Happy Birthday!

My Dads 65 today!

So Far, So Good

Well I've managed to stick to my budget for the last 3 weeks, Ive only spent £111 on housekeeping! I can't believe I've done it and we seemed to have eaten a whole load more healthier than normal. I have also had many days when I haven't spent so much as a penny. It's all been a matter of planning my meals in advance and only buying the items I need. Why didn't I do this before? 


My most expensive week was when it was my mums birthday, we went out for a meal on the evening and then again the next day when Soph popped back from uni (that's the two of them above). We tried Dunsley Hall Hotel in Kinver for lunch, it was great and well worth the money. Have a look  and let me know what you think.


We have been really busy with DIY at home. Whilst Jacks away travelling we are re plastering his room, Sophs room and also making alterations up the loft. Oh my God the loft, I have never seen so much junk in a place in my life. Think we will need 2 large skips to get rid of it. Why did I keep it in the first place only to throe it away now.

This is only half of what we have thrown away so far and there is still half the loft to sort through yet! Some stuff is still wrapped up from when we moved to this house in 1994!


Here's next weeks menu, I spent £42 at Aldi today which is the most amount of money I have spent on housekeeping so far this year. I am aiming for £200 spend every 4 weeks, this includes cleaning items, deodorants etc. I have also been making my own brad every day. 


Week beg. 27th Jan
Friday Spaghetti bolagnase
Saturday Chilli
Sunday Roast Chicken dinner
Monday Chicken pie
Tuesday Pasticchio
Wednesday Potato wedge tortilla
Thursday Kedgeree


Let me know how you are doing saving your pennies in 2012.
Oh one more thing, the gas bill came yesterday and we managed to cut it by £200! We have started leaving the heating on more of the time so the house is always at a constant temperature. Mind you we have not had such a cold winter as last year but I have checked on our bill from Jan 2010 and we have still saved £155 on that.

Happy New Year!

I Know its a bit late but Happy New Year! Time seems to pass so quickly nowadays, do you feel the same?
The photo above was from the 3rd Jan when we had no electricity from 11.30 in the morning until 8 on the evening. It was really spooky outside in the street, the cars were driving along with their main beams on. We got invited to my brothers for casserole so perhaps we should have a power cut once a week and then we could get invited out more often.


Jacks still away, he's in Australia now, I wish I was there. I could do with a holiday, we never managed to get away last year, hubby had too much work on and you don't like to refuse it when it's there. He's gone quiet now because we haven't had that cold a winter as yet (he's an industrial heating engineer).


It's just me and hubby at home at the moment as Soph is back at uni. I'm trying to be very frugal with what I spend since Christmas. I'm hoping to feed the two of us for £50 a week. I managed last week, only spent £31 and so far this week I've spent £4.96 . I'm being very good planning our meals and making sure I use up all the perishable foods first, I'm sick of throwing away out of date items. I've made some blueberry muffins this morning to use them up.

Yesterday I made leek and potato soup with left over leeks from Christmas! We have got a mountain of leftover chocolate from Christmas, god help us if the two of us at all that, we'll be the size of a house! Think I will box it up and send it off to uni with Soph, there are seven girls in her house so it shouldn't take them long to demolish it.


Here's my meal plan for this week, I'll let you know if we kept to it and how much I spent next Saturday


Friday 13 Jan  Beef & carrot pie
Sat                  Beef & carrot pie left overs
Sun                 Boiled bacon and parsley sauce
Mon               Sausage paprika 
Tue                Lasagna
Wed              Pork Chops
Thur              Fish pie


I love reading the blogs when people are trying to save their pennies, one of my favourites is Frugal Queen have a look and see what you think.

Christmas is a Coming!

Well it was a very quiet in our house today, there's only me and hubby until  the weekend when Soph will come back from Uni to stay. I kept myself busy though, making my Christmas cake and finding out the Advent candle I bought a few weeks ago. Once this was out it made me realise how close Christmas is and how much I have to do. We began decorating our bedroom in September and I still have to make the curtains! Well I'm sure everything will get done in time but what the heck if it doesn't.

Once it was dark we lit the candle and also the fire, its so cold tonight, looks like Jack Frost is going to pay a visit.

The Journey Begins...

Little sis, Dad, and Jacko

After twelve months of planning it was the day I had been looking forward to but also dreading at the same time when Jacko went off on his travels, 7 months of sightseeing! Thailand, Australia, New Zeland, Hawaii, California and New York. He's going with Rachel his girlfriend and meeting up with other friends on the way. What a chance of a lifetime, when I left school it was straight to work! 

The Travellers

And so the journey begins

Christmas Comes Early!

We had an early Christmas Dinner yesterday at my Moms as my eldest Jack is going travelling for 7 month on 1st December with his girlfriend Rachel. My brother, Sister-in-law, and their 3 girls came too so it was just like Christmas Day. We all gave them there Christmas and Birthday Pressies to open and they were both surprised by how much their travel fund has grown! 

Jacks favourite chocolate cake

I will miss him loads but I know that now is the right time for them to do this. I wish I could pack up and go off for 7 months. He's just graduated from Uni and has a job to come back too so then he can start on the 9 to 5 grind everyday until your 65!

The Grandkids

Hopefully more blogging will resume here now so as to keep Jack up to date on whats been going on in Sunny Gornal whilst he's away.

The Travellers

Can I Tempt You

Bought this book a while ago but never used it so since we are having a clear out I have listed it along with a few other items on Ebay. If your interested take a look here.