Happy New Year!

 Wishing you all a very happy, healthy and peaceful 2025

Angie ❤️

A January Challenge

 

At the start of each January when I write a budget for the forthcoming year, we resolve to spend less on food for January to give us a bit of recovery time from the expense of Christmas.  This year, 2025, it's a necessity to re-jig the whole budget because:

1. We have lost Graham's part time earnings
2. We didn't get Winter Fuel Allowance 
3. Energy prices are not coming down
4. Our rent will be going up in March
5. As will Council Tax

As usual, the only wriggle room left is in the food budget so we are setting ourselves a challenge of a low spend January. I want to see how long we can last by eating from our stores and only buying groceries using Nectar points.  Gray usually has a £50 Asda voucher from work and, of course, we don't have one to help us this year so are already at a disadvantage.  What we do have is:

My Sainsburys Nectar points £22.42

Graham's Nectar points £18.47

Boots points 624 (worth £6.24)

We have lots of veg in the fridge and freezers, long life milk, a huge tub of Clover spread,  Cheddar cheese etc  We will only need to shop for protein like eggs and some meat for Gray or when we run out of things we really need.  We will also buy any yellow sticker reduced items we come across. Meals will be simpler and, hopefully, healthier too.

With this challenge in mind, I'm looking for some recipes for cheap veggie meals and I'm also following the u tuber ALI LIVES WELL ON LESS  She is a retired teacher, living on a small teachers pension and she is FAB! She is so inspirational and so far has donated every penny raised from u tube to local (to her) charities.  Do check her out 😃

Anyway, I digress......

The question is can we survive on points and no more than £100 cash until 31st January?

Let the fun begin 👍😎

Thanks for popping in.  Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be, 

Angie 💓

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All Change, Feeling Saddened and a Challenge

I'm fed up with Christmas now and want to pack it all away until next year. Christmas day at our daughter's house was lovely. The meal was delicious and we left around 8.30pm to drive home in the fog and mizzle.

Boxing day here was a repeat but I cooked salmon instead of turkey. Our Granddaughter was working so there were just 5 of us. We took turns playing Connect 4 board game until 5pm when our Granddaughter arrived (she was supposed to let us know when she was on her way 😟), she was absolutely starving and very tired.  What ensued was a mad rush to put the oven on once again and prepare food, mainly ham baps, salad stuff and hot nibbles which everyone wolfed down..... mainly whilst standing 😳 not at all the quiet relaxing tea I had planned. Granddaughter then nodded off to sleep on the sofa draped in a blanket. She slept for almost an hour, took a shower, washed her hair, put on clean clothes and then drove herself and her brother home 😏

So much for a traditional get together. At least I got a big hug and a thank you from her.

I have a suspicion that next year might be completely different as I can feel a shift from traditions of the past, which I love, to the modern trend away from family gatherings now the kids are grown.  I felt quite saddened really which is why I want Christmas gone.  I think I need to pack away the decorations as soon as possible and move my thoughts on to plans for the new year.....

We won't be celebrating New Year as I usually like to go to bed early and wake up to a fresh new year quietly.....

And....

I feel a challenge coming on 😁😎

Thanks for popping in.  I know how busy it is at this time of year. 

Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be.

Angie 💗

Happy Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas

and a Blessed, Peaceful New Year ★★★

Angie 💗

Almost There...Relax!

 

Almost there! Only one day to go!

Yesterday, I finished my ironing so that washing and ironing baskets will be totally empty for almost a week.  I'll be popping a bit of washing on during the Peak Save time on Sunday next, although it will probably just be towels.  I'll have extra because I always put small guest towels out for any visitors and my Granddaughter might enjoy a bath once she finishes work on Boxing Day and comes to join us 😂 I must remind her to bring clean clothes !

Talking about clothes, I haven't bought anything new for Christmas.  We never go out to celebrate Christmas other than to our Daughter's house on Christmas Day and I have a new'ish jumper with stars on which will be fine.  I have succumbed to new underwear from M & S (one bra and a pack of knickers) so I'll be fine if I'm run over by a bus 🙄😂  When I was ironing I noticed how shabby some of my T shirts and PJ's are and Graham has actual HOLES in his PJ tops so I hope Santa has noticed and brings him a new one ! Gray has loads of day clothes he never wears so he'll be fine for another year.  Me, on the other hand, I wear everything I own all year round so might need to factor in a small clothing allowance for 2025. Watch this space!

Have you splashed the cash for new party clothes this year?

Thanks for popping in and stay safe and well wherever you happen to be,

Angie💗

Am I Ready? Are You Ready? 🎄

 

Three days to go until Christmas.  I can't believe the big day is almost here, its come round so fast but I am ready (I think) 😁

1. Gifts have been bought and wrapped
2. All cards have been sent or given in plenty of time
3. I have extra food in the freezer, all bought within budget, pretty much
4. I have bought bargain packs of veg and written a meal plan for the next week
5. The huge swede has been microwaved whole and the flesh scooped out and frozen in  portions
6. I have made bread and vegetable soup for lunch today with extra portions of soup cooling for tomorrow's lunch
7. I have placed an online order for Monday delivery from Sainsburys (the last order for 2024)
8. On Christmas eve our daughter is collecting my order of a side of salmon for us all on boxing day, along with her  Christmas day turkey 
9. We have some wine, a few beers and plenty of soft drinks

 If Sainsburys deliver everything I ordered, then I AM DONE ✔  and can relax 😌 

All being well we will spend two days with the family, still sleeping at home though, and on Christmas Eve evening we will message our Son in Sydney to wish him a Happy Birthday, as Christmas day comes sooner there 😀 He has never forgiven me for my timing with his birth 🙄

In the new year we plan to have a low spend month for food and I'll let you know the details later.  There is always plenty of food left over after Christmas and we have Nectar  points to use instead of cash to top up anything we run out of.

Are you ready now?

Thanks for popping in and stay safe and well wherever you happen to be, 

Angie 💗

A Welcome Garden Visitor!

 We were over the moon the other day when we saw an unusual visitor to the bird feeding station.  We didn't recognise it at first but Google showed it to be a Nuthatch which made sense as he was hanging upside down on the peanut container and having a right old feast.  I do hope we see him again soon.....

I love watching the antics of the birds at the feeders and the squirrels who try to negotiate the anti-climb dome!  We have regular visits from Robins, a Blue Tit, Blackbirds, Magpies, and a Spotted Woodpecker came a couple of times too.  

What birds do you have visiting your garden?

Do you have any tips on what food to put out that doesn't cost a fortune please?

We would love to encourage more types of birds to visit but would rather not attract rats and pigeons 😏

Thanks so much for popping in.  Stay safe and well wherever you happen to be ,

Angie 💗