The Friendly Frugaleers- Autumn is on its way !

[QuiteCleanBanditlovesdresses]

Hi Frugaleers
Sorry lame thread title

Distressed carrot sounds just my DS' sort of colour, I may have to take a look! :o

I am feeling quite a bit better today thank you jam :) so that is coupled with relief as I thought I was in for the long haul (flare ups are very unpredictable, they can be days or months). But after an awful night I seem to have gotten over the worst of it.

It is also very nice to be able to have people here because it means even if I am unwell people can keep me company :) previously I would have had to travel or cancel.

Life if you are where I was two weeks ago it’s f-Ing hot! Just remember the breeze off the sea starts at 11am.

I think I will still be quite cautious tomorrow though. We have promised the Caglets we will go swimming (at Horsham wreck :o) but I find it exhausting at the best of times. So I will probably just spend a little time in there with the baby (only her second time! Fuck I just realised she needs swim nappies!) and not do any proper swimming myself. I'm now in that "be extra careful in case of relapsing from the relapse" phase :o

It wasn't really meant to be quite so many people today, it was going to be a park meet and I suggested the local one as it's big, and thought maybe people could pop in before/after (one was cutting DS' hair first anyway) but then it rained all day. So they all came here instead!

Just looked at my online banking. What a huge difference it makes not paying childcare for 6 weeks! We have had quite a spendy week but still have a healthy bank balance. Going to put some aside for Sept nursery fees and some for Xmas.

So distressed carrot jeans are ripped skinnies.

I thought they’d be a lovely dark orange colour....sad.

Catface came out of her room.

She hopped on our bed. Spent the morning sleeping up here. And then sicked a little. Probably too scary. And she had rushed her food. So had to strip the bed. Sigh.

Yep Em and ironically I was trying to replace some of his trousers because the knee was torn. ds suggests that maybe Next have taken to selling secondhand clothes, and that that's why they are torn.

My ds gets ripped knees too Take it's very annoying.

Cag enjoy! The playground there is nice too.

Someone is letting off fireworks

I am knackered from a massive frenzy of packing. Not quite moving house like Em but after two weeks self catering in one holiday cottage (and almost 4 weeks away in total) it bloody feels like it!

It’s been a seriously unfrugal day. It’s been our last day in Orkney and one of the only things left in our to-do list was a boat trip around Scapa Flow. DH rang the main company that does it but they’d stopped for the summer so he rang another one in the guidebook and they said they could take us so he booked it. Turned out to be a private ride-along on a scallop fishing boat. So we watched a bit of scallop diving while moseying along looking at the cliffs and the remains of the wartime defences. And seals frolicking. It was pretty expensive though but DH booked it so I didn’t whinge... we got given a good pile of scallops at the end so I just cleaned them up and cooked them and they were delicious. Sausage roast for our next course and then Celebrations for pudding

Ferry at 11am tomorrow. Just one more week on the road and then we’re home home! I am quite looking forward to that

I also spent £54 on TKMaxx on Christmas and birthday presents for the dc. Bloody Christmas thread.

Distressed vegetables as clothing. I am so out of touch. Petrol today ready for 200 Mike visiting relatives trip tomorrow. No idea who Mike is he's not a relative. Should say mile. 🚗🚗

Just caught up - carrot trousers? No idea...

Well done to JamDS, you must be so proud!

Snuggly is it common to be able to find a term time child minder? Local to me a teacher friend was complaining that she had to pay though the holidays for her child’s nursery place, or lose it. Ouch.

Fuel for me too today, £20 for 15l ffs. Rural petrol stations suck. But cba to drive 20 miles out of my way to town for 4p/l.

Made a yummy tea, linguine tossed through courgetti (omg I will post a pick of my ghost marrow once I can get through the jungle to pick it) with bacon, cream and parmesan.

My asda shop came. £215 of stuff is a lot 12 crates!! Only thing wrong was the substitute dog food, sent it back for £11 refund. They subbed 18 tins for the 24 pack I ordered. Nope. We are heaving with loo roll, biscuits, tins and cereal!

I spent a tenner on a school bag for dd1. The search was for "boho hippy festival bag". She described what she wanted as "a baby sling without the baby that I can put my books in"!! Found on ebay.

In my amazon basket are her "school shoes" knee length fly london boots. £90. They're all I wear (but never black, ugh) so who am I to say no? And I know they'll last years. Will checkout another day.

Sorry that post was all me me me.

em wow, well done. Does it feel real yet that your flat is away? Onwards and upwards.

life take it easy and relax!

seacow epic trip, must have been great fun (and £££!).

jam yay for your boy! Clever lad.

