Busy Mums Blog

How to Save Money on Petrol

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 06:50:00 GMT

Whether you are driven by costs or the environment here are a few ways and websites which can help you save money on fuel.

Busy Mums have fun, save money and get rid of your clutter all in one go.

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 07:27:00 GMT

Save money and swop your unwanted stuff for free

The Credit Crunch and Busy Mums

Sat, 24 May 2008 14:21:00 GMT

There is no doubt about it we are all beginning to feel the pinch with the price of petrol and diesel rising at a phenomenal rate which of course is going to have the knock on effect of making everything else more expensive. Here are a few tips which I have heard over the past few weeks from a combination of subscribers to Help for Busy Mums and that I have picked up from the likes of the Money Saving Expert.

Why Are We Not So Friendly With Our Neighbours

Sun, 11 May 2008 17:40:00 GMT

Work, winter and cars have a lot to answer for

Delia Smith cooking cheats

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 22:54:00 GMT

I have just been watching Delia Smiths new cookery programme.   I am a great fan of Delia Smith – my children particularly the older ones are less enthusiastic. This has probably something to do with my olive and sun dried tomato phase of cooking.

My kids did not approve of and still talk about olives and sun dried tomatoes with great distain. That is the most annoying thing about kids, unless you push their boundaries most of them are quite content to stick with “nursery food” like shepherds pie, macaroni cheese and the like.

The reason I mention this programme is that it has been quite controversial in “cookery terms” Because good old Delia is telling us how to cheat.   Similar to the Nigella Express programme but somehow different.

I am all for saving time in the kitchen which is why I was keen to watch this pogramme and learn a few short cuts.

Delia made a comment which I really applauded she said she did not like the kind of cooking which was “art on a plate”. I would say Gary Rhodes probably falls into this category, great to watch, but for someone like me pointless to attempt. (Sorry Gary).

I am more of a Jamie Oliver type cook, chuck in a bit of this throw in a bit of that – suits me a lot more. .

Anyway back to the cheats. Frozen mashed potatoes, which she used in a cake, bread, as a topping for shepherds pie (along with tinned mince beef) and fish pie.   I think I maybe buying some frozen mash tomorrow. It could be a good standby when I don’t feel in the mood for peeling the spuds.

Temporary Traffic Lights, Roadworks and the Middle Ages

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 23:02:00 GMT

Today I am going to have a bit of rant. Why - well I had the most frustrating experience - along with with hundres of other people today. The thing which made it even more frustrating was that it was avoidable..

So what is it. Well this morning I set off very early (about 6:20 am), to take my step children to school. The journey takes a good two hours in the rush hour .

Today the weather was good and we felt quite pleased that we had made good time. I dropped my stepson off promptly at 8:30am and turned back out onto the road to conintue the journey to my step daughters school which should take another ten to twleve minutes. Today as we turned back on to the road we were met with stationary traffic which we sat in while the minutes ticked away.

It was obvious after about twenty minutes when we had not gone very far that my stepdaughter was going to be very late for school. We surmised that maybe there had been an accident, perhaps major road works. As we stopped and started along the road we saw the odd abandoned car that had broken down and vexed motorists peering out of their side windows also trying to work out whatever was going on.

Eventually we passed the obstruction causing all the problem. An accident - no. No sign of one at all. No it was road works. Not big road works, you understand, no probably three or four yards of road works, one man digging a hole (by hand). And a set of temporary traffic lights wich arguably seemed a little unneccessary.

Eventually I dropped my step daughter off at 9:30am and considered with some dismay that I was probably going to be stuck in a queue going the other way for some conisderable time.

However ten minutes later I was through the road works. I turned off and headed out of the town and saw at each round about queues and queues of traffic all heading into the town centre. Each roundabout was grid locked. I eventually turned off onto the main arterial road out of the town. Still more cars stationary. People out of their cars trying to work out what on earth was going on. Litte did they realise the reason they were being put to such inconvenience thank goodness.

Meanwhile there is a man digging a hole (by hand), blissfully unaware of the chaos he is causing.

Goodness knows how many hours it would be before the situation righted itself. Or maybe it stil has not.

Just think of the cost in loss of productiviy. The cost to the environment, the petrol and diesal which was consumed. The irate employers - the irate drivers. And so the list goes on.

