FRUGAL LIVING CHALLENGE 2010, part 2, April - June.

Frugaldom

Glad you had a great time Candygirl! A handyman and a canal boat! You could sell up everything and live the good life afloat!

Winchelsea

Did keep accounts for a few months last year (not on here), so have just looked back to see what happened last April.

This April I've spent £20 less on food, and £38.78 less overall on the grand total of the month's spends. Didn't seem much different, until I realised that I'm now paying the council £90 a week for a care package for my husband - who has dementia - (which is one of the reasons I came to MSE, to lessen the impact of that.)

As for the food, April last year's food spend was the lightest of any of the months I counted (Jan-June). So, on the whole I think I've done quite well for my first MSE month.

Had hoped to have a NSD today, but DD4 phoned and suggested we meet up at the garden centre for coffee, so I ended up treating the three of us to coffee AND cakes! (Very restrained in general though - only spent £1.60 on a packet of seeds!)

I was going to suggest she came here, (no spends involved!) but she was hoping I would take the car so she could buy a couple of bags of compost and get a lift home (she doesn't drive).

Anyway, wouldn't really have been a no-spend day, as my organic veg box came, and my a/c was debited. Have altered my sig. to take account of this.

candygirl

Frugaldom wrote: »

Glad you had a great time Candygirl! A handyman and a canal boat! You could sell up everything and live the good life afloat!

Lol it's a bit close proximity for me in a boat:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:Nice for days out though:D

ChinaTea

Been AWOL again the last week, internet connection playing up again and have had some treatment from pain management clinic so been feeling a bit droopy.

Good news is though that I haven't been spending much only on cat food really. trying to use the freezer mountain ready for all the garden goodies to come. Cooked the Pork Loin joint yesterday from one of the MrMs Christmas deals of soup, pork and veg + trifle. So meals for the week all involving pork sorted and a huge rhubarb crumble made using rhubarb from the garden and some end of packets of flour and muscavado sugar for the crumble which was really good.

When energy levels and weather have allowed have been out in the garden and everythings coming up, well potatoes actually. Hopefully if it can stay dry and there isn't a force 9 gale blowing tomorrow will be hilling the first plantings of potatoes up. The plastic greenhouse I splashed out on is very successful, so pleased I went for the bigger walk in one. It's crammed full with seedlings and pots of seeds still to appear mostly edible but have a couple of trays of bedding plants. Biggest success is probably parsley-about 50 plants! Good job I like it and have swapped with a neighbour for some lobelia. Same neighbour has also done a swap of seeds, pea and french bean for courgette and beetroot. Am dropping some big hints about a 'real' greenhouse to DS but seems to be falling on deaf ears at the moment.

The budget is doing well, still well down on the petrol budget although have made a concious effort to cut this. Food spending is almost nil, using stock piles of bread flours and baking ingrediants + freezer and cupboard stock. DS gave me a M&S gift card so going to the outlet store later in the week for some trousers and have enough summer clothes otherwise from previous years. Even the cat food budget is under, mind you I did base it on what they were eating through the worst of the winter when they weren't supplementing with wildlife.

I say this at the end of every month but I really can't believe that we're now into month 5 of the challenge year. I'd expected without OU to keep me occupied this year that the time would drag but think I've been busier than ever. Still, the whole point was that I would have both the time and energy to put into the garden and other things.

Enough from me, back to the spreadsheet.

top_drawer_2

hello everyone,

Thank you CW and frugaldom for your replies, I have printed them out and will work on putting them into action asap to get this SO done.

I have a had a wonderful frugal day as I went into Morri's today and had a look at the reduced section of the freezers and there was loads - I got two packs (£3.75 from £6.50) of 7 chicken fillets (one pack for my housemate who is struggling to afford to eat at the moment due to the tax office emergency taxing her so heavily, lol ive told her its her bday present and she was really happy!). We are hoping to have a barbie next week for her bday too so I am going to save the second packet for that, also some Morri's own sausages (49p from 99p), 4 packs of mini sausage rolls both for the freezer for next week, some fresh custard to keep as powdered is a pain (never will I save money by not by instant, what a ballache making it is...) also some butter (x3, ranging from 59p to 49p) all in damaaged packaging (will freeze them as I think butter is soo overpriced) also got 5 tubs of single cream thinking I would give the homemade butter a go, but checked the receipe from here and it says Double or Whipping .... Oh dear, not sure what I can do with single cream, any ideas???

So pleased as that's next weeks blowout on food sorted pretty much. I've packaged them all up in bags for the freezer and I also made some potato cakes out of the potatoes I boiled in the soup last week tonight.

Jen

Erme

rozee sorry this is a bit late but

Twins can either love each other or literally divorce and hate each other! Me and mine (at 33) are divorced (tis official)...to me she's 'psycho' and I'm 'sane' and like she came out first but I was conceived first and she has better legs but I am the pretty and the sane one.

Can anyone tell me what software to use for screenshots...what would you folk recommend? I have windas xp.

Well a bug/run down yesterday :P so like nothing done so mad panic for Ma today (she's due tomorrow tea time) and menu planning and food shop still to do. Fortunately I managed to get a dishdrainer that I liked within budget for £4 (a folding one) off ebay @ the weekend and it's plastic...till we pick it up we just have to wait.

Training scheme went well (was working BH monday)...and I don't think I've been on the scales since the weekend ...alas weight was down when I got weighed by the nurses so they weren't happy :P. But hey ho.

Tomorrow I have TS so like am doing my ECDL and then maybe some SQA stuff and going to start looking for volunteering in admin soon. Quite fancy the credit union posts...think that would suit me and be good for employers. Was going to go for YMCA but don't want to be designing flyers.

