Help - I'm a mess :(

flis21

Hey all,

Well good day today. I went to the stop smoking clinic. We set my quit day as Saturday, which was what i'd wanted. They have given me an inhalator and patches, which I didn't have to pay for as I get free prescriptions. I go back again next week so they can see how I'm doing. Feel quite positive about doing it and not really enjoying the cigs I'm having at the mo, so I'm def getting in the right frame of mind.

Not much more progress to report, apart from the fact that we walked to playgroup today instead of taking the bus. It took nearly half an hour, but my 4 year old loved riding his scooter all the way!! So that saved £3.10 in bus fare.

I will try and cut down or stop using the dryer, will need to invest in some airers tho. Will put a wanted thing on freecycle (I could get addicted to that group!!) and if not will try and see if I can find some cheap ones somewhere.

RAS - I will ask debt advisor about that next week when he phones. Not sure if they are classed as 'debts of the marriage' what that would mean for my ex as he's a bankrupt now.

Mfmaybe - I will try giving Sky another call and see what they say. I'm really thinking that £25.50 a month for the kids to watch telly (I only really watch stuff on the main 4 channels!) is ridiculous. I could buy them one cheap DVD a month for a fiver and save £20!! And to be honest they could still get some of the channels anyway, things like cbeebies are free.

losing patience - I love the idea of a baking day and my kids love cooking so that's a really good idea. They like things like cereal bars and rice krispie squares, so will see if I can find any recepies that are similar to their usual bits. Perhaps they'd eat flapjacks? Might give them a go!

I'm doing well with not doing any unnecessary spending, apart from bus fare to stop smoking clinic I spent 87p in the shop getting my son a lollipop (to pacify him while I was in stop smoking clinic) and bought my eldest his pack of moshi monster stickers for this week. He's off to his Dad's tomorrow night, so i will give him his 'Saturday stickers' tomorrow instead.

I'm going to have a good look thru my food cupboards this weekend and write a menu plan out for next week, I will get my grocery bill to under £50 and make sure I don't do any 'top up' shops. I think I will need to look hard at some of the stuff I buy, particularly washing detergent and softner. I'm buying branded stuff at the mo (persil and comfort) am sure I can downgrade these and that will prob save a bit as they are quite expensive!

Thanks for all your messages and continued support today. I really am finding posting and reading the messages a great help and comfort. I am willing ready and able to change!!!

Flis xx

debtfreewannabe321

Hi flis, re the clarks shoes, i go to my local one, get them measured and come home and look on ebay for exactly the size they need, from clarks and the most i've ever paid was £6 with p&p included! They grow so quickly that people selling them will have had hardly any use either!

As for the tumble drier, i never knew how expensive it was to run :eek: and as soon as i found out i halved my useage (only use in winter anyway) and went on freecycle & my local fb selling page and asked for one for free! It took 10 mins for someone to say they had one i could collect now i make sure i keep up with the washing and so they have time to dry in between washes so i don't get tempted to throw it in the drier lol

good luck you've made a great start x

choille

Don't know if it's been mentioned but the stop smoking thread on health & beauty is brillaint especially in those first few weeks.

I stopped nearly 2 years ago & they were wonderful - don't think I'd have done it as easily without all their great support.

hp48910

Just caught up again and want to say a massive well done for all the progress you've made so far. :T You are definitely heading in the right direction and have taken loads on board.

A couple of things..I recently bought a new airer and have to say it was worth investing in a robust one.I'm pretty sure it was from Argoose and cost around £20. I did look at cheaper ones but the more you spend, the more rungs there are. I'm sure it's more than paid for itself.

Also with clarks shoes, look out for the online sales. I ordered my DDs a new pair half a size bigger, just before Christmas. They are sent free to a store of your choice, fitted and only then do you part with any money. One pair were £15, the other £13. Fab bargain considering they are around £38 usually! I have used eBay too. My best bargain was a pair picked up at a carboot for 50p, they were immaculate!

Keep positive, you're doing really well :O)

flis21

Hey all,

Thanks for the tips on shoes, will go to Clarks and get them measured, then see what I can find on ebay. I have kept some of my older boys shoes that were in good condition, so I can use them for my younger one when he gets to the right size for them.

I've found the quit smoking thread thank you. Got a really nice welcome over there and even a personal message from one of the people on there.

Is the tumble dryer really that bad? I use mine once or twice everyday!!! Well have put a load on my radiators this evening and I must say my living room smells lovely from the fabric softener warming up on them!! Won't need any air freshner (not that i use it anyway!!).

I've just sold an old hoover that was in my garage for £20 on facebook. It's getting picked up tomorrow, so I might use that money to get the airer, as it will save more money in the long run.

