🌞 Happy Days in our Golden Years 🌞

rtandon27

Happy Sunday Fortune - so lovely to hear about your restorative day!

Humdinger1

Darling @Fortune_Smiles, we are all in awe at your philosophy and resilience. Here when you need us love Humdinger xx

greent

Oh, bless MrF and his seed sowing! 💜😄

Fortune_Smiles

Busy being busy 🧹

Sunday was a relaxed day as planned and the last few days of rest and indulgence have helped to restore my energy. I'm still playing catch up with a lot of things but ploughing through whilst trying to look after myself better.

Health 🧘‍♀️

• I went to my exercise class on Monday and this evening and I'm almost back to full fitness
• meals have all been cooked from scratch and relatively healthy

Wealth 💰

• Mr F's car has been in the garage for (another) problem with the air con 🙄 Fortunately, they seem to have resolved the problem this time and, because of the ongoing saga with it, didn't charge us for the repair. They did fix another relatively minor issue at the same time and complete the MOT but the bill was nowhere near what it has been in the past. Luckily because…
• We've had our eye on some outdoor toys for the Littlest Fortunate for some time but held off because they were quite expensive. I discovered they were on sale for nearly half price so have put an order in. They will be an investment as they should last for years and can be added to as LF grows
• There have been a number of other out-of-the-ordinary things I've had to spend money on. These are needs rather than wants but why do they have to all come up at the same time 🙄😄
• I've made some progress on my evidence for Court. I'm trying to do a little each day so it's not so overwhelming. I found out today that a friend is having similar difficulties with a builder. Her issues have been going on for two years and she is unable to sell her house as a result. What is it with these people?
• I've also made some progress on the house work which has been sadly neglected due to recent events. Again, I'm trying to do a little each day.
• We have gained a new client 😁 We're in the process of agreeing the contract with them and they are already asking us to take on work.

Happiness 🙂

• I had a little splurge with my inheritence money and bought some patterns, fabrics and notions. I have a couple of sewing workshops booked so bought the things I need for the earliest of those
• I've made some progress with my painting. I haven't done any painting for some time and I'm really enjoying it. I hope my friend likes the result.

I noticed quite a few pairs of swallows flying through the orchard today. I hope they are tempted by the nest bowls we put up. Although, the wrens have built a nest in one of them. It's now a perfect circle - half terracotta nest bowl at the bottom and half moss on top with a tiny wren-sized entrance hole in the front. It's lovely to see all the wildlife thriving here.

I hope your week is off to a good start.

Fortune x

Humboldt

Morning @Fortune_Smiles, slow and steady, simple calm routines and practising personal care …. as always, your posts resonate with me and have inspired me through years of full time employment (with a long commute), and now into retirement x

Fortune_Smiles

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81988483#Comment_81988483

Sound advice @Humboldt. And what a journey it's been for us - it's 14 years since I first started a diary here 😲 You must be pleased not to have to do the long commute any more. I don't think I could go back to that now.

Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

Winner, winner, chicken dinner 😁

The universe is sending good things my way:

• I won £200 on the Premium Bonds! I think that's the highest amount I've ever won. It's been automatically reinvested and added to my inheritance birthday money which I keep in Bonds
• a friend is moving house and has offered us her logs. She has loads and it's all seasoned ash and hard wood so Mr F will go and collect it in the trailer. It may come in very useful next winter if the price of oil stays this high. Our log stores are currently full though so I'm not sure where we're going to put them.

Hoping I stay lucky now for a lottery win 😂

I stayed productive yesterday:

• a little more housework
• Brummie Bacon Cakes for breakfast
• sausage and mustard mash for lunch with peas. I added a small leek to the mash to up the veg content.
• supper was a quick pizza from the freezer as I had to rush out
• removed the ribbon trim from the hem of the pyjama bottoms I'd made as I didn't like the way it made the legs hang
• no Court prep though as I ran out of time.

I bought myself a piping foot for my sewing machine as my next project will need it. Also some t-shirts to use as pyjama tops as I was sent a 15% off code for a brand and style I like. I could make some of course but there are only so many sewing projects a girl can complete at any one time and I'm pretty desperate for nightwear. I will make the pyjama bottoms though. All the costs were met from personal spends.

I went to my Book Club meeting last night for the first time since February. It was really nice to see everyone and we were treated to coffee and cake. The girls were all very supportive and shared their own, similar stories of loss and gave me some advice on how to support the Younger Fortunates. I took along lots of books that Mr F and I had finished and found a home for all of them. Also gifted several sewing patterns that I received with a magazine subscription and know I won't use. Afterwards I dashed over to meet Mr F at a party at my friends who is leaving the area. She was hoping to use up her wine and beer so she didn't have to take it all with her but we didn't make a dent in it 🥴

So a positive day with some surprises, including this one we found growing in the orchard!

Cheery_Daff

Ooh, is that a morell? Morrell? Very exciting!

Fortune_Smiles

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81990058#Comment_81990058

Sadly not @Cheery_Daff - it's a Stinkhorn 😂 Phallus impudicus meaning 'shameless phallus' 🤣 The immature forms are sometimes called 'Witches Eggs' and it's thought that a witch has cursed your property if you find one in your garden. I think, as there is already a resident witch (Moi?), it's happy to set up home here. It used to be thought that they could be used as an ingredient in flying ointments so I might try this one on a broomstick 🧹

Fortune x

Cheery_Daff

😂😂 Good job nobody's relying on me for fungus identification! 😂😂