A ginormous jump into 2012 with the January NSD challenge

kerri_gt

well I was debating about declaring a NSD today, I did have to buy some rechargable batteries for the house phone in order to be able to attend a work related call tonight - so it wasn't as if it was an unecessary purchase, but the fact I was debating about declaring means that I shouldn't Prob won't be a NSD tomorrow, brows need doing and there's some specific things I want to pick up in town grocery-related, so near to target and yet so far ....

*Mari*

Quickly popping in to declare 4 more NSD's please making 16 for Jan.

IF

solventsoon wrote: »

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!

Knitting_Nora

Hi all

Just swinging by to declare NSD #14.

Nora.x

solventsoon

marmiterulesok wrote: »

Hi spoon,I don't mean to give you a headache,but my target on the front page has gone haywire.It's got it down that my target is 25 (!!!) and that I've reached #18.In fact my target is 18 and I've reached #16.Could Igor have been up to mischief?!

Anyway,I got an NSD today,and hopefully'll get one tomorrow.

BTW Happy Burns night everyone!I had a distinctly un-Burns-like supper of pasta.I could have a piece of shortbread and a dram to make up for it....If anyone has a recipe for vegetarian haggis,I'd happily have a go.;)

Ooops, sorry marmite. I did a three day update of the front page last night and I got confused about halfway:o I knew I'd made a mistake somewhere and I hoped the owner of the mistake would realise - so thank you :A I'll sort it for you when I do the update now.

spoon xx

And PS: Happy Burns' Night, hope you had the shortbread and a dram to accompany it x

lotti379

NSD 11 today, getting there! This week seems to have gone to pot on the organisation/time to breathe front! Argh. In bed now, but got some things to organise before sleep. :cool:

solventsoon

Hi lovely gang:A

Loads of NSDs rolling in today and more targets tumbling, well done everyone:T:

:j:j:jblindtoast - well done for nos 11 and 12 and your target smashed now, that’s brilliant!:j:j:j
Your prize is headed your way now, hope you like it.
Increasing your target to 15 now, good luck with getting there.

:j:j:jBroomstick - well done for no 21 and target no 2 smashed, that’s brilliant!:j:j:j
Your second prize is headed your way now, hope you like it.
Increasing your target to 26 now, good luck with getting there.
Re your comment on 6 in a row being a cheat because you do all your shopping one one day - did you do this before your joined the challenge or did you succumb to odd spends to get some more milk or loo roll (to use your two examples)? If not, then it’s not cheating because you’ve organised your spends and are probably spending less as a result of that

:j:j:jCheryl - well done for no 15, on the way to target no 3 now, keep going!
Hope your breakdown cover gets sorted

:j:j:jDelilahh - well done for no 7. Nearly there now, you can do it!
Glad you enjoyed the gig and hope you had a good night at the cinema

:j:j:jdonna dynamo - well done for no 18. Target no 3 is within reach now, keep going!

:j:j:jdumpy - well done for nos 14 and 15. Nearly there now, you can do it!
Glad your car is back on the road again, good news

:j:j:jfedupandskint - well done for no 13, unlucky for some but not for you. Nearly there now, keep going!

:j:j:jfreebyfifty - well done for no 19, target no 2 is within your grasp now!
I don’t mind the fixed width screen, just wish it wasn’t quite so slow...

:j:j:jJCG - well done for no 14. Nearly there now, you can do it!
Glad you didn’t run out of petrol, that can be mega-expensive!
I’m with BDINI on the phone thing - nothing wrong with a brick, who needs all these “modern” gadgets anyway!! Good luck with deciding, it’s definitely a minefield

:j:j:jJustDave - well done for no 5, that’s fab! Only 3 more to get now, you can do it!

:j:j:jKeiss - well done for no 16, nearly there now, keep going.
Good luck for tomorrow

:j:j:jkersplatt - well done for no 10, into double figures now. Of course you’ll manage your target, you have us lot behind you urging you on. Keep going

:j:j:jKittikins - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!

:j:j:jNora - well done for nos 13 and 14. One more to get now, keep going

:j:j:jlotti - well done for no 11. One more to get now, you can do it!

:j:j:j*Mari* - well done for no 16. Your target smashed now, that’s brilliant!:j:j:j
Your prize is headed your way now, hope you like it.
A second prize is on the way for exceeding your target, well done

:j:j:jmarmite - well done for no 16, two more to get now, keep going
Thought I’d give you a bit more of a challenge, are you sure you don’t want to aim for 25?

:j:j:jmfmaybe - well done for no 11. You’re on the way to target no 2 now, keep going!

