NST April 2021: Diamonds and Daisies

apple_muncher

Today I am grateful for fresh air, for collating a comments book for a colleague who is leaving, for getting my head around some admin, for kiddies playing outside, for good coffee.

greent

Grateful today for payday, for rain for the garden, for DS1 having finished and submitted his dissertation. 

Deni_debt-free_dreamer

Evening everyone

NSD 15. 

i woke up to a text from a friend that she has booked us a holiday cottage in autumn !  Like Toni'sfriend it wasn't too expensive so fingers crossed it can go ahead. 

Then i got an email saying one of the parts of my qualification had been marked - i've passed and got an exemplary submission!!  Absolutely delighted especially as i found it timeconsuming, detailed, repetitive etc.  It has spurred me on to complete the rest of it pdq

Then had nice chat with DD2 who has got a temporary internship that relates to the subject she is doing for her Masters!  It's only PT for 4 weeks but all helps in terms of money and experience.

This eve i did a very hard exercise class on Fb and ate a lovely veg casserole i made with some bargain spiced mixed beans i bought from the no waste hub last week.

Gratitudes - lovely comments from assessor;  DD2 getting a temporary role after a disappointment with her first attempt; friend being decisive and booking a holiday

Hugs to anyone who is struggling at the moment 

Deni x

Thrifty_Taylor

Well done Deni & daughter, that's great news!

Had a little spend day today, as hubby wanted a few small plants for the garden. Whilst he was having dialysis today, I went to Mum's. We sorted through some boxes & I changed her curtains for her.

Spent an hour sorting through paperwork at home after tea, so another job done. After adding together all the bits I've saved this month, I've been able to overpay the mortgage by £167!! Most I've managed in a month so far this year! Took out new insurance policies for our cats today. Used a cashback site. As it didn't give an option to do multiple pets on the one policy, I had to take out three. Will get £20 cashback for each one, so that can go towards an overpayment on the mortgage too, when I receive it 😊

Should be a nsd tomorrow. A little walk with hubby planned, then time working in the garden. Hope the sun shines for you all. 

facethemusic

Wednesday- still on NSD 16. I only bought milk, bread and an entirely unnecessary bag of marshmallows but that's a low enough "extra" cost I can live with. 
Grateful today- for a covid vaccine date (I wasn't expecting it yet so a pleasant surprise), DD doing really well in her music lesson and managing to fit in a (very) short run. 

ldee2111

Well done @Deni_debt-free_dreamer. 

Still on NSD 13/16 and that’s where it’ll stay. Today I’ll be buying some food for a picnic tomorrow and new joggers for DS who wakes up an inch taller every morning! 😆

Tomorrow we’re meeting friends and their DS for a play/picnic date. They are also frugal people but we will be having ice creams. Really looking forward to spending the day with them. 

Grateful for lockdown easing, seeing friends and family, the NHS.

DrCarrie

Sorry guys....really not been around much. Hope you are all doing well, and are happy with what you have achieved this month. Today and tomorrow and then we are off to the new challenge. Thank you @mothernerd

This morning I paid off a few bits extra on the CCs and have cleared the fridge out to see what I have. Put some carrot sticks to ferment.  Need a bit of a top up! Hopefully not too much. But I am running low on lots of basics and might need to up my grocery budget for next month. 

Gratitudes and delights:
- chair dancing yesterday - sitting in my chair having a good old wiggle (at work, which is in my hall). 
- The sewing bee  
- light evenings and some very good sleep

ditty1234

Morning and thanks for hugs - I am turning this boat around and it will move forwards with great conviction and motivation in May. But this morning I got wound up about green network to edf transfer taking so long,  4 months so far where I don't know if my utilities are up or down, and same with anglia water, no billing and no status update. I just want to know that all of my utilities are up to date. 
Any how today is remote teaching so should be a good day. Except the group I am teaching has gone a bit feral, so hopefully they will log in. 
Gratitudes 
- echoing sewing bee, that was very relaxing
- a spec of sunshine
- a day at home. 

mothernerd

On Wednesday I rounded up 'needed using' veg and put them in a tomato based pasta sauce (wilted in a whole bag of baby spinach leaves at the end and included tinned mushrooms and sweetcorn for a bit of variety). Yesterday I cooked a pan of pasta, had some with a portion of the sauce, filled a rectangular container with a layer of pasta, a layer of sauce and grated cheese on top (double Gloucester with chives, bbf 28th January) and cooked a small cauliflower and made cheese sauce to have with the remaining pasta (ate one portion, the other is in the fridge). Not making mum anything because she has at least 6 portions of hm ready meals in the freezer and has been told what they are (and she keeps eating tinned fruit and custard anyway). Also used 3 of the older eggs (want to use them all up before putting the new pack in the racks as mum's regime is too confusing) with some milk and will add the bits of chorizo I found in the bottom drawer of my freezer (think that was festive preparations but neither of us was eating a lot) to make a crustless quiche. Small portion of pasta sauce left which I may make into curry (with extra veg).

Weather wasn't great yesterday, cool, grey and threatening to rain and lots of me ached, so nothing strenuous. Wanted to go out (puzzle book, something other than water to drink) but dithered between town or Morries. In the afternoon I remembered there were still 2 bottles of non-alcoholic wine in the fridge (more festive leftovers which were reserved for my birthday/ Valentine's/ Easter but not used) so sat in the yard reading my book and drinking rose (picked up one of the proper wine glasses in passing). Lovely.

