Buying a little piece of Middle England; Manifesting my way to mortgage free.

debtfreewannabe321

girlatplay said:

Hey
I'm delurking to ask, can you please share your dahl recipe?

@girlatplay
It's actually a Delia recipe that I adapted so you can search up her one...but this is it here basically copied from her website...

"In a saucepan containing 1½ pints (850 ml) of water add one teaspoon each of ginger, cumin, turmeric and salt, then bring it all to the boil.

Stir in the lentils, let it come back to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes. After that add the diced potato and continue cooking until the lentils have turned mushy (making sure the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan by giving it a stir now and again).

While that's cooking, heat up the butter in another pan and fry the onion and pepper in it (over a fairly high heat) until the onion has browned – then lower the heat and stir in the Madras curry powder (if you like your curries hotter, you can add more), the garlic, the remaining ground ginger and the chopped tomatoes.

Cook for a minute before adding the lentil mixture, then taste, season with more salt and cook gently for a further 5-10 minutes (stirring from time to time).

INGREDIENTS

INGREDIENTS

8 oz (225 g) red lentils

1 clove garlic, crushed

4 tomatoes, peeled and chopped    I USE TWO TINS OF CHOPPED TOMATOES INSTEAD

Salt

2 level teaspoons ground ginger

1 level teaspoon ground cumin

1 level teaspoon turmeric

2 potatoes, peeled and diced WE DOUBLE UP THE POTATOES

2 tablespoons butter I USE VEGAN ALTERNATIVE

1 large onion, peeled and sliced

1 small green pepper, de-seeded and chopped I USE AT LEAST TWO PEPPERS, ANY COLOUR

1 level teaspoon Madras curry powder

SPICES- I USE CUMIN, GARAM MASALA, WHATEVER CURRY POWDER I HAVE IN, TUMERIC, GINGER, CORIANDER. I USE TINNED TOMATOES INSTEAD OF FRESH AND ALSO TOMATO PASTE AS WE LIKE IT TOMATO-EY AND I ALWAYS RINSE THE LENTILS REALLY WELL BEFORE COOKING SO THE DINNER DOESN'T TASTE STARCHY. 
I SERVE WITH RICE AND SALAD (SOMETIMES ONION SALAD) AND POPPADOMS, it's the staple fake away in my home because it's so cheap to cook and Indian is my favourite. The trick is definitely to have two pans on the go and cook the lentils and potatoes separately to the rest and mix only at the end. Hope that helps  

debtfreewannabe321

beanielou said:

I think it really is time for you to move on & look after yourself.

I think you are right @beanielou yesterday I turned up at work and actually had the easiest shift ever though. The manager had clearly gone away and thought about what I had said. She had rearranged everything and I was able to spend the shift actually supervising the staff. I pointed out to her that we have 18 staff that are allowed to do whatever they want. Some always work well alone, some take the mickey because they know the supervisors are busy...so we will never have a good standard if they are not being watched or at least have the threat of a spot inspection (many of the staff are teenagers so their first job...) I wonder if we will have the same today or if that was a one off? Hmm...however even with the easy shift I just felt utterly detached from it. That is when I know myself it is time to leave. 
DP has his interview next week for the new job, he has been internally referred for it by his boss because he works for a subsidiary of this company he knows the products well. So I hope he is in the running for it, but I know others have also got to the second stage and are just as good contenders so we will see. It would be life changing really if he did get it, the pay rise is phenomenal compared to what he is on, with car benefits ON TOP of his wage, not taken out of (hence why his take home is so low right now). There is also share schemes and private healthcare etc. We may even have the opportunity to be able to move home sooner than we thought possible. I don't want to get my hopes up too much though in case it doesn't happen. 

debtfreewannabe321

Morning all,
Well we were in the new M0rris0ns the other week in town, it is a tiny one and doesn't have much in, but they had bags in the fridge which we enquired about and the man told us about the 2 good 2 go scheme. So I signed up and have waited for this month's wages to go in so we could try one. I have actually used my pocket money for it rather than food budget so I will collect my first one later. Even if there is nothing vegan in there DS & DD should eat whatever is in it. 

Meal plan today is burger and chips as I get in from work and need to feed kids in half hour before air cadets. Tomorrow we are out all day pretty much with opticians appointments, bra fitting and need to pop in and see my sister so I have a mock duck in pancakes night to prep before we go out and I will cook that up when we get in which only takes twenty minutes or so. Kids and adults like that one, although it is a naughty treat really, but I feel like it's probably only as naughty as the take away we'd end up buying after a long day and around £40 cheaper. Sunday I will make pies from veg in the freezer and fridge and also some puff pastry I have in the freezer, will either do herby roast potatoes and veg with it or mash and veg. I am going to make a banana bread/ cake today from two old bananas so no waste there and throw in a load of dried fruit too and chopped nuts. DS especially likes that treat, he's not so keen on usual cakes and chocolate but will eat my banana bread. 

