Live on £4000 for a Year, 2009 Challenge, part 1

jtb2412

Just wanted to pop on and say how sorry we are thriftylass - look after yourself love xxx

Also big thanks to CW .... I copied your spreadsheet (hope you don't mind) and it's made my life so much easier ! I was using another one that I found on here but it was a bit complicated and 'bitty' so I was struggling to keep up with it. I'll save loads of time with CWs version (slightly adapted to my own needs) so thanks again xx :beer:

Not been on much as nothing really to report , still moodling along nicely and making sure I only spend where necessary. Grocery shopping has improved tenfold and although i've spent most of my Feb budget already, I should only have to do little top up shops with what is left.

Had some good news last week, me and DD1 are off to Copenhagen in Oct with Guides :j (wasn't sure if there was space for us but there is) so i've got to find £700 for us both (may reduce depends on fundraising etc). However, I'm not counting this in the £4K budget - we decided that school/guide trips would come out of what we manage to save by living off the £4K - looking at them as rewards for living frugally

Hopefully be able to save a bit Feb/March - no council tax or other bills due :T

Sorry for not mentioning everyone, but struggling to keep up

cw18

jtb2412 wrote: »

Also big thanks to CW .... I copied your spreadsheet (hope you don't mind) and it's made my life so much easier ! I was using another one that I found on here but it was a bit complicated and 'bitty' so I was struggling to keep up with it. I'll save loads of time with CWs version (slightly adapted to my own needs) so thanks again xx :beer:

Don't think you'd think mine that simple if you saw the whole thing :rolleyes2

It actually has -- uummmmm, without opening to double check -- 39 worksheets in it I think :eek:

Frugaldom

LingoJingo, tread carefully and good luck walking out there today.

NickyNoo, I haven't read any news, yet, I need to go and find out who got stuck, where and when. Hope your trip into town goes well, enjoy the free cuppa.

Thriftylass, sorry to read your news, take care of yourself and OH, come back whenever you feel up to it and we'll all be here if you need us.

Kittikins, why are you working in a job that's going to cost you £200 every month? :eek: There has to be something wrong that can be fixed - are there nursery vouchers available through employer or could a friend/relative help out? Or, would you be better off in a different job or working from home? I get so annoyed when I read about this sort of thing, it's ridiculous if someone's salary isn't enough to cover the costs of doing the job. :mad:

Lynda, have fun snowed into the new home with new H2B - hope you're being... frugal! :rotfl:

Cha, have you any pals or neighbours in the same situation? I used to have everyone round for a coffee and all the kids played happily making a mountain of mess that took forever to clear up, but we still had a good time chatting about making a pound last as long as a fiver and how to make extra money from home - plus drinking coffee by the gallon. They took turns at bringing cakes & biscuits, homemade or otherwise.

Shaz, hope you're feeling better soon. I agree about the not very frugal, so-called, 'frugal' recipes, but then who wants to be normal if normal costs £600+ per month on groceries? :eek: Thank you for commenting on my planet frugaldom garden; it's getting there slowly and I just need to keep reminding myself that it's only been a few weeks since starting and it's mid-winter, I need to practice patience. I'm desperate to get the fencing & kennels fixed in what will become the poultry runs but haven't had any response to my ads looking for wood, yet. Hope you get your fruit bushes planted soon, my blackcurrant bushes look like they have small buds coming on them. :j

Redglass, congratulations on getting the new wood shed! Isn't it brilliant that we can all feel excited about things like this? I'm sure you'll think of an ingenius way of recouping the minimal expense when you compare what it would have cost had you taken the conventional 'buy it new, pay a joiner' route. Well done!

Dawn, I like to think that we are the 'normal' people and it's all the others who waste both money and food. After seeing the £600+ per month budgets on various TV programmes, it was quite a surprise for me to hear that the 'Big Brother House' got PUNISHED by only having £1 per day per person. That IS my grocery budget and we eat like Kings, in my opinion

Lilo, you did extremely well to get material for 48 curtains plus everything else for £108. Are you able to sew them up from home? I've just washed/dried about 10m of material that I had in storage, hoping to split it up into curtains for my kitchen. I always think of it as a longterm investment - changing curtains can be like changing the entire decor and makes you feel good about what's been achieved for so little. Well done!

