The October Awakening!

NinjaSavingKat

fyggy wrote: »

This will be my 3rd month of NSK's money saving, life addressing and fabby MSE community challenges, so again, thank you to the focused Kat :T..... My pleasure...

NSK- Re gyms. ........Am currently at my local leisure centre and use it with a girlfriend. She wants to learn to swim with me and we chitter chatter in the steam room together and she is my MSE soundboard - she is a saver not a debtor - and I kinda feel guilty leaving her. The new on "Pure Gym" has a new introductory offer of £12.99 per month, £15 joining fee. Neither place has a contract and I can cancel anytime.... Hmmmm think I need to go an see it! Expecially since it is open 24/7.

Debts. Totalling £997.67 in debt repayments Wowsers - this is amazing!!

Spreadsheet- I keep all receipts piles of them! ....... as I'm an iP.ader. I want an Ipad.. really do. With 3G so I can MSE from anywhere...and check up on you all.. lol! The app sounds amazing.. I am a little envious! Reciept collation is truly MSE - very proud. lol!

Food- I start my budgets from the 27th .........has been reduced to £100. £100 for two people for the month..??

Cupboards- .......We're low on things like Quorn though,
......only buy it when it's on offer!.... Same. bean living on black beans for a month!

Misc- Each week I give DH money for him to spend as he wishes. ....... Are you in control of his wages as well. As in you take them off him then give him an allowance? I want a compliant OH or an MSE'er.. a girl can dream....:rotfl:

Planned outings/outgoings-

5th- Football game at Anfield. ......A girly football lover... oh no! ...(Kidding).. I like this approach to keeping yourself sane with hobbies. There is an MSE way to everything. Very cool!

9th......I am just going for the day. . Now this is exactly what I would do! Not to mention the ticket price!

19th-20th- ........watch the UK Bodybuilding & Fitness Federation (UKBFF) championship finals which is taking place in the town she lives in. Jealous. A colleague had entered so I was going to watch - he has done his back in so I bailed too.

24th- DH has to go back for a filling re-doing. I have so far recieved roughly £2000 of free dental work by going to a student college in London. I have "soft teeth" apparently so two fillings replaced, a crown fitted, a root canal prep and another crown tomorrow. The students have a dentist and a senior consultant watching them so are even more critical than your average dentist as they are scrutinised every step of the way...

Other things to pay for: Our diving gear is over a year old and so needs servicing- I concur servicing is a must... glug glug... I had an 8mm for snorkelling off the coast of Ireland. Still nearly froze to death...; - )

I cut and paste so I could comment on the most impressive bits that stood out to me.. and the bits that got me excited... seriously love this post. Don't ever apologise for posting this long - if you want to tell us EVERYTHING then please do.. the more the better... I like getting an idea of a persons life....

NinjaSavingKat

PrincessLou wrote: »

Oooh please can I join? :j

First time I've seen this thread but I love the idea of a fresh start for October! The rules are great - particularly the one about donating to the foodbank as I've been wanting to do this for ages.

Yes you may...:p

thriftylass

Thanks xJOJOx now I am in the mood for a cookathon (OH is away tonight). During my lunch break went mentally through my cupboards and the freezer to think of other cheap meals/work lunches I can prepare to freeze down. I got some HM chicken stock and frozen veg, grains etc --> scothch broth type soup. Lentils, bacon, onion, spices --> curried lentil soup. Depending on space in the freezer I think of some more and might get lunches for every day of October out of it.

NinjaSavingKat

Thrifty I am there with you.. need to eek out 3-4 days of foodage from what in my cupboads. It's gonna be HARD as I am running low on everything... any chance of pictures on Facebook (only if you want - or here actually)... I love to see peoples creations...

thriftylass

NinjaSavingKat wrote: »

Thrifty I am there with you.. need to eek out 3-4 days of foodage from what in my cupboads. It's gonna be HARD as I am running low on everything... any chance of pictures on Facebook (only if you want - or here actually)... I love to see peoples creations...

