I hope you all have a really lovely Christmas.
Monday, 24 December 2012
Happy Christmas
Well, shopping done, presents wrapped, table disappeared under mountain of gifts, time for a sherry! Not really, it is only 0930 after all!!!!
I hope you all have a really lovely Christmas.
I hope you all have a really lovely Christmas.
Tuesday, 18 December 2012
Win Some, Lose Some.
That is going to be my motto for 2013. We have a lot to do on the barge, which is going to cost a huge amount of money. I am also hoping to take voluntary redundancy in 2014 and cut my hours down to part time working, which means saving up and paying some stuff off. So next year is going to be a seriously frugal one with every penny being saved. Every pound saved will be a win win situation. I have a lot of blogging pals on the same journey for various reasons. You might like to check out one of my great inspirations over at Saving For Travel . SFT and her husband have managed to pay off their entire mortgage and are now saving for their retirement funds and to be able to travel the world. I have joined her sealed pot challenge and am saving up for a trip to Holland to see my blogging pal Val at Watery Ways in Rotterdam.
And the Lose Some bit....well these are a few pounds I definitely want to lose...those around my waistline. I WILL be slim and svelt like by Christmas 2013! I will blog more about the way I intend to do this another time.
Have you set yourselves any challenges for the New Year?
XXX
PS Here are some inspirational sites :
Laura at http://www.nomorespending.net/
Datacreata at http://frugalinnorfolk.blogspot.co.uk/
Sue at http://ournewlifeinthecountry.blogspot.co.uk/
And there are many more on my blog list to the left of this post xxx
And the Lose Some bit....well these are a few pounds I definitely want to lose...those around my waistline. I WILL be slim and svelt like by Christmas 2013! I will blog more about the way I intend to do this another time.
Have you set yourselves any challenges for the New Year?
XXX
PS Here are some inspirational sites :
Laura at http://www.nomorespending.net/
Datacreata at http://frugalinnorfolk.blogspot.co.uk/
Sue at http://ournewlifeinthecountry.blogspot.co.uk/
And there are many more on my blog list to the left of this post xxx
Monday, 17 December 2012
More Ideas for Christmas
For those of you that are spent out or can't face the shops again, if you head over to Janys' blog you will find lots of ideas and tutorials for homemade gifts. Personally, I think there is nothing nicer than a homemade gift as it shows that the giver has thought about you and taken time to create a special gift.
http://artycraftycreations.blogspot.co.uk
http://artycraftycreations.blogspot.co.uk
Sunday, 16 December 2012
Another Lovely Present Idea About Life Afloat
My lovely blogger pal, Margy, lives in the most amazing floating cabin amongst the mountains in Canada. There is a whole series of wonderful books that describe their floating life that is very much off-grid. Margy has a floating garden which just has to be seen, the amount of produce that she gets is unbelievable. Pop over to her blog where all the books are available to buy, as well a lot more information about their lifestyle.
http://powellriverbooks.blogspot.co.uk/
http://powellriverbooks.blogspot.co.uk/
Last Minute Christmas Present Idea
If you are interested in reading more about living on a barge, then you should read Watery ways by Val Poore. It it a cracking read and would make a great Christmas present. Below is a review of the book taken from SunPenny blogspot. I can't quite work out how to repost, but if you go to the link you can see the full interview with more pictures.
From http://sunpenny.blogspot.nl/2012/11/interview-with-valerie-poore-on-her-new.html
About 'Watery Ways'
Trading life in the fast lane of Johannesburg for that of Rotterdam's serene Oude Haven, Valerie Poore packs all her worldly possessions aboard the historic Dutch barge, the Hoop, and sets about rebuilding both the boat and her life after divorce – and rediscovering herself and her own capabilities in the process.
Along the journey of renovation she is joined by an array of characters, including two dogs and a rather adventurous cat, a smiling but absent-minded ‘landlord’, a quirky friend and confidante, and an olde worlde charmer whose mastery at the helm wins more than just her respect. Before long Val has to learn to cope with the strenuous demands of acting as Skipper's Mate during numerous nail-biting adventures – frequently with hilarious effect.
When the Hoop, her rented home, is sold, Valerie relishes the new challenge of hunting down the Vereeniging, another picturesque barge aboard which she builds herself a new home and learns that, when life on the waterways is threatened by rust and insurance critics, it is those who band together to help who make the lifestyle so worthwhile.
Valerie’s touchingly sincere story is one of discovery and friendship, endurance and love and, most importantly, never allowing the landlubbers to get you down!
