The Quest - 2

Wol2

Numpty_Monkey wrote: »

I love it too but would be sad to leave the main board - Hint Hint;) to the'movers & shakers' of MSE :wave: , being here makes me feel unique :cool:

You are unique and a very lovely lady:j:T:A

Hope you and DD1 (who is also very lovely:T:A:j), have a great holibob:A:A:beer::A:T:j:D:D:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool:

.

Wheeek wheeeeek........your nephews and nieces will second that Auntie Lula :T:T:T

Have a lovely time both of you...........and see you when you get back :cool:

xxx

Horace

Carry on Questing - is a fab name and very much in the vein of the carry on films:D

Waitrose is rather nice - I have a fair old jaunt to my nearest one and I didnt use the last voucher they sent me for rainbow trout because i cannot abide fish:rolleyes: All staff at John Lewis/Waitrose are partners because when its bonus time some of them get £7K as a bonus:eek: They look after their staff well too and have their own canteen run by proper chefs cooking proper food - so you can have a 3 course meal and still have change from a fiver:eek:

At least DD1 is now sorting herself out:j Well done on the free plums and the free makeup (that was a bonus). Hope you have a great time in Portugal - you lucky thing:D

Ex OH is coming up today - he has a job over in Solihull tomorrow so I am hoping for £21.50 overnight allowance:j and he has promised to charge the battery in my car (it is a deader than a dead dodo) and take me shopping because my cupboards and the freezer are bare:eek:

We might hijack your thread too and post things so you can have a good read when you come back:D

Shoe_Gal

Hi Lula

Hope you have a fantastic time :j you've earnt it hun

Lula-Hula

Hello, love the idea of you all hijacking my quest in my absence, make yourselves at home although I warn you that there is internet available so if I get bored of lying in the sun I might check up on you :eek:. I definitely need to teach my aunt all about Quidco while I'm there although not sure if it'll work for overseas peeps .

I've packed DDs case & there's loads of weight /space left which might be very useful . I'm actually going to be [STRIKE]very[/STRIKE] quite strict when it comes to mine & have decided that there is no point in putting in things which are too small ( still ) as the chances of losing weight while on hol are rather remote :rotfl:although I do intend on swiming as much as possible. I have also been very keen & already checked in online as I have no wish to repeat last years' debacle of getting bumped off the plane (along with ex England manager who's name sounds like Perry Lemonballs) because we were the last to check in :mad:

I've stripped the beds & washing is drying on the line, still cant access online banking so will have to ring CC2 & pay by debit card & also pay for DDs school milk for next term - love to leave things until the last minute :rolleyes: & we are now trying out store cupboard challenge meals. DD had ice cream for breakfast, apparently there was chance it would go off in the freezer hmmmm :rolleyes: & lunch has been ham, tomatoes & hula hoops - must remember to save a pack for my last 2 glasses of wine tonight

Right, I really need to deal with my case now _pale_

will probably be back later ...

lula
xx

makeup

Lula-Hula wrote: »

quite strict when it comes to mine & have decided that there is no point in putting in things which are too small ( still ) as the chances of losing weight while on hol are rather remote :rotfl:although I do intend on swiming as much as possible.
lula
xx

Very wise, you are supposed to feel all happy about having your fave clothes all clean and ready to wear when you open your case....not sad cos you can't fit into half of it!!

Have a wonderful wonderful time!!!

Lula-Hula

Phew, I've done it :j.

What an experience that was . This morning We had sorted throught DD's clothes & packed them all within half an hour. It's taken me the rest of the day to do mine . I have actually lost count of the number of times I've packed & repacked, & that was after I had removed all the offending articles that just refused to fit nicely :mad:. In the end it was Dd who threw some light on the situation, when I was about to cry & whine & asked her why it only took half an hour to do hers & yet 3 hours later I still hadnt done mine , she raised one sarcastic eyebrow & said " well that's obvious; you have too many clothes " :eek: :rotfl:.

You know what ? My child doesnt lie - there is such a thing as too much choice .

The job is now done & I still have enough clothes ( & shoes ) to last about 2 weeks & what's more, I have loads of space & about 5 kilos of luggage allowance spare. I'm an idiot as last year DD & I shared a case & still got everything in under weight & her case has about 10 kilos spare & I just realised that it's small enough to go on as hand luggage so I could have saved myself £15 ... live & learn :rolleyes:.

Time for my penultimate glass of rose I think, will pop in tomorrow once I've paid some money off CC2 to declare new total :whistle:

[Deleted User]

HI Lula,

Hope I haven't missed you, I don't seem to get any notifications anymore that you've posted on your diary

Hope you and DD have a fabby holiday and enjoy your time away and unwind.

Catch you when you return.

