Debt free by 40 -- 19 Months and counting

NoOneAround

Hi SS,
Just been reading a bit of your diary and some of the tings sound so familiar!
My DD went to a small school with only 6 girls and it was horrible - there was a mum just like the one you describe, but she was also so manipulating her daughters became the same. I never realised it but my daughter was bullied from the start and it took me several years to realise. This girl was always so jealous of my DD and it all stemmed from home and her very competitive mum. The sort of person who took and took but never gave anything back and talked about others behind their back all the time. When she had a baby, I was meant to go round for coffee, and couldn't because my mother found a lump and had breast cancer, and I was driving up and down 80 miles each way supporting her and taking her to appointments. So one of the times I dropped said woman's daughter off (9 miles out of my way - each way) to help her out while she enjoyed her baby, I just took the baby clothes I had brought as a present, saying that I wouldn't be able to come over, and she said " Oh, why not?" I was stunned.
Weeks later I found out that she'd been talking about me, how I didn't keep to my commitments, and let her down, she was stuck at home with baby etc and had so looked forward to me coming. :mad: that's just one of the many many occasions.
Best to keep out of their way, but so hard

StressedSteph

Hi all


Hi NoOneAround,
Wow It looks like my situation isn't an isolated one. I guess there will always be a mother like that in every school. I just have to learn to either toughen up or avoid it better. So horrible that your Dd was bullied by her children and makes sense I guess because her mother seemed very wrapped up in her own world and oblivious to others struggling... Yuck!!!.


Well...Had a busy morning..... I have been out picking damsons, crab apples, blackberries & cooking apples.


I have now three large pots on the stove to make the following


Crab Apple & Mint Jelly - Lovely with Roast dinners


Spicy Crab apple jelly - Never made it but has cloves & cinnamon so thought sounded nice, apparently goes well with meat too.


Blackberry & Apple Jelly - Never made this before either, but as I have copious amounts of both I thought it was worth a try.


I have washed and frozen the damsons for when I can afford some gin


And when I have a spare pan this afternoon I will prep the cookers for freezing for apples pies.


Yum Yum.... I love the Autumn :heartpuls. Can't beat free food xx

maddiemay

Love all the autumnal stuff too, made damson and plum jams, plum chutney and have completely blown the budgets buying 3 bottles of Aldi Gin at £9.99 a time as I have done 2 sloe and 1 damson gin:eek: There are some "free" crab apples on my dog walk, but have never made anything with them before, I will put it on the list for next year:)

StressedSteph

maddiemay wrote: »

Love all the autumnal stuff too, made damson and plum jams, plum chutney and have completely blown the budgets buying 3 bottles of Aldi Gin at £9.99 a time as I have done 2 sloe and 1 damson gin:eek: There are some "free" crab apples on my dog walk, but have never made anything with them before, I will put it on the list for next year:)

Hi MM

Wish Gin was cheaper..hehe. The Aldi price is quite good though. We don't have a Aldi, but we do have a Lidl so will look in there.
I still have Sloes in the freezer from last year, waiting to afford the gin .

Must find a spare £30 to get three bottles. Its so lovely. xx

dawnybabes

Ooh the crab apple and mint jelly sounds fab, can if have the recipe please x

StressedSteph

dawnybabes wrote: »

Ooh the crab apple and mint jelly sounds fab, can if have the recipe please x

I have scanned the River Cottage recipe I always use.


It is for Hedgerow jelly, but I just do 2kg of Crab apples and at the stage where you are adding the sugar, that is when I add the chopped up mint (to taste).


It is an amazing jelly for roast meats. Think it is meant for Lamb, but we have it on everything .


sorry about the marks on the page, I also made this exact recipe yesterday and splashed abit of it on the book

sweetpea26

thanks steph

I have tonnes of crab apples. I love the river cottage recipes too.

You are doing well keep going

StressedSteph

Hi all,


Been a busy end of week. I started making my three different jellies on Thursday. I had to leave them to hang/drip into bowls for 24hours.
Friday hubby got me helping him with his Cider making, so I spent the whole of Friday chopping apples :eek:. I managed to avoid any major blisters thankfully.


So this morning was spent helping hubby finish the last of his Cider making and now I have finally found time to add the sugar into my jelly juice. All the jars are in the dishwasher, so hopefully I will be decanting it into jars this afternoon.


I had abit of luck on Friday afternoon. All of the parents for my sons class had to go into school at 3pm for a Meet & Greet with the new teacher. The friend who owns the Spa was also there and we got chatting about the treatments etc. I told her that I really wanted to do some more courses but Dh had vetoed me doing any until the New year. anyway she said that there are a few treatments, like Body wraps that she does in the Spa that she wanted to teach me. she has apparently got herself a part-time job, so won't be so available to do so many treatments and could do with someone else being able to do them. :T
Fab news........I am going to text her this afternoon, just to confirm that I am very interested and to let me know when she wants to meet up.


Spa been very quiet. My last treatments were last Sunday (£60) which they have just paid me and I have transferred it into my online savings account, instead of paying it immediately against a debt.


Feels weird to not pay it against a debt, but as long as I can stay focused on moving all extra money into the spare account and NOT TOUCHING it, then that will be a temporary no work emergency fund to see us over the quiet winter time.


Not much else to report really. I had better go and stir my jelly.


Speak soon xx

debtfreewannabe321

Great news on the extra spa treatments! It sounds like it's meant to be Hope you manage to get in there soon and learn what you need to and get lots of treatments. I wonder if it's slowing down the closer it gets to xmas?

Hope your jelly turned out well

StressedSteph

Afternoon all,

Not a whole lot to report today. I am having a lazy day :j.

It has been sooo busy lately and yesterday was mad with the amount of children coming in and out of the house.

Just Ds here, Dd is still at her sleep over. Going to have to collect her soon and ruin her fun. I like them to be home by Sunday afternoon to be able to chill out, relax a little and have time to get homework and things one.

It has turned out that September has been quite an expensive month. Looking at YNAB it shows me that we have relaxed a little too much on being frugal and I HAVE to pull it back during October.

I have stopped checking YNAB before i make a purchase and have been just adjusting the budget after the expense, which is wrong.

October will be a mean month, of "if its not budgeted for then its not happening".

Beautiful day outside so I might go out and have a potter about. I have tonnes to do, but have decided to take it easy today no matter what

Hope you are all being kind to yourselves today xxx