Decedantly damcing towards December - frugaleering Christmas ahoy!

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em hope ds feels better soon

It was a shock. I usually do a pack up, buy before I travel or do puppy dog eyes at someone who is paid vastly more than me. I was charged for just smelling the coffee. I felt less aggrieved about the pacer trains crying in the morning.

Sea how did your board go?
Unescorted my boss sometimes buys me a cuppa and I take my contiguous but being out of the house for the length of all three meals means I spend every week and I can only ever claim back most of one meals worth. This week it was a takeaway burrito at a stoking £11 of which I can reclaim £9.25

It is crazy. To be fair if I am in our office in London the dad of one of my colleagues drops off (or makes his son bring it in) a very fine curry for me to try. In return I bring biscuits or cake. Today I wasn't in the office.

quite, glad you've posted again. I read from your posts that you've got some medical stuff that you don't always mention so much - but kudos for having the attitude you do. I agree, it just needs one person to say 'this is bloody ridiculous, why don't we just not buy gifts' for everyone to breath a sigh of relief! Keep posting.

wrong. Mega kudos for the running plans. I like a goal to give me focus and get me out of the door when I'd rather make an excuse. Don't let it be a burden but a positive. I'm genuinely happy to provide any help I can, you won't be able to shut me up about running!

Did 9 miles tonight, a few with a mate then club run.

Parsnip curry, which I stuck in the SC was surprisingly tasty. Couple of parsnips, onion, cauliflower (roasted), Aldi coconut milk, Aldi chick peas, spices. Rice. Frugal.

NSD.

Evening all. I’m a bit pissed. Oops.

Went to an Italian Christmas cooking workshop. Have brought back a hamper of goodies with me. Pannetone, Baci Di Dama cookies, torone, rose and orange marshmallow, arancello... had a few glasses of prosecco and Ann arancello cocktail.

Cost £45. Worth every penny. Recipes provided. I went with Dm. She had a lovely time.

Dh spent the evening with ds. He’s no worse. Phew.

Autumn Irish children don't look any different to children in the uk a Grandad cap on his head maybe might do it or dress him like a farmer as we've a strong farming background but otherwise nothing special

So I tried sauté on the instant pot again & no joy so I went onto the app to lodge a complaint & was able to click click & get free return label for current one & will be replaced with new one. Can't believe it could be this easy

€10.04 Aldi cat food, dishwashers tablets, 0% fat Greek yogurt and some treats to take to my Nan in hospital.
€3 parking at hospital

Got a free tshirt at my bootcamp class tonight

That's about price of your lunches in London wolf & that day you leave house at 5am so would be extra hungry I bet

Bloody hell re the IP, happier, the sauté function is usually great!

😂 em, will have done you good.

I need a good deal on a Nintendo Switch, if anyone finds one. This is DS's pressie. I'll use TBC etc obviously.

Happier I find it goes one way or another, I either have zero appetite at all on those days or I could eat a horse. Yesterday was a horse day

It’s great to know the IP service is so good

Unescorted I want to work in your office

Em glad you had a great evening and that ds is doing ok

That great return service is with amazon

Weather is frizz-tastic again today 😬. My hair is huge but not in a good way. It’s not even raining that hard in London, just annoying mizzle.

How annoying about the IP Happier. I hope you are still all thrilled about it when you finally get one that works.

Work went pretty well today. The Board subcommittee was very complimentary about the paper and the chairman came to see me afterwards to say how helpful it was. So that was nice. And I had a chat with them about maybe having an 18-month contract for as many hours as I want and flexible around DS. If that comes off (depending on the full board wanting to do the next phase of the project after next week’s full board meeting) it would be excellent. That would pretty much take me to dd getting her full hours at nursery and, if she gets a place at DS school, would make the logistics of life much easier (though I’d still have the DS childcare dilemma and no answer in sight ).

Spent £20 on lunch for myself and a colleague because I bought sushi (was still trying to stick to the diet) but then blew it tonight. Had one course in a lovely restaurant and has one sherry plus shared a bottle of wine 3 ways (one of the cheaper bottles too) and my share was £70!!! Had a really wonderful time though and an exceptional Wiener schnitzel and fries and salad. Not dieticious at all but it was the first proper blow out I’ve had in 12 weeks. And worth it. Until weigh-in tomorrow at least

I. Am. So. Knackered. I am almost home and cannot wait for oblivion.

One lovely thing happened to me today... I had a message on fb from someone I didn’t think I knew but it turned out to be someone who worked for my dad nearly 20 years ago. She had heard he’d passed away and wanted to write to say that he was her first boss and she had ‘loved him dearly’. That he had been so proud of his girls and had treated her like a daughter too and given her a career after no one ever cared at school. She had a baby 8 weeks ago and called the baby after him ❤️😢. Luckily I was out buying lunch when I saw it because it made me cry a bit. I pulled myself together (presentation was right after that) but I think I need to have a nice big cry tonight to get it out of my system. So very lovely of her to find me though and lucky I have an unusual name . I will write back tomorrow when I can have a little weep. With Christmas coming I am missing him very much at the moment but glad to miss him too, iyswim.

Jam has dd had her interviews now? How did they go?

