My Busy Life

sidneysmum

God its really cold today. I am sat on the sofa with a blanket on my knee......I have turned into an old woman !
Today has been ok. More belly dancing this morning at the gym. I walked there and back which is 40 mins each way. A friend called for me this afternoon and we were out for a couple of hours walking . She brought her dog with her so Sidney had some company. I got a nice cheque for £25 in the post from the Halifax as a result of my recent complaint. I will be paying it into my bank maybe on Thursday. Food wise I am still on stuff from my fridge and cupboards. I have been eating some of the frittata i made yesterday which is lovely. Had a bit of home made carrot and coriander soup. Tonight i used up the last of the chicken out of the freezer and made a huge Thai green curry. That got rid of chicken, onions, green peppers and a can of coconut milk.
I am trying to do a few little jobs which have been lurking around forever. I am going to try and do one job a day as they are only small tasks but i need to get them done. Today I put 2 huge bin bags of clothes into the car, the plan being to drop them off at one of these clothes weigh in shops after work tomorrow. I also went through the chest of drawers in my grandsons room and dug out a load of baby clothes. I am going to drop them off at a friends house on Thursday all being well. So that's 2 jobs done today !! Yet another NSD.
I hope everyone is having a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

I intend getting my feet up soon and reading my book. I have had a very early day at work and its been quite busy. During my break at work I managed to nip on the internet and gave British Gas my meter readings and paid £40 towards my next bill. I read my meters every Sunday, dont ask me why, I have done it for years. I also take my car mileage and weigh myself. I must have a lot of time on my hands !!! Anyway I am up to date with my gas / electric so that's a relief. In the next couple of months I am expecting all my bills to arrive - council tax, water bill, car insurance, house insurance. I am hoping to be in a position to deal with all of them when they arrive. My plan is to then carry on saving and get my emergency fund bigger than it is now.
After work I did my extra job for today. I took 2 bin bags full of clothes to a cash for clothes shop. I got £6.30 which i was please about because it was only fit for the bin really. It wasn't good enough for the charity shop. I asked the girl who served me if she had any £2 coins. I am always saving them and when it comes to birthdays and Christmas I give my sons money for them to spend. I think at the moment I have probably got about £150 in the moneybox. I also got this weeks LPG which was £18.84. I have cut my use of the car right down to the bare minimum this year. Apart from work I very rarely use the car so I am saving on fuel and getting rid of some weight !! I have now lost 1 stone 5 lb since New Year and think that the walking has helped me no end to loose this.
After work I took Sidney out for a long walk - over 2 hours. No wonder I am tired. Work again tomorrow so i will get my feet up tonight and hopefully get an early night. I am only in work tomorrow then off next week as I am due to have minor surgery on Tuesday morning so dont intend going to work either Tuesday or Wednesday next week. Food wise I took had toast and homemade jam for breakfast and some frittata for lunch. Tea will be a portion of green Thai curry. I am hoping to carry on eating leftovers until weekend when I will be making a couple of big meals as my sons are visiting on Sunday for a scoff as they call it !!! I think I am going to make a big spaghetti bolognaise and a tuna and past bake for them. No doubt I will do some baking as well.
I hope everyone is having a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

