Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

Onebrokelady

Love Hollyhocks. Someone has got some in their garden on my road and they always cheer me up when the flower. I had a nice surprise today when I noticed that the white Hellebores had actually flowered, thought they had died so was quite excited to see they are still there 😊

Humdinger1

Late to the party @foxgloves but may I say that I also love your gardening chat! Inspiring yet real, like your whole diary in fact.  Love Humdinger xx 

marionmgcars

I was checking my local supermarket for some Seville oranges, as I’ve never made marmalade.  But my local shops did not have any.  I was delighted when I was given 3 x 1.5k , so I made my first batch yesterday.  😊  

In my “too good to go” box from A**I there was a poorly basil plant, but my partner has rescued it and repotted, and looks as tho it might survive .  I love it when plants are rescued. 

foxgloves

@Onebrokelady - Yes, I have always liked hollyhocks. They are so tall that they often peep over fences & provide a nice floral screen. Hellebores can be a bit sniffy, can't they? The indigenous 'Foetida' variety seeds itself around my garden & does well, but the more ornamental ones often die right down to barely more than a leaf or two & I'm convinced they've carked it. I have a pink one & a maroon one which having done just that, have now decided they are going to flower, so that was a nice surprise.

@Humdinger1 - Thanks for your positive comment.

@marionmgcars - Yay! You are now a marmalade-maker! I like rescuing plants too. One of my best ones was a big end of season geranium which was sitting on the plant hospital shelf at the garden centre. I paid either £1 or £2 for it (can't remember which) thinking it looked just kind of a bit 'wrong' for a single plant. When I got it home & tipped it out, it was 3 separate plants in one pot & I grew them on separately, one each for me, my sis & best friend. 

F

foxgloves

Hello Tuesday Savers,
I have had a very unexciting day of pottering about doing bits & pieces - I often find I achieve more in this way than if I made an actual list. An annoying drizzle put pay to gardening plans, but there's always another day. Anyway, onto today's small budget-helping positives:
*Sorted this week's clean laundry & was delighted to find only a handful of items required ironing.
*Did a few surveys, but not a lot around for me today. Every little helps though.
*Watered propagator pots & the first tiny chilli seedlings are just starting to poke through.
*Paid a couple of transactions off my CC.
*Set Thursday 15th as my Mid-Month Budget Check-In day.
*Meal replacement for lunch.....as in I replaced my lunch with.....pancakes! Mr F doesn't eat them, & I went over a decade thinking it's not worth making them just for me, then decided a while back that I would just make a small amount of batter & continue enjoying an old tradition which we always did at home growing up. Not exactly expensive or difficult - all store cupboard ingredients. 
*We do often do Valentine's cards, but this year, we decided to hang onto our Spends. Instead, I have secretly baked a batch of shortbread hearts this morning & have put some in a little box for Mr F, tied with a red ribbon. (I have read through this sentence twice & can't decide if it sounds as though I have tied Mr F up with red ribbon!)
*Made tomorrow's packed lunch & breakfast (plus there is the box of heart biscuits for coffee break).
*Found half a savoy cabbage lurking in the veg baskets. Perfectly good condition but it won't get eaten in the next few days so prepped & froze it.
*Sorted out meal plans for next week. Feb grocery budget a lot lower than I would like so will be looking to creativity to keep next week's shopping list tight when I write it tomorrow.
*Looked at the info Mr F pinged me about this month's pay rise, which will also involve several months of back-pay. Need to allow extra time for my next Big Budget Day so as to make sure we make the best use of that.
Right, I think that is all my frugal-ish bits & bobs for today. I need to go & sort the kitchen out after this morning's baking so I will give the cats their afternoon treats. Earlier Ash took exception to the fact that he wasn't offered a pancake, so he started playing up with attention-seeking behaviour, while Soot, the black mini-panther/tummy-on-legs- combo wasn't remotely bothered about them. I have the final CD of an audiobook to listen to, so will get on with that at the same time. I love audiobooks because they mean I can get through twice as many books that way!
Wishing everyone a calm journey homewards & a peaceful evening....with or without pancake yumminess.
F x

Sun_Addict

Middle of the month already, I’m still getting used to it not being January anymore 😆

We are all imagining Mr F tied neatly up with red ribbon while you eat pancakes 🤣

foxgloves

@Sun_Addict - Don't give him ideas, lol!
F

kayannie

@foxgloves When I had a dog, I always made him a pancake. As soon as I started cooking them, he wouldn't leave my side until I gave him one!

Have you read anything by Amanda Jennings? I've only just discovered her books, mainly set in Cornwall, & now I'm binge reading them! KA

Blackcats

Yep it does sound like MrF and red ribbon rather than shortbread and red ribbon.  I think you've just fessed up to your Valentines Day "treat" for Mr F 😉

Onebrokelady

I didn't have pancakes this year as I couldn't be bothered to make them just for me. I should have really because I was only able to buy a dozen eggs in my shopping today as that was the last box left 😳 I think if I'm going to go into town shopping I need to go early