Have an outstanding October with the NSD challenge

solventsoon

:jWELCOME TO THE OCTOBER NSD CHALLENGE:j



October, the month of mist and mellow fruitfulness, or so some say. The Saxons must have agreed with this (well, when they were conscious anyway:D) they called it Wyn Monath because it was the season of wine making - we may have a problem with Igor when he reads this.

Apart from making vast quantities of wine there lots of other things for us to celebrate - see below:

1 October - the first Model T Ford was introduced by Henry Ford in 1870
1 October - McD’s opened its first British outlet in London in 1974
3 October - East and West Germany re-united
6 October - Captain James Cook discovered New Zealand in 1769 (very appopriate at the moment)
14 October - first Walkman invented (anyone remember them?) in 1979
31 October - Halloween (we had a heck of a Halloween party last year, can we better it this year

And my personal favourite
14 October - Winnie the Pooh first published in 1926 - hence this month’s prizes - well, with my avatar I’m not going to ignore this, am I???

For anyone who hasn’t joined us before, we are a happy (and some might say mildly insane:D) bunch doing battle with those nasty retailers - and there’s plenty of temptation all around us. We are seriously committed to saving money, but nobody said it can't be done with a smile on your face - so we organise riotous nights out and gatecrash any function going - all without leaving the comfort of our own imaginations or armchairs!

On a slightly more serious note, we are here to help each other avoid spending for the number of days we feel we can manage to try to take back some control over our hard-earned money. What you class as a "spend'" is entirely your choice; some people will try to shop on the days DD/SO etc are paid, whilst others will not include essentials such as rent. Have a look for a post from our sponsor (and godmother of this thread) BigMummaF, this contains some guidelines and ideas for starting you off on the challenge.

It’s amazing how inventive you get when you’re determined NOT to spend - from weird menu ingredients to surprising DIY solutions - but you know what? 99% of the time those wacky ideas work.


The link to last month’s thread is below so you can see what a friendly group we are. New recruits are joining up all the time - everyone is welcome so please don’t be shy, come and join us, the more the merrier.


:)Good luck everyone, our lucky mascot is joining us again for October





Here are some threads to help keep us on the straight and narrow, if you know of others, please post. Many of the lunch box ideas are aimed toward children and are great ideas now that it’s holiday time and everyone’s out and about.

March Grocery Challenge, with lots of recipe ideas.
Tinned Food Recipes.
Leftovers? Don’t Throw It..
Exciting Sandwich Fillings on a Budget.
Lunch for Work.
Laptop Lunchbox Ideas.
Packed Lunches.
Cheap Healthy Snacks
Cheap Snack Ideas to Stop Buying Crisps.
Homemade Snack Ideas…contains further links for ideas.
Sprouting Seeds to Eat.
Really Quick & Alternative Snacks.
Easy Homemade Biscuits.
Muesli & Cereal Bar Recipes.
Weetabix Cake.
HM Popcorn.
Smoothie Recipes.
Yoghurt Without a Yoghurt Maker.
Ham Economics.
Low Carb Kids Lunches...contains advice for diabetics.
Kids Lunch Box Ideas.
Back to School Lunches.
Healthy Kids Snacks.
HM Lollies.
Ice Lolly Ideas
Cheap Healthy Playground Snacks.
Homemade Fudge.
OS HM Sweets.
Forgotten Puddings.
Making chocolates or sweets

Link to last month's challenge is below so any newcomers can see what we get up to (hmmmmm... on second thoughts, that might put you off...;))

solventsoon

I think you may have guessed the theme for this month's prizes already, but I hope you like them:D

target met = target no 2 met =
target no 3 met = target no 4 met =
target exceeded =


Thanks to all the regulars and newbies who have joined up already.