Thank goodness work is over with today. Its been an ok day actually. I had plenty to do so the time flew by. I got there very early this morning and left early afternoon so I was able to do a little job that had been lurking before i took Sid to the park. I decided to call at a local insurance brokers to get some advice before i do anything. I wanted to know about classic car insurance and what it involves as my car insurance is due up in a month or so and lets just say my car is a classic !!
When I was at work I was given 5 books by a colleague All baring one look to be really good reads so they have been added to my already full bookcase. At least I didn't buy them !! I had to spend £1 today which was my contribution to a new office kettle. Also managed 2 use up today - some face cream and some body lotion. I will add these to my signature. I have a cupboard upstairs on my landing where I keep my toiletries stash. Although I have used up over 20 items, I still have loads left. Those which are in gift boxes, I have put on one side as I might use them as gifts or for donations at the WI. I probably have at least 60 items to use up. Never mind, its all saving me money.
I have it in my mind that i want to try and do an extra job every day if i can. I dont mean one of my everyday jobs but something i have been maybe avoiding doing - such as going to see the insurance broker today. Although they couldn't help me themselves, they have pointed me in the right direction. I also got an almost full tin of pink paint out of the garage and have put it to one side. I have got an old lloyd loom chair which is badly in need of painting. It is worth doing as the weave of the chair is perfect and I want to use it when its done. So the chair and paint are all ready. I would paint it tonight but I would prefer to do it in natural light.
I hope everyone is having a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

Well I have thoroughly enjoyed today ! I managed to get up early this morning and had all my morning chores done and Sidney walked by 8.30. I wanted to be in town for when the shops opened at 9am as I had a few errands to do......so I walked to town and paid my £25 cheque into the bank (Sent to me by the Halifax due to my complaint). I also bought a Mothering Sunday card for my elderly aunt. My mum died very young in life in 1990 and I have always sent her older sister a card on Mothers day instead of my Mum. I also got her a box of brazil toffee from Thornton's. I didn't actually pay for the toffee as I had a gift card left over from Christmas, so I used that. So, my big spend was the card at 59p. Whilst in town I called in at the gym and had an hours dance aerobics class which was really good. Very enjoyable. After walking back from town, I had a bit of lunch then visited my friend who has a new baby. I took some of my grandsons outgrown clothes round to be passed onto her baby when they fit him. Had a couple of hours at home at tea time then darted off to see a film called "The Imposter". It was only showing for one performance and I just wanted to see it. It was pretty much a documentary and was very different from the usual stuff that is on at the cinema. On my way to the cinema I decided to do my big shop......and spent £2.68. I bought some milk, 2 packs of cooking margarine, a bag of self raising flour and a reduced lettuce for the tortoise which was 13p. Over the next couple of days I want to do a bit more baking to give to my sons, thus the flour and margarine. I might do it tomorrow but i will have to see how the day pans out. Anyway I am going to get my feet up for an hours reading before bed as I have done loads today and want a cup of tea and a rest.
I hope everyone has had a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

I have had another really enjoyable day so far today. A few years ago when my marriage broke down, I thought it was the end of my world....well it turns out it was just the start of it !!! I did a few errands whilst I was out with the dog this morning. Called in at the chemist to order a prescription after her run in the park, then called at the local charity shop and actually spent something. I had seen a beautiful Christmas cactus for sale in the window when I was walking past yesterday and I didn't have any money on me. It is quite big and is in a terracotta pot and just looks great on a brick hearth I have. So I actually spent £2 on something I liked. I have hardly spent anything at all this year so far apart from necessary bills and I have got enough in the bank (hopefully) to cover all my big bills when they come in over the next month or so. I have just got into the habit of being frugal. In fact I have never spent so little in my life and I haven't missed going shopping one bit. I have just filled my time with other things that dont cost anything.
After our walk I did quite a bit of cooking. I made a keema curry which I have now portioned up and put 3 portions in the freezer. I also put the oven on and made a pot of stuffing, 2 frittata and a batch of twinks hobnobs. The huge bag of porridge oats are now done so I will be using other items up when I bake again. The stuffing will be frozen into small portions and I will eat the frittata up fairly soon so it is boxed up in the fridge. My food stores are actually reducing but I think they will still last till the end of April. However I am going to have to start to buy one or two things soon. I will need some chicken and vegetables to use in some of the packet sauce mixes I have in the cupboard.
This afternoon I met a large group of ladies at the local carvery for our WI luncheon club. We meet up once a month and i really enjoy it. The diet has been on hold today and I sent £4.86 on a carvery meal and a soft drink. Bargain ! After the meal I went straight to the cinema to meet a friend and we watched "Arbitrage" which was new out today and was very good.
My plan now is to get my feet up and have an hour on the internet before I have a read of my book. 2 use ups today as well which I will add to my signature - a bottle of cleanser and a shower gel. I am just so glad that the penny has finally dropped with me and I am using all this stuff up instead of it languishing in the cupboard.
I hope everyone is having a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