Blairweech, I'd just bunker down and sit it out for now, make the most of your free day to frugalise from home. I just noticed the name Tavistock mentioned on AOL news re the weather conditions - I'd def stay home.

Bails, chin up, prospects can't look brighter or look up unless they get gloomy or get you down in the first place, this is just a preparatory stage for the better times to come. :cool:

xNatalie81x you deserve a round of applause for graduating with honours from level one frugalisation. :T I will eagerly await the tales of progress in stage 2, when it's becoming second nature and verging on stage 3, full blown addiction :rotfl: Congrats also on the F&F - one less thing to worry about, once that's gone.

Kittikins, wash your typing fingers with hot, soapy water and type that again! You 'don't work'?? :eek: Living a frugal life and running a frugal household IS work! Hope the knitting project goes accordingly, you are working towards producing something that, otherwise, someone else would need to be paid to produce, think of it that way. Plus, the home-knitted gift is much more personal with the added bonus of your time and thoughts included with the final article.

CW - :j I love making pies! They are so frugally scrumdiddlyicious and you can [strike]hide[/strike] include so much in them to make them highly nutritious and tasty. Pastry is always useable, no matter how it looks. I don't even blind bake my pies, I just roll out the pastry, stick it in a dish, fill it with whatever and then put the rest of the rolled out pastry over the top with a couple of holes in middle to let excess steam escape. Blind baked cases, I fill with egg based something to turn them into flans, quiche, lemon meringe pie etc - something that will fill it and hide any gaps in the outer edges.

Skint-Lynne, hope the headache goes soon, maybe it's over-excitement / pre-new job nerves.

JTB2412, I constantly struggle to keep up with most things, so don't worry about it, just pop in now and again and maybe even have a look through the earning extra threads linked from post 1 here, it could help with the Copenhagen trip

Sunny here, blue sky and very, very cold, but dry. I'm tempted to go into the garden to start clearing what will become the poultry runs. One little old delapidated kennel does, as friend so kindly pointed out yesterday , look like an, "ideal duck house" with space enough outside it to sink a makeshift pond! :cool: My grocery list is growing by the day of what I need to top up - milk, veg, fruit, flour, sugar... it's never ending! Can't wait until the new Aldi store opens on 19th! :T

Catch up again later, loads to do, need to make hay while the sun shines, so to speak

bails

Great news about Copenhagen jtb, and that's exactly what frugal living's for if you've got no debts, enjoying life :T

:rotfl:at your spreadsheet CW

Just updated car breakdown to be on safe side so £10 total as used the offer from last week's email - thanks Martin :money:

Leaving in about 15 mins once I've sorted the animals so wish me luck!

Frugaldom

Good luck with the Birmingham trip, Bails, even if your 'up north' is our 'down south':D

angelatgraceland

Well Im going nowhere today! DH couldnt get out of drive or up the hill for work at 6.30 am so eventually they decided to come get him at 11 am in a 4x4 or something at the top of the hill! Goodness knows when he will get home though. I was also supposed to work but same problem. Loss of a days wages for me and half a day for him. School is shut. So-I shall do some cooking and cleaning and somehow have something to show for the day!
Maybe a nice chicken curry for tonight as Ive got chicken to use up in the fridge. DS has a driving lesson arranged-now its thawing out he just may turn up-not sure as our phone has been occupied a lot today. I think to learn in the snow can help you longterm and hes been learning a while so hopefully-its on! Maybe I will be good and take up my 2 pairs of trousers later-that would be a job well done.

jtb2412

Lol CW ..... I've got 7 worksheets on mine so a way to go yet.

