Pointy sticks at the ready... and a few choc biscuits and brews too.

[carrotsandcelery]

Eeek! carrots how long was that for?

I will not be repeating the chocolate porridge myself. Ds can have the rest of the box. It looked like porridge oats with drinking chocolate in it which explains the hot choc taste zoo mentioned.

I am a bit queasy in the mornings at the best of times. It usually takes me an hour or so before I can eat. Even then this was not good and left me wanting sweet food all morning too.

That was pretty much a whole tank of oil. We hadn't had one since roughly this time last year as far as I can remember but I am probably wrong. It is the sort of thing best wiped from memory.

I have requested to change to a monthly direct debit. I dread to think what that will be but it is better than having to go into savings to pay for your heating.

I have realised that we are either in or approaching our 2 months of no council tax which will recoup about £500 for us (Council Tax is crazy up here and costs us over 2 grand a year). That was earmarked for the Christmas fund but will now have to go on the keeping everyone warm fund instead.

Scout I hope your inlaws can have you over. It is rotten being cold. If not you will have to clean frantically all weekend to keep warm!

Right, dw is beeping, wm is beeping, kitchen floor is gritty already... time to get going as my dparents are picking up ds soon.

I am trying a new route with my learning to cook. We are looking at the recipe mix packs in the shop, choosing one and then buying the ingredients it says you need.
So this week (for tonight's dinner) we chose chicken & leek bake. This will be a new one for me as I have never cooked chicken unless it was covered in breadcrumb and came from a box in the freezer .
I feel a bit yuk about dealing with what looks like an animal but I need to get over it!
Has anyone tried these recipe mix packs before?

Black Cat, we use them, sometimes they are delicious, sometimes mediocre and I think I can do a better job myself like the chilli con carne ones. There used to be one called Vegetable Hotpot. I can't even remember who made it now but it was discontinued!!. It was absolutely gorgeous. We almost lived on it, I still miss it now and we're talking nearly 15/20 years ago. ,

Right, ScoutCamp will be decamping East Anglia and heading for the Thames Valley. If it was just MrScout and me I'd deal with the cold but I have TS to think about, too. MrScout is also going to change the 8:30 appointment to later in the day so we can stay over in the warmth on Sunday night and just come home in time for the plumber.

I use the beef stew/cassarole packets. I'm not brand loyal. They do the job.

Glad to hear some of you have used them before.

I have done nothing for the 1.00 club today but will have to do some in a bit.

I think I might have to grab a nap after dinner.

I have tidied the utility room a bit more and managed to squeeze the airer in there. I am not sure how long I will be able to tolerate it there as it is blocking the washing machine but I am sick of looking at it in the kitchen.

I have also hung the washing and hoovered another rugs worth of dog hair up from the hall, kitchen etc.

I don't know the kits you are talking about BlackCat but that is probably because I am not a meat eater. I do use the Domio bolognaise sauce sometimes though. I read the ingredients and they are the same as everything I would put in the sauce anyway so I couldn't see the harm. A jar of that, a pack of Quorn mince and a packet of wholewheat spaghetti and you have a meal in about 15/20 mins that the whole family will eat and doesn't make massive mess or dishes.

"A jar of that, a pack of Quorn mince and a packet of wholewheat spaghetti and you have a meal in about 15/20 mins that the whole family will eat and doesn't make massive mess or dishes."

Thats my kind of cooking, quick, easy, minimal washing up.

I love cooking but sometimes life just doesn't allow for a made from scratch meal. I also have to keep an eye on the budget (see oil bill for details!!) and some made from scratch meals can get pricey. It is ok if you make them a lot and therefore have the all the little jars but it takes a while to build up the store cupboard of the little bits and bobs.

Oh yes, I definitely go for "cheap & easy". I do homemade/from scratch as well. But sometimes it's just not feasible. Or you spend 5x the amount on ingredients than you would you bought the jar/sauce/packet. It was definitely the case when I was single/living alone. I figure as long as I'm not giving TS a diet of nothing but chocolates and crisps then it's okay to have jarred stuff as well as homemade/from scratch. He eats, I'm happy.

I just had a little cat nap on the sofa so hopefully now I might have a bit of energy to do some cleaning.

How did you do Zoo?

Downstairs tidied & vacuumed, bathroom floor wiped, dried up, washed up, made carrot & coriander soup (keeping warm in slow cooker) and arranged all the soft toys DD1 had got out earlier into a big circle with a picnic in the middle

Just sat down with mug of soup - the girls both wake up (both singing now) and the bloddy delivery man turns up! Off now to get them both up & downstairs so we can build the new storage thingy & decide what to put in it!

Have a good weekend scout!!

Hurrah! on the new storage bessie. I am weird and really enjoy storage solutions and putting things in them. I bought a mini drawer unit the other day for the dog treats and poo bags etc I totally believe in a place for everything. Then I hope to learn everything in its place!

We took Twilight to the groomers today as her coat is in a terrible mess. She can't stand for a long time so we will have to go regularly for a while to get her sorted out and then it will just be trying to keep it under control.

It is flylady for dog grooming really

She had massive dread locks round her back legs which made it hard for her to walk so they were the first to go. Next it is her "privates" poor girl as the groomer didn't even know how she was managing to wee. I feel so bad for her. Hopefully she will feel a lot better once it is all done. She has conked out now on her new bed. Dd and I are going out so hopefully she will snooze off the excitement.

Poor doggie, I hope she won't be getting a Brazillian?!!

I'm pleased with the new storage. It's quite small, so prob wouldn't be any good for mountains of Playmobile or Lego, but perfect for a tea set, some pretend food, and something else, as yet undecided!

Hope you have a good weekend scout

bessie loads of ds's toys are in units like that of various sizes, it's so handy for keeping sets of things together.

carrots - I have a bit of a storage fetish too. I'm constantly checking out new storage to put stuff in/re-arrange when what I should really be doing is getting rid of the stuff so we don't actually need storage I especially drool over the multi-coloured Really Useful box sets of drawers.

Oooh! I recently bought a set of multi coloured really useful box set of drawers - the really really tiny boxes. I also love the multi coloured drawer units in Hobbycraft but haven't anywhere to display put it so have resisted.

Yikes! I have just dropped dd off at the flyers nightmare as far as homes are concerned. I had an entrance hallway with a wooden floor, fireplace as big as my bathroom, suit of armour and grand sweeping staircase. The hallway was bigger than our kitchen/diner/family room

Apparently it has 9 bedrooms, several staircases etc

Eeeek!

Dd is friends with the housekeepers daughter. Her poor mother is responsible for keeping that enormous house in order.

Eeeeek!

EeeeeK!

Dd has gone there for a sleepover. Do you think she will get a wink of sleep? I would lie quaking all night quaking under my duvet waiting for ghosts to jump out screaming

Who wants chocolate?

YES PLEASE!

Who wants a Crabbies Alcoholic Ginger Beer?

mmmmm Ginger beer sounds good, but I'm on the vino

Dh came home bearing gifts of Ferrero Roche and wine so I am set up for the night.