Tearing my hair out over housekeeping

bargainqueen_2

Hun, I really really feel for you because you sound so down on yourself. You need to put things into perspective, and remind yourself that having problems with the overspending does not make you a bad person. Some good tips here already, but perhaps you can tell us what you normally overspend on? What sort of "bargains" do you buy? Are they yellow sticky food items or clothes or "rubbish"? There is so much you can do, go to the library for books, videos, CD's and Magazines, try cheaper sandwich fillings (those sliced meats are always the killer for me - egg mayo etc homemade is much cheaper!), bulk out meals with veg, or mince meat with lentils or oats etc.

Thistle-down

Something that really helped us was when I started making my dd's sandwiches with wholewheat bread and gave a cheap filling with protein - egg mayo, tuna mayo (smartprice), cheese, peanut butter - as it seems to keep them filled up longer.

Could you make any home-made snacks like flapjack, wholewheat biscuits or scones or fruit muffins/bread to help with the grazing? If you are eating enough fruit for your daily allowance (which it sounds like you are) maybe a flapjack or a scone with fruit jam would do instead of extra fruit.

I agree with the cash thing - yesterday I had £5 to buy toilet paper, soda crystals, ricecakes, etc. I went to Home bargains and found loads of stuff I thought I needed and was tempted to buy - but realised that having toilet paper was a pretty important thing to our family so walked by the bargains and bought only what I needed. Plus I still have over £1 left! Hooray!

hth, Lynn :')

Chipps

I know what you mean about frittering money away on "bargains"
Of course, if you need to get these things, they are bargains, but buying them because they are cheap and you might need them one day isn't quite the same thing, is it. (and I am talking here as much, if not more, to me than you!)

I agree with outrageous monkey about the freebies board, it kind of fulfils that need to order things to be delivered, without any cost! Yesterday I got some free cat food in the post. As it happened, the cat didn't like it much, but at least I got to open a parcel!!! LOL

I have to really think about whether I need something or not before buying it. Last week I bid on some clothes on ebay, I knew I didn't need them, but they looked such a bargain. I was outbid and I kept on thinking "what if I had just bid that little bit more, then I might have won them?" Yeah, and then I would have had to pay for them and justify the expense to my DH, too!

Foodwise, again I really should make myself do a grocery plan - factoring in "leftovers", eg cooking a double quantity of potatoes for one meal, then making a pie with mashed potato topping the next day using the extras. I tend to fluctuate from being very very organised with every meal written down at the beginning of the month, to totally disorganised and having no idea what's for dinner at 4pm - no half measures!

Actually I think I have probably not helped you much, but at least you know you are not the only one! I am looking forward to reading the replies you get!

Chell

Writing a spending diary may help you to see where you are going wrong. I have started to write down what I spend daily on a spare calendar. Naybe if you see it all in black and white it might not seem such a bargain.

I used to buy all the bargains and have a cupoboard full of food but now I do a list and only buy something if I have run out of the product.I shop once a week and even try to buy all my milk at the same time. thsi avoids extra trips to the supermarket to be tempted by bargains. Morrisons is terrible, you walk through the door and are welcomed by loads of cakes on BOGOF. I now walk past them, DS/DD and I make a cake instead. I'm not sure if thats cheaper but it tastes better ad makes use of the ingrediants I have at home. There are some lovely recipes on this board which you could treat the family with. Carrot cake/Anzac biscuits and yoghurt cake are my favourites and the recipes are idiot proof.

aliasojo

Just wanted to say 'hi' garret . I'm in the highlands too and like you...not near anywhere other than Tesco and Morrisons really. I do believe it is much more expensive up our neck of the woods and I'm amazed when I occasionally go back to Edinburgh and see how much my SIL gets away with spending on a week's shopping.

I started a similar thread fairly recently as we need to cut back drastically on our housekeeping outgoings. There was some good advice there.....http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=196789 .

I've just been marking time until payday (next week!) until I can start a new way of working in earnest. I'll likely not be on here on Thursday as I'll be frantically planning with my bits of paper and pencil, in readiness for Friday. :rotfl:

Seriously though, good luck .... you're not alone.

Btw, what kind of things do you mean when you say 'bargains'? Is this food stuff or other types of stuff. I have to admit to doing that too, but not with food....it's usually other stuff like sale toys I see that I pick up to stash until a suitable birthday. The problem with doing that though is that I end up giving bigger things to people I probably wouldn't give to as a rule....purely because the thing was cheap(ish). If I didn't buy the bargains then I would save myself cash. :rolleyes:

**purpleprincess**

Hey garret1!! Glad you popped on over here!! See, everyone is really nice and really helpful, you can't go wrong with posting in Old Style!

I hope you feel a bit better today than you did yesterday

**PP** xx

garret1

Am definitely feeling much better today. Thanks to everyone who has been so helpful!!:D
to answer a couple of questions.

the "bargain"s i buy are really anything I am tempted by. If I see something I like, be it clothes in Tescos, yellow label stuff or cheap toys for the kids I will talk myself into buying it. I think it's a case of out of sight and out of mind so for a while I'm going to avoid the shops I know tempt me and stop taking the kids shopping.
I love to cook so should enjoy meal planning and trying out new recipes. I'm already taking the advice on cheaper ways to clean the house. Have started carrying small snacks and refilled water bottles out with me soo I don't get tempted to buy juice etc for kids when we're out. Usually I would take them to a coffee shop thinking "well, it's only a fiver"...
Am also going to really make an effort with using cash only. May give hubby the card then I really won't be tempted to overspend. The little things really do add up. For some reason I never really realised that. I have always been proud of my penny pinching but didn't seem to realise I was throwing away the pounds.
the only worry for this month is that staring from tomorrow I have 6 family birthdays and 1 birthday party plus prezzies for my kids nursery teachers as they finish up there in June!!:eek:
Today for one birthday ive sent a disc of pics of my kids with a nice card. However this will not appeal to all. Any ideas for gifts?
Don't really know how I will ever have time to spend again as I seem to have been sitting here for the last 24hrs!!!!

patchwork_cat

I think that if you and your family enjoy fruit and eat fruit - then don't reduce the amount and don't encourage them to reduce the amount. The health benefits are enormous. I am sure that fruit is not putting you in debt! Maybe other things need to be reduced, or cheaper forms of fruit, but not volume.
As far as gifts for nursery school teachers a cheap box of biscuits - those danish butter cookies, a box of chocs or a pot plant - maybe one where they plant the bulb so that they can do it with the kids in September if they want. Don't spend more than a couple of pounds.

It is hard with birthday presents as we don't know the people , ages etc. Post some ages , interests etc.

**purpleprincess**

Too true, I don't know what I did before I found MSE now!!

Check this out for gifts
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=553470&postcount=2

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=560628&postcount=6

garret1

patchwork_cat wrote:

It is hard with birthday presents as we don't know the people , ages etc. Post some ages , interests etc.

Thanks for the advice. Have just got to grips with ditital camera so am trying to thinks of gifts for the teachers using pics of the kids!

As for the other prezzies I need to buy for a 9 yr old boy, 16 yr old girl, 65 yr old mum in law. Have done my dad and the kids are sorted. i have twinsand while their present is cheap and cheerful (pet fish) they want a mermaid party. Have done my own invites and we are going to decorate plain paper plates. Am stuck for gift bag ideas as lately parents really seem to go to town on this. Any ideas?