September month in numbers...

If you are regular reader of my blog then you will be familiar with my monthly numerical blog posts if not you should pop over to Julie's blog; the originator of the 'Month in numbers' meme to discover what it's all about.

September is a month I both love and loath; it symbolises the start of a new [school] year and brings with it the joy of new pencil cases and stationary and also the change of the seasons with crisp mornings and [some] bright sunshine. Its also brings with it the pressure of planning lessons, making packed lunches and this year moving into a new building.

So here we go with the numerical stats tied to September 2014:

0: The amount of brain space I have left. There has been so much going on this month that I can't fit anything else into my brain and I am extremely pleased that I have actually managed to keep up with [and schedule early] my MinN post!

20.41 secs: My fastest time to complete my new favourite puzzle. It's just like the plastic slot puzzles you used to be able to buy with your pocket money but much better as the pieces don't jam! Even better it was free from the app store.

6: The number of lovely new bright pink files I have bought to go back to school. I also spent too many hours to count making new labels for them all. [Rekindling my love of digi scrapping I might add]. I also purchased a new pink desk set [with a very disappointing hole punch], some highlighters, a year planner, some coloured stickers and some marvellous 'don't forget' post it notes. I really do love new stationary.

30: The number of Poirot books I have now read in the correct order. I also made another Agatha related purchase this month for £5. A 'who's who' of Agatha Christie characters. Apparently she included over 7000 characters in her stories but the book I bought only included 2000 them. Skimming through the first few pages I am slightly concerned by the number that I remember. I may apply for Mastermind with Agatha Christie as my specialist subject!

35: The number of the table that Dad and I sat at for our fish and chips at Hadleys in Whitby. I crave fish and chips when I'm away from home as they just don't taste right in the north west and on a recent flying 2 night visit home Dad and I had a day trip to Whitby. They tasted like heaven as it's been about 5 months since I had last had any.

2: The number of digi layouts I completed this month. After a crafting drought caused by the new term I managed to sit down with my laptop and my £5 folding table and do some digi scrapping of the above mentioned day trip.

£79.20: The amount I had to pay as a deposit for my new kitchen floor. It's coming! Soon! I'm excited! Can you tell?! Hopefully by the end of October the new kitchen will be finished. Apart from the handles on the cupboard doors as they are out of production until November. I need to start saving for a new bathroom next. Is it a bad sign when your bath actually goes rusty?

So that's the stats for September, hope you enjoyed a peek into my life this month and if you would like to see what all the other MinNers have been up to then pop over to Julie's dedicated board on Pinterest where you can find a record of everyone who has taken part.

Until next month.

♥

August month in numbers...

Hello, hello. Another month has gone by and its time for another statistical round up. 

This month should be full of days out and ice creams eaten but as I look back over the month it seems to be a lot more 'job' related in one way or another.

10 = The number of days of August that Mum & Dad the 'wonder kitchen fitters' were still here working on my kitchen. That made a grand total of 13 days of kitchen chaos. During that time we had 3 different types of takeaway and I went to Aldi at least once a day!

£125 = The amount I had to pay the tiler for a job I wasn't happy with plus the cost of the tiles and the trim. The total is a number I'd rather forget. Lets just say the tiles lasted less than 24 hours before I ripped them off again. 

5 containing 25 = The number of boxes of tiles that I ripped off and put in the bin.

2 = The number of other tilers I've had round. The number I want to tile my kitchen? 0.

5 = The number of times I've ordered the cabinet door handles. Also the number of times each company has cancelled my order as they were out of stock. I've finally found them on ebay, paid again but I'm still awaiting delivery. *eeek*

7 [plus 1 extra] = The number of days that I have been back at work. Not eight in a row, eight over the past 4 weeks. If anyone says to me that teachers are so lucky because they get so many holidays I might just punch them in the face. Yes I haven't worked 5 days a week for the whole of August but even going a day or two really breaks your week up and stops the holiday groove. Hurrah for the world of FE. But yes I am lucky just because I love my job.

Speaking of which;

2 = The number of days left until we get access to the new campus. I'm so excited. It looks lovely from the outside.

2 = Also the number of days until the students come back to enrol, luckily they are only in for a hour to complete the paperwork then I can get back to unpacking before new term officially starts on the 8th.

