And so it begins: The Pig Vs The Mortgage

pinkypig

DiscountDuck said:

I’ve bookmarked it as I like following your mortgage free journey and find lots of inspiration! I’ve started trying to do one thing a day towards freedom and one to health after reading your thread. 

Awww thank you DD, what a lovely thing to say.  There are some great ideas/resources on these boards and those tiny steps make a huge difference.
i don’t always get it right but I do know that I’m at my most content when I’m in control of my finances and I’m making good choices regarding my health.  For me, good physical health means good mental health.  Enjoy your journey, wherever it takes you 😀xx

pinkypig

Hello 😀

First day of our staycation is almost done .  We had a leisurely start, coffee in bed, breakfast, pottered around and did some food prep and very long walk in the country.  We made pizza dough before we set off so tonight is pizza and film night.   The cost of our perfect start to the holidays is ... nowt 😀

The forecast tomorrow is looking ok so we are going to make a picnic and head out for a day of walking and pottering around pretty villages.  

I really do like a staycation (which is just as well at the moment 😱). I did a CS run on Thursday in preparation and got us four books each and I am looking forward to lots of reading and relaxing😀 50p each at our favourite CS so a bargain to boot.  They also sell all clothing and shoes for £2 an item ( it’s a massive warehouse) and I found a Fatface dress and a pair of Hobbs sandals- literally could not believe my luck as they are both pristine.

So today’s small steps to freedom and happiness included;

A good night’s sleep

Coffee in bed

Time with my CS book

Cheap, healthy eats (banana porridge for breakfast, beans on toast for lunch and hm sourdough pizza and salad for dinner)

A very long walk in beautiful countryside with our delightful fur baby 😍

A NSD

Drank enough water

Time with my OH!- after three months of lockdown we’ll never take that for granted again!

Happy Saturday to you, I hope you’re having a lovely weekend.

PP xx

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, this all sounds like the perfect start to your holiday PP, how lovely! Jealous of your charity shop finds, most excellent! LOVE your small steps to freedom and happiness, what a lovely way of seeing things

pinkypig

Cheery_Daff said:

Ooh, this all sounds like the perfect start to your holiday PP, how lovely! Jealous of your charity shop finds, most excellent! LOVE your small steps to freedom and happiness, what a lovely way of seeing things

Hi Cheery - a truly great CS find is an amazing feeling isn’t it?😂😂
I too like the little steps- it’s my version of a gratitude journal (which I’m too lazy to keep up with 🙄😂).  

Hope you, Mr Cheery and your lovely ladies are well 😘

pinkypig

Evening 😀

We’ve had another lovely staycation day 😀. We had a coffee in bed and read for an hour, had a nice chat over a leisurely breakfast, made a picnic and headed out for the day.  The weather was better than forecast with no showers and was lovely and warm.  We drove to a really picturesque part of the gorgeous shire where oh lives and did a very long walk.  It was so pretty and so relaxing we barely noticed until we got back to the car on very tired legs, even the dog was pooped😂. We had lots of really good talks about life and the future and everything just feels like it’s coming together, which after the rollercoaster of the last few years that is so good.  I feel very content and very grateful 🙂

We are making steps towards a plant based diet (we rarely eat meat and have decided to give it up completely whilst we try and reduce our dairy consumption ). It’s partly for health reasons and partly environmental - we’ve discussed it a few times and have decided to give it a go - not in a full on uncompromising way but just taking a few baby steps in the right direction.  We are quite looking forward to trying new foods and new recipes 😀

Today’s small steps to freedom and happiness included;

A good night’s sleep 

Starting the day reading in bed with a good cup of coffee ( not particular about many things but I do like a good ground coffee.  The Aldi French and Italian blends are both excellent and a real bargain at £1.09 😀)

Walking in beautiful countryside in beautiful weather and in great company ( oh and the dog- what could be better?😀)

A delicious picnic- tried a new filling (vegan tuna!!) and it was delicious in a wrap with rocket and tomatoes.

Dinner that just needed warning up ( knew we’d be tired today so I made it yesterday) so no cooking 

Exciting plans for the future and someone special to share them with.