Nuala Monitor the Anti D's and if you go downhill go back on them - even at half dose... Be careful. Not being against it...but just be careful hun *hugs*. I'm trying to come off the night time pills so can empathise but like I'm on a minute dose so it should be okay. I'm still on depot though.

Thinking of quitting my camping trip in June mainly cos of expense and exhaustion. I'll be off work for 2 weeks and like what's the most important thing right now? I think maybe a few long weekends away would be better?

Anyhow tis all my news..if you don't hear from me for a few days Fishcake has me on FB so just ask her if I'm still around...

Blessings

E

xnatalie81x

Morning frugaldypeeps - todays reportings:

1. Cover to do as swimming pool as teacher sick. Kids go to childminder anyway so 2.5hrs extra income to be added to spreadsheet (as my income is so fluctuatable i have an income ss with colums and months with my various sources)

2. Have decided that me n kids are having hol thtis year. My mum and dad are on a committe which runs a car show in suffolk. We will go for one week FREE ENTRY but i need a new tent - http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3402454/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7CSports+and+leisure%7C14419152/c_2/3%7C15701428%7CCamping%7C14419397/c_3/4%7Ccat_14419397%7CTents%7C14419414.htm - this is the one i want for me (will be 23weeks pregnant, 6yr old, 4yr old and 2.5yr old) - my mum n dad take caravan so all cooking done in there. Just need somewhere to sit when it rains as my dad won't want us in there constantly. Ebay they are cheaper so am going to start finding things around house to sell and use some of balance to pay for tent - hol is August. 2.5mths to save for holiday - i may start a 'holiday fund' which my overtime money can go in......... hmm ideas
- food budget will come with us, as will take away budget and kids activities budget. I also have my 'other' 130 for july and aug which i will hold onto for spending.

3. Had a good browse on tesco and found a local ark thingy which is part of the clubcard scheme. Paradise Wildlife Park. For 2 adults and 3 children £56.00 and £5 vouchers = £20 entry so need £15 and will sacrifice the extra £4. It is a brilliant day apparently with more activities than can imagine! Really looking forward to taking kids when is the next lot of clubcard vouchers due

4. BMW still has broken gearbox and borrowing MIL's partners car - insurance is reduced slightly, car tax is postponed for one month (must remember to declare off road!) and petrol is much cheaper.

Best wishes to frugal friends xxx

A_fiend_for_life

April spend

a) Groceries................£33.38
b) Gas and Elec.............£14.81
c) Line Rental..............£42.87 (quarterly)
d) Eve WE calls.plus BB.....£12.53
e) Mobile....................£0.00
f) Clothing..................£0.00
g) Bathroom..................£0.45
h) Cleaning..................£0.00
i) Entertainment............£37.96
j) Travel...................£61.20
k) Gifts / SO................£1.00
l) Books.....................£2.00

Total spend for the month is £206.20

Total spend so far is £677.66 / £2000. (33.88%)

Been a bit of delay posting April's spend as I have been away.

Budget for the year is slightly over so far but should even out because of travel costs annual budget. A quarterly line rental for April also means I am 'over budget'.

Entertainment and groceries are a fair bit lower as is energy.

Can't remember if I mentioned I had a go at the laundry gloop with existing soda crystals and soap so will last a few months. I already had the soap and soda crystals so no extra spend. I am astounded how cheap this works out.

I've been trying to catch up on posts: note to self got to 425 so far.

NualaBuala

Evening all :wave:

Thanks Erme, am keeping an eye on myself. So far the mood is very good but the body is not at all happy. Am a bit sick and am just hoping I'll feel well enough to travel tomorrow. Hope all goes ok wtih your Mum.

Lynz, hope you're doing ok. Is there any update on your hand?

Hope all of you are well! and frugalling along nicely

Did a big batch cooking session today to use up perishables before I (hopefully) go away tomorrow. Will be a bit like a Krypton Factor challenge fitting it all in the freezer! Got my bin charges bill today and happily it was about €20 less than I'd budgeted for.

I don't know if it's just that I'm sick but I'm really cold and layered up in the winter woollies again - no way is the heating going back on in May! :eek: I feel chilled to the bone so I'm going to have a warm bath and go to bed in the hope that I'm better tomorrow. I'm supposed to be getting an overnight coach and ferry tomorrow and I just won't be able for it unless I improve. It's nothing serious I reckon but the digestive system is very unhappy and I don't think an 8 hour coach ride will help! On the plus side, very unusually for me, I don't feel like eating which is very frugal altogether!

Night night all! Hugs all around to anyone who'd like one.

XSpender

Baby still not making an appearance which may be not such a bad thing at the moment as I am loaded with cold.

Received my redundancy money yesterday so paid off my IVA and we are now debt free :j:T:j:T:beer: I can't tell you how good that feels. There is still quite a bit left for us to live on although I did receive less than I was led to believe as they have paid all my maternity benefits in with the lump sum and I think some of it has been taxed. Why they can't send out a breakdown to everybody i don't know?? I am sure it is right but I want to get it clear in my own mind so will give them a ring later. I will still receive my SMP from october to december so will try and spend as little of my lump as I can until then as the SMP is enough on top of DH salary for us to live on.

No spending so far this week as we now have only one car and I am too big to go anywhere:o so keeping away from the shops and cupboards and freezer stocked up and all baby stuff bought.

I think I will need to change my diesel budget as I had expected it to go down with now having one car instead of two but the price of diesel is shocking:eek:

Congratulations to RP on the birth of the twins!