Tales from The Shire

Fortune_Smiles

beanielou said:

Yah, young decorator is just what what you need.
Get that hall booked 

He is just what we need Beanie 😁  He's going to quote for the hall but we're debating whether to get the living room and kitchen done first.  The hall and landing are quite big and complicated so, for the price of that one area, we could get two rooms done instead.  It all depends on when the new windows are coming as it would be better to have those replaced before decorating.  If the windows come as planned in September we'll go for living room and kitchen.  If there's a delay on the windows, we'll go for hall/landing.  First of all though we need to have the exterior of the windows we're keeping sanded and oiled.

Exciting.

Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

Bump in the road navigated 😁

I have ordered the new freezer and it will be here next Tuesday.  I cleaned up the old one and put it on FB for £35.00 (being upfront about the door seal) and have had loads of interest.  Someone is coming to pick it up tonight 😁

Lunch yesterday was Courgette Potato & Cheddar Soup - the recipe calls for 1kg of courgettes and I still have about 8 of them left in the fridge 😲  I was intending to make the base for a couple of Veg & Cheesy Rice Bakes for the freezer but I'm not sure I've got the space until the new freezer comes.  I'm seeing some friends on Friday so will gift any surplus.  Supper was Prawn, Fine Green Bean & Ginger Noodles - to use up some of the multitude of green beans which have recently appeared in the veg patch.  I hope the new freezer arrives when it's due 🤞

I also made Blackcurrant Cordial, a Lemon Curd & Blackcurrant Cake and Oat Biscuits to use up some pastry scraps leftover from a tart I made last week.

Some money was spent on gardening and preserving supplies but all within budget so far (I have a monthly 'Contingency' budget now for any unexpected stuff that's required).  I must get out to weed the veg patch this morning as it's due to rain for the next few days.  No PB win for us this month - I suspect Cheery has had my share 🤣🤣🤣

Young Decorator was able to pick up the bedroom wall paint this morning 🥳  I'm on tenterhooks now waiting to see how it looks up.  The cloak/utility room colour looks fab - I'm really pleased with it.

Happy Hump Day all

Fortune x

Staffordia

I suspect that Cheery has had quite a few people's PB winnings. 😅

themadvix

Staffordia said:

I suspect that Cheery has had quite a few people's PB winnings. 😅

Definitely (she's had mine too), but she'd argue that Shanghaijimmy has had her share of Postcode Lottery winnings! 😂

savingholmes

Love reading all your news. Decorator sounds fab as do self employment plans

Fortune_Smiles

savingholmes said:

Love reading all your news. Decorator sounds fab as do self employment plans

Thanks SH.  I'm very happy to have found him.

Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

Casting Aspersions

I have been wrongly accusing Cheery 🤭 - an email came through today to say we won £25 in the August PB draw 😁  I've added it to the contingency budget as Mr F has mentioned a few things he needs 🙄

Young Decorator finished work today.  He's done a fabulous job and given us quotes for four other pieces of work so we can start budgeting for those.  I've given him the go ahead to start refurbishing the windows we are keeping so we can get those done before the winter storms start.

Lunch today was Halloumi, Courgette, Green Bean & Tomato Salad except I changed the dressing to one made with the blackcurrant vinegar I bottled last week.  Supper was a bagel with cream cheese and chilli salmon plus some fruit as I've started a new Pilates class and it's an early session.

It's been cold, grey and wet today but at least the garden's getting the soaking it needs.  Bring on the next heatwave though - it would be nice to get a little more sunshine before the summer is over.

Fortune x

ruby_eskimo

The young decorator sounds like a great find!  I keep lending DH to our friends to help with decorating and DIY as he isn't too bad, but he never brings home any money, they just pay him in beer 😆

Fortune_Smiles

ruby_eskimo said:

The young decorator sounds like a great find!  I keep lending DH to our friends to help with decorating and DIY as he isn't too bad, but he never brings home any money, they just pay him in beer 😆

I wish I could pay for things in courgettes Ruby - I'd be a rich woman by now 😂

Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

5 days since my last post!

How did that happen?  I seem to be losing days, if not weeks, quite regularly these days 🤔

I have been having quite a social time so perhaps that explains things.  A charity afternoon tea on Friday, a BBQ on Sunday and a WI meeting last night where we were given a guided tour of a small, local castle.  The afternoon tea cost £5 but I gave £10 as it was for a very good cause, we took home-made gin and a box of posh chocolates to the BBQ which cost £23.97 and the WI meeting was £5 which included tea and cake.  All costs are covered by this month's fun and charity money.  

Meals have been:

One-pan Thai Green Salmon Curry with jasmine rice
Broad Bean Carbonara
and various salads and sandwiches.

I'm just about to start meal planning for this week and the veg patch isn't letting us down 😆

On the spending front, I have just ordered 6 (yes 6 😲) ball gowns from John Lewis.  We've been invited to a black tie event in September and I can't get in to anything I have that is suitable.  I have a 3 long dresses I've collected over the years but they are between 13 and 20 years old and are well worn.  I'm only intending to keep one 😁 but I find it difficult to find something that fits and flatters so this may be the first of several order and return sessions.  In past years I'd have gone into town to buy but many of the shops in our bigger towns have closed and you can't try the clothes on in the ones that are left.  Keep your fingers crossed that the perfect dress is winging its way to me via courier 🤞  In the meantime the credit card statement looks horrendous 😲

Our cloakroom is now back together.  Mr F needs to put a new curtain pole up in the guest bedroom and then I can start sorting that out.  There's a lot to do in the garden now so I'm hoping for more dry days.

Right.  Time to find recipes involving large amounts of courgettes and broad and green beans.  I gifted two large bags of produce to friends at the WI meeting last night but it hasn't made a dent 😆

Fortune x