Monday 17th June 2013 - What small DFW things will you do today?

Bobarella · 17 June 2013 at 8:16AM

When we start out on the DFW trail we do loads of "big stuff" that makes quite a difference to our situation. These include having our lightbulb moment, cutting up the credit cards and cancelling Sky and the gym.

But once we have done the bigger stuff, we often feel that we are not making the same amount of progress, when in fact the small steps are helping us form good financial habits and helping us get closer everyday to staying in control and becoming debt free, or staying debt free.

Examples could be hanging washing out instead of using the tumble dryer or leaving your purse/wallet at home to avoid the risk of spending.

So be proud of those small steps, they really are important. :money:

Bobarella · 17 June 2013 at 8:22AM

Good Morning All

Monday again! 2 days off for me. Am hoping the dramas of the weekend are now over. My list for today

1. Check banking. Done. 8 days till OH pay day thank goodness. 1 DD left on the account for £40 so important to keep on top of any discretionary spends now to make a difference to month end total.
2. Call Sainsburys (CC2) annoyingly their security questions to help log in are stuck on one I dont know, and they just keep asking it anyway. Cant reset online so need to get OH to call them as he is the primary card holder.
3. Aim for a LSD. Dont need groceries or petrol so should be achieveable.
4. Food from stores for lunch/dinner.

Think thats it for me today. Looking forward to a nice bit of down time.

Good luck in your MS ways today all.

Bob

josiebabie · 17 June 2013 at 8:35AM

Morning all
Thanks for starting us Bob
Exciting times DNMS, soon to be granny-DNMS!!!!

Not a lot planned for today but staying out of spending trouble!
- Checked banking :eek:
- House things should arrive today

- Text MIL to see if she still wants me to take a days leave for when we move her out
- B/L/D from stores
- DD has a packed lunch
- Netball tonight, will go straight from work and take own water
- Hopefully get wageslips today, we should have got them on Friday
- Submit purge claim to manager for commission
- Sparkle!

Jx

good_advice · 17 June 2013 at 11:14AM

Today so far...
Looked @ bank account
sent for new freebies
put washer on and will hang clothes on line
Washed my hair and will let it dry (no hair dryer & electric)
Sent free text, I see I can send 10 free text with o2 on line - I have a PAYG mobile so pay 10p I think for each text.
Using up old shampoo & conditioner - have you noticed how family just go for any thing new and leave the old what ever?

just going to look for new free books for kindle.
What is for dinner - need to look in fridge, then freezer.(done)
Need to start planning for this weeks grocery shop and menu plan for week using what we have.(done)
Check coupon web sites.

foxgloves · 17 June 2013 at 11:17AM

Hi Monday Money-savers,
This week rubber chicken goes hardcore:
Day 1 (Sunday) Roast chicken, gravy, potatoes vegetables. (Chicken leftovers & a container of gravy saved in fridge).
Day 2 (Today) Chicken stripped & divvied up into useful sized quantities. Chicken fajhitas & big salad tonight. Carcass in slow cooker for stock.
Other money saving positives today:
*Did laundry overnight on Economy 7, 30 degrees, was Mrs Scrooge with powder. Line drying....or at least it should be now that the rain has stopped.
*Postman brought another nearly £4 of Co-op dividend shopping vouchers. Will defo save for December with the others.
*Food crops looking OK....first tiny tomatoes appearing on the outside plants & spring onions big enough to pull a few now.
*Did a couple of surveys.
*Did a competition.
*Recycling a huge tablecloth that didn't fit (because I couldn't be bothered to make it properly) into a tablecloth that does fit & some bunting. Nearly bought bunting from craft stall last weekend, & decided to save my £10 by not buying what I can make myself.
A piece of nonsense to share: Was enjoying my bargain mags yesterday & found a recommendation for an eye cream (from a prestigious high end brand) - 'White caviar eye cream' with Swiss garden cress sprout extract. Price - £217. Even if you were a fervent Cress Sprout Believer, would you not just grow a few on the windowsill & crush them up now & again to spread on your face? Who EVER pays this kind of money out for a jar of eye cream? Yet, people must do, or such products & prices wouldn't exist, would they? When I think what I could usefully do with £217!
Turning into a rant, so will wish everyone a good day & of course, best of luck to those with job interviews/job hunting this week.
foxgloves x

allydowd · 17 June 2013 at 11:43AM

Morning all,

Time for a rant:
:mad: I have just spent 20 mins trying to find out how much my elec and gas kwHs and standing charges are without phoning the company; the last time I called them they were hopelessly inefficient and took 30 mins to handle my problem (ie. "I do not know where the previous tenant now lives and I won't be paying her debt. Stop sending me red bills with her name on.") You would think the rates are on the website, but no, they're not because my tariff isn't sold any more. On my bill? No, because I haven't had one yet, it's due next week and I'm only "entitled to one every six months"! On my online account, no, "please see your bill for information". I ended up getting the figures from an external website. No wonder people are struggling to pay their bills! How can you budget without this information!? :mad:

On the positive side I can see that we have saved £100 in 5 months by changing energy supplier and that the direct debit amount we've been paying for those five months seems to be correct so there shouldn't be any nasty shocks when the bill comes next week.

The list:

Lunch from stores in the garden in the sunshine.

Check online banking. Fine

Pay bills. Fine, I have £2 left over! We are solvent for the next four weeks.

Hope the postie only brings me nice letters. (Chance'll be a fine thing.) Deal immediately with all of them.

Washing on line.

OFFERS:

Offers with magazines (Link)

Anchor pack (Link)

Offer for Sky movies subscribers (Link)

Buy £4 chocolates, get Cineworld ticket (Link)

miss_emmajane · 17 June 2013 at 11:50AM

foxgloves wrote: »

Hi Monday Money-savers,
This week rubber chicken goes hardcore

What does rubber chicken mean? I have seen it a bit and assumed it was some sort of recipe but now I am thinking it is getting a lot of meals out of a chicken?

