Live on £4000 for a year - part 4 (Oct - Dec 2008)

MRSMCAWBER

Afternoon all

After a major panic earlier -things are calm again ..couldn't find my savings account bank book this morning..turned the house upside down -no sign!!! went to the bank and explained,, only out here they have to go through a legal system to prove the money is mine :eek: and it would take 12-18 months *cue mad dash home and frantic rummaging* and *phew* I found it (it had fallen under the bottom drawer)..so it has now gone back in the cash box.... it has €1500 in it..in total I have stashed £2000 this year from the housekeeping..and that is AFTER getting the car fixed, hubbys expensive golf club pressie and 3 weeks back in the UK..so I'm really happy :T

I think I'm going to work a bit backwards when I join the new challenge... all the bills etc come out of hubbies wages or the bank DD..so I get €450 a month housekeeping..just for food, toiletries and cleaning stuff oh and pressies.... so Im going to have €5400 this year... I want to aim to save as much as possible again... so I'm thinking of setting a target of €3400 -which will allow me to save €2000 again :j -so that would work out at an average of €250 a month housekeeping and €400 for hubbys birthday etc -although the idea will still be to spend as little as possible of my €250 a month:p ..Just have to get extra compost and a few more tubs so I get get even more veggies growing this year.....
I have started a blog (get me..all technical eh )
http://potioappotment.blogspot.com/
right -enough waffle -Im off to finish some planning..can't wait to get started in the new year :j

Janey51

cha97michelle wrote: »

probably.

have a look at this i found.

:T :T :rotfl: Classic :T

Janey51

cw it's so c*** when we have to think about money when we should be grieving. I have to say I seem to have seen DH's creditors off after a last flurry of strongly worded letters which I put together with the help of the Consumer Action Group website.

Thanks for everyone's kind thoughts. I was going to put more decorations up last night but I just can't face it at the moment.

Frugaldom

Welcome back, MrsM. Just out of interest, how do prices compare between here and Germany and what's the current £/€ exchange rate? Apologies if I've mixed you up with someone else, are you on base?

Janey, has the snow all gone, yet? We can still see it on the hills from here but it's mainly just frost and frozen puddles. Just wondering if you managed to get your logs cut, been worrying about you with all this cold weather. Glad you are managing to sort out the creditors and I hope the sun is shining where you are, to help brighten your day.

Frugal entertainment - I don't need TV, I have my very own live 'soap opera' come 'sit-com' playing outside on widescreen, in 3D. The series is called 'Sheep on the Hill', and it's most amusing. Most of the characters are dressed alike - white wooly all-in-one suits with matching earmuffs - and sound alike, but some are sillier than others. Sun is shining on this side of the hill, so most of the characters have been sunbathing! Problem is, with all their thick, winter-woolies, it's making it incredibly difficult for them to get back up onto their feet once they lie down. So, I have spent all of lunchtime watching fat, wooly beasts on their big, wooly backs, legs flailing in the air, as they ROLL DOWN THE HILL until they can get perched onto their b*ms and then back onto their feet. Gives a whole new meaning to 'rolled lamb'.:rotfl:

MRSMCAWBER

Hi Nyk

No, we aren't on camp this time.. I prefer it too:D ...when we first got here prices were quite a bit cheaper than the UK...but they seem to be increasing slightly -but not as quickly as the prices back home thank heavens.
Its strange as hubby gets "paid" in £s and then they convert it over and they also keep the exchane rate stabilised -so if the exchange rate is worse -they alter our overseas allowance to compensate...not sure if that makes sense :rotfl: but its basically so that our income is kept at a level.
Come autumn/winter its better as things like potatoes, onions, cabbages etc are sold in bulk -so its much cheaper..
We are lucky as we get the benefits without paying the German taxes (which are high).... also we pay no TV licence, car tax and petrol has just dropped to 35p a litre for us as again -we don't pay tax....
Thats why I'm trying to get as much saved as possible whilst we are out here and subsidised ready for returning to the UK and wondering what has hit us :eek:...
Im determined to get even more growing this year -so hopefully come june onwards the food shopping will be really low (fingers crossed)..
ooohhh can't wait to get started on the new challenge

shaz_mum_of__2

I hav a Question about the T A B bingo

i have put £10 in which was matched am i right in thinking i have to spend £80 on bingo before i can withdraw my bonus

I got the free scratchcard and won 25p tried to play 6 x 1p games i couldn't see the numbers being drawn and my card wasn't marked have i done something wrong?

