A ginormous jump into 2012 with the January NSD challenge

beanielou

Good news wanna that you have managed to sort things out.
Hope all goes well tomorrow

lotti379

One more NSD collected while away visiting Mr L, he is apparently not coming up to live together now, so it looks like I'm stuck in the maternal home for a while longer... my poor mother. Unless I find someone else to live with. It is all academic at the moment as I need full-time work. Still, part time is better than nothing, and living with the family is better than being on the street!

So, am on 4/12 NSDs :j :j :j

Mr L did give me the change for the tunnel, so today could be the fifth... will be back later to report! And must go to the gym today! (:A) To be fair, I have spent the weekend eating and drinking and not exercising! We went to the big smoke to have lunch with some old friends, which was so much fun. I have missed them!

beanielou

Good news on the exam jaffa :j

kerri_gt

wannabehermit wrote: »

What are these like Kerri? My ds needs omega 3 & 6 for his behaviour, but have found they're all the oil filled little capsules which he can't stand. I'm guessing as they're fish oils they all come that way, but is there a chance these might be in tablet form? (Not sure how they'd get oil into table form, but here's hoping!)

I'm afraid these are the capsules as well wannabe (and not that small either by my reckoning). Perhaps your doc might be able to advise if it's possible to get kids ones in tablet form (but as you say, given it's a oily supplement I'm not sure how they'd do that)? I remember my mum making my take cod liver oil as a kid and telling my to stop complaining about it....until she tried it herself! bleugh!!!

*Mari*

Just popping in to declare NSD no 5 please. Not leaving the house today!

Keiss_21

Good grief wannab, no wonder you're p'd off!! Good news about being able to carry childcare payments forward. Still a liberty though!

Busy catching up with work stuff...need to get in touch with HMRC, but needing to find all my paperwork...some important stuff missing and can't find it anywhere!! :eek: Taking time off to catch up here...need to calm down.

HM soup is on the hob: pea & ham...or rather stock from boiled up gammon shanks (sunday tea) with dried peas added and cooked well, some onion and potatoes in too...yum!! It's a bit salty, so needing to add a bit of mik to my bowl-full, really yumm!!! Also have the bones from the turkey leg we had roasted last night boiling away to make more stock. I used up all my stocks in the freezer over the Xmas period, so needing to make more Now have lots of left-over meat, to possibly use insandwiches, or make pies and/or quiches with...uess I'm going to busy then!!

Sorry can't remember who asked if making your lunch is cheaper than buying...OH YES IT IS! I love soups during winter time. Try adding pulses (lentils, peas, barley) to make them thick and much more filling. I also make up some mini jellies with fruit in for something sweet. I use the sugar-free jelly powders and make up a pint at a time, pouring it equally into 4 screw-top plastic lidded tubs (easiyo yogurt pots) where I have put some fruit, usually frozen from my summer/autumn garden supplies. You can get frozen fruit packs in supermarkets, or you can use fresh. Warning: you will find that pineapple won't allow the jelly to set!! It has enzymes! I also like tomato sandwiches, made with low-fat cream cheese instead of butter/marg..much fewer calories and tastes nicer! Hope this helps.

Oh, I almost forgot, NSD no 6 nabbed today...only going out to collect DS2 later...and not taking my purse!

Now off to have some of that soup, then back to the great search!!

Wellyboots6

NSD 3!!!

Finally! And only because I am not leaving the house today. I really can't see how I am going to hit my target this month, it is a lot harder than I realised it would be

Sox77

Hi everyone

Including today I have 4 NSD in total and three in a row. Very exciting and quite an achievement for me - am hoping to get the seven but am finding it really hard!

Wow just seen this, I'll let myself off finding it difficult then, mind you I work from home and my hubby does the school runs so I shouldn't find it as hard as I do, it's just the internet - it's like it calls to me. Got to learn not to GRABBIT!

iwanttogoonholiday

im onto 6nsd's now - dec early as ive no intention on leaving the house now today lol

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!