27 million = What feels like the number of samples I need to make for display in the new textile room.

5 =  The number of us that went for afternoon tea to celebrate a friends birthday.

3 = The number of crafty projects completed this month. 1 dress, 1 bag & 1 mini album. Not bad going really.

 

So that's my numerical round up for this month. A random selection to say the least. If you would like to join  in with MinN then pop over to Julie's blog to find out more details or view them all on her dedicated Pinterest board.

Until next month happy number hunting.

♥

June month in numbers...

Summer is here and I have spent quite a few days in the garden both enjoying the sun and digging out the weeds. The borders are looking lovely and the 5 tomato plants I put in last month are growing at a rate of knots.

With another month crossed off the calender it's time for a numerical round up courtesy of Julie's Month in Numbers meme so here we go.

2 = The number of 'chuff chuffs' [also known as Hedgehogs!] That I have seen this month whilst out late at night trying to get Arty to come home.

2 = The number of crafty treats I've had this month. One involve about 3 hours in a fabric shop in Preston and the other was about 4 hours at Woolfest. I'd rather not declare the amount of pennies spent between the two day trips!

1 = The number of dresses I have made this month with the help of one not very useful cat!

2 = The number of my students who won awards at the college end of year celebration event. It was a great night with some fab food and great company. I was so proud to see them up on stage collecting their awards.

1 = The number of birthday lunches I had this month for my 33rd birthday. A lovely day mooching in town and a nice lunch to break up the day before meeting friends for drinks in the evening.

1 = The number of bunches of flowers I received which lasted about 20 days! I love getting flowers and these really cheered up the kitchen windowsill.

That's it for this month - a bit short on the number front but I promise to try harder next time!

Until next month.

♥

May month in numbers...

We should be heading into Spring now according to the months that are whizzing by but as of yet we've had a limited number of sunny days.

There have been a few other numbers of note this month though to here we go...

1: The number of serious thunderstorms. The skies turned black one tea time and the rain came down followed by some serious thunder and lightening.

2: The number of Bank Holidays this month. Good for those who normally work Mondays. Not so good for those who don't and therefore don't get the benefit. Like me!

4: The number of puddings I tasted at a friends 'Pudding Party'. There were 7 puddings in total but I left early because of a headache. Maybe it was sugar induced?

1: The number of appointments I had with the nurse this month. Nothing startling in that I hear you cry. But it was number related - a blood pressure check and the numbers were normal. However the length of time it took me to get there was not. Normally it takes about 7 minutes to get to my doctors as it's very close however they have moved premises. I checked the map and thought I knew where I was going. Turned out I didn't and what should have been a 10 minute journey took me 25. I found it in the end and had set off earlier enough that I was only 5 minutes late and luckily the nurse was running late too. How my blood pressure was at a normal level after that I have no idea. I hate getting lost and being late.

£27.50:  The price paid for a *much needed* haircut.

2: The number of nights the parentals came to stay. It was a bit of a flying visit and we fitted in more kitchen browsing, a visit to a plant nursery and a secondhand furniture store. 2 was also the number of meals we sent back on the first night that we went out for tea. Yucky horrible steaks. Safe to say we won't be going back there again!

3: The number of pieces of furniture bought from the secondhand furniture store for the grand total of £30! Super bargain; including this fabby drop leaf table which matches my new kitchen wallpaper. It needs a bit of TLC but I love the colour of the Formica top.

£60: The amount spent on plants from the nursery to help fill out the borders in my garden including 6 tomato plants but there are only 5 left! Something has had a super munch on one of the varieties and left me with nothing more than a stump!

3: The number of days in March that I have suffered with my 1st cold of the year. Hopefully it's not going to continue for too many days into June!

And finally the best number of the month... Grade 1: The number I received after an external mock Ofsted inspection at work. I nearly cried when I got my feedback; it was so nice to have the work I do recognised and affirmed as being right. Maybe I'll stop doubting myself so much now. Maybe. Not likely.

If you would like to join in with the MinN meme then pop over to Julie's blog to see what it's all about from the original MinN girl herself. Or if you would just like a numerical summary of the lives of other followers then you can find a collection of the participant on Pinterest.

Until next month.

♥

April month in numbers...

