Eeek!

Coming sailing into the kitchen half asleep yesterday morning, I soon woke up properly when I caught sight of a flippin' mouse scurrying along the back of the counter!  I screamed as well - that brought the YFG hurrying downstairs.....

(Image from clipartbest.com)

I know what's happened - I brought a couple of boxes of decorations in from the garage for the YFG to sort through, and discard the ones we didn't want to keep.  They have sat on the kitchen floor since Tuesday night, and I am pretty sure that the wee beastie came in with one of the boxes.

The FH taught me this year to set a mouse trap, as I had always been scared of getting my fingers caught!  I managed to learn how to balance the levers finely so that the trap will spring when the mouse touches the bait.  So I loaded four traps up and placed them around the kitchen....baited with Haribo "milk bottle" sweeties!  I had to disinfect the counter too of course.

All morning I sat in the dining room/office, next to the kitchen, working away on the phone, half expecting to hear the snap of the trap.  Not a peep!

I went out in the afternoon and then took the YFG and we went to gymnastics.  When we arrived home just before 8pm last night - there was a body.....and then I decided that I wasn't so keen on all this murdering after all as I had to dispose of the corpse.  Out came the rubber gloves.  Urgh!

Goggles update

Friends - I gave up!

(image from goggles4u.co.uk - really!)

I took the glasses and went to the optician on Tuesday and explained the problems that I was having with the varifocal lenses in the new glasses.

He looked at them.  He tweaked things.  We talked.

He's going to put the distance lenses in the new frames, and then he will use the existing frames that I am still wearing, and make a pair of "reading" glasses for me.

There was no way that I was spending all that dosh on a pair of glasses which I couldn't use, so something had to be done.  

I tried with them really hard, but when I was developing headaches after about two and a half hours, and struggling to see what I was doing when I was working, I knew that in reality, this arrangement was not going to work for me.

I may have to try again in a few years, but for now, I am happy that I have made the right decision.  Just looking forward to getting it all straightened out and the new glasses back again!

Keeping busy

This is one of those weeks where if something isn't on a list or on the calendar, it won't get done!

(image from office365.co.uk)

Monday night was a church meeting, Tuesday was gymnastics and a school govenors' meeting, and then yesterday morning I was back at school for an 8.30am meeting......thank goodness for no meetings today!  There was another church meeting last night but I couldn't manage that because of the timing and where it was situated, so I sent apologies for that one.

We've cancelled the YFG's piano lesson today because she has exam revision to get done for end of module exams this week and next.

There's still work and living to do in between all this too.  UJ was here and has helped me clean out the chooks yesterday afternoon - I need an extra pair of hands to hold open the chook-house roof whilst I clean it out, so it is a two person job, and the YFG is not here in daylight during the week!

Today and Friday I shall be preparing for a family fun Christmas event at the chapel on Saturday afternoon, and then prepping the service for Sunday morning too.  

Next week is looking a little less frazzled.  Gymnastics will end on the 13th until some time in January, so that will free up a little more time too.  

Time - what a precious commodity!  I had half an hour in a hot bath with a book to read last night and just relaxed, as I could feel that if I didn't take a break, I would be getting a little frazzled.  Lists are also very helpful at this time [no, ALL the time!] and I find it incredibly satisfying to cross things off as they are done.  It all helps!

Holiday baking ideas

Where do you get your recipe ideas from?  

I use recipes I have gleaned over the years from the forums at MoneySavingExpert, as well as my mother's tried and tested recipes, and those given to me by friends.  There are some from old-fashioned cookbooks like the Be-Ro Book, and the Dairy Diary, but then there are those I find on the internet, on blogs, and on websites like All Recipes.

The ginger cakes fresh from the oven

I've shared a stupendous Ginger Cake recipe on here, as well as a favourite fudge method. There are mince pies that get rave reviews that came from MSE, and brownies from all sorts of places.  And of course, Twink's famous oat biscuits, and cheese scones too.

Chocolate brownies and oat biscuits

My favourite Christmas cake recipe came from the Family Circle magazine in 2000, and that magazine is sadly no longer published.

This week I came across these gorgeous looking biscuits and knew that I had to find a way to try them out - I just need something with a pretty pattern on to stamp them down with....

November spending round up

Looking back over November, things haven't gone too badly, if you overlook the glasses!

(image from supplierlist.com)

After the specs, everything else is pretty much OK for our average November.  A little less usually hits the savings in November as I buy gifts and a little extra here and there.

