Hard Times: How to cope with everyday living.

candygirl

Ive also:
Cancelled Gym membership, and T mobile dongle, as well as cutting down on alcohol and buying lots of uneccessary toiletries and cleaning stuff:DI just use stardrops now, and water down my WIL:D;)
I also shop in the Asian supermarket for lentils, chick peas ,herbs and spices as they are soo much cheaper:eek::eek:
Also use far less washing powder than is recommended on the box, and have put my shampoos n conds in pump dispensers so don't use as much:D:D

sb88_2

I'm new to MS, and have spent the last two months away from home and changing my behaviour, It's been difficult, but do-able

• Stopped buying clothes for the sake of new clothes, i now only purchase things I ABSOLUTLY NEED, buy from charity shops when possible.
• Taking a sewing class, so can now mend/make my own clothes
• Don't have sky, or a house phone, don't miss either!
• Meal plan, weekly, bi weekly, monthly!
• Cook 90% from scratch
• There's only two of us, so when a jar of sauce says serves 4, I freeze half the jar , and use it for another meal.
• Buy whole chickens and joint it, freeze raw in portions of 140 grams of meat (a serving of meat for my diet) one chicken = 2 large breasts (usually 4 servings) 2 legs, 2 wings, 2 thighs,
• I then use the bones for stock and make soup. I then pick off any remaining chicken, freeze it, and add it to pad out a lentil/chickpea &vegetable curry.
• Try to have a few vegetarain meals a week, but OH is very fussy.
• buy asdas free range eggs, mixed weight

These are some that I can think of off the top of my head.

coffeebeen

We're doing quite a lot compared to what we were before:

Cancelled gym
Cancelled Lovefilm, magazine subscriptions
Staying in more playing board games/ reading books etc
No meals out or takeaways
Going shopping with a list and a meal plan!
Adding in a few cheap meals like cereal or soup
Cut down on the amount of new books bought (one of our biggest vices!)- use library, readitswapit, charity shops
No new clothes unless really need them. (this has really stretched me as I was a clothes addict, but I feel better for it and love charity shops etc)
Budget for 'fun' money each, not just spend whatever
Read and watch all of the books and DVDs we have in before buying new ones!

Surprisingly, none of this has been that bad once we got used to it. I still struggle with clothes and magazine impulses, but these things make such a huge difference I'm determined to carry on!

pukkamum

Well we made the decision that having 2 cars was a luxury we cannot afford especially as one is a 2l sri (very expensive to run, insure and tax) so we now just have my little 3 door 1l clio, with three kids we feel slightly like the Clampits clambering in and out but it's saved us over £100 per month, and i keep telling myself the hour round trip walk to school is good for my waistline.

We have got rid of Sky and just have the basic virgin package, thought the kids would be gutted at losing the kids channels but in fact it has made life easier with only 3 kids channels there is no longer the wanting to watch mindless t.v constantly.

I bought a load of fleece blankets from Ikea (£2.98 each) for use under sheets on beds, on top of beds, on the couch, at the doors as curtains, making into cosy toes for the baby's pram, making mittens, DH says he's convinced it's only a matter of time before all our clothes are made from cheap Ikea blankets ha ha.

I window shop on-line, i go on the catalogue websites, shop as if i had the money adding things to my basket (never ridiculous things just things i would buy before the crunch) and then i leave the website DH thinks it's hilarious but it fulfills my 'shopping needs' when a bit down ha ha ha.

We have gone nearly all basics in our shopping and as well as now doing a weeks shop for five for under £60 we are eating better as i have to be more creative, i also go on the market every saturday for my fruit and veg.

I buy nearly all of mine and the kids clothes second hand (thank you MSE fairy exchange) and sell on anything else.

I no longer buy magazines.

I do still buy Morrisons finest coleslaw, i just cannot bear cheap coleslaw so it is my one indulgence.

jess1974

We are a family of 5 and we no longer or very rarely have takeaways or eat out, for 5 of us to have sunday lunch out is around £70 i think thats astronomical and will not pay it.
We don't smoke or go to the pub (how does anyone afford to do that nowadays), but we like a drink at home, we have 2 cars as we live in a rural village, but mine is small, cheap to run, low tax etc.
we have oil heating, so i am very frugal with it, we have a woodburner in the living room, and costs us nothing as hubby gets the wood from work, i have never had a starbucks or any other expensive coffee as i feel they are a rip off and am perfectly capable of waiting till i get home to have a drink.....

soul619

Aarons_mummy wrote: »

I buy all gifts in the sales (family has expensive tastes, homemade would just not do!).

this is the sort of thing that really p's me off! people should be grateful for any gift at all! some of my family are like this an they expect so much.... it shouldnt be that way an i wasnt brought up that way either!

