Countdown to Christmas 2023: get past the post-Christmas slump by thinking about the next one! (Thread 1.)

[NoWordForFluffy]

364

Morning (just)!

I failed at eating yesterday which meant I got blotto far too early and wasn't well. Oops! 🙈

But we had a great time anyway and I avoided having to tidy up!

Countdown to next year is go go go! 🎄🎅🏻🎄🎅🏻🎄🎅🏻

302

Morning!

It's rather chilly here today. 🥶🥶 I'm off to the allotment soon. I think I'll dig potato trenches today. I need to fleece the ground where the parsnips are going to go too.

There isn't a huge amount I can do at this time of year.

My previous manager has suggested I focus on tomatoes to make a killing! 🤣🤣

I got cherry tomatoes and a large cucumber in my click and collect yesterday. Couldn’t get any mango though (ds not impressed).

dh is working again today and I forgot some bits in my £130 food shop so we’re going to walk to Tesco. It’ll be put first time walking there but I think I’ve found a way which is about a mile or so, ds is moaning about going but I know he will enjoy it once he’s out and away from the laptop..

Brilliant love that count down thank you. Weather dull today and cold again.

DH had been painting fence panels again I've moved the pots with the bulbs around so I can see them. It's quite warm in the sun.
General hoovering/bathrooms/kitchen...<autopilot yawn>
2 loads of washing...2nd load, shoving it in the TD and I've washed a tissue.
🤬🤬🤬🤬
It was only PJs, socks, pants and the fleece with pockets that I wear instead of a dressing gown...the one that I emptied the pockets before I put it it...I've pointed at the tissues I took out as proof/evidence...DH laughing at me, the bastard.🤬
I'm so bloody cross I've been outside and kicked the wheely bin twice
My toe hurts. 🤦‍♀️
AAArrgh
Looks like I'm cleaning the kitchen again.

And NDNs bloody kitchen faffers have arrived - Day 21🤯

On the fruit/veg front, there's no gaps in Sains but Tesco and Morrisons were a bit hit n miss last wk.

I nearly dropped a tool box on my head/foot yesterday...
Lucky the cats had gone upstairs for their afternoon siesta.

So far, this week, I've broken a plastic tool box, a colander and a greenhouse thermometer.

DH won't let me anywhere near him...🤣

You're a danger to everyone around, Puss, by the sound of it!

Our Sainsbury's was missing tomatoes last week and has had a few weeks of no peppers when I've been in.

I've ordered some blight resistant tomato seeds which can grow outside, so I'll get those going once they arrive. I was wondering what to fill my plot with, and somebody mentioned these to me today, so that's sorted!

£130 is an expensive shop, Wreck. I think we average about £90 - £100 a week (excluding the dog). That's up by about £20 a week I reckon though.

We had hailstones yesterday , I had some towels out , nearly dry , I did say to DD once I unpeg the last one , the hail will stop ........and it did .

Today I have :
cleaned bathroom
washed showercurtain
made a tray of brownies (there were eggs that needed used up)
shampooed the hall carpet again the got my darling DS to do the boring rinse'n'vacuum up the water bit

I;m roasting some vegetables for part of lunch and some can go in the freezer for soup.

Looking at a tree and some shrubs that I want to cut back (or to be more accurate , send DH up a ladder to cut the tree , I'll catch the branches ) . But I know my secateur happy little paws will do them harm , there's a dogwood already getting leaves , and it's a good screening plant which I need .. No idea what type of tree it is .

Our Sainsbury had no tomatoes, no peppers , not much broccoli and a note up about the eggs now being barn kept not Free Range ( and hardly any eggs anyway )

I'm stalking some evening wear for later in the year ( Cruise and there's Formal Nights ) on eBay etc. Not the right time of year to buy them but if I see something suitable and bargainous then that's sorted and I don't have to worry later .

£130 is an expensive shop, Wreck. I think we average about £90 - £100 a week (excluding the dog)

Our cats' food has gone up in price steadily over the time we've had them , it's about £13 for 40 pouches now (this'll ast them 10 days ) but they like fish for breakfast and pultry for supper so I buy two boxes every three weeks or so .
Costco sometimes has the chicken boxes .

