A stay at home mummy who wants to be a mfw - Yes I can and Yes I will!

Lois_E

If you don't have any luck with the charity shops, you could always try supermarkets for trousers. I've had some from Mr T and Mr S that were reasonable quality and fairly cheap. Round where I live, going to New Look probably means paying for parking, but supermarkets don't.

brummiebabe

Stacey - I've read your diary from start to finish today & am so impressed with what you have achieved!!! I do save in pots.....but always end up dipping into it for other things......:mad:

Really looking forward to starting my MFW journey......what would be your top tips??

I_want_a_baby

Thankyou icklehen - indeed everytime I open my purse my forever home pops into my head and asks me if I am buying a need or a want :rotfl:.

Hi Lois_E, thanks for the tip, I am off to look around the charity shops this morning, the only supermarket that does clothes in this town is Mr T and its a small range but I will have a look in there if I don't find anything in the CS's. I find my clothes get worn out so quickly as my kids are toddlers, anything expensive I have bought hasn't really lasted any longer than something cheap!

Brummiebabe - thank you very much x
In terms of top tips I am sure that the following are nothing new but my top tips would be:

• Write a budget and include everything you spend even only small amounts.
• Identify which items are fixed and which you can have an influence on.
• Council tax, car tax etc are fixed and you can't change.
• Insurances, phone bills, tv, internet, car recovery etc spend a morning at renewal on comparison sites and cashback sites making sure you get a good deal.
• Gas & elec - again search comparison sites for a good deal, read your meters weekly and see how you can change your habits to reduce your energy usage - get an energy monitor to keep you focused and aware when you are using too much.
• Food shopping - shop around, use vouchers that the supermarkets send, use loyalty cards always, have a quick look on my supermarket before you do your shopping to see if anything you buy lots of is cheaper elsewhere.
• Fuel - use petrolprices website before you fill up to go to the cheapest garage, drive more economically and keep the car clutter free.
• Savings/OP's - decide what you can comfortably afford to save/OP per month and set up a SO for this monthly the day after payday and never transfer it back. Then set a target for your monthly ad hoc savings.
• Increase your earnings by doing surveys, using cashback sites, using swagbucks etc. If you bank with lloyds they have the save the change facility where each payment on a debit card is rounded up to the nearest pound and transferred to your savings account.
• Use facebook selling sites, ebay, car boots and charity shops for any clothes or house things you want/need.
• Reduce, reuse, recycle and make do and mend - before buying anything can you reuse something you own, borrow something, is anyone you know giving anything away, can you mend it or buy it (as new) 2nd hand? Only buy new if you really need to.
• Overall though stay focused, set small targets so you feel like you are achieving and make sure you prioritise fun/living money too! You need to see it as a lifestyle change rather than scrimping back and saving everything or you won't stick to it!
• Phew think that covers most things!

So my update...

• Going to nip to the CS's today to look for trousers.
• No reason this should be a spendy weekend - fingers crossed.
• Burgers last night were very yummy!
• Split all of the meat up into containers and now in the freezer ready for batch cooking.
• Over to the in laws at some point to continue digging/preparing the veg plot.
• 2 bets on the grand national - chosen just for their name of course!
• lots of relaxing, pottering and living simply this weekend - lovely and chilled.
• Did a pc survey this morning - £3 luncheon voucher on the way.

Off to make another brew now x

Stacey x

SheldonsSister

Checking in from lurkdom! Very good tips there. It's funny how some things become much less important when you're trying to save, although I get some strange looks from DH when I wonder round in my holey trousers at home to save wearing out my good ones! Have a good day.

brummiebabe

Thanks for taking the time to post that Stacey - think I need to go over my budget with a fine toothcomb and see where I can cut back!:rotfl:

I_want_a_baby

Thank you long time lurker ss!! And bb I am always reviewing our expenses!

Well trip to charity shops was successful:
Zara jeans £5
M&s navy cardi £3.50
Both immaculate, tried both on and fit lovely and look very good quality!
Shirt for hubby £4 v good quality and he loves it
A book £2 expensive but it's for charity
Drum and drumsticks for kids £2.50 they have played with it all morning!

So lovely outside!

Stacey x

shirlgirl2004

You did really well in your charity shops. Ours are always really expensive even for Primark!

icklehelen

Morning!!

Have you been on the supersavvyme website? I use it before I go to Mr T and Mr S for the vouchers

ickle

I_want_a_baby

Hello all!

Just lost a really long post .

So a quicker version of what I had just written...

Thanks shirlgirl2004 & icklehen I haven't heard of that site before so will take a look - thanks very much x

Received TCB payout of £42.87 - trf'd to pending savings.
Pending savings in bank now £108.70 plus £16.65 in cash making total £125.35. This means that I am £194.26 short of my ambitious target of £319.61 - maybe a little too ambitious??

Went to a car boot yesterday got a couple of bargains for the kids - nothing for us.

Worked last night - supposed to work 8pm - 12am but worked 8pm - 1.40am very tired today! but a little more for the pot at the end of the month.

Did lots of digging and 'jobs' at the in laws at the weekend. Veg plot we have dug is huge and in laws have already talked about extending it! MIL has been sowing and pricking out lots of seeds in the greenhouse so I am sure we will have lots of 'free' veg this summer. Must remember to clear the 2nd freezer out to store lots of produce for the winter.

Decided that we will limit our veg/fruit growing in our garden to one small L shaped bed and just put flowers to cut, things that look pretty and things to encourage nature in the two beds that are the focal points. If we did not have the big veg plot at the in laws I would have grown veg & fruit only in the beds and just a few flowers & bulbs in pots but there is not point duplicating the veg grown by MIL as there will be so much coming from theirs!! Their bean trench is 20ft long!

So on that note husband decided to get on and knock down a weird L shaped brick wall, I am hoping to reuse the bricks for a wall of the raised flower bed. MIL has sown lots of flower seeds too so hoping for a very low spend to fill the beds. Got a few of the kids play things to sell as there just isn't space for them in the garden - I know that they will be really upset by this so I was thinking of keeping the money from these sales separate and buying an outdoor play tent/wigwam or similar with it.

Can't really think what else I wrote or what else to write - I am so tired my brain really isn't working lol. I will update again soon I am sure.

Stacey x

I_want_a_baby

Haven't been on swagbucks for ages but decided to go on there today. Managed to earn 90SB bringing the total on my account to 3000SB exactly. I am going to aim for 4199SB and get a £25 amazon voucher to use towards birthday presents I think.

Today will be a NSD as I am far too tired to go anywhere or buy anything.

Discovered today that a collegue at new job has been fired as they didn't need so many people working as they thought! I had better be on best behavior as this job is cruitial to my MFW plans!

I looked at my clockcard last night and 4 shifts should be 16hr but I had worked 19.5 hours so that is more money for the pot.

Really not sure how I am going to make my target, there is nothing we need to buy to earn cashback or round the pennies, only a limited amount of cash for the month so not a lot I could save there. Hmmm.

Stacey x