I didn't sleep well last night and ended up searching the internet this morning for ingredients of some crisps we ate last night which we think are causing my hot flushes and asthma flare ups. The crisps have citric acid listed on the ingredients. I always thought it was from fruit. DUH, of course it isn't, why would it be...everything seems to be manufactured these days. Side effects of this manufactured citric acid which was never tested and given GRAS status by the fda, inflammation and asthma problems among other side effects...inflammation seems to be something that flares up in me a lot but then will disappear so I suspected an ingredient in something rather than blindly assuming I am getting old and it's par for the course like my mum and aunts and nan to get arthritis, swelling and inflammatory diseases. I don't ever see the dr any more I have such a horrible mistrust of them after they misdiagnosed DD and left me in a waiting room with advanced sepsis for nearly 12 hours. My detective work usually finds my ailments are usually something I have ingested or exposed my skin too anyway. So anyway, these crisps won't be bought again. We assumed they were a good brand but now I'm unsure if there are any good brands of anything that is massed produced. Sigh...still it is good because as I cut out these things it makes my food budget go further so there is definitely a plus there! 

Goals for Feb (Jan 26-Feb 25):
1- 15 days free of social media (I struggle with this because I use mark3tplace so often but I will do it as have nothing up for sale atm) 

I have only been on one day so far to list some bits on marketplace and ended up doom scrolling before I came to my senses!

2- Practice gentle yoga every day for at least 10 minutes (it helps with nerve pain from sciatica)

Up to 4 days of this so far, I was super busy yesterday batch cooking before work so didn't have time so will do this today, already my bad hip and back have eased up and I only have a small dull ache in my foot now so it's helping and cheaper than chiropractor (who told me to do this anyway!)

3- Read 1 book to the end 

I have one chapter left!! I was too tired to finish it last night.

4- Catch up with 3 friends in real life (am totally fed up with SM being our only interaction with people these days bring back pre internet days)

Caught up with one already, and made a new friend...I have more dates in the diary too with other friends  

5- Two weeks of no sugar (I meant to do this in Jan but had too much Christmas sweets left)

fail so far

6- 10 NSD 

 1/10 I think but will check my spend diary I may have another one

7- Get out in the garden and start the clear up after winter (we've dead fallen trees everywhere)

Still sooo cold...I don't do well in the cold my circulation is rubbish and I end up feeling frozen for hours after. Today it isn't raining though so my job is to collect all the wood that has fallen on the garden and put in the garage to dry out for kindling. That won't take long and little dog can come with me for some fresh air, because he's gotten lazy in the warm lately lol.

Okay, off to get dressed, bake that cake and do the garden before it rains because it is threatening to do so already. Also need to top up the fish pond, it's low again. 

TT- 70p
MORTGAGE PAD - £5 

Mortgage balance as of 02/02/24 is £98,833.72. 

debtfreewannabe321

Oh and just quickly I have had a jiggle about with budgets and pots etc for next month because some were lacking and some are missing altogether oops. 

Next month I need to budget for green bin collection (£40 ish I think), toiletries and cleaning products (£30 I am going to start with), take away (It is my birthday after next pay day). So some of these are a one off and some not, I have a free month of council tax still though so it will be okay to add these without much detriment. I have noticed that something seems to crop up every month meaning I need to find an extra £40-50 each time so I think it is a good idea to have money in a buffer in case of this and perhaps send it to the EF or OP PAD fund at the end of the month if not used. I am sending a lot to my EF at the moment but once that is up to £1500 I will just do one payment a month to that and send all TT to the mortgage OP PAD. Okay, really am off now

girlatplay

Thank you for sharing the recipe 😋  Sounds like something that could be batch cooked and frozen too.

*goes back to lurking *

debtfreewannabe321

Afternoon 

Well I'm just waiting on kids to get ready and will drive them to the opticians. I put off collection of something I'd ordered until today so I could save petrol money doing it all together. Also have a bag of bits for my sister to drop off at the same time.

I picked up my too good to go Mr M bag last night and what a load of rubbish. A bag of giant buttons, potatoes (we've just ordered a huge sack of them) and pepparami, skimmed milk and OOD tea bags (by five months !!!!!!?) ...half of that is going to my sister and if she don't want it I'm happy for her to do whatever with it. I've kept the buttons for the kids treat later, and the milk for DS (divvied up into smaller jars and frozen so it lasts) and the pepperami for DS. I don't think I will bother with that app again. Nothing I wanted or needed. Glad I took a punt on it with my pocket money rather than food budget. 

