December Debt Destruction!!!

BigMummaF

Poodling along with 21 nsds & no immediate spends that I can think of

The Offspring appeared to be pleased with the box set & a couple of other dvds as a joint gift, & the £5 gifts chosen to match their personalities were a success Muvva gave me a pair of rubber gloves :j--I can't wear the flock lined type & these cost £1:53 a pair :eek:--& a piece of pretty pink paper with the queen's noggin on :rotfl:& strict instructions to get meself a new nightie.

Exercise yesterday was a brisk walk; must be getting fitter as didn't need my inhaler when I got to the top of muvva's two flights of stairs :T or perhaps I'm gathering muscle memory from all the up & down to the bins :undecided with the rubbish!

There's a very good chance we can source enough grub to feed muvva & I till after Weds of next week, including The Offspring coming over for a roast on NYDay. The sprouts & parsnips we had crimbly were not pleasant at all so frozen veg will be better received this time, & I had already got a bag of 'special' with bits of peppers & things added to the usual mxd veg a couple of weeks back that will help make it a bit different.

I could be pet-sitting at my home NYE, or else I doubt very much that muvva & I will even be awake at midnight to It wouldn't be with anything exciting if we do stay up, probably a cup of tea or a splash of diet lemonade :rotfl:

I hope you've managed to avoid the worst of the weather & had a warm, dry & stress free celebration, to get us in the mood for more of the same in the coming year x

WantToBeSE

Yay, Januarys challenge is up!

NinjaSavingKat

Well good day to you all DDD'ers. The end is nigh, I am back in not-so-sunny London and cooking up a mismatched storm in my kitchen. I am bathed after a horrible journey home yesterday ( got in at 0100 ) and am prepping my food for tonight's night shift.. Not very difficult they are but I have to tank up the beast in order to get there.

So a culmination of my cupboards gives me the following..

• 1.5kg Red Lentils.
• Two Potatoes
• 1 Red Onion
• 2 portions of Udon noodles
• 6 Tesco Meatless Pieces ( Like Quorn )
• 2 Slices of bread ( Whoop! )
• 0.5kg of Porridge Oats.
• 3 x Sainburies Basic Pasta Shells in Sauce
• A small tin of corn
• 3 home made jars of red onion chutney
• 3 cans of Tesco Value Baked Beans
• ...and a fat tabbby who insists on sitting inside my cupboards as soon as the doors are opened.
• ...Oh and 200g of Cheese!

One must come up with something interesting to last until pay-day on Monday!

• Porridge for breakfast with apricot jam and TEA!!
• SOOOO the onion, corn, quorn, pasta shells, ( squeeze of tomato paste ) shall go in one pot and get baked with cheese on top. ( 3-4 Meals )
• The potatoes will be made into home-made wedges with LOTS of herbs, chilli flakes and crusty savoury rust (bought and stashed since March ), With baked Beans ( 2 Meals )
• Remainder beans on toast ( 1 Meal )

But alas - it seems one must painstakingly work through a 1.5kg remainder of ice-cream in the freezer! I shan't don't worry - thats piggy-ness right there..

So there you have it.... My existance shall be encompassed by this for the next few days. I MUST shop on Monday for food or get a delivery as I am out at a fete all day on New Years Day and back to work on the Wednesday....

Anyone else feeling the pull to stay in on Monday night and watch TV...?

Onwards and Upwards!

wishing_my_life_away

Hi everyone- hope every one has had a good christmas and is looking forward to the new year.

Sorry I haven't been posting this month- this is due to working and spending time with family and christmas in general!!

While I haven't managed to keep track of the NSD I have kept track of the budget on general spends and food too. I've managed to come in under the allocated budget as I'm definitely considering every penny I am spending. So coming out of christmas with money left is definitely a bonus.

I've just spied the january challenge courtesy of Kat so I'll take a look at that and see if this could be a goer.

Kat- just wanted to say that since doing the challenges it has focused my motivation to clear the debt rather than keep making minimum payments. So thank you for keeping these going and providing inspiration and motivation.

Happy new year everyone- wishing you all the best xx

PurpleJay

Hello people, hope you are all well and warm. It is chilly and rainy here so we have been tidying up, vegging out and planning how to make money

Just signed up to the Jan challenge and updated my sig. Good job Kat :money:

I need to do an inventory of food and then do a food shop. Probably tomorrow now. Couldn't be bothered to go out in the cold today and the shops were probably full of people going mad again! We didn't need much. Hubby went out for bread and paper. I made a batch of pasta sauce earlier so we have enough for a meal tomorrow and one in the freezer.

I do need to spend my £30 Morrisons voucher by 31st though so tomorrow or Monday will be a food shop. Going to stock up on cat food and litter and top up with milk, fruit, veg, baked beans and brown sauce. I am sure I will buy more but can't think what else we need at the moment.

Today is not a NSD. Hubby and I are off to the pub :j

Our son (age 6) is going for his first ever sleepover at a friends house so we have been let out so to speak. We are going to rock night and meeting up with some good friends so we are really looking forward to it. We don't get out much without M. As a rule we don't bother with babysitters so we tend to go out for tea as a family instead.

Anyway, better get ready - going to drop him off soon. He is soooo excited!!! Enjoy your evenings.

gelmc

PurpleJay... thanks for your advice. I think my auras are hormonal, stress related and linked to light sensitivity. Thanks for sharing your experience x

liltdiddylilt... sounds like you had a tough time with it when you were little. If I think back I remember having it once or twice before around puberty. I don't loose my peripheral vision but get zig zags and black spots in my vision but lying down in a darkened room seemed to halt the vision disturbances this time. Last time it happened, I got in the car and drove for 5 mins back to mine - crazy. Again thanks for sharing your experience x

KAT I have got a Drs appointment sorted for next week so will hopefully find out more then.

