A new royal start

QueenJess

£110 spent on Aldi for my click and collect order this morning.  I looked through shelves and the freezer before my order, but didn't want to rearrange the freezer only to do it again when I picked up the order.  Well that was a mistake as DH tosses things in there with gay abandon and I rediscovered a bunch of things I didn't realise were even in there.  I now have too much food and the freezer is utterly rammed... you couldn't even fit a bread roll in there   So using up is the order of the day and fingers crossed that March will now be a very cheap month!

I do need to shop again on Friday to get bread for DS's party and seek out some Bran Flakes before there is a mutiny.  Other than that I need to not be food shopping for the rest of the month (bar usual fruit/veg/milk deliveries).  Spent about £60 in ASDA yesterday, so already £170 gone for Feb and it hasn't even started yet!

Food for today is a bit unknown as I haven't quite decided.  Might go for sausage and mash for dinner to use up leeks and carrots in the fridge.  I think I'll make a parsnip soup for lunch as I roasted a huge amount of veg last night with spices whilst I needed the oven for salmon.  Pudding is tropical muffins with yogurt or flapjacks or ice cream cones or the last mince pie and cream.  Options galore here... so much food!

QueenJess

Yikes been a while! DS had his bday party at the weekend and loved it. I found it incredibly frustrating as DD glued herself to me and I couldn’t do anything at all. We were also 20 mins late packing up (hampered by DD) - the venue wasn’t happy and I hope they don’t eat my damage deposit or something. So stressful. It’s lovely that DD wants to spend every second with me, but it gets a bit claustrophobic.

We have a bit of leftover food I will be using up (no waste here). Lunch was leftover cheese sandwiches and cucumber sticks. Dinner is sausage, mash (with leftover potatoes in the fridge) and leftover party carrots with some leeks. Pudding is the never ending chocolate cake from DS’s party. Won’t need to make anything for my birthday on Weds as we’ll still have loads left! I also need to drink some leftover wine… such a hardship 😂

Work has started ramping up. Typical when I’m off next week for half term! Never mind… I had been keeping a very low profile for a while. Now need to figure out how to do everything plus a whole job in a day. Counting down to the end of April when I can request part time!

Finances already look awful, but I haven’t been spendy. I have a £300 energy bill to pay tomorrow 😬, £800 gone on DS’s after school club and a bit more on Easter holiday club. Then £900 odd mortgage and £1500 childcare bill and that’s pretty much my whole budget. Will definitely be going over this month as we need our boiler fixed and gutters cleaned and obviously milk/veg. Will try to limit the damage and catch up next month. 

DH has decided not to overpay the mortgage until the end of the mortgage year (Jan 2024) as he gets better interest keeping it in savings. I am considering my options and may start trying to round it down or some sort of challenge over the year. Still considering my options!

QueenJess

DD has kindly given me her cold... it was inevitable since she kept coughing in my face   Anyway, hopefully it doesn't get worse as I am taking myself off to town tomorrow morning to wonder round the shops (and the charity shops) in my own time, completely uninhibited by children.  Then off for lunch with DH as a birthday treat.

Washing on today as I'm a bit behind... cold weather and children who like to splash in mud = lots of clothes.  Towels in at the moment, but may have to then do another load of clothes.  Also need to tidy the house a bit as a few rooms are a bit of a tip and I did say to DS I would lovingly sellotape his Lego manuals back together (which is a bit of a mission).  May do that one in front of the TV later!

Lunch today is more of the leftover party food (I am determined not to waste any of it).  I carefully pulled apart the cheese sandwiches so the butter is now on the outside and am frying them in the pan to make cheese toasties.  Served with more leftover carrot and cucumber sticks.  Dinner will be leftover passata from the pizza I made on Friday turned into tomato sauce with onions, garlic and herbs, served with gnocchi and garlic bread (and the last of the sad looking kale/salad from the fridge).  Pudding will be chocolate birthday cake for eternity... I may have to try and give some away as it's huge!