Last night DP and I ended up down the pub. I had a horrible shift at work (wasn't the work but a colleague who non stop moaned the entire shift) and then DD moaned the second I got in from work. We dropped them to air cadets and went to the pub 🤣. I slept well after two vodka sodas and feel much better today.

Won't be a NSD but will be a mindful spend day. I will only buy what I have on my list or what I think I really really need (I will try anyway 🙃

Kids air cadet uniform all fitted okay. DD trousers a bit tight around her derrière 🙈 but fit perfectly on the waist so might need to order her another pair in a month or so. She got the curvy gene and doesn't seem too pleased about it when trying to get into trousers 🤣. 

Anyway going to hustle the kids together and get out so I can come back asap. I hate shopping on a Saturday especially in the city. Ta ta for now 😁

debtfreewannabe321

Morning, well well yesterday turned into a bit of a spendy day. DS now needs glasses all the time. I hadn't budgeted for them. He needed blue screen thing on them too *rolls eyes at all the extras added on*. As he is a child we obviously got a fair bit off thank god but the bill was still £63.99. It should be *okay* I hope as when I did this month's budget I didn't budget the child benefit I kinda left it as a float for unforeseens as I recall when I started budgeting years ago with step-change there were lots of "unforeseens" along the way that used to hinder my progress of getting anywhere. So we should be okay still. We also popped into a few charity shops along the way, we were picky though, as we always are, I did the Konmari method when it was new (and have two of her books and regularly go through the categories again) and I only ever buy things if they are 'needed' or 'spark joy' Well I found two beautiful goblet like wine glasses a few weeks ago in the local charity shop they were pink, heavy, well made and cost me a fiver for the two but well worth it. Yesterday I found not matching ones, but similar in red and clear and bought those too. Four for £4!! Bargain! I had been eyeing up some on NOTHS and they were £35 for 4! So saved myself a splurge and they are just as nice. I will try and manifest some blue or green ones next We popped into another CS along the way and DP & I picked up quite a few records *oops* they seem to be our downfall, but we use our record player daily (DP bought a beautiful early 70s record player last year with a big amp so it sounds so good), I always have it on to clean and when I am cooking so they're worth it as they spark joy We got 7 or 8 I think for £14. All charity shop spends were from pocket money so all good and okay for the budget.

I also bought two dresses on v1nted. I have never used it before but read about it on here and had a friend banging on about it at work for months now So I just had to try it. I am a difficult dress size and I wear a specific brand for buxom ladies which has in the last few years stopped selling clothes *boo* I used to get them off bay of E but they were getting very expensive on there tbh. I bought two on v1nted for less than £16 which was fab as one has tags on still. I hope they fit, but if they don't I know where to sell them back on so that's alright. I used the rest of the clothing budget and a tiny bit WAM from my pocket money to pay for those. Also picked up my new bra yesterday, expensive but needed, so the clothing budget is all but gone now. 

I am glad I have budgeted so much for clothes, I thought I was being a bit too generous, but with shoes that fell apart and my spends it was about right. Things are so expensive these days. I think I get tripped up so often with budgeting because I budget what I think something should be worth when in actual fact it is three times more money than my brain thinks it's worth... shame our wages don't inflate at the same rate as everything we buy from the shops eh.

I have a pie to make today, might be lazy and just get the frozen mix out I made last week or I might make a 'non chick'n ' and mushroom one ...i will see. Need to do some ironing and the last wash is on. All the bedding was done together this weekend rather than spread out so I have duvet covers thrown over doors half dried, it feels like a chinese laundry right now. The tumble drier likes to throw everything inside the duvet covers though even if I do them up so I have taken to drying them off over doors so that the other stuff can dry properly. It means less cycles of the drier then. Our washing machine is pretty good and spins them off well so they don't take long to dry with the heating on. Today I was going to chance hanging out the washing on the line, I am getting inspired by other people's diaries on here for that one....only the blue sky has gone, it is grey and I am sure I can see fog coming off the fields across the road, hmm, the wash has another hour so I will wait and reassess then. It will be a NSD today. I refuse to part with any more money this week.

I have been sharing MS ideas with my friend today, she is inspired to do a meal plan too, it seems to be the downfall of a lot of us I think, mindless food shopping, and meal planning last minute as you walk in from work and then thinking ah cluck it let's get a take away. 

I am listening to one of my new records, Smokie Greatest Hits, anyone else ever hear the living next door to Alice song and only ever think of "who the fk is Alice" version rather than this one? Or just me....perhaps showing my age haha. 

redofromstart

So with you on the 'Alice, who the F' version!

debtfreewannabe321

redofromstart said:

So with you on the 'Alice, who the F' version!

Can definitely age some of us by these things eh 🤣

beanielou

I can remember singing it lustily!!