Desperate_Housewife_2-2

soul619 wrote: »

this is the sort of thing that really p's me off! people should be grateful for any gift at all! some of my family are like this an they expect so much.... it shouldnt be that way an i wasnt brought up that way either!

It p's me off too. My ex sister in law was terrible, she used to TELL me what to buy her kids, what colour etc and where to buy it from! I always ignored her and got them what I could afford, I knit them both aran jumpers one year and bought them books and things that she would never get them (she said she didnt like books!) but was always met with a stoney silince post xmas or birthdays...
Needless to say I dont bother now, they kids are nearly grown up and dont value anything (except money!) so I dont bother.

A big tip for parents is to bring your kids up with the right attitude to money, mine are grateful for everything I give them as they see how hard we work and know it comes from the heart. Any 'dodgy' activities I do (such as adding porridge oats to mince sauce to spin it out a bit) are seen as being forgivable in such an old eccentric bird such as me!

mishmogs

About 16 years ago, I contacted all my mates and whats left of my family and asked them not to buy me or OH anything for christmas or birthday as we didnt need or want anything and I would only be buying for the kiddies until they were 16.

The response from everyone was very positive and all were relieved.

we exchange cards for xmas and birthday and phone each other and that to me is far more enjoyable to have 20 mins or so on the phone catching up.

we have seriously reduced our going out for meals to once a month with a voucher and cheap night at the cinema if there is something we want to see and take our own snacks and water.

We too are down to one car and I cycle or use the bus (I live in a rural area but I can manage on my cycle).

A lot more creative with food and less meat and more veggies and more chunky soup.

My heating isnt on yet (but I am running it for a day or two to 'air' the house and then its off again until its really cold). We have a mink blanket downstairs and one upstairs and I bought a 13.5 tog quilt from sainsburys (duck feather) and its lovely and snuggly and was a bargain price, the old one will become our mattress topper when it gets cold.

OH is doing the odd jobs on the car instead of taking it to the garage and hes slowly tidying the garage. How can one man have sooooo many tools?

I am doing more crafts (crocheting, reading, rug making) than before as I dont want to sit and watch telly all the time.

Started visiting museums etc in the city (Cambridge) and take a mini picnic using the bus, OH uses his newly acquired bus pass. Parking and P&R are stupid prices. Also going for walks around the backs of the colleges for stunning scenery and people watching - a good sport for sure!

Keeping an eye out for bargains and stocking up, but only on items which we use a lot of eg baked beans!

giving ourselves an allowance to spend and keeping to that budget. I also had a clothes buying habit and this has seriously reduced and need to stop it completely. So am going cold turkey next week.

Started using the library a lot more especially as suffolk council want to close all the branches...grrrrr.......

more to come no doubt!

narabanekeater

Just a few things we've done now were a family of 5
* Downgrade virgin and phones to the lowest package
* Have a newer but cheaper to run and insure car
* A big one for me is learn the word NO and use it and don't try and keep up with the Jones as it's not my surname
* Learn how much a food potion is
* Do not take DH or my children shopping
* Use mysupermarket and Tesco's price promise
* Stop fridge picking (better for my waist and food stocks)

Lavandula

soul619 wrote: »

this is the sort of thing that really p's me off! people should be grateful for any gift at all! some of my family are like this an they expect so much.... it shouldnt be that way an i wasnt brought up that way either!

Totally agree. Personally I would be happier to get some lovely homemade soaps or crocheted stuff etc, as any of the christmas tat that fills the shops these days.

In many ways I wish I could turn the clock back to a more simple age. I have just been re-watching Tales from the Green Valley and would highly recommend this series to anyone interested in history/self sufficiency/old ways/simple living. It is about a group of historians (same as those on Victorian farm) living on a farm in the reign of James I (1620). IT IS FAB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!