We've been shopping this weekend with a carefully prepared list - not! Unfortunately, it was not well planned at all, and we went round the supermarket on a wing and a prayer......
We did know what we didn't want, which was a big help - we have loads of meat, frozen fruit, bread and some veg in the freezers. And I had a plan in the back of my mind about some meals for the week ahead, having vague recollections of what meat we have.
All in all, it was probably a lesson in how NOT to do the shopping!
The EFG loves peas, but we realised this week that we had to move over to frozen from tinned, because she can't eat a whole tin at a time, and never fancies them again the next day, so it is going to be more economical to be able to get a smaller amount out of the freezer. She loves her chips too, and it is better to have some frozen ones available rather than to have to rely on having some potatoes suitable for chips here. I did know that I needed some staples - onions and bananas for a start.
I have picked up a tip in the good old Facebook this week - and I am ashamed that I hadn't already realised! I picked up a bunch of bananas, and weighed them: they were 68p/kg, and the bunch cost me 56p yet a very similar bunch already wrapped in a bag were £1. I had being buying the £1 bagged bunches and thinking that they were good value - how daft have I been! No more wrapped bananas for us. That's 44p saved today.
All in all a spend of £25.58 in the supermarket, and then another £4.99 in the hardware store.......
The wood burner has had its chimney swept and had a minor repair and so been declared fit to go this season. Still, it looked a little bit the worse for wear and UJ recommended a coat of blackleading. It's now called Black Stove Polish, but it is basically graphite and does the same job. The tube cost £4.99 but will last for years, as long as I don't lose it! With a good dose of elbow grease, the stove has come up a treat and looks lovely now. It might get lit this week if the temperatures keep dropping.
With a small mid-week spend, our available budget for the month has plummeted to around £65. We are already looking into the storecupboards and thinking about the meals we haven't had for a while - I know corned beef hash will be on the menu sometime very soon!
Sunday, 5 October 2014
Saturday, 4 October 2014
Buy British Day
Yesterday, Friday, was "Buy British Day" - an initiative I hadn't heard of until I saw it on the BBC News. Apparently it is a drive to encourage us to support British manufacturers and producers. British brands really used to epitomise the essence of top quality and manufacturing across the old Empire and Commonwealth. Unfortunately, we seem to have lost the plot and outsourced a lot of our industries in recent history, and this seems to be a plot to reclaim our glorious heritage.
We have some amazing products in this country, from very British food like pork pies and Stilton cheese, through to beautiful Harris tweed. I'm all for minimising the distance that things travel from production to user, and buying British is one way of doing it.
However, buying British isn't always economical. And that is why we lost out in the past, I believe - other countries could produce the goods at a more competitive price and consumers led the way in driving down prices.
So how do I square my conscience, buying British where I can, but also keeping account and not splashing the cash beyond the budget? It's not easy. One strategy is, of course, to buy second-hand. Good quality British-made clothes are often found in the charity shops alongside the stuff produced abroad. Another way is to support small local producers, at craft fairs, roadside stalls, and local shops for example. Check the labels, and look for the Union Jack and the indication that the item is made in this country.
And when I am buying food, I object to buying food brought here from the other side of the world when we produce perfectly good equivalents in this country and Ireland, which is closer to home. I recently bought some Value grated cheese from that supermarket, and noticed that the cheese and milk were from "the UK, Ireland and New Zealand" - New Zealand?!?! The other side of the world? Yet the Co-op can produce an equivalent product for a couple more pennies, just using UK & Ireland milk and cheese.....I've been buying it from the Co-op ever since.
It's a matter of doing what we can, within our budgets and not feeling bad if we can't. It's an idea, that's all. Small steps, within our means. Harris tweed is amazing, but not within my reach!
(image from makeitbritish.co.uk)
We have some amazing products in this country, from very British food like pork pies and Stilton cheese, through to beautiful Harris tweed. I'm all for minimising the distance that things travel from production to user, and buying British is one way of doing it.
However, buying British isn't always economical. And that is why we lost out in the past, I believe - other countries could produce the goods at a more competitive price and consumers led the way in driving down prices.