Tea
xx

Lula-Hula

Hello all

& thanks Tea, no you didnt miss me , I'm still just about here. Off to ariport in an hour so just popping in to say that home is clean, bags all packed & I have paid the school milk bill & also £70 off CC2 so the debt is on the way down again, finally :rolleyes:.

Bye to all & see you in a week or so :j

lula
xx

Lula-Hula

Hellooooooo

We arrived back from hot sunny Portugal in the early hours of this morning & sad to say I have been almost pining for MSE. I could easily have logged on but decided to just enjoy the total break from all moneysaving activites & enjoy myself.

We had a great time & you should be impressed to hear that not only did I use my Boots vouchers in the departure lounge shop but I got a £2 coin in my change as well. That little beauty has been all the way to Portgal & back before droppping into my fat cat saver.

I also managed to introduce my aunt to MSE & she was thrilled to bits with the concept of cashback shopping via Quidco. I spent most of my money on food ( not bothered about shopping on hol, for me the treat is in the eating out ie no cooking or clearing away ) but did get a few presents for family like my dear Grandmother who sent us out there & dear Dad who chauffered us to the airport & back :A.

I managed to return with well over £100 & after having to lend DD1 money yet again - she was here within 12 hours of us landing, full of her latest financial drama :rolleyes:- & a rather hideous return to reality via a trip to Tatco & the window cleaner deciding to turn up today I still have about £50 left until payday next friday so quite proud of myself there.

I've readjusted the rent payments as from next week, dealt with all the post that was waiting for me & deleted the 73 emails that were cluttering up my inbox.


Having observed my aunts store cupboards I've recognised that this over-food shopping is a genetic trait & have already taken steps to conquer it. We only bought what was needed in Tatco & I am determined to try to shop locally for just 2 or 3 days at a time.

I managed to get another 2 x £2 coins courtesy of Tatco so now have £42, I will pay the £40 into the savings for house stuff account asap. Very keen to get started on the refurbishment of my room once DD & I both settled back into work & school routines. I have already made a start by clearing out my wardrobe again - I always find that returning from holiday is the ideal time to do a wardrobe clearance. I have passed on a pair of black strappy heels & pair of black boots to DD1 as I know the sandals dont fit very well & I want a really good quality pair of black boots that I will truly love & wear often - cost is irrelevant here .

I ate very well while away but thanks to some vigorous swimming every day I havent put on any more weight so still have the original 10lbs still to lose :rolleyes:- it all begins on the 1st :eek:.

As the The Quest 2 limps towards its final hours I can report that I have made the minimum payment of £85 to CC1 which brings that down to £ £2,769 & the total debt to £5,977.

It's a bit grim and the DFD at present is hovering around October 2012 :eek::mad: but the desire to be clear by September 2011 is still strong & my absolute main aim.

I did manage to do a lot of reading while away & am currently working my way through The Gargoyle as recommended by sarahb :T .

As regards men ... cant be bothered , I have plans to be out & about enjoying my freedom for the forseeable future .

It's great to be back here :j

Lula
xx

Lula-Hula

Well, here I am again,

I've spent the day pottering about at home doing a bit of washing, some more decluttering & just faffing about really.

DDs old wardrobe has almost fallen apart so I decide to remove the flatpack one from under my bed that I was saving for my sister for when she redecorates her spare room .... it's been 2 years now so DD can have it which will save me buying a new one .

I've been working on my budget too which was a bit scary - particularly if I'm to have this treat money every month but I'm sure it will all work out just fine.

Just to prove how determined I am to get back on the wagon I have already signed up to the September NSD challenge with a pledge for 12 days _pale_. It is probably not a coincidence that my departure form the NSD challenges & the acquisistion of shiny new CC have resulted in a dramatic increase in both unnecessary spending & debt .

This evening DD had a yearning for sausage rolls so we zipped along to the co op & I spent £5.30 in there, I reckon that I am going to allow £35 a week to feed us both & will do this by only using shops that I can walk to ( yes, you guessed; Waitrose is a mere 20 minutes walk away :rotfl:) so I wont end up buying stuff I dont need as I will have to carry it & I will get some exercise at the same time . The co op is so close that we can easily nip down there at about 6.30 just in time for the reduced bargains - I have been observing what time they do this .

I will be using Tatco * shudders* for a monthly cleaning & household items shop & will try to co ordinate this with refuelling the car. Taking DD to the playcamp everyday was a revelation in the petrol tank & no way do I want to be spending £15 a week on fuel, will aim to keep it in the garage & use it for going out & about at weekends thereby shifting fuel costs into my treats budget . There's no way round it, I dont actually need a car for either work or getting DD to school or clubs - she's decided she's had enough of swimming lessons for a while - it is a luxury item & I need to start treating it as such.

Must now go & sip more wine in a very MSE way - by adding a couple of ice cubes to the glass it goes a little bit further , only to be done with white or rose, add water to red, saves on hangovers too .

Bye for now

lula
xx