From Frugal Foundations to Fortified Family Future

Greying_Pilgrim

Ha ha - Cheery - must be summat in the ether - I had a weird dream too!  My dream was well weird and involved a family and house that wasn't mine and a situation that whilst it could occur (lets hope it doesn't - leaking toilet waste pipes were involved.....), couldn't actually occur here in the way it was happening in the dream.  Thankfully I woke up, but the situation was unresolved, so I don't know if that is a good thing or not...... Hope your vocal pheasant pipes down and those blessed children don't turn up on your drive - at anytime of the day! 🤣 Oh, curlews - how fab.  Funnily enough i was stood in the garden a while ago (lovely warming sunshine), and was looking to see if I could spot any martins/swallows/swifts - still no 🙁  I did spot a couple of buzzards just riding the thermals, absolutely effortless.  For once there were no harrying corvids around them - so there was nothing but silence (seemingly) coming from their passage overhead.

LG and DH have gone out cycling. The phone went just now and my heart lurched - anyhoo, it was just LG wanting me to see and hear what they could see 🥰 It was actually something quite unusual and freely put on because of volunteers and enthusiasts.  At least LG is getting out and about and will 'earn' their cakey treat today 😁

Greying X

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, sounds like they're having a lovely time GP! 😊😊

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs,

Well, we ended up having a good day yesterday.  No money spent.

The washing dried.  DH & LG entertained themselves bike riding and seeing a display in a local park.  We had lunch at home.  Then LG was invited out on an impromptu playdate with a chum.  We were outside for a couple of hours having fun.  We were spotted by another family and they came and joined us.  Just marvellous and cost not a penny.  Tea was a curry plate, made up from freezer curry and dhal and some basmati rice cooked up.

Another wash is on - mostly trying to remove grass stains 😬Lots of itty-bitty chores to do today.  I want to try to get some cooking done.  Hopefully it will be another nsd.  I know we're not saving masses towards our "mortgage payment/replacement windows/everything else that crops up" fund, but I still think nsd kind of add to the discipline of 'not-frittering'.  We all have to spend, but I'm well aware that if I get into the frittering mindset, it'll be difficult to claw back savings to reach our goal.

Can't think of anything else MSE related, so best go and see if the cycle has finished to peg out.

Ta for popping by.  Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

OK, anyone else that hasn't a sc00by what actual day it is 🤔

Dry start with us (thankfully), but I'm not bothering with a wash today - although I am still playing catch up - as there is insufficient breeze in addition to insufficient sunshine.  I'll take a gamble and leave it until tomorrow/Thursday.  I am at least caught up with all school uniform/clothes, so that is something.

I've paid for LG's school trip.  Their after school activity wasn't on yesterday, so I just shuffled the money for that across.  I think we're still tantilizingly close to getting the totals in our 'penny coin' collections, for tuppences and 5p's, but not quite there.  It's great that we're not frittering, but we're not generating any small change either 🙄The 'C4C' has lost impetus a bit.  Still worth doing, but difficult to keep momentum, when ultimately the source of most of the money is the bank of ma & pa.

All yesterday's washing dried wonderfully on the line.  I could have put it straight away, but did hang it on the airer - that is now all folded and put away.  

I have sort of picked up my knitting mojo again, and completed a section (pattern repeat of 16 rows) of the latest charity blanket last night.  DH read his book (a charity shop pb), so we were a couple of ravers...... not 🤣  

Can't think of anything else money-related to mention.  Everything is sort of 'allocated', so is either doing it's job (grocery budget), or is waiting to do it's job at a later point (eg car insurance savings).  

It's been a quiet weekend.  Little itty-bitty chores were completed - for which I'm grateful as it all counts.  DH is better, but was still lacking energy, so couldn't launch into any full-scale project anyway.  He did enjoy time with LG so it was still a good weekend.  

