Lulabelle's MFW Diary

lulabelle1

I discovered that the boots I got the other day which were £89 and then I found a 20% discount code for had been reduced to £65! So, I ordered another pair, again with a 20% discount code and free delivery - making them £52, instead of £68. I haven't worn the other pair yet so I shall choose the best pair (suede can vary) and then return the other pair along with the £68 invoice, job done!

DS1 is having a friend round for tea and play after school today, so i need to go and batch cook some pasta sauce - they will have some of it for a pasta bake and the rest will be portioned and frozen.

Off to London late tomorrow afternoon, we're recruiting a consultant and I need to meet with them to sign the agreement and run through everything so that they can get started on Friday. So in the meantime, I'm prepping things for them and trying to think what they will need to have.

Business partner on holiday again so no one to sanity check my ideas with, I'd pretty useless if I had to manage alone all of the time.

Iona_Penny

Well done discovering the cheaper boots. I really admire your ability to do this - I am sure I would not be even be looking once they had arrived! Thought it had been a little quiet here, just want you to say you are not alone on here..still readers.

lulabelle1

Thanks Iona, hope all is well with you.....

Popped out to Tesco earlier - have a few birthdays coming up and wanted to get the cards, also needed to get out of the house for a break from the computer screen. Resisted the special offer Sushi and just bought a granary roll as I had some leftover fillings in the fridge that needed to be used up. Yummy.

Already on the countdown for next months payday...... I have the cost of flights and accommodation sitting on my credit card and I just want to pay it off and get the balance back to zero. It unsettles me seeing the balance so high...:eek:

Mortgage statement arrived earlier..... ties in with what I thought but it's quite amusing to see all of the payments one after another, especially the tilly tidies!

GreenNinja

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS wrote: »

Hi, I really understand your DH points. I actually wouldn't start a diary until he was on board as I felt the numbers were too much for me alone.

Not sure if this will help you but this is how I handle the shopping. Hope you love spreadsheets......

Depending upon whether i am using a 4 week or 8 week menu plan, once a month, if I am using a 4 week plan, (every couple of months if an 8 week plan) I do a freezer stock check, cupboard check and fridge, sounds a big job but I have 2 fridges and 1 tall freezer, 2 cupboards and it only takes about 35 mins all in. I then sit with a coffee, lap top in front of me and plan every meal. That really does include breakfasts, lunches, kids lunches, after school snacks, dinners etc. I do this on a weekly chart showing kids activities as well. That helps me to understand if it's a quick night, and I have to take something out of the freezer, or, it's an OK night and I can cook after work.

I then cross the ingredients from my larder/freezer list as I use them up. This allows me to look for 'whoopsies', offers etc and use them up sensibly. I often pop stuff into the slow cooker on a Saturday and then portion it up, box, label and freeze. This truly has saved a fortune and I only go to the bigger supermarkets if I am on a grabbit hunt. I cook 1 or 2 veg meals a week and my DS and DH will now eat them with no complaints..... I spend for two adults and 2 teenage kids around £100 including dog/cat food, toiletries, cleaning products etc. In the last year I have found that Aldi is capable of fulfilling far more of our needs than years ago.

We do grow fruit,veg which doesn't save a fortune but I grow tons of salad in the summer for pennies which definitely does save money. I also go blackberry, plum foraging which is great fun. It takes me away from excel sheets and work. I then prep them and freeze. There are some links to menu planning on this site somewhere and I am thinking of starting one up as well. All helps give us inspiration.

Last suggestion for now, change your habits so that you stop going shopping as often, do something new with the kids, go for a walk, swim who knows what, but I have found breaking the cycle of how you do things allows you to change without too much pain.

Sorry if I have gone on but your post struck a chord and I wanted to help if I could.

Good luck

Brilliant info Tilly, many thanks for that! :beer:

lulabelle1

GreenNinja wrote: »

Brilliant info Tilly, many thanks for that! :beer:

Wow - Tilly's message was a blast from the past.... I remember her writing this ages ago. All good advice and the good news is that most/all of it has been taken on board!

lulabelle1

I've scrutinised the mortgage statement and in a nutshell it is as follows:

During 2012, we paid a net amount of £20,704 (we took back £11k towards my car, otherwise it would have been £31,704).

The mortgage term, according to Nationwide is:
M1 - 7 years 3 months (down from 13y 8m)
M2 - 11years (down from 15y 11m)

Of course, our plan is to have the lot paid off by the end of 2016, which is now less than 4 years - eek!

At the moment, I still do not know what our plans will be once we are mortgage free; maybe a bigger house, save and invest in a B2L, perhaps save towards buying a property abroad or just spend the amount I save each month on handbags.....

nattypants

As long as you stay on here with me, I don't mind what you do;)

Well done on being so:money: with the boots, thank goodness for the grotty weather disallowing you from wearing the first pair:D

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

GreenNinja wrote: »

Brilliant info Tilly, many thanks for that! :beer:

That was a blast from the past and progress has been made as my normal spend (not counting January as I'm on a mission) is around £50-80 a week. That was for basically 5 adults as the kids eat the same as an adult. I am guessing my spend will reduce now my lodger has moved to their next assignment.

Funny to read that back as I am still saying the same things today :rotfl:

Tilly x

Tilly_MFW_in_6_YRS

Hi Lula, result on the boots :j:j:j

Tilly x

lulabelle1

nattypants wrote: »

As long as you stay on here with me, I don't mind what you do;)

Well done on being so:money: with the boots, thank goodness for the grotty weather disallowing you from wearing the first pair:D

Sweet thing! I'm sure I will be hanging around for a while yet.....

Boots and I went out today. So, new boots will be returned with old invoice for refund.