:j:j:jmiss_t - well done for nos 14 and 15 and your target smashed now, that’s brilliant!:j:j:j
Your prize is headed your way now, hope you like it.
Yay to another 3 in a row as well, you’re unstoppable this month.
Fingers crossed for a few more for you this month

:j:j:jModestyB - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!
And yay to no 15 and your target smashed now, that’s brilliant!:j:j:j
Your prize is headed your way now, hope you like it.
Fingers crossed for a few more for you this month

:j:j:joldtractor - well done for no 18. Nearly there now, you can do it!

:j:j:jPink_Giraffe - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!
Good luck with deciding on the job front, that’s a difficult one. Hope you enjoyed the takeaway x

:j:j:jPurplemumof2 - well done for no 7. You’re doing great, keep going

:j:j:jQueenB. - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!
Sorry about your internet problems and that DS2 is ill now, you’re certainly going through it atm, (((hugs))) xx

:j:j:jrising - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!
Yay to your 4 in a row, a prizelet is heading your way now for that.
Sorry you’re still dog-less... the right dog is out there waiting for you somewhere, you’ll meet up when the time is right for both of you x

:j:j:jsilvasava - well done for no 11. One more to get now, you can do it!
Looking forward to February’s cunning plan - does it involve a turnip?

:j:j:jsf - well done for no 14. One more to get now, you can do it!

:j:j:jThe Dragon - well done for no 17, on the way to target no 3 now, keep going!
Oh dear, sorry to hear about your neck, hope it’s nothing serious

:j:j:jwannabee_in_credit - well done for no 16, on the way to target no 3 now, keep going!

:j:j:jyasmin2 - well done for no 10, into double figures now. Two more to get now, you can do it!
Your four for this week challenge is doing well, keep at it!
You need to be up early to be the first to post here, we have a lot of larks on this thread!!

:j:j:jzafiro1984 - well done for no 13. Nearly there now, you can do it!
You need to treat yourself from time to time, don’t feel guilty. Hope you enjoyed the takeaway



And hello to:

thrifty fifty - oh dear, sorry about forgetting your lunch, what a pain.....

Keiss - the workshop sounds good and great news on being paid, yay!

jinty - fingers crossed for the new treatment - great news on your results, that’s fantastic, especially with all the stress you’ve had recently

mytimetoshine2012 - increasing your target to 14 now, good luck you can do it!

Frodo - I sympathise with you on the big spend day.......

chris - fingers crossed your back on the NSD path today

JES_F1 - you don’t have to have an NSD to pop in and say hello, you’re welcome any time

BDINI - the chocolate honeycomb cheesecake sounds yummy, glad you enjoyed it x

kerri - nearly there now, you can do it!


And I’ve made my target of 20, really pleased with that. I’m going to have a go for 25 now... just to see if I can..


Will update the front page tomorrow, I don’t want to give anyone else a nasty surprise tomorrow morning.

‘night everyone

spoon xxx

jintyb

Good morning all,

Up early today - woke up and couldnt get back to sleep!

No NSD yesterday, but a lo-spend day - had fleabay items to post and I bought a sandwich for lunch for the first time in ages. It's nice to have the odd morning off from making a packed lunch!

Yesterday, supervisor was back to her old tricks, very stressful day!
The prob was that no one covered my stuff last week when I was off, so I spent the last three days playing catch up. Then she expected us to go to a 90min firm meeting which was scheduled to last 30mins after my finish time. I told her :
A) I was too busy to spend all that time standing in a mtg room listening when I could dial in and listen on a headset
b) I would be leaving at 5pm as Id been in since 8am and only had 15min for lunch
c) I wanted to leave everything in a fit state for the girl who covers my work when Im out

Of course, although I know I was right to say what I did, I am all worried incase I get hauled over the coals on Monday when I go back:(

She is very much a "rules" person and I'm not, so that is why we clash a lot of the time. I really need stop getting so wound up, it's not good for me!

Out with some pals last night at a discussion group which was really good - no spends!

Today I have a small shop to do at A$da, then weigh-in. I am hoping to get to goal today, I need to have lost 1.5lbs, so fingers crossed! If not, well there's always next week;)

I also have a top to take back to Deb$, so will have a wee mooch around this morning.

Sorry, for all the ranting - I'm just tired and wound up this morning;)

I'll be back later!

Have a lovely day everyone:)

freebyfifty

Good Morning

NSD #20 for me yesterday amd my second target met :T
Can I increase it again to 23 please spoon??? Should be do-able before Tuesday/Wednesday Thanks



Have a great Thursday everyone x x

mooomin

I'm not keeping up with this thread at all

I'm up to NSD #16 though, which is amazing as that beats target 2!