What lovely day today has been and the weather has been lovely. The day started very well for me as when I got on the scales I had lost another 2lb. Since New Year I have lost 1 and a half stone. I cannot believe it !! I am pretty much where i want to be but to loose another 7lb would be wonderful. I am just going to carry on as I have been doing and see what happens. British Gas emailed me asking for up to date meter reading which I gave for both gas and electric and I owed them £2.45 !! I can live with that. I just like being straight money wise and knowing what I have to pay out. My plan is to log on pretty much every week and supply meter reading and pay what I owe. I dont want any big surprises. Recently I put a lock on my phone keypad after getting a few surprises with my monthly bill and my bills have now gone down. I think I might have been downloading items and ringing numbers when my phone was in my pocket. When I get my new contract phone in about July, the first thing I will do is put the lock on the keypad !! Who says an old dog cant learn new tricks !!
Today has been enjoyable. I went for an hours zumba class this morning and visited my elderly aunt this afternoon. Didn't use thecae at all. Went everywhere on foot. Whilst I was out my neighbour who is retired and acts as local odd job man, repaired my garden gate which had basically fallen to piece and wouldn't shut. He also repointed my front bay window which has been leaking whenever it rains. One of my jobs tomorrow is to stain the back gate now he has repaired it. He charged me £40 for the days work but I am more than happy to pay him as he not only does a good job but he is also very honest and looks after my house for me when I am out / away.
My plan tonight is to get a bite to eat vey soon then settle down with my book !!
I hope everyone has had a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

Where has today gone, its just flown by. I walked to my belly dancing class this morning which was very enjoyable and then took her royal highness round the park for her run. When we got back one of my sons had arrived and he spent all afternoon here washing and cleaning his car. He very kindly washed mine. As I had a bit of company, I decided to do a couple of outside jobs. I stained my newly repaired back gate and emptied the pond of water. Its not an easy task as it needs emptying with a bucket and pouring through a garden sieve before going down the grid because there is so much debris and leaves in the dirty water. I didn't get chance to fill the pond with clean water as it was approaching tea time and the rest of my sons were turning up. I made spaghetti bolognaise and tuna pasta bake. Its pretty much all gone except a bit of the tuna pasta which is now going to go in the fridge for this weeks tea a couple of days.
I started a new book last night (added to signature) and it is " A baby's cry" by Cathy Glass. It seems ok so far. Really tired now so going to get my feet up.
I hope everyone is having a great moneysaving day x

sidneysmum

Well my laptop has died so will be posting from my phone until its either fixed or replaced. So I think my posts might be shorter and more sporadic ! This morning has been lovely so far. Walked to zumba at the gym and it was a great class today.....then just taken sid for a once round the park. Hoping to enjoy the rest of the day x

sidneysmum

This afternoon has seen some lovely weather here in the north west. I have had an appointment for a couple of hours but managed to spend a bit of time in the garden. The pond is filled again now thankfully. The plan is to get stuck into my book tonight and maybe try a bit of tv as I dont think I could stand googling for very long on my phone ! Wont be in bed too late as I have a very early hospital appointment in the morning.

liliesnlace85

Good luck, that seems like a very sensible idea to tackle the problem before it even becomes a problem. It'll probably make you feel a bit better to know you have a bit of a safety net too, should the worst happen then you're prepared.

I suppose a little bit here and there will make a difference but without you even noticing, especially if you were giving up a habit. For example cutting back on coffees you buy, or cigarettes. A small amount goes a long way

Good for you!