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redofromstart

@moving_forward this house had a pantry just the way you describe complete with jelly moulds, sherry glasses, etc.  It was lovely to see when we first looked round.  Sadly it was damp, and had to go to make my lovely kitchen a reasonable size. 
@Humdinger1 hello, and a particular welcome for being a Thirkell fan.  

redofromstart

Finances
We are both still working (from home) so we are very lucky that our income remains steady.  This may change, as it has for a lot of people.  We ran into problems all those years ago when one income went, the industry died and we burnt our emergency savings paying the mortgage.  On that basis I have swapped my focus to a small rounding payment on the mortgage, and the bulk of my wages into building up the savings again.  If everything is magically alright later on then I can always make a lump sum over payment.
Pension pots have been dramatically reduced, but I am sure they will bounce back over time.  
Spending.  Lots less on fuel, start appreciating how much commuting and school run cost at this point.  More has gone into food, because shopping in the co-op does carry a slight premium.

moving_forward

Aww redo, Hope you kept the jelly moulds and sherry glasses!
Can't wait to be able to make this kitchen my own.  Its not old (I would prefer that) just cheap and put together shockingly but until the debt is gone it has to stay.
We are still working at the office - again glad to be both still able to work and bring in income.  I have just reduced the credit card payments to the nearest fiver over the minimum to allow us to build up some cash reserves (if we don't spend it all on the extra grocery costs!).

Sun_Addict

I'm spending a lot more on food right now because I can't shop around like I normally do.  Relying heavily on my local Mr T Express although have Mr M deliveries booked for the next 3 weeks which will help greatly. We've just got to do whatever we can to muddle through until things get back to normal. We lost Mr SA's income 7 years ago when he became ill, fortunately we have mine, I'm still working and will be all the way through.  

Seasidegal58

Pantry envy here!  Would love a walk-in pantry instead of odd cupboards everywhere!☹️  I'm going to have to research the Angela Thirkell books - sounds intriguing.  

I'm pleased to hear your family income remains steady and long may it continue to do so redo.  My food and household budget has increased too due to supermarket own brands being in short supply every time I hit the supermarket.  As I don't drive the only two big supermarkets in walking distance are Aldi and Waitrose. I would visit Aldi more but the queues are so long so I've been getting my goods at Waitrose where it's more of a pleasant shopping experience. 

Your amended finance plan sounds sensible until things return to some sort of normality. Re the pensions - you have a few years left before retirement and the market should swing back up eventually - as it always does. 

redofromstart

@moving_forward the previous owners sons did leave a few bits including the sherry glasses and jelly moulds.  My boys used to have their Christmas sparkling grape or appetiser out of the sherry glasses, so fond memories for them too.
@Sun_Addict must have been really difficult, especially with Mr SA and his wants (man bag, watch, etc)
@Seasidegal58 they are 40s/50s contemporary fiction based around Trollopes Barchester, nothing nasty happens.  Gentle rather than exciting.  

moving_forward

Glad your sherry glasses gave you some use redo

Seasidegal58

Morning redo!👋. Hope you'll be able to get out into the garden today as the weather is fine. 

I had a look for the Thirkell books online. Totally confused myself to begin with as I actually typed in Angela ThirkWell which took me to a rather imposing author of biographies who didn't appear to have written any novels!🤔🤔🤔. Anyway I worked it out in the end and found the right person!🤣. She has written quite a few books - any in particular you would recommend to get me started?

Humdinger1

Seasidegal58 

Sorry to jump in here, but as a fellow Thirkell fan, I might suggest The Brandon's.  Utterly hilarious, as they all are xx

redofromstart

Completely agree with @Humdinger1 and the Brandons.