Spring is on its way and April has had its fair share of showers but there have also been a host of other, none weather related things brightening up this month.

3 = The number of afternoon teas that I have been to. 1 in Yorkshire, 1 in Carlisle and 1 in Workington. My  friends and I are starting a scoring system for each and so far we have 13 places to mark out of 10.

4 [ish] = The number of hours it took me to bake and decorate this birthday cake that was taken to one of the afternoon teas.

4 [ish] = This was also the number of hours I spent in the hospital with my friend following the birthday afternoon tea when she had suspected TB. Everything turned out to be OK; the worst part of it was we didn't get to cut the cake!

5 rolls of duct tape, 4 pillows, 1 can of expandable foam and 1 helpful Mother = The numbers involved in making a customised dress form. It was rather good fun despite the disaster with the expandable foam and the reduced ability to breathe whilst being wrapped up in duct tape. It's nearly finished now I just need to add [and adjust] the guidelines on it and then I'll be stitching away. [Maybe!]

2 = The number of PhD's completed. My new bag made with *best* fabric from Barcelona and a dress which I had finished but needed tweaking.

5 = The number of hours I spent cleaning, polishing and hoovering the car. With 1 not so helpful cat. It's a nightmare to get white cat fluff off newly hoovered upholstery!

£147.72 = The amount I received in a bonus check for a PPI refund. I had sent the forms off about 6 months ago and came home from work one day this month to find this waiting for me on the doormat. Hurrah!

Just over £600 = The amount I managed to save in my current account this month. I am trying to managed my finances better and help grow the kitchen fund. It's on its way.

12 = The number of Poirot books I have now read in the recommended order. I might get to the end by Christmas.

4 = The number of dates I have been on this month. It feels strange to be back in the world of dating. I'm not entirely convinced by the whole thing as of yet. I may just stick to the plan of becoming a crazy cat lady.

Month in numbers is brought to you by the fabulous Julie Kirk and if you would like to know more about it and maybe even join in then you can find the details here and catch up with other MinN bloggers over on Pinterest.

Until next month.

♥

February month in numbers...

Despite being the shortest month of the year February seems to have dragged on forever yet here I am at the last minute summing up my month in numbers...

2: The number of quotes for a new kitchen I have had this month. Both in the region of £3000. I only need 6 cupboards. My kitchen is tiny! I also spent £6 on some new kitchen utensils from the M&S outlet that are the same colour as I want to paint the walls.

£12: The price of a new pair of pink suede shoes from the Clarks outlet - I haven't had time to take a picture yet but no doubt they will appear on the blog at some point.

4: The number of meals out this month including breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner. Not all on the same day though!

 

6: The number of new products bought in the annual Sizzix mega sale. All the items below for less than £20.

7: Real numbers collected. After coming across Helena's blog in Julie's January round up of fellow Month in Numbers participants I loved the idea of collecting 'real' numbers that I saw in everyday life. I was going to try and be methodical in my approach to collecting them starting with 1-10 this month. Unfortunately you can't programme your eyes to only see specific ones so it's ended up being a bit more sporadic than intended with some duplicates for the eagle eyed amongst you!

3: of 43: The number of Poirot books read this month. After a recent post on Facebook by the Agatha Christie society detailing all of the Poirot stories and a suggested reading order I decided to raid my collection once more and re-read them in the right order. Needless to say it was rather stressful when I thought I had one missing but never fear it was hidden in a collection of short stories.

If you would like to join in the Month in Numbers community then pop over to Julie's blog to read more about the meme. You can also find past collections of all the MiN on Pinterest.

Until next month [when I will have some numbers from foreign shores!]

♥

June month in numbers...

Good evening blog readers, another month has whizzed by and for a second time I am late with my month in numbers so without further ado here are the numerical stats for this month...

1: The number of new laptops Mum and Dad bought me for a birthday pressie after my last one gave up the ghost. It operates on Windows 8. Let me tell you it's taken a bit of getting used to. Still not sure about all the funny app business and the strange start up screen. Thankfully you can disable all that fancy pants and have it operate 'old school'. It must be my age which is  forcing me to grumble about technology and with that seamless link I'll let you know that I turned 32 this month. I think. I'm pretty sure. Again old age is causing the brain to seize.