Happy Monday to everyone! :beer:
I am off uni again but soon to start placement/bank work so can't complain of boredom too much as I will wish for time to relax then! Here is my list for today ...

- Check banks *done*
- Cancel OH's free trial on Equifax via email, if not accepted get him to ring after work *done*
- Contact online glasses service as glasses turned up and are completely blurry

not sure whats gone on there! Obviously not a great saving it you cannot use them! *done*
- Get burgers & bread buns out of freezer for tea, all meals from stores *done*
- Try and find possible discounts for OH's new train journey for his new job - £14 return this morning for his first day!!!! :eek: Was going to get a monthly pass for July but think will get one tomorrow now!
- NSD, get little jobs and cleaning done and just use petrol to drop off/pick up OH from train station

carrielovesfanta · 17 June 2013 at 12:22PM

Afternoon all!

Bobarella - thanks for starting us off
DNMS - thinking of you and your dd
emma-jane - yes rubber chicken means making it stretch to as many meals as possible.
ally - can't believe how rubbish elec company is.

Sorry to hear about everyone's car trouble over the weekend. I started to get nervous about ours in case it was some sort of dfw car plague :eek:

The weekend was very nice. My mum is still in full on moaning mode but my dad is looking very perky. I paid for our meal out on Sat night - the first time I have ever had enough money to do so. Dad did sweetly say it was the best father's day he'd had. Still I have spent a horrendous £100 over the weekend so this week is NSD week! I WILL NOT spend a single penny this week unless it is super urgent.

Today:

Check online banking, reconcile spreadsheet with reciepts from weekend

B/L/D from stores. Tonight's tea will be stirfry for me. OH being taken out tonight for free by uni. (lucky git)

Tend to garden - must remember to take the coffee grounds home as the slugs are having a party with my squash. Did tonnes of repotting and tinkering around on sat morning.

Charge phone in work

Checked phone bill. Updated spreadsheet - I'm a good girl, I didn't go over this month.

Think about meals this week. I'm going to make the squash pie for tomorrow's tea (wednesday's lunch). I might make another pie for wednesday/thursday tea. OH cannot get enough of pies (pastry fiend)

Crochet this evening. Not many snowflakes lef to finish. Then must sew them all together *hate*

Dye my hair

Think that's me. Will leave purse at home all week to avoid temptation. Have a good one all xx

Bobarella · 17 June 2013 at 12:42PM

Hi All

So far so good.

1. Washed a load with minimal powder, and line drying it as I type.
2. Checked whole house, definately no birthday cards about, so went to Sainsburys and bought a pack of 8 for £1.87, they do individual ones, slightly larger at 25p each, but I thought this way I'd be sorted for the next one, and indeed the following 6

3. Whilst at Sainsburys bought brand drop Mayo, saved £1 on Heinz. Pint of milk 0.49p, a pack of strawberries £2. Total spend was £6 something.

I really am a meanie Mummy, we had cut the last tube of my sons kids toothpaste in half and scraped it out to provide this mornings brush. Think we got the value from that tube

4) Have today used up the last of a shampoo minature that had been sitting in the bathroom cupboard for ages. Similarly an old face serum that had been kicking around forever. Am totally addicted to this decluttering by using up malarky.

5) Have come home to a new booklet of Tesco point vouchers. Worth several quid.

6) Cleaned my handbag and purse out of all business related reciepts, will file later. Also done a batch of shredding paperwork to avoid having to do hours of it later on.

Husband has taken the day off mid week so we can get the car to the garage for advice on the damage.

P.S I dont normally shop at Sainsburys any more, but the area we live in is a black spot for anything selling cards, and I knew I could get a cheap card in Sainsburys, but its not the sort of thing Lidl does.

Pernicious · 17 June 2013 at 1:45PM

Hi everyone,

The weekend flew by & it's Monday again, unfortunately didn't make it on to post but was MSE, I did not 1 but 2 mystery shops as well as the usual stuff.

Thanks for starting us off Bobarella.

Today I have/will:-

Making use of free water & lunch at work
Food from stores
Dinner from meal plan - fajita style chicken, small jacket potato & salad
Staying in for most of my lunch break to avoid spending but had to return an item that will not be reimbursed from my mystery shop, in 2 minds about whether or not to return the other that will be half reimbursed!
Log calories & exercise on free apps
Checked postcode lottery & birthday bingo
Charging phone at work
Heating off
Check online banking
Check for new mystery shopping opportunities
Enter some comps
Do some surveys
Declutter & flylady
Catch up on weekend thread & Friday's if I get time
Make use of TKD membership this evening
Check out our new staff benefits package & work out if it really is beneficial or not!
Buy a Euromillions ticket as you've got to be in it to win it! Our syndicate has won another £10 on the normal lotto, really hoping for a few more as we're not doing too well

Hope everyone is ok & has a great, MSE day x

datlex · 17 June 2013 at 1:48PM

my DFW for today -

Got ready and sealed in air tight pot ingredients to make soup for journey down to London rather than buying food I'm not over keen on either at the station or on the train. Also had same soup for lunch today. Should be a reasonable saving.

Sent Barclaycard a message to see if I could change to different card- possibly the Hilton reward card or Priority club one. To get a free nights stay with them. (Not planning on running up a bill just using it same as I do now)

Cleared a load of rubbish from the garden.

Checked cheapest options for all the journey combinations this weekend. Worked out £20 saving each if play with combining Oyster card and rail fare.

Monday 17th June 2013 - What small DFW things will you do today?

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