2014 Frugal Living Challenge

mrsinvisible

yes, when I retired that too was my intention, but I have paved my road to hell instead and spent the time in the garden.

DawnW

just_the_two_of_us wrote: »

Lovely DawnW - you will capture many more of those special moments with your baby grand daughter now you're a lady of "leisure". Thanks for sharing.

I did exactly what you are doing ( deep cleaning a room at a time)when I finished work last year - good job 'cos now so busy with vol work and other stuff don't have time to do it as thoroughly!!!:o

mrsinvisible wrote: »

yes, when I retired that too was my intention, but I have paved my road to hell instead and spent the time in the garden.

Hmmm yes, I spend a lot of time in the garden too BUT the house has been badly neglected since we have been here, as I have been too exhausted to do much, and OH, though well meaning, tends to put the hoover quickly round the empty spaces in a room and thinks he has done the housework :rotfl:Think three years of that...... and the fact that we keep a lot of stock for our business around the house as well, and it has started to look a bit like those hoarders' houses that you see on the telly :eek:

So don't worry, I shan't be making a habit of it :rotfl: I much prefer gardening and cooking

The very worst is ironing :eek: I have a basket of that to do as well, as I have washed all of my work type clothes to put away for 'best' (I tend to live in old jeans, t-shirts and fleeces ).

Plans for today - sitting room, bigger than the dining room but not as cluttered. We have wood flooring in these two rooms, and it hasn't been washed over for months which is one reason why I have decided to do this.

Washing out on the line in a minute when the machine stops. Hope it will dry between the showers that are forecast. It is the bedding, so I really do hope so :eek:
I am trying to clear out the odds and ends in the freezers atm, so will be making spinach and feta pie to use up two part packs of feta pastry, and beef stew, to use up beef (obviously) and also odd veg in the freezer and the bottom of the fridge, and a tub of stock.

Hoping for a NSD today - they are all too infrequent :eek:

kb_soma

Congrats on your retirement DawnW, sounds like you are catching up so you can have an enjoyable time!
Just think, once all those rooms are done you can relax. x

Shortie

Afternoon all. So yesterday I didn't want to admit it but I guilt tripped myself into buying some fish off someone who came round knocking at doors (he had a proper van with the freezer compartment, I should add, lol) I went over for a nosey thinking it would be cheap and it was anything but :eek: But I felt bad so we bought fish goujons and smoked haddock (though I have to confess the haddock was lovely) but it was a laarge chunk o money and I didn't have it to spend so that's more out of savings - why couldn't I have just walked away? :wall:

Right - admission over.

A busy time coming up for us (it doesn't seem to have stopped recently to be honest) as we're away in Paris this weekend, next week is DS1's SATS, then next weekend we're going to pick up my 'new' car (hopefully - she's going to be MOT'd tomorrow and then taxed if she passes. She's been SORN for 2 years while someone was restoring her).

I tried my hand at making flour tortillas last night - I purposely made far too much dough expecting to watse a good amount not cooking them right. I cracked it fairly quickly so we have a massive excess of wraps that I might try and turn into oven baked tortilla chips tonight

They were lovely for dinner as wraps and I've just had one for lunch which kept well. Definately making them again - they're so much cheaper than Mr T's, and it means we can have them 'on tap' providing I have the flour in. When I've 100% cracked these, I can start looking at flavouring them up too

cw18

I was right - my glasses do need changing

And by a significant enough amount this time that (having seen the change that was done 15 months ago from a pair that was only 12 months old) the optician's moved me from a 2 year to a 12 month recall :eek: She's tried to assure me that lots of people go through a period of rapid change at some point and then it levels out (and that hormones at my age won't be helping any), but I've yet to be totally convinced

The latest change in prescription has also brought about a very hefty increase in price - unless I'm happy to either move to small frames (can't stand them) and/or wear 'bottles'. Apparently as standard varifocal lenses they'd be thick which makes them heavy, so I've been persuaded to cough up extra for 'ultra light' which are also (supposedly) more indestructable. And the the added cost for UV protection because I'm also getting 'yellowing' behind my eyes (she said to be expected around my age with my pale blue eye colouring) which means I'll almost certainly develop cataracts which need treatment at some point - but UV protection 'should' hopefully help delay it. (She checked which contact lenses I have as I wear those more if I'm outside for running or long walks, and apparently they have it so no need to look at changing those just yet - and on checking the box when I got home they are indeed marked as such.)