A general feeling of contented wellbeing that has been with me for a little while now and it’s so nice!

A NSD - staycationing is the best 😂😂

A long soak in a bubble bath to ease my tired legs 😀

The prospect of a couple of episodes of a new box set when I finally drag myself out of the bath😂

Happy Sunday- I hope you’ve had a lovely weekend whatever you were up to and for those of you who are working then a hope you’ve had a good day and that you get some R&R very soon 

PP xx

Karmacat

What a wonderful weekend you've had, Pinky, lovely to read about.

Busy_Mee

How lovely Pinky. It all sounds lovely and OH sounds like a keeper

pinkypig

Thanks KC and Busy, it’s been just fab and I feel very grateful for life in general. I’m sure life’s storm clouds will gather again at some point but for now I’m enjoying the calm 😀

pinkypig

Morning 😀

The sunshine is back!  We had intermittent thunder storms yesterday which meant adapting our plans a bit.  We got out for a run first thing and nearly made it home before the first downpour of the day 😂. At least it gave me a good excuse for a long bubble bath in the middle of the day!

Other than that we read, did a bit of chatting and planning around some rather exciting things that are coming fruition, read and generally relaxed.  I also did some baking which I really enjoyed so we have a sourdough loaf, sourdough rolls and flatbread - we did a bit of quality control testing 🙄and they passed!

Today we are heading out to explore a new historic city followed by a walk in the nearby countryside before heading home.  Coffee,water,picnic and dog treats are packed so it should be a nsd apart from fuel for the car.

Yesterday’s small steps to freedom and happiness included;

Another good night’s sleep - I’m not a great sleeper generally so this is just fantastic .

Coffee in bed - literally never tire of this one, it is the most relaxing and indulgent start to the day.

Cheap, healthy eats (porridge for breakfast, lo mushroom and spinach lasagne for lunch and hm bbq pulled jackfruit in hm sourdough rolls and sweet potato wedges and salad for dinner)

Got out for a run - really enjoy running with oh and our fur baby loves it too 😀

Several hours with my CS book

A walk around the city in between showers .  OH lives in the most beautiful city and I just love wandering around looking and the buildings and parks.

A nice chat with DD and DS who are both doing well despite the current challenges.

Finished my accounts !!! I only had one small thing to do and I’ve been putting it off for ages so the frog has now been swallowed.  It only took me an hour and wasn’t difficult.  Why do I do this every year rather than just getting on with it?

Planned the rest of our first staycation week around the weather forecast so we have lots of things to look forward to.

A NSD - seriously, I know I’m preaching to the converted here but it never ceases to amaze me that the best times cost nothing.  We have had a great holiday so far and have spent nothing.  We should have been abroad this week and I honestly can’t imagine that we could have enjoyed that anymore than we have our staycation 😀

Happy Tuesday, I hope your week is going well and if it’s not then I hope it improves very soon

PP xx

pinkypig

Morning 😀

I’ve just woken up, I’m getting very relaxed and lazy- going back to work is going to be a shock!  For now, however the sun is shining and life feels good.  I’m enjoying a nice cup of coffee and I’m not intending on moving for at least half an hour.

It poured down yesterday so we went for a run (quite refreshing!!), did some reading, cooking and pottering and generally had a very relaxed day.  The forecast today is good so we are going to make a picnic and head out into the countryside for a walk followed by a potter around a couple of famously pretty villages 😀

Yesterday’s small steps to freedom and happiness included;

A good sleep - I’m getting good at this 😂

Cheap, healthy eats ( porridge for breakfast, avocado toast with hm sourdough for lunch and veggie enchiladas for dinner)

Had a nice chat on the telephone with DD

Did a 5k run in the morning and a decent walk in the evening 

Did an inventory and meal plan for the remainder of our staycation and we only need fresh fruit and veg this week so that will help the budget 😀

A NSD - this is proving to be a very economical holiday!!

Happy Thursday what ever you are up to and good luck with today’s results if you and yours are embroiled in the exam fiasco - such a stressful time 😕

PP xx