What Small Things Will You Do This Week 19/07

Bagpuss741

When we start out on the DFW trail we do loads of "big stuff" that makes quite a difference to our situation.  These include having our lightbulb moment, cutting up the credit cards and cancelling Sky and the gym.

But once we have done the bigger stuff, we often feel that we are not making the same amount of progress, when in fact the small steps are helping us form good financial habits and helping us get closer everyday to staying in control and becoming debt free, or staying debt free. 

Examples could be hanging washing out instead of using the tumble dryer or leaving your purse/wallet at home to avoid the risk of spending.   

So be proud of those small steps, they really are important 😀

Bagpuss741

Hope I haven't cross posted!

Today I have/will:

1.  Checked online banking

2.  Meals from stores

3.  Surveys

4.  Read free book

5.  Watered all plants ready for yet another boiling hot day

6.  Topped up all bird baths with fresh water

7.  Put bowls of water out for local cats that visit our garden

Bagpuss741

Today I have/will:

1.  Checked online banking

2.  Taken car for new tyre

3.  Filled all bird baths with water and put bowls of water out for local cats

4.  Meals from stores

5.  Surveys

6.  Watered all plants in pots

7.  Read free book

8.  PMP

carrielovesfanta

Hello?

Where is everyone? Far too hot to post probably!

Sorry for being awol for a few weeks. RL has been super busy - I'm not sure when my last post was? Brief recap on where we're at:

Keeping cool where we can
Windows and doors at the back of the house were replaced by the LL.
Call to locksmith at gone midnight last week as doors wouldn't lock
Window company man was an aubergine emoji....
Been spending too much on dinners and lunches (too much post-lockdown excitement!)
Bought a bike. It has been serviced and spruced up (outlay of £250 overall). This will save petrol as can use it for work. OH might even borrow it. Rode home last night and it took HOURS (although I was taking my time as didn't know the route and it was REALLY pretty. My butt hurts now.)

Sooo, proper list for today!
B/L/D from stores. Write out a meal plan. We were too hot to think about food last week so just grazed on bits
Big bunch of admin: renewed driving licence photocard; filing; dug out paperwork to send to my financial adviser; sorted another payment for a friend (big tax related story!); forwarded a letter to my LL, put some seeds with a letter (finally) for one of our MSE bunch; cut up old driving licence and popped in envelope to send to DVLA
Start of month budget sheet - made a start. Needs OH now.
Go to butchers with OH (or ride my bike??)
Washing out on line. Another wash in.
Nip to DIY shop for mission critical bits - done
Enjoy some knitting and chill out

Have a lovely one, keep cool

clf x

DawnW

Evening all

Sorry I have been awol this week, but not much going on tbh. OH got a temperature yesterday and had to go through all the rigmarole of getting a pcr test online, making him do it, packaging it up and posting it. Awaiting results. He probably hasn't got covid as he is double jabbed and we hardly go anywhere, but in the situation we are in, I felt obliged to follow the guidelines. His temp has gone now, but he says he feels washed out...

Anyway, we are both grounded till he gets his (hopefully negative) result, but I have:

Given the bathroom a really good clean - it is cooler today thank goodness. I couldn't be doing with housework in all that heat!

Picked runner beans for tonight's dinner and a few raspberries for breakfast tomorrow.

Sorted out some admin stuff and updated my spending diary.

Not spent anything.

Garden didn't need watering as we had quite a bit of rain overnight.

Not much, but better than nothing!

DawnW

Well, OH's covid test result came back negative, as I expected, so at least we don't need to isolate! He does however have some sort of infection in the upper part of his foot, which is probably what accounted for the temperature. It was very red, swollen and painful last night, but he took paracetamol and it has mostly gone down now, but is still tender. Need to keep an eye on that, and consult the doc if it continues to give problems. No idea what might have caused that.

Some useful stuff today:

Home grown raspberries with my cereal for breakfast

Dog walk once we had the negative test result - just me and the dog today though.

Printed out paperwork to return some t shirts that don't fit. I ordered 3, all the same size, from the same retailer. One fits fine, and the other two are huge and come down to my knees (and I am not especially short). I don't like things to be tight, but that is ridiculous. I will keep the one that fits and get a refund on the other two.

Usual kitchen / bathroom tidy up

Made a spinach and feta filo pie, and used some more of the pack of filo to line a quiche dish. Filled it with cheese, onion, tomato and courgette, then added the milk /eggs /cream mixture and baked. Fewer calories than shortcrust pastry, and no need to blind bake. Had some of the latter for lunch, with a salad.

Made a batch of tomato sauce (Hugh F-W's recipe using tinned tomatoes)

Mountain of washing up after all that cooking, filled the dishwasher and the sink   

A bit of weeding / tidying in the garden

Picked the first few tomatoes The plants are not good this year, due I think to bad compost (the bagged type, not home made) but we will have some.

Dinner will be chilli, rice and veg

And I will need to check whether anything else in the garden needs picking (the basil definitely does - I will make pesto tomorrow) and / or watering, and pack the unwanted t shirts ready to return tomorrow.