From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

rtandon27

Greying_Pilgrim said:

...I did watch the football, but again, was left wondering why I bother...

OH subjected me to this bit of 'entertainment' as well and I vocalized what you have written above - he was generally unimpressed by my comment.  I decided to waste my own time playing a game on my phone - brain was not fit for much more after a long day yesterday!

beanielou

Not sure if this is helpful GP. 

rtandon27

Ooo - that is quite a deal on rice! - If I'd not just bought a huge bag of jasmine, OH would have been sent on a mission tomorrow.

badmemory

Isn't that typical when it is very recent that I bought a 5kg bag.  Identical bag!!!

Greying_Pilgrim

Ooooh, Thanks beanie.  It is always useful to know about such things.  Thank you for thinking of me/all of us - mucho appreciated!

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Afternoon MFW'rs

I am just back from a gallivant around in the rain on t'other side of town.  Thankfully, for the most part I was in the car.   I'll give you three guesses who put a wash on this morning without consulting the forecast, and who had literally just pinned out the last sock when the first raindrop..... dropped 🙄

Anyhoo, I went to MrT as I was that side of town.  I do not like our MrT.  It is a large store, but not humungous, but everyone gets very bargy and it just makes it an unpleasant place to be.  However, they did actually have what I went for, in stock.  I did notice - and redo may say that this has been on for quite a while - but I did notice that they still had the La1la brand GOLD basmati on CC promo for £15/10kg which is a £7 saving on non CC price.  I didn't buy any, but was amazed that the particular branch had any in stock.  They are usually not very good at the 'world foods' promos.  I did pick up a couple of tins of red kidney beans tho, in the MrT valoo range, at 33p a tin.  Thank heavens not all supermercados have dispensed with RKB's in the valoo lines....... I'm looking at U MrS...........

I then popped into the small MrL.  It serves a different customer base than the store closer to home, but I always think the staff are all so nice in that store, so use it if I am in the area.  No £1.50 boxes (probably too late in the day or bought).

I then popped into Bee&eM.  Our store has changed, and it's really dialled back on the foodstuffs they sell.  Unfortunately, they didn't appear to be stocking the 5kg bags of La1la brand rice.  I did look throughout the whole store, as whilst they have mostly contained food into one area now (in terms of shelving), various promos were dotted about the store.  But I couldn't see any.  In fact, other than microwave pouches, there was no rice in the store.  I left empty handed (which is now a regular occurance with bee&eM - they are not as bargainacious as they once were).  As I was in the right retail park, i did duck into Farmf00ds.  Not alot going on in there (for me) today.  I did have a look around, and I picked up 2 x borlotti bean tins for 39p each.  I was behind some young people at the till, and they were purchasing cans of fizzy pop.  They were buying branded drinks, 2 x trays (would it have been 12 cans?  or 24?) and 3 x 4 packs of an sports sponsorship energy drink. I realise they could have been stocking up for 6 months, or going to a party, or purchasing for a youth club bar, but it cost over £36........  

I need to tot up what I have spent, as not all purchases were food related.  

Greying X

redofromstart

MrT do seem to have rolled out more world
foods into additional stores. I could only get the 2kg Laila chickpeas in store at the Uni town but not on home delivery which comes from the big city but now showing stock for me. £2.90/2kg (Laila offers run until 3rd Nov) so I need to stock up as they are weekly use for us and a better price than the natco. I really do rate the gold rice but I haven't tried the green.

Ive given up on Bee n M, same with h3ron - generally not worth the time to trail round for me.

themadvix

If it's any consolation (I doubt it!), I have washing on the line too that was nearly dry and is now rather wet again. I did manage to get yesterday's load in before it started (it having got soaked yesterday after I hung it out).