So how do I square my conscience, buying British where I can, but also keeping account and not splashing the cash beyond the budget? It's not easy. One strategy is, of course, to buy second-hand. Good quality British-made clothes are often found in the charity shops alongside the stuff produced abroad. Another way is to support small local producers, at craft fairs, roadside stalls, and local shops for example. Check the labels, and look for the Union Jack and the indication that the item is made in this country.
And when I am buying food, I object to buying food brought here from the other side of the world when we produce perfectly good equivalents in this country and Ireland, which is closer to home. I recently bought some Value grated cheese from that supermarket, and noticed that the cheese and milk were from "the UK, Ireland and New Zealand" - New Zealand?!?! The other side of the world? Yet the Co-op can produce an equivalent product for a couple more pennies, just using UK & Ireland milk and cheese.....I've been buying it from the Co-op ever since.
It's a matter of doing what we can, within our budgets and not feeling bad if we can't. It's an idea, that's all. Small steps, within our means. Harris tweed is amazing, but not within my reach!
Friday, 3 October 2014
Therapies
There's one in particular that I won't be taking part in this month, when we are Stoptobering.
Therapies should surely make one feel better, or soothe a physical ache, or a mental pain. For me, there is no better way than to get outside and enjoy some sunshine or fresh air.
Being with my family, reading a good book, cosying up to the woodburner with a mug of tea and a film or my knitting on a weekend afternoon, the smell of furniture polish, or a mooch around the garden, looking at what's changing, talking to the cat or chatting to the chooks.
A plate of warm rice pudding with a dollop of home made jam. Yorkshire pudding. Thick stew full of vegetables and the flavour of some beef, a roast chicken dinner with lashings of gravy. A light Victoria sponge made so that I can indulge...
The Christmas tree lights twinkling in the corner and the snow carpeting the ground outside. A Sunday morning service in the chapel with friends, singing hymns loud and free. A letter from a friend. A jolly good book.
All ways that I enjoy feeling happy, satisfied and content.
If someone offered me the opportunity for a spot of retail therapy, I'd politely decline. Each to their own, but mooching around a shopping centre or town for hours on the off chance that one might see the very thing is not my idea of fun. It's a chore, something that very occasionally just has to be endured, but I need therapy to get over it!! I've been to Cambridge and Peterborough this year with the girls, and whilst I enjoyed spending time with them, I just don't like the aimlessness of the wandering.......just want to look at that, perhaps there'll be a better one in there....end up back at the first shop an hour later...... Just as well, then, that we won't be spending too much time in the shops this month. Thank goodness.
And Christmas shopping? If I can't buy it in one of the local shops for preference, or on t'internet, we don't need it.
How are your plans for the month shaping up? Are you Stoptobering too?
Therapies should surely make one feel better, or soothe a physical ache, or a mental pain. For me, there is no better way than to get outside and enjoy some sunshine or fresh air.
Being with my family, reading a good book, cosying up to the woodburner with a mug of tea and a film or my knitting on a weekend afternoon, the smell of furniture polish, or a mooch around the garden, looking at what's changing, talking to the cat or chatting to the chooks.
A plate of warm rice pudding with a dollop of home made jam. Yorkshire pudding. Thick stew full of vegetables and the flavour of some beef, a roast chicken dinner with lashings of gravy. A light Victoria sponge made so that I can indulge...
The Christmas tree lights twinkling in the corner and the snow carpeting the ground outside. A Sunday morning service in the chapel with friends, singing hymns loud and free. A letter from a friend. A jolly good book.
All ways that I enjoy feeling happy, satisfied and content.
If someone offered me the opportunity for a spot of retail therapy, I'd politely decline. Each to their own, but mooching around a shopping centre or town for hours on the off chance that one might see the very thing is not my idea of fun. It's a chore, something that very occasionally just has to be endured, but I need therapy to get over it!! I've been to Cambridge and Peterborough this year with the girls, and whilst I enjoyed spending time with them, I just don't like the aimlessness of the wandering.......just want to look at that, perhaps there'll be a better one in there....end up back at the first shop an hour later...... Just as well, then, that we won't be spending too much time in the shops this month. Thank goodness.
And Christmas shopping? If I can't buy it in one of the local shops for preference, or on t'internet, we don't need it.
How are your plans for the month shaping up? Are you Stoptobering too?
