Apple muncher's number crunching

Alchemilla

Oh thanks. I will look her up.

apple_muncher

To do tomorrow, when dh is WORKING!:

take dd to promised ch shops (yes, again!) DONE
make savoury bites DONE
read latin book - yep, still not finished it!
sweep floor DONE
post parcel to Spain POSTPONED - MASSIVW Q
declutter 10 items DONE
clear sofas of stuff so visitors can sit down! DONE
set up payment of all of Jan weekly saving challenge - £130! DONE
make body scrub now I've got enough salt

pavlovs_dog

apple_muncher wrote: »

Realised this morning that I still have another week til term starts again. Yippee! Then realised I'm doing GCSE speaking assessments on the first weds; the tues pm I have to set papers for AS French, reports are due at some rapidly approaching point... Such fun to come!:j

sounds very much how my next 2 weeks are shaping up. 45 mocks to mark, yr11 and 10 reports to write, controlled assessments throughout january... fun fun fun!

apple_muncher

Gosh! A tad blustery out there - wet too! Got a good bunch of bargains in ch shops, including a couple of tatty teddies for dd's bday and a Dilbert bk for dh's bday. I think the tatty teddies will be a short-lived phase, but for the pennies I'm shelling out, it's worth it! Another huuuge bargain was the barbie from a mermaid tale, complete with tail and surfboard. The dvd is now playing. Again!

I enjoyed getting blown about, but had to make sure dd was on the inside as she's rather a lightweight! Literally!

Any jobs done off the list? Ch shops - done. Declutter 10 items - done with dd's help! Set up payment - done. Posting parcel - postponed due to queue.

Now off to 1-wash up, 2-hang up washing, 3 make savoury bites, 4- make body scrub. But not in that order. Maybe 2 3 4 1. Or maybe just stay on here and procrastinate - ie give dd my full attention, tee hee!

Hi pavlov'sdog, yes, Jan is such fun! :rotfl: But I love the job, and am in a lovely school where I can go into any class and (more or less) get them to do what I want!

apple_muncher

Extra teaching has been confirmed - yippee:j and gulp!:eek:

Much to discuss with dh tonight, sorting out childcare arrangements in particular.

This means that my mortgage and saving goals can happen! The weightloss/eating ones will require planning the shopping and meals. The more creative ones will require using my time well and just getting on with them instead of gawping at the gogglebox mindlessly. Not to mention the extra planning (teaching a new subject) and marking and stuff that accompanies it all!

Off to try to knit Paddington's other arm, if dd will allow! She's only just got dressed and doesn't want to go outside in the wind and rain. Stickers, scooby doo and cbeebies seem enough for now!

apple_muncher

So far, Paddington has a partial paw! But I have made my salt/oil face scrub to try out.

Kept my NSD, I think. Got the urge to nip to local Coop to see what yellow stickered items they had. I've read about people getting massive reductions so wanted to try it out. Don't usually get to sm before closing as tend to shop in day, child-free! Anyhow, spent £10.44 and got some onions, nanas, cream, plain yog, camembert, coriander, teacakes (for dh)and - best of all - 5 gluten-free genius loaves! (albeit the small ones, but nevertheless...) So I saved 50% and under one set of NSK rules, this qualifies as a NSD. Maybe if I'd gone later, there would've been more reductions...?

I was tempted today to start colouring in my charts with mortgage payments and savings. But decided that it wouldn't then be a true reflection of 2014's goals, so noted the starting amount next to the squares so I can't cheat! I have 'cheated' on the decluttering as dd has done it all so far!

Tomorrow brings us all a new day, a fresh start, another chance to put into practice the lessons we've learned . I've only joined NSK for 2 months so far, but I notice a shift in my money mentality which is fantastic! I was never 'fast and loose' with my money, but when dh was made redundant plus my days dropped by 1, I certainly became much more careful.

I now want to continue in the same vein for 2014, meet my targets month by month an make progress.

Roll on 2014!!

