Time to get organised and get on with it!

peaceandfreedom

DDFW, Thank you so much for your lovely long helpful post - so sweet of you to spend so much time helping me out.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

Your plan sounds good Meal Planning helped me cut down the food shopping bill - and also bulk buying when there was a really good offer on. I also dropped brands on quite a few things - clothes washing liquid, liquid soap (just dispense it into the dearer bottle ) and various other basics - biscuits, bread sticks, bread made in the store. Buying certain reduced price veg and chopping and blanching as necessary and freezing. Meat - buy nearly all of it reduced price - when its got the reduced sticker on and then i just freeze it

These are all great ideas. I will definitely make more biscuits / goodies rather than buy them because the stuff you buy is such rubbish anyway and everyone loves my home baking. :A Loving the soap dispenser idea. :T I think the key is to plan the whole week's food, and if I find reduced stuff to use it or freeze it as you say.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

I also panic about my home - i can't get a new mortgage because my wage is a third (approx) of what i was earning when i got the house which is why i'm desperate to get the debt gone and the mortgage down

Yes, well I know that feeling. When we renewed our mortgage we couldn't look around for good deals because we didn't want anyone looking too closely into our financial affairs (this was before DH lost his job). The house is worth 3 or 4 times the mortgage, so that's OK but one has to be able to pay the mortgage ....

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

You work hard though peaceandfreedom and you have a plan - i would say not to worry but i know its impossible sometimes to switch the worry button off and its good to put a plan in place.

I try to stay positive but every so often I have a really wobbly time. I think it's sometimes due to a culmination of things - especially if I've dived into the biscuit tin (plays havoc with my emotions, the old blood sugar going up/down). I have some good upbeat motivational things on my Kindle and I try to calm down and read those and BREATHE.

I'm not that bothered for ME, if you know what I mean, I'd up sticks and travel the world and do odd manual jobs for a while. But my poor babies (well, thumping great teenagers but they're still my babies), I don't want to let them down.

Oh and I don't work hard enough either - too much time is squandered, have to sort that out too.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

What about m**ains? Less than 5 minutes a week this is - i just encouraged my mum to do it and since then she has had £30 in vouchers already this year These can be for amaz*n or good high st. clothes shops and maybe some food places too ? You will get to cashout quite quickly so let me know if you want my guide for this

I don't know what m**ains is - but do tell me more. I don't do much in the way of surveys because they are such time-wasters. I also find I get a few screens in and then I'm told I'm not suitable, drives me mad.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

With you carbooty looty - do you make up boxes of stuff nearer the end of the day and ask for a £1 for the box - obviously if its just stuff you want rid of - we've done this at all of our carboots and made at least £10 before the end of the day because of this

I have never done this but I love the idea. I think we've enough stuff for one more car boot, so I will try that next time.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

Oh dear! just realised i may well be chirping away here and it might not be what you want to hear. I'm just trying to help hon and from what you've said you're doing all the right things.

And don't beat yourself up - its really hard to change spending / living habits - the gradual process is quite probably the one most of us go through. I find i get to a certain point and after a while think what more can i do ? x

Aww, I've loved your chirping away - it's really helped.

Sorry to hog your thread a little bit, Jwil, I'll slope off now and get back to normal.

peaceandfreedom

Yay, bids on two more things, loads more watchers, am excited again. :j

Off now to make some leek and potato soup for tea and then do some digging. :A

peaceandfreedom

So I didn't make the soup, OH was making himself dinner so I couldn't get at the cooker. But I did do the digging and my second batch of spuds has been planted. Also did a few other jobs out there - it was pitch black when I came back in!

Earlier today I sowed quite a few more seeds - I should have been working but I needed to calm myself down a bit and I find gardening so therapeutic. Especially sowing seeds - there's such promise there in those tiny little trays of compost - when you visualise what they'll turn into. Gives me hope for the future in a strange way.

Haven't eaten yet so I'll find something snacky and I'll make the soup for tomorrow's lunch. Will also make some flapjacks.

DedicatedDFW

Hey everyone

peaceandfreedom - i also remembered last night about soups - and i can see you've posted about them as well i think there has been talk on other threads about this ? Anyways - to make a meal more filling - and also helps to stop the snacking later on - is to do a soup starter with meals. Especially great if you grow your own veg or get reduced price veg and can make your own. I've no blender sadly so currently i just buy the soups from the fridge when they have the yellow reduced sticker on and generally i'll pay between 50p - 80p a tub which will feed 2 of us.

I also on my thread went through my SOA again - i didn't post it as i've still got less income than outgoings :eek: especially since no longer doing my part-time job as well But i went through it to see if any cutbacks could be made - had already compared energy prices and changed provider via cashback the previous month I also negotiated a reduction on the line rental

Its good you've found something calming that you can do hon - gardening is so rewarding

peaceandfreedom

jwil wrote: »

I'm feeling pretty exhausted today and don't have a lot of energy so sorry my replies are short everyone.