Greying_Pilgrim

Hey redo - our MrT (considering it's size) is dreadful with World Foods - there actually used to be more when the store was half the size at another location.  I tend to go to the mega store over at the cosmopolitan town across the way, when there are offers on.  But i was surprised to see the rice in stock (one bag) today.  Can't say as I noticed any pulses on offer, which just about sums up our store! In the 'conventional' spices/herbs aisle, I did spot that MrT's tubs of paprika (110g £1.65) were actually cheaper than buying 2 x 50g (85p) glass jars in MrL.  So whilst I would prefer to buy the bigger bags of spices, I won't be going to a World foods grocer anytime soon, so bought the plastic tub from MrT.

I heartily agree with you about Bee&em and Her0n - they are part of the same group now aren't they?  Bargains from the Her0n in the next market town along the way are pretty much limited to the occasional short-date item, or sometimes YS'd things.  I no longer 'make a bee-line', but pop in if passing.....

tmv - oh poor you 😕Wet or damp washing has always been the bane of my life.  That's why it's important I remember the days when I get a load washed and dried in one fell swoop, as damp and dismal autumn days just seem to double the workload.  At least the garden here (such as it is), is more conducive to drying clothes - the rental house garden/yard was surrounded by trees and buildings and got very little sunlight for the majority of the year 😕

Right, I have done my sums and I spent £27.34 out of the grocery budget (it sounds alot, but I did buy alcohol, on offer, so the amount is skewed), and then I spent £32 on children's clothes, but that comes out of CHB.

Ta for popping in.  Always nice to *see* you and have a natter 😁

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

Cold but bright with us.  I managed to get the washing out on the line again from mid-afternoon, yesterday.  The sun was very warm and there was a gentle breeze - but unfortunately, we're entering that time of year where the sun doesn't peek over the house as the afternoon moves on, so the 'beneficial' line space is diminishing day-by-day.  However, it was worth doing, as all the washing came in 'drier' than it went out.  I put it on the airer overnight and have pegged the majority of it out again this morning to 'finish off'.  Most of the clothes were now dry but not aired if that makes sense.  I washed the rest of LG's school clothes this morning (apart from today's) so we're ready to start the cycle again, at least, on Monday.  I have a small whites wash on now , and that will more or less mean the useable space on the lines are full once pegged out.  Fingers crossed the weather is conducive to drying DH's workwear over the weekend.  

LG had pesto pasta and pizza for tea last night.  DH and I had mushroom & chickpea murgh makhani and basmati rice.  Tea tonight will be veggie sausage hot dogs and oven chips.  

Just broke off to peg the whites out - give them maximum drying time.  The sun was blissfully warming..... c-c-c-c-cold everywhere else tho 😕

I need to sort out the under counter cupboards today.  There are only 2 and all the food tins/packets go there.  I am reasonably sure stuff gets used in rotation, but i just want to check nothing has 'fallen out of sight' and that I've not missed to use something.  I have my tall spice jars (formerly roasted red pepper jars - when I used to be able to afford to buy them), in a MrL sturdy green box and just pull that forward when I am after spices.  I should get hold of one to put all the flasks and water bottles in too.  DH is a pain for just leaving them on the side after they have been used and washed up.  I'm sure if they were contained together, it would make life easier.  The kitchen units are old - and I mean probably original to the house old - and don't have any sophisticated swings, levers, push or pull shelves or integrated lazy susan's - and I wouldn't be surprised if (even if they were in pristine condition, which they most certainly are not), it's impossible to retro-fit them.  So heath-robinson to the fore, we'll make do and mend.  I'm capable of reaching a balance between storing too much and having 'nothing' edible in the house, but I will hold my hands up at being less than average at organising what I do have, and therefore making best and most timely use of it.  For sure I could get better at that.  The freezer sort the other day proved that I have a nice balance between homemade 'ready' meals and components bought for convenience, so I need to ensure that my ingredients/stores are illustrating the same usefulness.  

Right. best get shifting a tail-feather.  The cupboards won't sort themselves. 

Greying X