Wednesday, 01-03-23 - a long one, sorry!

Good morning and welcome to March!  Yesterday was a dull, damp sort of day and today doesn't look that amazing although there are a few sun symbols scattered about the forecast to go with the raindrops.  We will see.  I note that they now think we might get a wee bit of snow during next week - yuck!

First of all, Jackie, here's the oodie I have except that mine is pink.

Actually, to be honest, it is a 'Sherpa extra-long hoodie blanket as 'Oodie' is a brand name for the same sort of thing but twice/three times the price.

Because I am not that tall, it comes down nearly to my ankles.

They are not specifically dressing gowns although I use mine as such, but can be worn over anything.  In the very cold weather, I wore mine over warm clothing and it was so cosy.

I actually do have a 'real' Oodie too which I sometimes wear - it's a bit thicker, a bit warmer and not as long - and has little Harry Potter cartoon characters all over it.  Cute!

Here's the link to the site I found the photo.  I don't know if they post overseas though.
https://www.onlinehomeshop.com/sienna-extra-long-sherpa-hoodie-blanket-charcoal?gclid=Cj0KCQiA6fafBhC1ARIsAIJjL8kzBOIin5ZILFE-y3hNy5g1p4ZMlGhlUwQg9jRggsWmMeBGyTDSBuoaAikGEALw_wcB

 It's on sale right now and very cheap so I'm umming and ahing about investing in another to tuck away.  My real Oodie is great quality and will last whereas this one probably won't go on for ever. 

Yesterday was a good day.

After Groove (great fun as always), I had my breakfast and then meandered out into the garden where I dun and dumped and chopped away and got it all finished.  I pruned back the clematis because it was starting to send out new growth a bit higher up and I took a good look at my poor bay which really is in a bad way, having been affected by the unusually cold weather.  Once I had removed all the dead bits, it really does look sad and, as I use it for cooking, I think that at some point I will be replacing it with a baby.  I'm also nut sure about one of my mini apple trees but will wait to see what happens come the spring and the leaves start a-shooting.

I got my shopping list ready for this morning.  It's a longer one this time because there are some things that now need replacing or replenishing.  Oh, well, it is what it is!

Then I went up to the guest room to tackle the chunky and aran yarn stash.  It took a lot longer than I expected.  I'd forgotten that after mum passed away I brought home her stash of yarns as well as her fabrics and sewing stuff (at Dad's request) and just shoed it all away.  There was more double knitting and four ply as well as chunky, some fabrics and, heart stopping moment, some of Dad's bedding.  You see, when they came to stay, Mum was fine with a duvet, etc, but Dad liked his sheets and blankets so I had a couple of cellular blankets, a flat sheet and a bed spread that I only used when they came over.  I felt a bit sad but they are now downstairs and later on today I will probably take them to the dropping off point so someone else can get the benefit.  They are good quality things, far to good to chuck or turn into something else.

So that's the last two things on February's goals list finished, just in time.
On to March's goals.  Again, they are nothing major and some are of the 'continue to . . .' variety because I am not convinced that they are really ingrained habits yet and I want them to be.

So . . .

Through March, I want to:

keep up the low spend and tracking on Excel, continuing to use what I have and only buying essentials

keep up the food audits so I know exactly what I have and where it is

shop every ten to fourteen days (with some exceptions which I know are coming up)

continue to use up my yarn stash - (what can I make with Aran or chunky, I wonder)

sort out some more of my bedroom cupboards

sort out the box room (aka the Dumping Ground)

SHED!!!  Tackle it one bite at a time.

and, finally - start to save for a new tumble dryer.

When I took out the filter the other day to de-fluff it, I had great difficulty in getting it back in and noticed that it is breaking up rather.  I've found a replacement part and it's on its way but the dryer is very, very old now and must be past its best so I have decided that, rather than just dig into medium term savings (which are just for this sort of thing) and because it's not an absolute essential, I will decide what I want and then save up out of the monthly income savings.  I don't use it very often anyway, not nowadays.

So that's March's goals.  Nothing terribly exciting and I might add to it as the days pass but that's the basic.  :-)

Today, I need to get a move on as I'm off shopping shortly.  I want to take in three shops - M&S and Aldi which are in the same shopping centre and then on to Sainsbury's for some things that only they seem to have and also to fill up with petrol.  I managed to get through two months on a tankful but it's pretty low now so I will fill up and hope it lasts another two months.

I have a Teams meeting this afternoon, Governor related, and then I'm off to Lindsey's for personal training.  In between times, I might take a bite at the shed.  Just a few items sorted each day and it will get done in the month.

It's a busy day but I'm looking forward to it.  Have a good one yourself and take care, stay warm and be happy.  xx