Weeks 3, 4 and 5, i think

I've been busy. It's the beginning of gardening season, even if we have had three weeks of snow, sleet and frosts. It's April.
I put up my polytunnel two weeks ago, and I have sown first seeds there already, salads, radishes and swiss chard (if I remember right). I hope I can get some harvest before I can plant tomatoes and peppers (and chillies) there.
I bought plant light few weeks ago (it was just before this shut down started) and now my peppers, aubergines, chillies and some other seed have sprouted, so I rigged it with a plank and windowsills to hold it on place. 'Suma is no longer a menace, so I can keep my seedlings in a plastic box on floor.
Second lot of seeds are sown and put up on a tall freezer, I hope I remember to check on them occasionally!
Mental breakdowns are fewer and fewer. Ys has one every now and then, but so far I have managed to get him over them with ease. He thinks he has too much to do (at home school). I don't think so, but my kids always blame me for being too demanding. Last breakdown was because he had to make a totem pole (out of kitchen towel cardboard tube...), he wanted to draw and it was supposed to be made with different papers... Oh dear. Ice cream, tissue to blow one's nose and pep talk later all was well and he spent two hours crafting a pretty totem pole.
Oh, there was Easter. We had roasted lamb leg (it's rarity here, but kids love lamb/mutton so I try to get some for easter), chocolate eggs and other easter stuff to eat. We don't celebrate it as such, it's more like a spring time feast for us.
Work might not have been as busy as it could have been if I was working in office (and I have few days off anyway before easter). Meetings via skype and teams.
Ys's room has been under construction, I've plastered outer wall (with window) and that moster block of concrete that lies in that room (it's in extension which is a half floor below the old house, and because we have non-solid gorund here, we had to make some weird stuctural solutions in order to keep old house solidly in place). One wall is waiting for planks (I'm treating them atm, first treatment is strong black tea for tannines, and next treatment is mixture of vinegar and iron (rebar bars I had lying around). I will not produce even colour, and that's the point - it might end up with very dark brown, or just light greyish. I'm aiming for lighter greysish tones as ys has asked for that, but... You never know, when playing with natural material and not so accurate measurements. We cut the planks and now we only have to wait for that first tea treatment to dry so that I can put that vinegar concotion on, but it will probably have to wait until tomorrow.
(we have mostly spruce as buiding material here, and it has no tannin unlike oak, so in order to get some colour out of iron-vinegar mix I have to treat the planks first eith tannin, I could buy it, or use crushed acorns (didn't harvested then last autunm) or even use red wine, but I opted for strong tea).
I've managed with one weekly shopping, occasionally I've run out of milk or spread a day early, but then we have had just cope without for a day. I've been (my own opinion) successfull so far, even if I don't have a set meny for the week ahead. I have some ideas (like hot dog casserole hb asked for) and then I'm just playing along.
Freezers are not actually emptying, because every time I go shopping I buy stuff I put into freezer: bread, meat, chicken, fish, chips, veggies etc. But I have used some odd items now and then, I hope that in summer I have enough room for berries.
I've sewn four masks so far, I think the last one is very usable, it fits nicely (not too tight). I think I should be doing several now, I'm using them when I'm shopping. Yes, people look me weirdly, but I don't care, I don't want to be the one who spreads covid-19 around. Self-made mask will not protect me 100%, but it will protect others, if I happen to have infection!
I'm really missing number two, I so long for holding a baby. My sister sends daily messages, pictures and videos, but I can't hold her or smell the wonderfull smell of a baby.... My kids are so bid they are not good substitutes on that - teenager boys don't smell like babies...
People are telling in social media how they are spending their extra time now in isolation. I mean what extra time? I haven't had time to write to my blog in three weeks!
My alarm goes off at 6am, then after brushing my teeth I'm off to 'Suma walk, back at 7am, waking kids, eating own breakfast and it's 8am, then logging in to work, doing that until just before noon, making lunch for school kids, back to work, then by 3is pm getting out for another 'Suma walk (into the forest so only max 30mins) if kids haven't done that, laundy, dishes, another cooking time, more work (need to get not only my hours but also my work done), some building/gardening/crafting stuff and then I'm finally sitting in front of telly, and its half past eight in the evening!

