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

Brighton_belle

sophiesmum wrote: »

I got the catalogue and free seeds this morning too BB;) I threw it in the bin quickly to save me from temptation:rotfl: :rotfl: - kept the seeds of course;)

You're a wise, wise woman SM:D

Frugaldom

Brighton_belle wrote: »

Another dilemma is a door step call from local dairy trying to get me to sign up to milk delivery. I really want to support local businesses and especially british dairy farmers who get treated disgracefully in general by the supermarkets ...

Hi BB, are you sure your supermarkets aren't selling local milk? Ours do, even Aldi sells Quothqhan milk - their farms are near where I used to live, as are Wiseman's Dairies (although I have a bit of a grudge against them).

cw18

BB - I've had milkmen call to try and get me to sign up a few times in the last couple of years, but I just apologise that I can't afford the additional 'pennies per pint' -- while mentioning I don't have an 'average requirement' for milk. (I currently pay about the same for a litre in A!di as my parents pay for a pint to be delivered!)

The latter is normally enough on its' own to have them backing off, as I know previous milkmen we've used (when we didn't live in easy striking distance of shops that sold it any cheaper) weren't happy at suddenly having 'no milk today' notes left out for 3 or 4 days in a week - but I suppose this makes it very difficult for them to work out how much they need to get

cha97michelle

Hi everyone,

I don't think i have posted here all week. It's been a bit of a busy one after being away last weekend. Nothing exciting really apart from my lemon tree was delivered today, and it came with 3 lemons already growing on it plus about 12 other mini-buds developing.

We managed to spend less than £15 at the family party, and MIL bought several items of clothing for the summer for my boys, and also sent us home with a tin of sausage rolls and some leftover cheerios and kids yoghurts. We also squeezed in a Lidl trip, so i got some Easter gifts for our two boys and my friends kids.

We also squeezed in a costco trip this week to get the £3 off the mince packs, so that went in the freezer, and we have eaten a lot of mince meals this week.

Unfortunately non-challenge spends have been high this week as DH's car needed a service and some bits doing (essential as he uses it so much) and that was nearly £500. :eek:

taka well done for trying to do your PHD. Only you can know if it is what you want, but its brave after only conquering your other stuff this year.

slowly fading your desert trip looked amazing. hope you had fun

sophie's mum well done on that weight loss. All them gym visits are paying off

nyk i've just been looking at your photos and i think i need to crack on with my chitting and planting next week when the boys are in nursery. I think it is warm enough now.

It's going to be a fairly chilled out one here this weekend. My DH is away gigging - working on Sunday am show in Edinburgh. So i will have the boys to entertain on the cheap. I think i might have a shopping trip up to the co-op to see if it has any last minute bargains as it shuts next Friday. We could call in at the park on the way. I might also visit my parents to break the day up a bit. If i do it in the afternoon/evening they will fall asleep in the car on the way home making bed time easier.

Enough rambling anyway. Goodnight one and all.
Michelle x

Skint_Lynne

I'm really late tonight, as I ended up popping into a neighbours on an errand for 2 minutes - I was there for about 2 hours. I've known them all my life and we ended up talking about who used to live on this street etc. My nana and papa lived in this house I'm in now, so they were talking about them and some other oldies who have long gone.

It's good to walk down memory lane sometimes.:T :T

I spent 40p today on some rolls. That's it. I hope that I can manage a NSD tomorow, but will probably buy some petrol, so that will be blown.:rolleyes:

DH will be home in just under 2 weeks, so it won't be long until my peace is shattered. He will be home for a weekend, then he is going to France with work for 5 days, then he is on holiday for a month.:eek: :eek:

Not to worry, I've started stocking up. I also got some mince from Costco this week, taking advantage of the special offer. I'll need to see what else I can find.

Well, I'm off to bed. Nite nite. xx

P.S. Nyk, Mrs Black is a cutie pie and slowlyfading, how exciting, camping out in the desert, how lucky are you!! xx

purplevamp

Morning everyone :hello:

Nyk - no, not the same challenge . I only started to put it in a sealed pot as I kept dipping into it . I don't think I could save up that much in such a short space of time :rotfl:

slowing fading - :eek: well done on surviving the night in the desert, hope you were warm enough

shaz - thanks for the link, it looks like a good site, I will have a closer look later today

bb - I couldn't be sure the milk would still be on my doorstep round my way :rotfl: , and especially if you live near "Hawkers" or "Scoombers" :eek: (iykwim?). I understand where you're coming from with wanting to support the local businesses, but can't compete with supermarket prices.

Off to bed now!

Brighton_belle

Could I have a standing ovation please: I've thrown the [EMAIL="l@kel@nd"]l@kel@nd[/EMAIL] catelogue away.:D
Don't know the complete answer about the source of the local asda milk Nyk, but I was wittering on about the general treatment of farmers & dairy farmers in this country. And if asda is selling local milk, at that cost, the farmers will be struggling. We have lost many many dairy herds in this area over the last decade. What I don't know is whether the local dairy pays them any better. I should do some local research, but haven't got the spare energy at the mo. Something to look into sometime.

Hoping to get in the garden this weekend to see what i could do there in pots. My front garden needs some major assistance too - only about 3ft deep by 11 wide but looks a shambles. Gets full sun/no shade and only has pots. Has a huge lavender that is well past it's best and is really straggly but I hesitate to get rid becasue of the memory of how lovely it used to look.Time to take some 'before' pictures I think, just incase there is an 'after' scenario.

sophiesmum_2

Brighton_belle wrote: »

Could I have a standing ovation please: I've thrown the l@kel@nd catelogue away.:D

cw18

Our weekly free paper came last night, and I've been flicking through it this morning. I'm now not sure whether I wish I'd left it unopened (as usual) or not

Mr M have an advert in it for staff for the new store (when they take over S'flds), and they have an 'open day' tomorrow and Monday in a nearby town -- looking for Managers, Supervisors, Skilled Butchers and Bakers, and Sales Assistants.

I'm trying to decide whether to go down tomorrow about the last of these - but can't decide whether it's worth the effort or not!!!

Things it's got going for it......

1. It's in walking distance of home, so no commuting costs and minimal 'commuting time' :T
2. Staff get a 10% discount

However, the things going against me are......

1. I haven't worked in retail since a Saturday job from late '82 to mid '83
2. Hours would have to fit around the hours I have my GDs (at least until April 2010).
DD cancelled the alternative child-care, and I'm pretty certain both places had waiting lists - meaning she can't just switch them back in. And I don't think there's alternative child-care for the younger one until April 2010 (before and after school don't take them until their 5th birthday, but she's due to start in the Reception class in September -- so if she gets into the school by me, then I have to be around to take her and pick her up!) But as I only have my GDs during term times, I could be flexible with hours (basic and extra) during school holidays - which is probably when a lot of people would want time off.
3. My back problems
BUT, my back tends to play up in a morning - and by doing certain exercises I can normally loosen it up by lunch time. So evening shifts would also minimise the risk of my 'phoning in sick'.



I suppose I don't really have anything to lose by going down and talking to them -- expect for a 9.5mile round trip and some time

Brighton_belle

Thanks SM:D (mind you, they had some good irrigation ideas I might investigate if I get going on the garden and not before, as regular watering is where I fall down) Oh, and big congrats on the weight loss by the way:T .

CW - I think you are right: you have nothing to lose by going down and having a chat.