Small steps lead to big changes...

jwil

satchmo1 said:

Toasted pumpkin seeds are yum. Just heat them in a non-stick frying pan until they start to pop, and they're done.

Thank you, I'll try that!

beanielou said:

Well done to DH 

Hurrah indeed!

jwil

Today's PAD - £2 

Jan - £113

jwil

Well I've managed to knock over 2 hrs off my time today thanks to taking a 2 hr lunchbreak.  I'd taken an hour, and then I had a call to help a relative who had broken down in their car so retrieved them from the garage and returned them home.  That used up another hour.  I've got just under 5 more to lose now!

There were loads of surveys available today and I missed out on them all as I was too busy.  I can't be bothered to see if they are there now, want to come away from the computer.

Not much else to report.  Hope everyone is well.

Sun_Addict

How much flexi can you carry over, we can carry over 22 hours. I’m on 15 at the moment which is the amount I like to have in reserve just in case. 

Humdinger1

Sun_Addict said:

How much flexi can you carry over, we can carry over 22 hours. I’m on 15 at the moment which is the amount I like to have in reserve just in case. 

A different kind of emergency fund @Sun_Addict? Xx

savingholmes

Well done on the PADs and decluttering. Glad DH is getting with the programme.

Sugar snap peas or carrot batons can be a nice healthy snack. Celery with cream cheese or just salt.

dawnybabes

Popcorn or frozen grapes here 😀

EssexHebridean

Another way to think about snacks is how satisfying they are for you - it might be as stereotypically healthy as you like, but if it's not what you really want, then you'll potentially end up eating the "healthy" thing and still ending up with the thing you really want as well. If I am craving something savoury then a small bag of crisps, a small piece of cheese, or a spoonful of peanut butter (how on earth can you never have tried pb? It's (probably) the best food in the world! ) often ticks the boxes for me. Hummus too - that's lush, but for me that's more of a meal component than a snack. If something sweet, then a couple of squares of high cocoa percentage dark chocolate - nibbled and allowed to melt slowly in the mouth - or some dried fruit often works. Learning to listen to what your body wants and working with it can be a game changer though - and a small amount of the thing you're craving can be more effective than all the "Low fat, low salt, slow sugar, low taste" snacks in the world! 

Loving the idea of a flexi-time emergency fund! 

Oh - and wow to your January PAD total so far - that's some going! 

jwil

Sun_Addict said:

How much flexi can you carry over, we can carry over 22 hours. I’m on 15 at the moment which is the amount I like to have in reserve just in case. 

20 hours.  I'd managed to get to over 27.  It's nice to always keep a balance enough to have a couple of days off if necessary but I let this get out of hand without really noticing.  I build it up less since I've been doing compressed hours so had stopped really looking at it!

savingholmes said:

Well done on the PADs and decluttering. Glad DH is getting with the programme.

Sugar snap peas or carrot batons can be a nice healthy snack. Celery with cream cheese or just salt.

dawnybabes said:

Popcorn or frozen grapes here 😀

Thank you both, good ideas!  Frozen grapes!  I've got a punnet that I haven't eaten, I'd forgotten about putting them in the freezer, I'll do that, thank you

EssexHebridean said:

Another way to think about snacks is how satisfying they are for you - it might be as stereotypically healthy as you like, but if it's not what you really want, then you'll potentially end up eating the "healthy" thing and still ending up with the thing you really want as well. If I am craving something savoury then a small bag of crisps, a small piece of cheese, or a spoonful of peanut butter (how on earth can you never have tried pb? It's (probably) the best food in the world! ) often ticks the boxes for me. Hummus too - that's lush, but for me that's more of a meal component than a snack. If something sweet, then a couple of squares of high cocoa percentage dark chocolate - nibbled and allowed to melt slowly in the mouth - or some dried fruit often works. Learning to listen to what your body wants and working with it can be a game changer though - and a small amount of the thing you're craving can be more effective than all the "Low fat, low salt, slow sugar, low taste" snacks in the world! 

Loving the idea of a flexi-time emergency fund! 

Oh - and wow to your January PAD total so far - that's some going! 

Thank you   That's good advice as ever.  You are right, I do tend to eat tonnes of the 'healthy' option and then go and binge on what I wanted anyway.  So I do try and go for what I'd like as a general rule.  I'm just slipping into the habit of grazing again, and for convenience, that tends to be lots of chocolate.  So for the sake of my blood sugars and my health I do need to resolve that!  Maybe my focus should be on increasing the size of my meals so I'm less inclined to snack.  It's getting back to that old nugget of planning and preparation again which is where I constantly fall down!

Peanut butter - when I was young, I used to absolutely hate the smell of it when friends had it in their sandwiches so I've never been inclined to try it.  It's not something that was ever purchased in our house.

The pads have been suitably bulked up with the survey withdrawal so that's nice  

jwil

Today's PAD - £5 (lottery win), yesterday £2, Tuesday £2

Jan - £122