Saturday Bargains

Just the usual Saturday morning here, we called at the farm gate for some eggs and then popped round the corner to have a quick look in the Mill shop.  Well you never find a bargain if you don't look :-) 

More of the Mandarin Oranges fantastic value at 10p per tin and the Peaches were 3 tins for £1.

 The bottom tin got dropped in the car park and dented so thats todays dessert with some yogurt.

 This soap was a pack of 6 bars for 99p

Not used this one before but as it's a good make thought we would try it.

 Old El Paso Sauce these were 4 packets for 50p and there is enough for 8 wraps in each.

 This toothpaste was only 99p per twin pack so bought 3 packs. 

We were lucky here as the woman was just putting a couple of boxes of it out as we were leaving :-)

And finally a naughty one a whole case of these gorgeous snacks for £1.50 =20 packets. 

I love these, they are great for a low calorie munchie, I could never afford the full price of £2.39 for 5 packets though.

While we were out and about we called to see my Mum & Dad, mum always has something to give to me and this week  its hand cream, I'll take a cake for them during the week when we have a little ride out to the garden centre.  We always have little swapsies for each other.

Thank you for popping by and reading my chunterings.

Enjoy your day

Menu Plan Monday & Homemade cards

Well I can't believe its Monday again, these weeks are just flying by.  Continuing my theme of using up from the freezer and stock this weeks menu is as follows.

Tonight -Lamb Stew & Dumplings

Homemade Pizza, Salad & Coleslaw

Wednesday we are out for a Pie and Pea Supper (hope there is a veggie option don't fancy any neddy pie)

Chicken Curry, Rice and Peshwari Naan

Homemade Carrot and Lentil Soup, homemade crusty bread

Jacket Potatoes, Tuna Mayo and Salad

Roast Pork and stuffing with veggies.

I have been filling my time this week by making a few cards, more details can be found HERE

The only thing I bought to make these was the footballs and they were a bargain from The Works, everything else I already had in my vast amount of craft stash.  I need to keep busy this week too as I am starting to miss going out to work.....I know I'm mad!!  Roll on the better weather when we can get outside and do some jobs.

Have a lovely day

Shopping

Just a couple of bargains this week from our Mill shop, I was passing so thought I would call on the off chance and I was lucky.

A 15 pack case of the Season and Shake for £1.00 the Buitoni Pasta 49p (the date on this is july 2015) the jars of Mexican Chipottle Paste were 10p each (I got 5) and the tins of broken segment Mandarin oranges were 5 tins for 50p (Igot 10)  total spent £2.99

Just checked online and those Season and Shake packets are £1.20 each :-0 all they are is a roasting bag and a spoonful of seasoning!! don't think I could ever bring myself to pay full price for this but 15 packets for a pound is within my budget lol

These are the oranges they are lovely and in juice not syrup, the date on the tin is end Dec 1012 but there is absolutely nothing wrong with them and the tins were in perfect condition.  I had about a third of these with some greek yogurt at lunch time and really enjoyed them.  I'm tempted to go back and get some more as they make a very cheap dessert.

My shopping bill this week amounted to £37.07 some of the things we bought were store cupboard items such as teabags, sugar a couple of toiletries and some cleaning stuff all of which will carry over to next month.

Have a lovely weekend and thank you for popping by

Recycling

Ever since the council started the recycling scheme stuff has just been dumped in the corner of the garage in the green box ready for collection day. The plastics and the paper has to go in seperate bags to make it easier for the bin men to load onto the wagon, everything else goes into the bottom of the green box ie glass and tins.  I have been using the bags for life from the supermarkets when the handles have come unstitched, I think they change them for you free of charge if they are clean but I have found a use for them.  Just before Christmas we bought a new sideboard and when it was delivered it stood on a packing board made of light coloured chipboard and that too was stacked up in the garage.  Yesterday hubby was looking for something to occupy his time and fancied a broddle in the garage, he was in there most of the day and I hadn't a clue what he was doing until I took him coffee in the afternoon and saw this.... my very own posh recycling station!!   How good is that!!

