NST Challenge - Spring is here!

DrCarrie

Bobarella - sounds difficult! fingers crossed there will be a resolution.

Bobarella

Thank you Dr Carrie. The 3rd option which I have thought of is I hire out the spare to a pop up for 3 months which would mean people would still be using the space so it wouldn't be weird on that front. It would be something I could get a legal agreement on, & potentially take some of the rental upfront to avoid that being an issue. And may even be a nice thing for my customers to experience some different foods for that period. So all is not lost. There are options still. And as the people doing it would be self employed there would be no wages implications for me. I think half of the battle is picking a direction .

Fmess

Sounds like you've got a lot to decide Bob but I'm sure you'll make the right decision for you and your family. The idea of a pop up cafe with someone else using the space sounds like a fantastic idea to me. You might even find someone who wants to set up on their own but just needs to test the waters first. You could put an advert in the window of your cafe and see if you get any interest from locals.

Today will be mostly spent at home and should be a SFD. Just cleaned the kitchen so going to sit down and do some school work until OH gets up.

DrCarrie

Bobarella wrote: »

Thank you Dr Carrie. The 3rd option which I have thought of is I hire out the spare to a pop up for 3 months which would mean people would still be using the space so it wouldn't be weird on that front. .

Pop up's all the rage! There is a regular Vitnamese one doing the really well in Greenwich, Hither Green and New Cross.

liltdiddylilt

Morning guys!

Jellytot is sat eating marmite on toast and some pom bears *bad mummy* - keeps her cheery so I can get on here and post a quick update here, a pic on my diary of Jelly being a good girl yesterday (for once) and then talk to YNAB

SFD here, declaring it now because it is FREEZING on the seafront today so we are going nowhere and I am battling the last vestiges of a migraine (again) and a bad back from another epic clean up yesterday... Bob :rotfl: yes I know I am the pot calling the kettle black, and I remember vividly being 8 months pregnant up a very precarious ladder painting the nursery to the ceiling which is VERY high so I can't say a thing. I know some people are like us and can't really stop... but please don't over-do it. I did slow down a little bit when I was pregnant. I know it is difficult when you are working out the logistics of running your business while trying to fit in maternity leave. Wish I was closer, I would happily take bubs for you to be able to work on the days I didn't. Could you maybe orient your cafe more towards the mums, and bring the baby in with you? Is there space to put a bit of a kids area? I know you would be run off your feet, but you've a decent amount of time before the baby starts to crawl where you could be fairly secure knowing where he/she is and keeping them happy with a bouncy chair behind the counter? That would stave off some of the childcare fees and allow you to still earn, and maybe earn more if you were pulling in the mummy crowd daily? Do you warm bottles etc and promote yourself as a mummy/baby/toddler/breastfeeding friendly cafe? Just a thought anyway; I don't know all the logistics!

A pop up cafe also sounds fun!

Fmess it has been a good challenge to get ready for summer coming so thank you! I've tried to hit all aspects hard! I need to clean my kitchen. Why can men not clean splashes off the tiles? I know they are called 'splash backs' but that is no reason to leave bean juice and other unsightly marks drying on there for a week! :wall: ... Haha I got so stressed about this I've been and scrubbed the kitchen and come back tiles are clean and sparkly again!

Now that that bit of procrastination is completed and Jelly is happily ensconced colouring, I am genuinely going to explain to YNAB

See you later guys!! xx

academiablues

Hi all! Back from London in one piece Bob, vegan icing isn't too hard, I just use Vitalite or Pure rather than butter. Vegan cupcakes themselves are more difficult, not sure how they do the mix, but they're lovely! We brought a few too many back with us and they do cookies and chocolate bars too...!!! (the shop is called Ms Cupcake, it's in Brixton, they have a recipe book I think if you're interested). Calling, I went to see Shock Treatment, it's the Rocky Horror sequel...bit silly but enjoyable.
No SFDs this weekend, but planning on one tomorrow so hoping to be able to stick to it. Lunch to work every day as well, managed to get a couple of YS avocados so need to figure out what to do with those! Don't usually buy avocados but these were so cheap I couldn't say no
Hope everyone's had a nice weekend

Bobarella

Thanks for all the encouragement guys. It does feel the best option of the 3 I currently see as possible solutions.
Lilt - we are very child friendly with toys and books, and known for being a mums kind of place. I do wonder how feasible it would be taking a baby to work though. I remember days with my son when he'd do 4 hour stints asleep during the day. Mind you he was a monkey at night. So possible then but I don't know how professional it would be trying to manage a difficult baby day at work. Unless I did hire an extra pair of hands for a few hours per day. Sorry you are suffering so much with migraines too. I did try to PM you so as not to derail the challenge thread too much on my childcare woes but your inbox must be full?

Hope everyone has had a good Sunday.

Bob

liltdiddylilt

Hi Bob I haven't got a full inbox, but have just deleted some messages just in case if you want to try again?

I can only imagine a grizzly teething 4 month old while you have a rush of 6-7 people in the queue... very difficult but they do say if we all had children at the right time we would never have any at all ;)xx

apple_muncher

Marmite on toast + pombears sounds a perfectly balanced meal!!

Today I am grateful for my pastry pizzas passing the dd standard, for sorting out what to make for dd's friend for her bday, for good friends, for calling my mum, for chili sauce.

The_Only_Girl

Hello Fellow NST's

I have been very quiet for a long while. I have been busy dusting myself off after falling off the wagon repeatedly. I have no idea where I am at at the moment when it comes to my budget, I have been a really naughty girl. I was ill week before last and I have been in all sorts of random shifts - nights, weekends, late finish, (sounds like lame excuse doesn't it?). They didn't help my situation at all.

My family just came back from a bit of a holiday. My hubby and I only managed to get 3 days off work during the entire spring break so we made sure we gave the kids a bit of quality time. We booked 2 nights in a yurt which was fab. The site owner informed me of an availability on the day of our check out and we decided to stay another night. We had a lovely time and made lots of memories which are priceless. Hopefully having just had a relaxing holiday will spur me back into action and make me motivated. I live in hope.

I will catch up on reading all your posts.

Wishing you all a great week ahead.