And intriguingly will anyone do anything to prevent a rerun of this tomorrow?

Fortunately I won't be there to find out.

Prince Harry in Afghanistan

Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:49:00 GMT

Well done to the British Media for managing to keep the lid on Prince Harry’s deployment to Afghanistan.

It’s such a shame that the foreign media could not manage to keep their mouths shut too. Strange really, when it isn’t even their royal family. You wouldn’t think that the Prince Harry in Afghanistan wouldn’t be that newsworthy , but as he is a celebrity even him going to a nightclub has made news before.

Now of course Harry may have to come home which I am sure is going to a huge disappointment to him. I wonder how the foreign media feel about that. Remorseful? I should think not.

In many ways I am surprised it stayed under raps for so long. (I should think this was especially true with a film crew following him around). I also really admire the Queen who has clearly given her blessing to her grandson being deployed.

Let’s face it she probably could have stopped him going altogether if she had wanted to.

As a Mum I know how difficult I would find it if one of my children was being deployed in a war zone. Especially a complex political war like Aghanistan is. But knowing that her Grandson is likely to be a specific target makes it an even more difficult decision for the Queen to give her blessing to.

Well done the Queen.

The Woman Who Stops Traffic

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 17:11:00 GMT

Last night I watched a really interesting programme on traffic. It was about organising a traffic free day in Marlow. Although the programme showed the uphill struggle it was to get people out of their cars - it also showed what can be done when we all put our minds to it.

Now although I do my bit for recycling and try to consider the environment - I can not say I am born again about it.

Like most people I get frustrated about the amount of traffic on the road - but to be honest I don't generally do anything on a day to day basis to change my ingrained habits.

But this programme really made me think. It took 9 minutes for someone to drive and park in the centre of Marlow - few seconds more to walk the same distance - and just four minutes to bike it.

The lady whose task it was to empower the town of Marlow to take action was a source of inspiration.

We are certainly going to start trying to work to our local shops - about a mile away from where we live more often. I have done it now and then in the past but I am going to start trying to make a real habit of from now on. I like walking, I certainly need the exercise and actually it does not take very long as you can walk where cars can not drive.

Doesn't Time Fly

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 21:21:00 GMT

As I sit here in the cold....I have no heating now. The British Gas saga may turn into a dedicated blog all of its own at this rate. I will probably have a moan about that tomorrow - if as I suspect the heating has now broken down......

I wonder where the last week has gone. My plan with this blog is to try and write three times a week. Not a great committment. Well I missed that target badly last week.

The thing is I would't mind if I had been somewhere or done something special - but really the honest truth is that it simply came down to bad time management and lack of discipline. Not lack of discipline -sitting around watching TV (I wish), or out having lunch with friends - or out walking with hubbie and family. Which I guess I did a little of..

No it was lack of discipline of being unable to tear my self from one task to move into a different frame of mind to do another.

It is so annoying when you look back over a day or a week and surface from whatever project you have undertaken whether it is in the home or the workplace to realise that because you have been doing B all day - you are now totally behind with A.

Does anyone else find this problem?

The Scandal Of Bottled Water

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:43:00 GMT

I have just finished watching BBC’s Panorama television programme on the subject of bottled water.

Everything the programme said was true. In the seventies no one bought or even had really cottoned on to the idea of buying bottled water. Now it is flown in from all over the world. Extracted from volcanic rock, clouds, streams not just in the Alps but as far away as Fiji and New Zealand and flown all the way here.

Three quarters of the plastic bottles never end up being recycled and end up in landfill sites. Some of the plastic bottles are burned to create energy which could power thousands of cars of the road. (I can not remember the numbers exactly I was not paying close enough attention.)

Anyway, I am sure you get the picture. Yet I can remember not so many months ago hearing that the advice a friend was being given. She should only give her young baby bottled water – and this was coming from a health professional.

Now I am not making a criticism of the health professional or being a born again environmentalist. But as the programme suggested the whole water phenomenon does have a touch of the “Emperors New Clothes” about it.

Even worse, a friend who used to work in the oil industry, pointed out to us recently. a litre of bottled water costs more than a litre of petrol. And that is saying something,. with petrol and diesel prices sky high.

It is no wonder we are all bemused, confused and that new mum has something else to fret over