No more bending down to sort stuff out, just pop into the right right bag and hey presto its sorted!!

This morning I went in and added the labels, they were cut out on my die cutter the Silhouette SD using some vinyl sheet that came with the machine.  I stuck them on in a quirky fashion as I knew I would never get them all straight and perfectly lined up.  So now on recycling day all we have to do is lift out the bags pop into the green box and take it to the end of the drive for collection.  The corner of the garage should remain tidy now.  You can just see the blue box on the top shelf, this has my spare jars for when making jam there is also spare baskets and plant pots for re-use.

How do you store your recycling before its collected? Ours gets collected every week, does yours?

Have a lovely day and thank you for popping by

Brrrr its freezing!!

Its been so cold today  although the day started off dry it was only 1*c. Hubby had booked his car in for service and MOT at a garage the other side of town, roughly 15 miles away and I had to follow him so he could get back home and reverse the process later in the afternoon.  

About 2.30 pm it started snowing, just the small bitty stuff nothing that would lay.... then the flakes got bigger and faster until we had a substantial covering.  I wasn't looking forward to taking hubby for his car the roads were really slushy and slippy and I only have a little Micra... don't panic, just take things slowly.  No need to worry about slowly, the traffic was just about stop! it took almost 2 hours to complete a 30mile round trip.  I was so glad to get back home and have a cuppa.  The good news is hubby's car passed its test and had a major service for less money than we had budgeted for :-)

The snow had drifted about a foot up the garage door, as I was first home I thought it would be a good idea to open it so hubby could drive straight in, I only had shoes on and managed to get my feet wet when the snow fell off the door.  10 minutes later we were snug in the house with a nice  cuppa.

 It was a quick tea tonight and one of our favourites, Scampi Chips Peas and Salad with a blob of tartare sauce, yum!! Chips and Scampi were baked in the oven to make them a bit healthier.

The garden looks really pretty covered in snow, plus you cant see the weeds lol

Apart from zipping Hubby about today has been fairly quiet, I have managed to get a few bits of crafting done. more about that tomorrow.

Hope you are all managing to keep warm.

Take Care.

Random Patchwork plus a freebie

This pretty cotton material has been hanging around for a while now and after my little success (if I say so myself) with the patchwork cushion and Willows bunting, which she absolutely loved, I decided to give the patchwork another go. Its a bit random but looks quite pretty, I have loads more squares to cut out and sew yet, not sure what it will be or how big I'm just enjoying the process of sewing again.

 The freebie is a needlecase, after cutting out my squares yesterday I was left with the trimmings, I decided they were for the bin as I don't want to collect small scraps of fabric like I do pretty papers from my crafting, just incase they come in useful!!  So in the bin they went, about an hour later I was looking for a needle in my pin tin and had a brainwave, now they don't happen very often lol mmm I wonder if I can make a patchwork needlecase  Oh I know I'll use those scraps from the bin, so I did and here it is albeit a bit wonky, I don't care it does the job perfectly and and took care of the waste bits.

I added a bit of scrap felt from the lettering on Willows bunting and hey presto job done!

Willow's Bunting.

Have you discovered any freebies lately.

Thank you for popping by

Enjoy your day

Frugal February Weekly Menu Plan

Again this week I will be using up from stores and freezer and just buying the fresh stuff.


Beef Stew no dumplings today as we have a cauli to use up

Spanish Omelette with Baked Beans and Home made Coleslaw

Scampi Chips and Peas

Homemade Soup Homemade bread  Homemade fruit crumble

Homemade Chilli & Rice with Peshwari Naan instead of garlic bread

weekend after shopping for fresh veggies

Jacket Potatoes with Tuna Sweetcorn and Salad

Roast Beef Dinner

For breakfasts we have plenty Porridge and Muesli and lunches will be sandwiches made from cheese, tuna, eggs  or  homemade soups from the freezer.

