From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

Greying_Pilgrim

Ah, Ok - thank you Watty, greenbee and KajiKita - that's a shedload of ideas right there. We've not done fajitas I don't think - but as long as it's not too chillified (this sauce isn't supposed to anything other than mild), It think it might go down well with the troops 😁 I'll give it a go. Thanks for taking the time to make suggestions.

Tea is munched. I went for veggie sausage based dirty rice. I used the last 3 chorizo and red pepper sausages, cooked up and then sliced into 'coins'. I boiled up the rice, whilst cooking up some onion, garlic, mixed peppers and edaname bean, Mixed it all together and added some mild paprika paste and some chopped coriander. I shredded the last of the sprouts and steamed them Served it all up. Clean plates all round. LG and DH had the last of the crumble and some yoghurt for pud. I was too full.

We got our trousers splattered walking today, and LG dropped their backpack in a muddy spot, so I put them all through a wash when we got back. The dehu has been on for a couple of hours. I need to check, I don't suppose everything is bone dry, but hopefully they will be on their way to drying.

Thanks for popping by and for helping me with suggestions.

EDIT - I am stupid, I wrote in my previous post that I had bought Royal Cr0wn pinto beans on the 3for£1 offer - that's not right, I actually bought tinned borlotti beans on the 3for £1 offer. I've pinto beans on the brain as they're mentioned so often on US frugal blogs, but aren't as simple to get hold of here it seems - not for super cheap anyway. But I like borlotti, fresh and tinned, and that is what I bought today. Could make some re-fried beans to go with those fajitas 👍😁

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

Cold, slightly frosted start with us.

My previous post is still littered with mistakes. My keyboard based 'mouse' (it's probably called something more technical), is sticking all the time, and it's just causing chaos 🙄

Anyhoo, there was a splodge of the veggie packed tommie sauce included in 'dirty rice' last night too - it was more tomatoey/veggie than it would have been just from the pepper paste. And I made it sound like I used up the last veggie sausages in the house. Not true, I used the last 3 in the box, and stopped myself from opening another - and it was the right decision, there was 'enough' of everything in the rice.

I was catching up with peas etc vlogs last night and when some suggestions for other vlogs came up, I followed a link to a Korean-American lass (I think she's based in Spain, Barcelona?), and watched one of her vids on korean food and gut health. She has a very interesting and engaging style, I very much like her energy. She uses meat and fish, but is a cook (I think her background is food science), and she was talking about prepping food for lunches etc (cook once, eat 4 times or whatever). I'm really not sure about the fried egg on the bimbap being frozen, but then I don't like fried eggs at the best of times. but she was nattering about the benefits of eating 'mixed grains' over straight rice, and adding beans etc. It made me think about meals I prep. She seems to have done alot of videos, and does the same as sort of '100 hours in….' as Mr Bourdain did. She goes by the handle of Doobydobap on YT.

Day 2 of operation entertain kiddo. I think it will involve haircuts and then maybe popping to another NT place. My dilemma is that we will probably be going out with chums to another NT place later in the week, and I had hoped to go to an NT place as a family too - I don't want to use up the vouchers and then not be able to go with DH, but then I don't want to have any left over vouchers either. The weather ain't helping in that regard, as at present, today is the only day slated to be dry ☹️

I went to bed earlier last night, slept well, and still feel tired today. Is it OK to have a duvet day in half-term? Asking for a friend………. 🤭

So it's the beginning of the Year of the Horse. Isn't it supposed to be a good year, full of energy and all systems go? I'm struggling to break into a 'walk on…..' today 🫤

Tea will probably be soup. I'm not sure about pud though, as I don't think I am going to have time to make anything today.

I need to get a second cup of coffee, and get my thinking cap on. We'll achieve nothing otherwise.

Greying X

Cherryfudge

I went to bed earlier last night, slept well, and still feel tired today. Is it OK to have a duvet day in half-term? 

Asking for a friend………. 

🤭

Tell your friend, of course. When better?

themadvix

I use this recipe for fajitas - definitely adaptable (have done halloumi instead of beans - it is good Watty!): https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/veggie-fajitas.

I always think of fajitas as a buffet style meal - which I gather go down well in your house 😉

Also, our localKorean restaurant doesn’t put an egg on their bibimbap, so I’m guessing that’s a regional variation - so you do you! 😁

Blackcats

pancakes today for pud?

redofromstart

I think one day of every holiday should be a duvet day, especially in the colder months.

Mine just used to be exhausted from all the school stuff, and if I over filled the time off they just went back still exhausted.