Ok, am off to chill in front of masterchef now. My brain is buzzing from all this!!

Flis x

wannabee_in_credit

Just a quick note to say how brilliantly I think you're doing. You sound so determined, and that's fantastic. Moneysaving gets very addictive very quickly.

hp48910

My elec company said you can basically kiss goodbye to £1 each time the dryer goes on, it's one of the biggest guzzlers. If you use the dryer twice a day on average then that's roughly £56 a month......That £20 airer is suddeny very appealing!! I am almost completely reformed and in a house with a log burner (not used every day) and central heating, I find the clothes dry quicker than I originally thought they would.

BitterAndTwisted

flis21 wrote: »

Hey all,

I will try and cut down or stop using the dryer, will need to invest in some airers tho. Will put a wanted thing on freecycle (I could get addicted to that group!!) and if not will try and see if I can find some cheap ones somewhere.

You mentioned about the cost of using a tumble drier in another post. Please be assured that they EAT money. Lots of it. If you get an airer of any description try to use it outside as much as you cad. Drying clothes indoors can cause too much condensation which isn't funny. As long as the temp outside is above freezing and there's even a breath of a breeze things will dry. At this time of year you need to bring them in before dark so they don't get covered in dew. That way, you could choose to finish them off inside. And they smell much nicer for being dried naturally outdoors, too. Added bonus.

losing patience - I love the idea of a baking day and my kids love cooking so that's a really good idea. They like things like cereal bars and rice krispie squares, so will see if I can find any recepies that are similar to their usual bits. Perhaps they'd eat flapjacks? Might give them a go!

You really, really need the recipe for Twink's Hobnobs. Cheap, easy and delicious. So easy a child could make them blindfold. I'll look it out and post it here when I've found it.


I think I will need to look hard at some of the stuff I buy, particularly washing detergent and softner. I'm buying branded stuff at the mo (persil and comfort) am sure I can downgrade these and that will prob save a bit as they are quite expensive!

See, if you'd popped over to the Old-Style part of the forum you could already be acquainted with "Laundry Gloop". Home-made laundry detergent from easily found ingredients in the hardware store or supermarket/ Works just as well as any detergent I've ever used. I made about a year's supply for less than three quid. You could too if you had a grater, a pan and a bucket. Plus some containers. Fabric conditioner you could replace with white (clear) malt vinegar. Softens fabrics, smells of only detergent when dry and costs almost nothing.

We'll help you get that housekeeping bill down to nothing. Perhaps have a read of the "Grocery Challenge" thread on O/S to give yourself some inspiration for your menu-planning.


Keep going!

flis21

OMG, £1 a time for the dryer, I think I'm a convert now!! All my washing seemed to dry on the radiators last night. I'm going to town on monday so will pick myself up an airer from Argos. That is the cost of about 10 days worth of drying. Will try putting airer outside when it's not raining or too windy (weather is horrid here at the mo!).

Wow, home made detergent and fabric softener! Does it stain remove ok? My boys are terrible at staining their clothes, I'm using the persil small and mighty at the mo and squirting things with stain remover as well when I put them in.

Will head over to the old style board and look out for the grocery challenge and laundry gloop threads! I've had a quick look in the cupboards and freezer and I seem to have quite a bit in that could be used up, so I think the first couple of weeks reducing my food bill will be quite easy, after that it will be more hard work!! Def gonna look up some recepies for treats for the kids and get my eldest to help me bake them, he will love that!

Here is to my last day as a smoker, got one pack of fags left, once they're gone that's it!! Oh and did I say I well underestimated how much I spend on fags. When I went to the clinic yesterday they had a calculator thing and for how much I smoke it's actually £135 a month, which is over £1500 a year!!!! Really scary, no wonder I keep running out of money! Well no more.

Have had an email from ebay this morning saying there are zero insertion fees this weekend, have found quite a few bits I could sell on there so will be busy this weekend while boys are away (keep my mind off the smoking!!)

I read a really good quote, actually on facebook this morning, but it's from Alice in Wonderland. It goes Alice: This is impossible, Mad Hatter: Only if you believe it is. Love this ideas!

Thanks all,
Flis x

BitterAndTwisted

Too windy? For drying laundry there's no such thing. Windy is the best laundry-drying weather AND IT'S FREE! Invest in some pegs.

About the Gloop: I've found that it removes dirt OK but as I don't have kids I know nothing about removing stains. I do sling some Napisan in with tea-towels from time to time, so maybe a bit of pre-treating might work for you? I'd invest in some Stardrops (the Holy Grail of cleaning products as will discover if you spend more than five minutes over on O/S) as I've read reports that it's really good for removing stains on clothes.