Buy a baby

chicken-noodle

Maybe I'll try ebaying the dress anyway- just dont want to give it away for peanuts.

The washer/drier rental is one of the those things that works better in the long run for us. Ive had new/ second hand/ free ones before which i have had to fork out loads more for when they went bust or had to pay for new floor when they flooded the floor. So actually with these considerations I think it will save us money-plus peace of mind for me as if it breaks i get a repair or a new one straight away. Also the cost will go down with time and we are on the list to have a used rental which should half the cost.

But thank you anyway. I have a small freezer in perfectly good condition which i cant seem to sell- do you think it might go on freecycle as it seems wasteful just to throw it out?

13katrina

I'm fairly new to the boards too and I need to clear my debts so that (a) my husband can move back home and (b) I can have a baby (the only difference is I already have a 3 year old daughter).

Have just been looking at you SOA and I have to say, £250 seems quite high for two adults for food/toiletries/cleaning materials etc. There are people on these boards with a family of four or more spending a similar amount (and in some cases less than that). I think you could easily halve that amount with a bit of menu planning and switching to supermarket own brands on products where you won't notice the difference - obviously this will vary for everyone because we all have different prioritises.

You should check out the old style money saving boards. Personally, I have found the ideas really useful and have made loads of savings in the last couple of weeks.

Here's a link to get you started on cheap meal ideas.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=326929

I recently wrote a month of menus - it took the best part of two evenings but was a really worthwhile exercise. It helped me to focus on what I need to buy and in what quantities (and it also made me see where I would be wasting food due to left-overs and planned this into my meals). I made a shopping list for the first shop of the month – I included all of the food I needed to buy for the entire month that would keep or freeze plus the fresh items I would need for the first week. I then wrote another shopping list for each subsequent week for the additional fresh items I would need. No excuses, the shopping lists are done and cover everything that I’ve planned – all I have to do is shop and stick to the list. I also came in under the budget I had set myself for the entire month (including toiletries and cleaning materials).

Good luck.

Katrina

chicken-noodle

hi Squishy,
Do you have a little one now or are you expecting? x my DH would love to be stay at home Dad but I want to be the one to do that- plus job wise it makes more sense.

chicken-noodle

Thanks Katrina- I know the shopping is something I really need to work on- like you say its probably the planning that counts. Well I'm working on that tonight as I only have £10 to do the weeks shop- not quite sure how im going to manage it -but have no choice due to OH getting a speeding fine so short of cash (again!!)

13katrina

Hi again,

Just thought I'd say - I sold my wedding dress on ebay last year. There were marks on my wedding dress but I just mentioned it in the listing. It sold for £350.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8271146751&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.ebay.co.uk%3A80%2Fsearch%2Fsearch.dll%3Ffrom%3DR40%26satitle%3D8271146751%26fvi%3D1

Here's a link - it's quite an old link so the photo's are not showing - I used six photos from my actual wedding - it really does show your dress at it's best and I think that makes all the difference.

Good Luck.

chicken-noodle

thanks thats really useful- ive not actually sold anything on ebay before and didnt realise i needed that much detail- so i hope you dont mind but i might use yours as a bit of a template for the details i need to include- you got a great price as well- if i can get 50% back id be sooo pleased.
Did you mind selling it at all? I know that some people I have said it to find it odd that i dont mind selling it.

chicken-noodle

Feeling great because I just spent only £6.75 on our weekly shop (all because I did a weekly meal plan as suggested may i add.) I'm going to rewrite my plan all pretty and stick it on the fridge now to make sure its stuck to. This will hopefully mean some more money to push towards a cc at the end of the week. Wahoo!!!! (feel like I should be awarded a sticker star or something!!)

Snaggles

One sticker star for Chicken-noodle coming up! :staradmin

Well done, that's a brilliant result on the weeks shopping budget. :T

chicken-noodle

Thanks Snaggles,
Ive been reading your progress and cant wait til I can start working on a baby fund- little while to go yet though, but when i see what everyone else is acheiving everything seems possible.
- will add star to my sticker chart !

Snaggles

Is 24/05/07 when you are going to start trying? It's not far away at all - I'm due on 11th May, and it feels scarily close lol!