Do you have a plan for this week? if not why not try one, I'm finding its saving loads of money  by not having to keep visiting the shops.

Thank you for popping by.

Cleaning! and Birds

Yesterday Sue from Our New Life in the Country hit a bit of a nerve when she made a blog post about cupboard clutter.  Here's my plastics cupboard !! I thought it was just me who had messy cupboards lol. Anyway it prompted me to have a tidy up and throw away any that were unused and give the shelves a good wash.

 Its amazing just how much fits into one small cupboard!!

All tidied, rubbish chucked including 4 cups and saucers and that mandolin thingy which hasn't been used in ages and is quite deadly to have in a cupboard.

 Next onto the big fridge which I use for storing stuff,  its a fridge /freezer, the bottom half was cleaned last week and filled with meals from the big freezer in the garage.  Its like shopping from my own freezer shop at the moment.  I didn't get chance to photograph it before it was cleaned as hubby was helping me and had it all stripped down before I got chance.  Here it is all clean and ready to be stocked up again.

 Ooops, have you spotted hubby's chocolate stash..... 

Feeding the birds

The birds seem to be having a feeding frenzy at the moment, the garden is full of Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Green Finches and Blue Tits, they love these sunflower hearts and can munch their way through the whole feeder in a day.

We love to sit in the conservatory during the day with a coffee and watch them, they can be so entertaining.  We are a bit daft and have names for a few of them, there is a blackbird with a white bit on is wing and he is the Colonel  and another blackbird who is so bossy and chases the others away so we call him Percy the Park keeper.... told you we were daft lol   Its brilliant in the spring when they bring babies to be fed, its such a privilege, they're too blooming quick for the camera though, I think they are shy and can sense when you zoom in.

No tea to cook tonight, we are going to my sons house for a Roast Chicken dinner with all the trimmings....yum!!

Have a lovely Sunday and thank you for popping by

Karen xxx

Todays bargains and the last laugh.

Firstly todays Misson Mill bargains, in a few weeks time we are going down to sunny Devon to see my son and family and with 3 teenagers and a 5year old plus pack ups they go through snacky stuff like no tomorrow.  I always try to pick up a few bargains before we go just to help out, its a bit hit and miss at the mill shop and things change daily but today I just dropped on for the kind of stuff I wanted. 

The Real Crisps pack were 49p Sharwoods large Naan breads 2 per pack 12 packs £1.00 Dry Roast nuts 59p 5 mini bags of Ginger biscuits x4 packs £1.00 low fat snacks (like savoury snack a jacks) 10 bags £1.00 El Paso fajitas sauce 8 packs for £1.00 each pack enough for 8 wraps. Buitoni pasta twists 49p (5oog dated until 2015) 2 x 1kg Flora Buttery 49p each great for baking and 9pack quilted soft toilet rolls £1.99 oh and the bags of mini TUC style crackers (gorgeous) 5 x 125gm bags for £1.00.  I got several lots of each and spent a total of £16.... bargain!!

Shame they had sold out of the Hovis Bread flour :-( they did have loads of the pasta sauce left so if its still there on Friday when I pass again I will pick up some more.

Also today I had to call in at the shop where I worked to collect my final wages and hand over my work uniform.  Its seems they have no staff!!! :-0 and the ones working there today were all management LOL now I'm not usually a vindictive person but I couldn't help having an inward chuckle to myself..... shame on me lol. especially when a bag was handed over to me containing these 6 gorgeous scones left for me by a customer this morning. Yes I know there only 5... I ate one!!  yum..

Considering the shop is a bakery too!! It must have really hurt, me walking out with a wad of cash and 6 scones and not having spent a penny....  serves them right they should treat their loyal staff with respect and then they wouldn't leave....  Sorry to say I'm still smiling as I type.

