Gap is Back - Time to Knuckle Down

savingholmes

Lunch sounded lovely. Have a fab weekend - sometimes the quiet ones are the best.

girlatplay

I completely forgot I'd agreed to babysit my niece on Saturday night so that took up the whole weekend. I slept for an hour and a half yesterday afternoon after I dropped her off (she's 3.5).

I bought the coffees on Saturday (just under £10), my mum paid for the bread, eggs, etc, that I bought on the way home (lovely mum). No NSDs at all this weekend.

Homemade veggie lasagna with garlic bread for tea tonight (I've not made the bread but I'm making the garlic butter), I'm just about to get off my butt to go and make it all. If it's just LMG and I for tea there will be 4 portions left over. If LMG's boyfriend comes up too there will be two portions left. Either way there will be some for the freezer. Ooh, must do a new freezer inventory as it's jam packed but I'm not sure what's in there.

The flat is a complete mess. It needs a good clean, there's clean washing to be folded and put away, it all needs tidied up. I'm just not feeling it right now. I don't want to do anything. I'm only doing the lasagne because if I don't there will be nothing for tea which will tempt us into buying something.

I'm allowing myself a catch up on all the diaries I follow here then phone down and music on to get me moving (note: NOT dancing!)

girlatplay

The lasagne was lovely! I've lost my cooking mojo a bit over the past month so it was nice to make something and enjoy it. Four portions for the freezer

Hopefully a NSD today.

I'm going to do the freezer inventory after lunch then do some study (not touched it for almost a month ).

Think we'll have veggie sausages, dauphinois potatoes and sweetcorn for tea. That's what I've got in and the least time consuming anyway (apart from the potatoes but they're worth it).

girlatplay

LMG decided she wanted lasagne and garlic bread again last night. I had only put it in the freezer about an hour before. Two portions left now.

Did the freezer inventory so I am clear again about what we have. I forgot about a small portion of lamb hot pot that I made ages ago so I'll have that for lunch one day this month (it was lovely when I made it).
There are approximately 9 portions of (various) soups in there ("approximately" because some is in a jar and I'm guessing it's 4 portions). That's good because it means I'll only need bread for when I have that (lunches). Three (separate) portions need a bit more flavour though so I'll need to figure out a way to add that.
There are two portions of a Jack Monroe lentil daal which I can have with a roll or rice, depending on my mood. That will do two teas when I'm in on my own.
The two portions of lasagne will do a meal each for LMG and me. I'll need to buy ciabatta for the garlic bread though. I have plenty of garlic butter as I used almost a whole pack of butter when I made it (Morrisons savers butter and it will last for ages).
There are a couple of veggie things in the freezer that LMG can eat so I might cobble them together just before payday.
There's a spicy chicken curry that I could eat but I remember it being really, really spicy when it was freshly made and my body can't cope with that too well these days (illness related I actually love spicy food). I'll see how skint and desperate I am at the end of September haha.
There are other randoms in the freezer; vegetables, lasagne sheets, chicken, bacon and (here we go again with the "posh" stuff) two bags of venison. Not sure what to do with them, they were gifted to me a couple of years ago so I've had them in the freezer ever since, awaiting inspiration.

Tonight I'm meeting a friend for a catch up. We meet every couple of months and I'm usually home by 9.30. We'll have something to eat but it won't be a big spend - from Slush fund anyway.

girlatplay

Met my friend, ate, caught up and home by 7.30pm! Spent a bit more than last time but I had allowed for it and put the change in the challenge pot. Sig updated.

I really feel for my friend. She's had such a bad run of luck the past few years. She has had to deal with 5 close family deaths (including her folks and her young daughter), her son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 16 to add to the numerous other health problems that he has, her relationship with her kids' dad broke down (not a bad thing in hindsight but still traumatic at the time) and now to top it off her benefits are being reduced because her son is no longer in education and has to apply for his own benefits. He is trying to get work but can't get past interview stage and she can't take work until he's in work because she's his full time carer. I'm worried about the bland taste of three of my nine portions of freezer soup and yet she isn't sure where her next meal is coming from.

It's all relative but I feel guilty for moaning about how hard done by I am when she's worried about her next rent payment.

savingholmes

You can only live your life. Life is hard for each of us in our own way. You are doing well at stocking your freezer and living within a budget. It sounds like there are solutions for your friend too - even if she has to take her son to CAB to get some help with the application side of things.

girlatplay

savingholmes wrote: »

You can only live your life. Life is hard for each of us in our own way. You are doing well at stocking your freezer and living within a budget. It sounds like there are solutions for your friend too - even if she has to take her son to CAB to get some help with the application side of things.

Thank you. I've calmed down a bit now and I can see you are right. I just really felt for her.


It may be my first NSD today in a week! Boyfriend is popping up later. I've not seen him in over a week. He had his kids and then he had some kind of cold/flu/manflu type thing. I know this is bad but I'm only feeling marginally sympathetic towards him.

He says he's not hungry (he's always hungry and I know he's managed toast and soup) so I don't need to worry about feeding him which is good. I'll have something that I've got in the cupboard; omelette or beans on toast or something. I know that LMG will find something when she gets in from college too, even if it's a freezer-oven thing.

I've prepped a meal plan (for the rest of the month! ) based on what is in the freezer but I need to wait and find out LMG's shifts at work before I can complete it. Breakfast and lunch are covered to the end of the month (a lot of bread, toast and soup though haha). I just need to pick up bread and tomatoes tomorrow. I'll do a proper shop once the meal plan is complete.

Nearly half way through the month already!

beanielou

Scary how quickly this month is going!

girlatplay

beanielou wrote: »

Scary how quickly this month is going!

It really is! Mind you, I said that to myself last month around this time and then the half of August between midway and payday just dragged after that.

Spent just under £6 in Lidl; milk, bread, rolls and tomatoes and chocolate. Forgot mozzarella in my desperation to not spend to much and get to the check out quickly.

Getting treated to Chinese tonight by boyfriend and I'm really looking forward to it. Other than our night away two weeks ago we've barely seen each other over the past month so we must have saved a fortune on coffee haha. I'm heading to mid month with money in the slush fund

beanielou

Always good to have money in the slush fund