Actress - 7

beachie - 29
beadgirl87 - 10 4
beanielou - 14 14 target increased - 16 16 target increased - 18 18 target exceeded - 19
Betsie2010 - 9 9
bottleofred - 12 12 target increased - 16 16 target exceeded - 17
bowlofsoup - 20 5
butdoineedit? - 10 10 target increased - 14 14 target exceeded - 16
Butti - 9 9

chris81418 - 19 19 target increased - 22 22 target exceeded - 23
cleggie - 7 5
cuddlymarm - 14 13
cw18 - 15 1

debtfree future - 7 6
donna dynamo - 15 15 target increased - 18 18 target exceeded - 19

ebayqueen - 14
Ed from beds - 15 2
elfen - 10 10 target increased - 12 12 target increased - 14 14 target exceeded - 15
Emzilla - 20

fedupandskint - 15 15 target exceeded - 16
freshair - 10 5
Frodobaggins - 16 16 target increased - 17 17


greenanne - 15 15

honey - 12 11

ifwishes - 17 17 target increased - 18 18 target increased - 19 19 target increased - 20 20
Igamogam - 15 8
iwanttogoonholiday - 12 11

jaffacakegal - 16 15
Jay83 - 14
jintyb - 16 16 target exceeded - 17

Kaloloke - 8
karen is trying - 15 3
kathy40uk - 15 2
Keiss 21 - 18 18
kerri gt - 12 12

Learning2Budget - 12 6
Lewby - 10
Lily_The_Legend - 10
LittleMissHappy - 15 8
LondonGirl252 - 15 11
lotti379 - 10 10target exceeded - 11
Lula-Hula - 16 14
lynnette78 - 10 10 target exceeded - 11

marmiterulesok - 14 14 target increased - 18 17
milann - 15 11
misstamsilakanwal - 15
ModestyB - 10 10 target exceeded - 11
money_honey - 8 7
Mrs Good Life - 10 10 target increased 15 - 12
ms_night_ryder - 10 1
muffin man 7 - 10 10 target increased - 20 20 target exceeded - 22
mysk_girl - 15 5

Nannygladys - 8
Nargleblast - 15 13

pinkfluffybabe - 20 6
pinkpinkuk - 7 6
pixiechick99 - 12
positivelypurple - 10 1
princess_shopoholic - 20 13

QueenB - 10 10 target exceeded - 13

rising from the ashes - 15 15 target exceeded - 17
runnerbean17 - 17 2

SAMFOB - 10
SillyBlondie - 15 15 target increased - 18 18
shezam - 15 4
slowlyfading - 15 15 target increased - 18 18
Smoosh - 10 5
solventsoon - 20 20 target increased - 23 23target exceeded - 24
SpendSpendSpend - 15 15
squeeeek - 15
Still-in-debt - 18 4

The Dragon - 10 10 target increased to 15 - 15
toottifrootti - 14 3
TwelveStopsThenHome - 10 10

wannabehermit - 10 7
Want_to_be_free - 15 15
WelshWoofer - 8

solventsoon

This is for anyone who wants to set themselves a target for a number of NSDs in a row. We had some impressive numbers on this over the past few months so if anyone would like to have a go at this, I'll add you here

chris81418 - 6 in a row - woohoo... made it
actually made - 13 in a row - woohoooooo

fedupandskint - 6 in a row - woohoo... made it

The Dragon - 5 in a row - woohoo... made it

toottifrootti - 5 in a row

LondonGirl252 - 5 in a row - woohoo ... made it

greenanne - 5 in a row - woohoo... made it

muffin man 7 - 5 in a row - woohoo... made it

Frodobaggins - 4 in a row - woohoo ... made it

Keiss 21 - 4 in a row

lynnette78 - 4 in a row - woohoo ... made it

QueenB - 3 in a row - woohoo ... made it

Actress - 3 in a row

solventsoon

Hi lovely NSD gang:A
As you can see there is lots of activity on this challenge at the moment and it's difficult sometimes to see how many NSDs you're all declaring on posts.
Could I ask you to highlight your number of NSDs in a colour and in bold so that I can see them easily when I whizz through the posts - red would be best but I don't really mind as long as I can see the numbers easily.


Some helpful suggestions and ideas to follow below from our sponsor and godmother, BigMummaF :A

NO SPEND CHALLENGE.