LonelyOversharer loved your description of the bag
Dh is at the Asian market today but else it should be a nsd.

Today is the day. The day we say goodbye to our lovely flat. And start a new chapter.

We have to go back this evening because dh left a few bits but this is it. Come 330pm we officially wont own it any more. And come 10am tomorrow the new owners will take possession.
I’m sad. Excited. Sad.

Didn’t sleep too well. Catface found me on the bed. And wouldn’t settle. Dh got up for a wee. I got up for a wee. Either Dm or ddad for up for a wee. Catface stepped on my face. I had some odd dreams. I feel like I haven’t slept at alll.

Work today.

Just read back last couple of days.
Just congrats to your ds! Lancaster Uni is just down the road from here so feel free to message me if you need any inside info on the area. I was born at Lancaster infirmary. Well done on saving for uni costs, we are just starting to think about it, scary stuff.
Em I'm sure it'll feel odd & sad today, but a positive forward step too hopefully.
Seacow your trip sounds amazing, enjoy the last part of it.
Cag sorry you're not feeling great, not at all surprising considering the last few months.
There seem to be a few names on the thread unfamiliar to me so welcome to any newbies who have joined the thread over the past couple of weeks.
Ferry trip back from Spain was good. Kept pretty well to budget, but most importantly had a fab, relaxing time. Back to reality now & waiting for ds' GCSE results on Thursday. Stayed with pil last night, driving home today then a weekend of cricket & prep for back to work next week.

Start of an exciting new era Em. You'll bound to find it weird /stressful esp being back living with your DPs for a couple of months (and with your own family with you ).. but t least it is only that.. you have a lovely new house to look forward to..

I hope it goes well, I did it though way back - moved back in with my parents for a few weeks when i bought a house ( and it was Just me)

.. It can be challenging because you've moved on and used to your own space and so are they. And they still think of you as a child in their house their heads.. but deep breaths .. it will only be a few weeks
Think new start..

Seacow that sounds great . I love scallops and would love to go to Orkney

Congratulations @ememem84, exciting times. Your priorities sound similar to ours when we moved last year; we focused on bathrooms straightaway, put a new fire in before winter and will do other things gradually, for the rest of our lives probably!

Yesterday's spends
£91 Sainsbury's 25% off; mostly basics but a couple of things will go away for DH for birthday or Christmas (the obligatory socks and PJs ).

"like a baby wrap but without the baby" I'd be most relieved at the lack of baby.

www.hotukdeals.com/deals/tesco-55l-slow-cooker-in-store-only-15-3018395 Big cheap slow cooker.

I'm in porte pollensa.
Not frugal although I did haggle yesterday for a dress dd wanted.

That's great em, sad but the flat had served you well. Now onto the next stage with your family.

I'm not sure I dare Google carrot jeans

Morning.

Thanks for the good wishes re DS from those that did, I slept the sleep of the dead last night. I hadn't realised it was so stressful. I'll be thinking of you next Thursday north.

The trip and holiday does sound like money well spent seacow, I'd love to have a trip to Scapa Flow.

Mixed emotions em, understandable. Memories are made in our homes. But exciting times ahead.

Ordered a small shop from Sainsbury's for tomorrow but only just over £40, including milk for work.

Today will be
£60 dog grooming
£30 cleaners.

I've found a massive batch of ripe blackberries in the field, so the soft fruit I thought I might buy today will not be now bought.

I don't need any more slow cookers so I won't click on the link or I will buy one, I love slow cookers.

Not common at all Sea. We searched high and low to find a nursery that did term time only. If we had to pay through the hols too it wouldn't be worth my while going to work at all. Funnily enough there are loads of teachers' kids at our nursery!

It's always a bit sad leaving a home Em but it's a new erase and that is exciting.

There are nurseries here that do term time only. One of them only takes them from walking though. And then obviously there's plenty that take from 2, the pre school attached to our school does but only open 8-5:30.

That should say new era btw.

Thanks just I don't think I'll sleep well between now & then. Getting in to do A levels should have been a formality for ds, but with all that happened, he genuinely isn't sure of himself. He thinks he will have done enough, but there is just that doubt 😣. He didn't have a back up plan, & talked about it for the first time yesterday so we now need to find out whether the cricket course at a different college has places. It is actually a brilliant course and supported by Lancashire CC. It gives a qualification that is A level equivalent so would give us a stand by which he would love. Part of me actually thinks he would've been better doing that course anyway, but he wants to do A levels as all his friends are & he knows he is bright enough, his problem is applying himself to the work.

In frugal matters I need to meal plan for the week ahead so I can do an efficient, organised shop tomorrow when we're home.
Sorry for the rambling post re D's.