Thursday, 2 October 2014
Ahead of the weather
Here's a photo post to lighten the reading! With all the rain we have forecast in the next few days, I thought I would spend a bit of time in the garden after I finished my phone shift this morning.
The sun is shining and there's lots to do!
Pots to wash and stash away. Not today though.
Here's Shadow who does literally follow me around the garden. If I am busy, she will sit nearby and just watch - she's not bothered if she doesn't get too much attention, but the company seems to be what she's after. She's gorgeous!
Still picking tomatoes - these are Sweet Million. Very sweet, and loads of them! I have picked some to take to the chapel ladies this afternoon.
And the chooks!! They come running every time we go out, just in case we had a tidbit for them. Well, they were lucky as there were a couple of crusts left from the YFG's breakfast, so that kept them occupied for all of about, ooh, two seconds?!
We have lots of wood, ready for the winter fires. This heap is close to the house, and the plastic sacks are just to keep the worst of the rain off.
Above the woodpile there, I have knocked some nails into the rafters this afternoon and hung some bean plants up to dry. I haven't done this before and just thought it might be a good idea. The beans are Ferrari, and have done very well this year, so I hope that I could get some more to plant out next year if I let the pods dry out under here.
And here's the new chair which I shall enjoy sitting in when all the work is done!
Yes, I know it doesn't "go" with the enormous rug, but I'm not one to bother about that, particularly. We'll probably take that rug up when we eventually sell the house, and until then, it is trying to keep the carpet underneath a little cleaner, as well as protecting it from sparks from the fire occasionally.
Think of me here tonight, reading my book, perhaps. It is very comfy!
Wednesday, 1 October 2014
Keeping record
The YFG has had the first spend of the month from our £100 - she has asked for a £1.99 book to download onto her tablet from the Amazon Kindle store. I allowed it.
The YFG has not always been a good reader, in both senses of the word. She read her first book when she was about 6, sitting on our bed here, at 10pm one night, quite spontaneously. It was an Oxford Reading Tree Biff and Chip book, and it was a heck of a surprise that night - we had been reading to her for years, and encouraging her, but she had been reluctant, so we were delighted when she revealed how well she had been taking it all in!
Even so, she was not that keen on reading, until she got her reading glasses when she was about 12, and all of a sudden, she took off! The glasses just tipped the balance with a muscle in her eye, which had been a struggle for her to control - and she was rocking! She reads every night, she takes a book with her in the car, and on journeys, and she loves to read - I am so pleased.
And so I support and encourage her in that. She reads all sorts of books, but unfortunately, she finds few of them in our local library, and I do indulge her choices as often as I can. Our copies of the Harry Potter books and the Twilight books are extremely well thumbed, and she has read and reread all of them several times.
Reading is a gift, and I am so sad that some children never really "get" it - it can open windows into new worlds, offer inspiration, comfort and be a very valuable way of spending family time together.
The YFG has not always been a good reader, in both senses of the word. She read her first book when she was about 6, sitting on our bed here, at 10pm one night, quite spontaneously. It was an Oxford Reading Tree Biff and Chip book, and it was a heck of a surprise that night - we had been reading to her for years, and encouraging her, but she had been reluctant, so we were delighted when she revealed how well she had been taking it all in!
Even so, she was not that keen on reading, until she got her reading glasses when she was about 12, and all of a sudden, she took off! The glasses just tipped the balance with a muscle in her eye, which had been a struggle for her to control - and she was rocking! She reads every night, she takes a book with her in the car, and on journeys, and she loves to read - I am so pleased.
And so I support and encourage her in that. She reads all sorts of books, but unfortunately, she finds few of them in our local library, and I do indulge her choices as often as I can. Our copies of the Harry Potter books and the Twilight books are extremely well thumbed, and she has read and reread all of them several times.
Reading is a gift, and I am so sad that some children never really "get" it - it can open windows into new worlds, offer inspiration, comfort and be a very valuable way of spending family time together.