I expect it.  It doesn't go onto the credit cards.  It doesn't get out of hand.

So, I spent a little more than I have been spending on food, but I included the 5 bird roast [£9.99] and a bottle of sloe gin [£10.50] from Aldi in the total, which are special buys for Christmas.  

The "chook" column in the spreadsheet is a little higher than usual because it was the month I bought the worming pellets for the girls and they are £14.95 instead of £7.80 but I do that once a quarter.

Toiletries is low again this month - Aldi still didn't have the lovely pink shower gel in again this month, or that total would have been higher.  They had stacks of Tea tree and mint, and we are a bit fed up of that, so I grabbed the last two zingy lime ones and left it at that. If they had had the raspberry one in, I might have bought half a dozen!  I found some Always in Sainsbury's this month and the spend was almost entirely on them - the packs have two more pads in, and the price was just £2 a pack, so I stocked up!

The "Books/Gifts/DVDs" column is also high this month - I wonder why that could be?!  But all the gifts are here, wrapped and secreted away, so that side of things is sorted.  And we haven't gone mad in that department either: bargain books have been found on the Book People website for some small friends who love sticker books, and we had cashback through Quidco for those, as well as buying them on a day that the website had a promotional code on offer!

I have used my four "£6 off when you spend £40" Sainsbury's vouchers, and have also scanned the extra coupon, so my bonus 5000 Nectar points should hit my account within 28 days.  

Some of the gifts have also been bought with Clubcard and Nectar points on their respective Double-up schemes, which has helped quite a bit - the YFG wanted a dressing gown and a jumper so they came courtesy of the vouchers.  I have also used my Shop'n'Scan points to get some Amazon vouchers.  

An unexpected expense this month has been a new toilet seat for the family bathroom.  It broke completely and wouldn't stay on the hinges so it had to go.  The YFG had her heart set on a fishy seat, so we now have tropical fish on the toilet seat in that bathroom, courtesy of B&Q on Sunday.  It took quite a bit of looking in local shops to find one, and we had to go a little further afield to be successful!

(image from diy.com)

If it lasts as long as the first one (10 years) I won't be able to complain!

December is looking stable, so far, and I shall begin to stash money towards car expenses at the end of January....insurance and tax on my Skoda are due and I shall top up the savings account this month and next towards that.  I still have the FH's little Fiesta but that will not be insured or taxed now until we want to use it again or sell it.  

How are your festive finances looking?

In the kitchen this week

It's Advent, and I don't like to have anything too rich [by any meaning of the word] in the run up to the big day, so that we really appreciate the festive food for a couple of days.  Advent here is a little like Lent in that respect - these days we eat what we fancy year round and have got away from the old ways of only having "feast" foods on the proper feast days!

This week, we are planning:

• Leftovers from the weekend for tonight
• Soup and hot toasted sandwiches and then a simple "mug" sponge pud for the YFG
• Baked spaghetti with mozzarella and garlic
• Sausage casserole [with beans and tomatoes and onion gravy]
• Cottage pie
• Pizza

There are several items there which will result in "planned-overs" or extra portions for another day to be popped into the freezer and brought out on busy days. 

I'll be making more leek & potato soup this week, as I bought some leeks in Aldi yesterday much cheaper than the last lot I had found elsewhere.  I shall also probably use leeks in the cottage pie instead of an onion as I am getting low on onions.

There will also be baking this week for events at the chapel next weekend, so I have got to fit that in somewhere....

Not here yet

At the risk of being controversial, I'm not putting the decorations up this weekend, either!

(image from onedreamtravel.com)

I know that some people are decking the halls this weekend, and putting up the tree, and the lights have been switched on in towns and cities all over the country.

Not here.

Not yet!

As a child, the tree went up on the Saturday before Christmas.  And that seemed to be a widespread tradition in our little village back then.

Now, I know that half the windows in the street will be sporting a fully lit tree by Sunday night, and the scene will be set for the next five weeks or so.  But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

This is Advent. 

 A time of waiting, of preparation and of thoughtfulness.  The celebration comes later!

I am thinking of the prophecies of the Old Testament, the pregnancies of Elizabeth and Mary, the long time that Anna and Simeon waited at the Temple, and the generations that the Israelites waited for their Messiah.

Patience, people!

On the first Sunday in Advent, I am linking to Ang's Tracing Rainbows blog to hook up with the "Pause In Advent" theme.

(image taken from angalmond.blogspot.co.uk)