2: The number of visits Mum & Dad made this month. Once to see me, buy me laptops, dig in the garden and make me eat my lettuces and once to pick up their shiny new car. It's an automatic - new fandangled business again. I'll stick to manual thank you very much.

1: The number of new garden features my garden now has thanks to Mum's directing and mine and Dad's digging. A lovely new pond and lots of new plants. I love my garden and it is so nice to look out of the kitchen window to this view which will [hopefully] only get better as the plants establish themselves.

2: The number of crafty purchases made from TKMaxx for the grand total of £3.98. Bargain. I love that they have American Crafts bits and pieces in recently. And guess what... I haven't saved them for best I've used some of the paper and the stamp already.

 4: The number of new recipes tried this month when I had friends over for lunch. Yum yum. It was so satisfying to be able to go out and pick my own chives and then eat the leftovers with my own lettuces.

[Smoked haddock and gruyere cheese flan]

[Wild mushroom gallettes]

[Feta and chive scones]

4: The number of 'Crafty' magazines purchased from Woolfest. I had been looking at this magazine in the supermarket for a while but couldn't justify spending £4.99 on each copy. They were on offer at the show with 2 for £5 and one for £1 if you knew the discount code [which I sneakily overheard from another bargain hunter] and the most recent issue had 99p off. So all 4 copies for £10 and they are issues 1 to 4. It would be no good if they were odd copies but now I have the full set.

2: The number of lovely 12" vintage tape measures bought from a wonderful stall at Woolfest. I have no idea what I will do with them but they look lovely hung up next to my washi tapes.

3: The number of vintage knitting needles and sets of buttons purchased. I like vintage - the colours are beautiful. These again are probably not for use but just to look at and admire. There is also a piece of hand dyed wool for 92p in this image. You can never have enough hand dyed blanket for, you know, making *stuff*.

1: The number of new knitting experiments. It's a snood knitted with t-shirt yarn. I don't like it, it's turned out scratchy. Not one of my finer knitting moments. Surprise, surprise. 

 5: The number of alpacas seen at Woolfest. I just loved their haircuts! Especially the white one on the right. Hilarious.

10: The number of students who completed their year at college with me. All complete and all passed. Whoop! It's always a mixed feeling at this time of year but it's so great to see them all finish. I know one of them will keep crafting and you can check out her blog here to see what she is working on.

So that's the numerical round up for this month. If you would like to join in with MinN then pop over to Julie's blog to read more about it or check out Pinterest to see who else has been joining in and what they have been recording this month.

See you next month, on time I promise.

♥

May month in numbers...

Hello fellow MinN friends. I know I am a little late with this months post. 

12 days to be precise. It's because my faithful  7 year old laptop appeared with this error at the end of the month:
STOP: c000021a {Fatal error}. Oh dear, it was the blue screen of death and yes that is the correct technical term. So off to the local laptop doctor it went and the news was not good. Terminal in fact. Thankfully I have a super Mum and Dad who bought me a shiny new one for my birthday but more about that in June's month in numbers!

So moving swiftly on from the traumatic experience of loosing a laptop [but not the data thank goodness!] what else have I been up to in the month of May?

6: The number of storage pots I made with 3 Pringles tubes to go in my newly organised craft room. They are covered with Studio Calico 6 x 6 papers which were purchased from one of my all time favourite stores; TK Maxx for the barginous price of £2.99. I didn't have a super Pringles pig out fest by the way; I had been saving them since Christmas!

6: The number of super fresh eggs a colleague from work gave me. The colours were so pretty it was a shame to eat them. But eat them I did. 2 lots of egg sandwiches and 1 egg and bacon quiche. Yum, yum.

1 & 1/2: The number of socks I have knitted. If you read my previous posts [or know me in real life] then you will understand the great accomplishment that this is. I've had to stop though as my sock tutor and I have been rather busy at work and I'm stuck with the second heel. It may be finished around July when term finishes. The ideal time to wear Alpaca socks.