Social distance - week 1: Working from home and homeschooling

Oh, it's here. Covid-19, coronavirus. Whole Europe is shut.  Our children are at home, been since monday. I was at the office on mon and tue, I had to sort out my laptop which wasn't connecting to net. My office is told to work at home at least until April 13th -  as are kids homeschooling, too.

So this has been the first week of isolation (I'm not talking about social isolation, which is mostly the norm to us).

On wed I woke up at 4:30, just because I couldn't sleep anymore (hb wakes up at 4.15). Ate breakfast, checked emails, read all new info and, finally, when there was enough light, took 'Suma to walk. Then I put linens to washer, fed cats and read some more news. I let kids to sleep until 7.30 (usually I wake them up at 6.30) and fed them cereals. Nice slow morning.
Ys's teatcher had some papers for his class, so we had to fetch them - at 8.20 we were only ones at school (excluding staff).
So, the very first day of home schooling (not really home schooling, if all children in the country are at home and teatchers are teaching them via Internet). I was suprised all systems worked. I had trouble to go on with schedule - three childres all in different schools and of course they all have lunch breaks at different times - had to make quick lunch which was quick to eat. Tuna and pasta (a school lunch I have never made before...), at least I got one tin out of my pantry ;-)

Thursday was a challenging day, because I had compulsory training via skype - my lunch break wasn't at same time than kids etc. But we made it, and will make from now on. This is really a minor inconvenience.

Friday was another first: I was doing groceries to my aunt and Onld man and my mom. It took ages to find all things on shopping lists - there were plenty of everything, but I just buy different things. I had difficulties to locate them! But yes, I got all items. Also got medication for Old man, no problems there either. You can buy only one package of basic pain medication (30 tablets). Not because there isn't any, but because this way all people who needs it, will get it.

Shops here are in normal state. Toilet paper was missing from the shelves few days because staff was too busy to replenish them. Now there is mountains of toilet papers. Only shortage is hand sanitiser, but that will be solved next week, when basically all local breweries have set up their production lines for it.
Oh, yeast was missing, too. It is fortunate that there is at least a one yeast factory in this country (they produce CO2 for greenhouses, too) so this shortage is shortlived. I have both dry yeast in my pantry  and old fashioned block yeast in my freezer, it's that kind you can freeze (not all yeasts can be frozen).
Oh, cheap tomato tins were also missing, now that I think of it.

But mostly shops are like thay have always been. Salad bars are closed, staff have so much to do they don't have time to disinfect anything extra. Salad bar is nor necessity. There was actually a lot of reduced milk!
Prices have not gone up, at least I couldn't find anything with inflated prices.

Now they are talking about isolating certain areas, because people don't behave reasonably. I think there will not be curfew yet, but they might stop all travelling from capital area, and maybe other big cities.

I have only one more bigger issue: my car is due MOT very soon and it need some fixing before i can take it to MOT. but now I don't feel comfortable (or safe) to take it to garage. So - I might be buying a car in near future (not a new car, but one that has it's MOT done recently).

I have enough work to do for the next three weeks, so I will not worry that yet. Hb may have to stay at home some point, because he can't do his job from home and their products might not be considered essentials. I will worry that if it happens, and there's not much to worry, then. There's nothing I can do to prevent it.

Oh, I gave my name as a volunteer shopper/doing errands for those who are quarantined or isolated, our commune started to organize volunteers last friday; they also have staff at library if someone needs help and can't find anyone to help them. I can't work as a coordinator, because our poor phone signal, but I'll do what is needed.

