From debt to freedom...

Honeysucklelou2

Work is very busy at the moment...it's a real battle as I need to do the work but long to be in the garden! I've done 15 minutes of weed chopping at the allotment. It has now turned into the annual battle against the weeds. It would probably be better to spray it to kill off all the perennial weeds but somehow the cost of that combined with the knowing that the site has been chemical free for years, puts me off. The battle continues....!

Sunday was a NSD but sadly the last 2 days have not been. DS2 has an overnight camping trip with school which warranted a trip to Mr a T's for food and a new camping mat. One of the younger dogs had shredded the last camping mat and unfortunately Mr T had lots of parents requiring basic camping mats and had sold out. DS2 has gone to camp with a self inflating one instead...£12 spent. DD3 had a cooking lesson today which wasn't too bad in terms of the list of ingredients but weren't ingredients that I would normally keep in.

I paid £25 today to the primary school to finish paying for DD5's school camp. Only £165 left to pay on DD4's camp and then hopefully trips are done for this academic year.

MeandO

Your energy and enthusiasm is amazing HSL2, you put me to shame! You should be so proud of the wonderful life you're single-handedly creating for your chidlren. xx

Honeysucklelou2

Thank you for your kind words MeandO.

The insurance DD went out today. I have the option to change the direct debit date which I am tempted to do so that everything comes the day after pay day.

Honeysucklelou2

Today is DS1's last day at school. He is very pleased about this. His younger brother was quite thoughtful and pointed out that he would now need to get a job. Sometimes the younger children are able to speak the truth in a way that wouldn't be as well received if I'd said it!

DD1 seems to have slotted back into her job quite easily. She enjoys the work which always helps!

Honeysucklelou2

It was my day off today so was quite productive. The fine weather allowed 2 loads of washing to be dried on the line:). This afternoon I attended a farewell type assembly for DS1's year group. It was lovely seeing not only DS but other children I have known since they were toddlers and have worked with them in primary school. DS is delighted to have finished. His brother's words have gone in as he spoke tonight of wanting to get a job for the summer. I will need to set aside time over the weekend to help him to look and apply.

DS2 and I managed an hour of weed chopping at the allotment:eek::eek:. Our efforts got us to the soft fruit beds. The jostaberry looks to be loaded with fruit as are the blackcurranr bushes. Unfortunately we ran out of time and energy to hack through to the gooseberries ...! I have sown some flowers and veg in pots at home so that I don't lose them to rabbits or weeds. The lettuces are coming on well and I have dahlias and cosmos that will be flowering soon.

Today has not been a NSD. I've spent £200 on nursery fees, £25 on diesel £60on food and £10 on a cheap pair of summer slip on canvas shoes. My old ones have got so thin on the soles that It is painful to walk over any gravelly / hard core surfaces. My one slight concern, now that DS1 has finished school, is how long the food will last in the house!! If he is at home, he tends to make himself the odd snack, usually involving 4 eggs at a time:eek:. I might need to be more on top of the baking situation and keep those tins filled up.

Tea tonight was a simple omelette with waffles and salad. DD4 helped me to menu plan and write the shopping list so we have simple meals planned. I want to look into making sorbets...I was checking the prices of " freeze at home" type desserts at Mr T's. The price was quite high for a pack of 5. I thought about the amount of mint, elderflower and lavender I have at the allotment and in the garden and wondered about making tubs of sorbet as a cheap pudding.

Spendless

Good idea to look at a summer job for DS1. My friend's DS2 finished school yesterday and when I called on her Thurs night, we talked about our eldest ones, who are the same age and how daft we'd been to let them do a long summer doing nothing after GCSEs before going to college in the Autumn. In my case I'd had 6 months out of work before finding a job the Monday after DS finished exams, so freely admit I'd taken my eye off the ball, as I was just relieved to have found work and was thinking of DD, then 13 able to be at home with older brother for the 6 weeks hols, without me worrying she was ok.

And yes fill the tins up! HM sorbet sounds gorgeous.

Cherryfudge

Sounds as though your DS's summer job needs to be at a farm shop or (free range) chicken farm!

There's a fair old amount of spending going on there... :eek:. Still, at least the nursery fees are out of the way.

What are jostaberries like? I've never tried them. I have made elderflower sorbet, though - it was surprisingly powerful! The recipe I used had lemons too but they are often reduced at the shops so not all that expensive.

enthusiasticsaver

Maybe you could teach your DS1 to bake snacks. Keeps him busy and leaves him less time for eating. I agree that he should get a job or more than one if part time.

Honeysucklelou2

Jostaberries are a cross between gooseberries and blackcurrants, so they look like enormous blackcurrants! When I bought the plant as a rooted cutting the gardener who sold it warned me to plant it so that it could spread ....and it has. In a few years it's grown enormously. It's always a battle as to whether the birds get them first or us, so daily checking will be required.

Good idea ES, it's a life skill he needs. He's mastered fried egg on toast but needs to learn more!

Honeysucklelou2

DS did look for jobs yesterday. I had no idea that vacancies can be found on Facebook. I don't use it so was amazed when he showed me. He applied for 2 kitchen porter positions and heard back from one. He sent his cv by phone :question::question: didn't know that was possible! I am so behind the times. It was pen, paper or good old go in and ask, last time I applied for a job! The good news is that he has an interview next week at one of the places.:T

I'm off to visit my dad today with the toddler and DD1 with me. The rest of the children are with the ex today. He usually does things with the DSs and DD2 but not so much the younger ones, so hopefully they will all have a good time today.