QueenJess

Still got a slight cold, which is annoying.  Had a relaxing day off.  Took the bus to town and leisurely strolled round the charity shops in the morning, then was picked up by DH who drove me to our favourite restaurant to have a huge birthday lunch (I am still absolutely stuffed now).  I had a cured salmon starter with goats cheese and beetroot, then beef with potatoes and veg followed by a chocolate fondant.  I also had some wine and they give you a pre-starter and pre-dessert (plus chocolates for after which I've brought back).  If I want anything to eat later (doubtful), I shall raid the sandwiches still in the fridge from the weekend.  DS wants his birthday sandwiches and cake and DH said he's going to make himself some pesto pasta.  Nothing required from me so I will put my feet up!

Picked up a couple of things off my to buy list in town including a couple of safety power socket things for DD's room since she can reach it from her cot (currently I've trapped a spare changing mat between the cot and the wall so she can't get to it) and some drip trays so I can sow my seeds indoors on the window sills.  Need to check which seeds I have as I suspect I won't need much this year.  Didn't find myself any second hand books for myself, so will take the £10 out of Prolific and use it to spend on second hand books online later on eBay or World of Books.  I did find a few books for the kids which I've stashed for future birthdays/xmas.  I also got DS a £1 puzzle which is like some of the ones we've done together, but is 150 pieces so he can do it himself.

For my birthday the kids got me an apron as DS decided I do lots of baking so I need one, but also flowers and my favourite chocolate bars.  I also got some ethical socks (I'm actually running out of socks at the moment) and DH got me some earrings I liked from an ethical online seller.  I will enjoy shopping for books later online and will have my feet up relaxing.  May do more of a 1,000 piece puzzle with DS (I make him do the hard ones with me!), see what I still have recorded to watch and read DS some more of his David Walliams book.  No chocolate cake for me today, although I offloaded two huge slices to a neighbour, so hopefully we will find the end of the cake this week!

Picked up DD from nursery earlier and was slightly irritated by the person there.  I can't quite put my finger on it... I don't dislike the person at all, but I think we have different opinions on things.  She said something about DD as an example of how she's too clingy, but it was about being stroked to sleep and they started that off their own back unnecessarily and then continued it... Basically they built a rod for their own back there and I have no sympathy.  DD likes routine like a lot of kids and you just have to not do it.  I spend lots of quality time reading books, then I get her to turn the light switch off (which she loves), put her in her cot and immediately leave the room.  She's absolutely fine with that.  She is a little clingy, but it's more because she needs to be constantly engaged (I think she's going to be a clever clogs since she's started counting at the age of 1 and before she can actually talk properly..) and she is little and probably going through a phase.  They've blown it all up out of proportion in my opinion... I shall not be worrying about it.

Bluegreen143

I would say it’s fairly common for kids to have different routines at nursery and as you say, if they started stroking her to sleep themselves and you don’t do it at home it’s clearly up to them to change it if it doesn’t work well 🤷‍♀️ 

QueenJess

Bluegreen143 said:

I would say it’s fairly common for kids to have different routines at nursery and as you say, if they started stroking her to sleep themselves and you don’t do it at home it’s clearly up to them to change it if it doesn’t work well 🤷‍♀️ 

Well they used it as one example of her being too clingy and always wanting attention.  She's getting less as they have new people in who are younger and get more attention than her and she doesn't like it apparently.  This was not a good example though as it's entirely their issue not mine.

MagicCat

Happy birthday @QueenJess, glad you had a nice day off 🎂💐🥳

themadvix

Happy birthday Jess! It sounds like you’ve had a lovely day 🎂🥂

QueenJess

DS is such a trooper.  I was concerned about getting 25 presents when organising DS's party and so I wrote on the invitations not to feel obliged to buy a present.  I explained to DS how he is so lucky and has so many nice things already and he'll already get presents from family.  We also talked about it being important his friends come to his party to spend time with him than get presents and briefly about other people not being as lucky as him and may not be able to afford presents.  He was absolutely fine with it and started saying to people "You don't have to bring a present!". 

Anyway, we did end up with a fair few presents (as I suspected), but fewer than we would have otherwise and definitely didn't get 25 presents.  I didn't track who did/didn't give presents or count because that seems pointless since I genuinely meant they didn't have to bring anything.  He got plenty, but it is controllable and he's already identified some he doesn't want/won't use that we can regift (without me asking).

I talked to him today about me requesting fewer hours (and DH) and talked about us being able to spend more time together, but we will have less money.  He agreed it was more important to spend time together.  He's also left a little note on my bedside table to say how much he loves me

themadvix

Oh he sounds absolutely adorable!