Well also have to confess I've been to the sales and not done well at all this month. I've been soft on myself as I know I'm gonna be strict de la strict the first quarter of the year so I can become a homeowner, at last!

p0lly

Hello I am back I have not been keeping up with thread or number of NSDs. I have had flu and been feeling dreadful. I managed to be well for Christmas and had a quiet one. Will be signing up for January. I have big plans for 2013 p0lly x

Kerfuffle

Hi everybody,

I thought I would just give an update to how well I've done during December.

I have managed:-
19 NSD
1 x 20 minute session of exercise - ie a boogie around the living room ONCE during the whole month.
Food budget was exceeded.
I had some unplanned spends.
I had a chinese meal in the food court.
I do keep money in jars instead of envelopes.
The 3 wildcard days didn't apply.
I donated a food parcel to the Sally Army.
I didn't have any beauty spends.
I didn't buy any beer.
I stuck to my petrol allowance, I suspect my hubby didn't but I won't know for sure until the credit card bill comes.
I've been eating out of the store cupboards and freezer as much as is feasibly possible for December.
I didn't call 5 friends/family members etc and tell them I wasn't buying gifts this year as I don't actually buy that many anyway.
I didn't enter into a secret Santa.
I have baked goodies instead of buying biscuits and junk, and have reduced the amount of chocolates brought into the house prior to Christmas.
I didn't down-shift to supermarket own brand as I have already done this.(With one or two exceptions).
I haven't been to any sales.
My spending diary was a bit hit and miss but I could probably complete it as I have all my receipts.

So that's me
9 x Passes
5 x Fails
3 x Not Applicable
1 x Debatable

Food 27.62 / 50.00 (for 2 people)
Petrol 48.66 /105.00 (2 vehicles)
Christmas Food 20.66 / 30.00
Christmas presents 49.77 / 50.00
Unplanned spend 4.00 (Chinese lunch in the food court)
Unplanned spends 6.66 (Dentist)
Unplanned spends 18.41 (cards/ envelopes/photos/wrapping paper/bulb)
Unplanned-planned spend 27.86 (Post Office)
Planned spend 40.00 including Christmas tip (Hairdresser)
NSD 19 / 20
SD 9 / 11

I'm very happy with the outcome, this challenge has really helped me to keep focus.

Thanks NSK for setting and organizing the thread, and to everybody who has contributed.

I'll see you over on the January thread.

PS I'm babysitting on Monday night, so the lure of the TV might not be strong enough to tempt me away from my gorgeous grandson.

PPS. Sorry this post was so long.

NinjaSavingKat

Well now... nearing the end of DDD and I think we all survived. Just about!

I would like to let you all off tomorrow in order to do something last minute or on the cheap for NYE. I am not sure if you all have something planned - I do not - but I think at least treat yourself to a pizza or a take out if you are staying in. 2013 is very exciting and I want you all to start on a HIGH note.

SO if you WANT go get something nice... my treat might consist of a cheapo bottle of Shloer ( like I didn't get enough over Christmas ) and a bath bomb!

My landlady's washing machine is not working so I might have to spend tomorrow in the laundrette washing the mounds of laundry I have.. not looking forward to that although smaller garments might get done at home in the sink to save money.

Today and yesterday mark my 20 NSD total so I am not to worried about tomorrow although I only have a few pennies that I need to stretch out.

Kerfuffle - what a wicked post. I love how indepth you have been and am impressed with your successes! Thank you for you contributions and I will see you on the JBFF thread! :T

Polly come to my own thread and tell me about these plans for 2013. There are big numbers being pushed around over there and it would be great to have another fighter ready to hit it hard!! Looking forward to your contributions on the JBFF thread... it will be FUN!!

GelMC - I am glad you got the Drs booked... and I chuckled a little at you possibly running around looking for another pair of boots.. but I know you have massive plans for 2013 and I am SO excited for you. You know you have the same dream as I do ( to live in your own house ) and I have everything crossed for you... what about that MA?

Wishing - SO SO impressed with you coming out of Christmas with money left over! NSD counts are the least important when you an pull yourself trough the holiday period and stay under budget as you have - this is amazing work!! Hopefully see you in January....

PurpleJay - how was your evening out? I am hitting the shops on Monday as well for food so I think you should get yourself a treat to eat.. are you staying in for NYE?... How did the sleep over go for your little one - they can be frightening first time round being away from Mummy...hope he had fun though!!!

BigMammaF - your NYE evening sounds like mine. Nice and quiet!!! You seem to have done really well considering how many you feed and look after! You are impressive!! A new nightie is just what is in order for a nice night in... I might be tempted myself....:p..and a massive 21 NSD's.. excellent job I say!!!

nannygladys

Hi everyone, well I have racked up another nsd today, but not sure about tomorrow, so not sure if I will hit the 20 or not, but this challange has really helped me understand where the odd couple of pounds are being spent without realising it, its so easy to put your hand in your purse because you cant wait until you get home to make a coffee or butty:)


So thanks Kat for this thread, my exercise has increased but not by the amount you requested, but I dont think the weather helped, as being one of the older generation dancing around the front room comes with its own complications:rotfl: I havent spent of toileteries, or booze havent spent too much at all considering its Xmas and yes I did get some money my DDs for Xmas food, so that was good. I have joined the January challange and I will sit down on 2/1/13 to redo my budgets - sorry its a couple of days late but still have DD staying with me and she doesnt know about my debts:o but I will be having nsd's and a budget of 2.00 a day for food that much I do know.

Anyway everyone enjoy the New Year celebrations tomorrow night and lets hope we can bust some debt in 2013:T

Jxx