Fire Fox's Debt-Free in 2009 Diary

Fire_Fox

First spend of the day £70 at Maximuscle (free delivery, 13% cashback). Need to pick up my prescription and get my hair cut, as it hasn't been done since March! Then am going to make a vat of Bolognese sauce, so we can have stuffed vegetables for dinner. Need to buy a carrot, field mushrooms, bell peppers and fresh fruit. All round far too much spending today: at least I get paid tomorrow!! :T

Just back from Tesco Express, where I spent £8 and got 33 points. Bought loads of reduced stuff - Value bananas for 65p, Value carrots for 55p, compostable bin liners for 85p (from £3.30!), lean mince for £1.50, and apple turnovers for 90p. :money:Decided not to get peppers and they don't sell large mushrooms, doh!

Spent £19.50 on a wash and cut (never have it dried to save money) and another £7 on a two month prescription. Third trip of the day to Tesco spending £3 and getting 53 points. Got some mushrooms and a yellow pepper, as well as some supersweet corn reduced to £1.20.

Fire_Fox

I got paid :beer: including approximately £130 in overtime! Will be up again next month, but that may be the end of the extra income for a while.

Fire_Fox

Completed another Valued Opinions survey yesterday and an IPSOS one in the wee hours, so I am another step towards my next £10 Amazon voucher from each. It is worthwhile keep chasing up transactions that haven't tracked on cashback sites - just found out that £20 from A&L e-Saver back in December has now been confirmed!! This means I have almost £40 in Amazon vouchers (inc. 5% bonus) due from Wepromiseto in just a few days.

I am still chasing £20 from A&L current account from January that never tracked, and £85 from L&G ISA that was reversed. Also logged into the L&G account to find that the ISA is now worth slightly more than the amount I have deposited, for the first time in six months! :T

Also started the tortuous process of setting up online banking with Tesco Personal Finance. The registration page won't load with the Firefox web browser, only in (not at all secure) Internet Explorer. :rolleyes: IE promptly crashed and the Tesco website wouldn't let me return to the stage I was at ....

Late night spend of £35 after I discovered that Lakeland was having a sale. Ordered two of the Stellar sauce pots (one for me, one as a gift) that I have been after for ages as they were just £8 each! :money: Also a wooden swing bin reduced to £15 but, although I looked, I talked myself out of any cleaning products. Didn't manage to find a free delivery code but did remember to log in to Nectar.

Fire_Fox

:T Been to Tesco to use the last £5 Morrisons and £2 Tesco vouchers: total spend £40 including taxi home!! :T

Expensive items were
Four large bags of dried fruit £12.50
Tesco dark chocolate 'kit-kats' £3 (offer)
Dozen free-range eggs £2.60
Sausages £2
Two blocks of healthy cheese £3 (offer)
Two bags Granny Smith's apples £2 (offer)
Two packs vine tomatoes £2 (two-for-one)
Strawberries £2 (with free cream)

This should last us the fortnight as I bought loads of veg last week and loads of fresh fruit today. The freezer still contains four portions of salmon, a few jumbo prawns, a large block of cheese, a pack of steak mince, a pack of pork mince, two meals of Bolognese sauce, the last of the leg of lamb AND two packs of diced turkey thigh! The plan is to have salads and stir fries for a few days while the weather is so warm.

Fire_Fox

End of month accounting
Income £1044
Essential outgoings £441
Non-essential outgoings £312

Paid into savings £500
Overdraft still at nil
Bills account £300 in credit

End of quarter accounting
Income £3784
Essential outgoings £936
Non-essential outgoings £825

Savings increased £4250
Student debt increased £2925
Net change in savings +£1325

Am actually under budget on food by £10 this quarter, having been over budget by £4 last quarter. Also spent £30 less on travel, despite starting to account for the supermarket taxi within travel instead of food. I have started having food delivered occasionally - always with a free voucher code - which would probably explain the changes.

The only area I am majorly over budget on the quarter and year is socialising. Have spent £270 on wine at home and nights out this year, although some of the wine was bought with luncheon vouchers and Clubcard points. :beer: Had hoped to spend just £150 so I have majorly underestimated ...

Fire_Fox

I just found out that the cashback for opening the A&L current account has been added to my account - pretty sure it was only supposed to be £20, but they added £50!! :cool:

ClootiesMum

How organised are you with your spreadsheets. personally, although I would love to have one set up I've never mastered the enough information:too complicated ratio so it's never happened.

Hey, that could go on my next list for tomorrow & I can have this up & running for July?

CM

Fire_Fox

A very naughty day indeed, even more shopping with Mum at the Castleford outlet village. Bought a large stylised floral rug for £60 (reduced from £130) which I first saw months ago and walked away from. Also two M&S black bras for £6 (from £12), a chiffon blouse for £5 (from £17) and a ProCook heavy gauge baking sheet for £4 (from £8). :eek: Luckily for my bank balance my parents are returning to North America in three weeks ....

Fire_Fox

Received in the post a £5 LovetoShop voucher which I thought was going to be naff but can actually be used in loads of places, including Boots, Wilkinsons and Argos! Just checked and the £3 luncheon voucher I have languishing in a drawer can also be used in Boots ... Tempted to dig out the £5 off if you spend £30 Boots voucher from the Sun.

Then logged into Wepromiseto to find that I definitely have £86 to come in Amazon vouchers. :T As it is the first of the month, £250 has been transferred into my regular saver and £250 into my e-saver.

Been to Tesco to take advantage of the 25% off wine offer, come home with a dozen bottles having used £40 of double up vouchers. Also received almost 300 Clubcard points which means I will have £15 of tokens coming in the next quarter ready to double up to another £30 as well as a £10 voucher left from this quarter!! There wasn't any of the Torres Vina Sol with 150 extra points left, but customer service have promised to reserve the case that is coming in on Saturday ... :A

Fire_Fox

Just realised I haven't had any surveys from Pinecone for ages nor many from IPSOS, but qualified for £3 worth from Valued Opinions in two days! I now have £7 cleared and another £5 pending so even after claiming the next voucher I will already be well ahead on the next. Need to crack on with cashback tho, as it takes soooo long to come through - don't they realise I have quarterly and annual targets to hit?!

Forgot to add that I have a social gathering at the weekend organised the MSE way. If the weather is good we are going to sit on the square at the end of my street and taste test some of the free Clubcard wine ... if not we will do the same in my flat.