Frugal Living 2011 - the preparation stage

NualaBuala

Michelle, I know how hard depression can be - hope you are doing ok hon. Just keep on trying, that's all any of us can do. I think joining a challenge is a great way of getting focussed though. So sorry to hear about your cat. x

salski

cha97michelle wrote: »

Hi

I have started this challenge for the past two years and then fallen at the wayside during the year mainly as i have had issues with depression. I would like to give it another go though. I am currently not at home so can't give exact figures to join in, but our finances have taken a bit of a battering this year so i need to try and get back on track somehow and i have always found this challenge to do just that.

2010 saw us get a lump sum from my DHs parents which we used to have a new combi boiler fitted, cavity wall insulation, and a new bathroom and kitchen. The problem was we spent all they gave us and then some with replacing appliances at the same time.

We are now facing a large vet bill as our 5yo cat who has had health issues from being a kitten took ill christmas eve. As we were going away we had no choice but to leave him with the emergency vet who wanted to keep him so he could be put on a drip. It looks like it is terminal kidney failure, so i am guessing he will need to be put to sleep. We will return home to a no doubt huge vet bill, so not the best way to start the year playing catch up.

So, if you will have me back, i am here, and willing to try again. Maybe 3rd time will be the successful one?

My financial aim to keep me going is we want to rebuild the savings again, and also to try and reduce our mortgage this year. We have one income, and are a family of 2 adults, a 4 yo at nursery, and a 2 yo still in nappies.

Things need to become a whole lot tighter.

Good luck hun! Hope the bill isnt too high and that you can help get your finances back on track ;~)

grandma247

itsallinthemind wrote: »

Took the words right out of my mouth

Pagangirl, I think I will struggle this year not to overstock. I survive(more than that!) December on my stocks and whoopsies from the co-op and some very kind allotment owners. I'm not sure where the line is, threads on using up all your stock cupboard then ones on stockpiling. Maybe it is just about stockpiling the things you and and any family use regulary and are on a great offer.
This is a really good idea. I have a friend in Aus. who never pays full price for anything if she can help it. I have been copying her for a few years now.
That said, I need to know my cupboards can last at least a week as if it snows in my village I am not going anywhere!
I would not call a weeks food stockpiling at all, it is just sensible home management.
Hope everyone else has been productive, even if theat just means you spent some of the money you saved last year on some treats in the sale :T

I do stockpile but that is because the recessions I have lived through haunt me and I never want to be that poor again. Dh was in the building trade then and they always get hit first. We buy what we use and use what we buy. It all gets rotated so nothing gets thrown away.

Pink numbers well done and I hope the calm continues for a long time.

itsallinthemind

cw18 wrote: »

Nah! I'm the muppet - for suggesting I pack butties when I don't dine al-fresco even in the summer :rotfl:

Nah! I'm the muppet:rotfl:
(Teach me for skim reading!)

itsallinthemind

grandma247 wrote: »

I do stockpile but that is because the recessions I have lived through haunt me and I never want to be that poor again. Dh was in the building trade then and they always get hit first. We buy what we use and use what we buy. It all gets rotated so nothing gets thrown away.

Well, sounds like that is why my Mum, wife of a builder, taught me to stockpile!

Trust me, nowhere near just a weeks supply left, my stores fed us with fresh bits through December and we could probably do so for about 4 months. Ok, it would not be HEALTHY, but we could! I just meant that any less would frighten me. Nothing worse than being snowed in or a carer for children with not a lot in the cupboards, when ill.

Whilst apparently Sugar Sarnies did my father no harm as a child, I'd rather not get in that situation with my children!

kezlou

Thanks for sharing the spreadsheets with us all cheryl. Been looking through them and its really helpfull.

So i've been looking through our finances and its terrible.
But i'm going to try and reduce them throughout the year, so fingers crossed my plan will work.

Outgoings these are an over esitmation based on vat etc

• Car insurance £812.50 (due for renewal may 2011) so going to mark that down as £900
• water £335.04 (new bill due soon) so say £350
• council tax £1090 (supposed to be frozen for the year)
• gas / electric £1200 (£100 dd, its shocking and i'm not impressed with edf either)
• Virgin net + phone £357.00 (not including phone calls)
• home insurance £324 (due for renewal in may 2011)
• groceries £2000 (i spent less than £1500 last year)
• car tax £115 (due in July)
• mot £40 + repairs (say £100)
• service - not sure yet.
• credit cards collective £960 annunal min payment (feel sick looking at that)prob with vat say £1000
• breakdown cover £128.00 (aa)

As you can tell we have a lot going out.
So say a minumum of £7564 going out annually not including mobile phones, fuel, hobbies, days out and general things like clothes.