Shaz

Janey51

nykmedia wrote: »

Welcome back, MrsM. Just out of interest, how do prices compare between here and Germany and what's the current £/€ exchange rate? Apologies if I've mixed you up with someone else, are you on base?

Janey, has the snow all gone, yet? We can still see it on the hills from here but it's mainly just frost and frozen puddles. Just wondering if you managed to get your logs cut, been worrying about you with all this cold weather. Glad you are managing to sort out the creditors and I hope the sun is shining where you are, to help brighten your day.

Frugal entertainment - I don't need TV, I have my very own live 'soap opera' come 'sit-com' playing outside on widescreen, in 3D. The series is called 'Sheep on the Hill', and it's most amusing. Most of the characters are dressed alike - white wooly all-in-one suits with matching earmuffs - and sound alike, but some are sillier than others. Sun is shining on this side of the hill, so most of the characters have been sunbathing! Problem is, with all their thick, winter-woolies, it's making it incredibly difficult for them to get back up onto their feet once they lie down. So, I have spent all of lunchtime watching fat, wooly beasts on their big, wooly backs, legs flailing in the air, as they ROLL DOWN THE HILL until they can get perched onto their b*ms and then back onto their feet. Gives a whole new meaning to 'rolled lamb'.:rotfl:

Still have snow and very thick ice.
Still have no logburner but may get fixed tonight if I can grow another pair of hands :rotfl:
Still have no heating upstairs. Plumber says he will try and get here before Christmas :rolleyes:

And....I too can watch episodes of "Sheep on the Hill" or, it's alternate title "The Sheepy Mare Roadshow" :rotfl:
Have you seen the one where they try to demolish the fence and the other one where they think the wheelie bin is full of food and run along the side of the road trying to catch it?
Wait for the arrival of the delinquents in the Spring when you will see gangs (called the Baa Lambs) hurtling across the field in scary groups...attacking adults by jumping onto their backs and then collapsing in heaps when the adult stands up

All good clean fun.

shaz_mum_of__2

Janey and Nyk

If i could get this programme i could forgo the £140 in my budget for a TV licence.

Sounds like a satirical comedy .............my cup of tea

not sure if i posted this here before but here is my ideal plot

http://www.woodlands.co.uk/buying-a-wood/east-anglia/twissel-wood-and-meadow/

shame planning would never be granted even for a posh mobile home (with a wood fired ch system and back up wind and solar power)

Then i could have animals veggies and fish

well maybe one day




Shaz

sophiesmum_2

Bck from xmas lunch with oldies, it ws lovely and all had a great time. They have gone to flats now to sleep off the xms pud. 15 more minutes of work for me and then I'm done for day too.
Off to mumzy's later to wtch little one in his xmas play at school. As you say cw usual mish mash and muddles but the kids love it and are so enthusistic:j it's what xmas is all about, sharing in this type of stuff.

Nyk wish I had sheep - I very rarely watch tv as there are few things tht interest me, but the sheep sound more fun:D

lingojingo

nykmedia wrote: »

Postman delivered my new boots today :j ... except when I opened the package, which had NO ADDRESS, only name and postcode, it contained someone else's shoes! :mad:

I know just how you feel Nyk. Last Saturday a parcel arrived with a lovely red & black patterened skirt that I intended to wear at Christmas. Imagine my shock on opening the parcel to find a really ugly brown and cream bag :eek: No way I could go out wearing that :rotfl:
They got an angry phone call from me, especially as the skirt is now out of stock so they can't send a replacement, and they started off saying it was the couriers fault, even though the bag was securly wrapped in their packaging, and had the paperwork stating 'red swirl skirt' stuck to the bag itself!!!!!!