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

fuddle

jem132 wrote: »

Fuddle do you have a recipe for the syrup please.

Yeah jem no problem

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh or 1/2 cup dried organic elderberries (minus stems)
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup raw local honey
• 1 cinnamon stick, whole cloves, and root ginger

Place berries, water, and spices in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until a syrupy thickness. Smash the berries to release remaining juice and strain the mixture. Allow liquid to cool. Stir in raw honey only after it has really cooled to preserve the enzymes and good living food in the honey. This will last for 2-3 months stored in the fridge.

http://www.deeprootsathome.com/its-e...-and-tincture/ I added star anise to mine as I had some and read good things about it's properties as an expectorant.

Apologies preppers re: dejavu, just I know it's a good'un for the toughies

shegar

PRINCESSX87 wrote: »

Thank you everyone. We're truly gutted. Thinking it may have been easier if maybe there was some warning? Maybe would could have got him to the vets quicker. My dad burst a Tyre and scratched his car when he rushed into the vet car park. So also has to contend with that too.

The back pain is strange. It just appeared before i went to bed on Monday. Its painful to move, breathe, ect. I'm going to try & hold out until my next appointment with the DR's. I am also going to try the exercises in case i'm just old & stiff!

My poor hubby started to get back pain all of a sudden 8 weeks ago , and as you probaly know he doesnt move much at all, so we were wondering what could have caused it......

I took him to the drs 2 weeks ago and dr said its definate muscle prob, only way hubby thinks it happened was when he trys to get up from laying flat down in bed he kinda twists his back to get his walking stick near the head board and thats what as caused it......

Dr gave him paracetamol , which wasnt any help whatsoever, so back I go with him , and this time he gave him co codamol , and amitrytoline tabs, after fewdays he says he feels loads better, amitrytoline helps relax the muscle spasms , in turn the pain eases.............He also found it very difficult to breathe , couple of times , when he started gasping for breath I thought he was having a heart attack, scared me shi*less , stressed me out too.....................So maybe you need to go to your dr and need similar meds................................

Sorry about the dog, not good at all, my little rosie isnt too bad last few days , I just take each day as it comes because she is 16, like adults you just never know.......................

Ive been too busy and my feet are giving me hell. so im sitting for a while with some tabs , hoping for a break from this constant pain........:mad:......
Going to see the medium/clairvoyant tonight , thats my weeks highlight for me...............

cutestkids

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

KATE and FPK the bread and butter pickle is the quickest and easiest I've ever made

Bread and Butter Pickle

3 large cucumbers sliced
3 level tablespoons salt
4 onions skinned and sliced
1 pint of white vinegar (also works with malt vinegar)
6 oz white sugar
1 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon mustard seed (yellow, brown or black)

Place the cucumbers, onions and salt in a large bowl, turn all over with your hands to spread the salt and leave for 1 hour. Meanwhile make the vinegar mix, put the vinegar, sugar, celery seed and mustard seed into a saucepan, bring it to the boil stirring until the sugare is dissolved and then simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Sterilize some screw topped jars with plastic coating on the lids (I find mayonnaise/pickle jars work ok). After the hour of soaking tip the cucumber etc. into a colander and drain the liquid then rinse under the tap and leave to drain again. Pack into the jars and pour over the vinegar making sure the top of the jar is covered with the vinegar, no veg showing through it. It is ready to use after 1 week.

This makes 3 good sized jars and even He Who Knows who doesn't like cucumber will eat it!!! Cheers Lyn xxx.

Just wanted to say thank you for the recipe I made these and they are amazing and so easy to do so thank you very much :beer:

Pooky

Blimey it's muggy here....very quiet too (atmospherically), like something's about to happen. Quite strange and not conducive to cleaning and hoovering.

I'd never had pasta until I was 17 (1990) as Mum wouldn't have known what to do with it. She still won't eat it, claiming she doesn't like it, Dad has tried it but I don't think he's allowed an opinion on the matter . My parents won't eat anything they describe as "foreign" so no curry or pizza, no pasta, no garlic, no tomato sauces or cheese sauces, in fact no onions, peppers, no lettuce aside from a round one because anything else tastes of nothing.....no mince, no herbs, no sweetcorn....god forbid you should have an aubergine in the house.....and avocado.....well she'd probably faint. she's a hard one to please and cooking for them is so limiting. But such is life.

DD1 is going away for the weekend (if she gets over her cold) so I'm ramping up the plans to do a quick bedroom make over for her. Plus I'd like to see if the floor does still exist in there. I've just got a 2nd hand desk and chair lined up to collect at the weekend, a display cabinet to pop all her cameras in and found the most amazing pile of tartan fabrics at a CS this morning (I shall make her a tartan throw for Christmas) I want it to be a complete surprise and have 48 hours to do it in......which sounds quite a lot of time for one room (no decorating needed) but honestly, it's over ankle deep in there....it's gross. She will thank me when it's done (or she can move out)

Hard_Up_Hester

In the 50's & 60's my grandma cooked macaroni cheese every Thursday without fail.
Hester

candlelight_2013

My dear Mum couldn't understand why I preferred tinned tuna to RED salmon. She thought it was because I couldn't afford to buy salmon.

