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Monday 24 February 2014

Monday Morning Maneuvers.

I love my kitchen on Monday, well I love it all the time but on a Monday I love it best. This is the day when the kitchen has a mega clean, shelves are emptied, cleaned and restocked with all the contents getting a "once over". Everything that can be moved is and is cleaned behind, beside and underneath. The windows, doors and every hard surface is cleared and cleaned with my vinegar spray. This is the day when I thank whomever that my kitchen is small!
I moved here from a house with kitchen that was 18 ft square, not counting the recesses. That was a mammoth task and I was working full time, I spent all day Saturday cleaning and all day Sunday batch cooking.
I do tidy up after the last wash up of the day, work tops get cleaned and any spills get wiped up, but I like to "bottom" the kitchen weekly. Granny again! at least I no longer have to black lead the range.
I take the opportunity to stock take the dry goods and keep my shopping list up to date, I do still have a blonde moment and write self raising flour instead of plain but mostly it works.
I do the same to the bathroom in the afternoon and put the shower curtain in the wash with the bathmat, my system seems to have had a hiccup as I noticed last week that I had 5 bottles of shampoo. won't be buying any more for a while. I do have 12 deodorant sticks, but they were on a very good offer before Christmas so I emptied the shelf.
I have been out in the sunshine with Ben and Greg, they tore round the field like mad things, Ben is now snoring gently beside me.
I just had to take these while I was there.




The first blossom in the field is so joyful, a bit like a girl trying on her wedding dress. see how blue the sky is, it was so warm it could have been May.


Greg is looking a bit sheepish, he had just brought me a stick and wanted me to play. I do not throw sticks, I have read too many horror stories of dogs having their throats pierced when they jump to catch them. My toy of choice is a Frisbee, but the soft kind not the cheap brittle ones, they snap and shatter too easily. I threw last years away as they were the worst for wear so need to get out and buy new ones.
Ben would not sit or stand still for a photo, he was in "perpetual motion" mode.

Reasons to be grateful.

1. We seem to be heading for an early spring (fingers crossed)

2. I was given a bunch of flowers yesterday from the people who sell them in the village. The stems had been broken but they were plenty long enough for my vase.

3. 2 loads of washing done, line dried and ready to be ironed.

4. Nothing to put on the shopping list so far.

5. My scarf is growing quite quickly and painlessly.

The flowers were much appreciated, they could just as easily have binned them.
I am enjoying my crochet and hope to get some more wool during the week.
I have to look for what in the US are called Comic book Cards, quilters use them to store their fabric in mini bolts and I would be very happy to do that. It makes it easy to see and find what fabric you have and keeps it from getting crumpled up.
Dinner tonight is soup and bread, both homemade, lunch will be a bowl of cereal, that is all that I fancy plus I do not like working with a full tummy.
On that note I better haul my btm off the sofa and get that bathroom done.

             TTFN                                               Pam







 

10 comments:

  1. If you do your kitchen and bathroom on a Monday could you please come and do mine on a Tuesday? We don't throw sticks for our dogs either, like you said far too many horror stories! Ours like balls. I don't think they'd know what to do with a Frisbee!

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    1. I used to throw a ball for my Spaniels but Ben loves a Frisbee better, he catches it and then tears round for a few minutes before dropping it at my feet.
      I would come but Tuesday is my gad about day, I am off to Spalding tomorrow.

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  2. Thanks for the tip about storing fabric on comic book cards. As the mother of 2 comic book collectors I'm sure they must have some cards knocking about that they could donate to dear old mum.

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    1. I found these on Amazon, they are called comic book backing cards and come in packs of 100.

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  3. A good weekend for you, Mr B is the one who sorts the kitchen cupboards out here and he loves doing it so who am I to deprive a man from one of his pleasures lol.
    I saw probably the same blog as you where she keeps her fabric on comic cards at the beginning of last year. I will be honest here and say that over the past 5 yrs I've bought rather a lot of fabric, forward thinking to the time when we were both pensioners and not able to afford to buy as and when I wanted. Consequently I have 6 cupboards full of fabric and tubs with larger pieces in. I looked into the comic board and realised it would cost a lot so I went onto ebay and looked through cardboard offers. I was very lucky and found a lady who's parents had passed away and she was disposing of a large amount of cardboard pieces. Her parents had a glass factory and used large cardboard boxes to ship them out. In the boxes they used sheets of cardboard between the layers of glass. It cost me £15 to buy enough sheets to take all my fabric, I cut each one into 6" x 12" pieces and store my fabric on these. My cupboards are deep so I am able to get 2 rows of fabric on each shelf it keeps the fabric from creasing and is tidier. I only use this method for metre lengths upwards, my fat quarters are in white baskets.

    I only discovered frugal type blogs a short time ago and have found it to make so much sense. I have enough fabric to make a lot of quilts so am on a no buying fabric run. This goes for my cross stitch and knitting/crochet too. Thanks to people like yourself we're eating out of the large freezer we have in the garage which is full of lovely meals and ingredients to make others. We've always made our own bread saving a lot of money and waste. I've always stocked up on toiletries from our local Lloyds who often have them on offer. I'm already retired and Mr B is semi retired only working 3 days a wk so money isn't always going to be 'just there'.
    You have all changed my way of thinking so much, yesterday I paid off the remaining balance on one of my credit cards, sorry that sounds a bit pompous I have another one I use for emergencies and hope to have that paid off this year too. I closed the account using money I'd saved from not doing shopping just because I felt like it. Less food is being thrown away which I feel better for :)

    Enjoy your day

    Peg x.

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    1. Thank you for the tip, I will have a look at ebay later. I did the same as you and stocked well up with fabric over the last 2 years.

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  4. It's wonderful to see those blue skies, makes a change from all the dull grey days we've had just lately. Archie is such a lazy dog, he won't chase after anything, balls or frizbee's. He did chase after a crow in Roundhay Park on Saturday, but his little legs just aren't fast enough. I'm pleased to tell you that you've won my giveaway, can you please let me have your name and address so that I can pass it on to the publishing company.

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    1. Done, I am looking forward to using this book. It will have to go on the book support when I use it, I don't want to get it covered with fingerprints and splatters. Thank you so much for having the giveaway.

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  5. I used to have a good routine when I was working and the boys were younger (and at home!) but it had slipped a bit these days. We have a weekly blitz - I do downstairs, Jim does up. Specific places have a thorough 'do' when they need it! Though all the kitchen sides get washed down and cleared and tidied several times a week. Housework has become less of a priority since retirement I must admit!

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  6. Beautiful photos. It does feel quite Springlike at the moment doesn't it ?
    Twiggy

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