Tomorrow is the first day of week 2. Ys will be baking cookies at home economics (or just at home), they all have video lessons or chats during the day. I have two skype meetings...

Keep safe, wash your hands and take care of those who can't do it themselves.
We will get through this, together.

Going nuts

I have bought food (and other stuff like cats' treats) from net store similar to Approved food   (I've better not to look up AF because I can't make an order because of postal fees) once every two months. But now I have a problem. Last order a month ago included a box of muesli bars (with lots of nuts but no raisins). Which were delicious. Note "were". ES, who doesn't eat, ate those bars, and told me he had eaten all of them.
So. A teenager who doesn't eat has found something he likes, and it costs twice as much elsewhere... They are also high in energy and high in fiber, which both are lacking in ES's diet. Should I make an order - there is also cheap(ish) puppyfoor for 'Suma.
Should I take the risk they won't be available anymore in next month when I was planning to make another order?

Sooo... Of course I made an order. Byebye money and well-laid plans.

I have spent a lot of money this year so far. Money for nothing occasionally (I had to buy car parts to my car and the it appeared they were wrong parts and the fault wasn't in those parts anyway and NOW I have to buy another part and that is also not free). Money well spent, too. I bought my first reading glasses, but I got them cheaply (kind of) because my old friend from school owns the place. Hope I learn how to use them, because honestly - I haven't been able to read that small print on labels for two years now.

On the other hand I have been doing good stuff. I have kept the house warm mostly with woodburners. I have been experimenting on different meals, made veggie burgers (first time ever) and fish cakes (second time ever). Veggie burgers not so great succes with kids (though D really liked them; next time I won't be using so much tarragon), and only two kids liked fish cakes, but hb ate them with vigour.
Last night I made omelettes, one with really really cheap sausage (hb loves that stuff, he doesn't like meaty sausages!), one with cheese and one with spinach. 7 eggs (10c per egg), a splash of milk (5c?) leftover cheese (max 50c, likely much less), 50c for the sausage and maybe 10c for butter, spices and electricity. So 1,85€ meal for six people and leftovers for hb's and my lunch, not bad.
On the other day I was raiding the fridge and found several seen-the-best-days-a-long-ago veggies like swede, cauliflower, broccoli, some iceberg lettuce, diced tomatoes... So I made soup. Now I have 9 containers of soup (each 2 portions) in the freezer for me to take to work for lunches. With free bread (provided by my mother) they make pretty cheap lunch.

This weekend I'll be browsing my seeds for the next summer. I think I have everything I'd like to grow - I had to adjust my plans because the crash of polytunnel, but with this kind of winter it really doesn't do much difference. Growing season won't begin before late April.
Maybe I'll sow some chillis?

Not quite Approved Food - but close

I have made two orders from a company that sells expired/discontinued/slightly damaged food cheaply - packets are damaged, not the product itself. Just like Approved Food .

I wanted to shop on AF, but because delivery costs would be at least £30, it wasn't cheap shopping after all. But I found similar sites around here, like Matsmart (sorry, only in Swedish och Norwegian) -  I didn't order from there, but the site I used had one big advantage: they have listed ingredients of almost all of products. And that's very important, because I don't want to order 15 jars of chili sauce and find out in the hard way that it contains onions...

This time my order included a lot of cat food, some chocolate, stock cubes and other miscellaneous items - like five kg of rice... I paid a little under of 60€ of what I would have paid nealry 110€ at supermarket! I checked the prices, like I know that this specific cat food costs 3,89€ per box, and I paid 1,99€. I also bought a jar of chili sauce.

None of items I bought were past their "Best Before" date, and all of them were things I usually buy for us (even the chili sauce) and all of thme were on my shopping list. Ok, maybe not the 5kg bag of rice, but I would have bought 1kg bag and another in a few weeks again.

Althought there was one bargain I might have bought from Approvef Foods even with
£30 delivery...

But sadly it was out of stock.