Jellytotts

My two loved a duvet day during the half term/holidays. It was an unlimited telly, duvets on the sofa, pjs all day and we’d often have cereal for breakfast and lunch. Depending on the time of year it often involved a drive out after the evening meal with DH for an ice cream from the Golden Arches….still in their pjs. They both still talk about those days. They’d often get bored of the telly after a few hours and play games/colour/craft. It was such a relief for me to know I could just sit for a few hours too.

I’d actually really like a drive out in my pjs for ice cream still at my age.

ladybird1106

Duvet days were called nest days. The kids would build themselves nests out of bedding and towels etc. Then they would watch movies with associated movie snacks. Nests occasionally would become forts or tents. Tended to be done on a rainy day or towards the end of the holidays.
love 🐞

Greying_Pilgrim

Ha ha - you lovely lot 🥰

So we've been, gone, and come back again 😁

We went to the market town along the way and LG got their hair cut. We did part of the chazzer circuit, and picked up 3 books for LG. Not authors I'm familiar with, but the stories may be interesting. I have a feeling that the one book 'A Wolf called Wander' was mentioned on (of all things), a knitting blog a couple of years ago, I think one of the vloggers got it for a granchild. We popped into hEr0n. Not alot in there today, although we couldn't consider fridge or freezer stuff as we didn't have a cool bag and we weren't going straight home. But I did get a YS'd pack of finger rolls which are a good size (small) for veggie hot dogs. Thanks for the fajita recipe link tmv - I shall have a looksee.

We then pootled off to the NT place for today's visit 😁 There was a trail around the gardens for the kids, and LG threw themselves into it, with gusto, although I have to say, it wasn't one of the better NT trails, and was a little bit of a bottle neck at every 'checkpoint'. But it was making the kiddies think and look - all good. We then went walking, as one thing I've never really done at any NT properties is the walks 'around' either the wider estate, or if it's a vast acreage - away from the property as it were. LG was reluctant at first, but we'd got a map again - today's volunteer greeter was s.u.p.e.r.b. and soooooooo cheerful, and provided us with a map, that included the walks. I suggested to LG that we take in a short one - which had one landscape feature, which they got interested in when we got there 👍and they did admit, that they were glad that I'd suggested we walk, instead of just doing the garden trail and going home. We then went on another of the walks (the red route, off the orange route as it were), and took in a feat of Victorian (I think), engineering - LG was pretty impressed by that too, and then I got them to walk part of the 'green route' which took us on a loop, that encompassed the remnants of a mill and then back to the carpark. Once again, we had a really good walk. Apart from one grumble about not wanting to do more walking today, LG was in fact on good form, was actually quite engaged with what they were seeing, and was good company. They did actually say they are glad we'd got out and about. I suspect they wouldn't have said that if it had been tipping down with rain…… but we enjoyed weak (but welcome) sunshine and dryness today. It was cold, but not windy, so it was OK as long as you were moving.

No Blackcats - we had pancakes on Sunday (made by LG) so we're not going to have them again tonight.

Right, I put our trousers on to wash when we got back - along with rewashing LG's trousers from yesterday, that managed to go through yesterday's wash, without getting clean 🙄So I'll go and check where they are at and set up the dehu.

You're all very kind giving 'my friend' permission to have a duvet day…… they are so gratefu 😉But they can see the benefit of fresh air and exercise too, and so will try to keep going - but may take your advice later in the week 😉

I forgot to add, going down a country lane to the NT property today, we saw a bird flit up into a tree. LG said, "Robin", but I knew it wasn't - the silhouette was wrong - it was too thin and long. As we got nearer, I realised it was a woodpecker! A greater spotted again! And then when we were having a little hot drink break in the garden, I heard a 'different' bird call. My instinct was 'Thrush' family - and I got the mErl1n app up and it said it was a mistle thrush 😁 We saw a gazinty billion squirrels, and a conventional song thrush - along with loads of Robins. Oh, and my 'Well I never' moment of today was wild garlic. We went into a wooded bit, and there was an interpretation board of 'what to look out for' and it said wild garlic (along with bluebells). A little while on, there was a distinctive aroma, and LG's nose wrinkled, and they said, "what is that smell ☹️" - and it was wild garlic - loads of it, albeit just emerging, and no flowers obviously. But isn't that early? It definitely was, as I rubbed a leaf, and it was pure garlicky aroma. I didn't expect to see it yet though.

Greying X

Blackcats

No Blackcats- we had pancakes on Sunday (made by LG) so we're not going to have them again tonight.

What? It's possible to have too many pancakes? 🤷‍♀️

that sounds like a really good NT day. Isn't it fab when kids really engage on a day out? We had a couple of grandkids for the day yesterday and I'd say they mostly engaged in bickering with each other! How can singing Old McDonald result in a tantrum from 1 child and tears from the other 😉. I blame the grandparents 🤣