I'm not sure what the forecast is for the weekend, we are out Brizzle's way on Saturday so might try and catch some bootys there if they are on, and Sunday DH wants to go somewhere subject to weather so not much chance of booting there either.

Maybe Monday if things look up, though all the monday ones are on grass, so it will be hard going if we have any more rain.

Hi Jwil

Hope you are feeling better today.

The forecast is looking good for Saturday/Sunday actually, dry and maybe even sunny but not very warm.

I am defo not car booting because I need to to some work and also some decorating and possibly a stint in the garden. I actually have my hours planned out until Tuesday, how lame is that? But stuff needs to be done and I need to project-manage myself better.

Hope you do well if you decide to do a bit of booting, your energy never ceases to amaze me. :T

peaceandfreedom

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

peaceandfreedom - i also remembered last night about soups - and i can see you've posted about them as well i think there has been talk on other threads about this ? Anyways - to make a meal more filling - and also helps to stop the snacking later on - is to do a soup starter with meals. Especially great if you grow your own veg or get reduced price veg and can make your own. I've no blender sadly so currently i just buy the soups from the fridge when they have the yellow reduced sticker on and generally i'll pay between 50p - 80p a tub which will feed 2 of us.

I love soup I must say, but I never eat if we are going out for a meal because it will fill me up too much - so it's an excellent point that it can be used as a filler before a meal - especially as making soup is so cheap. The leeks came free from someone who runs an allotment too.

I have one of those stick blenders and just stick it in the saucepan to whizz up the soup. I don't mind if a few lumps and bumps are still in there but I have to say the blender does a marvellous job.

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

I also on my thread went through my SOA again - i didn't post it as i've still got less income than outgoings :eek: especially since no longer doing my part-time job as well

Indeed, it's not a nice feeling but it's one I'm oh-so-familiar with. Hope you get things sorted, DDFW, these are tough times.

Off now to have my soup and maybe a flapjack. (So much for my revised weight loss plan )

DedicatedDFW

Hey everyone

I am sorry about earlier - had a totally stressful day and i had meant to post a reply to everyone - checking in how jwil, retiredandskint, LAM, brizzle, mrs pg and teatime and anyone else i've missed off are

But as i say - horridly stressful day and then my train was cancelled and i felt guilty for missing you guys off

Anyway - having got through a difficult day i have now poured myself a beer as part of my winding down process :beer: So how are you all? I hope you are ok - in fact i hope of course that you are better than ok but you know what i mean :cool:

I'll probably keep popping on with suggestions for moneysaving goodness though - its terrible i really enjoy bargains and saving money and making cutbacks but there's no-one i can chat to about that except for on here

I do have to confess a small spend today £3 - hugely bargainous in the sale - a hair clip i've had my eye on since mine broke and a stunning ring - both of course hugely reduced in the sale and i'm not going to say i shouldn't have got them BUT i am going to have to be very strict on the spending money purse a' la lula-hula

Ok - todays little hint As i have said before *i think* i make alot of stews, casseroles and chillis - all using reduced price meat But i am always complemented on a lovely meal Anyways what i've taken to doing now is throwing in an extra tin of cheap tomatoes (usually i can get these for 25p - 33p a tin) and some extra tomato puree (tried the lower brand but i've got to stick to the good stuff on this) + an extra tin of kidney beans and this packs the meals out too Obviously i only add extra of these if they were part of the recipe anyway - although i did get a bit creative on a stew the other week Still it turned out very tasty although it was also very different to normal too

Herbs come from my little butler sink herb garden Delicious and money saving

Another moneysaving thing i;ve taken to doing is walking where i can instead of taking the car - prompted by the lovely Cheery blog - so now i will walk the 3miles + round trip to post a parcel rather than take the car out - of course only possible when there is the time for this too but it does get some exercise in and i've been known to run this route too :j

peaceandfreedom

Jwil, helllllooooooo!

How are you doing? You've gone very quiet. Hope all our chattering hasn't made you run for cover and hope you're OK.

I miss you. :kisses3:

ebayqueen_2

Evening Jwil..hope all well with you.

DDFw you sound in good form tonight .. enjoy your beer.

Hello to everyone:)

peaceandfreedom

DedicatedDFW wrote: »

Another moneysaving thing i;ve taken to doing is walking where i can instead of taking the car - prompted by the lovely Cheery blog - so now i will walk the 3miles + round trip to post a parcel rather than take the car out - of course only possible when there is the time for this too but it does get some exercise in and i've been known to run this route too :j

Yes, that's another thing I am going to try as well. I'm going to dust down the push-bike and use that instead of those short journeys. Fuel is a huge expense especially as mine is the only decent car in the house.

I very much doubt I'll be known to run though. :rotfl: