Everyday Stuff ....Everyday Finds ... And Making Every Penny Count..

Hello there ...

things seem to have calmed down a bit here ... just the normal ... hum drum ... daily stuff.

Why is it I always feel January 'has to be got through' ... 

such a dreary long month .... 

Anyway ...

Chickens are coming to a bit .... feathering up and looking a bit brighter.

Hubby P thinks they are better fed than him ... he's just whinging because I insisted they be fed before he could have his toast.

I made them some nice warm mash from the vegetable peelings (boiled up .. and nice and warm) ... to this I added a handful of oats to dry it off ... and a spoonful of the mush that is 'waste' from my juicer (fruit and veg ...so nice and sweet).

I mixed in a bit of this ... its the egg shell I have saved .. washed and baked in the oven (just when its on anyway) .. and crushed up fine. 

With the chickens being inside on deep litter (and not being able to forage) it helps give them the grit they need.

They tuck in ... I had a quiet word ... how an egg or two would be appreciated.

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I think one of the reasons January seems so long is the lack of ready cash ... 

The way we work means we have no regular weekly wage .. no monthly salary on a certain day ... no Social Security Benefits ...

its up to us to make what we can where we can....

and these cold dreary months ... well .. lets face it ... no one is buying much.

So Every Penny Counts .... 

and thank goodness for the stores we gathered in ... in the good months.

Thinking of what to make for tea ... what did I have in the cupboards ...

Well the leeks looked nice and fresh in the garden .. so I dug up a few of those.

So fresh they positively zing!

I still have half a sack of spuds ... a drizzle of cream (yes from Christmas ... just beginning to thicken and smell a little cheesy)..

And some of this lovely clean white duck fat (from the Duck we had at New Year).

So ... saute leeks and potatoes in a dollop of duck fat ... add a bit of stock ... and you have a nice leek and potato soup ... I blitzed with the magic wand and added the cream ... umm lovely.

I had a good sort out in the freezer whilst I was at it ... 

just to see what was left ...

it give me an idea of what meals we could have this week.

I pulled out some cheese ... if you remember I had a good deal on cheese just before Christmas ... I put half in the freezer ... so now when I need some good tasty protein .. its there to be had.

So tonight's tea  ... leek and potato soup.. and I made some nice 'very rustic-y' cheese scones which we can slather with butter.

Should do us nicely ... 

we had meat last night ... I'm trying to wean us off meat every night ... although I will hold my hand up and say .. we do enjoy meat.

Talking of 'every penny counting'....

the house looks like a Chinese laundry again.

When we cleared the caravan the other day (and the van broke down)...

there were lots of clothes and bedding to take away ... the owners of the van had taken what they wanted ... I suppose if you have a holiday home ... all set up so that you don't need to pack anything when you want to slip away for a weekend ... you have two lots of everything ...

Anyway ... bags and bags of good quality clothes and bed linen ... and all damp because the roof blew off... and it was raining ... a bit!

So I have been drying it around the fire ...

and bagging it up again.

We will put it all out for sale on Sunday ... as you know people are always looking for good quality clothes at reasonable prices ... ours will be super cheap .. we need to move stock on. 

And that's partly how .. hopefully this week we will make some money.

Do you find all this stuff boring?

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Find of the week .... 

This linen panel was found wrapped around an old piece of machinery .. all greasy and yucky.

I very nearly binned it as an old rag ... well i suppose it is an old rag really. 

My eye was drawn to the nice vintage-y blue colour and I spotted the sailing ships.

I gave it a bit of a soak and a wash ... it was Hubby P that noticed ... it was/is in fact a whaling scene. The men in the little boats have harpoons and are hunting the whales.

What an unusual piece ... I don't know what it was used for ... maybe it was part of a table covering ... its un hemmed.

Interesting as a piece of social history ... nowadays we are quite rightly appalled at the hunting of such lovely creatures .. but in the Victorian era it was this industry that kept the pretty oil lamps lit throughout England.

Well ... I was unsure what to do with it ... so its on ebay ... hopefully someone somewhere will know exactly what to do with it... and it will raise a few pennies.

Anyway enough !

 ... a long post again ... gosh I can chat on .. and on!

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