Sashybo - Back Again

sashybo

Got the hoovering done yesterday and got the kids clothes & shoes that were put aside on v!nted, have already sold a few items, 2 parcels sent today and another to be dropped off tomorrow. Not huge amounts of money but better than nothing, I can pay it towards a debt.

I also managed to go through the kids shoes and rearrange them, a few pairs were beyond help so had to be binned, second hand wellies starting to get holes in them etc.

Today I hoovered and turned the couch cushions, took ages as so much cat fur, Big cat has a fondness for sleeping on the back of the couch nearest the window so there is a big dent plus loads of hair! 😭 

DH cleaned all the downstairs floors and has put masking tape up around the kitchen so we can do our corrective painting tomorrow. He also phoned up to book DS's party, we have 3 days to go and pay half the cost to secure the date. We have £150 saved and the deposit will be £174. 😱 So much money for a party but DS will be delighted. He certainly won't be getting another big party like this for a long time.

Poor DS still not quite right although he at least slept through the night last night. He has had the runs since coming home from school though so really don't know what's going on with him. If the constant illness continues we'll definitely have to visit the Dr, he's been so grumpy as well recently and not like himself but that could just be due to feeling rubbish. 😞 

DH & I also looking into what to do with the kids savings, DS has some sort of bond in a friendly society but it has made barely anything in interest so we're going to move it, probably into premium bonds. DD has an equivalent sum (both gifted by the outlaws) but for some reason we put it into a junior ISA so it's locked away until she's 18. Both kids also have savings over 1k in accounts, again we're probably going to move it to premium bonds but pool those two together for a better chance of winning something, then they each get half when they're older. 

beanielou

I would use to 2k to repay some of  the debt & repay them later.
I know not everyone will agree with this.

Miss S does this on two chairs! 

sashybo

I would worry about not being able to repay the kids savings Beanie! 

Cats do like to spread their hair around don't they 😂 I re-shape the dented cushion and turn it around but Big Cat just finds it and re-dents it again.

Have had a busy week fixing the paint work in the kitchen, took a few goes to get both the gloss and the emulsion right but it looks much better now. So pleased we finished it off. The living room had a few patches of paint that had been ripped off by command hooks (grr) but the leftover paint had frozen as DH left it in the shed. 🙄 So we had to buy another tin for 4 small patches 😢 and it's not an exact match as had to be mixed. Fortunately it's not that noticeable but I can see it because I know they're there.

I'm hoping to strip the bannister and re gloss it in the next few months but will need to save up for the gloss and also figure out how to strip the existing stuff because the finish is awful.

Got a good amount of washings hung out and 90% dry as it was dry, sunny & windy all week although cold. Hardly needed to use the TD or heated airer all week.

Sold more of the kids outgrown clothes & shoes on v!nted but quieted down again now. Anything left in a month can go to charity, I also need to sort through the packaging I have kept to reuse for v!nted and get rid of some of that as well as I have too much.

Both DH & I got our £200 switch money through from n@twest, DH paid £100 off the smaller car loan and I paid £100 off the smallest CC. Agreed to keep £100 each, I have already spent mine on some new Dr Martens chelsea boots, my current pair have lasted 4 years but the heel has worn down and the grip on the sole is worn away as I wear them every day. I found a bargain as an online place was selling them for £104 (rrp £159), hopefully they're genuine, will give them a good check when they arrive.

DS got sent home from school earlier in the week as he fell and bumped his head in the playground and also grazed it. The school was a bit worried as he was staggering a bit but he was absolutely fine when we got him home. Luckily he seems to have stopped having the runs as well.

DD has had a terrible cold all week and not feeling her best so we've not been having great sleep, although the last 2 nights haven't been as bad. She was also sick everywhere this morning just as we got back from dropping DS off at another school birthday party. Luckily we were in the driveway when she said she was going to be sick and I managed to whip her out of the car before she threw up. Sadly it went all over my arm and hand as well as her and the driveway. 🤢 Hopefully I can find a warm enough jacket to wear to work today as my usual warm one is now in the wash.

Worked late shift last night and again tonight then back in Mon/Tues and also working 4 days in a row from next Saturday as doing one OT shift. I'll have a better pay at the end of the month (although more tax) as work forgot to pay me for 2 Sundays in my last pay! 🙄 So next pay will have 3 Sundays and 1 OT shift, hopefully it won't take me to the threshold where student loans also take a cut. 🤔 

sashybo

Woke up on Monday morning feeling awful and was sick, managed to stagger through getting the kids up and ready for school & nursery and dropped them off then got home and collapsed. DH on early shifts this week (typical) so no help. 😭

Had to phone in sick to work as there was no way I could have sat at a desk for 9 hours, first time I've been off sick in years as I can usually drag myself in and get through it as I only work 2/3 days a week now. Of course due to our daft rostering rules I have now lost my overtime shift at the weekend so that's annoying. 

DH picked up the kids on Monday and took them to my mum's for their dinner then my mum picked them up on Tuesday and gave them dinner again. I'm feeling a lot better today although still not 100%. DS was also sick on Monday night, all over himself, his bed and the wall. 😭 DH had to get him in the shower while I did the sheets and cleaned the wall. I was retching the whole time because I was still feeling sick myself 🤢 and think I only avoided it because my stomach was empty. DS was absolutely fine the next morning though like DD after she was sick at the weekend. 🤷‍♀️ 

I would like to have no more sick bugs in the house please, feeling very fed up of children being sick in their beds. 😢 

I managed to do a bit of washing yesterday, put one away and hung up two, had to do it over 3 clothes horses though as so much. It was snowing on and off all day yesterday so the heated airer was on all day and DS's sheets had to go into the TD. Have managed to get today's washing out on the line as it's dry, although freezing and put the huge amount of washing from yesterday away. Also gave the upstairs bathrooms a quick clean as they really needed it.

