Mrs. P's Savings, Paying Off CC, being more organised diary

MrsPorridge

NSD 4

Weather dry but very overcast.  Managed a walk around the village.

Breakfast was toasted teacake, lunch leftover cold chicken and leftover heated up roast potatoes with some cranberry sauce.  Tea tonight is home made tuna pasta bake with garlic bread.

Some washing done and a bit of tidying up.

Money checked and shuffled around.

We are away on Sunday for 4 nights, going to Blackpool (haven’t been for 30 years) to see the lights.  We are stopping in a travel lodge –all prepaid.  I did a bit of sorting out what I want to take.  We are taking food with us for breakfast and a couple of lunches.

MrsPorridge

NSD 5

A sunny day today for a change.  I planted out 6 broad bean plants which were in the greenhouse, they were about 10” tall.  Hopefully they will survive the winter – we don’t often have frost, so we will see – a bit of an experiment.

Breakfast was crumpets, egg and bacon, late lunch was stew and dumplings.  For supper, if we are hungry we’ll have the last of the roast chicken in a sandwich.

MrsPorridge

NSD 6

We have started taking an electric meter reading each week.  Once a month I submit it online.  We can’t have a smart meter as it cannot pick up a signal where we live.  It’s interesting because a few months ago we were told we had to pay £165 per month on our projected useage.  I kept it at £100 a month which is what we have been paying for the past year.  When I checked on our account today our usage has dropped and we could pay £78 per month!  But, I will keep it at £100 just in case.  We are several hundred pounds in credit.  Normally I would be phoning them up for a refund but I think its better to keep it in there at the moment.  I think we may be using more in January/February.  Our heating is on the oil, so the electricity we will use in the winter will be for our electric fire and the underfloor heating in the kitchen.  Will be interesting to know how much that uses.  We are going to put the kitchen flooring heating on in December.

This afternoon a walk down into the village to get DH’s prescription.  Sunny, but a bit breezy.

DH has used some more of the wood given to him by the neighbour to make a stand for the Christmas tree.  He is also going to make me some wooden tea light holders.  I love it when we make stuff from the items we already have.  We are really turning into make do and mend people.  A few years back I would have just gone out and bought what I wanted with little regard to cost. 

Breakfast was porridge with berries.  For lunch I made some carrot and parsnip soup and put a small tin of coconut milk I found lurking at the back of the cupboard in as a bit of an experiment, success it tasted delicious.  Tea tonight is yellow stickered cheese and onion crispbakes with oven chips and some baked beans – comfort food.

MrsPorridge

NSD 7

Very mixed weather today, one minute torrential rain and the next brilliant sunshine, so lots of rainbows.

I did do a wash this morning and its drying on horses.

Lots of sewing also done.  This afternoon I’m off to my friends for more sewing with a bit of gossip thrown in.

Breakfast was pikelet with poached egg, lunch cheese and crackers and tonight its spinach and lentil pie with mash.

EssexHebridean

Any form of electric heating powered by peak rate electricity (ie rather than  storage heating running on an Economy 7 or similar tariff) is about the most expensive way possible to heat your home I'm afraid. If you have a means of using central heating in the rooms with those forms of heating, it would be far more cost effective to use that as I understand it!

MrsPorridge

NSD 7

Went out yesterday and bought a few more foodie bits and bobs for Christmas.

Was a bit naughty and bought another Christmas tree (I now have 4).  Couldn’t resist, was a lovely lime green colour sounds dreadful but looks amazing for £10 from B&Q.  I love Christmas and the decorations.

Today we have lots of rain and very black skies.

The dining room has been cleaned and had a bit of a move around.

The silver candelabra (sounds very grand but is plate and Mum bought it using Green Shield stamps) has been cleaned and I put some silver candles in I bought yesterday from Mr. T.

A good hoover around downstairs.

Breakfast was porridge and berries, lunch is home made veggie wraps with salad.  Tonight we will have open salad sandwiches.  We are out later to hear some singers and included in the ticket is a pasty, but we won’t be eating that till about 9pm.

MrsPorridge

EssexHebridean said:

Any form of electric heating powered by peak rate electricity (ie rather than  storage heating running on an Economy 7 or similar tariff) is about the most expensive way possible to heat your home I'm afraid. If you have a means of using central heating in the rooms with those forms of heating, it would be far more cost effective to use that as I understand it!

Yes, you are right EH.  We are thinking we may not use the electric flooring this year, but will see how cold it gets.

MrsPorridge

NSD 8

Lovely and sunny today, but the temperature has dropped.  I am wearing my black thermal top with long sleeves which keeps me really warm.  In the evenings or when I’m not “running around” doing housework I just pop a cardi on top.  So far its doing the trick.

Making use of having the oven on I cooked two sponges and a very large sausage plait – which I bulked out with onions and breadcrumbs.

Breakfast was home made toasted teacakes, lunch soup and tonight we’ll have some of the sausage plait and oven chips.

MrsPorridge

NSD 9

Back from our few days away.  Was really lovely to get away and relax.  We did go slightly over budget, but wasn’t as bad as it could have been.  We made use of a Whetherspoons near our Travel Lodge for evening meals.

On our way home we stopped off at M&S and I bought some nice foods there.  I also saw two lovely blouses which DH bought for me.  I can’t remember the last time I actually bought clothes as I mostly try and make as much as I can.  I really do like these – they have embroidery on them and have a bit of a Tyrollean look.

An NSD today to get myself back in the mindset.

I’ve done a Sainsbogs order for delivery on Wednesday.  I’ve bitten the bullet and ordered lots of Christmas stuff as well as food for December.  Hopefully that is it now.  All I do need to get some odds and ends form Lidls and then the fresh veg nearer the big day.  DS will be home, so there is only the 3 of us and it makes for a nice relaxing day. 

Today I’ve done:

Meal planning for the next two weeks

Online shop

Watered and checked all plants in the greenhouse and garden (although the ones in the garden didn’t need any water)

Things to do:

Hoover

Unpack

Put some washing on

A walk as its sunny at the moment

Breakfast was pancakes as we had some milk which was one day past its sell by to use up, lunch is quiche and tonight we are having pork medallions in sauce (from M&S) with bubble and squeak (from the freezer) and some bread.

Makingabobor2

Glad you had a good time away. It is nice to relax isn't it?  Bubble & squeak.....ooh, not had that for a while, and must admit I had never thought of freezing it. Good idea.