oh I've got myself excited about making some now!

Hard_Up_Hester

I've just made a set of juggling balls for my dgs's, there was a pattern on Memory Girls blog, unfortunately I've run out of rice so I haven't filled them yet, I will need to buy some tomorrow & then I can finish them.

Twoblackcats

It's a lovely, sunny Sunday evening so I hope it's ok to join you all on the doorstep. I have read along for a long time but today I was very OS (by my standards) and thought I have clearly learned a lot from you all. I was meeting my daughter and her children in the park for a picnic and was all set to drive to our local supermarket where I planned to spend about £15 on picnic snacks. Instead I looked around the kitchen, made up a bottle of squash, cooked some sausage rolls that were in the freezer, made individual fruit pots of strawberries, grapes and satsumas. Packed some biscuits and made a flask of tea. So, no extra money spent, I could walk to the park and best of all we had a fantastic time. A 3 year old doesn't mind if his drink is from a plastic beaker or a fancy, expensive shop bought carton! So I know this is all routine stuff for you clever frugal people, but a big achievement for me! Hope it's ok to join in with your thread!

[Deleted User]

Hello TWOBLACKCATS lovely to have you join us on the thread, so very well done with your frugal picnic, I hope you all enjoyed it all the more for knowing how frugal you'd been, welcome aboard, Lyn xxx.

kidcat

Welcome twoblackcats

Mrs LW Hope zebra is feeling a little better this evening

Pooky - I too am struggling with meals etc, so many different restricted tastes to cope with and very little inspiration. I find that at the time I am supposed to be cooking I have the least energy and that makes it incredibly hard to be motivated.

Monnagran so glad you had a good holiday and how typical to come back straight to crisis.

Another beautiful day here, I managed to get washing dried on the line and am hopefully wading through the mountains of washing we seem to have acquired.
Dreading tomorrow as while the two littlies are not in school its a really busy day, DS16 is back in his unit and DD19 has to go into Uni to sort out her next year classes etc. Add in the cleaner coming in the afternoon and getting everyone ready for school on Tuesday and it was busy enough, OH however has agreed to do a late job tomorrow and will be out all night. This means I also get to do the swimming lesson, bedtime and showers etc solo. It also means I will have an already agitated auty who will be flipping at the massive change in routine.
OH doesn't see why I am upset, and when I pointed out that we agreed no more overnighter jobs, he argued that its not an overnighter because he wont be sleeping there??? In actual fact it will be worse as he will not be home until around 6am, and will have to go to bed straight away to go into work later in the day. That means I will need to somehow keep them all quiet on first day back at school.
Worse thing is the way the hours work out he will only get paid for two flat days of work and no overtime at all - so we are going to have hell for no gain.

From an OS side I popped into Tosco today and the yellow stickers were really good for the first time in ages, so I managed to get some real bargains.
Kitty seems all fine again today, so I am trying to decide if I should bother with the vetty person or wait a little longer.

[Deleted User]

Thanks KIDCAT communication by text at teatime said things were better today, they'd been for a walk in the sun, dear kind Son in Law treated her to a coffee out and has made some lovely flatbreads for thier supper tonight, he's a really good guy!!! She said yesterday had left her at the end of her teather but they had some sleep last night and little Zebra wasn't so grumpy today, can only be good, thank you for caring my friend, Lyn xxx.