From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

Greying_Pilgrim

Right, back from shopping.  I didn't set out first thing (pegged a washing load out), but it does seem to take a disproportionately long time to do a bit o' shopping.  

Tea bags had gone up 10p in MrL, and milk is now £1.75 for 4 pints in MrS 😱I'm sure the oven chips I buy in MrS have gone up too, but they were n*ctar priced, so that cushioned the blow a little.  I did consider buying the makain equivalent, as they were only 40p dearer (bag marginally bigger too), but then I figured my 'offers' would be awash with branded promotions then - despite the fact I rarely buy branded stuff from MrS.  

Total food spend was £56.77, but that did include a tiny re-stock of tea, coffee and hot chocolate (£1.99 for MrL own brand 😱), so although it's high, it's making up for the previous low-spend months that ate into stores.  I also spent £2.87 on 'non' food - some more food storage boxes for the freezer and 2 packets of soap in hB.  

No boxes in either shop today.  

Tea tonight will be 'hotch-potch' as LG is out to club.

Can't think of anything else MSE to add. So I'll amend my siggie figgies, put the rest of the shopping away and saddle up shank's pony to go into town.

Greying X

EssexHebridean

Staffordia said:

I can't wait for the extra bins we're receiving next year, I just hope our local 'binfluencer' has a handle on which bin needs putting out. 

Ha - thank goodness for Binfluencers - our neighbour across the road is ours - none of the rest of us bother worrying about which week it is as we just wait until Dan's done his!  

I walked out of a car dealers some year ago when the sale agent continually kept talking to MrEH and ignoring me. He'd been told twice (once by me, and once by MrEH) that it was me buying the car, not himself, but he chose to ignore that, so I just walked off. When he blustered and asked me where I was going, I said I was bored with being ignored when I'd gone in fully intending to spend several thousand pounds, and so he could keep his cars... 

Watty1

I used to follow the neighbour "binfluencer" till the day he got it wrong - now I look it up.  As a result I think I have become the "binfluencer here"

Years ago wanted to install a riding arena at the cottage.  Got out the required 3 for the quotes, all 3 spoke to PPH not me. Despite to his credit him telling them I was (a) making the decision and (b) paying.  A random conversation with a gardener said he met someone in a petrol station who installed them and next time he saw said chap he would get the phone number.  This chap eventually was located and turned up.  No glossy brochure, no big sales push - but - he was cheaper than the rest and he actually spoke to me, maintained eye contact. No patronising so he got the gig

Turned out to have worked for some of the biggest names in the equestrian world. Said he got most of his business by word of mouth.   

I have no idea why men don't get women hold up at least half the sky.

Greying_Pilgrim

Watty1 said:

I have no idea why men don't get women hold up at least half the sky.

Too right sister!  

EH - thank goodness you were able to take your hard-earnt cash elsewhere!  

So the good news is that all pending monies at the bank are all shopping related/accounted for and nothing has left my bank account that shouldn't.  I'm like to extend a VERY big thank you to all you lovely MSE'rs who popped in last week to calm me down, and explain how this all works, following the TL room booking saga.  It's a pity it happened, and TL have inconvenienced us slightly in that we've had to book accommodation that isn't quite as close to where we wanted to be, but hey, who knows, sometimes these things happen for a reason, and it has no longer dampened the holiday.  We're able to start our holiday a little earlier with a purple hotel stop, and extend it because of a little purple hotel stop at the end, so I'm looking forward to it all.  

I picked up a few bits in town from the smaller hB, which is better stocked at the mo.  I also got a top for LG from h&m.  I would have bought a nice pufffa too, but the one I was looking at seemed to have a dodgy zip (thank goodness I checked first), and I also noticed there was glue or something on the collar, so I left that there.  LG's clothes come out of CHB.  Must remember it's fees tonight for club too.  

Walking back I noticed a householder had put out some eating and cooking apples with a 'free' sign on them, so I took a selection of each.  I have eaten one of the eaters - luverly, and I plan to follow tmv's lead and open freeze the cookers.  They look beautiful and I'm pretty sure that if I made a crumble out of them, it would have a pink hue 😁

Right, best crack on with apple processing - it'll be time for the school-run afore I know it!