I send DS off to take photos of the freezers before I go shopping so we know whats in there .

70 what do they have? ours are on Whiskas and the pouch size has shrunk from 100g to 85g...try humansplaining that to a hangry furball or two. 😾
I'm still using the old ones (B&M had some) but at some point they'll notice.

Fluffy yep, I should be in a padded cell for my own safety, with visiting rights for the 😸😸, I nearly stabbed my foot with scissors too!

It was. I needed things I don’t always buy though like washing powder and loo roll. I just got a massive cauliflower though which I’m pleased about. The broccoli was 49p last year though and it’s 75p now which is over 50% increase 🤨

Oh we managed the walk too even dd came! It was an easy mile so we can do that more often when we don’t need much.

Wreck veg has gone up in price, and bread.

Day 21 of the NDN kitchen sink drama...still no skip 🤷‍♀️ but the builders are here and the waste heap has increased.

Not sure I could live of takeaway for 3 full wks.

I think their cat is nesting in the spoil heap now 😾 He's not happy and seems to spend a lot of time in our garden, poor love. I've given him breakfast for the last 5 days 🐟

Wreck make sure you have/use a Clubcard at Tesco. Some stuff is really cheap with it.

@pussycatinfluffyslippers
Yes, they have Whiskas 1+ pouches , I did notice the picture on the box had changed but until you pointed it out, I hadn't realised it was 15% smaller

It won't share this with the felines , they are raging because DS didn't have roast chicken today so they didn't have the offcuts .

They get a small scoop of Crave biscuits wih their supper Whiskas , they'll be rioting to demand an increase !

Yes always use my Clubcard. Then I use the vouchers to take the dc out to eat in the holidays.

70 interestingly Whiskas haven't made it clear on their boxes that our feline overlords will require more meals. 😾

Wreck we used to save ours to go racing. It was a bit of a treck, but we got into Fontwell for nothing once (only a nearly 500 mile round trip, with an overnight at the Travelodge)🤔

They’ve just put traffic lights around some of the Fontwell roundabout. No idea why (they’re still covered at the moment), can only think it’s something to do with the massive housing development opposite.

301

Morning! Monday again...boooooo!

It's quite nice here for now. Think it's meant to cloud over later. Bit chilly, mind! 🥶

I just called my GP to chase my referral to the orthopaedic surgeon. It's been over 2 weeks since they had the letter and it's not done yet. I also need my NCS results to email onto the surgeon, but the GP needs to review them first (I know there's no carpal tunnel, as she told me in there).

Just want to get on with things now!

Morning 🥱 Got home last night and back to work today.
Got a bit of a shock at how cold it is - I wasn't expecting 6°!

Currently working my way slowly through the inbox and trying not to let my head explode....

Nearly 300 <squeeeee>

And totally forgot the February Rudolph Day on Saturday <face/palm>

Crazy did you visit the Colosseum? It is quite eerie !

70 I completely forgot about Rudolph day too, but to make up for it I did visit a place known as Christmas Alley in Naples (it was rubbish though)!

We did go to the Colosseum, it was interesting and the tour guide we had was very blasé about its history which made me feel a bit weird.
I'm going to say something controversial now - although I'm glad we did Italy and there are other parts I'd like to see, I wouldn't go back to any of the places we went, and Naples is by far the worst place I've ever been.

300
Been up a couple of hours. Had a rotten day yesterday (D&V bug overnight) then slept from about 4pm, so my brain thinks it's nearly lunchtime, or Wednesday. 🤦‍♀️
DH has a cough and sore throat, so I've left him in bed with a and have sent the cats up to keep an eye on him. 😸

Hope you feel better today Puss. I have a deeply fascinating (not) training this morning (till 13.00) woohoo, the excitement is real.

why Oh, I used to love doing courses...they were such a waste of time - I could day-dream for hours

DH had bravely decided to paint some fence...he's also coughing and has cactus throat, he's had a lemsip and is wearing the "I'm not very well" jumper, and his old glasses 🤦‍♀️
This is his version of shuffly slippers/dressing gown of doom.
He will bravely go outside and get worse then collapse on the sofa and only manage a big bowl of chicken chasseur for lunch...maybe a bacon butty for tea? 😸🤔