1: The number of stray cats that appeared at work for around 5 days. He came into the studio and the office and had much love from my students. He was also treated to a tub of tuna from my work canteen! He stayed around all day and was still there the next morning sleeping outside under my office window. My fellow cat lover and colleague Frances and I visited the vets and got a temporary carrier for him and with him still being there when we returned we boxed him up and took him straight to the vets to get him checked out and scanned for a microchip to return him to his own family. Unfortunately he wasn't microchipped and he hadn't had his boy bits removed either. The vet guesstimated that he is around 3 to 5 years old and said that they would give him to the RSPCA or cats protection league as he had been hanging around at work for so long. Well I couldn't let that happen now could I? So after the visit to the vets we took him to my little house complete with chicky food, litter tray and litter and let him loose in the kitchen.  He's been here ever since. I went door to door the same night but nobody claimed him and I put posters in the local newsagents, shop and supermarket with my contact details but still no one has been in touch.I also rang the cats protection league and had him put on the 'lost cat' part of their website. That was 3 weeks ago. Looks like I might have a cat. A cat called Arty; found at the Art College.

3: The number of times Arty has been outside on his harness enjoying the sunshine that has graced us with its presence recently.

7: The number of boxes of tablets I recently collect from the pharmacy. Goodbye bad back. [I hope!]

I hope you have enjoyed this months numbers. If you are new to the concept then pop over to Julie's blog here and find out the origins of the post. Or if you are on Pinterest and enjoy perusing numerical statistics then check out Julie Month in Numbers board to see who else has been joining in this month.
Thanks for stopping by, I'm off to stop the cat biting my feet now.
Until next time.
♥

April month in numbers...

Another 30 days have gone by bringing us to the end of April, and hopefully all the showers it brings with it! The end of the month also signals the time for a Month in Numbers round up - the meme of Julie Kirk of 'Notes on Paper' fame. If you are unfamiliar with the numerical round up then pop over to Julie's dedicated MinN section on her blog here to find out more about the concept and maybe even join in.

25.6 miles: The distance travelled from Carlisle to Allonby to visit the beach and try out the local fish & chips. I have a problem with north west fish & chips; they just don't taste *right*. The Allonby ones are the nearest that I've tried that taste like the ones at home.

Whilst on this bank holiday day trip I also saw 3 countries. Sort of. 2 and a bit really. To the right is Scotland, in the foreground England and to the far left [out of shot] is Ireland. I think some super strong binoculars would be needed to really see Ireland but I'm counting it anyway.

2 and 3/4 hours: The length of time spent in the hairdressers for the new look above. I was long over due a colour with my roots being about 2 inches long. I kept the length though. Sorry Mum. [She doesn't like me with long hair!]

5 days, 8 buckets of weeds and 3 buckets of red clay: The number of days I managed to spend in the garden this month. Nothing major was achieved at first just a mass clearing of the weeds, leaves and general winter debris but slowly and surely a tidy garden appeared.

With this tidiness 6 rows of veggies, 6 new herbs & 1 pumpkin were able to be planted. Hopefully you will see more evidence of this planting as the months progress.

6 or 39: My shoe size for bowling at Center Parcs. They were a tad on the large side but a 5 was too small. They don't appear to make half sizes in bowling shoes!

28: Moorland View our address at Center Parcs this year. Our visit was also 15 days earlier than last year.

2: The number of knitting projects started and finished. 

Now those of you that know me will know about my haphazard relationship with knitting. I try, I try really hard to get on with it but somehow it has always been a craft which has never really *clicked*. I love the process of knitting but am completly useless at following a pattern. Until now. The headband on the left is something that I made up as I went along as was the main body of the second one. The flowers and leaves however were from a pattern! Ok, a simple pattern but it is progress. There are two flowers attached together on the cream band; one from the Knot Garden here and the other from Tiny Tidbits here. The leaves are from the Natural Suburbia here. Thank you blogland for making these instruction accessible and thank you to the blog writers for leaving instructions even I can understand. [sort of].

3: The number of super and relevant to the moment books found in a local charity shop. Personal favourite patterns include a 'Blouse coat for the not so small figure' and a 'Cardigan for an older woman'. Not sure which of these to attempt first!

Almost 15 exactly. The age of the bestest bagpuss in the world when she died. I don't really want to share much more than that at the moment but I've no doubt that there will be a baggers mini book at some point.

So that's my April month. How did yours go? Pop over to the dedicated Pinterest board to find more folks blogging numerically. Until next time.

♥