Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Jobs for today

• Pop into work to sort a few bits out
• Tidy the house and put things away
• Continue/finish chair project (when Mimi has her afternoon nap)

We have our first tomatoes of the season!!!

About a week ago I decided that I was going to renovate an old chair that we found in the loft when we were clearing out a few months back.

It was in a bit of a state with a cork pad which had been stuck to the seat and paint that had seen better days.
  

BEFORE

I carefully removed the cork seat sanded it down, gave it a couple of coats of undercoat paint and found some paint in Harbour Blue in the garage (which we brought ages ago to paint the bathroom in France).

I then made a cushion cover using some old jeans we were going to use for rags and some recycled cushion covers (found in the garage) which I dyed china blue.

AFTER

The final bit (which I will complete tomorrow morning when Mimi & Daddy go to the Zoo) will be a coat of clear varnish.

The remainder of the day was spent occupying Mimi.  We went Blackberry picking again and then after Tea and bath we went to the beach to watch Daddy go sailing.

    

Yay No Washing!

Jobs for today:

• Yay No washing!!!
• Visit D&H for coffee
• Take Mimi on her promised walk to the beach to collect yet more pebbles.

Afternoon walk to the beach for pebbles.

Wow time to spare so I have managed to find some time to work on the cushion for my chair project and I started my next project for Mimi's bedroom.

Continuing on from the theme of Thrifty Saturday I have been after a vintage style afternoon tea plate for my cakes and sandwiches.  I saw one in a second-hand shop at the weekend, (but the shop was shut) so this morning Mike took Mimi for 10mins whilst I popped down to get it.  I think this could be my purchase of the week.  My brother and his girlfriend are coming down in a couple of weeks and I can't wait to make a traditional afternoon tea.

I didn't go to bed until nearly midnight as I was busy trying to finish my onion chutney, I was so tired that I forgot to take a photo of the finished product.  So I took a couple this morning.  I was pleased with the outcome it tastes good although I don't think Mike will like it very much as the chilli is a little overpowering.

Mimi has been a little monkey today and has had to spend a fair few minutes on the naughty mat for jumping on the sofa.  I was hoping that we had started to master the concept of potty training yesterday although this does not appear to be the case as we have had several accidents today.  We are now in a state of flux, I didn't want to risk going to D&H's in knickers in-case we had an accident so decided to go in nappies.  However Mimi found nappies quite traumatic and kept shouting "I need a wee wee".

Having thought about it and after speaking to D I think we are going to tell Mimi that the nappy fairy has taken all of the nappies away and left a big pile of chocolate money in place of them.  Each time she goes to the toilet she can have some chocolate money.  Watch this space!!!!!!! 

I have also upped the anti with the naughty mat.  Mimi really wants a Thomas the Tank Engine.  We have decided that she can have one but she is going to have to earn it.  So each time she goes on the naughty mat she gets a little black cloud marked on a wall chart and if she does something good she gets a smiley face sticker.  When we have 10 smiley faces we will take her shopping and she can choose her Thomas.

Mimi collecting smiley faces for helping Daddy

Manic Monday

Jobs for today:

• Yet MORE washing!
• Food shopping - carrying on from Thrifty Saturday this involved a variety of stops.
• Cook beetroot and rhubarb (which I brought on Saturday)
• Visit Granny & Grampy
• Continue with the potty training

Jobs which crept in but were not on the original list

• De-heading the roses in the garden
• Digging up the potatoes and putting them carefully in a cardboard box in the garage
• Tidying the house and cleaning the bathroom.

Roses from the garden

Mike dug up a potato in the shape of a heart .

Its been a bit of a manic Monday.  Having started my blog a few weeks ago I am finding it a particularly inspiring part of my life.  I love all of the other blogs I have found, but all this inspiration means that I have lots of creative ideas for both Mimi and I and not enough time in the day to complete everything.

Having got up early by the time I had sorted out all of the washing, got Mimi dressed several times and run to the toilet too many times to count we finally managed to be heading out of the door at about 9.30am.  We had a variety of shops on my hit list today - TKMAX as I wanted some cushion blanks for my chair renovation and some jars for my chutney.  They didn't have what we wanted so we ended up at Dunelm Mill where we managed to get the cushion blanks some jars and a photo frame for my next project for Mimi's bedroom.  

By this time we were running a bit close to lunch so we stopped for a coffee before heading off to Lidl.

Lidl became a firm favourite when we were in France after stopping with G&A.  One lunch time they had the best ham and I was shocked to discover that it had come from Lidl.  After shopping in a few in France I thought we would give it ago back here.  Some stuff was cheaper although I thought that some things were more expensive.  So after collecting the things we wanted we headed off to the till.  I found it a little disconcerting that the length of the till does not give you much time or space to shovel all your things in to your trolley.  Then after being told the amount I put my card in to the machine only to be told in a very disdainful voice with a look as if to say are you totally stupid we don't take credit cards.  Trauma over we got back to the car where I sorted my bags out, then off to the farm shop for vegetables and then home.

I since feel as though I have spent the afternoon glued to the kitchen trying to cook Mimi's tea which has disguised vegetables, and all of the other little tasks I have set myself such as making chutney 2 different types plum and red onion I found the recipe on the internet although I halved the quantities. (I didn't get round to both), cooking and pickling my beetroot (I discovered today that you can use beetroot juice to dye rice pink!), making leek & potato soup for tomorrow, sorting out the rhubarb for rhubarb crumble and the endless trips to the toilet and the little voice shouting OOOOOhhhhhh No I have done WEE WEE Ohhhhhh NO! 

Cooking the beetroot 

OOOO it dyed everything including my hands.

I forgot to add that we also managed to squeeze a quick trip over to Granny & Grampys and Mike finally managed to book himself an appointment at the doctors about his hearing.  I have been on his case for ages and I am sure that it is getting worse but according to the doctor there is nothing wrong with his hearing.  I have concluded that he must just tune out to my voice!

Garden is doing well, we have our first ever crop of Blackcurrants, our first Tomato of the season and a Butternut Squash.  I am very proud of my squash as I attempted to grow them last year but something ate it from the roots up and so it never materialised.

Project 6 - Vicky's Birthday Present

Project 6 - Vicky's Birthday Present.

In line with my previous post Thrifty Saturday I decided that I would make my friends birthday present.  A lovely personalised fabric covered notebook.

Note Book before restoration

Buttons threaded on to the page divider

Mimi discovered that the buttons fitted nicely in to her little Tangled  frying pan.

A while back I inherited a load of old buttons and today I came across this old Debenhams bag

The finished article a personalised fabric covered note book.

A Thrifty Saturday

Jobs for today:

• Completed yet more washing - it feels like the washing basket has become a bottomless pit.
• Shopping for a few essentials - I cannot face going into town on a Saturday as it takes longer to get in and out of Sainsburys car park than it does to complete my shopping.
• Visit Grandma & Pa
• Continuation of tidying the house
• Project 6 - Vicky's Birthday Present.

After going through the bills last night I realised that we have had a few expensive weeks.  So on the back of this we have had a thrifty day, we have brought some beautiful flowers, some runner beans, beetroot and rhubarb all for £3.50 from the lady round the corner who has an allotment and sells her produce with an honesty box from her drive.

I have been after a vintage feel for my photos for a while and today I have been experimenting with a new photo app FX Camera on my htc phone.  I am quite pleased with the results so far.

We then had a cheap relaxing afternoon on the beach watching Daddy sailing. 

Mimi on the beach with her little friend and her beach treasure.