Meal plan Monday...

Hi everyone

I have made some changes to my blog to motivate me to write more.

I have started to meal plan again...

Meal plan Monday 

Monday cottage pie, broccoli and carrots

Tuesday cheese and onion pie, new potatoes and peas

Wednesday roast chicken, roasties, stuffing, Savoy cabbage and carrots 

Thursday baked bean lasagne and salad

Friday toad-in-the-hole, mash and green beans

Saturday sweet and sour turkey and rice

Sunday boiled eggs and toast

There's a mix of meat and veg dishes here and Sunday is only dippy eggs because we shop that day so eat a large late lunch (sandwiches etc) and only want something light for tea. 

Recipes on request!!

I hope you'll like the new style coming this week...more on that tomorrow.

Please hop over to my second blog...homemade happiness...cakes, bakes and other makes.

Thanks for reading,

Mandy x

Thank you!

Thank you for the feedback! I have noted your comments and I now feel I can move forward with this blog and not feel so uninspired by it!

A bit if news for you...

I have written my first post on my second blog...

http://bakinghomemadehappiness.blogspot.co.uk 

The blog title is...

Homemade Happiness...cakes, bakes and other makes

You can find it by clicking on my profile page too. 

I want to keep this blog thrifty and my new blog for everything else. If you search for blogs with thrifty or frugal ideas, you don't expect to see purchases from Cath Kidston or Emma Bridgewater!

I also want my new blog to document what I have made...hopefully seeing progress and improvement in my creativity.

I suppose I want to stay true to this blog. I find a balance in my life between thrifty and extravagant because I am lucky to be able to. It does you good to have treats every now and then. 

The recipe for this cake is over on my new blog...

It wasn't a cheap and thrifty cake so that's why it's on the other blog...am I making sense? Everything will be clear next week when I begin regular posts here again.

Thank you for reading,

Mandy x

Carboot goodies...

Hi everyone,

Sadly I've lost a bit of interest in my blog lately. I suppose that I sometimes feel I'm talking to myself and I really don't have the time for that! This used to be my online diary, but I had to make changes and as a result my blog became somewhere to share my ideas with like minded people. 

I'm not begging for loads of comments because I also read blogs and don't find time to comment, but I do ask if you find something I write useful or you try one of my recipes, that you send a short note to let me know please.

Like many people, my time is precious and blogging is a hobby, so I am keen to post up what is relevant to you. I love to cook from scratch and bake, so these are obvious choices to share with you. I have said before that I am not always thrifty and love pretty things...I suppose my title doesn't fit so well now. I sometimes make meals that have loads of ingredients too and this is not counting the pennies! 

Forgive me if you don't enjoy my Carboot/charity shop finds, but this is the thrifty person inside me so I think that kind of shopping fits my title. 

If I'm going to spend time doing recipes or tutorials, I need to know that it's what you want to read (I know I have a few loyal readers who 'chat with me' no matter what I post) so a little feedback would be very much appreciated. I have done things in the past that have been requested and then no response, leading me to think that either they haven't had time to read, or that it's not really what they were expecting. Am I making sense?

Don't get me wrong...I love writing and I love my blog, but it is a hobby that I want to enjoy and I want you to enjoy too.

Ok...

Now it's over to you...

If anyone has the time, please could you let me know what you would like me to write about? Do you want food related posts, household tips, money saving ideas, shopping, meal planning, or simply what I've been up to? 

I really don't want to be boring!!

I will look at your suggestions and come up with a plan!

In the meantime, I have been carbooting and this is what I bought...

It came to £9.95 and I also picked up a fisher price farm for £2, but Daisy is playing with it now! This totals £11.95. All useful and what I've been looking out for...no more impulse buying! 

I have also sorted out a huge amount of stuff for the charity shop...decluttering is a constant task to keep things under control. I have changed...I can be ruthless and I love the space I can uncover!

I hope you enjoyed reading and will be able to provide me with a little feedback.

Thank you so much to my loyal readers who already do this xxx

Mandy x

Carbooting...

Hi everyone

We've been carbooting this morning. I was looking out for books for Daisy and struck lucky! One seller was getting rid of her childminding stock of books for 10p each! I bought 24 books off her. That may sound excessive, but I like to rotate Daisy's books because we both get fed up with the same ones. She will look at a book on her own during the day (of her own choosing) and we share books at any time of the day. Daisy has at least six stories at bedtime too! We love books in our house. I bought another two books at 10p each off another seller, totalling 26 books for £2.60.

I also picked up...

A toy till, flash cards, a toddler book, a money box, a step for our other bathroom (so Daisy can reach to wash her hands, we already have one), a tweenies swimming bag, two Beatrix potter pictures, a cuddly giraffe and a cuddly hello kitty (free). All this came to £4.80.

I also picked up two scarves for £1, four lovely little tops for Daisy for £2, a dress, romper (to wear in bed in this hot weather) and two swimsuits for £2. This lot came to £5.

In total I spent £12.40

No impulsive buying...each purchase was      justified.

Still keeping the clutter under control...I am continuing to clear things on a daily basis to be sold when we do a Carboot. It's all cleaned, priced and put in stacking boxes ready to go ASAP.

Just a quick post to share with you.

Has anyone been carbooting lately?

Mandy x

Charity shop goodies...

Last Saturday we went to Bicester...there were loads of charity shops. Some were charging a lot and others were really reasonable with offers to encourage more buying. 

I am always buying books for Daisy because she loves them so much. It's good to be able to change them around for her too. I've been looking out for Rainbow Fish for ages and got it for a bargain price...

One shop was five books for a pound!

I also picked up a few other bits too...

I thought the giant chalks would last but one is in two pieces already ( these were from a pretty homeware shop).

Hopefully I will get back to my recipe sharing and baking tutorials soon,

Mandy xx

D-Day 70th anniversary...

Thinking about someone very special today...my grandad.

He was with the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry.

He was very brave (like so many) and only 18.

He was wounded on August 14th by a sniper...I cannot even begin to imagine how scary it was over there.

He was taken by jeep over a minefield and to a hospital plane. 

He recovered in hospital until December.

His war continued in Palestine when he was better.

He died when I was 11 aged only 56...that was in 1982...I think about him all the time, but especially grateful to him today. I am lucky that he wasn't killed (like so many) because I wouldn't be here today.

Today is a special day for so many, but each and every one of us enjoy our freedom because of those extremely brave people. My grandad was part of that and I say thank you and will never forget it.

Please feel free to share your family memories in the comments.

Daisy and I watched the coverage yesterday and will again today. I will tell her about her amazing Great Great Grampy and what was done for us to keep our freedom.

Mandy x