About Valerie Poore
Valerie Poore was born in London, England, and after completing her degrees in English, History and French, and a further course in the conservation and restoration of museum artefacts, she worked for a furniture restoration company until the birth of her first daughter. She lived a life of ‘self-sufficiency’ on a smallholding before going to South Africa in 1981 with her husband and very small children, where they lived on a farm in Natal (subject of her first book, African Ways). She currently lives on a barge in Rotterdam – a rather special lifestyle.
From http://sunpenny.blogspot.nl/2012/11/interview-with-valerie-poore-on-her-new.html
About 'Watery Ways'
Trading life in the fast lane of Johannesburg for that of Rotterdam's serene Oude Haven, Valerie Poore packs all her worldly possessions aboard the historic Dutch barge, the Hoop, and sets about rebuilding both the boat and her life after divorce – and rediscovering herself and her own capabilities in the process.
Along the journey of renovation she is joined by an array of characters, including two dogs and a rather adventurous cat, a smiling but absent-minded ‘landlord’, a quirky friend and confidante, and an olde worlde charmer whose mastery at the helm wins more than just her respect. Before long Val has to learn to cope with the strenuous demands of acting as Skipper's Mate during numerous nail-biting adventures – frequently with hilarious effect.
When the Hoop, her rented home, is sold, Valerie relishes the new challenge of hunting down the Vereeniging, another picturesque barge aboard which she builds herself a new home and learns that, when life on the waterways is threatened by rust and insurance critics, it is those who band together to help who make the lifestyle so worthwhile.
Valerie’s touchingly sincere story is one of discovery and friendship, endurance and love and, most importantly, never allowing the landlubbers to get you down!
About Valerie Poore
Valerie Poore was born in London, England, and after completing her degrees in English, History and French, and a further course in the conservation and restoration of museum artefacts, she worked for a furniture restoration company until the birth of her first daughter. She lived a life of ‘self-sufficiency’ on a smallholding before going to South Africa in 1981 with her husband and very small children, where they lived on a farm in Natal (subject of her first book, African Ways). She currently lives on a barge in Rotterdam – a rather special lifestyle.
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
AWOL
I HATE driving in the snow and ice! I get myself so worked up, that I could almost cry. I am lucky that I can usually put off going in to work a bit later in the morning, rather than attempt the drive in the dark. However, this week I am delivering a particular course and I HAVE to be in work every day and early. So to overcome my fears I am actually staying a work. It is such a chore as I have all my meals cooked for me, the room cleaned on a daily basis and tea served first thing in the morning and last thing at night!
Why am I telling you this? Well, I have discovered recently that if I use my computer at work to read and comment on your blogs, quite often my comments end up in your spam boxes or disappearing completely. I would hate you all to think that I don't care or that I cannot be bothered to read your posts and comment. Blogger obviously has some sort of prejudice against the MoD computer system!!!! Also being a military establishment, I do not get a signal on my phone or iPad to blog or comment. I have managed to get on to a stand alone computer to post this. But please excuse my absence from commenting on your posts, rest assured I am reading them all every day and thoroughly enjoying them. In fact, you are my escape from work each day. So please bear with me and normal service will be resumed as soon as I get home (providing I get a signal!!!) Lots of Love to you all xxxx
Why am I telling you this? Well, I have discovered recently that if I use my computer at work to read and comment on your blogs, quite often my comments end up in your spam boxes or disappearing completely. I would hate you all to think that I don't care or that I cannot be bothered to read your posts and comment. Blogger obviously has some sort of prejudice against the MoD computer system!!!! Also being a military establishment, I do not get a signal on my phone or iPad to blog or comment. I have managed to get on to a stand alone computer to post this. But please excuse my absence from commenting on your posts, rest assured I am reading them all every day and thoroughly enjoying them. In fact, you are my escape from work each day. So please bear with me and normal service will be resumed as soon as I get home (providing I get a signal!!!) Lots of Love to you all xxxx
Sunday, 9 December 2012
The Ship's Stores
This is what I was so excited about - my new walk in larder. It was something that was on the plans from day one and now it is beginning to come together. The reason for getting this bit done was to clear Carpe Diem of some clutter, although I don't know where all those stores came from! The outside part of the larder will have more shelves, a nice deep butler sink (for bathing Alfie) and some cupboards. It is well insulated and hopefully will maintain a fairly constant temperature. Got to go now and fill up some more shelves!
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