Also according to her she liked spaghetti, but only the kind that came out of a He**nz tin.

Candlelight

paidinchickens

nuttyp wrote: »

Forgot to post earlier, tomorrow should be ALDI voucher day in the mirror newspaper. Don't forget to get 2, one for tomorrow and then next Thursday shopping. I will 'try' and get all the stuff that can be stored for the month.

Thanks for that I buy two and stock up on dog food.

PRINCESSX87 wrote: »

Morning everyone.

My back is in total agony. Infact nothing seems to be working at all to ease the pain.
I managed a slightly better sleep - until I moved.

I had some sad news last night.

One of our family dogs (Who lived with my dad ) Rocky the boxer, Died yesterday. No warning, No pre-sickness, Nothing. Just collapsed on the floor. My dad scooped him up & rushed him to the vets, But it was too late. They think he had a heart attack. He was nearly 12 years old, Very much an old boy, But as far as we was all concerned fit as a fiddle.

It’s hit my brothers & dad very hard. As they have had many years of rough play, kick about’s ect. I think the women are going to miss he’s (Only a mother can love) ugly chops!

This is very much the hardest thing a loving owner can go through. Many people just think, it’s a dog ect. He was / is part of the family therefore it feels like we have lost a best friend.

Today I’m having a quite one, Do the odd shuffle around the house.

So sorry about Rocky, it's a terrible time when you lose a loved one no matter how ugly his chops are x


Been to a car booty today and I must say people want a lot of money for a lot of ole tat. It amazes me how well the ladies with the home made cakes are doing. They turn up with their paste table and plonk out their goods and the next minute you can't see the table for all the people swooping in. I refrained myself :A

PiC x

PRINCESSX87

Thank you everyone. x
Pasta is my fav!! I eat it almost everyday in one way or another. Drives my OH mad.
Thanks for the head's up shagar i will have a word with my dr's xx

mardatha

I think Tuna smells like cat food and nothing could ever make me eat it!

gailey_2

Afternoon guys hope every ones ok.

sorry jem you going through hard time.

I may be home educating younger 2 and nearly considered it with eldest when 1st primary went wrong but thankfully we moved her and now have 1.2mile walk each way.


usual slow week been 7 days not heard about housing benefit.

sent off tax credits form but that,s meant to take 3 weeks.

been no agency work so far this week really could have done with couple days.

seen few vacancies I can apply for.

I went for short 5k run yesterday as want to get back to fitness, lose a bit of weight and just escape the family troubles ended up taking detour thinking be short cut ended up 10miles+ took 2hours.
Today im so achey and tired.

Trying to stay positive. the weathers nice this week that helps.

Having a go at making the lemon cheese cake later.

today was payday hubby,s last pay day from old job just 2 weeks pay so not much only covers half our bills.

hes gets paid friday from agency.

Im really stressed about food so went big tesco ended up spending £60 more than wanted to spend but had nothing in store cupboards.

brought tinned fruit,frozen veg, rice, lentils,passatta, beans , stock ect all stuff can use with reduced stuff in freezer.

Somethings were really cheap but find their pricey for meat, frut and veg and was shocked how much their value pepper was £1.13 and herbs were 85p when sainsburys used to be 19 p not sure what they are now its really does pay shop around just thourght biggest tesco have widest range vaue products.

got 2reduced indina ready meal boxes but really was wrong time to buy reductions.

made hubby compare weights on best value cheese and pasta.

got 2packs value nappies as hate running out.

with some things like value wipes /nappies big 4 seem to pricefix.

tesco value ketchup 18p winner in this house and value choc mouse 18p as was paying 35p co-op.

few packet mixes 30p each for the reduced meats in freezer.

But so many price tags missing annoyed me.

dident get eggs, potatoes or coffee as seemed really pricey.

shocked at price of tuna.

if we can we need to do £25 shop farmfoods get lots frozen fish , will keep doing reductions trying to keep food shop to £100 this month which started today unsure pay date for new job.

its day 3 hubby not smoking hes doing well.

im struggling with energy levels skipping meals and just snacking.

nearly fell asleep in garden earlier.

im just so tired think im mentally drained by it all trying to be positive,

hubbys been home 6 weeks tommorow and now realises how hard it is.

so still living day by day we can just about cover next few weeks if we careful but if no benefits come through im bit worried.

had to say no to eldest over after school sports club and feel bad about that.

still trying to give illusion every things good.

dads coming over on weekend.told him hubby,s changing jobs.

I know im fortunate we live in fairly nice area but in some ways makes me feel worse as feel truly alone least in more inner city areas there,s more mixed incomes and families, a sense of community, hubby thinks im mad but here is so showy.

Trying to find few cheap things with kids , suppost to be checking out sure start which is 3 miles away, try new toddler group.

I know i just need to get out and not isolate myself like we have been but its hard.


I have a bad feeling things wont improve for a few months just hard not being able to plan.

trying to focus on the little things.enjoy the small moments.