Pictures, added to my list, te hee

[IMG][/img]

Oh and btw, that's 5 doors done now. If I keep going like that I struggle to finish it by christmas :eek:

[IMG][/img]

Oh and just realised I spend £12 less on food than thought as I mixed up Sept and Oct and my account showed £12 more than my spread sheet.

Siouxsie32

NinjaSavingKat wrote: »

Hahahahahaha! I nearly added your name despite your absence but thought I best not be too presumptious... you may have had enough of us. You are in Siouxsie32 don't you worry... Full report when you get back please... I think the newbies will be interested in your "money finds" and "epic spreadsheeting".... :p:p

Ha ha, I tried to telepathically tell you a few days ago to do just that :rotfl:

hollieinbloom

My nut roast recipe:

2 onions chopped
2 carrots grated
approx 4-5 chopped mushrooms
mixed chopped nuts
cashew nuts chopped
5 fld oz rice
10 fld oz water
bread crumbs (i usually chop up 3-4 slices of bread into 1cm pieces instead as it gives it a better texture)
2 tsp parsley
2 tsp sage
1 tsp celery seeds
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp marmite melted into 2fld oz of boiling water
2 eggs.
Sunflower seeds for topping

Measure in a jug, 5 fld oz of rice and add to saucepan. Mix in 2 tbsp of oil and turn on the heat. Add 10 fld oz of boiling water and cook until liquid has gone.

Put chopped onions, mushrooms and nuts into a frying pan and fry off until starting to brown and add the grated carrot. Add the herbs to the pan and soy sauce and mix well.

In a mixing bowl, add bread and rice and mix well and add the mixture from the frying pan. Pour in the melted marmite and mix. Mix in two eggs to combine and put it into a baking tin. You can either use a loaf tin or I use a brownie tin. Sprinkle on some sunflower seeds. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes at 180 or until the top is browning nicely. Once cooled slightly, cut into pieces and serve!

It seems like a lot of ingredients but I always have everything in except the mushrooms. The nuts etc I get in morrisons when I know I'm running low as this nut roast is a must in our house, I eat it cold most of the time.:):)

xJOJOx_2

Ive spent all morning budgeting, deciding what birthday present to buy for dd. Sorted mother in law having eldest daughter while I go town (less stress means less spending) holiday money ready to be paid off balance. All inbetween baby crying every two mins, finally after 4 hours get her settled and all ready to go......no pram, the oh forget to take out of the car!! Now im stuck in wanting to do stuff, I refuse to pay taxi fares and I wouldn't be able to carry anything with baby in hands anyway. Really wanted everything done today! Asked him to try and get home early so he can drop me off before town closes, but I doubt he - he ALWAYS works late when I want to do something, every other day he finishes at 3!!! lol Good job I love him

Bonus for the day, friend from work turned up (whilst peeling potatoes) threw my peeling into fryer added cheese and turned into the most delicious snack. Why have I never done this before?

Will update if I manage to get to town, if not its a nsp!

lilian1977

Thanks for the recipe Hollie, sounds yum.

Just found an offer for a "free cookbook" on Gourmandize - it's not actually a cookbook, you add your recipes then you can get them sent to you as a book! So I have added my 10 favourite cheap meals and intend to order a little book to sit in my kitchen so I have them to hand on poor weeks. Doesn't seem to be working at the moment though.

thriftylass

lilian1977 wrote: »

Thanks for the recipe Hollie, sounds yum.

Just found an offer for a "free cookbook" on Gourmandize - it's not actually a cookbook, you add your recipes then you can get them sent to you as a book! So I have added my 10 favourite cheap meals and intend to order a little book to sit in my kitchen so I have them to hand on poor weeks. Doesn't seem to be working at the moment though.

Oh, I might have one of them (or see if there are similar offers) made for my mum for christmas with family recipes.