In the evening, I walked to Morries (mum had once again locked us in, in the middle of the afternoon). Only took the walking stick. It was tough, I stopped at least 6 times (nowhere to sit until I was near the SM so just leaning against green phone things and putting the bags down for a while) and I was very, very slow. But I did it. Successful trip. Bought a £3 wonky veg box, carrot cake ys'd to 25p (down from £2-50, would have been rude not to and I left the other two where they were). Bonus points for asking for help - thought they were out of decaff coke. Some 2 l bottles right at the back of the shelf. Young man was finishing mopping the bakery (nearest assistant) so asked him to help me - there were two 6 packs in plastic on the top (storage) shelf so asked for one of those (simpler all round for everybody). Found my puzzle book. Bought washing up liquid (why mum can't say when she starts the last one rather than waiting till it's all gone and still not saying anything). That's 3 weeks on a row when something has run out. Added three of the ready prepared bags for the food bank, because they've been neglected (used to take some cans to put in the box every time I went to the library). 

Sat on the bench outside and called for my taxi, asked to go the longer way round (more scenic). One of our regular drivers (he once said he loved that I am always cheerful, whatever happens - he didn't know it but he was dropping me off for my CBT session) and he had one of the golden oldie stations on the radio. he said he bet I remembered all the '80's' stuff - I said I could remember most of the stuff going back to my childhood and most of the lyrics too (quoted 'Bobby's girl' and 'Hit the road Jack' at him to prove it - can't really call what I do singing). 

Put some things in the kitchen and brought the rest in to my room.

Grateful for rose and reading, walking (it's a start), escape, scenery and singalongs.

mothernerd

End of the month round up. Didn't have as many NSDs as I was hoping for (aiming to do 3 big shops a month and use up some of the stores before I need to start building up for next winter) but now on 16 and no reason why today and tomorrow should not be 17 and 18. Some extra spend days were down to mum mess-ups, most notably running out of essential meds (and the injuries I sustained during the 3 taxi, one bus and lots of hobbling marathon have dominated the rest of the month) and her inability to think ahead (assuming I will 'pop' out to hand deliver a birthday card, produce bouquets of flowers and get them to the recipients - or get them from a shop that has been closed for the past 5 years). Life has changed and I am far less able than I was.

Did good work in the garden (digging, painting, moving heavy stuff) and mum has created her own little 'grottery' (fairies and animals - some cute, some horrible and far too many but better outside than in) by the side of the house (heavy moving done by me and all the bulbs were planted by me). Just received a pack of flower seeds which I will sprinkle on all her pots as one of her surprises. She has decided the old tree stump holding the bird 'table' can go - to my great relief as I wondered how it would impact on the raised beds. It was 'designed' to let smaller birds feed and keep the wood pigeons out. It was an old plastic tray with a chicken wire cage about 3" above it with small entrance holes. Worked well at first but the wood pigeons jumped up and down on the wire to force it down, the tray is broken and discoloured to a dirty grey. All the termitey things that live in the stump ate half my cabbages before they had a chance.

Have had lots of aches and pains but did a lot of pacing myself and resting and should be happy with what I have managed. Trying not to think about where I would be in an ideal world. I thank you for all your support as I struggle to continue 'living with mother'. She is determined to find things to moan about especially things I do and at times it has 'got' to me. however rose and reading mothernerd is in the ascendant (especially when I have my raised beds and the polytunnel established and can be outside more often). Mum referred to 'your shed' the other day so I have possession of the shed and I may paint it pale blue inside (I'm not buying new paint, it will have to be pale blue unless I can access the sage I have at home).


I have done a lot more cooking and am being very creative with leftovers and hidden freezer gems. Weight is not good but I have been eating a lot more veg. I have done well on curtailing some bad habits that were creeping in. Some need more work but I have cut back. I would like to do a week making 'tin based' meals (useful practice for being unable to access fresh supplies and would reduce the tin stockpile), but I feel I am trying to do a lot of different things at once so I may add it to the meal plan as a once a week thing. 

My room is still a wip. I have remade the bed from scratch at least twice, moved the mattress (bed and mattress as well). Cleared parts of it but never all the lot. I have a lot of things here from my house - most of my clothes, paperwork, embroidery, sewing and craft supplies. However I also have all mum's paperwork, her excess bedding supplies,her towels, some of the food, a fridge freezer (was DS2's and I love it but I had to have it in here), multiple handbags and toiletry bags and loads of other stuff that isn't really needed but she won't let go of. I have bought a lot of books during lock down (also have a DS2 full height bookshelf), I'm growing seeds on the windowsil and have bags of my tools, garden stuff plus necessities like pills (prescription and OTC), creams, first aid stuff, masks, notebooks, the laptop, a couple of garden chairs (no workspace so holding stuff as I get it up off the floor and until recently 20 jigsaws.

Decluttering has happened and is continuing.Finally parted with my painting dress and fluffy boots, reusing lots of plastic bottles as small plant pots for potting on (and some more bird feeders If I ever get round to painting them. 

I think I may need a reset. According to various pinterest bloggers I need 15/ 18/ 27 or 39 lists to sort out my whole life. 39? That's at least 3 new notebooks and probably take from here to the next festive season. Will root out my old 'in crisis/ overwhelmed' one - that only has 6 lists and a very slow down, this is where you are, this is what you need right now and then taking it one step at a time attitude. Will start by prioritising me first, second and third and having fun.

Thank you so much for challenge Dr Carrie. As usual any shortcomings are my own. let's just say i have had a difficult month but I am making progress.