1. Have a good, long think about what YOU want to include in your Spend & Excluded categories.
Some of us count everything from Direct Debits & school expenses, while others do not include things like essential Bills or emergency medical costs. If you plan what is or is not a Spend for you now, it will help you decide on a realistic Target.
2. It is NOT a race!
We all have very different demands on our time & bank balance, so please do not think you have to buy everything on 1st January & make it last till 31st December! A few of us have been following this Challenge for a long...long...LONG time so have developed plans & ploys to help us along the way
3. Most important of all, WE..DO..NOT..FAIL!
Sometimes we can't quite reach our Target, but that is fine Everyone knows how Life will try to trip us up, & that is when you will find us here to help you back on to your feet.

OK, an idea of how some of us do things.
1. What you will or will not include as a 'Spend'.
Some people are doing other challenges too, & don't include the money spent on those for this one.
Some will try to shop for other bits on the days their direct debits etc go out of their bank accounts; they're the real hard core of the bunch & have been l-o-n-g time Nsders so don't panic
Some won't count those annoying last minute demands from school & collections as you can't plan for them in advance, likewise emergency prescriptions or visits to the vet
Personally speaking & providing I don't buy anything else, I don't count parking for hospital appointments.(..but then I usually do my shopping because I'm already out :whistle:)
General thoughts on €bay sales is the buyer has paid P&P so no cost to you
2. It takes Time to reach mega-numbers!
The First suggestion is the first, because a bit of planning will work wonders on your road to your Target. Have a look at Solvent's (aka Spoon:rotfl:) first posts each month for a hefty list of other threads that may be of help. For example, there's a few giving ideas for packed lunches so you can avoid standing in the queue at the bakers for 45mins of your lunch hour! A good incentive to tweak your healthy eating & the pounds you save will show in your bank balance AND your waistline
It helps to have various 'money pots' for the different costs that happen like Scouts, dinner money, yoga, window cleaner etc etc. The idea is you "spend" all that money in one hit by..:think:..let's say **putting the week's bus fares into the pretty coffee jar, Jo's tumble tots SIZE=2]Weds mornings[/SIZE in the cracked teapot & Ben's £1 coin for the gym locker SIZE=2]Friday lunch[/SIZE in the pocket of the changing bag, on Tuesdays every week when you've got some change from doing the food shop, so an already spendy day. At least four 'spending days' condensed into one (**mine's jam jars for windows, milkman & a bit towards the bills!)
3. Any day the money stays in your pocket is a bonus!
If you look at it as a day you beat the system, you can't help but :j so don't fret it--ENJOY! If nothing else in here, we do manage find something to make us smile

We have virtual outings to wonderful places that never cost us a bean :rotfl:New York, Edinburgh & Brighton have been a couple & Spoon usually pilots the Tardis but you can use your own transport; my personal favourite has been a sit-on lawn mower borrowed from the cricket club The only thing to be aware of is Hubert the donkey who is partial to anything remotely edible but is not yet house-trained

And Remember;
there are no silly questions, so don't be afraid to ask us anything!

IF

Thank you for doing October’s thread Spoon :A

Could you put me down for 17 NSD’s please xxx

IF

Love the prizes Spoon, especially this!!

solventsoon

ifwisheswerehorses... wrote: »

Love the prizes Spoon, especially this!!

Thanks If, I have to say that's my favourite too

chris81418

Hello everyone! :wave:

Thanks for setting up this month's thread Spoon! You're a star! :starmod:

I'll pledge my usual lucky 19 NSDs please, as well as my regular 6 NSDs in-a-row in the Hall of Fame Challenge - thank you! :money:

Good luck everyone with catching lots of NSDs this month! And lets hope this Indian Summer lasts!

Lula-Hula

Hiya spoony,

thank you so much for running this thread :A. I've had near misses for the last 2 months but will try for 16 again this time please
xx

fedupandskint

After a disappointing total for Sept I'm going for a safer 15 NSD for Oct

Thanks Spoony for the thread and the lovely prizes!

Emzilla

Hi everyone

Would like to join in please . Going to be a tight month for me so thought this will help keep the money in my bank and purse instead of wasting it on unneeded things.

I'll go for 20 NSDs to start with please.

Emz xx