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

linz

Impressive update for today

I never seem to see any decent reductions in Sainsbury's. Not sure what time they do them, maybe I go too late & they've already gone.

I_want_a_baby

Thanks QB Wolf! Good luck to you too!

Linz, Really happy with yesterdays progress! To be fair there weren't really many reduced items, about 3 things in the fridge section about 20 things in the fruit & veg section which weren't reduced a great deal & looked poor quality BUT there were a few heavily reduced things in the bread/bakery section however they were all still in their normal place on the shelves with regularly priced items so you had to have a beady eye to spot the yellow stickers!

Morrisons near us consistently have reduced items more often than not heavily reduced fruit/veg, flowers & bread. Also often has lots of reduced bits from the deli counter but these are often pastry things so I avoid, fridge items not often reduced a great deal.
I find the best time to go is about 7pm even though the store shuts at 9pm.

Stacey x

I_want_a_baby

Not a great deal to report today - in a good way not bad!

Didn't get a lot done in terms of swagbucks or superpoints, despite trying over 20 surveys I didn't manage to complete a single one as I was DQ'd from them all! So a measley 8SP & 20SB to report today!

Did however do a valued opinions survey for £1.50.

However had someone round to organise life insurance & critical illness insurance despite being happy with the price, we jiggled with the criteria a bit and managed to reduce the premium by £2pm!

Saw a friend who I haven't seen in ages which was nice.

NSD!!

Kept to meal plan again!

Sold a diary cover to my sister for £6.

Going to have a little pamper eve - paint nails etc with bits I already own!

Thats all for today!

Stacey x

I_want_a_baby

Hello everyone who takes the time to read my diary & especially those who comment - I appreciate every one!

Todays update -
Better day on swagbucks today - 103SB - Balance 964SB
Superpoints - 61SP - Balance 493SP
Completed a New Vista survey via TCB 70p
Ipsos survey - 50 points
Had a lovely day at my mums!
Gave my mum £1.80 for a dozen free range eggs that she gets from someones 'back garden' chickens in the village. Saving £1.12 on the normal FR eggs I would buy from the supermarket.
Driving through the village to mums with an unconditional yearning to be back 'home' - made me realise this challenge to save for a house/deposit is so important to me.
Told my mum about the free method laundry liquid & dairylea!!
Posted claim for method liquid £4 to be received soon hopefully!
Pleased that despite the cold heavy rain all afternoon, the house doesn't need the heating on.
Checked BeforeIShop for vouchers to print - none today.
Listed all the toiletries & cleaning products I have - I can't even describe seeing it listed on paper so I will just say :eek:!
Organised coupons into wallet & entered competitions from magazines.
Planned my frugal birthday fun using the £20 saved as part of our normal birthdays budget.

Through the post -
Received Ellas Kitchen Coupon for 50p
Received £3 luncheon voucher from pinecone (I guess I put my paypal details in after they had posted them!).

To Do -
Get an early night - very tired today so need to keep myself healthy.
Cook tea from meal plan.
Get the reusable pocket nappies stuffed & out of the drawer ready so that I don't forget they are there and I actually use them!
Try and do a little bit of cross stitch to further the present I am making for a special friend - All materials purchased so no further spend required.

That's all for today

Stacey x

BaconandEggs

Good diary. Have signed up for SB under your link. Good luck.

shirlgirl2004

Wow you are doing so much to work towards your house.:T

Puts me to shame. I will try harder so thanks for the motivation.

I_want_a_baby

Thanks bacon & eggs & shirlgirl!

Bacon & eggs - if you need any hints or tips just ask! also check out the mse thread as I found that really helpful!

Our main goal is that we own our forever home outright by the time I am 40. I am 26 tomorrow so we have 14 years to achieve this.
Given the fact we have two kids, I am a SAHM and the 'SAHM' part contributes heavily to our quality of life at the moment and is something we would not change - The only way we will be able to achieve the above is by being VERY focused and literally watching the pennies and focusing on saving 100 p's instead of £'s!

I am going to set a mini aim of saving £600 by 31.12.2012. This would be £100 per month. I think that this will be a huge challenge but I am a firm believer that if you don't challenge yourself you won't try hard enough!

Stacey x

shirlgirl2004

I'm a SAHM too and we Home Educate so we have additional costs from that. Like you it has to be a balance for us. I want my children to enjoy their childhood and have lots of opportunities so there are sacrifices that I won't make but other things are easy to do once I get used to it again. You are doing really well though.

I_want_a_baby

Thanks shirlgirl. Are you joining in any challenges or setting yourself any targets this year?

I think I might summarise why I want to remain as a SAHM despite also wanting to be MF by 40 as it might help me keep focused and be a good thing for me to refer back to when I have a wobble and suddenly want to earn lots of money to have a forever home now (trust me those days do happen!).

Reasons why being a SAHM and wanting to be MF by 40 can go hand in hand and is right for us:

• We are able to be a one car family saving fuel, tax, mot, service, insurance & maintenance costs.
• I do not need to buy work clothes or pay for work expenses.
• I am able to use reusable nappies instead of disposable as I have the extra time to not need convenience.
• I am able to get our washing dried on the line in the day (or airer), and make full use of good weather as and when therefore reducing the need to use the tumble drier.
• I have the time to list stock cupboard items, create a meal plan, find the best prices, shop accordingly & cook home made meals.
• I can use the local market for cheap fruit, veg, meat & dairy which I wouldn't be able to do if I worked as it is on a weekday.
• I can grow our own fruit & veg as I have time (just!) to do the necessary planting, watering, weeding & harvesting.
• I am able to bring up my children according to our values, disciplines, morals & encourage them to play & learn how we want them to.
• On the occasional day out I can take them during off peak time therefore reducing costs.
• I have time to plan family fun on the weekend and organise cheap picnics etc to take saving money.
• I am time rich and cash poor but this means I have no need to employ a cleaner/ gardener/ decorater/ window cleaner, have takeaways often, eat out lots, buy lunches and coffees etc.
• I have enough time that I can complete surveys, earn points, print vouchers & enter competitions.
• I am able to visit all of the sales both in store and online and therefore reduce the cost of gift giving etc. I can also make gifts by both crafting and cooking to reduce this cost.
• I have the time that I can offer to cook for friends instead of costly meals out/takeaways.
• I have the time to shop around for insurances and financial products to ensure we get the best deals out there.
• I have the time to look after & repair our clothes and household items ensuring they last as long as possible and therefore don't need replacing.

I am sure that there are a lot more reasons that people can think of but I will leave it at that for now. I will do my usual update later so for now cheerio!

Stacey x

shirlgirl2004

I_want_a_baby wrote: »

Thanks shirlgirl. Are you joining in any challenges or setting yourself any targets this year?

Stacey x

Not at the moment. I have been struggling to see where our money goes and how much we NEED to spend. I keep a spreadsheet which has direct debits on it but I haven't been keeping a record of day to day expenditure which can be quite high. Things are changing though. I'd like to move house and want to clear the mortgage first.That is my incentive. We were mortgage neutral before and we can do it again.