Got some more survey money through so have paid £20 off the smallest CC and DH has sold some more stuff and paid £125 off the smaller car loan.

beanielou

Poor you 

DancingInTheRain

Oh Sashy I most definitely feel your pain, it just feels relentless with these bugs 🙁 why is it always at night time too?
Sorry you've lost our on the overtime shift, hope you're all on the mend soon x

sashybo

Thanks both, I’m feeling a lot better now although was ill again on Thursday night as I ate too much dairy and my stomach obviously couldn’t handle it yet.

I made sure to have a couple of days doing the minimum in the house and that helped. Back at work now for 3 early shifts.

We got our new council tax bill through,£306 pm. 😵‍💫😩 I definitely need to sit & go through the budget again. We need to up the cat money for food & litter due to the prices going up and possibly house money as we have more painting to save for plus will need new roller pads & brushes.

I got more survey money through so another £20 towards the smaller car loan.

I want to try & save survey vouchers for JL as we need some extra bowls & plates.

sashybo

Had a good day today although still tired from early shifts. I managed to get two lots of washing done, one still hanging up and the other put away. Cleaned all the sinks and toilets and have got another charity bag of kids clothes to put out in the morning.

DH defurred, hoovered and turned all the couch cushions before he went to work. He has had a sore back all weekend so has been limited in what he could do. He was still cooking and helping out though.

Tomorrow DH is going to clean all the floors downstairs before work and I'm going to hoover the stairs and upstairs and strip the kids beds. Hopefully it will stay dry so I can hang the sheets out then get into the garden to repot my bare root blueberry plants and sow more seeds as the ones I did a few weeks ago have done nothing. I have bought cutting/seed compost and new seeds so hopefully some will do something! I would like some tomatoes & cucumber at least this year.

I got a lovely pair of slippers and some perfume for mother's day and DD had made a card and biscuit at nursery for me. DS & DD then obsessed over the biscuit (and fought over it 🤦‍♀️) and in the end I just cut it in half and gave it to them! To be honest I'm always dubious about eating anything that comes home from nursery anyway. 😂 

Have used some more survey vouchers towards cat litter, cat toothpaste and filters for the cat fountain. Altogether it cost about £7 "real" money instead of £43 so the survey vouchers have been put to good use. I also cashed out more survey money and paid another £40 off my smaller CC.

sashybo

I finally managed to repot my little bare root blueberry plants, I got 3 months ago and have left them languishing in the greenhouse, keeping my big blueberry plant company. All of them had started budding so obviously weren't too unhappy. I have another big blueberry plant that I think may be dead, all the leaves dropped off it in the summer and it's still looking very bare. 🤔 The other big one has lots of leaves and flowers already, it's always been the fruiting plant, the suspected dead one has never really done much except keep the good one company. 😂 

I then sowed more tomato seeds, some cucumber, some chillis and some peppers. Fingers crossed they actually germinate this time, they are sitting on my bathroom windowsill.

I managed to remove the stump of a hebe in the front garden which had died last year and I cut most of it back but couldn't get the base out. Anyway it came out easily today so I did that and planted some heather in its place. My other hebes are still looking a bit sad, hope they perk up soon. 

I haven't planted any flower seeds yet, hoping my calendulas will have self seeded again this year. I just left them over the winter in there pots and have shaken some of the seeds off into the pots. Would like to grow some marigolds and more calendula from seed as well though. I have some potted violas that have somehow survived the winter and they are lovely to look at along with my daffs and purple heather in the back garden.

Once I got started in the garden I realised how much there is to do, I always forget how much I enjoy it though. I'll have more time to get out there this year since DD is now in nursery full time.

sashybo

Managed to get the kids beds stripped and remade but didn't hang the sheets out as it was looking dodgy all day. Did the hoovering upstairs and DH did the floor cleaning downstairs and put away the online shop when it arrived.

Also did a white washing and hung that up on the heated airer after the school run. Will do a dark wash tomorrow morning and also need to strip my own bed.

DS was moaning this morning that his school shoes were too small 🤦‍♀️ I only bought them at the start of February. 😢 So I went online to order the same ones in the size up and a$da are doing 20% off kidswear when you spend £40. I ordered some nighties for DD, pjs, a polo shirt and trainer socks as well as school shoes for DS and some pjs for my niece's birthday to take advantage of the offer. All things that would be needed sooner or later so might as well get the money off.

DS is being a worry recently as he keeps saying he doesn't like school, doesn't want to go and plays by himself. 😔 He also told me that he's not smart enough. 😔 I don't know what's going on with him, he's been very emotional recently. DH has messaged the teacher and she is going to make sure an eye is kept on him at breaks but says he plays with some of the other boys in his class most days.

DH is freaking out about it and projecting all his own stuff onto him saying he doesn't want him to be the weird kid that gets bullied. I don't think there's any bullying going on but DS does seem to be struggling a bit. 😞 Hoping it's just a phase, this morning DS was refusing to put his pjs in the washing basket because apparently "it's not my job mummy, that's your job" !!!! I have no idea where that's coming from and it's not the first time he's said it either. If DH asks him to do it he generally will but I'm getting all the attitude! Practically had to march him to the washing basket, there was lots of crying and screaming and I was super stressed because we had to leave for school. 😖