Plan B ... or is that C ...?

Well, that didn't work. I have not regained my life. Not in the slightest. I thought for a moment or two that I would, but that idea crashed and burned... looking on the bright side, we are relatively (money-wise, for us, it is always relative...) solvent at the moment.


The big news is our trip - we did a wild and reckless thing ... and it was fab! Instead of saving my extra money for the summer when I can't work, we went to Disneyland Paris, and to Paris too. Life's too short and all that. We had such a good time.


Back on the frugality train now - but saving to go back too...


Trying to assert control of wrack and ruin land too - slowly but surely I am denting disaster - any progress is progress, however tiny.


I didn't know what to expect of Disney, but I loved that bubble of positivity - it's sticking with me, anything is possible ...

Practicalities

So, here we are. We have a campervan. It's pretty cool.




                                         

                                       



Going to still be dreaming - whichever way the cookie crumbles, frugality is going to be up there. But, we will have the campervan and its associated freedom :-) .

Step 1 - M.O.T. - Eeek! Please! But should do...

Step 2 - Frugality and making more money - Prongs 1 and 2 will need a raised profile!

But in the meantime...

* Daisyfay has spent the whole afternoon sitting in it, ostensibly doing her (late) homework.

* We are planning an excursion to The Farm http://www.thefarmburscough.co.uk/ - our favourite after school ice cream and Sunday morning breakfast destination. They also have a campsite and Daisyfay has asked many times to camp there. But now we're thinking - great place to practise. And if we don't let her sleep in it soon ...


She cried when she realised we'd really bought it. So did I.


Oh yay, roll on everything ...



Comfort Zones

Funny things, comfort zones ... too easy to get stuck in.

Now, there's nothing wrong with a bit of security - I've been enjoying a period of relative, if slightly bumpy on occasion, security for a while now - and it's been rather nice - especially after the fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants period which preceded it. But it doesn't encourage you to think, or change, or write blogs, or do anything except get on getting on...

I've been getting on getting on, and enjoying the moment. Daisyfay is nearly at the end of Year 4 now, and I am still trying to enjoy every minute and not panic about how fast everything is passing. We're a lot further from destitute than we've been in a very long time, though still not very close to the campervan ...  and that's what got me writing this again: I mean to, I enjoy it when I do, but I allow the getting on to get in the way. So I've decided that the enjoying the moment philosophy needs a bit more of me in it ...

I'm feeling all inspired to look forward (as I sit here in the echoing, noisy splendour of Splashzone, watching Daisyfay and the Forever Friend - friends since they were two, she is the calm to the Miracle Girl's chaos - and they're planning on staying friends forever - I really hope they do...) ... yes, feeling all inspired because someone got me out of my comfort zone, twice, in one week - takes a pretty special someone to do that!

So, here goes me, writing this, planning on buying some hair straighteners, and investigating the actual price of a completely untrendy, non-VW campervan (think that's a dream too far at the moment!).

The sun is shining, the sky is blue, and life is full of possibilities ...

Recurring themes

There are two things that keep coming back to haunt me. They lurk in the background, making me feel continually guilty and disheartened. They reinforce that "you are not in control, your priorities are all skewed" feeling.

You're wondering now, aren't you? How bad can it be? What nightmare is this...?

The attic and the garden.

The garden - I know what I want it to be, the plan (!) is good - that's what makes it so frustrating!! A couple of years of builders and flooding have put me in the "Where do I start?" frame of mind. I want somewhere to sit and eat, productive fruit and veg beds, and a shed to store stuff ... I dream of potting sheds ... and greenhouses ... patios ... chickens...

The attic - empty the attic... board the attic...refill the attic ... builders ... empty the attic ... refill the attic ... and so it goes on! We need to empty it again so we can get to the overflowing overflow. But emptying it causes chaos everywhere else - then I need to tidy because people are coming - so we shove it all back again... I want an organised, minimal attic - this is also probably a pipe dream ...

I think that, in order to assert control over my life, I need to conquer the garden and the attic.

More plans ..

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                                (How good does this look? Dreaming ...!)