Pearla*Merle

Finger puppets! Great idea *adds to own list* And hurrah for charity shops, nothing really beats charity shopping... bargains to be hand and endless entertainment seeing what strange things human beings have decided to produce at some point in time. Great value for money! :rotfl:

Ooh - what kind of body scrub are you making? I'm on the lookout for recipes these days, am going to try and make much more of my own toiletries this year :j Have been reading through an aromatherapy book I have and getting all inspired. Shea butter here I come!

apple_muncher

Happy New Year Pearla!

Go for it with the finger puppets! Very simple to make. I've done Goldilocks + 3 bears a few times, also Peppa Pig family. I've 'saved' dd's felt finger puppets to inspire me - they're mainly animals, so it's the colours and head shapes that identify them. Sort of!

The body scrub is: 1 cup salt (Ald1 had cheap sea and fine salts so bought a tub of each!), 1/2 cup oil (I used virgin olive oil, tho I believe almond oil would be best?), and essential oil(5 drops lavender). I had no essential oil, so it's smell-free. But that's prob best for my skin as am using it on my face and am at the stage where I have to wash in the kitchen sink(!) as that cold water hasn't gone through the pipes. I pat dry with kitchen roll and moisturise with EXTRA virgin olive okl - found the simple virgin stuff wasn't good enough and I was scratching my face off. All in all, I'm cheap to keep clean! Don't do make-up, perfumes make me itch and sneeze!

In the summer, as I get nearly 2 months off, I'm considering moving to no shampoo etc, using a bicarb mix and a vinegar(?) mix. Think I've read it on here somewhere...

So, a new year eh? Done the weigh and measure - not pretty, but gives me a base line - signed up to The Janus Illusion, broken down some goals for the year into manageable monthly chunks. Fingers crossed today hits its targets! Sugar-free and grain-free eating; a workout; finish Paddington's last arm.

Welcome 2014, let's have a good time together:T

apple_muncher

Paddington now has 2 arms and some Rapunzel-style hair, plus a few flowers added to the hat.'Paddington is not Paddington, he is Sparkle and is a she. The hair is pink and quite a bit more of it is needed! The coat needs toggles and another togglebit thingy (technical terminology!) Nearly there!

A good friend came round today to help me learn how to thread my sewing machine. Am feeling rather inspired with sewing ideas now, BUT must do the knitting first! Paddington/Sparkle, Angelina, various toys/stuff that I've told dd I'll mend....

Did my workout this morning, got us all up to the woods for a wet and muddy tramp through, have remained sugar and grain free - mainly because I declared it over on the Janus thread so HAD to stick to it! The power of accountability and public statements, eh?!

I think the main things to focus on in Jan are: get 20 NSD which will help immensely with keeping to the set food budget; lose 5lbs, spend quality time with dd, be creative. However, by tomorrow, or next week, I reserve the right to change my mind!

apple_muncher

Me and dd went to see Frozen today, as part of her birthday celebrations. Twas not cheap, but was dd's first time in a cinema, a fact she repeated a LOT! We didn't buy any snacks as both need to be gluten-free and I took the usual lunchbag of food.

My big sister and niece are here for a few days, so dh's stock of gluten-filled goodies may be under threat! Dd thrilled to see her big cousin!

Paddington/Sparkle has her full complement of hair, according to dd. Just need to finish off the jacket and the 2+ year project will be over!:T

Paid over £10.44 to the mortgage today. One of my aims is to pay over the same amount of any reductions or vouchers I use. A bit like Tilly Tidies.

Forecast is not good for tomorrow so may have a staying in day. Must do a little planning/scheduling for school for the term. Maybe.... Bet I end up painting with dd, baking or knitting instead! But I WILL do another sugar and grain free day (2 each so far) and a workout.

Got a cheque for a mag subscription refund, from when they stopped printing the mag, which needs banking, plus one from mus1cmagp1e due any day now. These will add to the 'made' total, but go into savings - a small amount towards the £100 squares I've drawn myself. Oooh, must colour in the exercise, no sugar and no grains ones too. Tomorrow is rapidly becoming a colouring in day!