A treehouse for the twins

PrincessLou · 27 January 2016 at 12:46PM

Been doing some money saving activities before the new month starts.

1. Finally heard received a letter from Co-op energy confirming closing our account, a whole year after we switched our account to a new provider! :mad: I can't even tell you how appalling their customer service is...if you can even get hold of them in the first place! Worst thing is that the bill still doesn't seem correct so will have to chase them again! :mad::eek:

2. Have opened the boys' cash isa AT LAST! Been meaning to do this since they were born and started receiving money gifts from relatives. All of their money is currently stashed in my underwear drawer

. Went with Nationwide thanks to MSE recommendation. Just waiting to receive documentation in post.

3. Have applied for the new marriage allowance. Since I am not currently working and using my tax allowance it can be transferred to my DH, saving us more money.

shangaijimmy · 27 January 2016 at 3:01PM

Just checking in and adding you to my diary list. £116k in 5 years is a cracking challenge. I'm hoping that by then we'll have about £35k to go so it'll be nice to try and keep pace with you!

PrincessLou · 31 January 2016 at 5:39PM

Another lovely, albeit rainy, weekend as my parents came to visit. A rather extensive Brio track is now spread out over almost the entire living room floor thanks to DH and Grandpa.

In money news the pushchair we put on Ebay hasn't sold yet, however DH has also now added it to a twins selling group on FB. I said I would not fail with my first mfw mini challenge and I have stuck to my word. After some shuffling of money, more tidying of accounts and £50 repaid from Co-op energy, I have found the £202 I needed to complete said challenge. Outstanding mortgage is now at £116,000 exactly and so I shall officially mark this challenge as complete!

:dance::dance::dance::dance:MFW Mini challenge #1 is complete!:dance::dance::dance:

PrincessLou · 1 February 2016 at 2:00PM

Regular mortgage payment and regular over-payment went out today, taking the mortgage down to £115,639.45. Very, very pleased with the amount we paid off in January, however, February is looking like it will be an expensive month.

With DH needing expensive dental work, his hobby subscription fees due and a large credit card bill to pay off, there might not be much room for overpayments.:eek:

On a positive note, we think we have sold our pushchair :j Somebody contacted us on FB only an hour after we listed it and is coming to look on Wednesday and put down a deposit before paying the rest on payday. :j I'm happy it's going to be of use to another set of twins but getting all the baby things out again has bought back a lot of memories and wondering if we will have another baby one day ourselves...:o

Target setting time...

MFW Mini Challenge #2 - £139.45

This will round us down to £115,500.

PrincessLou · 10 February 2016 at 1:48PM

What a beautiful, sunny day it is! Certainly makes a change from the constant state of damp and dreariness it usually is. Makes me so happy, I keep looking out of the window all the time

:j

In money news:

- DH has switched us to British Gas in the MSE big energy switch. Think he said it would save us £300 a year as well as cashback.

- Have you seen the fantastic offer on Waitrose through Topcashback? Spend £100 and get £30 off plus £10 cashback! That's a 40% saving. I've placed my order and also used up £40 of vouchers I earnt from doing surveys a couple of years ago. I do realise that Waitrose isn't as cheap as my usual Mr M but by buying things on offer, I must have saved a lot of money still. :j

In other news:

- DH and I have decided that we want to try DS1 on a gluten free diet. We feel that something is just bothering him still, and he has a few of the symptoms - in particular, he can be quite lethargic at times and can look a bit 'zoned out' at others. We've also seen how other foods can dramatically affect his overall mood. The pediatrician says that the only way to truly know is by an elimination diet. He is already Dairy free and soya free so this will certainly make planning meals interesting :eek:

I know that many foods are naturally gluten free and replacements for pasta etc are pretty simple albeit expensive. Something that I can't find a good replacement of is bread for his toast and sandwiches. The g*nius loaf that I bought was ok, but to me tasted quite sweet and a bit like a cake rather than savoury bread.

If anyone is gluten free and has any tips or recommendations for foods or meals I would be ever so grateful.

PrincessLou · 16 February 2016 at 10:09PM

Went out for a Valentines meal on Saturday with DH :heart2: We don't go out for meals very often anymore, maybe once every 4-6 months, because we don't have family living nearby to watch the boys. So whilst we were visiting my parents for the weekend, we jumped at the chance to go out whilst they looked after the boys for a few hours. :j

Started DS1 on a gluten free diet. All going very well so far and actually a lot simpler than I thought it was going to be - just takes a little extra planning and money to make it work.

Sold pushchair on facebook selling group - very pleased. Got the price we wanted for it - £375 - which is the current second-hand price for that model (even though we paid £800+ for it two years ago :eek:). The girl who bought it was only 18 and was also expecting twin boys - her family all seemed very excited though so I'm confident she won't be short of support. DH really wanted to give her it for nothing - which I can understand (part of me did too) as she was so young and not well-off, but we sadly aren't in the position ourselves to be handing out free gifts. I am glad it's gone to a good home though and I do still think of her often

ourcornercottage · 17 February 2016 at 12:05AM

BF is wheat intolerant and m and s have a good range including bread.

Also try http://www.wheat-freebakerydirect.com

Be aware though none of the breads are really great. You wouldn't choose them over non Wheat free. And it's all expensive.

Asda gf pasta is okay but get water on a high boil before adding and then bring back to the boil asap or it disintegrates.

Why can't they test son, they fix with BF. He has mild gluten intolerance and bigger barley one.

Have you also considered yeast, many people get yeast and gluten intolerances mixed up.

Also bear in mind that if the rest of you cut down on your gluten like I have, I get a bad belly when I eat too much now. I have a proper sandwich every now and then to make sure I don't get to sensitive as most things we cook gf to save cooking twice.

PrincessLou · 17 February 2016 at 1:44PM

Thanks for the advice, OCC.

You're right, GF bread is probably the thing that is most different, however so far we've had now complaints from DS, so I'm pleased. I'm finding that the diet is encouraging me to look for new recipes and also giving the boys a more varied diet and trying out more and more new foods.

Myself, DH and DS2 aren't eating GF foods, purely for the fact that I want to save all the expensive GF products solely for DS1. As far as I'm concerned, we can all eat the cheap stuff!

I have some amazon vouchers so I may order a GF cook book - although I have found that Pinterest is amazing for recipes (and free!).

greent · 17 February 2016 at 6:28PM

I'm not a fan of frugal queen's blog but she has tried and tested GF recipes on there, I believe

x

PrincessLou · 17 February 2016 at 8:04PM

Thanks Greent.

Just had a quick look at the blog and I like how she puts all the prices for ingredients and price per portion. Will take a further look later when the boys have gone to bed.

A treehouse for the twins

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