MoneySupermarket’s Charcoal Challenge aka My Housewarming Barbeque
Four Glazes for chicken strips. Chinese 5 Spice & Soy, Garlic and Herb, Balsamic and Jerk. I marinated in sandwich bags over night so they were well seasoned! |
Paper bunting for decorations and picnic blankets as I don’t have any garden furniture yet! |
Plastic cutlery, pitcher and cups from Asda & paper straws from Home Bargains. |
My sister turned out to be a complete QUEEN of the barbeque, despite having never used one before! I wouldn’t of been able to pull off such a lovely day if it wasn’t for her. |
Chicken strips on the go! |
FOOOOD! It looks so good and summery! I could eat it all again! |
Pimms, my sister, her boyfriend and I mainly drank this one. Those blogger ladies are far too classy on their non-alcoholic drinks! |
Desserts, homemade Key Lime Pie, which tasted better than it looked (I was afraid of undercooked meringue so I over cooked it!) and chocolate covered strawberries. |
In honor of those cherished childhood parties we all attended, I put together little party bags for each of my guests as a thank you for spending the day out in the sticks! |
And here is what I spent the £50 on;
Paper Bunting £3, Asda
Plastic Cups £2, Asda
Plastic Jug £2, Asda
Plastic Cutlery £2, Asda
Napkins £1, Asda
Skewers £1, Asda
Paper Straws 89p, Home Bargains
Party Bags 99p, Home Bargains
2 x Packs of Chicken Strips £6, Morrisons
Lean Mince Beef £3.99, Morrisons
2 x Packs of Bread Rolls £1, Morrisons
Cooking Chocolate 60p, Morrisons
Strawberries £2, Tesco
Cheese Slices £1, Tesco
Mozerella Ball 44p, Tesco
Halloumi £2.36, Tesco
Feta £1.50, Tesco
3 x Limes 90p, Tesco
6 x Lemons £1.20, Tesco
Cherry Tomatoes £1, Tesco
Cucumber 65p, Tesco
Red Onion 19p, Tesco
Peppers £1.75, Tesco
Digestive Biscuits 69p, Tesco
Pesto £1, Tesco
2 x Orange Juice, 1 x Mango Juice, 1 x Cranberry Juice 4 for £3.50, Tesco
Lemonade 60p, Tesco
Imitation Pimms £7, Aldi
= £50.25
Over all, it was a fantastic day, well apart from me getting emotional on the girls and thanking them for being my friend outside the blogging world.. because at the end of the day, that is what I wanted. Not some big event, just some friends hanging out in my back garden, eating good food and getting to know each other better. It’s so wonderful that I’ve met these great girls simply through having my blog and I’m lucky enough now to call them friends. Moving back up here had me terrified that I would no longer have a social life as I was leaving my best friends back in Lincolnshire and with a child it’s not easy to jump on the train for 3 & a half hours just for a day because I was feeling lonely (for starters at the moment Little Miss can barely stay in the buggy on the bus to Morrisons which is 15 minutes away!) but 45 minutes on a train I can manage with or without a babysitter!
Also, thank you to MoneySupermarket for letting me take part in this wonderful challenge, it has given me something to look forward to and something fun to plan when I’ve been stressed about this transition into my new home.
I’m looking forward to throwing another party once my parents return from Greece! I think I’m going to go for a tea & cake theme this time though.
20 Comments
Kariss Ainsworth
This is all so cute and summery and tasty, you’ve done a really great job 🙂
Amy Marie
Thanks Kariss, wish you could of been there!
Alice Christina
Thank you for having us, it was such a lovely day!
xxx
Amy Marie
I’m glad you enjoyed yourself Alice 🙂
Chelsea Joan
This looks so lovely, glad the weather was nice for you (looks like the Sun has gone into hiding now!)
xxx
Amy Marie
Isn’t the weather dreadful now? Really ruined our zoo plans today 🙁
Sophie Wearing
awhhh glad youre all moved in!This musta helped you feel settled! xx
Amy Marie
It was really nice to finally show off my little place & to spend time in a more relaxed environment with the girls!
Rhiannon
Awww! All looks so cute and like was such a nice little house warming x
Amy Marie
It was lovely Rhiannon, it went much better than I could of hoped for!
Y
This looks awesome you did so well for the budget. I’m hungry just looking at all these goodies!
Amy Marie
Haha, I was so lucky I had a few enhancing ingredients lying around so I didn’t really need to go over my budget!
Kate Pirouette
It looks like a wonderful afternoon! Well done you, sounds like you’re a wonderful hostess! I can’t believe you managed all that for a shade over £50! Bravo!
Kate xx
Just Pirouette and Carry On…
Amy Marie
I really enjoy being a hostess, even if it is difficult with LM running around!
Kloe Anya.
Looks like you guys had such a good day, absolutely gutted I couldn’t come hopefully I’ll get another chance some time haha. Sorry again.
I’m pleased it stayed dry too, Durham was miserable Saturday! Haha
Kloe xxx
haveacupofteawithkloe.blogspot.co.uk
Amy Marie
I was gutted you couldn’t make it either 🙁 But I am glad the weather stayed nice and dry!
Tasha Steel
Thanks for having us Amy, it was a really lovely afternoon. I wish I’d taken some photos of the food and a couple of group photos of us but nevermind, I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon. xxx
http://www.hello-freckles.com
Amy Marie
You’re welcome Tasha! It was a great afternoon! Wonder who’s offering to host next time 😉
Laura Hyatt
Thats such a great idea, and you got so much for your money. Looks like you had alot of fun! x
Heroine In Heels
Amy Marie
It was loads of fun, so thankful I got to take part in the challenge as it made my day go so much smoother!