The "Just Keep Swimming" July NSD Thread

getting-there-slowly

1st NSD for me yesterday. Its raining here in Devon so that will prevent a lunch hour potter around the shops! when Im supposed to be walking off my lunch

lilian1977

Spend day for me, argh. Wanted to buy The Social Network on DVD, found it for 60p + p&p on Amazon, bought it then remembered! Boooo Never mind. Tomorrow is another day!

EDIT - no it's not! Just had a refund through from a previous order on Amazon so am paying that into the same account to cover the cost! Hoorah! 1st NSD!

hanb

The C word already:eek::eek::eek: Oh dear!!

Hello all :wave:

July already? Scary stuff.

I only just managed my last target and with a couple of weekends away planned for this month I think I'm going to stick to 7 NSD's for July!

Thanks to all of you for keeping this thread going Happy Tuesday to everyone and good luck for the July challenge!

zenshi

If I put my subs for dog training in a pot yesterday, does that mean when I go weekly, they will not count as a spendy day?!

IF

Morning all :hello:

Nargleblast

[STRIKE][/STRIKE]Well here I am, in the parlour at Chateau Nargle, having a well-earned rest with tea and fairy cakes before getting ready to go on the July NSD hunt. The first few and last few days of the month are always spendy ones, then things quieten down a bit and the NSDs are lulled into a false sense of security. Must get Igor to clean out the Cauldron of Doom, there are already a few NSDs waiting to climb in there.... I wonder what he does with the 400 or so NSDs at the end of the month? He's always quite secretive about that.....suggestions on a postcard, please......

Re the forbidden C word. Or X word, if you are a hopeless consumer-obsessed philistine. On the Moneysaving Old Style forum somewhere is a thread about Preparations for Christmas 2013 - worth a look for ideas and to commune with other such [STRIKE]saddos[/STRIKE] sorry well-prepared people....

liltdiddylilt

Hi everybody

Sorry I didn't check back in yesterday! I had NSD #1 but as DD had her 1 year old jabs ( 3 lots, my poor little pin cushion!) she was not a happy bean in the afternoon & kept waking up scalding hot all night which was quite frightening. She seemed perkier this morning but has gone downhill & has been tucked up in bed for the last hour and a bit

I will check back in as to whether today is number 2 or not as I am really not sure what the heck I am going to do for the next 3 days of work lunches... I cannot live on boiled eggs alone...:rotfl:

Hope you're all ok, have a good afternoon!!

ModestyB

NSD 2 claimed for today. Resisted DD's attempts to lead me astray and go to a well known warehouse/shop.

HeadAboveWater

Spendy day but have stocked up my work drawer with junk food

IF

Hiya all and welcome to July's NSD thread :hello:
Could we please ask you to highlight your number of NSDs in a colour and in bold so that Freeby, Spoon, Marmite, Cheryl and Sazzie can see them easily when they whizz through the posts - red would be best but they don't really mind as long as they can see the numbers easily.


Some helpful suggestions and ideas to follow below from our sponsor and godmother, BigMummaF :A

NO SPEND CHALLENGE.

1. Have a good, long think about what YOU want to include in your Spend & Excluded categories.
Some of us count everything from Direct Debits & school expenses, while others do not include things like essential Bills or emergency medical costs. If you plan what is or is not a Spend for you now, it will help you decide on a realistic Target.
2. It is NOT a race!
We all have very different demands on our time & bank balance, so please do not think you have to buy everything on 1st January & make it last till 31st December! A few of us have been following this Challenge for a long...long...LONG time so have developed plans & ploys to help us along the way
3. Most important of all, WE..DO..NOT..FAIL!
Sometimes we can't quite reach our Target, but that is fine Everyone knows how Life will try to trip us up, & that is when you will find us here to help you back on to your feet.

OK, an idea of how some of us do things.
1. What you will or will not include as a 'Spend'.
Some people are doing other challenges too, & don't include the money spent on those for this one.
Some will try to shop for other bits on the days their direct debits etc go out of their bank accounts; they're the real hard core of the bunch & have been l-o-n-g time Nsders so don't panic
Some won't count those annoying last minute demands from school & collections as you can't plan for them in advance, likewise emergency prescriptions or visits to the vet
Personally speaking & providing I don't buy anything else, I don't count parking for hospital appointments.(..but then I usually do my shopping because I'm already out :whistle:)
General thoughts on €bay sales is the buyer has paid P&P so no cost to you
2. It takes Time to reach mega-numbers!
The First suggestion is the first, because a bit of planning will work wonders on your road to your Target. Have a look at thefirst posts each month for a hefty list of other threads that may be of help. For example, there's a few giving ideas for packed lunches so you can avoid standing in the queue at the bakers for 45mins of your lunch hour! A good incentive to tweak your healthy eating & the pounds you save will show in your bank balance AND your waistline
It helps to have various 'money pots' for the different costs that happen like Scouts, dinner money, yoga, window cleaner etc etc. The idea is you "spend" all that money in one hit by..:think:..let's say **putting the week's bus fares into the pretty coffee jar, Jo's tumble tots SIZE=2]Weds mornings[/SIZE in the cracked teapot & Ben's £1 coin for the gym locker SIZE=2]Friday lunch[/SIZE in the pocket of the changing bag, on Tuesdays every week when you've got some change from doing the food shop, so an already spendy day. At least four 'spending days' condensed into one (**mine's jam jars for windows, milkman & a bit towards the bills!)
3. Any day the money stays in your pocket is a bonus!
If you look at it as a day you beat the system, you can't help but :j so don't fret it--ENJOY! If nothing else in here, we do manage find something to make us smile

We have virtual outings to wonderful places that never cost us a bean :rotfl:New York, Edinburgh & Brighton have been a couple & Spoon usually pilots the Tardis but you can use your own transport; my personal favourite has been a sit-on lawn mower borrowed from the cricket club The only thing to be aware of is Hubert the donkey who is partial to anything remotely edible but is not yet house-trained

And Remember;
there are no silly questions, so don't be afraid to ask us anything!