Make do, Mend and Minimise in 2015

Siebrie

Oh dear, Lyn. Next time, could you tell them it doesn't suit you right now, you have something in the oven that requires your close attention for the next six hours? I think it 's rather rude/imposing to tell someone to 'come pick up your present', but that may just be me.

Good luck Nusemaggie. Good idea to give yourselves two days off.

A mum at school just told me of a different benefit option in Belgium, to the one I am currently on. I now have parental leave every Wednesday, for five months, and then I have to renew. I can do this four times per child, and the government pays me €111 per month. She applied for something called 'time credit with a reason' which offers the same, but is for five years with just one application, and I would still be able to take the parental leave after the time credit has finished. It would simplify life, and, hopefully, they would hire someone to help out at work. I now do all my work in four days, but it is overwhelming.

lollyfin

I was very MM&M yesterday, I repaired a pair of pj bottoms belonging to my son, previously belonging to DH granda then DH and now son :rotfl: multi generation pjs. They had gone thin and burst along a seam now my sewing will never win any prizes but I managed to fix them without sewing the legs together or anything so am pretty pleased with myself. DGD cardigan is nearly finished and has only taken me a couple of days and food last night was hm lentil soup or broth followed by hm rice pudding and we have enough left that I might not have to cook today so happy me

fuddle

Today is officially bringing in the green day I do have bits in already (and bizarrely I have my indoor decorations hanging on a pine tree outdoors) but it's very nearly winter solstice and we do that in a pretty big way.

So, aside from snipping conifer and holly from my new-to-me garden we will be making lardy fat balls as an offering to the birds. I was weeding my patch the other day, very silently, and saw we have a lot of little visitors. It's unusual as I've always lived either on a building site, near a busy road or in a town so to be nestled amongst houses pretty rural is a real treat.

nursemaggie can we raise a glass to the day your new home is complete and you can relax feeling cosy and secure? Nearly there. I look forward to that post

Floss

Fuddle, is your new-to-you garden bigger than the last? Will you still be able to have an allotment?

fuddle

It's a lovely tiered garden Floss. I am very lucky as it's much bigger with railed decking and built in BBQ. The girls have a nice grassed area then through a gate down to the mature planting or 'secret garden'. No, no allotment now as I'm 6 hours away but the garden I have has a large raised bed so will dabble in there. I brought my rhubarb, strawbs and rasps that I've planted in there already.

Floss

Wow Fuddle, 6 hours?! I thought you'd just moved locally, not so far! At least you are in & hopefully will be settled for the New Year and all it brings.

Floss xx

nursemaggie

I don't know whether I am coming or going. GQ It is not two years yet since we moved from West Sussex up Norff. We had a very large early Victorian property there right in the centre of town. I was very large, the removal people that brought us here took back half our furniture because it would not fit. The new flat would fit in it's entirety in DS's old bedroom. No wonder he keeps making jokes about size.

I am really knackered tonight sat down with a coffee and promptly went to sleep. We have glossed both sides of all the door frames 5 or them and undercoated the skirting boards. We are going to start on the emulsion tomorrow. We thought we would do them and leave the two sides of each door until after we move in, in case the weather turns cold and the paint doesn't dry.

Back in 1990 I moved into a three bedroom house on my own. My other two kids came at weekends they were away at school. We had really heavy snow just before Christmas and it laid until early March. I couldn't go out much because of the snow so I decorated the whole house. No one told me gloss paint won't dry when it is below freezing. It just stayed liquid like I had just painted it for about 9 weeks. It was a nightmare moving around the house.

I managed everything without having to get anyone to do the top third of the walls. I put a roller on a long pole to do the ceiling long before they brought out these long handles you can buy now. I tied it up with string and put gaffer tape over it. I also fastened my paint brushes to long canes. Best cutting in I have ever done, amazing it should not have worked.

If we get through tomorrow and Monday we can go see Star Wars on Tuesday after the electric meter is changed. Then we will have Wednesday and Thursday to put the curtain rails and curtains up, towel rails and other bits in the bathroom. Then we will get packing day after boxing day. Soon be done.

fuddle you have moved a long way. Have you moved back up north again?

GreyQueen

:T Awesome, nursemaggie, simply awesome.

Being a great gangling creature, I can do all the walls myself, can touch an 8 ft 6 ceiling with my fingertips at full-stretch. Can't imagine how challenging it must be to cut-in with a brush mounted on a pole, don't think I have a steady enough hand for that.

Here, you need to reveal and decorate a single wall at a time, then move the furniture back, as there isn't sufficient 'middle' in any room to move the furniture there and work around it. I hustled to paint the bedroom walls before I got the bed up, but there wasn't time to do the ceiling. It still isn't done as I'd have to stand on the mattress to reach it, and it's a premium mattress and I'm not going to abuse it like that.

Just spend an hour or so in the land of the tube watching zero waste talks etc, and planning my assault on the household waste here at Chez GQ. Going to be doing better in 2016 than 2015, I have a cunning plan.

Have been minimising some storecupboard and freezer food for tea, making some more of my blanket (from yarn scraps) and haven't mended anything as I'm saving that for tomorrow.

G'night all. GQ x

meritaten

quick question fuddle - I have a couple of packets of lard, but haven't bought wild bird seed yet this year (plenty of natural food around its been so warm) - could I make fatballs with some muesli? just for a Christmas treat for our feathered friends?
The muesli is sort of cheap shop mix with my own chopped dates, sultanas and some chopped nuts.

elona

DDs and SIL came round to assemble the tree and put up the decorations.

SIL even managed to replace a load of bulbs that had burnt out in the kitchen, lounge and my bedroom so things look much brighter.

Middle dd was getting dressed here for her works party and realised her halter neck dress had lost one button and the other was loose :eek: I strengthened the original button and found one from my sewing box to replace the second one.

DD and SIL drove me to get turkey crown, gammon joint. parsnips, carrots, onions, potatoes etc. I still need green veg and a few bits and bobs but can get that in the next few days.

Have done make do and mend - does selling the house and downsizing count as minimising? Still negotiating to buy a bungalow and need to get moved soon.