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

ram_murdock

Hey everyone - have read all the posts but have only time for a short post.

Talking about ppl buying houses quickly....i seen a house last wed, went to the bank on friday and placed an offer today!! Fingers crossed everyone!!!!

I'm still waiting on my qype voucher - has anyone here got there's/still waiting?

Budget was going really well until i ran out of oil yesterday...£116 thats gonna cost me. Hopefully this show do me until the winter again.

Gotta fly...b/f VAT due in this week and i'm going to meet him to finish it off.

p.s. lost another 1/2lb at ww last night so thats exactly half a stone off!!

sophiesmum_2

Well done on the weight loss and hope all goes well with the house:D

savingfortravel

Hi Ram-Murdock
Hope your house goes well too...we'll keep our fingers crossed for each other.
I haven't got my qype voucher yet either. Funny I was about to ask the same question about the voucher...
SFT

lingojingo

hi evryone
been really busy so not posted much lately but read most posts although struggling to remeber who saud what!.
Hugs to all that need them, and well done to so many of you for so many reasons!

I haven't had my voucher from Qype yet, staying hopeful as it's still February.

I'm a teaching assistant, (secondary school mostly in languages), so have to manage on far less than teachers (but when the bell goes I am finished for the day, and in the holidays I don't have any school stuff to do. I took this job to fit in with the children and be there at the beginning and end of their day, weekends and holidays, as their Dad left us. DD will finish college this summer, so I may have to look for better paid work, although I really enjoy this job.

mama67

sophiesmum wrote: »

Welcome on board chika - sure Nyk will be along to add you to the list soon:D (interrupted while doing this post so everyone has been on since I started it an age ago )

1274 - I nicked "fitter not fatter" from Nyk -

No piccies yet bails??
Your lunch looks great skint- chick:T

Nothing exciting happened here today, been for swim/jacuzzi etc with friend and DD this evening. Earlier made another batch of tortillas - some for OH some to freeze. Must find a local supplier of the masa harina flour:rolleyes: then started off another crop of mung beans for sprouting, and stuck a loaf on.
That's about all today:rolleyes:

My tortilla press arrived yesterday.

I'll be having a bash hopefully at the weekend.

I was looking as well at finding some masa local to me, but no joy as yet.

mama67

cw18 wrote: »

Never thought of that !!! Is it safe to do this with the plastic milk cartons, 'cos they're the only ones we get !! (Also what puts me off freezing milk, as I would imagine there's a possibility of them splitting as the milk freezes and expands )

I have loads of freezable tubs I could fill for now though :rolleyes2



ETA: Have sorted my 6 week plan. Apart from fresh veg, fruit, bread, milk, breakfast cereals (possibly) and sandwich fillers (some - I must use up the jars of paste in the cupboard as well!), I reckon I need 3 or 4 bags of frozen veg (peas, sweetcorn, mixed), 2kg of oven chips (just can't get HM ones to work, so have decided this is one thing we're not giving up), spaghetti (unless I find the pack I'm sure is lurking somewhere), sausages, and fish in butter sauce - plus toppings for two lots of pizza (bought a pack of base mix from A!di at the weekend - never tried making my own before).

So it's just possible that if I buy nothing to add to my stockpiles I could spend less than £60 in the next 6 weeks -- which is less than I used to spend in a week even with as much in stock as I have now!! I was feeding 3 of us then -- whereas now it's 2 plus part-time feeding of my GDs -- but it still seems a massive reduction.

Cheryl, this has probably already been answered but, I have been freezing milk for over 10 years, just take approx an inch out the top, so there is expansion room. CAn put bits into an empty one.

Only other thing is to make sure they are stood upright until frozen.

I've never had one split yet.

Hth

cw18

don't think I could stand milk upright in my freezers -- not unless I bought the smaller ones which work out much more expensive per pint anyway...... guess I'll not try risking it !!

Brighton_belle

cheryl - I have never stood my milk upright to freeze - I always lie them on their side (they are still sealed so no leak worries, and never split) go on, try one, you know you want too

Just about to cook pancakes....

grandma247

cheryl
I freeze whole milk unopened in 4ltr bottles and have never had one split except for one that got dropped. I think the plastic they are made from is very flexible so they just stretch. I leave the bottle on the drainer to thaw out overnight.

sophiesmum_2

Time for daily posting:D
Enjoyed day out with oldies, explored building, had a walk round some of more accessible bits of country park and round reservoir, watched a husky team in training:D , and saw lots of pheasants, squirrels, and kestrels.
This is where we went-
http://www.rivingtonhallbarn.co.uk/index.asp
General frugal aims for today;

• storecupboard tea
• lunch out with oldies
• reduce, reuse,recycle one item-
• do something nice for me -walk around country park whilst oldies enjoying dancing and entertainer
• do something nice for someone else-took oldie in wheelchair with me on walk - strenuous in parts:p
• fitter not fatter - walking

Todays frugal meals;

• soft boiled egg
• chicken breast fillet, new potatoes, veggies ,
• broccoli and stilton soup,

Fruit and veg portions;
0 fruit, 0 pulses,4veggies,

Expenditure or additional income

jar of sweets from gift shop for OH £2.60
20 packs of sp butter @47p = £9.40

Remaining target cash for first 6 months food spends - £232.96 left from budget of £400 for first six months.


Extra income generated £152.43 /spent £51.35 / left £101.08
(tortilla press/flour £33, boots pressies £18.35)