Total cost came in at just short of £290 (plus £25 for 1 years insurance), but because I'm on the contact lens scheme I get 50% off specs - so they 'only' cost me just shy of £170 in total, and I should hopefully get 12 months use before they need changing again :eek: :eek: I'm pretty certain the pair I've been wearing were under £200 including insurance without any discount (only been using contacts about 11 months).


And then my son phoned to say the car had aqua-planed and he'd managed to write off a wheel and tyre!! He's managed to replace those at a scrap yard (one recommended by a mechanic friend of his) for £15, but I'll have to get the garage to double check the state of the tyre that came on the wheel and also check my tracking tomorrow while it's in to have the exhaust sorted..... so yet another unexpected bill today, with another coming up tomorrow

lynnejk

CW18 - sorry for all the outgoings. It's sooo annoying when it all comes at once eh

DawnW wrote: »

OH, though well meaning, tends to put the hoover quickly round the empty spaces in a room and thinks he has done the housework :rotfl:

We have wood flooring in these two rooms, and it hasn't been washed over for months which is one reason why I have decided to do this.

I have a DH of the same mould - he asked the other day if it's necessary to dust the top of the doors :rotfl:


I have laminate wood flooring through (the clever click stuff) and would love some advice on cleaning and trying to get a little shine. You can't get them too wet and I don't want to make them slippery


Hope everyone has a thrifty Thursday
Lx

mrsinvisible

DawnW so agree with you, bout ironing, another lovely thing about being retired and living alone, I can wear unironed clothes and only I know.
Shortie, my GDS1 is doing SATS next week too. I shall think of him also slaving away.
CW it is annoying when these things happen, but at least DS walked away unharmed.
Made cupcakes (buns) with DGS1 last night and am glad we did as I was able to put candles in 6 of them for a friends birthday today. she was well delighted.
He is going to a friends birthday tea tonight so my intention of a NSD week are shot, as I need to get him a gift and a card. Will get some staples too, milk and the like so it isn't wasted.

cw18

I suspect that DS1 was driving a touch too fast for where he was (nasty U bend type swing going into a supermarket car park), which I'm not best pleased about as he had serious rules set down when I put him on the insurance less than 2 months ago !!!

In any event, he was surprised when I refunded him the money for the wheel and tyre. I pointed out that half of his mileage cost goes into a pot for maintainance on the vehicle, to which he replied he didn't actually consider this routine maintainance and had expected to pay for it as it was damage he'd caused. Told him I'll let him off this once, so he took the money from me.... Think that's also made him a little happier that I'm playing fair with that part of his costs as he thought I was asking for too much at the time (but agreed to it as it was still easier and cheaper than relying on taxis and buses).

Car's currently in the garage, and I've asked them to give the replacement wheel and tyre a once over (let me know if they think there's a problem with them) as well as do the tracking following the impact. Also remembered to ask them to sort the rear windscreen wiper as it's not clearing the middle section properly (and he charges almost exactly the same to change it as I'd pay for a blade from an independant motor accessory shop). And originally all I was booking it in for was to get the exhaust sorted

mummy2threeboys

Afternoon all.
Fixed fence up so now chickens are not totally free roaming as i would like to grow something this year they have scratched all my garden up, looks like a dust bowl. But they do have 1/3 of it to themselves. They are giving me 2-3 eggs a day so we are eating more egg based dinners. Water usage has gone down as the babys now happy to have a shower instead of a bath . Also my gas and electric have gone from nearly £190 a month to £90 , and continuing to fall Thanks to a combination of a new boiler, attic insulated to an inch of its life (due to attic conversion) and warmer weather, we are actually £300 in credit
For tea is fajitas to use up left overs but co-op cost £2.47 ? for them ..anyone made thier own? Thanks all have a great weekend x

Shortie

Gah, my reception dropped on the train. Take two...

I use this recipe to make tortilla wrapa for our fajitas: http://allrecipes.co.uk/m/recipe/1864/flour-tortilla-wraps.aspx

Two points to note though:
- Don't cook on low for minutes, cook them on medium/high for seconds (30ish?) Otherwise that dry out and you've made yourself frisbies
- It makes quite a lot of dough but you can freeze it in balls before rollig out for another time