A More Productive Week and a Surprise Win W/E 28th October 2023

This week has been a much more productive week for me at home. I started the week with a bit of clean of the kitchen on Sunday. It needed it and as OH was out all day at a cycle event, I had the house to myself, which is always preferable when cleaning. It wasn't a deep clean as such, but the important bits, that needed cleaning got done and this felt very satisfying.

On Monday, the weekly shop went well, as I was able to keep to a tight budget on account of it being the end of the month and my finances were rapidly dwindling. I cut the shopping list down to the bare minimum, as we had lots of things in the cupboards and freezer. What is the point of over buying on the weekly shop? We only needed enough to get us through the week. It was the cheapest shop I've done for a long while and just proved to me that reducing spending on the weekly shop is possible, without even really feeling it.

On Tuesday, my winter puffa coat came out for the first time this autumn when I went out to walk the dog. It kept me lovely and warm on a cold, wet day here and I was happy that it fitted a lot better since I lost some weight. It was a little snug before, but now it fits well. 

I went to a class at the gym as usual and then when I got home I decided to paint some wooden drawers I bought whilst we were up in Yorkshire. I bought them as an inexpensive storage solution for the sewing room. (More in another post) I got a couple coats of paint on, but they still needed a final coat. Also on Tuesday, I finished the quilt top for the Xmas Wreath quilt. 

I think I'm finally starting to accept the idea of not working this Xmas. I'm less interested in spending time looking for and applying for jobs and I am using my time to do things around my home and working on myself instead. It's hard to believe that there's only 8 more weeks until Xmas. I'm sure it will fly by, job or no job. There's plenty to keep me busy, if I just put my mind to it.

On Wednesday, I went to my Soca Aerobics class as usual, which was fun. Later, I took all the papers out of the Xmas quilt top. It's now ready to sew the backing fabric onto. I'm not planning on using any wadding in this one and I don't have any vintage blankets left to use. I may change my mind about this though and buy some or find some other solution to wad it.

I also put a final coat of paint on the top of the wooden drawers. I still need to paint the bottom of them when the top is completely dry and then I'll be able to fill them and put them into use.

Thursday, marked another 4 weeks on my fitness journey, so it was time to take photos and measurements. There was very little change in my measurements, save for losing a half inch off my hips, but every little bit is something. In total, I've now lost 20lbs in 20 weeks and at least 3 inches from my main measurements. Sounds like slow progress, doesn't it, but I'm happy enough. I'm hoping that losing it slow and steady like this will help keep it off and be more sustainable. I can see progress since the beginning and quite a few of my clothes are now a lot looser when I put them on. A lot of weight has shifted from my middle area, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. Still lots more progress to make though, but I'm not putting pressure on myself. There's no particular hurry.

I had a bit of good luck on Thursday. I received a scratch card from this week's Lidl shop on Monday and I won £47.41 off my next shop. Basically, for the month of October every time you shop you have a chance to win a voucher for the value of your shop and I actually won one, as this was the cost of my shop this week. What a nice surprise, which means I get almost a free shop next week, although I will probably spend more than this, as I kept it super basic this week. Very happy with this win, as it just creates a bit more wriggle room in the budget with Xmas on the horizon. Thank you Lidl.

On Thursday afternoon, I decided to take myself out and do a little bit of Xmas shopping. I managed to get everything to complete the shoe box that I make up for a child each year. Once again, I've gone for a girl aged 10-14 years. Hopefully, they'll like the contents. I also bought a couple of other bits for people that I need to buy for. I got a bargain for LB that was half price. I think she'll like it.

OH and I have decided that we'll each buy ourselves what we want for Xmas to the same value this year. This is mainly because OH likes cycling gear and needs to try it on before he commits, so it's easier for him to buy it himself. In my case, I no longer want alcohol or chocolates and I got perfume and trainers for my birthday, which makes it difficult for OH to buy presents for me, so I'll just buy things when I see them out and about and then I can focus on what I really need, especially now I'm not working and don't have a lot of spare cash to buy things for myself. We'll each wrap what the other has bought for themselves, so the present opening on Xmas day will still go ahead. To be honest, this is what we usually do anyway. I probably will still buy a few other bits for OH, mostly consumables.  I don't see the point in buying presents that someone doesn't really want just in order to surprise them. It's too much of a waste.

I enjoyed looking around a few shops. I don't really do it that often, so when I do it's fun, but it was very tempting to spend money. I tried to be as restrained as possible.

On Thursday night, I decided to start a new English Paper Piecing patchwork project. It's a bit more complex than ones that I've done lately. (More about it in another post) I can't help myself. I always seem to want to start new projects before I've finished older ones. It helps sustain my interest by giving myself a variety of projects to work on. I've still got so much fabric in my stash to use too, that I need to keep making things to use it up. Besides, autumn and winter are the perfect seasons for hunkering down and working on quilt projects. 

I seriously considered buying pre-cut paper pieces for this new project, but in the end I bought a very inexpensive digital template on Etsy, printed lots of sheets off and proceeded to cut out the shapes whilst watching the final episode of Celebrity Race Across the World. We've really enjoyed this series. It has inspired us to potentially visit a few different places in Europe at some point in the future.

On Friday, I had a long walk with the dog and then when I got in a did a few small jobs, painted the bottom of the drawers and had some lunch. It was a quiet day at home, but I was suckered in by a sample sale on ASOS and bought a few things, most of which were gym wear and a dress to wear to a family wedding next year. The dress was only £10, so I hope it looks nice when it arrives. I sized down one size, in view of my fitness journey, and hope it will be okay on the day. For £10 it was worth a punt and it is very pretty.

Saturday, was my day to go to the free gym session as usual, which I enjoyed. Our dog became the grand old age of 11 today. She's a lot slower than she used to be and usually only manages one walk per day now, but hopefully she'll be with us for a few more years to come, bless her. We're so lucky to have her.

LB came home for a few hours today, which was lovely. She needed to pick up a few bits to wear at a Halloween party in the evening. It was so lovely to see her. She seems happy and busy at Uni, which is all good. OH took us all out to lunch at a local cafe, which was a treat. Despite the rainy weather, we had a lovely day.

I spent some time potting on some house plants and cuttings in the afternoon. It was a job I've been meaning to do for a while, so it felt good to get it done.

A good week for me this week, getting quite a few things done. I hope you're week has been productive too.