Make do, Mend and Minimise in 2016

Margaret54

Hi all have been reading lots on here and have enjoyed it. Will pop on again take care everyone x Margaret

iamsalt

Welcome to everyone new. I hope you all find the camaraderie and tips as helpful as I have.
I didn't get as much done as i had hoped yesterday as I was shattered, but today is another day. I hope to
- minimise weeds in the greenhouse
- add new soil to the green house beds and put the tomatoes in
- pot up the leek seedlings someone had left outside their home as free to a good home
- finish drying the last load of holiday washing on the line
- walk mum's dog
- mend the cold frame
- make some meals from stores for mon and tues . Meeting my old boss wed for lunch and working from home thursday and Friday.

Right then, need to get up and on with the list
S x

villagelife

Have already mended this morning. I repaired a seam of a blouse which I ve been putting off for days. It didn't take long and is not wearable.
I minimised the front garden of weeds yesterday. It was overgrown and looks much better now. I also potted up some pots with flowers grown from seed.
Made do with stale bread and other bits to feed the birds.

dND

Welcome villagelife and nomi01, this is a great thread. I too don’t get/make time to post often but I do skim read my daily update e-mail with my wake-up cuppa each morning.

Everything here is still continually MMM. I’m still trying to downsize and am packing away only those things I am willing to pay for transport back to the UK and making do with the duplicates I seem to have accumulated. Around the house there is still a lot of ‘junk’ that could be useful here but at least I know now that it won’t be coming with me once I’ve sold.

I’ve stopped making jams etc as I have rather a large backlog to get through already and am going through the store cupboard and whittling that down – anyone for 5kg of Puy lentils and 5kg of Basmati rice? They’re taking time as due to trying to diet my portion size is 25 – 30gm!! :rotfl:

On the mend side, I’m finally sewing on buttons on the clothes that I had burst when larger and repairing seams that, how shall I put it, ‘allowed for through flow ventilation’. Most of which are assigned to the clothes bank when I finally move.

And on the house side I’m working through the paints and wood etc that I have already bought and doing what renovating I can but spending the least possible, i.e. buying screws to finish a project. It’s difficult to do much on the house at the moment as it takes about 3 days to mow all the grass at the rate it is growing and it really needs doing each week to keep it ready for possible viewings. Add to that it looks like it will finally be haymaking week, so a week of heavy work and probably a week to recover! :eek:

I’m really hoping for viewings and a sale this year – houses in this part of France can take years to sell though .:(

Happy MMM'ing to all and thank you all for your inspiration, it truly keeps me going. :A

mrssnowy_2

Hi all
Beautiful day here.
I have been up since 6.30am-I am now Mums carer so like to get her up 7.15-30 but I do need to be showered and sorted before I go there.
Making do-using up ready made meals out of Mums freezer,and inventing fridge meals
Mending-I have lost weight,just over a stone(!)so been through wardrobes and found trousers to wear,needed button moving on the waistband.
The arm fell off my garden bench and a very kind neighbour glued tacked and hammered it back on.
Minimise- have been struggling to get in the shed so had a good sort out,big bin now nearly full,loads to recycling and big bag for CS.
Minimised a bit of wool stash and finished another pair of fingerless gloves.
Went to a concert last night with SO,haven't seen him all week and wondered what had happened-slight misunderstanding ,now sorted.So pleased as I had missed him-don't want to minimise him.
Won a raffle prize so that will be passed on for WI tombola stall next month.
Have good day
mrss

PinkFlamingo30

Day Two
I have removed card details from amazon and taken card out of purse. Got cash in there to use betwen now and the end of the month. Should be easy. Petrol is on the cc to build up rating and that should be my only outgoings.
Found some black board paint and some off cut wood. Cut wood into three, painted it and will hang in craft room as a vertical three part to-do board.
Now onto lesson planning.

mrs-moneypenny

Afternoon all. Feel like we've spent the day ferrying the kids about to various places and picking them back up.
Dh has mended a faulty wire on the car door, and a lid on the birds nut feeder. I'm enjoying the weather and knitting.

Hope everyone is well and enjoying the good weather

117pauline

Sorry I haven't been about but not been feeling too great recently. And everything seems to take that much longer.

So the weeds are not wanting to stay minimised! It's perfect growing weather here - sun, rain etc. So I never seem to get on top of them at all.

This year I decided to only buy reduced plants and it has worked well as everything has been revived and growing well. As an aside, has anyone tried to make miracle gro? There are recipes for it on the net and it is something I am intending to do.

We are still trying to reduce our stores and our portion sizes so the cupboards and freezer seems remarkably full still.

I have a car load full of rubbish to go to the tip too so that should keep me busy.

At the end of the month we are going to the Thiepval Somme Commemoration and I am really getting excited. We were lucky enough to get tickets in the ballot but we are now getting emails with very strict instructions. We have to be at the departure point at a certain time and we WILL be suitably attired. It even says we can't take food or drink but they will provide for us. I am not sure how they plan to transport 9500 people in two hours to Thiepval then feed, water and seat us. Can't wait to see the arrangements in practice. Is there anyone else going I wonder?

Have a great week MMMing everyone
Pauline

Lynplatinum

Hiya folks

No, sorry if anyone got too excited there but I ve not moved just finished the Wheat bag I started to make AGES ago. Had a lovely afternoon in my friend's conservatory listening to radio 4 with her dog snoring at my feet while I finished the sewing bit - de twigged the lavender saved from last year and pour this + organic wheat into bag made from old tee shirt! total cost £2.15 for the wheat! Now I have my wheat bag and a 'guest' wheat bag rather than hot water bottles which are not so good environmentally and can burst if laid on or scald folk. :beer:

So that's me mending
Making do - my friend came back home today but txted to say that they would be having a carvery on the way home. Did not go out and treat mysself but made a lovely omelette and a salad with crispy bacon on top of it plus a dressing of olive oil and balsalmic vinegar - dressing ingredients I had in me majic box of cooking essentials.

Minimise - hopefully me!!! Have been walking the dog for half an hour a day but not particularily watching the waistline so need to get back on track in that department! (Hence salad + grilled bacon!) mrssnowy - how have you managed to loose your stone?

Silva - hope the minimising of food and alcohol went well - funnily enough that is the sort of minimising I am far too good at :rotfl:

Still got too much Stuff!!! car boot was crammed - tomorrow I will be getting back on track with sorting it all out and chucking yet more stuff!!! To anyone moving house - get rid of excess paperwork/unwanted ornaments/clothes you havent worm in a year NOW!! It is truely amazing how much I still have (yet it all fits into one car!! Am aiming to get it down to one car boot!).

Nice to see my friend and she had a brilliant holiday I am glad to say! Her little woof went nuts - bless her! :j
Keep on frugaling folks!!
Nite all

mrs-moneypenny

Morning all
Hope everyone is well, hugs and good wishes to those in need of them.
Busy all day have bee out and watered all the plants and those of a neighbour whose away.
Got a few boxes and bits to take into work with me.
Got to the heel on the sock I'm knitting, realised I made a slight mistake on the first one and didn't slip alternate stitches on the knit row, so this heel will be more snug. But I'm not going to rip it back I'll just remember next time. They are for me or Dh so it's not the end of the world and TBH I'm amazed it looking like I will produce a wearable pair of socks.
Will start another CS bag tonight as I've spotted a few bits that missed the weekend trip.

Have a good day all