Thanks NYK, I shall have a nose at the earning extra - already do Amazon but it's a bit slow. Not an ebayer (closed account after they made you offer paypal :rolleyes: ). I think I might do some car boots in the summer (wasn't going to but have changed my mind again lol) ...... I've got lots of Boots goodies I can sell and I think i'm going to admit defeat and sell all my size 12/14 clothes. Be a while before I get back to that size again and I have bags full just sitting there doing nothing, waiting for me to get my butt into gear and lose the weight. I can't see that happening in the near future though, enjoying my frugal food too much . I'm not putting any weight on which I'm happy about at the moment. Will also put any survey money I get towards Copenhagen - if I can pay 1/2 and then 'raise' the other 1/2 i'll be happy.

Bails, I concur about the enjoying life. No debts here, just wanting to save money (mainly to decorate house). Not much saved at the moment but hopefully by the end of the year I'll have a nice bit to put away (although not sure where atm due to carp interest rates ! :rolleyes: ) Have a good trip btw !

Still not snowing here but sky is looking very dark, just going to be rain I think.

SiannieLaz

thrifty - so sorry to hear your news, lots of hugs heading your way xx

My car just failed it's MOT, got a quote of £450 for it to pass:mad: . Luckily, the current one doesn't run out until 28 Feb but still gotta find the money from somewhere. My OH works opposite a garage and he's going to ask them if they can do it cheaper so fingers crossed.
Got an interview next week and hopefully something will come out of this one. I got my assessment dates for the prison service, but they are at a centre in Rochester, Kent which is a long way from me, especially as I have to be there at 07.45, so I'm waiting for them to get back to me with dates for a closer centre. Better start practising holding a 6kg riot shield up for 5 mins!! My cat weighs 7kg so I thought i'd use him:rotfl:
Anyhoo, got the OH's kids this weekend, so it'll be a NS weekend for me. Gonna go through my storecupboards tonite and make a list. Also found a great menu planner spreadsheet on another board so will be spending a few hours(!) getting my head round that!
Hugs, best wishes and congrats to all, and have a great weekend. I will be mostly looking cross-eyed at statistics for my latest assignment :idea:
xxxxx

DdraigGoch

Hello from snowed in [well, everyone else can get out, but I'm staying "stuck"!!] Wales

Progress today, in that it's day 6 of my NSD run and I'm quite cheerful about it - ooops, just remembered, my neighbours bought me a 4 pinter of milk .... does it count that I haven't used it yet and they paid for it?? ..... oh well, it's NSD as far as my budget is concerned. On the other hand, my DH went to buy some dog food, so took the £20 note for this week and no receipts or change, or, indeed, dog food yet - which isn't surprising as he's not here, and neither is the dog, until Monday :rotfl:, and my daughter's just "borrowed" a tenner to fill up her car to get herself to the dentist ... so, my NSDs are getting less effective than if I'd gone shopping :eek: :rotfl: What's a girl to do?

So, out of my £100 for February Grocery Challenge, £30 has already gone and I haven't spent a penny. Go figure

Off to check on the fires - boy, does the stove/range eat logs when it's cold and snowy:rolleyes::D

Blairweech

Wow, I just did a freezer inventory and boy do I have a lot of food! Enough for at least 30 meals, not including leftovers or storecupboard. No wonder the freezer was full. It is currently defrosting.

The following numbers are number of meals

Chicken Breasts - 7 (plus a meal of chicken bits)
Sausages - 4
Salmon fillets - 2
Battered Cod - 4
Steak - 1
Mini Kievs - 1
Sausage and Bean Casserole - 2
Chilli - 4
Turkey drummers - 3
Meat and Potato Pie - 2
Stewing steak - 2
Fish in butter sauce - 3
Mozarella meatballs - 1
Sloppy Tortilla - 2
Whole chicken - 1
Sausagemeat - 2

Plus I have 3/4 bag IKEA meatballs, 1 uncooked gammon, 3 bags of prawns, 4 packs of bacon and various frozen veg, garlic bread etc!

Phew!

Off to do a meal plan methinks