From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

Greying_Pilgrim

redofromstart said:

Just a quick post to say that I was posting about pulses for @missymoo81 when I spotted that MrS have lots of Laila pulses half price nectar offer.  The smaller kilo bags so should be easier to find than the huge bags.  

You may already know this and have posted it, but my 'heads a shed' at the moment and I don't recall having seen anyone post it.  It'll certainly help my budget.

Thanks love, I wasn't aware of that.  Appreciated.

Greying X

missymoo81

Hey @greying_pilgrim I have not long found your diary but have been devouring it and am up to page 72! Loving all of the money saving, line drying and swede recipes. Will hopefully get to the current page 300 at some point. Just wanted to say hi!

Greying_Pilgrim

Hey missymoo81 - lovely to see ya, fancy me being the crowned queen of Sweden 🤣 Ooooh lofty heights 😁 And hopefully you know me well enough to know that I am severely pulling mine own leg 😁🤣👍 Anyhoo, welcome - and if you have any interesting recipes for the 'less glamorous' veg, please share, I'm always on the lookout 😁

redo - I am officially dim.  I took advantage of the La1la offer in MrS earlier in July - it's what I spent my £9.10 of bulk budget on - bags of the green lentils.  And I even moaned, because the current n*ctar offer was better than the offer on at the time of Ramadan.  But thank you - as ever - for mentioning it, and I know you mention when MrT have offers on for pulses.  I greatly, greatly appreciate all help from the forum on sourcing ingredients at good prices - so the fact that you took the time to pop by and let me know is so very kind.  Ta 😁

We did a shop yesterday - it counts as the August shop, as we haven't used anything of it in July.  I'm amazed that I managed to finish July with approx. a fiver in hand.  The less said about the non-food budget being doubled, is the better 🫤  I mean, over the course of the year, it all evens out, and I have been 'under' £50 for all the other months of 2025 I think, but it is shocking how soaps, haircuts and medicines adds up very quickly.  

So I went to MrL, MrS and hB yesterday.  In total, I spent £46.70.  I got some qu0rn cocktail sausages and some mozzarella cheese slices YS'd from MrL and hb respectively.  Actually, thinking about it, I used the sausages with pasta for tea last night, and some of the cheese for a picnic lunch, so maybe I ended up July with £3ish in hand - but still - I'll take that.  All the sausages are gone, there is a slice or two of cheese left.

LG had been getting better, and I thought we were past the bug.  I still actually think we are, but LG is currently worrying (unnecessarily) about something, so we had a bit of an upset stomach episode yesterday again.  We were away from the house, so it wasn't ideal, but we 'managed' it, and actually it didn't spoil anything, and it didn't curtail anything.  We're absolutely prioritising hydration, hygiene and happy attitude.  

So yesterday, we went out with a chum.  The weather had been forecast wall-to-wall rain, then it changed to showers and breezy.  Had it been wet, we were going to go to the cinema, but our chums preference was for a NT property, so as the weather was better, we went for the outdoor option, and chose the 'more interesting' of  two local options.  Our friend drove, and we used one of our newspaper vouchers to get in.  The weather was glorious.  We explored the grounds, had our picnic - eventually finding a location where the wasps let us alone - and then explored the building and finally ended up at the play park.  Our friends are such good company - and we're on the same page with things such as budgeting etc.  It's great that the kiddos get on, they know each other through club, rather than school, but you can't have everything, can you?

Tea last night was sausage pasta - crowd pleaser.  LG had a modest portion.  They fell asleep straight away after tea (we did eat later), but a day with full on racing around, chatting and having fun with a chum, after a period of illness probably wore them out.  At least they have had a good night's sleep and certainly seem brighter this morning.  🫰we're done with this damn bug now.

We'll hopefully get out of the house today.  The weather is slated to be relatively neutral, which means it'll probably be broiling 🙄

Can't think of anything else MSE to report.  I must adjust my siggie figgies for the new month.  

Thanks for being here, and helping me out and telling me about special offers.  It is super appreciated, please know that.  

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

We took our lunch out for a pootle.  We went via the country lanes of my (misspent) youth in Young Farmers 😉 I have to say, not alot has changed.  Although folk turning signs around or snapping 'em off is blessed annoying.  Thankfully I had my trusty 0S map and at least a sense of where we were when we went wrong the first time.  We headed to a tiny wee country church.  It was so lovely and quiet, with the exception of the swallows swooping high and low.  The church is open, but we wondered why there were voices coming from it, for the longest while - whilst we sat outside on a bench.  Turns out (we spotted on the noticeboard), that there is to be a wedding there in the morning, so the flower arrangers were in, doing their 'thang'.  

We returned via the 'quicker' route, which wasn't as chocca as I expected (thankfully), and then rejoined the back route into Greying Town.

LG drank all their water, and ate all their lunch, which was an improvement on yesterday. 