Greying X

rtandon27

@Greying_Pilgrim - TBH hun I think you are taking the correct approach and going with a company - one stop shop - unless you have prior experience with building project management or personally know the individual, a sole trader is not the way to go.

KajiKita

Does LG know about the upcoming holiday yet …? 😊

KK

Greying_Pilgrim

KajiKita said:

Does LG know about the upcoming holiday yet …? 😊

KK

No, I don't think so.  I'm in 2 minds whether to mention it.  I mean, I'd love them to get excited - but then would get fed up when they were over excited ..... for 3 more weeks........ 🤣  But also, I don't particularly want them to suffer other kids saying where they're going for the HT hols.  I mean, in theory there could be quite a few going to sun-kissed resorts elsewhere, and a week in the UK doesn't match up on paper.  The fact that I think we're going to have a fab and groovy time is immaterial.  I do think LG is going to like what we've planned. 

They actually said yesterday, "I wish you and dad weren't so old".  I assumed someone had been saying unkind things again, about how old I was and - shock horror - my 'old lady hair', but it seemed to boil down to the fact that LG loves that we go places and to see things, and they had so enjoyed their outing at the weekend with DH to support DH's work colleague in a hobby, that they wanted more trips and more outings - they didn't want them to stop 🥲 I said I hoped we could carry on visiting more places together and seeing and doing things - and for sure it was our plan to do these things for as long as LG wanted to accompany us.......

Greying X

KajiKita

Awwww …. 🤩

That sounds like an unconscious, retrospective, acknowledgment of how much thought and effort went into planning LG’s summer break too 😊❤️

KK

Blackcats

I'm relieved that all the never ending pendings have bogged off and left the £'s in your account intact.
i agree that it might be a bit too soon to do the big holiday reveal to LG.  3 weeks is a long time for them to wait.
could you do a series of clues for LG to solve in the last week of term?

Greying_Pilgrim

Blackcats - "never ending pendings"!  What a turn of phrase, I love that you've come up with that 🥰 I will certainly have a think about the 'dropping hints', although I must admit that the week before half-term has the potential to be loaded with things to do/stuff to complete/appointments to be met, so it may get lost in the melee.  It's only a short week too because of a PD day.  Thankfully though we've managed to book DH off, and have been gifted some free tickets to a local attraction, so the hols can start off with a whoosh 😁

Tea last night was lentil bolognese and pasta for LG and then DH and I had the leftover sweet potato and chickpea stew (I hadn't got round to eating it for lunch), with the bit of bolognese that was left over mixed in, and it was all 'knapped' 😉 across a couple of baked tatties 🥰  My favourite type of food.  Pud was yoghurt and banana for any who wanted, and we all had a square of 73% cocoa dark chocolate.  LG had sweetly bought me a bar (with their own pocket money), last weekend - and I'd managed to resist temptation, and only eat one square at a time, but had also shared with LG, and finally got round to ring-fencing a piece for DH!  But I think it's important to model sharing (even if it is good quality chocolate 🥰), because it's always amazed me how generous and willing to share LG is.  Besides which, I've reached a point in my life where pleasure has gone from my own "consumption", to sharing the event - whatever it is, small square of chocolate, a movie or a walk across the moors - with others.  Without mumma gogglers on, LG is a kind kiddo.  

DH and I managed to have a chat about the windows last night.  We've come up with which firm we want to investigate the work further with - I just need to check the actual spec of the windows are kind of 'up there' in energy efficiency terms.  We've got 1980's technology, and whilst I appreciate it was cutting edge at the time (we were still living in houses with single-glazed aluminium windows 😱), it's been superceded biggy time now. I've got in the back of my mind that A+ rated windows have to be fitted "as standard" now, but I need to check that is the case, and also, I know you can get A++ windows - is that rating reserved for triple glazed, or are there double-glazed windows that have that rating 🤔 Having been sold a pup once with DG, I don't want that to happen again.  Funnily enough, the company that employed the 'sales rep' is not getting the gig.......

I don't think I'll get any washing done today.  I don't think it is raining now, but we've certainly had rain overnight, and it seems very cold and damp.  

I'm thinking pizza and wedges for tea, as it's been a while since we've had pizza.  

Can't think of anything MSE to add at the mo.  But thanks for dropping in.  Appreciated.

Greying X