I hope something makes you smile today too :-)

Karen xxx

Takeaway night

Friday night takeaway night on the cheap! I hardly dare make this post after listening to the news tonight about the scandalous findings of horsemeat in reputable food companies ready meals and burgers.  These curries are one of the very few "ready meals" we buy from time to time and only  when they are greatly reduced in price, not only is it an easy meal but its a treat too.

You always get plenty and its very tasty and made from 100% chicken breast (I think! Who knows?

)

 Quick to cook, just 15 minutes in the poppity ping and we have our takeaway for 2 for £3.75.

 Normally our meals are made from scratch using fresh ingredients and when available local organic vegetables grown by my lovely friends Tracy and Graham. So I never feel guilty at having the odd ready meal.

 Over the last few years I have slipped back into buying meat from the supermarkets with just the odd occasion buying from this butchers A.W. Bacon & Sons in Retford.  

When the kids were at home I always bought my meat in bulk from this butchers each month and was never disappointed with the quality. In January we set ourselves a challenge to keep away from the main supermarkets for a while  and to use up food we already have in stock. Tonight we have made the decision to start buying meat from this butchers again and also to cut back on the amount of meat we are eating, not only will this be better for our budget but much better for our health.

Tomorrow nights meal will be home cooked Roast Pork with jacket potato and salad :-)

Thank you for popping by

Karen xxx

Shopping and Blog Award

Back to frugal shopping again today, after checking whats in the freezer and whats in stock I planned my shopping list for the following week.  We had to be in town early this morning as my hubby had an appointment at the hospital, I also had to take my mobile back to the Vodaphone Shop as I was having problems after a recent update. While we were in town we called at the market for this weeks fruit and veg.  Just recently we have been eating far too many sugary snacks so it was time to buy extra fruit to munch instead.  We also bought milk, yogurts from morrisons and free range eggs from the farm gate.  Our total spend for this week was £16.30 plus £2 from the  stockpile budget for another 4 x 3kg bags of Hovis bread flour from Misson Mill.

Blog Award

Thank you Sue xx

I have been given this lovely blog award from a very nice lady called Sue from Our New Life in the Country.  Thank you so much Sue for thinking about me and for visiting and commenting on my blog.  People that know me know I dont really go for this kind of thing purely because I can never think of anything interesting to say about myself,  I really am such a boring person lol  However Sue's blog is far from boring, it's wonderful, full of lovely hints and tips, brilliant challenges and the trials and tribulations of keeping chickens and living on a small holding.  Please, Please visit Sues blog, you won't be disappointed and try to leave her a comment or two.  Thank you x

Karen xxx

ETA. Misson mill had sold out of flour so £2 back into the pot!

Spendy Day out.

It seems ages since we had a day out and even longer since I had a spendy on me day.  Having quit my job last week I had a final wage packet to come along with some commission I had been saving, after much discussion  persuasion with my hubby it was decided a little treat was in order.

So off we went to the outskirts of York for a bit of retail therapy, we had a wander round first then called in at my favourite shop :-)

This is the outside of the shop, what you can't see is the seat right outside the door, its where my hubby sits very patiently waiting for me to decide which I'm spending my very hard earnt money on.

Mmmmm which one?  its like a sweetie shop of delicious bags.....  Think I will have this one......no... maybe this one..... no I'm having the first one....

Its all squidgy and nice and big enough to get all my "stuff" in.

It has a lovely chrome doggy with his name on and a gorgeous leather flower, well my username is flourgirl so basically it has my name all over it LOL

Ooops... and a purse too, it even has its own dinky dust bag!

I still had some pennies left so I bought this one too.... for the summer... its perfect for holding the camera and 2 pairs of sunglasses and car keys and wallet... you know what I mean, us ladies always end up carrying everything!

It has lots of pockets and a nice wide shoulder strap.

Well thats my excitement over for today, hubby treated us to fish and chips and a nice coffee on the way home so I don't have to cook tonight.

Tomorrow we will be back on the frugal wagon and it will be a very long time before I get another bag......if ever...

Thank you for popping by

Karen xxx