This year i have already knocked down our outgoings by canelling virgin and then renewing our contract so chopping our bills with them from £90 a month to £37.

In May i will be talking to natwest as the figure were paying them is unreal. Its crazy how much they charge old customers, while new ones are treat like royalty.

So if i our income stays the same we will be forced to live on about £3400 and rent to come out of that too. Hmm this is not good. Me thinks i will have to rejig everything. But i don't know how.

So yes this is for 2 adults, 2 children and 2 cats. Will put a definite figure up later when i cna get my head around calculations.

Kerfuffle

efc - I'm loving your excitement and I'm with you all the way on this one! I'm also going to be adopting the make do and reduce 'stuff' lifestyle. The first thing I've done it take my library books back to the library ( before the due date even) with the intention that I don't borrow anymore until I've read all the books I've already got.

fingersxed wrote: »

*snip

Thats a massive £1810!!! :eek:

Hi fingersxed, that's the reaction I had when I finally did my budget, but then I deducted my projected annual outgoings from my projected annual income/incomings and realised how much I should 'theoretically' be able to save. And that's the carrot that is keeping this donkey moving :rotfl::rotfl:

Kazsaver wrote: »

*snip

I am thinking of borrowing someone's garden to grow some veg as ours is to small, has anyone else done this and did it work out ok?*snip
Kaz x

Hi Kaz, my Dad did this and it worked really well for both parties as my Dad got to Grow His Own, and the land owner got freebies throughout the year.

Hi Cheryl, enjoy your picnic

On the news front - in addition to returning my library books I've also purchased a chest freezer (40% off plus used a $25.00 gift card :cool:) which I'll be stockpiling during the course of the year.

Toodles

mooomin

My council tax gets sent out tomorrow, so that's going to be a spend day (Bah!) but at least it gives me the chance to play with my spreadsheets (Heh!)

Today I'm working but hopefully the office will develop some festive spirit and we'll get to leave early. If so, I'm off to brave Sainsbury's as I have a giftcard for there with £17 on it so will be using that to do my final shop before the year end. I only really need a couple of bits and pieces, but would rather they were free than not I'm going to have a rummage through the cupboards and see what I need that I might be able to buy for a mere £17 there - I was shocked at the price of their milk the last time I was in :eek:

My other plan for today is to finish off the Christmas/Birthday spreadsheet I started yesterday so I can plan for everyone's birthdays and make sure I have got them something that they want and that is a good price for me. Although some things have been bought in the post-Christmas sales, I'll be taking them off the budget for January as otherwise it's just cheating!

I plan to inventory the freezer this weekend and make sure that I don't overbuy meat as I always do. I am aware that I have run out of mince which is less than ideal as it's so useful for batch cooking, but am going to Costco on Monday so will buy a packet there and save it in small portions. I prefer doing that than buying 500g packets from the supermarket anyway as I normally bulk things out with oats/lentils anyway

The final thing to do this weekend will be to sort out the clothes I'm going to be taking back to the shops that I bought on impulse in the sales and don't need. There's quite a lot...!

nannyboo1

Kazsaver wrote: »

I am thinking of borrowing someone's garden to grow some veg as ours is to small, has anyone else done this and did it work out ok?
Kaz x

My Dad did this for years They lived in a cul de sac with 14 houses in. He used a garden of one of the neighbours. Two sisters owned the house but they worked all day so Dad grew stuff in their garden and shared the produce with them so it worked well. eventually he stopped as they decided they wanted to sell the house and turn the garden back into a garden to sell the house.

cw18

itsallinthemind wrote: »

Whilst apparently Sugar Sarnies did my father no harm as a child, I'd rather not get in that situation with my children!

Lovely things are sugar butties

Funnily enough they came up in conversation a couple of nights ago (when I was chatting to 'him' on the phone), and it's something he's never tried. But he assures me that Golden Syrup on toast is to die for (not something I've yet tried )