Champagne Lifestyle on a Lemonade Budget - 2021

Paspatur

sheilavw said:

Had a fantastic birthday. The finale was last night, a beautiful meal out then the holiday reveal. My daughters are taking me next weekend to Istanbul and Cappaddocia where I am staying in a fairy chimney suite. We will be going on hot air balloon trip, turkish evening, wine tasting evening and pottery making in the week.  We have a guide joining us who we've been on excursions with in olu deniz area. I cannot wait! they got me a big cake with hot air balloon on and an hot air balloon pandora charm to complete the birthday as well as my other gifts including flowers. I have been truly spoilt all week!

Wonderful. Cappadocia is amazing. Wrap up well for the balloon trip. We did it in May 2015 and it was chilly up there in jeans and a big hoodie even though it was tshirts and shorts weather on the ground. So February will be well chilly.

sheilavw

Thanks Paspatur. It was on mine and my late Husbands bucket list. im planning on plenty of layers! thank you for your kind wishes. I have been inundated all week. I have nearly £500 in cash and vouchers and so many gifts, all wonderful.

Paspatur

You'll love it. The scenery is incredible. I am not keen on heights, which I have discovered is due to screwy eyesight, not an actual fear of heights, my knees were shaking the whole time but I still loved it. I love Turkey been there every year for last 35 years apart from last 2 due to Covid. You mention Olu and my base of operations has mostly been Ovacik or Fethiye xx I am hopefully back in June and September this year

sheilavw

lovely Paspatur. We started going around 98 to Turkey, first Gumbet, then Hisaronu mainly

helensbiggestfan

Belated happy birthday, Sheila.  Sorry I missed it.  Your holiday sounds great.  

Wednesday, sometimes we have to say "sod the lemonade budget" and have a little splurge. 😂

I agree with making things like lasagne from scratch, a lot of work, especially now I'm cooking for one. It's funny but I've been doing a lot of thinking recently about things like cooking etc.  i have finally taken on board the fact that I live alone, and therefore eat alone most of the time. Without realising it, I have started cooking differently, which  is why I am drastically decluttering the kitchen. 

I'm sorry I haven't been posting much but frankly life has been a bit grim of late.  

My bjg champagne moment was getting the lighting fixed on Friday. No more Stygian gloom.  Other than that, I have to be honest champagne moments have been a bit thin on the ground.  Friday would have been my 39th wedding anniversary and I have felt a bit melancholy.  The red letter days such as anniversaries and birthdays can be difficult sometimes. This year for some reason I have felt quite low, not helped by my fibro being pretty bad at the moment.  Hey ho.....this too shall pass.  

I have bought myself some magnesium flakes for the bath and today I'm having a massage. I have started doing some simple yoga stretches again so hopefully I should see an improvement soon.  The massage should help kickstart the healing process.  

Sorry if this all sounds a bit woe is me, I'm ok really, just a bit stuck in the doldrums at the moment. 

Life can't always be unicorns and rainbows and cute fluffy puppies and kittens.  🤣🤣.  

I'll get there, normal service WILL be resumed soon.  

Have a good week y'all.  

phoebe1989seb

I can empathise with you wanting rid of the Stygian gloom, Helen! On these often dull days between Christmas and Spring, one of the last things you want - particularly if you're already feeling down - is a dreary, ill-lit home 🙁 So glad you've got your lighting fixed 😃

With our 18"+ thick stone walls and relatively small windows, I'm back on the mission to improve our own lighting situation...

Obviously our goal is to get it right, whilst not losing sight of the bigger picture (the upcoming building work which will cost £££££ even though DIYing it 🙄), so the idea is to not compromise whilst staying within the good old lemonade budget! Always a fun challenge, imho 😀

We have literally loads of lamps strategically placed throughout the old mill (not to mention masses of mirrors and candles), but - bearing in mind those walls and windows - an even more considered approach is called for!

Having improved the kitchen lighting hugely, it was still lacking imho, so today's champagne moment was bringing in my treasured Abigail Ahern owl lamp to sagely stand guard over the island of a late evening when we tend to just have the new Japanese inspired lights on. He delivers a quirky charm and the turquoise shade is a perfect match for the room's accent colours 😄

The snug is our darkest room but we'll be starting on phase 3 of the building work in there soon, which will hopefully bring in more natural light!

Just in case, we'll be adding a pair of wall lights at the far end of the space where we recently placed our circular table. We want this area to be ideal for intimate dining, but the almost table-skimming 'bronze' single, organic pendant fitting*** doesn't really cast enough light to eat by 🙄

***There's a champagne moment attached to this light fitting too! Back in 2012, I'd been coveting the very unique, hand-crafted in appearance pair of lights suspended from the ceiling of our local Dorset florist's shop. They were unable to help with the source and extensive searching online and in bricks/mortar shops failed to find anything - even remotely - similar. About a year later, my amazing DH - an even more intrepid bargain hunter than myself, lol - rocked up from a far flung carboot sale with a surprise. He'd somehow found an identical light for the princely sum of £15 😍❤️😍

Snowdrops in the garden today...

My wise owl...

phoebe1989seb

Today's champagne moment - we finally ordered the massive structural oak beams for the snug ceiling 😀

These will support the wall above the opening between the old and new (the extension built by a previous owner c1999). When we removed the 'wall' (comprising window and french doors) last autumn we discovered the original 400 year old beams, dating from when there was a wide entrance for carts entering the mill!

Sadly, these beams are no longer structurally sound, so for the past five months we've lived with accrow props holding up the wall directly above one of our sofas 😮😉

It'll be another month before the new beams are ready...but it's another step in the right direction and exciting nonetheless 😄

Also, just sold the old light fittings - that's £70 towards their replacements 😃

sugarbaby125

My Champagne moment on Sunday was seeing the joy on the face of my Great-Grandson Shylo at his 1st birthday party 



There was so much drama a few days before the party, as my Grandson, Shylo's dad was sacked from his job. My sister H who used to be a HR consultant had to step in and support my Grandson to Appeal the decision. As he no longer had an income, the party was going to be cancelled, so I stepped up and paid for the food, decorations, the hall hire, the fee for hiring the bouncy castle and everything else that was needed to be paid for, so that the party could still go ahead. So on top of the alcohol I had donated, I had to fork out another £971. It was worth it, as it was the first event where my family and my Grandson's partner L's family could all gather together and get to know each other better, eat good food, drink until we felt merry, then take to the dance floor and throw down some shapes. 

Everyone had the most fantastic time, as did all of the toddlers and older children who were at the party. 

My niece made the cake and it was not only beautiful, it was absolutely delicious to eat. 

MrsPorridge

Sugarbaby, you sound like the most wonderful Mum and Grandmum x

phoebe1989seb

MrsPorridge said:

Sugarbaby, you sound like the most wonderful Mum and Grandmum x

This ^^^

Sugarbaby, I've said it before, but your family are so lucky to have you 😊😍😊

It sounds - and looks - as though you all had a fabulous time at little Shylo's party...and that cake looks scrummy 😋

I do hope everything works out ok for your grandson....x