We're very blessed to have a speck of fuel and a car to go out and about for a pootle, I realise that.  Plus - although sometimes LG going "what are we going to do now/today/tomorrow" can be a bit annoying, I do also recognise that I'm blessed to have a child that is relatively content to go out for a pootle, with no real intention/destination/gift shop in the mix, and still be happy to have done and/or seen something and had their lunch (such as it was), with a different view.  

I think I'm going to do plant balls in tommie sauce for tea.  I need to make a vat of tommie sauce - although woe is me, I've no carrots (may have to raid the bag of mixed veg and hoik some out) - as I've no sauce for pizza topping/to put in the freezer for impromptu bolognese etc, so best get on and fire up the PrC.  

Greying X

Watty1

LG's lovely attitude has reminded me of something I read years ago.  I was thinking, whilst catching up on here that I could learn a lot from that attitude, of just going somewhere different to sit on a bench and eat lunch.  Just a different view to enjoy.     Many years ago whilst with PPH I read about the idea of "Mini Adventures" little spots of something different that may only take 15 mins to an hour that we could all fit into a day.   PPH was not interested but LG's view of the bench and the church and lunch is just lovely and reminded me of that.  

I need to fit more mini adventures into my life.  Thank you

rtandon27

ooo - I love the thought of a mini adventure - what a lovely idea!

Watty1

There are some lovely lists for inspiration on line @rtandon27    One I really liked and I'm going to try with the VNM (and LG might like on a rainy day) is a virtual tour of museums around the world

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/nwWRKBBnEBSGKg

(I've just had a very quick look at the artwork in the State Russian Museum, I'm not going to get there anytime soon but that was a fun browse) 

And there is a lot of interesting stuff on there including historical figures and so on, I'm now thinking I will have fun with this site (I'd forgotten about it so thank you!)

badmemory

That sounds an excellent idea.  Especially about places most of us will never be able to see like Russia.  My parents went many many years ago & even raved about a railway station being just like being inside a museum.

Cherryfudge

Ooh, I must investigate that @Watty1! Some time ago I did a virtual tour of somewhere - might have been Barcelona, as we went there IRL in a rain storm so only got to see bits - and I still get their emails. You can go on guided tours of all sorts of places. The one I did had some technical problems but the guide was good. It would also be useful preparation for someone planning to visit a city on holiday or for business, or to back up a school project.

Greying_Pilgrim

Watty - that's how I certainly try to 'frame' it - as a mini adventure.  We haven't been to that location since 2021/22 🤔 - LG didn't remember being there anyway.  I did have to laugh to myself, as we took a wrong turn (due to some fool altering the road sign), but I had my suspicions that we were on the wrong road, as there was grass growing in the middle of the lane we were on 🤣  I've lost count of the amount of times I've been navigating with DH driving, and I've taken us down anonymous country lanes, and grass growing in the middle is a staple 🤣 The only thing that is not gelling this holiday is LG writing up their diary - whether the adventure is big or small ☹️

But it is amazing what there is to see - whether you're out in the countryside or in an urban setting, although I suppose it helps to be interested/intrigued by 'the small stuff', whether that's plants and animals, landscapes, patterns, sounds......  We did see some lovely houses and properties yesterday - one property had a thatched roof.  Thatched roofs are present in our area - but not abundantly so, but what was interesting with this thatch was that it was so 'crisp' and 'sharp', it really was a 'Ladies day' at the races hat atop the house, if you see what I mean.  The thatch beautifully contoured around windows, and overlapped the walls, a real 'topper'.

We've got an issue at the mo with LG sabotaging their experience due to anxiety.  They are ducking out of events or adventures because of other kids behaviour; or anxieties about 'what happened last time I went to..[insert activity]' 🙄  Grrrr, I wish confidence was easy to teach.  Mind, is confidence the key to tackling arrogance, self absorption, selfishness of others?  I don't know.  We had the opportunity yesterday to climb up some ricketty-racketty stairs, to a ricketty-racketty upper floor, having to go through darkness, before you stepped out into the light.  LG wouldn't have done it, but I walked up behind them, encouraged, and advised and they made it up.  I can't say that they were fully comfortable, but they did it - and they returned down (without assistance).  We've got to keep plugging away at these little steps, as whilst I don't want LG to be 'blind' to dangers, left to their own devices they will shy away from trying out new experiences.  

Sunshine with us.  I've a general clothes wash on, might have to delay pegging out, as next door have their gardener round and there seems to be an awful lot of dust, fumes and detritis generated when they get their lawns mowed, given that they leave it months in between having it done.  I think they're leaving though (rental) so this is probably the handover prettifying - and actually needn't last long, as the 'grounds' are postage stamp size.

I might do pizza and wedges for tea.  LG was supposed to be elsewhere tonight, but they've bailed, so I need to revise plans and cater for us all, whilst keeping one eye on what would be more suitable for LG to eat with no after effects.  

DH has gone out to pick up some bits and pieces.  The weather actually looks to be changing, and I still can't peg out yet 🫤  Ah well, no matter.  

Can't think of anything else MSE orientated, so will push orf.  Ta for popping in.

Greying X