October starts here
I've had a very expensive September, with all the big items I have spent out on around the house, not least the chair which arrives today from the furnishing shop - the FH and I chose two new chairs a couple of weeks before he died, and the company kindly allowed me to cancel that order because the chairs were specifically for his comfort and size. Because they were so good, I used the deposit towards one smaller chair, which has been made in the fabric of our choice, to blend in with the sitting room. The FH's old, second-hand recliner has got to move out, and I shall be researching the best way to dispose of it next week. One thing at a time.
I shall be joining in with Sue at Our New Life in the Country with her Stoptober challenge of not spending in October. There is probably enough of most items here for us for the month, including toiletries, loo rolls, detergents and stuff like that. The only things I shall most likely need are fresh items like fruit for lunchboxes, and ham for the YFG's sandwiches, for example. I am going to allow us a budget of £100 for the month, for any spends, apart from diesel, because I can't cut back on that any more than I do, living where we do in the middle of nowhere.....
I need to rebuild our savings which have been a little depleted. The trip to Aberdeen at the end of the month will also cost a little. The YFG is going with my sister and UJ. Since UJ would like to go, I shall stay at home and keep the home fires burning, as they say. I shall be working. I'm going to look for some accommodation for them this week. I am a little sad not to be going, but I went up in March, and I want the YFG and UJ to have the chance to go and see where she is up there. This week is really the only good time to see her there in our school holidays - apart from the February half term, every other holiday that the YFG gets off school, the EFG will be home too!
In November, I shall have to think about Christmas!
I shall be joining in with Sue at Our New Life in the Country with her Stoptober challenge of not spending in October. There is probably enough of most items here for us for the month, including toiletries, loo rolls, detergents and stuff like that. The only things I shall most likely need are fresh items like fruit for lunchboxes, and ham for the YFG's sandwiches, for example. I am going to allow us a budget of £100 for the month, for any spends, apart from diesel, because I can't cut back on that any more than I do, living where we do in the middle of nowhere.....
I need to rebuild our savings which have been a little depleted. The trip to Aberdeen at the end of the month will also cost a little. The YFG is going with my sister and UJ. Since UJ would like to go, I shall stay at home and keep the home fires burning, as they say. I shall be working. I'm going to look for some accommodation for them this week. I am a little sad not to be going, but I went up in March, and I want the YFG and UJ to have the chance to go and see where she is up there. This week is really the only good time to see her there in our school holidays - apart from the February half term, every other holiday that the YFG gets off school, the EFG will be home too!
In November, I shall have to think about Christmas!
Tuesday, 30 September 2014
And that has been September
And what a month it has been!
We packed the EFG off to Aberdeen......
(image from studyin-uk.com)
and she has settled in well. She's now on her third week of lectures and labs. The YFG's godparents took her to a fancy French restaurant in the city last Friday night with their son, and she reports that she felt under dressed but that the food was amazing. Well, they asked her to meet them in Wetherspoon's so I guess she could be forgiven for not dressing up!
The YFG has gone back to school in Year 11, the big GCSE year, and she has several positions of responsibility - she's a peer mentor for a Y8 child, and a Senior Prefect. I'm very proud of her, and she is working hard. She's having a fitness kick at the moment and doing Davina DVDs every other night, too, in between her homework. She continues to help out at the gym club on Fridays and Saturdays, and is a really lovely house mate!
And me? Well, I achieved my aim and found the perfect temporary job - and I am on week 2 now. The lady who is mentoring me, and monitoring me by listening to the calls I make, says I am doing well, so I am hoping that I will get more confident soon!
Financially, we are getting ourselves sorted out. I had a hiccup yesterday when I had a letter from the Tax credits people about our old joint claim which they hadn't closed down properly, so I spent a good while in a queue on the phone in the afternoon to get through to a real live person! That should be resolved soon. The Widowed Parent's Allowance has finally begun this month, and we are beginning to know how a real month will pan out on this new kind of income. It's not the income we used to have, but there are only two of us to manage on it, and if I am honest, it is more than I feared we would have to survive on, so I am very grateful, as always. Thankful is my middle name.
The house is in a better state of repair - I have had the guttering cleaned out and fixed, The chimney has been professionally swept and a minor repair carried out to the back of the stove. The workshop door has been made secure again and the poo pit pump has been replaced. It has been an expensive month, in this respect, but one in which we feel we have moved forward significantly at last!
Here's to October - bring it on!
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