Greying X

badmemory

I worked on the principle that it must be Tuesday as I am out of bread.  However DS did make some on Sunday.  I think he is in charge for the foreseeable as it rose & rose & it is a wonder it didn't push open the lid of the breadmaker.

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Evening MFW'rs

Well, we've had lovely weather this arvo.  Makes me regret not having put a wash on 🤣

I took LG to club, and popped into MrS and HB whilst I was that side of town.  I ended up spending a total of £13.99.  Pleased to say that fruit and veggies made up the bulk of my purchases, plus some multi-vits were on 3for2, so I got them whilst I saw them.  Everything bought was needed or would have been bought on Thursday anyway, so nothing extra really.  

Tea ended up being a hodge podge of stuff out of the freezer.

Ta for popping by.

Greying X

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Morning MFW'rs

Is it just me, or was there a definite propensity amongst the performers in the eur0vi$ion semi to wear clothes with LOTS of fabric/oversize.  Interesting phenomena fashion, isn't it.   

A wash is on, looks like it's gonna be a hot one today, so best make hay.

Snap is made.

Tea will be summat involving a 'wrap buffet' - LG's fave.  Not too sure yet if the 'protein' component will be the chickpea & mushroom banger mini's I made the other day, or breaded feta.  I'm considering using up the Staffordshire oat cakes I have in the freezer too, which is an experiment.  No reason why they shouldn't work, just not used them like that before.

Can't think of owt else MSE related at the mo.  

Greying X

EssexHebridean

Love the idea of Staffordshire oatcakes as wraps Greying. Actually, I like the idea of making them, full stop.

rtandon27

GP - we've used them for breakfast wraps in the past, eggs and shredded veg and bacon when we have it - they worked well! - I've also put hummus and falafels and salad in them - I thought they were lovely, OH wasn't so keen,  but then we all know he's only adventurous when it suits him! 😉 

Greying_Pilgrim

Good Evening MFW'rs

Thanks for the support EH and rt - unfortunately LG is not a fan of the oatcakes 🙁I don't know what is so different about them from the wraps we normally have - which actually are usually the white flour ones, as the wholemeal ones aren't usually available in the smaller size.  LG didn't like the taste - which was interesting, as I didn't think they tasted of alot.  When I was at Uni, this brand used to have a definitive 'tang' to them, which was missing in this current pack.  DH reckoned they were OK, and thought tea was interesting.  LG has been in a bit of a strange funk since they have come home from school, so maybe that has something to do with it.  Not for repeating though I don't think.  Naturally i now wish I had stuck to what I was going to use the oatcakes for which was a baked bean & cheese burrito/cannelloni type thing.  Ah well, you live and learn.

The fried breadcrumbed feta didn't work as well tonight as it did the other night.  Not too sure what I did different tonight.  We ate it, it just didn't keep it's coating on for some reason. 

I must add up what I spent - I did buy a few grocery bits and some non-food stuff today.  The non-food consisted of sunscreen (funded out of CHB, as it'll be used up this term, dousing LG daily for school), hay fever tablets for DH and some batteries.  I bought burgers, bananas and baps from MrA.  And I know I loves me a bit of alliteration, but I promise that was not what my purchases were based on!  MrA was it's usual wasteland of 'out of stock-ness', and yet they have had new tills installed, that seemed to take forever to get your shopping thru, and seemed to be designed to encourage customers to use the self-serve - the shopping total display unit was soooooooo small - and hidden behind their bags for life...... I'll go there if I'm in the vicinity, but I'm underwhelmed by it as a shop.

The washing dried well.  Hope this weather lasts as LG 'forgot' (despite numerous reminders) to take their school uniform off after school and covered themselves in stains in about 5 minutes 🙄  I don't have numerous separate 'sets' of uniform - hence why I asked them to change....... 🙄

Right, I'm in danger of slipping into a grump, which I don't want to do, so I'll bid you goodnight, and remain grateful for all that I do have.

Greying X