Problems..but not life shattering..

Hello all..wow its good to be back on here..believe it or not i have actually missed blogging this week.
My laptop decided i wasn't allowed to sign in to stuff and this changed daily..not sure what it was but hubby has sorted it for me..so i am back..

Firstly i would like to say Hi to Tracey..a new follower..Welcome to my little bit of blogland.

Secondly my boiler is having serious problems..i have had the council here 3 times this week..it was quite funny that that the lad who "apparently" fixed it twice did so with our own can of spray lubricant..cheeky sod..but then it went again and this time i was told a man was coming who would have the proper tools and equipment to fix it..after being told i was getting a new fan earlier in the week i assumed,as you would that he would have the said fan on his van.So imagine my surprise when he arrived with a screwdriver and a special bottle of lubricant..i almost started to laugh at him..i didn't then but did when he left. My new fan is arriving sometime in February..they will ring me to arrange a time to repair it. So in the meantime we pray it keeps working .
Then i had 2 lovely men who re-insulated my loft..in and out and not a ton of mess either..not sure if its just us but we can tell the difference especially in our bedroom..

So in-between all the disruption we have been busy teaching the girls..Fern is now a total whizz with her Math..so she has moved up a level and is now doing Division..we have started slow to build confidence and will gradually build up the difficulty.Iris is now doing word Families..we had done AT,OG,IG.. and we are moving slowly through the levels..she is just so on top of her Math..i am so proud of both of them.

In the afternoons we have been sorting all the treasures we found in the attic..its so nice to go back down memory lane with the girls,sharing stories and having a giggle about what antics their big sisters got up to.

We also made some lovely Home made Croutons..they were that good they all went in one sitting..i used the crusts of the Toasties we had the day before..i really think the makers of Toastie Machines should at least try to make them big enough so that a whole slice of bread can be used..the one we have i have to cut the top crust off to get the darn thing closed..

My own mix..2-3tbps olive oil,dash of paprika,pinch of mixed herbs.

Mix it all up and let bread soak it up.

I baked them for 30-40 mins on a low heat in the oven

All golden and crunchy..very tasty

 Iris received her first Library card this week..she was so excited..we have ordered some books online from the Library for her .

Fern lost another tooth as well..bless her her 2 new big teeth had grown in front of it and they were making it sore..she wobbled it for days and then had to have it pulled very gently and expertly i might by her Gran..so she now a gap at the bottom..but you can't really tell.

We spent an afternoon cleaning some very old suitcases that belonged to Grandma..i can remember these cases sitting at the bottom of her bed..so i thought it only fitting that they should be placed at the bottom of mine.The smaller one has fared better than the large one..both were dirty on the outside and took some cleaning but i think they were worth it..the locks are really rusty on the large one but i will work on them through out the year until they are cleaner..

 Inside wasn't to bad..it has that lovely old smell going on..i cleaned it all up and put some brown paper in with Lavender Oil on it..it may help with the musty smell or not but either way i am not bothered.

 I love the pattern ..it has  weird feel to it..lots of little ridges that have collected half a ton of grime..

 Here is their new resting place..i think they look pretty good..

 We also found this old toy..still in the box and not broken..i was going to just get rid of it but Iris spotted it and wanted to have a go..her and Fern have spent quite a while this week making up their own designs and having fun with it.

I can't remember which one of the older girls it belonged to as they all had one at some point.
Apart from our grocery shopping we haven't spent any extra money this week..i plan on baking tomorrow and sorting out new meal plans for the next week or 2..
We repaired my husbands Water Proof Trousers that had ripped at the waist..sewing machine made it look so easy..he also did his jeans at the bottom as they had frayed a bit.
Our chickens have started to lay again..we have had 5 eggs this week..good girls.
The Pantry is on hold until we get a new light in there. I have paint for the walls and paper for the shelves but its no good as its like  the Black Hole Of Calcutta in there.We have extra boxes to store it all whilst we do it.
I have a Pantry List in my Home Folder which is enabling me to keep an eye on the store we have.
I also have a Freezer List..this is just brilliant as i don't have to keep digging through it to see what is in there..i did that once and almost lost my fingers to frostbite.

So that was my week..not so bad really.
How was yours?
sara