Mega behind on the thread, baby and I are still ill.

Spendy day, paid trampolining teacher, ordered a couple of house bits on amazon, and ordered the baby’s presents on yesbebe (thanks again happier :o)

Other than that my sole achievement was staggering upstairs for a hot bath.

The others however stripped the remaining wallpaper in the Caglets’ bedrooms and DS’ has been sugar soaped ready for base coat.

I thought that said DS was sugar soaped

Today is going to be a long day. Back at work. A smidge hungover.

I need carbs. But not too much before I sit in the hot car...

It probably did me good though. 😂

Happy frugal Thursday people. I am hoping today is less manic work wise

Sea that’s lovely that your dad is living on in someone else’s memory and how nice to hear that he’s had such an impact on someone else’s life too. Great news about the contract extension, fingers crossed it all works out

Cag sorry to hear you’ve still got the lurgy. Hot baths sound like a good plan. Look after yourself

Sometimes I think sugar soaping might be the only way to get the dirt off ds

I'm still not recovered from my lurgy either and have had to pass on my concert tickets for Saturday to someone else. Really quite cheesed off about that.

Sea thats a lovely thing regarding your DDad
Sounds like work is going well for you and the night out was well deserved for you and em as well.

Sneaky ugh rain -we dont get much here daaaarn Saaarf .We are in a peculiar little pocket where we get the best of the weather unless it snows and then its BAD.
Cut off for days bad lovely

I dont think Gina Ford recommends sugar soaping children but it could catch on 😂

JAM Yep you are right .
9 miles -brilliant !
Will DD find out about Jan time ??

Happier I think I know who you are ?
Aaargh annoying but still tempted by the IP.

DD is coming home at the weekend 😍 and is going to do the trees and decorations -yay!
Need to do the rest of the house if I can rope DH in to do the bits I cant .
Have a good day Frugaleers,its almost Friday 😎

That is such a lovely thing to hear about seacow 💕 Also, the contract extension sounds really good all round if you can get it to work

How annoying about the IP happier!

😎 for em today

My mum had a car accident yesterday. She sounds fine but car is dented and damage to a man's van. DP has told me I must be restrained and not give her grief about not driving, it's her decision as she's ignored our previous advice etc. I am trying my best but quietly combusting! She has to take my dad for a second pair of eyes when driving, can't cope with windscreen wipers going and car lights are too dazzling. Honestly..... 🙄 I appreciate it is the loss of independence. I hope she tells the insurance this and they revoke her insurance, she is almost 80.

FFS.

Morning all, I've had to admit defeat and tell work I won't be in, I'm still not well and have now got achey joints to add to the fun and dd is also off ill with the same bug.

Very annoying, dd is upset as it means she will miss her clarinet lesson and her exam is less than two weeks away.

seacow well done on the work you did, you must be very good at what you do given how many challenges you had when you were doing that piece of work. That's lovely re the lady and your dad 💖 how wonderful that his name will live on. He sounds like such a lovely man.

Sugar soaping kids heh? I'll give it a go if it does them good 😉

I'm always shocked by London prices, last time we went we ate mostly at subway or the supermarkets! ! That said we found an amazing street food place in Camden which was delicious and reasonable.

I thought that about Irish kids happier not really sure schools should be reinforcing cultural stereotypes tbh.

Eat the carbs em

love you could announomously let the dvla know your concerns? I believe everyone over the age of 75 should have to resit their test and it be regularly reviewed. I've been shocked to learn that some of my patients are still driving.

You are right girlie. I hope she decides to stop driving on her own accord, but if not I think I should report her to the DVLA. I'm hoping someone else does too!

Hopefully the insurance won't want to fix her 20 year old car anyway (which my dad had 3 accidents in before he stopped driving). I know she won't want to start driving a new car.

She's also said I'm not to phone her, just to email. I'm very nice to her in person, I do all my ranting to DP!

Seacow, that is such a touching gesture. How wonderful that your DF touched someone's life to the extent that they wanted a constant reminder of that kindness. You are understandably emotional, I would be too! And great news about the extension of the contract.

love that's really tricky to handle. I'm glad no one was hurt, would your DM be able to be persuaded to consider how she would feel if someone had? I completely understand, my DF at 87 is still driving and still competent, but there will be a day...

Thanks - her interviews start on Monday. I'm driving her down to Oxford on Sunday to avoid any travel stress for her, but she's making her own way back on Wednesday. We are aware that there are very many excellent candidates for few places, but she's done brilliantly to get so far anyway.

Yes - track updates 9th January with decisions, but the interview invitation process was more random, she was one of the last to know, via email. Some were letters!

I've tried that previously jam, using the example of what if you hurt a child similar to one of your granddaughters. She continued to drive.

I am really biting my tongue at the moment. I hope she makes the right decision. Otherwise reporting to the DVLA.

Girlie Sorry to hear about the lurgy. If I can help at all with the clarinet exam, please do ask any questions on here or pm me. It was very mysterious going into it, as I'd never done a music exam before, but I know what it's like now, so might be able to help a bit. The biggest thing I found out was that the bar was much much lower than I expected.

Christmas your Dad sounds lovely.