Frugal Living Challenge 2011 - part 1

minnie2

Well Rozeepozee and cw18 following on. I have been trying for last 3years to give him life experience!!! but i seem to be failing. i honestly would love to send him somewhere training for a week so he would have some idea!!!! i am tearing my hair out!!! he irons clothes while he is wearing them for goodness sake!! he is so wasteful with his lack of thought or awareness!! id be rich by now if it wasnt for 'looking after' him!!!!

salski

seriouslyfrugal wrote: »

Hi salski : well done on your first nsd :j:j:j and here's to many more also good luck with the giving up smoking stick with it and you know where we are if you need us :):)

Thank you very much. This is the 7th attempt to give up as I am very far along pregnant. I manage a month here or a week there then start again. So Ive not tried since before Christmas! Im nervous, but 100% dont want to be a smoker once baby arrives!
Thanks for the good luck
Sally x

cw18

Happy Birthday alec eiffel

alec_eiffel wrote: »

I live in Lytham St Annes which is on the Lancashire coast.

I know exactly where you mean, as I lived in Warton from Jan 66 until Sept 01 (other than a stint in St. Annes & Lytham from Sept 83-Apr 84, and then Lea from March 87 to Aug 91)

minnie2

Happy birthday Alec!!!!

i had to buy some ingredients for cake making - had £6.46 in purse went to tescos spent all but 79p. they didnt have any flour so walked to local shop with the dog and their cheapest was 85p so i had to go home and managed to find the 6p in the bottom of drawers so went back again and got the flour!

i have however been working all day well since 1pm so thats some money in the pot (though i wont get it till next month) got paid to watch the football (i am a footy fan so bonus) plus i also am working right now.well getting paid to loaf on my couch!! so by tomorrow morning i will have made just over £100 for the two days after tax but wont get it till feb!! boo hoo!! hoping with all our spending cuts we can put it towards paying something off!!

tomorrow is expected to be a nsd!!! as i am not leaving the house!! marvellous!!!

itsallinthemind

salski wrote: »

I know for you guys this sint a huge thing - but for me - its MASSIVE - I had my first EVER NSD!! I have never had one before and Iknow its cuz I was stuck in the house al day - I even took the dog to corner shop to buy some cigs and crisps and turned around and took dog on field instead! (~My plan is to give up smoking tomorrow) (AGAIN)
Im so chuffed!

Sally x

salski wrote: »

Thank you very much. This is the 7th attempt to give up as I am very far along pregnant. I manage a month here or a week there then start again. So Ive not tried since before Christmas! Im nervous, but 100% dont want to be a smoker once baby arrives!
Thanks for the good luck
Sally x

Salski
Well done :T I am finding the NSD's hard, 2/8 currently, the only thing that is keeping me doing it is a well stocked store cupboard and making sure I get everything I NEED when i do go out. It is going to be a nightmare this next week, not letting the children go in to the shop etc as they never quite understand that we have bananas at home so do not need more when a minute walk away!

Have you thought about the e cigs Erme was talking about? It is hard, but do not stress about it or beat yourself up. I smoke outside and I never knew my Mum was a smoker till older. I do not smoke because she does, I started due to being a rascal lol. My last midwife told me preganancy is the most stressful time to give up and if you have passed 26 weeks, you may as well wait to after the birth as most smoking Mums then can not stand picking up baby as they know the fumes can be dangerous even hours after smoking.

twiglet98

kittiej wrote: »

OCD - my idea of 'living on £4k' is that this covers gas, electric, diesel and food shopping, the things I can control my spending on. It doesn't cover the things I have to pay like mortgage, water, council tax etc.

Ah... can I leave out all the regular direct debits for the house, then? Council tax, water, TV licence (no Sky), building/contents insurance, mortgage protection assurance? Electricity and heating oil are things that can be cut down to some extent, though my adult offspring waste hideous amounts of both when I'm not in the house to keep switching things off!

cw18

Totally personal choice as to whether folks include CT, insurance, mortgage/rent etc

I prefer to include everything, 'cos if my insurances etc go up I have to cut back elsewhere to cover the increases. If I didn't, then my outgoings would be more than my incomings Even if I didn't include some of these, I'd still include water as I'm on a meter - and as such I do have some control over it

JayneC

Hi again everybody,

Kerry Woman - I got the soapnuts online from inasoapnutshell, I think yoiu can get a free sample. I've used them before but kids complained about their clothes smelling odd so stopped. But have got some essential oils to try with them as I'm determined to be more environmentally consciencious (sp?) on that note Puddleglum I've actually been shopping less and less at the supermarket and supporting local business more. I'm going to try and stop using it completely (apart from an independent local one that stocks local produce). I've found that most things are actually cheaper. I drive about quite a lot with work and often pass farm shops - I can get a 25k sack of spuds for £6 which last a couple of months (at least) and although the produce isn't always organic I figure that local is better than organic from the supermarket which may have been flown across the world and driven around the country and packaged in plastic and actually a lot of small producers are orgainc but can't afford the registration with the Soil Association so can't label their goods orgainic!! I try other ways of reducing costs such as growing stuff myself and not buying 'treats' which aren't really treats - things like crisps, pop and biscuits. I do bake cakes and biscuits tho

Anyaways after my rant - Happy Birthday Alec and all best Helenpie on your business venture.

Managed to spend £15.71 at the greengrocers today, but did get milk and yoghurts as well as F&V and didn't get any meat from butchers - am making do with the meat I have in, trying to make it last until 25th when I get my lamb from the CSA (community supported agriculture scheme - I buy a shearling lamb that is raised on the moors and get a potion of it each month. Not the same lamb obviously:D) and that's my shopping for the week apart from more milk and baked beans , which I might have a go at doing myself and possibly need some cheese too.

Off to bed now, BTW can't belive there were 5 pages since yesterday!!

Night night x

angelaf_3

Thanks Helen pie for that I looked and looked but couldn't see it there. I must have been to tired to see. Thank you cw18 for the spread sheet it's fab. I've been trying to fill it in today but I have failed thanks to too many interuptions. Like Scarlet said 'tomorrow is another day' so will try again tomorrow.

'Hmmm..not sure...I am trying to make corners on gussets of bags...read something about a french seam..Understand this though. Any more simple info would be appreciated...Hugs'

Erme what exactly are you trying to do? Are you trying to neaten edges or make a gusset as I may be able to help.

SandraScarlett

My DH said he wanted to watch the footie at 10.30, and has snored loudly since 10.31! Well done to everyone on your NSDs, and MSDs, and a big well done to those of you who now have well stocked cupboards, fridges and freezers.

Even if you've only saved £1 this week, and that's all you go on to do each week, that's £50 towards pre-Christmas food shopping at the end of the year. Or £50 to spend on a well deserved pampering at your beauty salon!

xx