Cherry takes the reins

Cherryfudge

Chrystal wrote: »

I THINK if you go to the help desk they will give you a voucher towards the clementines when they come back in. Worth asking anyway.

Thank you, that's certainy worth trying.

Cherryfudge

So much for my Big Shop In Case It Snows - I forgot bread! I braved the supermarket again this afternoon and found lots of empty places on the shelves. I thought they were having difficulty with deliveries until I noticed a lot of lines being marked down as discontinued. We don't have freezer space so I didn't go after any of these but if you have a Mr T locally it may be worth keeping an eye open. I remembered to check for clementines (still none) but found I had lost the voucher so I may not be able to get them anyway.

A certain amount of using up has gone on: peppers and tomatoes roasted with dinner instead of going mankey in the fridge. However DD is home overnight (her heating has broken) so she has raided the cupboards for her dinner.

With regards to finances for Mum's house, I had been on the lookout for a second-hand fridge as the one at the house is broken. I've been making do with a covered bucket of cold water and a cloth draped over the milk and trailing in the water. This works surprisingly well but won't be enough in summer. Today I saw a very clean-looking fridge advertised for £50 and was first to it, only to find it's not practical to get it there as we'd have to hire a van, thus doubling the cost. Sigh. Anyway I am now more or less decided to order a new one. I'll message my sister and see what she thinks as it's her money too and she's intending to go over for some of her stuff soon.

ETA: completely forgot I bought seed for the wild birds and shoe-gripper things for me. Apparently I can run in these grippers - we'll see if I'm brave enough! There's a couple of inches of snow out there and it's minus 2!

MS stuff:
Used up some peppers, tomatoes and fish.
Had a very positive piano lesson, thus not wasting my tenner.
Started to cut out the fleece I am trying to copy.
I am now a week into having my coffee black. This is more about taste than money but obvs will cost less.

Cherryfudge

I managed my run and it was great! The grippers were very effective so I had sure footing. It was a bit strange running in extra layers but it was bright and sunny, the schools were closed and lots of people were out playing.

DD is staying at ours again tonight: she went to work in her Dad's office which is one of the benefits of hot desking. Her base is miles away and inaccessible. DH has been based near home too: normally he travels a lot.

I concocted a big casserole out of oddments from the freezer. It isn't great but it does make freezer space! I am going to look up the macaroons recipe and do some baking when I've finished this post.

I had a burst of phoning-people confidence this afternoon (rare event) and not only ordered a repeat prescription but also spoke to the Premium Bond people about putting the bonds I found at Mum's house into my married name and address, and to National Savings about a very old account which has about £100 in it since 1999! With interest, possibly £144 nowadays. There's a form to fill in so I can get access to the money. I think I may still have an old National Savings Ordinary Account too, but goodness knows where the book for it is. I doubt there's much in there but perhaps I'll find it when I get enough decluttering done.

So, some financial progress, provided I get this form filled in and sent off.

WannabeFree

Hope the weather hasn't hit you too bad

Well done on the run and the phone calls!

x

Cherryfudge

Thank you W!

Weather is very cold here but no more snow. Work is usually for too hot so it was odd today that the heating wasn't actually completely adequate. Definitely jumper weather - or better still, stay inside in pyjamas!

I did some cooking this morning - jelly (okay, not a lot of cooking there) and Honeysucklelou's date bars. Those date bars are far too more-ish!

I now have a mortgage-free-wannabe number (30) so I'll reinstate a signature to keep track of our payments. I don't have the means to overpay as dramatically as some people on the mortgage overpayment threads are doing, but then I don't have a modern mortgage either, I'm down to £11,000-and-something capital left to pay now.

No shops so no spending unless you count asking DS to get a cucumber for the guinea pig, but I haven't paid him yet.

One more day at work then I've booked the weekend off.

MS stuff:
Baking is slowly using up old stocks of foods and warming the kitchen while the snow lies outside.
Grateful for a warm house and warm clothes... and for insulation and curtains and all things that help keep the warmth in.

Onebrokelady

We have loads of snow here,I could do with some grippers for my shoes,I!!!8217;m hoping it wont stay for too long as it makes it so hard to get anywhere,Im working tomorrow but then have the whole weekend off,Im really looking forward to it,have a good day at work tomorrow

Cherryfudge

Onebrokelady wrote: »

We have loads of snow here,I could do with some grippers for my shoes,I!!!8217;m hoping it wont stay for too long as it makes it so hard to get anywhere,Im working tomorrow but then have the whole weekend off,Im really looking forward to it,have a good day at work tomorrow

I was tempted to order grippers for DH's shoes as mine are so effective (if you Google 'Yaktrax you will find them) but by the time they get here the snow will probably be over.

Two of us with weekends off! Wonderful, isn't it?!

I actually logged back on to say that when DS bought the cucumber fr the guinea pig, he got a half one and seems rather charmed with the idea that cucumbers can be bought in halves. What it is to be young and seeing the world with fresh eyes! And how different life is for each of us...

redofromstart

I wanted to make the date bars but we hadn't got any so I made muesli flapjack instead which was ok.

Smiling at your DS and the half cucumber

Cherryfudge

Other people lose money to credit cards etc. I think we have just reinvented a very old method of leaking cash...

I asked DH if we were going to get the Grandfather clock going again and he said yes, but it needed some attention as it has to be level to keep time properly. Cue hood coming off the clock and mutterings from the hall, then he came back in and said 'I think that's better. By the way, if you're wondering where all our change has gone, I've used it to balance the clock mechanism!'

And it's snowing again here.

Cherryfudge

Like what seems like everybody else (sorry to those who are still cut off), I've been food shopping today. The shelves were bare of bread by tea time and other stuff is thin on the ground! I called in to collect my prescription and it was an item short: the pharmacy hasn't had some deliveries. It took till the third supermarket to get sliced corned beef for my FiL. Interestingly there doesn't seem to be a shortage of tinned food or cereal: perhaps people are sick of them!

Before the food shopping I had an hour to look round the retail park but amazingly I didn't buy anything. I just kept thinking of the heap of stuff I still have to sort through and declutter and the only thing that tempted me was a jumper that didn't fit when I tried it on. There are some pretty things in for spring, so someone must believe it's coming.

I'm nearly £10 into next week's food money already. Some of that was a big bag of chickpeas and some was more dates seeing as I can't not make those date bars again.

Spends
Housekeeping £23.61
Toiletries £0.50
MS stuff:
Chickpea tikka tomorrow and I've bought dried chickpeas, not tinned, which will save a few pennies.
Didn't buy anything from retail park.
Wearing four layers rather than put the heating up.
Free entertainment listening to icicles thawing, and free workout chipping ice off the path.
Confession time:
Overspent on food (Even allowing for the £6.22 underspend last week, I'm already £4.65 into next week's money, but I'm eating out twice next week (!) so that will help to redress the balance).